Manila Standard - 2021 November 4 - Thursday

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MAYORS LIFT CURFEW FOR NCR, EXCEPT MINORS

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

CURFEW has been lifted over Metro Manila starting today, Nov. 4.

The 17 mayors of the National Capital Region (NCR) agreed to lift the curfew as the number of COVID-19 cases continue to decline, said the

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources announced the closure of the dolomite beach at the Manila Bay to give way to phase two of its rehabilitation. On Oct. 16, the dolomite beach reopened to the public, but was closed again after two weeks amid overcrowding of over 300,000 visitors, including children.

chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Benjamin Abalos Jr. Based on the resolution approved by the Metro Manila Council, the lifting of the curfew will complement the adjustment of mall operating hours to provide both mall goers and mall employees ample time to get home.

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People, some without face masks, happily stroll at Seaside Boulevard in Pasay City on Wednesday, November 3, 2021. The government has relaxed further community quarantine restrictions in Metro Manila despite the extension of Alert Level 3 until Nov. 14. Starting today, curfew will already be lifted and malls will extend their operating hours until 11 p..m.

Slow vax rollout irks Duterte Orders DILG to penalize LGUs, local execs dragging delivery phase

By Vito Barcelo and Maricel V Cruz

P

RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to sanction local government units (LGUs) and their chief executives who do not perform well in hastening the government’s COVID-19 vaccination program.

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During his Talk to the People Address “I am not content with the way the aired Wednesday, Duterte said they vaccination is going,” he said. “I have… have seen “fault lines” in the overall ordered DILG Secretary [Eduardo] vaccination drive and that he was un- Año to impose the necessary sanctions Next page happy with the pace of the rollout.

Booster shot 2,793,898 for frontliners start Nov. 15 1,591

38,014

43,586

186

2,712,298

4,294

(As of 4 PM, November 3)

By Willie Casas THE government is doing an inventory of the healthcare workers who will receive booster shots against COVID-19, the Department of Health said Wednesday as it plans to start administering the third dose by Nov. 15.

According to Health Undersecretary and National Vaccination OpNext page

Comelec to hear case against Marcos

By Vito Barcelo, Rey E. Requejo presidential aspirant Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Joel E. Zurbano Comelec spokesman James Jimenez THE Commission on Elections (Come- said the poll body would discuss this lec) will immediately tackle the petition week if there was indeed a misrepresento cancel the certificate of candidacy tation committed by the former senator.

(COC) filed against former senator and Next page

A teenager receives the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan on November 3, 2021 during the start of the general pediatric vaccination. Manny Palmero

Vaccine drive for kids below 12 years set next year

By Willie Casas

said Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Myrna THE Philippines is planning to ex- Cabotaje gave the statement after the pand next year its pediatric COV- US Centers for Disease Control and ID-19 vaccination to include children Prevention approved the use of Pfizer below 12 years old, a health official and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for

children ages 5 to 11.

“We have considered that [US approval] for our plans of next year’s vaccination of below 12 years old. A recommendation from the Health Technology Next page

PhilHealth pleads with hospitals for more time to pay BREAKING BARRIERS. The country’s fastest growing supermarket chain, AllDay,

debuts at the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday with Villar Group Chairman and former Senate President Manny Villar and PSE President and CEO Ramon Monzon ringing the bell at the trading floor. Also in photo are AllDay Vice Chairman Camille Villar (left) and former Public Works Sec. Mark Villar (right) ‘This clearly demonstrates the trust and confidence that the investors have in the Villar family, with their proven experience and success in their various businesses,’ Monzon said.

By Willie Casas

hospitals while reconciling their data According to Shirley Domingo, Philon the supposed billions in unpaid Health’s vice president for corporate THE Philippine Health Insurance Cor- claims to various medical institutions affairs, to date, the state health insurer poration (PhilHealth) has appealed – but offered no timeline on when the had paid P152.8 billion or 75 percent of Next page for understanding during dialogs with claims would be paid.

Nations pledge to cut toxic gas emissions to keep greenhouse at bay COUNTRIES on Tuesday issued a landmark pledge to slash their methane emissions this decade, with US President Joe Biden chiding China’s leader for skipping the make-or-break COP26 climate summit.

