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DND chief slams Makabayan Wants party-list bloc delisted for acting as communists’ legal fronts

By Rio N. Araja

EFENSE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana insisted Sunday that leftist lawmakers belonging to the Makabayan bloc should be removed from the House of Representatives, saying their presence in Congress strengthens the communist rebels.

In an interview over Dobol B sa News TV, Lorenzana said one way of removing the lawmakers was to have their party-lists disqualified in the next elections. “You know their history. They have done nothing but criticize the government. While they are there, the communist rebels have grown stronger,” he said in Filipino. “Because they are legal fronts, they have legal cover,” he said. Lorenzana challenged the Makabayan Bloc members to denounce the activities of the communist rebels, which he said they did not do. “Nothing happened. They were silent. That means they are part of it (the communist rebellion). We're turning a blind eye, but they are part of it,” he said. The Makabayan bloc on Sunday maintained that there is no evidence linking them to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate said their refusal to renounce armed struggle did not make them members of the CPP. Next page

WORLD ROUNDUP

US vaccine set to be injected into millions

RIGHTS DAY. Militant groups march to Mendiola St. corner Recto Ave. during a protest rally denouncing human rights abuses, red-tagging on activists and the anti-terrorism law in a move marking the International Human Rights Day in this file photo dated Dec. 10, 2020. Norman Cruz VOL. XXXIV • NO. 283• 2 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Virus infection rate rising but reversible, OCTA says By Willie Casas, Rio Araja and Macon Ramos-Araneta

LOCAL ROUNDUP

THE University of the Philippines-OCTA As of Dec. 11, the reproduction rate Research Team on Sunday said the re- was at 0.99, a member of the team, Guido production rate of the novel coronavirus David, told GMA News, adding that it causing COVID-19 continued to go up in would be above 1 in one to two days. the National Capital Region. The reproduction rate is the average

THE Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine was set to begin leaving the company's Michigan factory on Sunday, ready to be injected into the arms of millions of the most vulnerable Americans as the global death toll approached 1.6 million. Doses will be shipped out in boxes containing dry ice that are capable of staying at -70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees Fahrenheit), the frigid temperature needed to preserve the drug. General Gus Perna, who is overseeing the massive logistical operation as part of the government's Operation Warp Speed, likened the moment to D-Day, a turning point of World War II. "I am absolutely 100 percent confident that we are going to distribute safely, this precious commodity, this vaccine, needed to defeat the enemy COVID," he told reporters. The imminent start of the mass vaccination campaign in the world's hardest-hit country came as Italy overtook Britain as the European nation with the highest coronavirus death toll. Next page

number of people infected by one person in a susceptible population, according to the World Health Organization. From 0.90 on Dec. 1, NCR’s coronavirus reproduction number hit 0.94 on Dec. 5, then reached 0.96 on Dec. 10, the OCTA Research said. It was 0.88 last November, the report said. Next page

AT A GLANCE

(AS OF 4 PM DEC. 13)

449,400 TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES

EMERGENCY USE. A bottle reading "Vaccine Covid-19" is pictured next to US pharmaceutical company Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech logos. An expert committee convened by the US Food and Drug Administration on December 10, 2020, voted heavily in favor of recommending the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use approval. AFP

1,085 21,980 NEW

8,733 DEATHS

ACTIVE

NEW

418,687 9,269 RECOVERIES

NEW

Unioil warns of pump price hike: 60c/liter By Alena Mae S. Flores

House ready for extended session By Rio N. Araja CONGRESS is expected to approve on third and final reading before adjourning this week for Christmas two bills seeking to extend the validity of the P4.1- trillion 2020 national budget until December next year and the appropriations under the P165.5-billion Bayanihan to Recover as One Act until June 30, 2021.

BALLERINA'S BUBBLE.

SESSION EXTENSION. House Majority Leader and Committee on Rules Chairman Rep. Martin Romualdez (left) and House Speaker Lord Alan Velasco plan to extend the House session until Friday instead of adjourning this Wednesday if President Rodrigo Duterte will not certify as urgent a substitute measure on the five bills that the committtee on appropriations chaired by Rep. Eric Yap approved last Friday extending the life of Bayanihan 2 until June 30,2021. Ver Noveno

COVID-19 PH

A ballet dancer poses in a giant plastic bubble as she entertains Christmas shoppers in Melbourne on December 13, 2020. AFP

The House of Representatives will pass on third and final reading House Bill 6656 amending Republic Act 11465, or the General Appropriations Act of Fiscal Year 2020, to extend its life until December 2021 to cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. It may extend its session until Friday, instead of adjourning this Wednesday if Next page

CONSUMERS may expect higher pump prices this week, and by as much as P0.60 per liter, to reflect the movement of prices in the world oil market. “Expect fuel prices to go up next week (Dec. 15 to 21, 2020). Diesel should increase by P0.60 per liter. Gasoline should increase by P0.50 to P0.60 per liter,” Unioil Philippines said in an advisory. World oil prices trended higher last week, buoyed by optimism over the vaccine rollout that could bring back economic recovery. Higher demand from Asia also boosted world oil prices. On Dec. 8, the oil firms also raised pump prices by P0.25 per liter, diesel by P0.40 per liter and kerosene P0.60 per liter. These resulted in the year-to-date adjustments to stand at a net decrease of P3.22 per liter of gasoline, P7.36 per liter of diesel and P10.59 per liter of kerosene, according to the Department to Energy. Meanwhile, over P800,000 worth of illegally-refilled Solane cylinders were confiscated following a series of raids in parts of Isabela, Metro Manila and nearby regions and Cebu recently. According to the raid reports conducted from January to September this year, there were more than 200 Solane cylinders that were either Next page

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

News

PAGCOR builds two evac centers

EGAZPI CITY—Barely a month after a series of destructive typhoons lashed the Bicol Region, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation bankrolled the construction of two multi-purpose evacuation centers here to help ease the impact of calamities in the province. The two evacuation centers, which will be built in Homapon village in Legazpi City and Tomolin village in Ligao, Albay, each received a P50-million funding from PAGCOR. Each typhoon-resilient evacuation center will have two floors with complete facilities, room for goods and a spacious badminton-type area on the second floor. During the groundbreaking ceremony of the two facilities on Dec. 11, PAGCOR President and Chief Operating Officer Alfredo Lim underscored the importance of having permanent evacuation centers in the Bicol Region since

it was one of the most typhoon-prone areas in the country. “While Bicolanos are used to these typhoons including the damages to people and property, it has become evident in the past years that typhoons are becoming increasingly powerful and the people are becoming more vulnerable,” Lim said. He says every time there is a strong typhoon, many locals are brought to packed public school buildings turned into evacuation centers, causing the disruption of classes for several days or weeks. “Through the MPEC project, many locals in vulnerable communities who could not afford to build typhoon-resil-

ient houses will have a decent place to go to. This permanent evacuation center could help save lives whenever disasters strike,” Lim said. Meanwhile, Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal, who graced the groundbreaking ceremony in Homapon, expressed his gratitude to PAGCOR for including their city in the priority list of areas to receive an MPEC. “This evacuation center will be a great help to our city. Legazpi is not only located in the typhoon belt; it is also under the constant threat of volcanic eruption, flooding and landslides because Mayon Volcano remains to be an active volcano. This structure will help us mitigate the impact of disasters in the long term,” Rosal said. Ligao City Mayor Patricia GonzalezAlsua said the MPEC would help them address the needs of Ligao locals who needed to be transferred to safer grounds during typhoons or volcanic eruptions. “This PAGCOR MPEC is well-designed and has the technical require-

ments that are needed in an evacuation center. Sa ngayon kasi, kapag nag-evacuate kami, kadalasan sa mga residente ay nilalagay sa mga barangay hall at schools. There was even a time when the evacuees stayed in the evacuation centers for almost three months because of the Mayon Volcano eruption. So, ‘yung mga estudyante, hindi maibalik sa normal ang klase dahil may gumagamit sa classrooms nila,” she said. The MPECs to be built in Albay are part of the initial P2-billion allocation of PAGCOR for the construction of permanent evacuation centers nationwide. For the first tranche of the project, PAGCOR has approved 32 MPECs to be constructed in 31 sites. Apart from Albay, among the other areas to receive MPECs are Aurora, Batangas, Camarines Sur, Capiz, Ilocos Sur, Laguna, Mountain Province, Marikina, Northern Samar, Oriental Mindoro, Pampanga, Quezon, Romblon, Rizal, Southern Leyte, Tarlac and Zamboanga del Sur.

Unioil... From A1

emptied or repainted for illegal refilling. More than a hundred were from Metro Manila, particularly the cities of Taguig, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Rizal and Paranaque combined. Ninety-six were from Iligan and Santiago in Isabela and 42 were from Laguna. In a separate series of raids last November, an additional 47 tanks were seized in Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu and Cebu City. All in all, the value of the items confiscated including valves and vehicles amounted to P806,000. Of the confiscated tanks, some were genuine Solane cylinders but illegallyrefilled, which were spotted due to the fake seals used. In some cases, the tanks were repainted and counterfeiters attached a metal plate bearing an “ISLA LPG” sign to deceive customers. Solane urged consumers to keep an eye against fake LPGs and be extra mindful of which LPG brands to trust, where to find them and how they can verify their quality and authenticity.

DND... From A1

“While we work for social reforms through elections and legislation, we believe that as a matter of principle, we cannot condemn the people's option to armed struggle because we believe that it is a legitimate option of the people," he said. He said the belief in armed struggle as a legitimate option against oppression must not be treated as a crime. The right to political belief is protected under Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution, which states that "[n] o person shall be detained solely by rea-

Local... From A1

A value higher than 1 indicates the pandemic is spreading. Guido said the increase in the coronavirus reproduction rate in NCR could be attributed to the fact that more people are outside. "It looks like this is the increase due to the holiday mobility. The upward trend is real but it is not necessarily permanent and this trend is reversible," David said on Saturday. 1,085 new cases logged The Philippines logged 1,085 new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases on Sunday, bringing the total to 449,400 in the country, as nine laboratories failed to submit their data on time, the Department of Health reported. The DOH also reported 9,269 new recoveries as it implemented its weekly “mass recovery,” pushing the total num-

House... From A1

President Rodrigo Duterte will not certify as urgent a substitute measure to five bills that the House committee on appropriations, led by ACT-CIS party-list Rep. Eric Yap, approved last Friday extending the life of Bayanihan 2 until June 30, 2021. Meanwhile, Bagong Henerasyon party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera said Sunday the spending on social services got a significant boost in the final version of the P4.5-trillion national budget for 2021. The Senate and House of Representatives agreed to increase the budget of the Department of Social Welfare and Development by P3.669 billion, bringing its total budget to P176.66 billion under the 2021 General Appropriations Bill. “This is a testament to the Duterte administration’s strong commitment to empower and uplift the lives of the poor, the

(From left) PAGCOR’s Chief of Staff (for President and COO) Alberto Regino, Director Reynaldo Concordia, President and COO Alfredo Lim, Ligao City Mayor Patricia Gonzalez-Alsua, and Albay 3rd District Rep. Fernando Cabredo bury the time capsule containing the blueprint, newspaper of the day and other pertinent documents for the construction of the two-storey PAGCOR Multi-Purpose Evacuation Center in Brgy. Tomolin, Ligao City.

son of his political beliefs and aspirations,” he said. The Makabayan bloc said they are registered and elected under the lower chamber's party-list system. The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, an umbrella group of left-leaning organizations, said the burden of proof should not fall on the accused. "No organization is under any obligation to condemn the CPP-NPA just to prove their legality, in the same way no one is required to condemn illegal drugs just to prove one is not an addict," it said. Meanwhile, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año said local gov-

ernment units (LGUs) enjoy autonomy and are not stupid enough to support “the godless and obsolete ideology” of the Communist Party of the PhilippinesNew People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). He made the statement after the CPP said the government was forcing LGUs to declare the communists as persona non grata by threatening to withhold their budget. “Please do not insult the intelligence of our local government officials,” he said in a mix of Filipino and English. “They are not ignorant and they will not be dictated on to do something against their will. The truth is they know and are witness to CPP-NPA-NDF’s deception

in their areas.” The DILG earlier said a total of 1,546 LGUs nationwide have declared the CPP-NPA-NDF persona non grata in their localities. In response, the CPP released a statement saying that the LGUs were merely forced to pass the declaration on the threat that their budgets would be held up. Año dismissed the suggestion, saying the annual internal revenue allotment for LGUs is released and downloaded automatically to them in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. In 2020 alone, he said local governments received more than P640 billion in funds without a single complaint from the LGUs.

ber of Filipinos who recovered from the disease to 418,687, which is 93.2 percent of the total cases. Three more deaths were reported from the illness, bringing COVID-19’s death toll in the Philippines to 8,733, which is 1.94 percent of the total cases. This meant that the country has a total of 21,980 active cases as of 4 p.m. Sunday. This is 4.9 percent of the total cases. Of the active cases, 84.4 percent are mild; 5.8 percent are asymptomatic; 6.3 percent are critical; 3.2 percent are severe; and 0.33 percent are moderate. Quezon City reported the most new confirmed cases at 103. Rizal province had 46 new cases, while Makati had 44, Manila had 43, and Pasig had 39. Kids below 16 won't get jabs PARTY-LIST Rep. Mike Defensor on Sunday said Filipino children under 16 years of age will not be receiving any shots of the most promising COVID-19 vaccine that has already obtained emergency use authorizations (EUAs) in the

United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. “For now, the vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE cannot be used on individuals younger than 16 years old, based on our comprehensive review of the EUAs issued by pharmaceutical regulators in the three countries,” he said. “The use of the vaccine in pregnant women and mothers who are breastfeeding is also either totally not recommended, or being discouraged with stern warnings,” said Defensor, vice chairman of the House committee on health. De Lima bill seeks free COVID-19 shots Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has filed a measure providing free COVID-19 vaccines to all Filipinos and establishing a safe and efficient system of distribution and delivery. De Lima filed Senate Bill (SB) No. 1942, or the “Libreng Bakuna Kontra COVID-19 Para sa Lahat ng Pilipino Act,” which allocates funds and man-

dates the country’s health system to offer vaccines against COVID-19 free of charge. De Lima also said it cannot be overemphasized that vaccine coverage is as important as vaccine efficacy,” she added. De Lima recalled that the executive branch has reported about its continued negotiations with pharmaceutical companies for the supply of at least 14 specific COVID-19 vaccines for local use, but she said “its vaccination plan leaves much to be desired.” National Policy Against COVID-19 Chief Implementer, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said the country will now have to fight for the remaining percentage of future COVID-19 vaccine supplies as 80 percent of the global market had already been bought up by rich countries. However, De Lima said this should not be an excuse for a delayed response in securing vaccine supplies considering that new suppliers with equally good efficacy rates have emerged.

vulnerable and the disadvantaged, amid the Covid-19 pandemic,” Herrera said. Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and House Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez are among the principal sponsors of the two measures. “Unfortunately, the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic hit and has overwhelmed the country’s health service, disaster management facilities and information communications and technology infrastructure, among many others. Various community quarantines imposed by the national government to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19 had also hindered any economic activity and delayed the implementation of various governmental programs, projects, activities and services,” Romualdez said. In defending the extension of Bayanihan 2, Yap, one of the principal authors like Velasco and Romualdez, said the proposal would ensure consistent and efficient delivery of assistance to the Filipino people and help aid economic recovery.

