Manila Standard - 2021 September 5 - Sunday

Paalam’s silver medal caps PH’s best Olympic campaign n By RIERA U. MALLARI

Vol. 35 n No. 202

2 SECTIONS

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021 8 PAGES

TOKYO – The Philippines capped its greatest Summer Olympic Games’ campaign on Saturday with a silver from flyweight boxer Carlo Paalam, an eagle-spiked six-under 65 by golfer Yuka Saso and the dawn of a new era in sporting excellence.

Already its best showing in the 97-year history of participa-

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2 SECTIONS MANILRAO AUGUST 8, 2021 8 PAGES Vol. 35 n No.174

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Carlo Paalam celebrates his silver medal for the men’s fly (48-52kg) boxing final bout during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo on August 7, 2021. AFP

HEROES ALL. Health workers from the municipality of Aringay in La Union traverse rivers and mountains to reach far-flung barangays to either do diagnostic tests or for contact tracing. “I have seen the sacrifices of the Aringay healthcare personnel who go out of their way to reach out the deepest recesses of the municipality,” said Dr. Rolando Q. Mallari, focal person of the Municipal Task Force Against COVID-19, in a Facebook post.

ICU, ward beds at high risk–DOH T

DIAZ

Gold Medalist

HE occupancy rate of intensive care unit beds for COVID-19 patients across the country are now at high risk level as it rose to 74 percent on Saturday as the country logged 20,741 new cases – the second highest daily tally since the pandemic started and the second consecutive day when more than 20,000 fresh infections were recorded.

In Metro Manila, at least 73 percent of the 1,500 ICU beds are in use, the Department of Health said.

This also placed Metro Manila’s ICU bed usage at the high risk level, which means occupancy rate is more than 70 percent but below 85 percent.

Both COVID-19 ward beds at the national level and in Metro Manila are likewise at high risk at 72 percent and

74 percent occupancy rates.

Saturday’s new cases brought the nationwide tally to 2,061,084 even as active cases slightly decreased to 157,646.

The country’s all-time high daily tally was recorded Monday (Aug. 30) at 22,366 cases.

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• PH logs 20,741 new COVID-19 cases • Higher herd immunity threshold eyed • Gov’t lifts travel ban on 10 countries

‘IATF approves NCR granular lockdowns’ MARCIAL Bronze GRANULAR lockdowns will be imposed in Metro Manila starting Medalist Wednesday, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said.

The lockdown, Lopez said, will be limited to few and small specific areas with high transmissions.

He said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has already approved the enforceenforce ment of granular lockdowns but the guidelines are still being finalized and will be issued before Sept. 7. “[Under granular lockdowns] other areas will allow more sector openings and capacity so that more jobs can be brought back,” Lopez said.

Palace spokesman Harry Roque, for his part, said the granular lockdown is still awaiting the approval of President Rodrigo Duterte.

Lopez said the areas need not be an entire barangay. Granular lockdowns can cover only a group of houses near each other or surrounding areas with varying levels of restrictions from Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Silver Medalist Au Last month, the National Economic and Development Authority warned the economy will bleed to the tune of about P150 billion per week under the strictest Enhanced CommuCommu nity Quarantine.

The government earlier extended the Modified Enhanced ComCom munity Quarantine status of Metro Manila until September 7.

Aside from Metro Manila, the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Bataan, Apayao, Ilocos Norte, Aklan and Iloilo as well as the cities of Lucena, Lapu-Lapu,

PAALAM

Silver Medalist PEDIATRIC JAB. Pedro Montano holds his daughter Roxana Montano, 3, while she is being vaccinated against COVID-19 with Cuban vaccine Soberana Plus at the Juan Manuel Marquez hospital in Havana as part of the vaccine study in children and adolescents. AFP

PETECIO

Experts still studying vax for kids

New cases hit 11k, Delta drives surge THE Department of Health has yet to issue a recommendation to start vaccinating children against COVID-19 even as an emergency use authorization has already been given for the use of Moderna and Pfizer shots for minors aged 12 to 17 years old.

“Tthe DOH and experts in the vaccine cluster have not yet issued a recommendation for vaccination of children. We are studying the matter very carefully.” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Saturday.

The Food and Drug Administration on Friday amended Moderna’s EUA, clearing it for 12 to 17-year-olds. n

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COVID-19 PH

n By WILLIE CASAS and JOEL ZURBANO AT A GLANCE

2,061,084

HE country logged 11,021 new COVID-19 cases Saturday – the highest daily record since April – as the Department of Health admitted that the two-week Enhanced Community Quarantine will not be able to stop the surge, likely driven by the more transmissible Delta 20,741 157,646 variant.

New Active

189

1,869,376 21,962

COVID beds in 2 QC hospitals fully occupied, PGH at 75%

Año: Ayuda release starts Wednesday

CONTINUED ON 2A lease of financial aid to qualified residents in Metro Manila, paving the way for the distribution of ayuda likely this coming Wednesday, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said.

apprehends almost PAL filesPNP for bankruptcy in US 2,000 ECQ violators – Eleazar

The fresh cases – the second consecutive day that the 10,000 mark was breached – Death brought the totalNew to 1,649,341, with 162 new fatalities.

Active cases stood at 76,063 active cases, Recoveries New also the highest since April 25.

Quezon City, two4hospitals – the Que(As of 4InPM, SEPTEMBER zon City General Hospital and the Novali-

34,062

FDA chief Eric Domingo said doctors had to watch out for “very rare” cases of myocarditis that those who received Moderna and another mRNA vaccine, Pfizer-BioNTech, might develop. Myocarditis is a type of inflammation of the heart muscle.

The FDA in August approved the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine for children aged 12 and up.

Vergeire said the DOH will conduct an information campaign regarding vaccination of children against COVID-19.

“There is someTHE resistance or hesitancy among pargovernment has issued ents to have theirthe children she said. joint vaccinated,” guidelines for the re-

n

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contracts and cut debt by at least $2 billion while n By Darwin G. Amojelar out of 225 allocated beds, So, that is roughly ches District Hospital – reported full-occugetting $655 million in fresh capital when it emergpercent PGH spokesman pancy of their COVID beds. es from the Chapter 11 process.

AT A GLANCE FLAG carrier Philippine75 Airlines hasoccupancy,” filed for bankdelStates Rosario said.

The Philippine Generalruptcy Hospital said its in theJonas PAL will also downsize its fleet by 25 percent and protection United to restructure For entire Metro an Manila,re-negotiate DOH report-contracts to reduce lease payments.

COVID beds are now 75 percent occupied, and reorganize its finances asthe it tries to survive ed 59 percent of the ICU beds, 54As percent with three minor patientsindustry in critical condipart of the agreements, PAL voluntarily filed for a gutted by the coronavirus pandemic. of the beds, 53 percent of the ward tion.

CONTINUED ON 2A The airline said the filing willisolation allow it to restructure “Based on our last census Saturday morn- beds, and 46 percent of the ventilators were in use. ing, we have 169 confirmed COVID patients CONTINUED ON 2A

COVID-19 PH

1,649,341 11,021 New

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IN BRIEF

Drilon tells Pharmally: Face probe

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

Air Force fighter jets intercept aircraft T

HE Philippine Air Force on Saturday announced that two of its FA50PH fighter jets were “scrambled” to intercept an unidentified aircraft detected some 120 nautical miles northwest of Bolinao, Pangasinan on September 2.

“The Philippine Air Defense Control Center (PADCC), through its radars, detected an unidentified inbound aircraft in the Philippine Air Defense Identification Zone (PADIZ), approximately 120 nautical miles northwest of Bolinao, Pangasinan,” PAF spokesperson, Lt. Col. Maynard Mariano, said in a statement.

Scramble, in military aviation, refers to the immediate deployment of fighter aircraft to intercept an unknown or hostile aircraft.

Mariano said the unidentified aircraft was

heading toward Philippine airspace and upon succeeding coordination with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), it was classified to have an “unknown track of interest.”