Nearly one hundred nations joined a United States and European Union initiative to cut emissions of methane – a potent greenhouse gas – by at least 30 percent this decade, with China among notable absentees.

The initiative, which experts say could have a powerful short-term impact on global heating, followed an announcement earlier on Tuesday at the summit in Glasgow in which more than 100 nations agreed to end deforestation

by 2030.

“One of the most important things we can do between now and 2030, to keep 1.5C in reach, is reduce our methane emissions as soon as possible,” said Next page

SC UPHOLDS DOJ MOTION TO INDICT SOLON OVER PORK NEWS / A4

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against LGUs and LCEs who are not performing nor using the doses given to them in the most expeditious manner,” he said.

“I will hold each and every LGU accountable for this..I do not know where they commit the error. Why is the vaccination slow even if the vaccines are already there? Here in the NCR (National Capital Region) it’s okay. At the regional level, there is a problem,” Duterte said.

He said he wanted the country to reach its goal of 1 million jabs or more a day.

He called on National Task Force Against COVID-19 chief Carlito Galvez Jr., as well as the police and military to provide all the necessary support to the LGUs, particularly in the delivery of the vaccine doses and mobilization of resources.

He suggested that once the vaccines are delivered, PNP and Air Force helicopters should take over

and deliver the jabs to different municipal governments.

Responding to the President’s directive, Año said he will meet with governors, mayors, as well as with the regional directors of the Department of Health (DOH) and the PNP to ask them to intensify their vaccination initiatives.

Año also vowed to investigate a Zamboanga del Sur fire that destroyed almost 150,000 vaccine doses.

He said the investigation will be conducted by the DOH, Philippine National Police (PNP), and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and the DILG. Some 148,678 doses of COVID-19 vaccines were destroyed in the fire that started at the maintenance department of the Zamboanga del Sur Medical Center.

The incident, he said, must serve as a wake up call to the local chief executives about the need to take extra care of the vaccines in their possession and the necessity of quickly administering them to the intended population.

Galvez, meanwhile, said the government could achieve its vaccination target of 1 million to 1.5 million jabs a day

by Nov. 30.

To achieve this goal, Galvez said there is a need to activate around 4,000 to 5,000 vaccination sites operating nationwide that can each accommodate at least 500 people daily.

He said they would be using shopping malls, universities, schools, gyms, police and military camps and the function halls of different government agencies for these vaccination sites.

At the same time, he said the government is hoping to fully vaccinate at least 90 percent of teachers, students, and other school personnel.

Citing data reported by Commission on Higher Education (CHED) chairman Prospero de Vera, Galvez said 87 to 90 percent of teachers were already vaccinated.

The government will also ramp up the vaccination of teaching personnel and secondary students under the Department of Education, he said.

He said the administration of booster shots for medical workers and other health care personnel in the hospitals will be prioritized by the end of the month.

Galvez, however, acknowledged the huge disparity of vaccination rate in provincial areas compared to the National Capital Region must be addressed.

The latest data of the National COVID-19 Vaccination dashboard showed the Philippines has already administered a total of 60.4 million doses, with 27.7 million people already fully vaccinated and 32.6 million people receiving their first dose.

The average daily vaccination rate in the last seven weeks has slightly slowed down to 511,434 doses, compared to the previous week’s 522,272 doses due to the observance of the All Saints’ Day holiday.

A leftist lawmaker criticized the President’s call to sanction LGUs, saying he should sanction himself and “his militarist policies” for the slow vaccine rollout.

ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro said any underperformance at the LGU level only mirrored a more serious inability on the part of the national government to make the vaccines quickly accessible to every Filipino.

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Assessment Council is needed and the vaccine should be approved for those 11 years old and below,” Cabotaje said.

“It is being discussed and our vaccination program planners have scheduled it for next year,” she added.

On Wednesday, the government began the vaccination of all children aged 12 to 17, after initially rolling out the program to kids of the same age with comorbidities.

It aims to vaccinate 80 percent or nearly 10 million out of 12 million children before yearend, Cabotaje said.

Some 40,419 or 3.18 percent of children with health risks have received an initial dose as of 6 p.m. Tuesday, she said.

Government also supports the proposal for “family vaccination,” but reiterated that priority lanes should be set aside for priority sectors such as the elderly and immunocompromised, Cabotaje said.