World...

South Korea struggles through 3rd wave South Korea reported 1,030 new coronavirus cases Sunday, a record high for a second day in a row as the country struggles to tackle a third wave of infections. The country had previously been held up as a model of how to combat the pandemic, with the public largely following social distancing and other rules. But a resurgence centered on the capital and surrounding area has prompted President Moon Jae-in to apologiZe on Facebook for his administration's failure to contain the latest wave. On Saturday he called the situation "very grave" after authorities reported 950 new infections, the largest daily increase since the start of the pandemic. Saturday's record was broken on Sunday with 1,002 new locally transmitted cases, some 786 of which were uncovered in the greater Seoul area -- home to half the country's 52 million people. AFP

From A1

Germany eyes tougher measures German Chancellor Angela Merkel will hold crisis talks Sunday with regional leaders of Germany's 16 states to agree tougher curbs including the closure of shops ahead of Christmas, as coronavirus infections surge unabated. The drastic measures hitting shops other than those selling essential goods would be imposed from Wednesday until at least Jan. 10, according to a draft by Merkel's office. Schools could also be shuttered, sending pupils into homeschooling, while companies are requested to allow employees to work from home during the period. Bavaria state premier Markus Soeder, who has been pushing for tougher measures, voiced support for the measures.

PH nurse in UK attests: Pfizer vaccine safe By Willie Casas A FILIPINO nurse in the United Kingdom who was among the first to be vaccinated against COVID-19 said Sunday the vaccine was safe and properly researched. Leo Quijano, a nurse in Brighton, said he was inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine of Pfizer and BioNTech last Wednesday, the second day of the jab rollout in the UK. He said two other Filipinos received the vaccine ahead of him. Quijano said he experienced mild fever and mild muscle pain just like the side effect of any other vaccine, and took two days off work. "I did not feel anything during the jab. I stayed for 10 minutes to check if there was an immediate reaction. There was none. So I returned to work until 8 p.m. When I woke up the next day, the injection site felt heavy and was sore, which is a very common side effect, according to the leaflet," Quijano told ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo. "Don't be scared because the vaccine has been tested, it’s been researched, experimented. Many here have also been inoculated,” he said. Quijano said those who reportedly experienced allergic reactions after receiving the vaccine "have a history of allergy." He is due for a second dose of the vaccine on Dec. 30 as there is a minimum of 21 days or three weeks in between jabs. "There’s a proper screening before the vaccination. So far, nothing is happening to me aside from the mild side effects I've experienced," Quijano said. He urged those who have been inoculated to keep observing minimum health protocols. "There's no assurance because what they said, even seven days after the second injection, you’re not fully protected. So I believe we still need to keep the prevention that we're doing)," Quijano said. "Even though you've been vaccinated, probably the health measures are more likely to carry on... Prevention, prevention, prevention," stressed the nurse who got infected with COVID-19 in June but has recovered.

DOST warns: Syrups passed off as honey A DEPARTMENT of Science and Technology study revealed that most or 80 percent of honey products sold in markets contain sugar and corn syrups, which threatens the health of consumers and resulting in some P200 million loss to the local honey industry. The report published last Friday said the “fraudulent practice allows manufacturers to increase the volume of their products while reducing the production costs." According to Angel Bautista VII of DOST’s Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (DOST-PNRI), 72 of 76 brands were found to be composed of 95 percent C4 sugar syrup, while 12 out of 16 local brands sold in groceries or souvenir shops, and 64 of 74 local products sold online are not pure honey. “The problem is that people are being tricked. You may be buying honey for its wonderful health benefits, but because of adulteration, you may actually just be buying pure sugar syrup. Consuming too much pure sugar syrup can lead to harmful health effects,” he said. “Imagine, incomes that are supposed to be for our honest beekeepers and honey producers are being lost instead due to adulteration and fraud. This is affecting our local honey industry so badly that we estimate that they are losing P200 million per year." Bautista added that none of the 41 imported honey products being sold in local stores were found to be adulterated. Honey sold in markets should not have any food additives and other substances, according to the Philippine National Standard for Honey of the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards. The DOST added that substance added to honey products and the honey's source must be declared in its label. The agency has already forwarded its findings to the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration as it urged to incorporate isotope-based standards in the regulatory system, according to the report.

Opinion

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020 Adelle Chua, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

The outlier

ANOTHER budget season in Congress has passed. We await only the President’s signature on the appropriations bill that shall become law of the land. That law is both license to spend for 2021 and our economic program in pesos and centavos, in items and ﬁgures. One man, from the beginning of legislative deliberations until the end of the bicameral conference committee, had been a voice in the chorus of hallelujahs, pointing out and questioning slabs of “pork” in the interstices of the two-inch thick book submitted by the executive branch as the national expenditure program for the coming year. Next year’s general appropriations law was almost hijacked from legislative approval by a decapitation of the Speaker of the HoR and his replacement by earlier anointed, as sealed in a pacto de compromiso in Malacanang. The decapitation was so acrimonious, so ﬁlled with unseemly drama, replete with stabs in the back, but then again, what else could ever be new in the HoR?

Can Panfilo Lacson’s principled advocacies and consistent battles against pork and perks bring him to the highest office in the land? The Senate watched in undisguised nonchalance, unperturbed by the prospects of whoever their peers would choose to head them, because after all, every piece of legislation, while emanating from Quezon City would still require review and assent in Pasay. This separate locus of two co-equal chambers of a single legislature is unique. Since the old and majestic legislative building fronting Intramuros was retro-fitted to become part of our National Museum, the House held fort in the martial law-built Batasan while the Senate became a tenant of the GSIS in its massive headquarters overlooking Manila Bay from its Pasay side. The physical separation has also made legislation less of a joint undertaking, and more of a virtual swordplay between the two houses, as in a Montague and Capulet, restraining their animosity towards each other only for the singular afternoon in a year when they would listen to the “Doge de Verona” in his SONA, forcing the senators to troop to the cavernous hall in Quezon from their aerie in Pasay. One man from the Senate has his staff poring through the minutiae of the “president’s budget” as soon as it comes out of the presses of the Department of Budget to look for lump sum allocations and mysterious nomenclatures for expense items. Then, as it goes to the HoR where the previous Speaker and his trustees inserted their “pork” after “deliberations and consultations” with the line agencies submitting to injections of pork fat, that senator compares the slabs after a new Speaker gets elected— rather, anointed. Whereupon he discovers that the previous interstices have been “adjusted”, nay, sucked up, and into the vacuum, “new” slabs had been inserted. It is a rather tedious task which this solitary legislator seems to relish while his confreres do not bother. Media reports the pork, which the Supreme Court in another era “dis-authorized,” but somehow the legislators have managed, with the concupiscence of executive

EDITORIAL

agencies, to restore, given new names and new disguises. But for this senator, baboy is where pork is. And meanwhile, the solitary figure continues to pore at his magnifying glass, like a Sherlock Holmes which before his career re-incarnation as a senator he actually was, as chief of the national police. Year-in and year-out, he does this routine, and for his part, eschewed and abjures himself from slicing his own share of the bacon. His peers in both houses of Congress “hate” him for this, but for most part, simply babble rationalizations of “need” of constituencies, eventually forcing the tyranny of numbers in the bicameral conference committee where the by now three-inch thick book called GAB is submitted for sentencing, there to outvote their outlier. An outlier this senator is, indeed. When he headed the national police, he forbade “kotong,” or the daily petty graft that victimized street vendors, viajeros, tinderas, and practically anyone the officers of the law in blue uniforms fancied. Even if the practice had become lay of the land. He also refused to accept “intelihensya,” that queer term for a hefty bribe which jueteng operators who began their trade as far back as the time of the Spanish friars, would generously share among policemen, police officers, mayors, noisy councilors, congressmen and even senators, all the way up to the very top of the political totem pole. And when he became chief of the national police, he shuffled and placed in the “doghouse” police officers who partook of the intelihensya while having them investigated eventually to file charges. But then the commander-in-chief balked at this defiance of the lay of the land, and for months placed his chosen police chief in the doghouse as well. Meanwhile a device was fashioned to make legal what was illegal, as far as the numbers game mattered. A disgruntled jueteng lord from Ilocos Sur spilled the beans, and the rest is history. So as fate would have it, the outlier of a national police chief found himself in the Senate, where after learning the ropes quickly and after a baptism of fire from false and baseless charges manufactured by his nemesis in high places, he became a voice in the wilderness, once again an outlier. In 2004, just three years after he had achieved for the Philippine National Police recognition into glory from a notorious past, when the public approval ratings of the graft-ridden agency had reached historic highs, the outlier ran for president, against a powerful incumbent and a hugely popular movie star, without a political party, without a vice-president, and with only one senatorial candidate by his side in the hustings. Como Don Quixote y Sancho Panza. Though he lost the battle, the outlier won an impressive 11 percent of the national vote in a field of five candidates, even as the incumbent won a pyrrhic victory punctuated by telephone calls to a Comelec commissioner by the name of Garcillano, in a now historic episode in the life of this benighted land called Hello Garci. Since then, he had become a public figure admired and respected by those who value courage, character, competence and principle. But then again, are those who think and are willing to listen to reason in their choices of leaders not the rule, but rather the exceptions in the benighted land? Can Panfilo Lacson’s principled advocacies and consistent battles against pork and perks in high public offices bring him up to the highest office in the land once denied him? Those who know the man enough also know that he would rather fight the good fight, regardless of the odds, a seeming Don Quixote jousting against the windmills of evil, fighting the unbeatable foe, regardless of public approbation or disapproval from peers—outlier if need be—just to be consistent with what upon his graduation from the Philippine Military Academy in the Class of 1971, he vowed: “What is right must be kept right; what is wrong must be set right.”

More for others (First of three parts) TODAY I start my one year of service as National President of the Junior Chamber International Philippines. I would like to share my inaugural address delivered during my induction during the online JCI Philippines National Convention on December 13, 2020. Permit me tonight to begin by speaking from the heart. There was a time in my life when I thought I lost everything—my young life’s work of almost ten years, many of my friends that I considered family, my idealistic perception about what politics is and should be. The ﬁrst ten years of my young adult life, I was working for a political group, to which I gave my fullest commitment, giving up even my weekends and vacations so that not only will I get the work done, but because I believed it was

something worth doing. Then the reality of partisan politics hit me—when principle must bow to pragmatism—until it reached the point that I could no longer find it in my heart to carry on. Perhaps, I was just too young and naïve to think that politics would all be too rosy, and not without its own perfidies. So I made the decision to leave the group of which I was part for many years and with my resignation, almost overnight, my life turned upside down. It was the worst crisis in my life, that I thought it would be the beginning of the end. Honestly, at that point, I couldn’t even find a way out, and my only option, moving forward, was to simply drift through every minute, every hour of my every day. That was seven years ago when I lost almost every piece of faith in myself. Until the proverbial happened. When God closes a door, he opens a window. So did he. God brought new people into my life, and even better opportunities to pursue my passion for public service. It was then that I met our guest of honor, Cong. Martin G. Romualdez. He placed his confidence in me, at a time when I couldn’t even have faith in my own self. It was his vision for Eastern Visayas set me back on a

Paying back the right way

HERE is a very human tendency for people appointed to government positions to look favorably upon the person who put them in ofﬁce.

Imagine, thus, the shock of United States President Donald Trump when his three appointees to the US Supreme Court joined their six colleagues in deciding to throw out a petition from the state of Texas to overturn election results in four battleground states. Most of the world already knows that Mr. Trump lost to former Vice President Joseph Biden. But Trump himself has instigated an unprecedented attack, not only on the result of the election but on the democratic process itself, by saying that the election was attended by massive fraud. Unconvinced, all nine magistrates said Friday that Texas lacked standing to pursue the case and that it “has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another state conducts its elections.” A similar decision earlier in the

‘Gratefulness’ is the root of patronage. week shot down a similar attempt by Pennsylvania Republicans. In a tweet, Mr. Trump threw another tantrum: “The Supreme Court really let us down. No Wisdom! No Courage!” Mr. Trump might have asked, what went wrong with his appointees Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, who turned against him. It was in fact the gathering for the nomination of Coney Barrett at the Rose Garden in late September that was deemed the superspreader event that led to many attendees,

including Trump himself, to contract COVID-19. The answer is, nothing went wrong: The three did what was only right. From the moment they were sworn into ofﬁce, their loyalties were to the people and to the law, never to the person that appointed them. We have no way of knowing the justices’ motivations or predicting their future stand on other issues, but on this one, they did their country good. The practice of ‘utang na loob’ is also pronounced here in Philippine politics. It is deemed a virtue to be grateful to the person who gave you a break or opened the door for you to new opportunities. Unfortunately, this is also the root of patronage politics. While it is always good to recognize your roots and thank the people who helped you along the way, the best way you can repay them is to do the job well -- blind to personalities, politics and other persuasive factors. This is payback of a higher order, and the only genuine kind.