He said the unidentified aircraft did not respond to radio calls made by the PADCC. “(The) PADCC issued a ‘scramble’ order to two FA-50 stationed at the Air Defense Alert Center and were given the mission to intercept the unknown aircraft for visual identification. The unknown aircraft was at 21,000

By Joel E. Zurbano

n

SENATE Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Saturday urged officials of Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. to face the Blue Ribbon probe and testify on the P10 billion supply deals they got from the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) previously headed by resigned Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao. “I’m wondering why up to now the officials of Pharmally have not appeared before the Senate. We subpoenaed them but we could not find them in the addresses indicated in their submissions to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),” Drilon said.

“They know that the hearings are going on. Why have they not volunteered and come up and said, ‘I’m here and I’m willing to explain all of this.’ Why? That’s why questions are being raised,” he added.

feet flying at 265 knots heading northeast.

The FA-50s flew at the maximum allowable speed towards the direction of the unknown aircraft,” Mariano said.

Four minutes into the intercept, he said, the unknown aircraft changed direction towards the north and increased its speed to 400 knots, and headed away from Philippine airspace.

The intercept was terminated at 9:45 a.m., he added.

Mariano said they are still investigating to determine the exact type of the unidentified aircraft.

“In the past decades, aircraft flying without clearance would willfully violate the Philippine airspace knowing that they will not be challenged. Today, our airspace is being closely monitored jointly by the PAF and the CAAP,” he said.

Expanded trafficking law pushed

PNP: Hunt down DBM to sign SARO for P882m online sellers additional SRA funds Monday of tocilizumab

n

PHILIPPINE National Police chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar has ordered the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Anti-Cybercrime Group to look into reports of continued illegal online sale of tocilizumab, a drug recommended for COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms.

“We appeal to our kababayan to immediately report to us if they monitor this online. We should take a united stand against COVID-19 and part of it is for us to work together against these people,” Eleazar said in a statement.

The country is facing supply shortage of tocilizumab, which was allowed in the Philippines as COVID-19 treatment under a compassionate use permit by the Food and Drug Administration.

Melissa Guerrero, program manager of the Department of Health’s pharmaceutical division, said supply is expected to remain limited until December.

“The manufacturer has already notified us that there will really be some severe stockouts until December,” she said.

The DOH has already written to the Philippine embassies in Switzerland and the United States to seek help in obtaining even just a portion of their reserve allocations.

A LEGISLATOR from the Bicol region on Saturday urged the House of Representatives to immediatey pass a measure that includes online sexual abuse and exploitation among the crimes punishable under the Human Trafficking Act of 2003.

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte said the substitute bill on the measure that was already approved by a House panel aims to attune Republic Act No. 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking Act of 2003 to the times as rapid changes in digital technology led to new ways for sexual abusers and human traffickers to scout for victims.

The substitute bill, which consolidates Villafuerte’s proposal with those of similar measures sponsored separately by his fellow legislators, was endorsed for plenary approval by Tingog party-list Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez, who chairs the House committee on the welfare of children.

THE additional P888.12 million released by the Department of Budget and Management for the special risk allowance of health care workers will cover more than 97,000 frontliners, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Tuesday.

Vergeire said the DBM is set to issue the Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) on Monday, after which the funds will be downloaded to hospitals as soon as possible.

“This will cover about 97,560 health care workers (for this batch’s SRA),” she said.

The Health department has yet to determine the number of workers who have not received their SRA as more health facilities are still submitting their list of eligible beneficiaries to the DOH’s regional offices, Vergeire said.

Public and private health workers directly catering to COVID-19 patients are entitled to an SRA not exceeding P5,000 per month, which will be pro-rated based on the number of days the health worker physically reported for work.

Health care workers on Friday called on the government to prioritize payments of delayed benefits before building a memorial wall depicting them as modern-day heroes.

“The best gesture is to give the appropriate benefits to our health care workers because that will truly show we are being valued,” Dr. Maricar Limpin, president of Philippine College of Physicians, said in an interview with ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.

Several medical frontliners staged protests and threatened to file mass resignations as many have

yet to receive pandemic benefits promised by the government.

The government will spend P2 million to P5 million to construct the memorial wall at the Libingan ng mga Bayani to honor health workers who have died while working on the front lines.

While the Alliance of Health Workers also welcomed the construction of a memorial wall, its president said the funding could be used for the payment of their unpaid benefits.

“They should pay attention to the health and safety and protection and welfare of health workers while they are alive,” AHW president Robert Mendoza said.

The Filipino Nurses United (FNU) called on the government to prioritize the people’s health and health workers’ welfare in the 2022 national budget deliberation especially since this pandemic may still extend to two years as projected by Health Secretary Francisco Duque III himself during a recent budget hearing.

The proposed COVID Response budget of P19 billion for next year is way below this year’s budget, which proved grossly inadequate and has cost lives to be sacrificed because of poor COVID-response and an extremely burdened health system near collapse with health workers’ lives and safety put at great risk, FNU said.

Duque said the DBM allocated only P19.68 billion for its COVID-19 initiatives or health system resilience projects in 2022 although the DOH’s original proposal was P73.99 billion.

By Maricel V. Cruz

FromtheFRONTPAGE ICU,...

Meanwhile, a medical group on Saturday appealed to the government to improve handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as virus patients continued to fill hospitals in different parts of the country.

“That’s the problem that breaks our hearts. We do not want to make these decisions [as to who would get admitted, who would get respirators. We do not like to play gods,” Philippine College of Physicians president Dr. Maricar Limpin said.

“This is already happening in other parts of our country, such as in Calabarzon. Our fellow doctors there said they are already filled with virus patients to the point that they are already waiting outside emergency rooms,” she added.

In other developments: • Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the government needs to increase the herd immunity threshold from 80 percent to 90 percent of the population as some COVID-19 variants lessen the efficacy of vaccines.

“With these mutations of the virus, these variants of concerns are having an effect on vaccines, reducing their efficacy against symptomatic infections,” she said.

• The government will lift the travel restrictions on India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia beginning Monday. Presidential spokesperson

Harry Roque, however, said travelers coming from those countries shall still comply with the appropriate entry, testing and quarantine protocols, depending on the country’s approved “listing.”

• The IATF also approved the adoption of “Yellow” and “Red” classifications, in addition to the “Green List” countries. The Yellow List (Moderate Risk) classification is based on the following metrics: (i) for populations greater than 100,000, the incidence rate shall be 50 to 500; and (ii) for populations less than 100,000, the COVID-19 case counts shall be 50 to 500; and testing rate of tests over the past 28 days per 100,000 population. Roque said inbound international travelers from areas under this classification, regardless of their vaccination status, or with travel history within the last 14 days prior to their arrival, shall be governed by entry, testing and quarantine protocols.

• The Red List (High Risk) classification, on the other hand, is based on the following metrics: (i) for populations greater than 100,000 the incidence rate shall be more than 500; and (ii) for populations less than 100,000, the COVID-19 case counts shall be more than 500, and testing rate of tests over the past 28 days per 100,000 population. Regardless of their vaccination status, travelers coming from areas under “Red List” will not be allowed to enter the Philippines, Roque said.

‘IATF...

lar lockdowns.

“The mayors are now preparing for granular lockdowns,” Abalos said.

PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said he has already tasked police commanders to coordinate with local government units for the possible implementation of granular lockdowns next week.

“This is just a proposal for now but

it would be better to prepare ahead to avoid confusion, which may result in misunderstanding,” Eleazar said.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said the government is considering granular lockdowns where only health workers will be allowed to leave their homes. Even authorized persons outside residence (APORs) will be prohibited from leaving their homes.

EXPERTS...

It has previously recommended giving approved COVID-19 vaccines to all 16- and 17-year-olds but only to 12- to 15-year-olds who have underlying health conditions that make them more vulnerable to the virus.

“The margin of benefit, based primarily on a health perspective, is considered too small to support advice on a universal program of vaccination of otherwise healthy 12- to 15-year-old children at this time,” it said.

“As longer-term data on potential adverse reactions accrue, greater certainty may allow for a reconsideration of the benefits and harms.”

The recommendation contrasts with the United States, which announced in May that younger teens would be vaccinated, and many European Union countries including France which have begun jabbing that age group.

In the Philippines, schools across the country have remained closed since March last year when the pandemic broke out, with learners at the basic education level remaining at their homes as the government has yet to include individuals aged 17

PAL...