“We are hoping with the opening up of our pediatric age group, our grandparents will also be encouraged,” she said.

“If the whole family is vaccinated, they are protected,” she added.

The country aims to vaccinate at least 77 million or 70 percent of the population, of which 64 percent are adults and 6 percent are children, to achieve herd immunity by yearend, Cabotaje said.

Meanwhile, the United States will now start giving children aged 5-11 the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID vaccine, US health authorities said Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) in a move hailed by President Joe Biden as a “turning point” in the fight against the pandemic.

Days after gaining authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, the vaccine was endorsed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, clearing the way for the vaccination of up to 28 million children.

The government was well ahead of the decision, procuring enough doses for the children in the 5-11 age group and beginning to ship them across the country.

“Today, we have reached a turning point in our battle against COVID-19,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House.

Vaccinating younger children will “allow parents to end months of anxious worrying about their kids, and reduce the extent to which children spread the virus to others. It is a major step forward for our nation in our fight to defeat the virus,” Biden said. With AFP

“The lifting of curfew hours in Metro Manila will help spread out influx of people coming to and going from malls to further reduce the risk of virus’ transmission,” Abalos said.

The same resolution said mall owners have agreed to adjust their operating hours by opening until 11 p.m., instead of the usual 10 p.m. to help alleviate traffic in Metro Manila as the holiday season draws near.

Curfew hours for minors or those under 18 years old shall be subject to existing ordinances of the Metro Manila local government units, along with the continued observance and enforcement of COVID-19 protocols and minimum public health standards such as wearing of face shields and face masks, and observing social distancing.

The MMC, composed of the 17 local government units of Metro Manila, is the governing board and policy-making body of the MMDA. On Monday, mall and commercial center operators agreed with the MMDA’s proposal to have adjusted business hours to ease road congestion during the peak buying season.

The MMDA had proposed the extension of mall hours to 11 p.m. or up until midnight.

Meanwhile, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said the passenger capacity for

all rail lines and selected public utility vehicles (PUVs) in Metro Manila and adjacent provinces will be increased from the current 50 percent to 70 percent starting Nov. 4.

On Oct. 28, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) approved the recommendation of the Department of Transportation and the LTFRB to gradually increase passenger capacity in public transportation until they reach full capacity.

The LTFRB also clarified that plastic barriers inside public utility jeepneys are not required nationwide, provided that proper physical distancing is observed, and passengers practice health and safety protocols to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

The Philippines logged 1,591 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the lowest daily tally since February, bringing the total number of cases to 2,793,898.

The number of fresh cases is the lowest since Feb. 24 when the country recorded 1,553.

There were 186 new fatalities Wednesday, bringing the COVID-19 death toll to 43,586.

The DOH also reported 4,294 new recoveries, bringing the total recoveries to 2,712,298.

There were 38,014 active cases, of which 69.4 percent were mild, 5.2 percent were asymptomatic, 3.4 percent were critical, 8.1 percent were severe, and 13.87 percent were moderate.

The positivity rate was at 5.6 percent, based on test results of samples from 29,489 individuals on Nov. 1.

Nationwide, 44 percent of ICU beds, 34 percent of isolation beds, 30 percent of ward beds, and 30 percent of ventilators, were in use.

In Metro Manila, 39 percent of ICU beds, 28 percent of isolation beds, 28 percent of ward beds, and 29 percent of ventilators, were in use.

Also on Wednesday, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources announced the closure of the dolomite beach at the Manila Bay to give way to phase two of its rehabilitation.

Undersecretary Jonas Leones of the Policy, Planning and International Affairs said the closure would allow DENR to complete the rehabilitation work in the dolomite beach and to improve the fecal coliform level of the Manila Bay’s waters.

“As what we have promised, we will continue to fix Manila Bay,” he said.

Undersecretary Benny Antiporda of the Solid Waste Management and Local Government Units Concerns said they want to make Manila Bay swimmable.

“We are almost there. The main objective is the water quality. Our main objective is to finish it within the year, and not within the (Duterte) administration. We’ll try to do that,” he said.

On Oct. 16, the dolomite beach reopened to the public, but was closed again after two weeks amid overcrowding of over 300,000 visitors, including children, under Alert Level 3.

Marcos said he would not back down and withdraw from the presidential race, calling the petition a political ploy.