Digitalization is indispensable to recovery JUST four months after the eight-agency Joint Memorandum Circular cut bureaucratic red tape for telecommunications towers, the Anti-Red Tape Authority reported that 9,373 permits have been given to three telecommunications players. After being plagued with a long and expensive gauntlet of national and local government permits, it took a global pandemic to jolt our government to ﬁnally act on this problem which, through the decades, has become a bureaucratic monster of 32 permits that can delay one tower project from months, and according to my source in the tower business, can stop construction for more than a year. Before this joint memorandum, it was the DICT that sparked this push to streamline permitting processes when new guidelines for the common tower policy was released in August. When President Duterte signed the Bayanihan II last Friday, a provision proposed by Sen. Franklin Drilon has suspended the issuance of some requirements and permits for the construction of telecommunication towers over the next three years. For the telco industry and its stakeholders, that’s all of us, this is a rare but responsive policy reform and a uniquely welcome consequence of COVID-19. The transformative twist of this pandemic mess is that we now value the new reality of living in a digitally transformed way of life. I remember that since the e-commerce law was enacted 20 years ago, it was a bit of a struggle to convince a mostly analog-based country stubbornly comfortable with the conventional face to face and paper-based business transactions in brickand-mortar environments. Well, technology was quite different back then and not as ac-

God gave me better opportunities to pursue my passion for public service. course of working for our region’s development. That is how my involvement with Tingog party-list came to be. As I stand in front of you today, I am reminded of these difﬁcult times of the past. How a personal crisis shaped my character for the better. How compassion motivated me to make a commitment to put the good of others over my own. How the courage to move on inspired my own conﬁdence in the future. That is why, I would like to begin by expressing my thanks to Cong. Martin and of course, Cong. Yedda, for believing in me, and for putting faith in my capacities and aspirations. Not only have they given me their friendship, they have embraced me as

cessible as it is now. All those hard-wired systems have been overtaken by ﬁber and wireless broadband networks at bandwidth speeds that can deliver the richest content on demand. The Digital 2020 report of Hootsuite reported that as of January we have 173.2 million mobile connections which is equivalent to 158 percent of the total population. That means a substantial portion of our population are subscribed to two or more cell phone connections. The report also stated that 73 million internet users and Internet penetration is at 67 percent and growing fast.

Government must invest in this infrastructure. So, when the lockdowns stopped everything in March, when all these users were forced to use their cell phones and computers to go online all at the same time, our country’s telco networks, and online services could have crashed. But it didn’t. Sure, there were hiccups and congestion issues, very understandable, but here we are, getting more connected. We have come a long way from those land line/party line years of analog telephone services. Recent news reports have cited the National Telecommunications Commission represented by Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba cited Ookla results showing our internet speeds faster by 100 percent compared to past years. The same findings were reported by the latest Mobile Network Experience Report by independent mobile analytics firm Opensignal saying telecom subscribers in the Philippines saw significant improvements from the fourth quarter of 2018 and third quarter of 2020. The report also recognized Globe Telecom’s Mobile 4G availability which infamily. I could honestly say, that without them, this day may have never come, and for that, I can never be thankful enough. Around seven years ago, I also got invited to join JCI Philippines. Many of my friends were from JCI, and now I wonder what took them so long to invite me. Soon after, I became part of JCI Candahug Liberation—at first, I thought a JCI member was all I could ever be. If on my first day in JCI, someone told me I could be National President, I would have probably laughed at you. Tonight that joke is one me. This is why it humbles me to stand before you as the 2021 president of JCI Philippines and to accept the trust that you have placed in me and the rest of this year’s leadership team. I am not unmindful of the enormous responsibility that comes with it. There is never a moment when privilege comes, without a responsibility, and especially at this very challenging time, it is such as this opportunity to serve, that gives life even greater meaning. Full version at www.manilastandard. net

creased by 19.5 percentage points from 63.7 percent to 83.3 percent sustaining improvement for at least 10 consecutive quarters. Also, data average download speeds improved by 80.9 percent from 4.7 Mbps to 8.5 Mbps. Though critics consider these ﬁgures are average and not enough, it is fair to note that at 80-percent 4G availability provided by both Smart and Globe Telecom, we are not far from the global average of 86 percent. Commissioner Cordoba was on point in his recently published remarks pointing to the need for government spending for network infrastructure which is solely driven by the private sector in contrast to Thailand, Vietnam, and South Korea where government is leading these investments. True to their developmental nature and responding to the urgent demand for broadband services, the two telco giants are aggressively driving up their infrastructure spending to expand and upgrade services. In the culminating session of the Pilipinas Conference 2020 organized by the Stratbase Albert del Rosario Institute, Ayala Corporation Chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala so rightly declared that for all institutions, there is no recourse to resolve the crisis brought about by the coronavirus pandemic but through digitalization. I absolutely agree with Mr. Zobel de Ayala that we do not have a choice. This life-threatening virus that some historians say has already killed more Americans than World War I and Vietnam in even less than a year has profoundly disrupted every dimension of human existence. Cloud based technologies have enabled us with safe and efﬁcient connectivity to engage in all essential activities to survive, thrive and most certainly, indispensable in our recovery towards pre-pandemic prosperity. If the government’s vision is to deliver digital services to all, government must invest in our digital infrastructure.

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News DHUD arrests land scammers

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Velasco pushes coco levy fund

By Rio N. Araja

THE Department of Human Settlement and Urban Development and National Bureau of Investigation have arrested four real-estate scammers or the socalled “kolorums”in Cavite. Nabbed were Jo ana Marie Cruzada of Alfonso, Cavite; Joana Marie Viray, also of Alfonso; Felmarich Dagohoy of Taguig City, and Jovannie Cruz of Angat, Bulacan. The four were arrested during an entrapment operation set up by DHSUD and NBI at around 3 p.m. in Barangay Sucat, Alfonso last Friday. The suspects were involved in selling properties at Alta Vista without any certificate of registration and license to sell from DHSUD, a clear violation of existing laws. They claimed to be part of 1Premier Land Marketing Co, an alleged marketing arm of the developer of Alta Vista. However, 1Premier is not registered with DHSUD. Scammers in the real-estate industry are widely known as “kolorum” agents who operate without proper legal documents. DHSUD chief Eduardo dell Rosario said the successful operation shall serve as a reminder to all that the department, in close coordination with government law enforcement agencies, is relentless in its drive to protect the general public. “This is a big blow to real estate scammers, who prey on unsuspecting home buyers, and a huge boost to DHSUD’s ongoing intensified campaign against unscrupulous individuals operating in the real estate industry,” she said. “It shall serve as a stern warning to all. DHSUD, along with our partnerlaw enforcement agencies like the NBI, means business in our drive against scammers and we are committed in protecting the public from these sinister activities,” he added. He lauded DHSUD-Regional Office 4A, headed by Atty. Jeck Otero, and the NBI for the successful operation. He urged other DHSUD regional offices to intensify their respective drives against real-estate scammers. “Let me stress that we will not stop until these unscrupulous individuals in the real estate industry are arrested and put behind bars,” he vowed.

PEAKER Lord Allan Velasco expects the House of Representatives to pass on third and final reading a bill creating the coconut levy trust fund before its holiday break this week.

BRIDAL TANK. One of the armored personnel carriers of the Philippine Army’s 4th Mechanized Infantry Battalion that was converted into a wedding vehicle. A wedding ceremony was held for six military personnel of 4Mech and their partners on Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020 at the soldiers’ headquarters in Baloi, Lanao del Norte. Divina Suson

Angara sees better internet after DICT program By Macon Ramos-Araneta SENATOR Sonny Angara on Sunday said the country should begin to experience better internet connectivity even in remote and inaccessible areas once the Department of Information and Communications Technology completes the first phase of its National Broadband Program. Under the P4.5 trillion General Appropriations Bill that was ratified last Wednesday by Congress, Angara noted that the DICT’s budget for the NBP was doubled from the proposed P902.194 million in the National Expenditure Program to P1.9 billion. This is on top of the budget for the implementation of the free Wifi in public places and in the state universities and col-

leges programs of the DICT. “We need to really ramp up our internet infrastructure. It’s one of the needs of our country. When you talk about build, build, build, you don’t just look at roads, you don’t just look at buildings, but you also look at the actual internet infrastructure because that will provide greater investments,” Angara said. With bigger investments coming in to the country, Angara noted this will mean more higher paying jobs and more economic activity,” Angara added. He said there has always been a need for a fast, stable and reliable internet connection in the country but Angara said that this is even more urgent now because of the changing requirements of the people under the new normal.

HUMBLE SHELTER. A man converted his tricycle into a shelter place together with his dogs along Quezon Avenue in Quezon City yesterday. Joseph Muego

ACT solon slams DepEd’s K-to-12 program By Willie Casas ASSISTANT Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Representative France Castro slammed the Department of Education statement saying that teachers’ competence and commitment and medium of instruction are factors affecting the students learning ability. The solon said that the K to 12 congested curriculum is a failure and resulted to the dismal performance of Filipino grade 4 students among 58 participating countries in the recent international assessment in Math and Science proficiency. “DepEd’s incompetence immensely impacts teachers and students’ performance. The poor performance of Filipino students in Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2019 marks the failure of DepEd’s K to 12 program. Among the outputs of DepEd’s incompetence and haphazard implementation of so-called education reform is the curricu-

lum congestion, which compromises adequate teaching time and students’ deeper understanding. This is worsening under the case of blended learning scheme,” Castro said. The lawmaker said that the results of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2019 and Programme for International Student Assessment 2018 prove that K to 12 did not enhance the quality of basic education in the country. “How can we expect to perform well in global assessments if our government continues to turn a blind eye to the perennial problems of shortages in the basic education system? Inadequate funding starves the education sector of the requirements of personnel and for critical inputs in schools, degrades the quality of teaching and learning, and makes education more inaccessible. And DepEd under the Duterte administration keeps this up under the blended learning system. It’s no wonder that our students perform badly in 3Rs,” the progressive solon lamented.

Face-to-face transactions in government and the private sector, as well as in education has led to a greater demand for internet connectivity. The cost of internet subscriptions for the government alone is a huge amount but with the implementation of the NBP, the DICT promises to bring down the rates significantly. DICT claims that government will have access to cheaper and more reliable internet services that will reduce government spending on internet subscription once the first phase of the NBP is completed. The agency noted that government offices spend an average of P350 per Megabits per second (Mbps) of internet bandwidth a month.

“The passage of the bill would be a fitting Christmas gift to more than three million coconut farmers who stand to benefit from the proposed coco levy trust fund,” he said. Last Wednesday, the Velasco-led legislative chamber approved House Bill No. 8136, or the proposed Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act, on second reading. The measure was endorsed to the plenary by the House committee on agriculture and Food, chaired by Quezon Rep. Wilfredo Mark Enverga. It seeks to let the poor coconut farmers benefit from taxes collected from them decades ago, now about P76 billion in assets. Velasco said he could not agree more with the President on the need to establish a trust fund to ensure the welfare of coconut farmers and their families. “The establishment of the trust fund will ensure that the recovered coco levy funds will be used for the development of the coconut industry and to uplift the lives of coco farmers who are among the poorest in the country,” he said. Upon assumption as Speaker, he has made the coconut trust fund bill one of his priority measures. The bill is expected to benefit around 3.5 million coconut farmers from 68 coconut-producing provinces. Under the proposed legislation, the trust fund would be maintained for 99 years under the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan to be formulated by the Philippine Coconut Authority. The measure aims to increase the income of coconut farmers, alleviate poverty and promote social equity, and rehabilitate and modernize the industry toward farm productivity.

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

LGUs

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

LIFE CHANGING SKILLS

Filipino teens receive the gift of options from other teens

EENS at a local Regional Rehabilitation Center for Youth (RRCY) have seen their life opportunities improve as they learned computer coding through a program by Teach and Play, a teen-created initiative. After benefiting over 150 teens at a first RRCY, the program is rapidly being adopted by other RRCYs throughout the country, changing lives one teen at a time.

It all started in Tanauan, Leyte, last Christmas season after another typhoon hit, where a first group of 25 boys attended a coding class. The draw was a playful introduction to possibly learning skills or at the very least getting the boys acquainted and opening a window into the tech world. Computing language was not the biggest obstacle. It was the Waray dialect most familiar to the kids in Leyte and the lack of equipment and connectivity at the RRCY that combined with carceral rules to create a formidable challenge. Teach and Play was able to devise an example-based teaching method that could start from zero knowledge to gradually move participants up in the knowledge chain one building block at a time. Each block came with the reward of having mastered a small practical step in coding. For example, code makes objects on a screen move and come alive. It’s the realization that a machine can be taught through a succession of simple steps that particularly appealed to the boys: a sense of control in an otherwise powerless existence. The idea was teens teaching teens.

A vision built on the ruins of ‘Yolanda’

Teach and Play is the creation of eighteen-year-old Thaddeus Pompidou, a grandson of former Leyte Governor Kokoy Romualdez. He grew up in Paris and New York City, but every year he visited his Lolo’s hometown for the Holidays. Thaddeus and his cousins and siblings would help distribute relief goods and holiday presents such as toys school supplies, sports, and music equipment in different barangays. A highlight of these visits was teaming-up with his Filipino cousins, to play basketball at the local RRCY compound, a facility that took in teenagers – mostly 16-and-17-year-old – who were in conflict with the law. Interactions with the boys impressed Thaddeus. He felt, however, that the impact of such deeds, while worthy, was too

Teach and Play is the creation of Thaddeus Pompidou (center), 18, a grandson of former Leyte Governor Kokoy Romualdez. He grew up in Paris and New York City, but every year he visited his Lolo’s hometown for the holidays.

temporary to make a difference. When Typhoon Yolanda, the strongest in recorded history, made landfall in Leyte, devastating the capital city of Tacloban, Thaddeus was on the ground over the holidays 6 weeks after the tragedy, volunteering in the relief effort. What he saw there changed his perspective on life as he spoke to many kids whose entire existence had been uprooted by the disaster. Thaddeus wanted to be able to impart something of himself and help the boys do something meaningful in their lives. Something lasting. What could he do?