Cebu, Mandaue, and Cagayan de Oro would also be under MECQ from Sept. 1 to 7.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Benjamin Abalos Jr. earlier said Metro Manila mayors and the Philippine National Police are now preparing for granu-

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has approved the inclusion of people from other age groups and those with comorbidities for COVID-19 clinical trials, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.

Roque said the IATF approved the recommendation to prioritize Phase 3 clinical trials that will enroll volunteers in pediatric age groups (six months-12 years old), the elderly (more than 60 years old), pregnant mothers, patients with immunodeficiency, patients with autoimmune diseases, patients with renal diseases and patients with chronic respiratory diseases.

In the UK, an independent advisory body on vaccines said it would not recommend jabbing all 12- to 15-year-olds against COVID-19, arguing the benefits were “too small.”

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), a panel of experts which advises ministers, has been weighing the issue after numerous other countries began giving the jabs to young teens.

pre-arranged restructuring under the US Chapter 11 process in the Southern District of New York to implement the consensual restructuring plan.

PAL will also complete a parallel filing for recognition in the Philippines under the Financial Insolvency and Rehabilitation (FRIA) Act of 2010.

“We welcome this major breakthrough, an overall agreement that enables PAL to remain the flag carrier of the Philippines and the premier global airline of the country, one that is better equipped to execute strategic initiatives and sustain the Philippines’ vital global air links to the world,” said Lucio Tan, PAL chairman and chief executive officer.

“We are grateful to our lenders, aviation partners and other creditors for supporting the plan, which empowers PAL to overcome the unprecedented impact of the global pandemic that has significantly disrupted businesses in all sectors, especially aviation, and emerge stronger for the longterm,” he added.

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WHERE A HOME USED TO BE.

The remnants of a destroyed house are seen in the wake of Hurricane Ida in Grand Isle, Louisiana.

Ida made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane five days before in Louisiana and brought flooding, wind damage and power outages along the Gulf Coast. AFP

WORLD

WORLDBRIEFS SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

Biden wants to end US global cop role “A

MERICA is back,” goes President Joe Biden’s catchphrase, but his unapologetic exit from Afghanistan shows America won’t be back to business as usual.

Beyond the trauma of the Kabul evacuation, Biden is pitching a much broader retreat: a halt to using vast military resources to impose order and US values around the planet.

“Human rights will be at the center of our foreign policy but the way to do that is not through endless military deployments,” he said. “Our strategy has to change.”

Benjamin Haddad, director of the Europe Center at the Atlantic Council and an expert on transatlantic relations, called the speech “one of the most eloquent repudiations of liberal internationalism by any US president in the last decades.”

For those Americans fond of imagining their country to be a unique, invincible superpower – winner of the Cold War, then awesome military interventionist

everywhere from Iraq to Africa ever since – this is a shock.

For most, though, polls show Biden’s pivot is likely to be popular.

Biden’s presidency is usually seen as a repudiation of the Donald Trump administration.

It’s true that a lot – from things like White House decorum to re-entering the Paris climate accord – changed the moment Biden walked into the Oval Office on January 20.

But Biden’s abandonment of open-ended US military adventures – what detractors call being “the world’s policeman” – is Trumpian.

When Biden announced “it’s time to end this forever war,” about Afghanistan, “it could just as easily be Trump,” said Charles Franklin, a Marquette Law School

professor and director of the Marquette opinion poll.

Today “the public is not committed to a large international role, certainly not of the sort the US played in the 1950s1990s,” Franklin told AFP. Regarding Afghanistan in particular, polls show strong backing for exiting – 77 percent, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll – even if Biden is taking a battering for the chaotic manner of the withdrawal.

Where Biden differs sharply from isolationist Trump is in enthusiasm for building alliances. The United States may not be a swaggering global cop, the Biden theory goes, but it can be a friendly community leader.

His administration moved quickly to put Washington back at the center of tortuous negotiations between major powers and Iran over its nuclear policy, the climate accord, and traditional alliances like NATO. A June trip to Europe for G7 and NATO summits – Biden’s only foreign trip to date

CDC: Delta does not cause more severe COVID among kids US PEDIATRIC COVID hospitalizations have surged since Delta became predominant, but a new study that offers a first look at the relevant data suggests that fears the variant causes more severe disease are unfounded.

The paper by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also found that between June 20 and July 31, 2021, unvaccinated adolescents were more than 10 times more likely to be hospitalized than those who were vaccinated.

The health agency analyzed hospital records from across an area covering around 10 percent of the US population, between March 1, 2020 and August 14, 2021.

This covered the period before the emergence of Delta, the most contagious strain to date, and after it became dominant, from June 20 onwards.

Weekly hospitalizations of children aged 0-17 were at their lowest between June 12 and July 3, at 0.3 per 100,000, before rising to 1.4 per 100,000 in the week ending August 14 – a 4.7-fold increase.

Pediatric hospitalizations reached their all-time peak of 1.5 per 100,000 in the week leading up to January 9, when the US experienced its winter wave that was driven by the Alpha variant.

Consistent with prior research, children aged 12-17 and 0-4 are at higher risk of COVID hospitalization than those aged 5-11.

After examining 3,116 hospital records from the period before Delta, and comparing them to 164 records during the Delta period, the percentage of children with severe indicators was found to not differ greatly. AFP

WINDOWS TO THE WORLD.

Visitors use their phones as they sit next to observation deck windows that provide 360 degree city views at the top of the YTN Seoul Tower, commonly known as the Namsan Tower,

MEMORIAL. Buddhists light coconut oil lamps at a temple in Colombo in remembrance of the nearly 10,000 coronavirus victims in Sri Lanka. AFP

Teens shock defending champ Osaka, No. 3 Tsitsipas at US Open DEFENDING champion Naomi Osaka of Japan and Greek third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas were both ousted from the US Open by 18-year-olds in epic stunners on Friday at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka was shocked by Canadian left-hander Leylah Fernandez 5-7, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 after Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz upset French Open runner-up Tsitsipas 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7/2), 0-6, 7-6 (7/5).

“Honestly the Alcaraz match gave me motivation and gave me the energy to do the same,” Fernandez said. “I saw his match and I

saw the way he won and I’m like ‘I’m going to do that next now.’”

After the upset, defending champion Osaka announced she was taking a break from playing tennis.

“I honestly don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match,” Osaka said, wiping away tears. “I think I’m going to take a break from playing for a while.”

Osaka, who had won her prior 16 Grand Slam matches, was foiled in a bid for her third US Open crown in four years and the first backto-back title since Serena Williams in 2014.

Alcaraz is the youngest man in the US Open fourth round since 17-year-old American Michael Chang in 1989, and at any Slam since Ukraine’s Andrei Medvedev in the 1992 French Open.

“Incredible. Incredible feeling for me,” Alcaraz said. “This victory means a lot to me. It’s the best match of my career, the best win.

“To beat Stefanos Tsitsipas is a dream come true and to win here is even more special for me.”

Osaka had a major meltdown on court during the final moments of the second set after she was unable to hold serve for the victory.

“From the very beginning, right before the match, I knew I was able to win,” Fernandez said. “Thanks to New York fans. They helped me get the win.” AFP

Outbreak claims NZ first death in six months NEW Zealand recorded its first COVID-related death in six months Saturday, but health authorities said there were signs the outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant was coming under control.

A woman in her 90s, who had underlying health conditions and could not receive a ventilator or intensive care support, died in an Auckland hospital on Friday night.

She is the 27th person to die with COVID-19 in New Zealand and the first recorded since February 16 this year.

Authorities said the woman was a household contact of a person who had already tested positive for the virus in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city with a population of around 1.7 million.

New Zealand has been battling a coronavirus outbreak since the first locally transmitted case in six months was detected in mid-August, thrusting the country of five million into lockdown.

Since then, 782 cases have been recorded, primarily in Auckland, which remains at its highest level of restrictions while the rest of the country has eased back restrictions.

The death was “a deeply sad reminder of why the measures we are undertaking right now are so important,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.

“Our older New Zealanders and those with underlying health issues are by far the most at risk from the virus, and one of the reasons lockdowns are such an important tool to stop its spread.”

Only 20 new positive cases were reported Saturday, down from a peak in the latest outbreak of 84 last weekend.