“I don’t understand because they said there was a problem with my candidacy.

They said there is a case that has not been fixed. I don’t know. We will just answer it in time,” Marcos said in a radio interview.

“Maybe that is also part of the politicking, especially of our opponents.

Instead of facing the election, because maybe they are afraid of the number of votes, then they will just have me disqualified,” he added.

On Tuesday, petitioners Fr. Christian Buenafe, Fides Lim, Ma. Edeliza Hernandez, Celia Lagman Sevilla, Roland Vibal, and Josephine Lascano, filed a petition to cancel Marcos’ COC for containing multiple false material representations.

They said Marcos was convicted by the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City in a July 27, 1995 decision “for his multiple failures to file income tax returns,” a crime involving moral turpitude.

The petitioners claimed that Marcos is not eligible to run for any public office because he was convicted.

They also claimed that the Court of Appeals upheld the decision which was no longer appealed before the Supreme Court, “thereby becoming a final and unappealable conviction.”

Marcos spokesperson, lawyer Victor Rodriguez, said they would address “this predictable nuisance petition” at the proper time and forum after they have received the official copy.

“Until then, we will refrain from commenting on their propaganda. Our camp does not engage in gutter politics. Our campaign is about nation-building. For Presidential aspirant Bongbong Marcos, this election is about the future of the Filipino people,” Rodriguez added.

But one of the groups asking for the cancellation of the candidacy of Marcos denied it was a nuisance plea.

“Who is the real nuisance here?” said Lim, spokesman of the human rights group Kapatid-Families and Friends of Political Prisoners, in an interview with

CNN Philippines.

The petitioners said the certificate of candidacy of Marcos contains “multiple false material representations,” including his assertion that he is eligible to seek the presidency.

Marcos, they said, was convicted in July 1995 by a Quezon City court for multiple failures to file income tax returns from 1982 to 1985.

Marcos served as vice governor of Ilocos Norte from 1981 to 1983 and was governor from 1983 to 1986.

In its ruling, the local court sentenced Marcos to at least nine years in jail and ordered him to pay the fine, but the Appellate Court modified the decision and “improperly” deleted the penalty of imprisonment, the petitioners noted.

“So now we are pointing out, why is there selective justice? Why is there a double standard when it comes to people like the Marcos family, in particular and now, no less than the namesake of the dictator, who is gunning for the highest position in the land?”

Lim asked.

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Biden, noting that the United States pulling out of the Paris Agreement under Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump, had harmed global climate governance and the implementation of the accord.

“Actions speak louder than words,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin responded Wednesday.

“What we need in order to deal with climate change is concrete action rather than empty words,” he added.

“China’s actions in response to climate change are real.”

Xi has not travelled outside of China since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Biden has since apologized for Trump’s decision.

Heads of state and government are gathered in Glasgow for the two-day summit that host Britain is hoping will spur ambitious climate action during the negotiations that follow.

Organizers say the outcome in Glasgow will be crucial for the continued viability of the Paris Agreement tem-

perature goals.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday he was “cautiously optimistic” about progress made in Glasgow so far.

Decades of climate pledges have been rooted in reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Yet methane (CH4) is over 80 times more potent than CO2, and its sources, such as open-pit coal mines, gas leaks and livestock, have received relatively little attention until now.

The International Energy Agency estimates that the fossil fuel industry emitted 120 million tonnes of methane in 2020, and much of it can be easily avoided.

A UN report from earlier this year showed that “available targeted methane measures” could see CH4 levels reduced by 45 percent by 2030.

This would shave 0.3C off projected warming, save a quarter of a million air pollution deaths and increase global crop yields by 26 million tonnes, the UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP) has calculated. AFP

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From A1 the total claims of hospitals.

“We are having a dialogue with hospitals to reconcile the data that they are saying we owe, because some of these are returned to hospitals and denied claims,” Domingo said in an interview with dzBB. Earlier, the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc. (PHAPi) said PhilHealth owed private hospitals about P20 billion as of August this year.

Due to this, the affected hospitals were forced to downsize to continue operations amid the agency’s non-payment of claims.

Domingo said they got delayed on the COVID-19 claims because of several issues such as the lack of human resource due to the pandemic.

Domingo said around 43 percent of the total paid claims of PhilHealth are for COVID-19 expenses.