Coding whiz

Thaddeus discovered early on the power – and the joy – of technology. “I always loved computers and was lucky enough to be good at programming,” he says. At first, he made simple games. He later moved on to more challenging puzzles. He learned how to code. “Coding teaches you how to think differently, and how to break things down into smaller manageable components and solve problems step by step logically.” He became so good that one summer

he got an internship in Israel while he was still in high school. While there, he was offered a full-time job despite being only 16; his parents, though, did not allow him to move to and work in another country so far away from home. Back in the US, a mentor, Daniel Goldberg, encouraged his interest in cybersecurity. Today, Thaddeus is working with Team8, a cyber security business that has launched at least a dozen startups in the past few years, many of which have become sector leaders. Notwithstanding these early achievements, Thaddeus remains a kid – a student. His high school in New York has a strong peer mentoring program where older students teach younger ones subjects which they have somewhat mastered. He found that he enjoyed peer tutoring in computer science and math. Teach a man to fish... He simply wanted to show the boys different possibilities that may align with their talents and interests that may be translated into a viable marketable skill. “In the meantime, they would have fun getting to know the technology.” And that’s how the idea for Teach and Play began.

Teach and Play

The Teach and Play team with Ms. Hayde Dinglasa and the boys of National Training School for Boys, Region 4A in Tanay, Rizal on December 10.

Thaddeus had found something he was really good at (computers), something he enjoyed doing (mentoring), and something he found meaningful (helping less fortunate youngsters prepare for their future). He immediately set to work. Through Teach and Play, he arranged to partner with RRCY Tanauan – that same place where he played basketball when on vacation in the Philippines. In January 2020, Teach and Play donated seven computer units, and routers and then he came to Leyte and spoke to the boys about technology. Georgina Bulasa, center head of RRCY Tanauan, says they handpicked some of the boys who were more ad-

vanced in the Alternative Thaddeus found something he was really Learning System to listen good at (computers), something he enjoyed to Thaddeus’ talk. Many doing (mentoring), and something he found of the residents of RRCY meaningful (helping less fortunate youngsters have not had sufficient prepare for their future). education, much less exposure, to computers. Thaddeus felt anxious would-be architect, and two others ofabout speaking with these kids as a fered to teach guitar and ukulele. Begroup – he was more comfortable with sides having unstable internet access one-on-one sessions. due to technical reasons, RRCY boys Then again, he bore in mind that the are not allowed access to YouTube Foundation aimed exactly for that: teens and other similar sites, so these vidteaching teens. He wanted to spark in- eos, delivered by USB drive, would be terest in technology among the boys helpful in exploring their interests. and perhaps later partner with other organizations and businesses for intensive Options on the table training programs for them. The objecThe RRCY boys come from challengtive is to help build skills enabling them ing situations – with parents who cannot to have viable job options when they get be around because they must find work out of the RRCY and start afresh. in faraway places. Despite his privilege, Thaddeus remembers that during his Thaddeus was keenly aware of how talk, there was one particular boy who much he and these boys have in comhad never seen a computer and was mon. “We’re the same age, we laugh at afraid to even touch it. As the day pro- the same jokes... The biggest difference gressed, he worked with this boy until I really started to notice is that it boils he became more confident and relaxed. down to the different circumstances we “I remember seeing his face completely were born into. light up when he was able to make his That one difference gave us either secharacter move around the screen. His verely limited or an incredible variety of attitude completely changed, and he options and exposure to opportunities. began helping the people sitting next to I had a whole lot more options. So him,” Thaddeus says. that is where I want to help – to be inHe promised to return soon for more strumental in providing a few new opface-to-face training, and that he would tions that might match up to interests send basic training videos for the boys and skills they might not know they to watch. He also committed to stay even had.” in touch through WhatsApp and FaceThe words of Ms. Bulasa made an Time, of course under supervision by impression on him – that giving them the RRCY’s administrators. opportunities to heal and tools that As a way of coping in the face of the they can learn to use in the present Covid-19 pandemic, Thaddeus started to build a brighter future would help making short-form videos about com- erase their past. puters and technology that the boys More importantly, it is the ethos could watch and learn from. instilled in him by his grandfather. Picking up from his example, “My Lolo said luxury was having friends from New York have volun- good options and the ultimate luxuteered to share their own modules to ry is the ability to help provide great the RRCY boys as well – one friend options to others.” liked fixing engines, another, a Thaddeus may have grown up and may be living abroad, but he knows where his roots – and his duties – lie.

A ray of hope

The Teach and Play team at the Regional Rehabilitation Center for Youth, Bauang La Union, Region 1, in coordination with Center Head Ms. Leah Mylen Lucero last Nov. 27.

The Teach and Play team at the Regional Rehabilitation Center for Youth, Magalang Pampanga Region 3 headed by Mr. Larry Ocampo last Nov. 8.

Teach and Play visibly resonated with the Tanauan RRCY boys, over 150 of which enrolled. Coding there is now an activity the boys discuss and challenge themselves to pursue. Newfound coding skills have been helpful finding apprenticeships for the boys as they approached their release date. Following the sponsorship of Ms. Bulasa, Teach and Play is now active in four other RRCYs and has reached other 500 teens. Plans are being made to roll-out the program to all the country’s 25 RRCYs and to include girls as well as boys in other centers. “The internet is the great equalizer”, says Thaddeus. Ultimately, Teach and Play wants to give everyone a chance to master it.

Manila

World

Standard MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

TODAY mst.daydesk@gmail.com

EU urges China: Free detained journalists T

HE European Union has urged China to release all journalists and citizens held in connection with their reporting, following the detention of a Bloomberg News employee. Haze Fan, a Chinese citizen, was taken from her home by plain-clothes security officials last Monday, Bloomberg said, and Beijing said she had been detained on suspicion of endangering national security. “All those arrested and detained in connection with their reporting activity should be immediately released,” an EU spokesperson said in a statement Saturday. The statement mentioned that “other Chinese journalists or citizens have disappeared this year, or been detained or harassed after engaging in reporting”. “We expect the Chinese authorities to grant her (Fan) medical assistance if needed, prompt access to a lawyer of her choice, and contacts with her family,” it added. The Chinese foreign ministry said earlier that Fan’s case was under investigation. Bloomberg said it was “very concerned for her” and was continuing to seek more information. Chinese citizens are forbidden by the government from working as reporters for foreign news organisations in China, but are allowed to work as news assistants. Fan, who joined Bloomberg in 2017, has been credited as a contributor on numerous business stories. Her detention comes months after China held a high-profile Chineseborn Australian journalist, citing similar suspicions. Cheng Lei, a TV anchor at Chinese state-owned outlet CGTN, has not been seen in public since being held. Two other Australian reporters -Bill Birtles and Michael Smith -- fled China shortly after being interrogated about Cheng. AFP

Swiss deny Sino deal a threat to dissidents

THE Swiss strongly rejected accusations this week that a deal allowing Chinese officials to enter Switzerland and interrogate Chinese nationals, which only recently came to light, put dissidents at risk. Switzerland entered into a so-called re-admission agreement with China back in 2015. The deal expired on Monday. The agreement, which remained a secret until Swiss newspaper NZZ divulged its existence in August, specified the terms for Chinese officials to travel to the country and interrogate Chinese nationals set for deportation. Asia-focused rights group Safeguard Defenders this week published the text of the deal, plus a report about how it differed from similar agreements with other countries, and could pose a threat to “those the

Chinese government wants to be returned”. The details coming to light are “going to tarnish Switzerland’s reputation”, Peter Dahlin, who heads the organisation, told AFP. Following the initial revelation of the agreement in August, since-jailed Hong Kong dissident Joshua Wong weighed in on Twitter, decrying the secretive nature of the deal. “Five years after the secret deal was signed, no Swiss MP had ever heard of the deal,” he tweeted on August 24, warning that “dissidents in exile” from Hong Kong, Taiwan and elsewhere, could risk extradition to China. ‘Standard practice’ The Swiss migration ministry meanwhile flatly denied that there was anything

secretive about the China deal, insisting it was a standard, “technical arrangement” like the ones it had reached with some 60 other countries. While the agreement had never been posted publicly like many such deals, it “can be obtained on request at any time”, it said in a statement. Ministry spokesman Reto Kormann also stressed to AFP in an email that persons seen as threatened, like Uighur Muslims or Tibetans, would not be considered for expulsion, and “would not be questioned by Chinese officials”. He explained that readmission agreements were needed because “most states are only willing to take back their own citizens if they can verify their identity”. “Accordingly, such interviews are

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES REGIONAL TRIAL COURT National Capital Judicial Region Branch 89, Quezon City IN RE: PETITION FOR ADOPTION OF THE MINORS ELMIRA EOJAN BARTOLOME SALISI AND PRINCE EMERALD BARTOLOME, SP. PROC. NO. R-QZN-20-00319-SP SPOUSES MARK EDU ATIENZA MACAS and RIZALYN SANCHOLEZ BARTOLOME, Petitioners. x--------------------------------------------------x

NOTICE OF HEARING This case is a verified petition for adoption of minor Elmira Eojan Bartolome Salisi and Prince Emerald Bartolome filed on January 8, 2020 by petitioners through counsel praying that, after due notice and hearing, Judgment be rendered approving the present petition. Being sufficient in form and in substance, the petition is given due course. Set this case for initial hearing on March 10, 2021 at 2:00 in the afternoon at Room 401 4th Floor, Hall of Justice (Annex), City Hall Compound, Quezon City. Any interested person/s may appear on said date, time and place, and show cause, if any, why the petition should not be granted. Let a copy of this Order be published, at the expense of petitioners strictly by raffle, once a week for three (3) successive weeks, in an accredited newspapers of general circulation in the Philippines, particularly in Quezon City, Metro Manila. Further, petitioners are directed to furnish the Office of the Solicitor General, Office of the City Prosecutor of Quezon City, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Office of the Local Civil Registrar of Caloocan City, Office of the Local Civil Registrar of Quezon City and Office of the Civil Registrar General with a copy of the petition and to submit proof of service on or before scheduled hearing. SO ORDERED. Given in Chambers, this October 2, 2020 at Quezon City. (Sgd.) CECILYN E. BURGOS-VILLAVERT Presiding Judge (MStandard-Dec. 14, 21, & 28, 2020)

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY

HIGH TIME? People smoke joints during a rally demanding the decriminalization of marijuana in Medellin, Antioquia department, Colombia on December 12, 2020. AFP

Ex-king dents monarchy’s image with tax settlement Pornhub rocked BY SETTLING a back tax bill, Spain’s former king Juan Carlos I is trying to avoid an embarrassing lawsuit, but he has further dented the image of the monarchy and deepened tensions within the country’s leftist coalition government. His lawyer issued a two-paragraph statement on Wednesday night announcing that Juan Carlos, who fled into selfimposed exile in the United Arab Emirates in August, had “presented the fiscal authorities with a spontaneous declaration” which “settled” a tax debt amounting to 678,393 euros ($821,453), including interest and fines.

The settlement is linked to a probe made public last month by Spain’s attorney general into whether the scandal-hit former king used cards linked to accounts not registered in his name—which could constitute a possible money-laundering offence. Judicial sources said they were looking into funds deposited in several Spanish bank accounts held by a Mexican businessman and a Spanish Air Force official, and whether they had been accessed by the 82-year-old former monarch. The credit card payments took place after Juan Carlos abdicated in 2014, which

could mean that he is not shielded by the immunity from prosecution he enjoyed as head of state. It is the first time that Juan Carlos, who is already the target of two other investigations over his financial affairs, has acknowledged having withheld income from the tax office. While the tax settlement reduces the risk of a lawsuit, it does “enormous damage” to the reputation of the monarchy, which was already tarnished by other affairs involving the once-popular former king, said political consultant Euprepio Padula. AFP

Frankfurt attracts London banks HUBERTUS Vaeth was considered crazy when he launched a Frankfurt initiative to lure banks there after Brexit. “Are you nuts? What did you smoke?,” his critics asked according to the managing director of Frankurt Main Finance (FMF) in an interview with AFP. No one is laughing now. More than four years after the vote that took Britain out of the European Union, Frankfurt is emerging the winner among EU financial capitals in attracting London’s much-coveted banking business, ahead of Paris, Milan and Amsterdam. The Bundesbank estimates that nonGerman banks could move 675 billion euros ($817 billion) to Europe’s largest economy. That is just over half the total amount of assets (1.3 trillion euros) that the ECB had estimated would be transferred to the eurozone from Britain ahead of Brexit. Since the vote, banking giants Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs have said they will shift more than 350 billion euros in combined assets from London to Germany. More than 60 international banks have also signed up with the German financial regulator BaFin. Brexit, as Vaeth said, marks an “opportunity to turn the tide” of “30 years of continuously losing business to London.” Vaeth’s campaign for Londoners went live the day after the vote. AFP

standard practice in Switzerland as in other European states.” The China deal had been put to use only once in the past five years, in 2016, the ministry said. During that mission, “two Chinese officials stayed in Switzerland for several days to interview a total of 13 people”, it said. The Swiss migration ministry had expected to renew the agreement before it expired on December 7. But it said is was not worried it had lapsed, stressing it was possible to invite in foreign delegations even without it. After the deal came to light back in August, left-leaning parties called for more oversight, and the issue will now be discussed by parliament in the coming months. AFP

Former king Juan Carlos I

French hits 200-m-euro lottery jackpot A RECORD jackpot of 200 million euros ($242 million) was won Friday in France by a ticket holder who has 120 days to claim the prize, the EuroMillions lottery said. The win is the biggest ever scooped by a player of the EuroMillions lottery with the previous record standing at 190 million euros, won a number of times, most recently in October 2019. Friday’s staggering prize went up for grabs after the jackpot rolled

over twice last week. Players in France have picked up 110 out of 499 Euromillions jackpots—nearly a quarter—since it began in 2004, followed by Britain which has had 108 winners and Spain with 105. Apart from France, EuroMillions tickets can be bought in in Austria, Belgium, Britain, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland. AFP

by child abuse, rape video claims ADULT content giant Pornhub is in turmoil over claims it turned a blind eye to videos of child abuse, rape and revenge porn, leading Mastercard and Visa to cut payments to the site as lawmakers in Canada, where it is based, seek to hold it accountable. Pressure has been mounting on the porn giant since the publication of an expose by New York Times writer Nicholas Kristof, who accused Pornhub of profiting from abusive content—and appealed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a self-proclaimed women’s advocate, to crack down. “Why does Canada host a company that inflicts rape videos on the world?” Kristof asked—who shared the harrowing stories of several woman who attempted suicide over pornographic videos posted without their consent as teenagers. The Times report brought to a head a controversy already simmering in Canada over such content, where 20 lawmakers urged the justice minister in a November open letter to take swift action against both Pornhub and parent company MindGeek. The growing public backlash has seen more than two million people back a petition to shut it down, and led Mastercard to block payments to Pornhub on Thursday. Visa quickly followed suit, pending a probe into the Times claim that of the 6.8 million new videos posted each year on the site, “many” depict “child abuse and nonconsensual violence,” including scenes of incest and women being asphyxiated in plastic bags. Because Pornhub users can download videos directly from the site, the Times argued, images of abuse could be endlessly reposted elsewhere on the Internet. Simon Corneau, a professor in the sexology department of the University of Quebec in Montreal, said the decisions by Visa and Mastercard were a “major” blow to Pornhub’s bottom line. AFP

ARISTEO G. PUYAT, Plaintiff, -versusCASE NO. R-QZN-19-16891-CV For: Specific Performance HOMERO TANPINCO, JR. & FEVI L. TANPINCO, Defendants. x-------------------------------------x

SUMMONS To:

HOMERO TANPINCO, JR AND FEVI L. TANPINCO Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.