Caroline McEnlay, the director of public health, has described the declining numbers over the past week as “encouraging” and said, “we are being successful in breaking the chain of transmission.” AFP

3 migrants dead in boat capsize off French Guiana AT LEAST three people have died after a boat capsized off French Guiana carrying about 20 migrants travelling from Brazil to an illegal gold-mining site, local authorities said.

The small wooden boat sank on August 28, but the incident was not reported until a survivor was spotted by a pleasure boat on Tuesday desperately clinging to a buoy in the Kourou channel in the French South American territory.

The Brazilian woman told rescuers she had been on a boat that had capsized after leaving the Brazilian town of Oiapoque, on the river border with French Guiana.

The boat “obviously came from Oiapoque with passengers (of Brazilian nationality) bound for an illegal gold mining site, according to the first statements collected,” said the prosecutor in the French Guiana capital of Cayenne, Samuel Finielz.

“We can consider that there were around 20 people” on board, he told AFP late on Friday.

Air and sea rescue operations launched on Tuesday led to the discovery of three bodies and four survivors, he said.

The police chief in Oiapoque, Charles Correa, told AFP 25 people were on board, including a child of 15 and three crew members.

Finielz said an investigation has been opened into “aggravated manslaughter and human trafficking.” AFP

Facebook labels mistakenly black men as ‘primates’ FACEBOOK on Friday said it disabled its topic recommendation feature after it mistook Black men for “primates” in a video at the social network.

A Facebook spokesperson called it a “clearly unacceptable error” and said the recommendation software involved was taken offline.

“We apologize to anyone who may have seen these offensive recommendations,” Facebook said in response to an AFP inquiry.

“We disabled the entire topic recommendation feature as soon as we realized this was happening so we could investigate the cause and prevent this from happening again.”

Facial recognition software has been blasted by civil rights advocates who point out problems with accuracy, particularly when it comes to people who are not white.

Facebook users in recent days who watched a British tabloid video featuring Black men were shown an auto-generated prompt asking if they would like to “keep seeing videos about Primates,” according to the New York Times.

The June 2020 video in question, posted by the Daily Mail, is titled “White man calls cops on black men at marina.”

While humans are among the many species in the primate family, the video had nothing to do with monkeys, chimpanzees or gorillas.

A screen capture of the recommendation was shared on Twitter by former Facebook content design manager Darci Groves.

“This ‘keep seeing’ prompt is unacceptable,” Groves tweeted, aiming the message at former colleagues at Facebook. AFP

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

Architect-educator sees paradigm shift

I

N THIS era where the imposition of lockdowns has been conventional, it’s no longer a surprise how we’ve become accustomed to living and working in our own spaces. But ever wondered how the architecture industry also adapted to this environment? Arch.

Stephanie Tan-Branquinho shares her two cents.

“I believe that it is the architect’s job not just to look at the current needs but to also plan for the future. It is important to be open-minded, exploratory, and flexible in developing design solutions that clients might not even know they need in the future,”says Branquinho, principal architect of SpaceFabrik and program head for Architecture at Enderun Colleges.

Branquinho came from a family that has always been active in construction and design. As a child, she was interested in how spaces affect the behavior of people and loved to observe and see how they use them.

“Design can create environments and places for people—places that can inspire, wonder, and form happiness and good memories. Architecture and design for me are not just about use nor function. I see it as a powerful tool to create lasting change and well-being,” she says.

With a passion for the industry, it’s no wonder how her interest in spaces led her to a rewarding profession. Her Master of Architecture degree from a German university was one of the investments she earned to land some of the most notable projects in the world. These include the Bab Al Bahr in Morocco, Sama Dubai and West Kowloon Train Terminal in Hong Kong, to

name a few.

“I would say that every project comes at different times of my life.

For every client and work completed, I get to know a bit of myself through the process of design. Each project is special and every client has unique characteristics. When I look back at a project that was completed 10 years ago, I can see my growth as a designer and as an individual. I see my maturity and growth as I understand people more—their motivations, visions, concerns, hopes, and dreams,” she says.

“Architecture and design can help us find our best self and it is always good to be open and not let one project define us,” says Branquinho.

“When a project can allow me to explore, learn, and work effectively with others, I can say that it is a reflection of my growth mindset in design and life,” she says.

Now with a firm based in Manila, Branquinho strongly upholds her goal to effectively articulate her company’s vision and culture in fostering business development and sustainable growth. “With my team in SpaceFabrik, we constantly stay in touch with our clients and see how the spaces we design grow and adapt to their needs. A happy client and a successful project would be one of my professional achievements.”

Stephanie Tan-Branquinho, principal architect of SpaceFabrik and program head for Architecture at Enderun Colleges

The pandemic is a chance to reconsider the job of the design business in building up new sets of disciplines that will help the community.

The pandemic, according to her, has highlighted the Capitalist Design System, which is a process of making money from real estate and high-density spaces that have little regard for the well-being of their occupants.

Before the pandemic, offices were in full capacity, and tall buildings were designed with elevators that had people travel from floor to floor packed like sardines. The focus of the system was to make a profit on space at a per square meter rate and that stood as a major consideration in starting a project.

Expert cites COVID-19 lessons for air pollution mitigation AN ENVIRONMENTAL management expert said the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted a valuable lesson on environmental protection, particularly on air pollution, and urged the government, private sector and the public to adopt and sustain the unexpected gains from the continuing community lockdowns and reduced travel.

Aldwin Camance, a chemical engineer and a passionate climate change mitigation advocate who has conducted more than 50 environmental impact assessments and about 10 environmental risk assessments, said: “While the Covid-19 pandemic wreaks havoc to public health systems worldwide, it has inadvertently accomplished the seemingly impossible task of reducing air pollution in busy urban areas in the Philippines like Metro Manila.”

Citing the 2020 Environmental Annual Narrative Report of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Camance said the air quality nationwide in terms of particulate matter 10 significantly

improved by 64 percent during the implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine on March 16 last year compared to the 2011 baseline. Particulate matter consists of microscopic airborne solid and liquid particles, including chemicals and organic and inorganic matter, which can be hazardous to one’s health.

Air pollution, according to Camance, is a serious health hazard that can cause death and debilitating respiratory conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. “The Global Burden of Disease 2019 published by The Lancet ranked air pollution as the fourth highest risk associated with deaths at 6.67 million worldwide for all ages. It kills more than high fasting plasma glucose, high body-mass index or high LDL cholesterol. In the Philippines, the GBD 2019 ranked air pollution fifth, contributing to about 70,000 deaths in 2019, which is more than the deaths attributed to the pandemic from 2020-2021” he said.

The

Women recognized beyond achievements IN Filipino family culture, the women or mothers are referred to as the ilaw ng tahanan and the same holds true for entire communities. More women now occupy leadership positions—whether it be in the workforce or other sectors, making their voices heard and shedding light to their advocacies.

On July 29, eight Filipinas who have made a mark in their professional careers and uplifted various commu- Dr. Angelita Sievertnities were recognized as Bravo Awardees by Zonta Club Fernandez, awardee for social services of Makati and Security Bank Corp. On top of the recognition, Security Bank gave every awardee a P50,000 grant for their respective advocacies.

The Bravo Awards is a biennial event that started in 2015, as a partnership between Security Bank, Zonta Club of Makati and Environs. This year, a virtual awarding ceremony was held via Zoom.

The event allowed the awardees to be recognized in the fields of arts, culture and heritage; business; culinary arts; education; media and public affairs; science and technology; social services; and sports.

Hidilyn Diaz, the first Filipino athlete to win a gold medal in the Olympics after 97 years, was also recognized for her excellence in weightlifting, a sport typically dominated by men.

The awardees’ journeys inspired everyone. Each of them shared their stories of grit and passion as they revealed the challenges they have overcome in their careers and causes.

Kythe Foundation is an NGO that strives to improve the quality of life of cancer-stricken children in the country and the work does not come easy.

“The biggest challenge is the establishment of child life services in partner hospitals. It’s really a struggle to place and institutionalize these programs in hospitals,” says Child Life Program manager and awardee for social services, Dr. Angelita Sievert-Fernandez.

Aldwin Camance

improvement in air quality nationwide, according to the report, was attributed to the limited human activity during the ECQ period. “Because of reduced social and economic activities, air quality was reported to have improved over Metro Manila.