Comelec...

From A1 In a television interview, Jimenez said the Comelec will conduct hearings to resolve the petition filed against Marcos, to find out if there was a material misrepresentation in his certificate of candidacy (COC).

He said the petition needs to prove there was untruthfulness or wrong information given in the COC, he said.

Jimenez confirmed that a cancelation of COC was filed and the case will be heard but did not mention who would handle the case and when it would be discussed.

“Let’s wait for the announcement of the hearing because again at this point this is a live case we cannot go into too many details,’’ he said.

“There is no time limit to this as they need to find out if what the complainants are saying are true and also hear the defense of the other party,” the poll spokesman said.

“PhilHealth is doing a lot of things to be able to fast-track all these claims because we know hospitals really need this,” she added.

Domingo also said PhilHealth president Dante Gierran had coordinated with PHAPi president Jose Rene de Grano twice to explain their side and the ways they were doing to hasten the processing of all the hospital claims.

Meanwhile, several private hospitals in the National Capital Region, General Santos City, Iloilo City, and northern Luzon plan to announce their cutting of ties with PhilHealth this week over the delayed claims, de Grano said.

“I’m not at liberty to name the hospitals of the NCR but right now actually there are big hospitals from NCR, the group from General Santos city, the group from Iloilo City, a group from northern Luzon or the Cagayan valley, they are already contemplating on announcing their nonrenewal this week,” De Grano said in an interview with ANC.

Biden, referring to the central goal of the 2015 Paris Agreement.

He called the pledge, covering half of global methane emissions, a “gamechanging commitment.”

However, he criticized the decision of China’s President Xi Jinping – whose economy is the largest overall emitter – not to attend the summit kicking off the 13-day climate negotiations.

“It’s been a big mistake, quite frankly, for China not showing up. The rest of the world looked at China and said, ‘what value are they providing?’” Biden told reporters.

“It’s just a gigantic issue and they walked away. How do you do that and claim to be able to have any leadership?” Biden said.

The same was true for Russian President Vladimir Putin, he added.

China hit back against criticism by

Booster...

From A1 erations Center chairperson Myrna Cabotaje, the government would inoculate around 1.9 million healthcare workers.

“We’re already creating a tally and getting an inventory of the healthcare workers that have been vaccinated, when they were vaccinated, and what they were vaccinated with,” she said during a press briefing.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire previously said that booster shots were given when immunity was starting to wane off several months after receiving the vaccine while additional doses, or the third doses, were given to individuals who could not mount the appropriate immunity against the sickness.

The government will be able to start the inoculation once the emergency use authorization of the vaccines has been approved and the World Health Organization has released its recommendation, Cabotaje said.

“We’re already planning. We have our data, we are validating the areas, facilities nationwide, so we will know what vaccines to give,” she said.

“As soon as the SAGE [Strategic Advisory Group of Experts of the WHO] recommendations come out, we could vaccinate healthcare workers the following day. Then let’s look at our immunocompromised,” she said.

Cabotaje said it would coordinate with patient and doctors groups to identify the immunocompromised individuals.

“We will also track them. We are already starting to track them,” she said.

The Food and Drug Administration has received applications to amend the emergency use authorizations of some COVID-19 vaccines to include a third dose in their regimen.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. previously said the government will allot around 7 million doses for the third and booster shots of some priority groups.

But he said authorities would have to wait for guidance from the policy team, the revised emergency use authorization of vaccines that would be used, and the recommendation of experts advising the World Health Organization.

If these requirements are met, there will be a “simultaneous” Nov. 15 rollout of third and booster shots to immunocompromised senior citizens and individuals, said Galvez, who serves as chief implementer of the National Task Force Against COVID-19.

The country’s vaccine supply is enough to accommodate the rollout of additional and booster shots, Cabotaje said.

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Duterte to visit Mimaropa areas freed from Reds

By Maricel V. Cruz

EXTINGUISHING FIRE. Firemen and fire volunteers extinguish fire from

a residential home at Pajo Street, Barangay Quirino 2A in Quezon City on Nov. 3, 2021. Damages and incident reports have yet to be determined. Manny Palmero

TUCP condemns police ‘intrusion’ of group’s HQ

By Vito Barcelo THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) condemned the latest intrusion of six armed policemen inside the TUCP Labor Center compound along Elliptical Road corner Maharlika St., in Diliman, Quezon City last Tuesday.