GREETINGS: You are required within fifteen (15) days after service of this summons upon to file with this Court and serve on the plaintiff your answer to the complaint, copy of which is attached, together with the annexes. You are reminded of the provision in the IBPOCA Memorandum on Policy Guidelines dated 12 March 2002, to observe restraint in filing a motion to dismiss and instead allege the grounds thereof as defenses in the answer. If you fail to file answer within the time fixed, the plaintiff will take judgment by default and may be granted the reliefs applied for in the complaint. WITNESS my hand under the seal of the Court , this 1st October 2020. (Sgd.) ATTY. GENELOU L. SAMPAGA Branch Clerk of Court

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY ARISTEO G. PUYAT, Plaintiff, -versus-

CIVIL CASE NO. R-QZN-19-16891-CV For: SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE

HOMERO TANPINCO JR. AND FEVI L. TANPINCO, Defendants. x--------------------------------------x

ORDER On record is the plaintiff’s Motion for reconsideration, filed on 10 March 2020, seeking for the reconsideration of the Court’s Order, dated 6 February 2020. On 10 March 2020 plaintiff filed a Motion for Reconsideration of the Court’s Order, dated 6 February 2020, denying his Motion for Leave to Serve Summons by Publication upon defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr., and Fevi L. Tanpinco on the ground of the plaintiff’s failure to attach thereto the required supporting affidavit of the plaintiff. Together with the said Motion for Reconsideration was an affidavit executed by plaintiff Aristeo G. Puyat. With the submission of the required affidavit and finding the same to be well taken, the same is hereby admitted. The plaintiff’s Motion for Reconsideration is hereby GRANTED and the Order denying his motion for leave to serve summons by publication for resolution is hereby reconsidered and set aside. Going now to the plaintiff’s Motion for Leave to Serve Summons by Publication upon defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr. and Feve L. Tanpinco. In his Motion, plaintiff Puyat avers that defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr. and Fevi L. Tanpinco do not reside and are not found in the Philippines. Their present exact whereabouts are unknown to the plaintiff and that the subject of the action is property located within the Philippines. Summons is a writ by which the defendant is notified of the action brought against him. Service of such writ is the means by which the court acquires jurisdiction over his person. Section 14 Rule 14 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure provides: Section 14. Service upon defendant whose identity or whereabouts are unknown. – In any action where the defendant is designated as an unknown owner, or the like, or whenever his whereabouts are unknown and cannot be ascertained by diligent inquiry, service may, by leave of court, be effected upon him by publication in a newspaper of general circulation and in such places and for such time as the court may order. (16a) Perusal of the records would show, particularly the Complaint, Motion for Leave to Serve Summons as well as his affidavit that defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr and Fevi L. Tanpinco do not reside and are not found in the Philippines, being residents of Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A. and their present exact whereabouts are unknown to plaintiff Puyat. That the defendants are the registered owners of two parcels of land both located at 31 Sct. Bayoran St., South Triangle, Quezon City, which are the subject of the action. Applying the aforesaid rule, plaintiff’s Motion for Leave to Serve Summons by Publication upon defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr., and Fevi L. Tanpinco is hereby GRANTED. Let Summons be issued upon defendants Homero Tanpinco, Jr. and Fevi L. Tanpinco and seved upon them by way of publication in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks. SO ORDERED. Quezon City, Philippines, 30 March 2020. Cc:

(Sgd.) MARIA GILDA T. LOJA-PANGILINAN Presiding Judge

MAÑACOP LAW OFFICE ATTY. JOSE F. MAÑACOP Counsel for the Plaintiff Mission Garden Condominium 59 Scout Ybardoloza Street South Triangle, Quezon City

ARISTEO G. PUYAT REP BY: ATTORNEY-IN-FACT- POMPEYO PINEDA Plaintiff 31 Sct. Bayoran St., South Triangle, Quezon City (MStandard-Dec. 7, 14 & Dec. 21, 2020)

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Reuel Vidal, Assistant Editor

sports@manilastandard.net

sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

Ramirez wants protection and not ban on minors INSTEAD of prohibiting minors from joining contact sports, protocols should be put in place for the safety and benefit of athletes and coaches. Philippine Sports Commission chairman William Ramirez said this in response to a proposed house bill, banning minors from full-contact competitive sports. Ramirez explained injuries to athletes don’t only happen in combat sports. They can also occur in disciplines like basketball, baseball and gymnastics. The PSC chief said safety measures should instead be encouraged. Doing this should start with the coaches, who need to have an understanding and training in physical education, sports science and human physiology for him to engage young athletes in training activities. And on the part of the athletes, there should be a limit in the time they train for a competition. “Importante yan para hindi maburnout ang bata at ang coach ay knowledgeable din,” said Ramirez. HB no. 1526, or “An Act Banning Minors from Full-Contact Competitive Sports, Imposing Penalties for Violation Thereof and for other Purposes,” was recently filed by AkoBicol partylist Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr. So far, thirteen national sports associations (NSA) have expressed their opposition to the proposed measure. The bill states that there is a need to protect minor athletes from injuries and physical harm by prohibiting their participation in combat sport competitions while allowing recreational training. The author added that it outlines prohibited acts, penalties for violators, and identification of roles and responsibilities of concerned parties. Peter Atencio

Britain’s Anthony Joshua (right) connects with a right to the face of Bulgaria’s Kubrat Pulev during their heavyweight world title boxing match at Wembley Arena in north west London. AFP

Joshua knocks out Pulev, wants to fight Fury next

ONDON, United Kingdom – Anthony Joshua said he wants to unify all four world heavyweight boxing titles in an allBritish clash with Tyson Fury after a dominant ninth round knockout of Bulgaria’s Kubrat Pulev at London’s Wembley Arena on Saturday (Sunday Philippine time). In front of 1,000 fans, with attendance limited due to coronavirus restrictions, Joshua ensured there was no repeat of a shock defeat in his first clash with Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019 as the 39-year-old Pulev was pushed aside. Attention will now turn to the possibility of a much-anticipated clash with WBC champion Fury in 2021. “I’m up for anything. Who wants to see Anthony Joshua box Tyson Fury in 2021?” Joshua asked the crowd to a chorus of cheers. “I started this game in 2013 and I’ve been chasing the belts ever since. “Whoever has got the belt, I would love to compete with them. If that is Tyson Fury then let it be Tyson Fury.” Pulev had lost just once previously in his career to Wladimir Klitschko in 2014,

but was outclassed by Joshua, who could have had victory wrapped up within three rounds. Twice Pulev was given a count by the referee in round three after he was left flailing on the ropes by an explosive burst of punches from Joshua. The IBF, WBA and WBO world champion then surprisingly took his foot off the accelerator to allow Pulev to hang in the fight. But in round nine three uppercuts in quick succession put Pulev back on the canvas and this time he did not get back up in time as Joshua took his career record to 24-1. An agreement in principle for Joshua and WBC champion Fury to finally go head-to-head has been in place since earlier this year. “Starting from tomorrow, we make the

Tyson Fury fight straight away. It’s the only fight to be made in boxing. It is the biggest fight in British boxing history,” said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn. “I know he (Joshua) wants it. He is the best heavyweight in the world, I promise you. He’ll break him down, he’ll knock him out.” Fury also confirmed he wants the fight with a post on social media shortly after Joshua’s win. “I want the fight, I want the fight next,” said Fury, who has not been in the ring since beating Deontay Wilder in February. “I’ll knock him out inside three rounds.” However, Fury could be contractually obliged to fight Wilder for a third time before taking on Joshua. After the first bout was controversially declared a draw, Wilder activated a rematch clause following Fury’s victory in the second fight. A third clash between the two was postponed earlier this year due to coronavirus. AFP

Cone felt lonely winning inside PBA ‘bubble’ By Peter Atencio Barangay Ginebra coach Tim Cone speaks to an online audience while confetti falls around him after the Gin Kings won the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup crown. PBA

THE feeling of celebrating a championship all by themselves was different. Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Gin Kings coach Tim Cone said this after they went through a five-game finals conquest of the TNT Tropang Giga in the 2020 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup Finals Wednesday last week. “Looking around, what do we do? How do we celebrate this? And the confetti was getting to our senses. Usually when you win a finals, you turn around, there’s your family, and there’s the fans,” said Cone days after their 82-78 triumph over Tropang Giga. The Gin Kings also felt alone in their revelries back at their place of billeting Hotel Quest. That’s because, they have spent 73 days together u nder a bubble, and i n lockd ow n b e c a u s e of he a lt h a nd s a fe t y p r otocols that have been put up in response to the coronavirus pandemic. “Ang hanap kasi namin ay families

and friends. After the championship na makasama is family. Good thing, we found ways,” said Tenorio. At first, the Gin Kings got ready for two months of isolation. And that was with Tenorio, Japeth Aguilar and Greg Slaughter not around. Tenorio went through an offseason injur y and surger y because of appendicitis before eventually retur ning on the f loor. Aguilar later came into the bubble, and got in shape, while Slaughter went on a sabbatical in the United States. That Gin Kings went on an 8-3 run in the elimination, and earned the top seed in the playoffs. In reaching the finals, Ginebra first got past Rain or Shine with Typhoon Ulysses ravaging the country. After that, the Gin Kings endured a five-game series against the tough Meralco Bolts. The season ended for the Gin Kings with Aguilar hitting a career-high of 32 points thrice, and he last did it during Game 5.

Buto posts back-to-back wins; Claros still unbeaten FILIPINO Candidate Master (CM) Al Basher “Basty” Buto (Elo 1510) tallied back-to-back victories over Aussie Jayden Ooi (Elo 1780) in the 4th round and Iranian Arshia Mohammadyansichani (Elo 1782) in the 5th round of the 2020 Online World Cadets and Youth Rapid Championships (Asian Continental) on this past weekend at the Tornelo platform. The 10-year-old Buto, a grade five pupil of Faith Christian School in Cainta, Rizal Province, playing under the banner of American chess coach Dave Fenton and International Master (IM) Chito Garma, raised his points total to 4.0 points - good for third place and 0.5 behind leader Ern Jie Anderson Ang of Malaysia and Aakash G of India, who both tote 4.5 points in the Open U10 division. Meanwhile, April Joy Claros of Pampanga subdued Aisha Mohamed Al Muaini of United Arab Emirates to share first place with Laysa Latifah of Indonesia, who brought down Jinru Cai of China. Claros and Latifah both tallied perfect 5 points apiece in the Girls U14. Michael Concio Jr. (4.5/5) and International Master (IM) Daniel Quizon (4/5) lead the way in the Open U16. Concio routed Fide Master (FM) Rohith Krishna S of India while Quizon beat Fide Master (FM) Kazybek Nogerbek of Kazakhstan. Concio and Quizon are top players of the star-studded Dasmarinas Chess Academy under the watchful eye of national coach Fide Master (FM) Roel Abelgas and Rep. Elpidio “Pidi” Barzaga Jr. Earlier, Buto defeated Qatari Al Janahi Ibrahim Waleed in the first round and Kazakh Alikhan Khazhatuly (Elo 1708) in the second round before bowing to Indian Aakash G (Elo 1664) in the third round. Also with 4.0 points in the Open under-10 division of the online seven round Swiss system tournament were Movahed Sina of Iran, Dau Khuong Duy of Vietnam, top seed Edgar Mamedov of Kazakhstan and Rajkhowa Mrinmoy of India. The top 3 finishers in each division of the Asian zone will advance to the world stage according to National Chess Federation of the Philippines Chairman/President Deputy Speaker Prospero “Butch” Pichay Jr.

Bloodied Giannis back on court for NBA preseason LOS ANGELES, United States—Giannis Antetokounmpo, bloodied from a cruel elbow blow, finished with 25 points and KarlAnthony Towns welcomed a respite from a COVID-19 family tragedy as 14 NBA teams embarked on their first preseason games Saturday (Sunday Philippine time). Clubs are fine-tuning their rosters as veterans work on their roles and rookies seek to show they can contribute with the new NBA season less than two weeks away. Just under two months have passed since the Los Angeles Lakers won their 17th NBA title making it the shortest off-season in league history for some teams. But for the eight teams who did not make it to the post coronavirus shutdown games inside a bubble in Orlando, Florida, it has been the longest layoff since the 1998 labor lockout.

The Minnesota Timberwolves were one of those eight and their grief-stricken center Towns was in tears during the pre-games ceremonies after taking to the floor for the first time since losing seven relatives, including his mother, to COVID-19. The NBA halted its season in March due to the global pandemic and Towns’ mother died soon after in April. As the players and coaches were introduced in the empty arena, Towns sat on the bench with his face buried in a towel. Teammates came over to comfort Towns as he wiped away the tears. Towns delivered 13 points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes for the T-Wolves and his sidekick D’Angelo Russell also looked impressive with a team-high 14 points in a 107-105 loss to Memphis.