An estimated 6.4 million vehicles [mobile sources] and 704 industries [stationary sources] contribute to the air pollution emissions in the Nation-

ECCP names IWG head

as new president n By Othel V. Campos

THE European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines welcomes Lars Wittig, the Philippine country manager of IWG as the new president after a successful election in June 2021.

“I am most honored and humbled to be elected president of the ECCP especially at this critical time for foreign and domestic companies alike. Since the start of the pandemic, the chamber has continued to be a steadfast partner of the government and the European-Philippine business community in the country’s transition towards the new normal. During my term, I look forward to building on the excellent work that the Chamber has done,” Wittig said in a forum detailing the group’s milestones in the Philippines.

The ECCP has developed ties with the Philippine government for more than 40 years and actively advocated for reforms to make the Philippines a more competitive destination for local and foreign investments.

Maintaining its good relations and increasingly good relations with the local business sectors, the group cited PEZA for recognizing and granting ECCP their Galing Pinas Ecozone Investment PartnerEuropean Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines ship Award earlier president Lars Wittig this year.

The chamber is also an active champion of sustainability and has been deeply involved in sustainability-related advocacies covering energy efficiency and conservation, water management, circular economy, among others. For this year, ECCP launched two milestone events related to sustainability, Wittig said.

In February 2021, the ECCP, in partnership with the DOE-National Renewable Energy Board, launched the REPH100 movement which is a private sector-driven effort aimed at supporting the Department of Energy’s Green Energy Option Program, as well as encouraging local players and international players of various sizes to shift to 100-percent renewable energy.

The REPH100 initiative was inspired by the global RE100 initiative which was directed at encouraging global companies to commit to 100-percent renewable energy operations by 2030.

In June 2021, the ECCP hosted the first-ever ECCP Europa Awards on Sustainability which awarded companies that exemplified best practices on smart and safer mobility, clean and efficient energy, circular economy, sustainable food and nutrition, green and inclusive finance solutions, and water resource management.

Amaia Land bags bronze in Stevie Awards AMAIA Land Corp. bagged a bronze for the PR/communications campaign category of the 18th Annual International Stevie Business Awards.

Amaia rolled out its “Kadiwa on Wheels” program in July 2020, in partnership with the Department of Agriculture. Driven by its vision to uplift the lives of everyday Filipinos, Amaia sought to identify a vulnerable group—in this case the local farming sector, which was hit

hard by the pandemic. With travel restrictions disrupting the local supply chain, a huge gap was created between farmers and consumers.

It was this predicament that Amaia was primed to address.

Kadiwa thus served a dual purpose: it provided Amaia homeowners and their neighboring communities immediate and safe access to essential goods. With food shopping being done within their premises, chances

Amaia Land Corp. snags the bronze for the PR/communications campaign category of the 18th Annual International Stevie Business Awards.

of COVID infection were greatly reduced. Equally important was Kadiwa’s intent to give Filipino farmers a secure and convenient venue for selling their fresh produce.

Kadiwa on Wheels emphasizes Amaia’s relentless efforts in nation building by promoting safer food distribution during the pandemic. It was initially launched in North Luzon projects such as Amaia Scapes Pampanga and Amaia Scapes Capas, and later ventured into Amaia Steps Pasig, Amaia Steps Bicutan and Amaia Scapes General Trias.

The International Stevie Business Awards are the world’s premier business awards. It was created in 2002 to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals all over the world.

Amaia’s Bronze Stevie is an affirmation of the real estate company’s culture of service, not just for its homeowners and residents but also for valued members of communities nationwide. Moving forward, Amaia Land Corp. hopes to further raise the bar for more meaningful programs and pursuits.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

Denice Zamboanga in action vs “Arale Chan” Seo Hee Ham

Zamboanga: I clearly won the fight

HIDILYN DIAZ Olympic titlist wants to become world champ, too

F

Hidilyn Diaz will soon embark the daunting challenge of securing a maiden World Championship title as she resumes her thirst for gold.

ILIPINA superwoman Hidilyn Diaz is already an Olympic champion. Now, she wants to become world champion, too.

After ending the Philippines’ 97-year quest for gold in the Olympic Games, Diaz will soon embark on an equally daunting challenge of securing a maiden World Championship title as she resumes her #ThirstForGold.

While Diaz and her team are still weighing their options on whether to pursue a 5th straight Olympic campaign in Paris three years from now, they have set their sights on three immediate tournaments that are coming – the World Championships in Lima, Peru late this year and the Vietnam Southeast Asian Games and the Hangzhou Asian Games next year.

“One at a time po muna tayo,” said Diaz in a recent online forum. “Sa World Championships muna, then sa SEA Games and Asian Games next year, tapos, assess ulet, tignan natin kung kaya ulet sa Olympics. Pinag iisipan ko pa po, kasi additional three years po na sactifice sa training. Medyo mahirap ang preparation, titignan ko pa din saan kaya ng katawan, saan kaya ng coaches na magsakrispisyo.”

For the meantime, the 30-year-old Diaz is enjoying the long-deserved break as she savors her Olympic triumph.

“Mahirap i-balance lahat ng pangyayari sa buhay. Pero it’s (break) a blessing that I need to enjoy kahit saglit lang,” added Diaz.

Diaz said she is now spending less time with her training sessions and just enjoying the moment.

“My training session is less from my usual training before the Olympics. I became so busy with interviews, online events, courtesy calls, online classes,” said Diaz, whose sacrifices begin anew on Sept. 20 as she heads off to Malaysia with coach Julius Naranjo to begin their hard training for the World Championships, slated from Nov. 1 to 7.

Naranjo is filling in the shoes left off by Diaz's Chinese coach Gao Kaiwen, who headed back to China for good, although he was asked by the team to remain as consultant.

On her road to the Tokyo Olympics, Diaz spent 18 months training in Malaysia when the Philippines was put on lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo Olympic Games Organizing Committee delayed the holding of the quadrennial meet to July, 2021.

Training away from home helped Diaz stay focused on her sessions and nutrition for her Olympic gold medal bid. Throughout her training, Summit has been her hydration partner as the brand believes in her capacity to reach gold. Since 2018, Diaz has been Summit’s ambassador, with the brand supporting her every step of the way in all of her campaigns, including the recent Tokyo Olympics and the tournaments that she will join in the future.

In the Tokyo Olympics, the weightlifter from Zamboanga edged out world record holder Liao Qiuyun of China for the Philip-

pines' first-ever Olympic gold.

Even before the coming Tokyo games, Diaz was already the most decorated Olympian ever. Her victory in the Tokyo Olympics only added to her greatness, and a fifth appearance in Paris will just solidify her status as the Philippines’ greatest Olympian ever.

But for now, the World Championship beckons.

“Summit Natural Drinking Water, the official hydration partner of Team Philippines, is honored to have been by the side of our Olympians, led by Hidilyn Diaz, in their #ThirstForGold,” says Summit Brand Manager, Francheska Garcia.

“We again enjoin everyone to rally behind our greatest Olympian as she embarks on a mission in the World Championship to bring honor to the country and show to the whole world the indomitable spirit of the Filipino,” Garcia adds.

Summit Natural Drinking Water has been a constant advocate of the Filipinos’ unyielding spirit in the international sporting arena as it contributes to the training and hydration of the athletes in their #ThirstForGold.

DENICE “Lycan Queen” Zamboanga knew she won.

That’s why one can’t fault the proud Filipina fighter for shedding her tears after suffering her first professional defeat at ONE: EMPOWER in a tough split decision loss to “Arale Chan” Seo Hee Ham in the quarterfinals of the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Grand Prix on Friday at Singapore Indoor Stadium.

“For me, I clearly won the fight,” an emotional Zamboanga said in the post-event press conference. “It’s hard for me to accept the result of this fight. I’m really disappointed.”

Not only was it the first time Zamboanga’s hand wasn’t raised after the bell, it also robbed her a chance to progress in the historic all-female tournament and her best chance for a title shot against reigning ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion “Unstoppable” Angela Lee. And for some, the Marrok Force MMA fighter’s sentiments are merited.