“This is a clear act of harassment intended to send a chilling message to the trade union movement and specifically to cow TUCP in its advocacy and union organizing work in both the private and public sectors,” said TUCP President Raymond Mendoza.

“Without permission or even a courtesy request, the policemen, using the CIDG blue-and-white sedan vehicle with plate number SKM 714 from QC76, entered the TUCP compound and arrogantly roamed inside our private premises, took photos of the daily attendance list, and interrogated our staff without a search warrant,” Mendoza said in a statement.

“We remind all - especially the PNP and the CIDG - to adhere and strictly observe the rule of law. The TUCP will not countenance or tolerate any legal shortcuts, especially by our supposed law enforcers. Further, this is the fifth time that an unwarranted police intrusion has occurred within our Quezon City premises, and it has also occurred in offices and buildings of our affiliates in Mindanao,” he said.

Mendoza said “we feel that the pattern to scare off legitimate labor groups is patently clear. What they are doing to TUCP is deeply alarming in this time of profiling and ideological-tagging of labor groups.”

“The police entered without the courtesy of a request or approaching any responsible officer of the union in the Compound to explain their purpose and in contravention of an existing protocol on rules of engagement between the PNP and trade unions,” he added.

The TUCP is the largest trade union center in the country, and an affiliate of the Brussels-based International Trade Union Congress (ITUC), which has been at the forefront of defending workers’ rights and welfare globally.

10-year driver’s license to roll out in Dec.—Rody P RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said the Land Transportation Office (LTO) has promised to start the nationwide issuance of drivers’ licenses with a 10-year validity by December this year

“By December 2021, the LTO commits that all its offices nationwide will be issuing licenses with a 10-year validity,” Duterte said in his prerecorded Talk to the People delivered Monday night but aired Tuesday morning.

The LTO on Oct. 28 began rolling out the new driver’s license that is valid for 10 years in its licensing offices in Quezon City. The LTO branches in Metro Manila followed suit this month.

“The rest of the offices in the NCR (National Capital Region) shall start issuance of the same in November 2021, to

be followed by all other regions progressively,” Duterte said.

Duterte said it would be hassle-free for motorists to secure a driver’s license in the country.

“Ang lisensiya ng ating mga [motorist] sa driving sa lahat is good for 10 years. Wala nang renewal-renewal na madalian. You have 10 years to drive. Baka hindi mo maubos ‘yang period na ‘yan sa (The motorists’ license for driving is good for 10 years. No need to renew it for a shorter period of time. The extended va-

lidity period is too long for [driving]).

Ten years is a... It’s a long haul,” he said.

On Aug. 2, 2017, Duterte inked Republic Act (RA) 10930 which amends the Land Transportation and Traffic Code to “establish a system that promotes the ease of access to government services and efficient transportation regulation favorable to the people.

RA 10930 extends the validity period of licenses from five to 10 years from the previous three years for drivers with no violations.

In renewing the driver’s license, motorists are required to take the comprehensive driver’s education program (CDEP) exam.

Motorists who have breached traffic rules will be required to take additional CDEP reviewers.

POLICE Gen. Valeriano de Leon, the newly-appointed director of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Civil Security Group (CSG), is said to be one of the leading candidates to replace PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Leazar, who will set to retire on Nov. 13.

In a recent PNP reshuffle, De Leon was

MMDA installs more trash traps in 35 waterways

By Joel E. Zurbano

WAITING FOR SOME “LAWLAW.” Two boys look at

a fisherman catching fish and wait to be given some “lawlaw” fish in Noveleta, Cavite. Due to the CVID19 pandemic, many children are compelled to go outside to help find food for their families. JR Josue.

De Leon, 3 others in the running for next PNP chief

By Jun David

PRESIDENT Duterte, who is chairman of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), is scheduled to visit the Mimaropa region on Thursday, to personally check the progress of the implementation of projects under the Barangay Development Program (BDP).

Mimaropa is made up of Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan.

The dismantling of guerilla forces in Region 4-B, which covier Mimaropa, has paved the way for the implementation of several development projects for the liberated barangays.