Stray elbow First overall pick Anthony Edwards came off the bench to score five points in 26 minutes in the loss. In the Milwaukee Bucks’ preseason opener, Antetokounmpo was bloodied by an accidental elbow to the face early in the game but it didn’t stop him from scoring a gamehigh 25 points in the Bucks 112-102 loss to Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavericks. Antetokounmpo, who the Bucks hope to sign to a contract extension before next week’s deadline, went to the dressing room for repairs but didn’t stay long. “I got back to the locker room and the doctor checked my eye,” said Antetokounmpo. “I didn’t want to play just two minutes and sit the rest out. I decided to go out and compete because it was the first game.” AFP

Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) of the Milwaukee Bucks looks on during a preseason game against the Dallas Mavericks at the Fiserv Forum Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. AFP

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

By Alena Mae S. Flores

PSE INDEX CLOSING

Wednesday, December 11, 2020 91.73 PTS. 7,246.16

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE ADVANCES DECLINES UNCHANGED

75,928,171,767 176,117 9,885,774,226.50 155 77 40

F oreign e xchange r ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2020

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

48.0670

Japan

Yen

0.009597

0.4613

Pound

1.329600

63.9099

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.129014

6.2013

Switzerland

Franc

1.128923

54.2639

Canada

Dollar

0.785114

37.7381

Singapore

Dollar

0.748951

35.9998

Australia

Dollar

0.753300

36.2089

Bahrain

Dinar

2.655196

127.6273

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266624

12.8158

Brunei

Dollar

0.746157

35.8655

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000071

0.0034

Thailand

Baht

0.033278

1.5996

UAE

Dirham

0.272272

13.0873

Euro

1.214000

58.3533

Korea

Won

0.000921

0.0443

China

Yuan

0.152767

7.3431

India

Rupee

0.013561

0.6518

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.246305

11.8391

New Zealand

Dollar

0.709600

34.1083

Taiwan

Dollar

0.035492

1.7060 Source: BSP

NLEX to keep barriers raised in RFID lanes NLEX Corp. said over the weekend it will implement “barrier up” procedure in RFID lanes and open cash lanes in all toll plazas during the transition to cashless transactions. The toll company said following a dialogue with the Toll Regulatory Board to ensure faster traffic during expected traffic surges, a “barrier up” procedure will be implemented in the RFID lanes. This means RFID subscribers need not stop during their passage in the RFID lanes where the lane barriers are kept raised, even as the scanners/ readers continue to operate and record the toll transactions. “We will be opening cash lanes in all toll plazas during this transition towards 100-percent cashless transactions. For the smaller plazas, where there are limited lanes, we will have an exclusive RFID lane beside a combined cash/RFID lane,” NLEX president Luigi Bautista said. “Sticker installation and reloading of RFIDs will also be relocated to other locations in order not to compete with the limited road space. They will be moved to other strategic areas in and out of the expressway,” he said. Bautista said, NLEX would always be ready to contribute to helping solve Metro Manila’s daily traffic bottlenecks and alleviating the traffic woes of motorists during the holidays. Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian earlier suspended NLEX Corp.’s business permit after the toll operator failed to resolve the issues on RFID. Because of the suspension, toll will not be collected at Karuhatan-Mindanao Ave., Karuhatan-Harbor Link, Karuhatan Harbor Link MacArthur Highway Exit, Mindanao Avenue Toll Plaza, Paso de Blas Toll Plaza and Lawang Bato Northbound entry toll booth. The TRB said more than 90 percent of transactions in toll roads were through RFID sticker use as a result of the implementation of the cashless transaction since Dec. 1. Based on the AutoSweep and Easytrip daily report, more than 3.7 million RFID stickers were installed as of Dec. 8, compared to 1.4 million when the program just started. Darwin G. Amojelar

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte (center) and Davao Light and Power Co. president and chief operating officer Rodger Velasco (right) lead the BEST Bus launch to give Davaoeños efficient and environmentally-sustainable means of transportation.

PLDT raising 2021 capital spending by 25% to P92b By Darwin G. Amojelar

LDT Inc. will spend up to P92 billion next year to make its mobile and fixed-line services at par with those of other Southeast Asian countries, a top executive said over the weekend.

“With the surge in demand for data, we are prepared to invest between P88 billion and P92 billion next year to meet the requirements of all our mobile and fixed-line customers,” PLDT chief revenue officer Alfredo Panlilio said. “Providing good customer experience remains to be our ‘North Star,’ as we aim to elevate PLDT and Smart to the level of global operators,” said Panlilio, who is also the president and chief executive of Smart Communications Inc.. The company invested P73 billion last year and about the same level of capex this year. “Our capex commitment next year is at a level that will be 20 to 25 percent higher than this year’s capex, focused on expanding our fiber footprint and our wireless coverage,” Panlilio said. “We want to benchmark ourselves, not just with local competition, but with our neighboring countries like Thailand and

Vietnam, as we would want our network performance to ultimately be at par with global companies,” he said. Meanwhile, PLDT Global Corp., the international arm of PLDT, strengthened its partnership with Japan-based carrier SoftBank Corp. to provide a stable and secure internet service for small, medium, and large enterprise clients in Japan. Under the partnership, PLDT Global will offer SoftBank’s “SmartInternet Suite Ether” which is an internet connection service that can help businesses address their needs for a higher-grade internet environment that suits diverse work styles and evolving business areas. SmartInternet Suite Ether also allows businesses to access a customer portal that will help them manage and monitor their internet service and usage, apart from providing stable traffic and secure, low-latency and efficient internet connection. It will also allow clients in Japan to directly connect with major telco carriers, ISPs and content providers. “Internet connectivity is the foundation of our digital economy. We have been focusing on supporting digital ecosystems needed by our customers, and we are excited to partner with SoftBank to achieve this purpose,” said Katrina LunaAbelarde, president and chief executive of PLDT Global. “This partnership is part of a broader PLDT Group initiative to improve customer experiences in and outside of the Philippines,” she said.

Gov’t likely reached 100% fuel marking target—Dominguez By Julito G. Rada

CLARK ADVISER. Newly-appointed Presidential Adviser on Clark Programs and Projects and former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (front row, third from left) and Pampanga Vice Governor Lilia Pineda (front row, second from left) are guests during the recent meeting of Clark Development Corp.’s board. With them are (front row, from left) CDC director Manuel Gaerlan, vice chairman Benjamin Defensor Jr., director Ana Liza Peralta, (second row, from left) director Felimon Santos Jr., director Nestor Villaroman Jr., CDC officer-in-charge and Bases Conversion and Development Authority president and chief executive Vivencio Dizon, director Arturo Ortiz and director Jon Castro

Expert wants balanced health warnings on smoke-free products HEALTH warnings on smoke-free products such as e-cigarettes or vapes and heated tobacco products should be proportionate to their risk compared with those on combustible cigarettes. This was the key message of Prof. Tikki Pangestu in his keynote speech during the 2nd Philippine Harm Reduction Online Forum on Dec. 4. “Health warnings on combustible cigarette packs should not be the same as those on the packaging of e-cigarettes and HTPs. This is because e-cigarettes and HTPs have been shown to be 90-percent to 95-percent less harmful than combustible cigarettes,” said Pangestu, a visiting professor at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore and former director for research policy and cooperation of the World Health Organization. The implementing rules and regulations

as prescribed by Republic Act No. 11346 and Republic Act No. 11467 mandate the Department of Health to issue graphic health warning templates for the packaging of HTPs and vapor products including inserts, and outside packaging, outside packaging and labeling and any other wrapping withdrawn from the manufacturing facilities or imported into the Philippine customs territory. “By all means, health warnings should be placed on e-cigarettes and HTPs as the laws and regulations mandate, but these should be proportionate to the risk of these smoke-free products,”said Pangestu. Health warnings could state that smoke-free products are not completely free from harm but are significantly less harmful than combustible cigarettes which contain tar and carbon monoxide. The health warnings could also indicate

that smoke-free products are for adults only and should not be used by the youth, he said. The global picture on regulations for smoke-free products remains very mixed, with many countries still struggling with developing appropriate regulations, according to Pangestu. “There are many factors to be considered in developing regulations but in my view, such regulations must, in the first instance, be based on the science and evidence around smoke-free products,” he said. He said that the Philippines and his native country of Indonesia look to the WHO for guidance on smoke-free products. “Unfortunately, at this point in time, the WHO position on smoke-free products is quite negative, and even recommends banning some of these products in several countries,” he said.

Aboitiz, Davao launch 1st full electric buses in Mindanao

FINANCE Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said over the weekend the government likely marked 100 percent of fuel oil inventory in the country since the Fuel Marking Program began in September 2019. “I believe so... Our goal is to have 100 percent of fuel oil inventory at anytime marked,” Dominguez told reporters. Fuel marking is mandated under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act as a measure against smuggling of petroleum products. It is done after the taxes are paid on refined and imported gasoline, diesel and kerosene. All import terminals and refineries of various oil companies nationwide comply with the marking requirement of the program. Dominguez cited latest data showing that the government marked 16.43 billion liters of fuel from Sept. 4, 2019 to Dec. 8, 2020, with a total tax and duties collection of P162.79 billion. Data showed that of the total amount, the Bureau of Customs collected P140.71 billion worth of duties and taxes for the period, while the Bureau of Internal Revenue collected P22.08 billion. Petron Corp. accounted for 3.75 billion liters of the total for a market share of 22.82 percent. It was followed by Shell with 3.22 billion liters or 19.64 percent; Unioil, 1.72 billion liters or 10.53 percent; Seaoil, 1.37 billion liters or 8.37 percent; and Chevron, 1.31 billion liters or 8 percent. Other fuel companies in the list are Phoenix Petroleum, 1.222 billion liters or 7.44 percent; Insular Oil, 1.114 billion liters or 6.78 percent; FilOil, 444.05 million liters or 2.7 percent; Jetti, 442.52 million liters or 2.69 percent; Total/FilOil, 396.38 million liters or 2.41 percent; Marubeni, 299.615 million liters or 1.82 percent; PTT, 289.676 million liters or 1.76 percent; and Micro Dragon, 188.244 million liters, 1.15 percent.

THE Aboitiz Group, in partnership with the city government of Davao, GET Philippines and QEV Technologies of Spain, launched over the weekend the BEST Bus project―the first fully electric, free-ride shuttle service in Mindanao. Aboitiz Power Corp. unit Davao Light and Power Co. is also part of the BEST Bus project, where Davao is among the first pilot cities in the country. BEST stands for Business for Environmentally Sustainable Transformation and is an initiative advocating to “be green, be digital, and be kind” for the betterment of the community. The BEST Bus project aims to leave a lasting impact on the environmental sustainability of the city and the country as it significantly reduces harmful emissions, maximizes available new technologies and encourages inclusive benefits for all. Aboitiz Group president and chief executive officer Sabin Aboitiz said the organization is proud to be a part of an initiative that marries technology and good governance to create a platform that improves quality of life for all. “We also thank GET Philippines and QEV Technologies Spain for being our partners in this public-private endeavor. BEST Bus serves as our contribution to one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals by providing innovative solutions for a cleaner, safer, and kinder world,” Aboitiz said. He said Aboitiz has a long history with Davao City, starting with the city’s 9-1-1 system that used Davao Light’s electric posts as one of the means to get the system running. The group also manages Cleanergy Park―an icon of biodiversity in the city and operates Apo Agua Infrastructura Inc. which builds an alternative water source for the city’s future water needs.

IN BRIEF D&L allots P115m to automate process

D&L Industries Inc., a manufacturer and supplier of major food retail companies, is embarking on a P115-million innovation and automation system to improve manufacturing capabilities to serve better the needs of clients. D&L group supply chain director Franco Diego Lao said the manufacturing innovation funding was part of the P8-billion expansion of its facility in Batangas. “Not only are we spending on our expansion, which we put in quite a lot of money already, but also in our existing facilities. We also do realize that we have to keep up to date our existing manufacturing base. We’re actually looking at P115 of that [budget] going into just manufacturing innovation,” Lao said during the final day of the Manufacturing Summit 2020. Lao said the company should continue its journey towards Industry 4.0 to maximize the benefits of automation and to future-proof operations. “Accession to Industry 4.0 will help us manage future risks and prevent any losses from our end,” he said. Othel V. Campos

Securitization plan of NHMFC cleared THE Securities and Exchange Commission said over the weekend it approved the securization plan of National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. NHMGF’s securitization plan involves P319.2 million worth of its residential loan portfolio. NHMFC plans to sell a select pool of 1,291 long-term secured residential loans to a special purpose trust known as BALAI Bonds 2 Special Purpose Trust. Following the sale, BALAI Bonds 2 SPT will issue P319.32 million in asset-backed securities, consisting of P150 million in class A senior notes and P169.32 million in class B subordinated notes. Proceeds from the issuance will be used to pay NHMFC the purchase price for the residential loans. Land Bank of the Philippines will serve as the underwriter for the issuance of the notes. The BALAI Bonds 2 are exempt from registration as they will be issued to not more than 19 investors in the Philippines. Jenniffer B. Austria

DTI names URC top food exporter UNIVERSAL Robina Corp. was selected by the Department of Trade and Industry as the country’s top exporter for the processed food and beverage sector at this year’s National Export Congress. URC, one of the Philippines’ largest food and beverage manufacturers, was cited based on the value of its export transactions provided by the Philippine Statistical Authority for 2019. The company’s export transactions reached $30 million last year. “This recognition for our hard work and dedication to our customers is especially meaningful, given the challenges businesses, and our nation as a whole, are facing because of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Brian Go, URC vice president for global exports and frontier markets. Go said exporters “are still bravely marshaling on despite the shackles to trade that the coronavirus has brought on, as nations tighten their borders and businesses are weighed down by lockdowns”. The Export Development Council said this year’s National Export Congress, the highlight of the National Exporters Week, “looks at how some export companies navigated their way to adapt to the abrupt digital transformation.”