Zamboanga crafted the perfect gameplan against Ham, picking her spots in daring her lethal Korean foe to a striking bout all the while trying to turn the bout into a grappling affair.

Not even a bleeding gash above her right eye could stop her aggression, scoring a huge takedown midway through round three as she finished the fight with a flurry.

Ham did get her licks, connecting with her dangerous strikes, including a big straight left near the end of the second round.

In Zamboanga’s view, however, it was her who controlled the majority of the match and should have earned her the W. “I had control for most of the match. I was able to keep up with her striking and was able to negate her power,” the 24-year-old said.

“I wasn’t bothered by the gash because I knew I was winning.

Even though I was bloodied by an accidental headbutt, it didn’t matter to me. I was even able to get a takedown in round three and even then, I knew I was winning.”

Two of the judges, however, saw it otherwise and awarded the win to Ham, leaving Zamboanga, the no. 1-ranked contender in the women’s atomweight division, with an empty hand and a broken heart for the first time in nine fights.

Ham, meanwhile, is one of the last four fighters standing in the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Grand Prix, with the fans being entrusted the matchmaker role and deciding the semifinal pairings through online votes.

Itsuki “Android 18” Hirata of Japan earlier showcased her excellence as she pulled off a unanimous decision win over Alyse “Lil’ Savage” Anderson of the United States to advance.

Filbasket: Hope for non-pro players, new flavor for fans ■ By Lyka Jazmin Dela Cruz, John Raphael Mendoza and James Emmanuel Santua FILIPINO Basketball League (Filbasket), the country’s newest basketball league, is on its way to becoming official with an aim to contribute to the improvement of the sport.

Founder Jai Reyes, a former PBA player and Ateneo Blue Eagle, formed the league with the purpose of giving jobs to basketball players who were laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an interview with Mikee Reyes’ YouTube channel, Jai discussed that he created Filbasket to give opportunities to everybody to make a living or career out of Filbasket and thought that it will be a good business opportunity, which will allow him to have a restart and give people more job opportunities in the middle of the pandemic.

“So this is basically a startup, gusto

ko lang talaga buuin for everybody para satin lahat dahil it’s not just the players, the coaches that will be given the opportunity and platform to make a living or a career out of Filbasket,” he said in the podcast.

“Gusto ko talagang mag re-start para makapagbigay ng trabaho sa lahat ng tao so this is for everybody.

Sa tagal ko sa industriya ng basketball nadala niya ako sa other countries, it gave me so many opportunities. This is also one way of giving back and I think business-wise is also a good opportunity,” he said.

Reyes also wants the whole basketball community to be more inclusive, allowing players from different levels to participate in Filbasket competitions. He hopes for some Filbasket teams to join international tournaments once established.

“I think for us it’s a positive that somebody from Filbasket and talents from all over the world get to play

Some Filbasket teams (Filbasket FB)

in our league and maybe hopefully, we get to play in other international tournaments. One thing for sure, we want to make the whole basketball community more inclusive at mas magtulungan dahil at the end of the day, it’s the fans and the players who will benefit from that kapag naglalaro sa international competitions,” With Reyes being able to explore

the different basketball situations around the world, he expressed that his experiences playing abroad shaped his ideas in forming the league and wanted to make it into existence in the Philippines.

“Filbasket was really formed because of all my experiences, I really want to bring here everything I saw around the world,” he added.

FilBasket is also planning to have teams that are city-based and are targeting to form 10 to 12 teams at the moment.

He also said that Filbasket will not have limits when it comes to acquiring players, whether you’re an ex-pro or a player from college, you can join the league. However, for college players, once they want to join the league, it is still the decision of their respective universities if they would allow the students to participate.

Reyes is hopeful that Filbasket will have a go signal as early as next year to bring new hope for other basketball players and to provide a new flavor for the fans.

“Hopefully, makapag-start next year ng mahabang season talaga that’s something na gusto naming gawin city based or regional or province based and then mayroong mga home courts, so we get to bring the games to the fans here all over the Philippines,” he said.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

COVID-19 uncovers youth’s fear of running out of money

By Monica Sanchez

T

HE ongoing pandemic has taken several good night’s sleep from Mary Anne Lucero, 28.

“The anxiety,” she said, “brought by uncertainty is a powerful stimulant”.

Filipino millennials and Gen Zs are afraid of running out of money during the pandemic, thus becoming more financially conscious.

With an unsure future before her, the communications associate made several changes in her life that she said she “probably” wouldn’t have done if not for these challenges.

What once was a spender, Lucero now saves more than she did two years ago. She invests in several financial instruments, from variable unit-linked (VUL) products to cryptocurrency. She also spends less, “but I still do, especially if I know the purchase will make me happy”. Lucero said, “Grab every opportunity that brings positivity, even just a bit, into your life. We all need it.”

Like Lucero, many millennials (aged 25-40) and Gen Zs (15-24) have become more financially conscious during the pandemic, driven by fear of “running out of money”.

According to a study conducted by insurer Manulife, titled Know Your Ys and Zs: A closer look at the financial and mental well-being of Filipino Millennials and Generation Z in the time of COVID-19, millennials and Gen Zs are also worried about “getting sick”, “losing their lives or their loved ones”, “declining mental health”, and “drowning in debt”.

As many believe the pandemic has reduced their funds and job opportunities, 77 percent of the 500 respondents prioritize spending more on necessities than wants. Majority or 82 percent don’t want to incur debt or take loans as much as possible, and 82 percent save money every pay period or every month.

Understanding that saving is not enough, millennials and Gen Zs have started taking steps to secure their future financially. More than half or 67 percent of surveyed millennials are investing in financial instruments, including insurance (79 percent), government savings programs (78 percent), and cryptocurrency (60 percent).

Their younger and not-as-financially-stable peers, on the other hand, plan to purchase an insurance plan in the next one to two years, with VUL products as top consideration.

“While millennials and Gen Z may have different priorities and goals, depending on where they are in their life journey, what is common is that the challenges brought

by COVID-19 have accelerated their desire for financial stability.” noted Melissa Henson, chief marketing officer of Manulife Philippines.

Mental health issues also affect working Gen Zs, mainly due to worries about debt and the possibility of job loss.

To look after their mental well-being, Gen Zs practice vari-

Young Filipinos look up to older generation for inspiration

By Mikaela Kristina Acido Muega IN THIS time of difficulties and confusion brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, we, today’s children, have nothing to hold on to but the inspiring stories of the generation before us to assure us that life goes on despite the setbacks.

We are reminded of the extreme sacrifices that our heroes did for our people and nation.

Theirs were also very trying times, but they pushed forward for our country.

When we asked children who inspired them to keep on during these trying, uncertain times, many cited the people written in our history books.

First-grade student from Mayfield Montessori Academy in Quezon City, Amado Benjamin Bilangel said Dr. Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio’s bravery inspired him.

Meanwhile, sixth graders from Assemblyman Segundo Moscoso Memorial School, a public school in Antique, Marienne Tagacay, Kea Yuro, and Pearl Moscoso also admire Rizal for his knowledge, bravery, and sacrifice. Yuro is inspired by our national hero’s intelligence and political activism, while Moscoso admires Rizal’s courage in fighting for freedom in a silent but effective way.

Also from the same school, fifth grader Reyza Escander and sixth grader Tricia Gellido consider Bonifa-

Young Filipinos consider medical frontline workers as modern-day heroes.

Sixty percent of millennials are investing in cryptocurrency.

ous ways to improve their health, such as getting enough sleep (84 percent), enjoying a proper meal (76 percent), talking to friends and family (74 percent), making time for hobbies (74 percent), and being active through fitness activities and exercise (62 percent).

“Millennials and Gen Zs’ most formative years have been marked by hyper-digitalization, easy access to information, rapid social, political and economic shifts, environmental issues, and unprecedented global change,” said Henson.

“Because of the pandemic, what should have been an optimistic period in their personal and professional lives has become a chapter filled with uncertainty and concern,” she added as the insurer bares plan to introduce more products that cater to the young generations’ needs.

Mark Kennedy Bantugon’s pili aviation seal wins the national prize at the 2021 James Dyson Award.

Pili seal wins

James Dyson Award 2021 THE sustainable sealant made by a Philippine State College of Aeronautics graduate was named national winner of this year’s James Dyson Award.