The National Security Adviser and NTF-ELCAC vice chairman, Secretary Hermogenes Esperon Jr., said Mimaropa’s peace and security is effectively managed through the joint efforts of the security forces and civilian agencies.

“I am proud to note that from 2020 to 2021, two guerilla fronts have been significantly weakened while one has been dismantled,” Esperon said in a statement.

Esperon noted that of the 822 barangay recipients of BDP, 25 are found in Mimaropa, where a total of 109 projects worth P500 million are now being implemented.

Esperon said the administration has started sustainable agriculture and livelihood programs such as Project Save and Project Sagip in the regions.

Those projects assisted local farming communities for their sustenance.

“Livelihood assistance was likewise provided to a total of 224 regular New People’s Army (NPA) surrenderers who have returned to the folds of the law from 2020 to 2021,” Esperon added.

Next year, additional 54 Mimaropa barangays will be included on the BDP list for a total of 1,406 barangays nationwide with a proposed budget of P28.1 billion. This year’s BDP benefitted 822 barangays.

transferred to Camp Crame after being replaced by Brig. Gen. Matthew Baccay as the director of the Police Regional Office (PRO) 3.

Other officials included in the reshuffle are Brig. Gen. Orlando Yebra as the new chief of the Eastern Police District (EPD) and Police Colonel Rolando Destura as acting executive officer of the Directorate for Information

and Communication Technology Management.

De Leon is said to be in the running as PNP chief along his mistahs in the “Makatao Class of 1989” of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) including PNP Deputy Director for Operations Maj. Gen. Rhodel Sermonia and CIDG chief Brig. Gen. Albert Ferro. NCRPO chief Brig. Gen.

Vicente Danao who is a member of PMA “Sambisig Class of 1991”, is also reportedly in the running.

Sermonia is said to be the bet of Senator Bong Go. Ferro is said to be the bet of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy and former PNP chief Debold Sinas. Danao is personally known by President Duterte and De Leon is known to Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.

THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority is installing additional trash traps in 35 waterways to prevent massive flooding in the metropolis during rainy days.

The installation of trash traps, according to MMDA chairman Benjamin Abalos Jr., is part of the agency’s flood management project.

These traps were installed to block the entry of trash and to help mitigate damage to the agency-manned pumping stations caused by garbage.

On Wednesday, Abalos and other MMDA officials inspected the newlyinstalled floating trash traps in waterways in the Quezon City and Mandaluyong City.

Abalos personally oversees the hauling of garbage at the Lagarian creek and Arayat creek in Barangay Kamuning, Quezon City.

“We have installed trash traps on the waterways to block damaging debris and garbage as part of our f lood management project,” he said.

The MMDA chief also oversaw the hauling of garbage at Buhangin creek near Aglipay Bridge in Mandaluyong City.

These creeks are major tributaries of the San Juan River, which is connected to the Pasig River.

Abalos said his agency will deploy personnel to collect garbage regularly along the creek.

Fishing season ends to give ‘galunggong’ chance to thrive THE Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) on Wednesday announced the start of the closed fishing season in northern Palawan to allow “galunggong” (round scad) to thrive.

The DA-BFAR said during the threemonth suspension of fishing from Nov. 1 to Jan. 31, 2022, the use of purse seine, ring net, and bag net is prohibited in catching “galunggong” within the conservation area on the northeast side of Palawan.

Serving as a conservation measure, this policy is aimed toward protecting the species during its peak spawning season, and further addressing over-

fishing, climate change, among other concerns, the DA-BFAR said.

DA-BFAR’s practice of closed fishing season started seven years ago, yielding positive results as the “galunggong” catch significantly increase in the area.

Based on the National Stock Assessment Program of the DA-BFAR and the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute, catch estimates of the species caught by purse seine has increased from 233.07 metric tons (MT) in 2015 to 434.98 MT in 2020, while those caught by ring net bumped up from 187.02 MT to 206.30 MT in the same period.

DA-BFAR National Director Ed-

uardo Gongona, in a statement sent to reporters, said the recorded increase in catch of “galunggong” in the area has been made possible by the strong cooperation and support of the government, commercial fishers, and other stakeholders to take care of the country’s fishery resources.

By virtue of DA-DILG Joint Administrative Order No. 1, series of 2015, the DA-BFAR has been working with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and with the support of the fishery sector and other stakeholders through the Technical Working Group on Roundscad Fisheries Management in Palawan.