Business

|| MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020 extrastory2000@gmail.com

AstraZeneca of UK buying American drug firm for $39b LONDON—British pharmaceuticals group AstraZeneca, which is finalizing a vaccine against COVID-19, said Saturday it was buying US biotech firm Alexion for $39 billion to boost its work on immunology. “Alexion has established itself as a leader in complement biology, bringing life-changing benefits to patients with rare diseases,” AstraZeneca chief executive Pascal Soriot said in a statement, announcing the year’s biggest deal in the pharma sector. “We look forward to welcoming our new colleagues at Alexion so that we can together build on our combined expertise in immunology and precision medicines to drive innovation that delivers life-changing medicines for more patients,” he said. Both boards have agreed to the cash-and-stock deal, which values Alexion at $175 a share, a premium of 45 percent to the Boston-based company’s closing price on Friday. Since taking the helm at AstraZeneca in 2012, Soriot has pushed the group into lucrative treatments such as cancer therapies, and the Alexion takeover will give it more heft in areas such as treating blood disorders. Along with researchers from the University of Oxford, AstraZeneca has developed an effective COVID-19 vaccine which the UK government plans to use as the lynchpin of its inoculation drive, after first rolling out another vaccine by Pfizer/BioNTech. But approval of the AstraZeneca/ Oxford drug has been held up after queries over its initial trial results. On Tuesday, the UK partners became the first CCOVID-19 vaccine makers to publish final-stage clinical trial data in a scientific journal, clearing a key hurdle. The new acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021, and Alexion shareholders will own 15 percent of the combined company. “This transaction marks the start of an exciting new chapter for Alexion,” Alexion chief executive Ludwig Hantson said. AFP

Ailing newspapers desert newsrooms as virus escalates NEW YORK—The buzzing newsroom has long been the lifeblood of American newspapers. But in recent months the buzz has become virtual as the pandemic deepens the industry crisis and forces journalists to work remotely. In recent months, established dailies such as the New York Daily News, Miami Herald and Baltimore Sun have joined other news outlets abandoning their headquarters, amid pandemic workplace restrictions that had already left them empty. Tribune Publishing, owner of the Baltimore daily and others, has acknowledged it is re-evaluating its real estate needs as it struggles with a difficult environment, with lower print circulation, falling advertising revenues and increased costs for health and safety. But many journalists say the loss of the newsroom has changed the nature of their work and worry that newspapers may not re-establish newsrooms even after the pandemic. “A newsroom is a lot more collaborative than a lot of other workspaces are,” said Emily Brindley, a reporter at the Tribuneowned Hartford (Connecticut) Courant, which shut its newsroom this month. “I definitely think that it’s going to have an effect on the product,” added Brindley, an organizer of the Courant Guild, which represents journalists. “I do feel that there will be some intangible effects.” One of Brindley’s colleagues in Hartford, Daniela Altimari, said she believes the pandemic “proved that we could all work from home and still put out a newspaper,” making it unlikely the newsroom will reopen. She fears for the quality of the work. “Newsrooms are factories for ideas in a way. There’s a lot of chance encounters,” Altimari said. “You get ideas by talking to colleagues. Those chance encounters can really lead to better work.” AFP

Stock market bullish; eyes on BSP meeting this week By Jenniffer B. Austria

RADING at the Philippine Stock Exchange is expected to remain upbeat as investors focus on the upcoming policy meeting of the Monetary Board scheduled Thursday.

Analysts said investors were anticipating the next move of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas after an unexpected interest rate cut in November. Another 25 basis point rate cut will bring the policy rate to below two percent. Investors will also monitor the upcoming meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee that could set the tone for the regional monetary policy making. “While the street expects the Fed to maintain status quo on rates, any hints

to keep them below historical thresholds will inspire capital mobility given the low cost of money and more indirectly make yields on equities more attractive,” online brokerage firm 2TradeAsia.com said. And with the Philippine government expecting the inflation rate to be benign, analysts said it will provide the BSP enough space for a lower policy rate, which could further boost market confidence and support economic recovery. The market’s recent run-up, meanwhile, has made stocks expensive and vulnerable to technical correction and profit taking. The lower economic growth projection of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank for the Philippines this year could also dampen investors’ confidence on the market. The World Bank sees the gross domestic production shrinking 8.1 percent in 2020 while ADB expects it to

contract 8.5 percent. The PSE Index last week jumped 111 points of 1.6 percent to a fresh 10-month high of 7,246.16 following the government’s thrust to reopen a bigger part of the economy starting next year. All sectorial indices ended in the green led by mining and oil (+6.75 percent), property (+4.01 percent) and industrial (+1.88 percent). The average value turnover rose to P11.09 billion, up 14 percent from previous week’s average. Foreign investors, however, were net sellers for the week by P290 million. Meanwhile, global stock markets and the pound stumbled Friday after London and Brussels warned that a no-deal Brexit was now a strong possibility. When closing bells rang, London stocks had fallen by a collective 0.8 percent, while Frankfurt gave up 1.4 percent and Paris was off by 0.8 percent. With AFP

PSEi December 11, 2020

TOP GAINERS LAST PRICE

% CHANGE CHANGE

1 2

MG PHA

0.215 0.98

0.04 0.14

22.86% 16.67%

FERRO

5.11

0.61

13.56%

FEU

646

11.00%

5 6

PRMX T

1.54 0.94

0.15 0.09

10.79% 10.59%

PTC

104.6

9.6

10.11%

8 9

MA DELM

0.011 6.95

0.001 0.61

10.00% 9.62%

ABA

0.69

0.06

9.52%

TOP LOSERS LAST PRICE

% CHANGE CHANGE

1 2

BHI LFM

0.043 50

-0.004 -4.5

-8.51% -8.26%

0.0094

-0.0006

-6.00%

4 5

BSC UPM

0.305 0.0064

-0.015 -0.0003

-4.69% -4.48%

0.0025

-0.0001

-3.85%

MBC

-0.46

-3.69%

8 9 10

REG TFC SUN

2.9 44.5 1.8

-0.1 -1.5 -0.06

-3.33% -3.26% -3.23%

MOST ACTIVE

OPEN FOR BUSINESS. Souvenir shops are open for business in central London on December 12, 2020, as with under two

weeks to Christmas, people take advantage of the easing of England’s restrictions on shop openings to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus. A Brexit trade deal between Britain and the European Union looks to be hanging in the balance, after leaders on both sides of the Channel gave a gloomy assessment of progress in last-gasp talks. AFP

MBT

VOLUME 17,058,890

VALUE (PHP) 872,837,270.50

2 3

ALI BDO

16,865,700 4,771,680

697,122,410.00 523,566,831.00

4 5

SMPH PHA

12,631,500 411,521,000

496,383,785.00 381,797,990.00

6 7

TEL SM

280,310 273,610

375,521,070.00 293,249,050.00

8 9

AC BPI

340,920 3,257,660

288,219,105.00 271,143,023.50

JFC

1,170,070

243,301,354.00

Britain’s financial sector fears volatility, loss of clients on no-deal Brexit LONDON—Britain’s financial sector is watching nervously as the prospect mounts of a “no-deal” Brexit, stoking fears of lost clients and influence in key areas, as well as market turbulence. The Bank of England, where most risk is centered, is bracing for the end of the transition period on December 31, with no sign of a free-trade agreement between the European Union and Britain. The central bank said a “no-deal” result could lead to “some market volatility and disruption for financial services, particularly to EU-based clients.” Investment bank Morgan Stanley is predicting a 6-10 percent fall in the FTSE-250 index and a 10-20 percent

CECIL AUSTIN R. SAYAROT

Green LiGht THIS was finally my move forward. I’m thankful for my dynamic block mates and professors. I thank God for having gone through three internships in companies I never thought would hire me, and I even got to apply what I had learned from my previous program. Our thesis group won the outstanding thesis award. And now, I have the honor of responding on behalf of the graduates especially on the centennial of my college, the Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business. In retrospect, my Lasallian journey was definitely not a straight line in the same way that life is not. I won’t even compare my journey to a line after all the uncertainty I had to endure. Rather, my Lasallian journey looked more like a scatterplot because I had to connect the dots myself. All our step-backs in the past will make sense because even if each step backward will bring us farther from where we want to be, the distance will give more clarity to the bigger picture of what we can do and achieve. More importantly, each step backward will give us a different vantage point from which we can redirect our next course of action in our lives. We are now at a different vantage point, and as our Lasallian journey comes to a close, we may be facing the greatest step backward our entire Lasallian

drop in banking stocks, which have already been hit by the coronavirus. From January 1, Britain’s financial sector and the City of London financial district will lose a European “passport” that allows it to sell products and financial services across the EU. “The City” is also worried about talk of an “equivalence” regime of compatible rules that in theory would keep the financial taps running but in practice could be easily revoked. The EU has already given the goahead for derivatives clearing houses, which underwrite more than trillion dollars in transactions every day. But it has not yet said it will do the same for trading, which accounts for hundreds of billions of pounds every

day. Banks and financial institutions have taken technical measures to ensure smooth transactions in case bilateral talks fail and governments on both side of the Channel legislate, to ensure continuity in insurance or asset management contracts. “If the UK and EU have a more acrimonious relationship, it could take longer to get these equivalence decisions,” said Sarah Hall, from the UK in a Changing Europe think-tank. Britain left the EU in January and has been in a standstill period until the end of this month while both sides try to agree the terms of their new relationship. But a large number of British financial institutions have already set

up or expanded teams and offices in Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Paris to keep working. According to the Ernst & Young consultancy, 7,500 of the more than 500,000 people who work in The City have already relocated. EY said finance companies have also transferred more than £1.2 trillion ($1.6 trillion, 1.3 trillion euros) in assets to the EU since Britain’s referendum on EU membership in 2016. In the event of a “cliff-edge” divorce with London, the European Commission could complicate life for British subsidiaries by asking them for more equity or to transfer additional staff before granting a business license. AFP

Lasallian in the Time of Corona (Part 2) experience has been preparing us for–graduating in a pandemic. In 2013, an international business newspaper interviewed graduates of the Class of 2008–the graduating class at the onset of the 2008 Great Recession. These graduates had to enter a job market at its lowest and global unemployment rates at its highest. For one of the graduates interviewed, her first job was a veterinary assistant–a job not aligned with her advertising degree. Yet she stayed because during that period, she knew that her priorities had to change temporarily–from excelling in an advertising career, to putting food on the table. After a few years, she left her vet assistant job and eventually began a corporate career in advertising. All of the graduates interviewed were making less money than they had expected to make. They, too, acknowledged that they wouldn’t have survived without the recession’s redirecting them to new or alternative ways to make a living. Despite that difficult step-back in their careers, they moved forward from the recession. Since then, some of the biggest companies today were either founded or recovered after that Great Recession: Uber, Instagram, and Netflix. Graduating at this moment in history may prove to be a challenge to start our respective careers. I’m sure none of us expected to graduate amid a pandemic,

of a slowing economy, of headlined social injustices, and of heightened political tension. However, we, fellow graduates, are somewhat lucky. We still hold the power to become catalysts of social, commercial and economic transformation. We may learn something from the graduates of 2008, but we cannot fully apply what they did in their time to our current situation. Remember, they graduated from what started as a financial crisis. Ours is a health crisis. And not only does that create a struggling job market, but the physical and social interactions that are essential in commerce have now been limited. Our lives after today will be a new experience for anyone. The way we do business is starting to change, and surely our priorities will change, too. There is no other generation we can ask how ‘graduating in a pandemic’ was like, or what it was like for a Lasallian in the Time of Corona. Our actions after today will provide those answers. When the next generation turns to us, what will we answer them? How will we inspire them? And so, we must not only fully adapt to this new normal, but also foster our Lasallian ingenuity and take advantage of the new opportunities to make the most of this current situation. This pandemic may have brought us two steps back, but we must always learn to take that step forward. As Lasallian

economics, education, science, and business graduates, we are now called, more than ever, to be the discerning, innovative, and socially responsible economists, educators, scientists, and business leaders De La Salle University and our country expect us to be– bridging our faith and our practice not just for ourselves but more so for the common good–men and women for all men and women. Let ‘graduating in a pandemic’ be a challenge for all of us on how much we can answer to these times and improve our situation. De La Salle University has always taught us that our arrows do not simply fly; they soar. But should your arrows miss, not only can you find more arrows along the way, but you can certainly make your own. Godspeed, and Animo La Salle! May our hearts stay restless until they rest in Him! Live, Jesus, in our hearts–forever! The author delivered this speech as the response on behalf of the graduates during the 188th Commencement Exercises of De La Salle University on November 7, 2020. He can be reached at carsayarot@gmail.com. The views expressed above are those of the author’s. They do not necessarily reflect the position of De La Salle University, its faculty and its administrators.

Entertainment Alden sets record with sold-out virtual concert ACTOR Alden Richards not only made his fans’ hearts flutter, he also made history with Alden’s Reality: The Virtual Reality Concert, which was held in three timeslots on Dec. 8 and 9. The sold-out show, which marked the 28-year-old star’s 10th year in the business, enabled Alden’s supporters from all over the globe to celebrate with him. Unlike the usual online concerts, Alden’s Reality gave his fans a taste of what the future of concert shows would be. It combined cutting-edge technology and performances to produce a full-length concert and immersive interaction with their idol right from the comforts of their homes. A virtual date like no other, the show begins with Alden waking up in his house and inviting his “date”—the concertgoer—to join him as he navigated Alden’s Reality. He then set the mood up by dancing to catchy songs popularized by some of the world’s most loved boybands. Joining him were his friends Rodjun and Rayver Cruz. Alden then went on to answer questions just

like he was having a one-on-one conversation with his “date,” sharing his innermost thoughts and reminiscing about his ups and downs in the past. From his heartfelt rendition of “God Gave Me You” to performing his latest single “Goin’ Crazy” and dancing to the beat of BTS’ “Dynamite”—Alden only showed how he has grown as a performer on stage. Alden’s Reality also saw Alden looking back on his career as an actor and thanking all his former leading ladies. In this segment, OPM band December Avenue joined him on stage. Greeting him on his 10th year in showbiz were his fans and friends in the industry including Sanya Lopez, Christian Bautista, Mark Bautista, and Betong Sumaya. Alden’s fans and friends further showed their support to the Kapuso actor as they shared their experience online. The hashtag “AldensReality” became the top trending topic on Twitter Philippines. “We would like to congratulate Alden for setting a new record of being the first Filipino artist to stage a virtual reality concert in the

Philippines,” said GMA Regional TV and Synergy Vice President and Head Oliver Victor Amoroso. “And while we really aimed for a worldclass production, the success of Alden’s Reality exceeded our expectations. Thank you to all our Kapuso here and abroad who bought tickets and supported Alden’s Reality. We would also like to congratulate all the people who we had the pleasure of working with on this project. This is only the beginning. Expect bigger surprises from Synergy in the future,” Amoroso added. Directed by Paolo Valenciano, Alden’s Reality is produced by Synergy: A GMA Collaboration, a group that produces ticketed and non-ticketed events and activities catering to all Filipinos across the globe. The concert also served as GMA Network’s treat to loyal Kapuso for its 70th anniversary. Alden’s latest single under GMA Music and FlipMusic Productions, “Goin’ Crazy,” also topped iTunes Philippines and is currently included in Apple Music’s “Absolute OPM Playlist.”