Mark Kennedy Bantugon’s Pili Seal is a two-component sealant made from the waste of pili tree resin, also called “spent resin” or “de-oiled resin”. It is designed for aircraft integral fuel tank but also applicable in other areas subject to contact with aircraft fuels, lubricants, oils, water and/or weathering.

The international design competition for new problem-solving ideas noted Pili Seal’s application, effectiveness, and affordability compared to commercially available sealants in aviation, owing to the fact that it uses the waste material of pili tree resin as the base ingredient.

“Pili Seal exceeded all the data results of the commercial sealant used in aircraft integral fuel tank including the physical, chemical, mechanical, thermal, and rheological property tests.”

The sealant is also safe and non-toxic.

Bantugon, 22, owes the inspiration for his invention to his father, a farmer and public school teacher, who exposed him and his siblings to life on the farm.

“Being a son of a local farmer and a young farmer as well, it never hindered me to dream and pursue a passion that can make a difference,” Bantugan said in a Facebook post.

He will be representing the country in the international round of the competition on Oct. 13.

Several young students take inspiration from Filipino heroes Dr. Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio’s valiant efforts for the country.

cio an inspiration, with the former admiring Bonifacio’s revolutionary brand of leadership and the latter noting how he was often portrayed to be a bolo-wielding, uneducated factory worker when he was in fact a military strategist who specialized in guerilla warfare.

A fourth grader from Taluksangay Elementary School in Zamboanga City, Mariam Naureen Usman, also admires Rizal’s bravery, selflessness, and intelligence. Azlan Sadegh, a sixth grader from Sinunuc Elementary School, looks up to Lapu-Lapu who fought against Spanish conquistadors.

A third grader from Western Mindanao State University, Safiya Carong, picks Sultan

Kudarat because she said he was a powerful ruler.

Meanwhile, Antiqueno student Neal Allen I. Sarabia, considers the medical front liners in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic heroes for their valiant efef forts to protect the people from unseen enemies like the coronavirus.

Brothers Tommy and Ace Osunero pick their medical technologist mom as their hero and inspiration, for she had to make many adjustments so that the family would not be infected by COVID-19. They said they were inspired by her, as she heeded the call of duty for the country and people, and did everything to balance caring for patients and her own family.

These Filipino kids from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao look up to heroes we only read in books and to modern-day heroes with us today. We, Filipino kids of our generation, are inspired so that like them, we can do our part to help our people and country.

Standard tests conducted on Bantugon’s Pili Seal.

(Photo from James Dyson Award)

SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

Introducing

Ben&Ben

SIARGAO ISLAND’S MISS U PH BET

S

Siargao Island’s Michele Angela Navarro Okol, 20, joins other pageant frontrunners, favorites, and veterans in the Top 30 finalists in the second edition of Miss Universe Philippines.

HE walks and talks with grace and her petite figure and soft-spoken nature may immediately offer an impression that befits the shy, pretty girl-nextdoor criterion.

She is Michele Angela Navarro Okol, Okol a 20-year-old consistent 1st honor Dean’s lister taking up Political Science in one of Manila’s top universities and the first-ever official reprerepre sentative of the Surfing Capital of the PhilipPhilip pines to enter the Miss Universe Philippines pageant.

Behind her grace -- which complements her beautiful face and those expressive eyes -and approachable front, you’ll start regardregard ing her with respect the minute she speaks up.

Angela immediately captures your attention with her unique approach in life, how she celebrates her individuindividu ality, and her plans to live up to her God-given mission on earth.

For one, when asked her “why” in joining the country’s Miss Universe pageant, others may be quick to quip “world peace” or other social, political, and “Mother Nature” concerns.

But Okol who experienced bullying in her teens for being “too big or healthy” for her age, is taking this big step with empowera mission to tell her story and be an empower ing force to advocate self-acceptance and love and, like her, encourage more people to turn their life around for the better. “A better you contribute to a better world.”

Okol, with 29 others made it to the Top 30 list of candidates vying for the Miss Universe Philippines crown.

This young lass, raised by a long line of solsol diers and airmen honing discipline, is excited about her Miss Universe Philippine pageant experience.

She would like to focus more on the fun side plus the learnings and opportunities that the Miss Universe pageant experience will bring to her plate.

From Binibining Pilipinas, who holds the franchise from 1964, the Miss Universe franchise in the Philippines was officially granted to a new organizing body in 2019, with Binibining Pilipinas Universe 2011 Shamcey Supsup-Lee as its national director.

Under the new organization, a separate, standalone pageant is now responsible for the selection of the future Miss Universe Philippines titleholders from 2020 onwards.

down for another collaborative work

n By AREEYA TATJANA HO FOLK-POP band Ben&Ben adds another collaboration under its belt as the group features Donny Pangilinan and Belle Mariano for the music video of “Upuan,” which premiered on Aug. 29 along with the release of its sophomore album, Pebble House Vol 1: Kwaderno.

Despite the imposed lockdowns forcing people apart, Ben&Ben has managed to keep Liwanag’s (the band’s fandom name) spirits high by collaborating with various local artists.

The nine-piece group surprised fans with a number of collaboration tracks from their second album alone.

Ben&Ben’s highly anticipated second album has 12 tracks, six of which feature the band’s collab with Moira Dela Torre, Chito Miranda, Zild, Juan Carlos, KZ Tandingan, SB19, and Munimuni.

For the first track “Upuan,” the band worked with the leads of the hit series “He’s Into Her,” Donny Pangilinan, and Belle Mariano.

Two Thursdays ago, a uniform-clad Ben&Ben was joined by DonBelle in a classroom setting as they announced their collaboration, which was released on their Twitter and Instagram accounts. The partnership was just another collaboration after they worked with South Korean idol Young K in May. In a video call with Grammy award-winner H.E.R., working together with the band was brought up. Both are signed under Sony Music Entertainment.

Ben&Ben and DonBelle’s ‘Upuan’ reaches three million views in just four days.

Model-athlete joins Misters of Filipinas pageant

JUSTIN BIEBER makes epic

comeback on MTV VMA’s stage

n By PAOLO MANUEL C. FULE

Justin Bieber is the #1 artist on YouTube with over 60 million subscribers worldwide and is the #1 artist on Spotify global with over 75 million monthly listeners.

GLOBAL superstar Justin Bieber is performing at the 2021 MTV VMAs’ LIVE from Barclays Center on Sunday, Sept.12 at 8:00 p.m.

ET/PT on MTV. Bieber leads this year’s “VMAs” nominations with seven nods, including two of the night’s biggest awards, “Video of the Year” and “Artist of the Year.” No stranger to MTV or the iconic stage, Bieber returns to the “VMAs” for the first time in six years after delivering a moving performance

of “What Do You Mean?” In 2015.

Continuing to dominate 2021, Bieber brings the biggest collaborations across all genres - most recently, “Essence” Remix with WizKid & Tems and “Don’t Go” with Skrillex and Don Toliver.

This year’s event will witness Mus-the performances of Kacey Mus graves, Chlöe, Doja Cat, Shawn Mendes, Twenty One Pilots, Camila Cabello, Lil Nas X, Machine Gun Kelly, and Olivia Rodrigo.

Model and athlete Kenneth Aniban guns for one of the titles at stake in Misters of Filipinas male pageant.

KENNETH L. Aniban is definitely on a mission this year. Truth to behold, this handsome young man has been very diligent in his pageant activities.

Born on Nov. 19, 2000 in Doha, Qatar, the 5-foot-10 head-turner is currently studying International Travel and Tourism Management Program at Lyceum of the Philippine UniversiUniversi ty. His hobbies include weight training, basbas ketball, and watching movies.

Asked on how he handles his career and studying he said it’s about finding the perfect balance and learning time management.

“Having a career is very hectic and having schoolwork as well can take hours to finish, but one thing you need to have is dedication. Dedication to finish the things that you put out and accomplish to the best of your abilities the things you have planned,” said the part-time model from Tondo, Manila.

As a cager, 20-year-old Kenneth lists Stephen Curry,

Trae Young, Ja Morant, and Chris Paul as his NBA idols while in the PBA, he looks up to Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro, Calvin Abueva, Terrence Romeo, and John Paul Calvo.