Nickie Wang, Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2020

REALITY. Multimedia superstar Alden Richards staged a sold-out virtual show that marked his 10th year in the entertainment industry.

Arjo makes history with ‘Bagman’

Coming-of-age anthology ‘Cleaners,’ directed by PPP4 Best Director Glenn Barit, was the most decorated film at the recently concluded PP4 awards night.

NDEPENDENT anthology film Cleaners by Glenn Barit dominated the 4th edition of the annual Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP) organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP).

In a virtual awards night held Saturday evening (Dec. 12), the film that premiered globally at the 2020 Busan International Film Fest in October became the most decorated entry bagging six awards out of 10 nominations: Best Picture, Best Director for Barit, Best Supporting Actress for Gianne Rivera, Special Citation for Ensemble Performance for Leomar Baloran, Julian Narag, and Carlo Mejia, Best Production Design for Alvin Francisco, and Best Musical Score for Barit. Jason Paul Laxamana’s He Who Is Without Sin took home four awards, namely Special Jury Prize for Performance in a Lead Role for Elijah Canlas, Best Screenplay for Laxamana, Best Cinematography for Emmanuel Liwanag, and Audience Choice Award for Feature Film Category. Other big winners of the night were Metamorphosis by J.E. Tiglao, which

‘Cleaners’

sweeps top plum at

Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino

Gold Azeron won Best Actor for his role in ‘Metamorphosis,’ which also received the PPP4 Special Jury Prize for Film.

won the Special Jury Prize for Film, Best Actress Hana Kino for Come On, Irene, Best Actor Gold Azeron for Metamorphosis, and Best Supporting Actor Henyo Ehem for The Highest Peak. Kintsugi director Lawrence Fajardo was given the Best Editing trophy while The Highest Peak director Arbi Barbarona won for Best Sound Design. The Audience Choice Award for CineMarya Short Film Category is Night Shift by Mariel Ong. Considered for the #PPP4SamaAll Awards Night nominations were nine out of the 13 films from the Premium Selection Section, which are the ones that had limited releases in the country or had Philippine premieres at PPP4. The online #PPP4SamaAll Awards Night was streamed on the YouTube channel and Facebook pages of the FDCP. Hosted by Kakki Teodoro, it featured musical performances by Raf Bernardino, Acel Bisa, Bayang Barrios and Naliyagan, Joey Ayala, Ice Seguerra, and Regine Velasquez. The PPP4, which ran until yesterday, had a 170-film lineup of 90 fulllength feature films and 80 short films. The online festival had drawn 8,000 subscribers, held 32 virtual events, and had 64 event partners and supporters.

Elijah Canlas was awarded the PPP4 Special Jury Prize for his performance in ‘He Who Is Without Sin.’

KAPAMILYA star Arjo Atayde was named Best Actor at the Asian Academy Creative Awards (AAAs) 2020 on Dec. 4 for his role in the iWant original series Bagman, besting nine Asian actors and bagging the Philippines’ first-ever acting accolade in the main competition. With his portrayal of a barber-turned-henchmanturned-governor in the socio-political statement piece, Arjo beat out (China), Manoj Bajpayee (India), Miller Khan (Indonesia), Bront Palarae (Malaysia), Anthony Wong (Hong Kong), Kha Ra (Myanmar), Zhang Yao Dong (Singapore), Prin Suparat (Thailand), and Ching-Ting Hsia (Taiwan). Before being named the best in the region, Arjo was picked as the national winner for the Philippines by AAA’s jury members in the Best Actor category. Arjo was also submitted for consideration by ABS-CBN’s Dreamscape Entertainment and iWant, now known as iWantTFC, in the local race. Before his international During the digital awards night hosted by Singapore, recognition, Arjo’s effective Arjo Atayde was honored by the judges for “nailing the portrayal of an anti-hero in complexities of his character” as Benjo in the political Bagman’s two seasons has drama. already generated praises from local viewers. He plays Benjo Malaya, an ordinary barber who learns to maneuver the dark and often thorny ins-and-outs of politics. “Bagman,” which is currently streaming on the iWantTFC app (iOS and Android) and site (iwanttfc.com), also received generally positive reviews from viewers for its unapologetic exploration of relevant social issues and deep-dive into the brutal world of politics and corruption. The AAAs, now in its third year, is considered to be “Asia-Pacific’s most prestigious awards for creative excellence” with 16 nations participating and submitting their finest works. It is also part of the Singapore Media Festival.

Christmas with Mang Kepweng

TO MANY millennials, the name Chiquito does not ring a bell and certainly, the screen name of Papang Augusto Pangan, Jr., does not belong to their list of people they need to know. However, for the baby boomers and Gen Xers, the name is a legend -- the next great comedian after Comedy King Dolphy. Many believe that he was Mang Dolphy’s rival in terms of comedy, timing, and giving their audiences bellyaches because of their manner of tickling the funny bones of their captive audiences. One of the most iconic screen characters made by the late great Chiquito was Mang Kepweng, a faith healer with a heart of gold. He first hit the silver screens in the late ‘70s, and yes, it was box office gold. A sequel to it billed Mang Kepweng and Son happened in the early ‘80s with Papang (term of endearment for the comedian) with the young Ian Veneracion as his son. And as expected, it was another boxoffice winner. And it seems, this tradition of it becoming a box-office sensation continues when it came back with Mang Kepweng Returns and now, its most awesome comeback transpires this Christmas Day with Mang Kepweng: Ang Lihim ng Bandanang Itim, an official entry to the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) 2020. Directed by Topel Lee, the new film is a collaboration project between Cineko Productions and Star Cinema. Its powerhouse cast includes Fumiya Sankai, Yamyam Gucong, Lotlot de Leon, Margo Midwinter, Alora Sasam, Rubi Rubi, Chad Kinis, Petite, Caloy Alde, Nikko Natividad, Lou Veloso, Mariko Ledesma, Kaladkaren, Patricia Roxas, Ritz Azul, Ion Perez, Ryan Bang, Benjie Paras, Barbie Imperial and the Philippines’ National Actress, Cannes Palme d’Or winner, Jaclyn Jose. Headlining the film is Vhong Navarro taking this new journey and challenge.

The cast of MMFF 2020 entry ‘Mang Kepweng’ led by comedian Vhong Navarro. “It’s a great honor for me to do the second installment of the Mang Kepweng franchise,” director Lee begins. “You know as a young boy, I had the opportunity to watch the Chiquito classics, yung una and the second version. I will not deny that I am a fan of Papang Chiquito, his talent, and ibang klase rin talaga ang brand at style of comedy niya.” “This time, we have expanded the Mang Kepweng universe. We added more Pinoy mythical creatures in it, may manananggal, sirena, and other elementals na part of our Pinoy folklores. And I think what makes it more appealing now is because, Vhong’s Mang Kepweng here, will eat his humble pie kasi nga, parang naging superstar faith healer siya and somehow the popularity he has consumed him. The adventure he embarked on will test his character,” the director carries on. Vhong is proud of this new movie because they worked in a collaborative environment. “I was not only an actor here, director Topel and I collaborated in the film. Ang sarap sa feeling na may artistic and creative inputs ka sa pelikulang ginagawa mo, and that yung director mo, eh kasing passionate mo to make the movie more fun and mas maging enjoyable viewing experience para sa lahat,” says Vhong. “I hope, si Papang Chiquito, masaya siya na we are continuing his comedic legacy and sana hindi namin siya ma-disappoint,” ends the actor. Mang Kepweng: Ang Lihim ng Bandanang Itim streams on http://upstream.ph beginning on Dec. 25. Using your GMovies account, tickets can be purchased as early as now on the site for only P250.00 each.

Life

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

FOOD

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2020

The ‘mill on the hill’ to thrill in Manila

FOOD NEWS ROUNDUP

Kuya J ‘s new store at Fisher Mall in Malabon boasts a modern and spacious look and homey interiors.

Kuya J opens first restaurant amid pandemic

FROM THE HILLS. The Tamnavulin distillery, located in the foothills of the Cairngorm Mountains in Scotland, produces whiskies made with water drawn from underground springs and filtered through ancient limestone rocks. By Bernadette Lunas

NOTHER Speyside whisky enters the sweet flavor-loving Philippine market, offering bottles made with the “purest spring water” in Scotland.

Tamnavulin Distillery (from the Gaelic for “mill on the hill”), located on southern edge of Speyside, in the foothills of the Cairngorm Mountains, brings to the country its Double Cask and Sherry Cask Edition. Speyside whiskies are said to be the most popular in the world, owing to its sweet, fruity, and floral notes—flavor profile which many Filipinos love. “We have beautiful appreciation for sweetness; what can be described as light is actually rich, sweet f lavor,” said George Schulze, premium brands spokesperson of Whyte & Mackay Asia. Using water drawn from underground springs in the Easterton hills formed by snowmelt from the sur-

Stephen Martin, Whyte & Mackay Global single malt whisky specialist

George Schulze, Whyte & Mackay Asia premium brands spokesperson

rounding mountains, and naturally filtered through ancient limestone rock, a small group of skilled, dedicated craftsmen creates Tamnavulin’s signature Speyside single malt whis-

kies matured in casks that bring out their distinct flavors. “What we are about is producing great quality products. In order to produce something like that you have to have real pride in what you do, approach your every working day with enthusiasm. And my guys truly do that,” enthused Joanne Reavley, distillery manager at Tamnavulin. Tamnavulin Double Cask is matured in American Oak barrels for that sweet, mellow taste, with a rich, smooth, sherry finish. “Wine integration contributes to the character of the whisky,” explained Stephen Martin, Whyte & Mackay Global single malt whisky specialist. It features rich, warm aromas of apple and toffee, which Martin described as “perfect partnership,” and honey with sweet marzipan with subtle tangy marmalade notes. Fresh and mellow notes of pear, creamy peaches, and pineapple are also present. “As flavor develops, you may also get coconut as well,” added Martin. Tamnavulin’s Sherry Cask Edition, meanwhile, showcases what Martin said to be “a wonderful synergy that exists between whisky and sherry.” It is matured in American White Oak Barrels and enhanced by a finesse in three different types of Oloroso Sherry casks created from a selection of the finest European and American Hogshead. “The team behind the popular single malt expertly sourced casks from three individual cooperages across Spain. Each cooperage selected for its ability to gift different flavors to this single malt and bring life to the quintessential Sherry notes of raisin, vanilla, and orange.” Vanilla makes an enticing aromatic entrance, followed by caramel, banana, and milk chocolate with a hint of fresh ginger. Burnt and glazed orange, maple syrup, and raisin flavors are followed by subtle notes of apricot and melon.

Tamnavulin’s Double Cask single malt whisky is matured in American Oak Barrels, while the Sherry Edition is matured in American White Oak Barrels and enhanced in three different types of Oloroso Sherry casks from Spain.

The hard-working team in the Tamnavulin Distillery combines time-honored skills with a common goal of creating the perfect whisky.

Tamnavulin Sherry Edition retails P1,859.75 (and exclusively available at Landers), while Tamnavulin Double Cask is priced at P1,700.

LOCAL restaurant chain Kuya J recently marked a significant milestone as it opened its first concept store since the government implemented quarantine restrictions in the country. The new branch, located at Fisher Mall Malabon, brings the brand’s bestsellers to the area while helping generate new jobs and boost commerce in the municipality. “We decided to push through with Juicy fried chicken the opening of this restaurant, despite the ongoing pandemic because we need to help rebuild our economy by generating jobs and encouraging everyone to fully pivot to the new normal,” said Ton Gatmaitan, marketing director of Kuya J Group. Gatmaitan added, “Moreover, as we move closer to Christmas, we want to give families in Malabon better access to Kuya J treats which they can enjoy with their families during the Christmas season.” To ensure the well-being of customers, health measures and safety protocols are strictly implemented Crispy pata in the store.

Max’s Group offers new products perfect for the holiday season across its casual dining restaurant brands.

Max’s Group rolls out December promos IN KEEPING with the season of back-to-back feasts and holiday celebrations, Max’s Group’s restaurants treat customers to the most delightful deals of December. Until Dec. 31, Max’s Restaurant offers the 1945 Classic Sets that start at P1,945. The Supreme Set includes one Regular Whole Fried Chicken, large plain rice, Sizzling Tofu or Chicken Pancit Canton, Crispy Oxtail KareKare or Beef Kare-Kare, and four Regular Buko Pandan. Deluxe Set and Standard Set are also available. Yellow Cab’s Holiday Exclusive promo, on the other hand, gives customers who place their orders worth at least P999 via delivery.yellowcabpizza.com for Dec. 24, 25, 31, and Jan. 1 before Dec. 21 a free nine-inch Pepperoni or BBQ Chicken Pizza. Over at Pancake House, its bestsell-

ing Classic Pan Chicken is sold by the bucket. A five-piece bucket is priced at P499. The Classic Pan Chicken Holiday Bucket Set A includes six pieces of the Classic Pan Chicken, two large Spaghetti with Garlic Bread, six sides of either Mashed Potato with gravy or Coleslaw, and 1.5 liter Coke for P673; while the Holiday Bucket Set B comes with six cups of plain rice with chicken and sides for P413. Teriyaki Boy offers feast trays this December. Choices include 10-piece or 15-piece Gyoza Japanese feast tray which starts at P255, Kani Salad available for P270, Teriyaki Boy Chicken feast tray at P1,550, Tonkatsu P1,280, Beef Teppanyaki P1,235, Tori Karaage P615, or Gohan P245. Sizzlin’ Steak likewise offers special cater trays of its Beef Strips and Burger Steak for P419, and Beef Strips for P1,139.