Kenken, as he is fondly called by his friends, will represent Tondo, Manila in this year’s Misters of Filipinas pageant happening on Sept. 12.

“I want to spread good vibes and promote my city as a local tourist destination. I also wanted to tackle mental health awareness as my advocacy,” he said.

Kenneth is confident that he can win one of the titles at stake in the Misters of Filipinas pageant.

“Other than the physical attributes that a winner has that I already possess, a titleholder should have the advocacies that could make a long-lasting impact. He should have the confidence to speak up and be a leader. Lastly, a winner should be able to inspire people especially the youth,” he stated.

Kenneth considers joining the Misters of Filipinas as one of his best experiences this year for the very reason that the pageant has taught him to be strong and just overall mature man.

FEATURES SEPTEMBER 5, 2021

South Africa's lions

prosper with careful watch

and fenceless parks A

T SUNSET, a buffalo calf's distressed grunts reverberate through the bush.

But it's a trick.

The grunts are blaring from a loudspeaker, designed to lure lions to a tree and let a South African wildlife reserve carry out a census of its apex predator.

As an added enticement, the carcasses of two impalas are affixed to a tree. The scent promises a fresh meal.

In the headlights of a 4x4, armed rangers with night binoculars and torches watch over the scene.

"We know our lions, but with this process, we verify them," says Ian Nowak, head warden at the Balule Nature Reserve.

A wildlife researcher next to him listens intently, her ears tuned to clues from the nocturnal sounds.

That's how she knows a rumbling is from elephants grazing in the tall grass. And that's how she knows when to raise her camera to photograph lions, looking for distinctive scars or peculiar ears – anything that identifies them for the count.

This job requires patience. The team once spotted 23 lions ripping into the bait.

"They growl and they fight. Then they lie down and eat," Nowak whispers. "It can be quite a frenzy on the bait. They smack each other and then settle down."

At 55,000 hectares (136,000 acres), Balule is huge – yet it connects with an even bigger ecosystem that, all told, is almost the size of Belgium.

Balule and other nearby game farms

have transitioned into nature reserves, joining up with the Kruger National Park to create a vast territory without internal fences, covering 2.5 million hectares, that extends to Mozambique.

To create such enormous space for wildlife is a rare success story these days.

Conservationists meeting in Marseille, southern France, are deeply worried for Africa's "big cats," facing loss of habitat and human encroachment as well as poaching.

Balule is so big that its census-takers have to criss-cross the terrain to make the count as thorough as possible.

"Sometimes they've eaten. If they're full, they don't come," Nowak said. "Especially the males, they're lazy as hell."

Twenty years ago, Balule was mostly farmland and lions were few.

Last year, the census found 156 of the lordly beasts.

"Lions are doing incredibly well, mainly because there's a large enough space to operate," Nowak says.

Overall, the news is good for lions in South Africa, thanks to government conservation efforts – helped by the inducement of tourists who are willing pay to see the animals. Private investors have also stepped in.

A years-long drought has also been a boost. Antelopes and buffalo did not have enough to eat, making them easier prey for large carnivores.

The loudspeaker rumbles again with the recording of the injured buffalo calf. This time, a small jackal appears, hoping for a nibble. At the slightest sound, it dashes away.

The wildlife researcher detects another movement in her thermal binoculars. The headlights flash back on, illuminating the majestic mane of a lion

approaching stealthily, careful but calm.

"He's initially cautious," says Nick Leuenberger, one of the regional wardens. "He doesn't know if he'll be walking in on another pride."

"Lions defend their food, they don't share," he adds.

"Here the lion tolerates the jackal.

He knows he's not a major threat to his food source."

Suddenly, the lion leaps up to one of the suspended impalas, biting into its belly. After his meal, he lies at the foot of the tree.

Now the team can move on. No other animals will dare approach.

The next night, seven hyenas take turns snipping at the fresh impala, without a lion in sight.

But on the way back, the 4x4 slams the brakes. To the left, a hippo roars furiously, its mouth wide open. AFP

Colombian photographer documents world's largest variety of butterflies LIKE the more than 3,000 species of butterflies in Colombia, agronomist Juan Guillermo Jaramillo underwent his own metamorphosis several years ago, as his passion for photographing nature took an unexpected twist.

The 65-year-old, who used to run an animal feed business, originally took photographs of birds, but he is now a key figure in the world of Colombian butterflies.

Jaramillo is the co-author of an inventory that led to Colombia being recognized as having the widest variety of butterfly species in the world.

The list he worked on was published in the British Natural History Museum in London – which has the world's largest collection of butterflies – in June.

The Checklist of Colombian Butterflies identifies 3,642 different species in the Andean country, which makes up 19.4 percent of the known

global varieties.

But Jaramillo is keen to point out he is not a collector.

"I broke from the traditional image associated with butterflies of collectors that kill them, put them in an envelope and then pin them to the inside of a box," Jaramillo told AFP. "I'm simply not capable of killing them."

Like bees, butterflies are pollinators vital to the ecosystem. They are also an important source of food for birds and snakes.

Yet their habitats are under threat from deforestation, agriculture and global warming.

Jaramillo, who lives in the southwestern Antioquia department, has an archive of 220,000 photos of butterflies and has captured images of 1,500 different species.

Jaramillo has spent the last 15 years trekking through jungles and woodlands in search of the "winged jewels" – a dangerous pastime given those areas are infested with armed groups and drug traffickers.

The signing of an historic 2016 peace accord between the government and the marxist guerrilla Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia after more than half a century of armed conflict sparked hope areas previously off limits would become safe for scientists and naturalists.

But it was not long before armed rebels and drug-traffickers returned.

"I want to go to many places but there are some I don't go to out of fear," said Jaramillo.

When he does venture out, Jaramillo takes with him a camera, tripod and a container of pink liquid he prepares every morning:

Data gathered from Aletsch, the largest glacier in the Alps, paints a dire picture of the toll that climate change is taking on the mammoth ice formation. AFP

shrimp bait.

Having tried various other types of bait, he found shrimp worked best.

He spreads the foul-smelling bait on rocks and leaves by a rushing stream, and even lays out cotton balls soaked in the liquid.

"That's how I make them think it's bird droppings," he explained.

"When the butterflies land on a leaf they stay there for quite some time... they're almost like models," he added.

"Without the bait, it would be impossible to see certain species in the woodland because they live in very tall trees."

Another potential barrier is the weather.

"If there's no sun, there are no butterflies."

AFP

Swiss glaciologist bears witness to relentless Alpine glacier melt AFTER hiking for hours across the mountain and a vast expanse of white, Swiss glaciologist Matthias Huss crouches down near the middle of the massive glacier and checks the measurements.

Analysis of the data gathered from Aletsch, the largest glacier in the Alps, paints a dire picture of the toll that climate change is taking on the behemoth.

Aletsch glacier alone holds about a fifth of the total ice volume found in all of Switzerland's around 1,800 glaciers.

But over the past decade, the glacier consisting of some 80 square kilometers (32 square miles) of ice and rock has seen 1.5 metres (yards) shaved off its thickness each year.

A cubic kilometre of ice has also melted away during the same time period.

"The change is happening really, really quickly," Huss told AFP. The 41-year-old heads Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS), a scientific network documenting the shrinking of the Swiss glaciers in the face of a warming planet.

"The glaciers are truly a giant and visible thermometer," he said, pointing out that it is "much more poignant to see a glacier shrinking in volume and thickness than to look at a graph showing temperatures rising."

"Glaciers are beautiful," he added, accounting for the often emotional response when people reflect on the shrinking and future disappearance of the ice formations.

GLAMOS scientists monitor around 20 Swiss glaciers each year and have noted that since 2010, the frequency of years with extreme ice loss has accelerated dramatically.

One such year was 2011, the next was 2015, and then 2017, 2018 and 2019 were each record breakers.

While last year was not a year of extremes, Swiss glaciers still shed two percent of their total volume, Huss said.

And this year, the negative trend will likely continue, despite heavy snow and a relatively cold winter, he added.

Global warming is going so fast that a number of smaller glaciers have already disappeared.

In September 2019, Huss participated in a symbolic funeral for the Pizol glacier in northeastern Switzerland, at an altitude of around 2,700 meters (8,850 feet). AFP