CHRISTMAS FEELS. Masked vendors prepare “bibingka” (rice cake) at a stall along the Emilio Aguinaldo Highway in Bacoor City, Cavite on Tuesday night. “Bibingka” and “puto bumbong” are traditionally sold during the Christmas season. Jess M. Escaros Jr.

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House leaders back reopening of PH economy

News

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4,, 2021

By Maricel V. Cruz

ADOPTED SON.

The Kalanguya tribe of Nueva Vizcaya adopted Manila Mayor and presidential aspirant Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso through a native ritual in Santa Fe town on Saturday.

The ritual was led by the council of elders and Santa Fe Mayor Tidong Benito. At the same time, the tribe expressed support of its members to Dumagoso’scandidacy for President in the 2022 national elections.

Corrupt? Not me, President tells senators

By Vito Barcelo, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Rio N. Araja “I WILL not become President if I am corrupt like you,” President Rodrigo Duterte told Senators Richard Gordon and Franklin Drilon on Wednesday.

Duterte responded to the senators after they claimed the President is “lawyering” for officials of the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. that bagged P8.6 billion worth of government contracts for medical supplies amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Drilon shot right back, saying: “I am not corrupt… I take exception to the statement made by the President.”

In related developments, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said he will again skip the scheduled Senate hearing into the government purchase of medical supplies on Thursday, citing the President’s order to the Cabinet.

Also, Senator Risa Hontiveros is facing a complaint of sedition and perjury before the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings involving Pharmally for the government’s supposed overpriced procurement of supplies to fight COVID-19.

In a 15-page complaint, Jaime Vegas, a Pharmally employee, claimed on Sept.

24 that Hontiveros presented a witness — Veejay Almira, a former warehouse man for the firm—who claimed to have been bribed and manipulated by the senator.

Meanwhile, Duterte said during his “Talk to the People” public address Wednesday: “Do not believe in their intrigues that I’m the lawyer, I’m this…”

“You know what Gordon and Drilon, the truth is, I would not have madeit to the presidency, from my mayorship to the presidency, had I been corrupt like you… had I been taking campaign funds from people who do dubious things along with members of Congress,” the President said.

SC upholds DOJ-NBI vs. solon over ‘pork’

By Rey E. Requejo

T

HE Supreme Court has upheld the recommendation of the Department of Justice and the National Bureau of Investigation before the Office of the Ombudsman to indict House Deputy Speaker Rep. Rufus Rodriguez for graft and other criminal offenses.

Rodriguez allegedly received around P2 million in kickbacks from his priority development assistance fund (PDAF) or pork barrel fund.

In a 15-page resolution made public on October 29, the SC’s Second Division found no grave abuse of discretion on the part of the DOJ and the NBI in recommending to the Ombudsman a

preliminary investigation for the eventual filing of charges before the Sandigabayan against Rodriguez.

The NBI, in its executive summary dated August 7, 2015, found Rodriguez along with several other lawmakers used his PDAF in illegal transactions with Janet Lim-Napoles’s non-government organizations

(NGOs) to profit from the simulated disbursements and utilization of his PDAF. Based on its investigation, the NBI said all of the NGOs of Napoles were ghost ones used as mere conduits for the purported implementation and liquidation of projects financed by the PDAF .

However, the bulk of the funds was allegedly pocketed by lawmakers, their representatives and officials of the implementing agencies, according to the NBI. Napoles, who was suspected to be the architect of pork barrel scam, is currently in detention following her conviction for plunder, graft and other charges related to the multi-million pork barrel fund scam.

CHRISTMAS CHEER. Entertainers wearing Santa Claus and Elf costumes entertain shoppers and invite them to have selfies at the newly opened Christmas display at SM East Ortigas on Wednesday. All branches of SM in the National Capital Region started their Christmas season amid pandemic.

Danny Pata

HOUSE Majority Leader and Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin G. Romualdez on Wednesday expressed support to the reopening of the economy with the declining number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the National Capital Region (NCR).

But Romualdez, president of the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) and chairman of the House committee on rules, reminded the concerned authorities and the public to consider science and maintain the basic social protocols, particularly social distancing and wearing of face masks and face shields.

“We have to provide jobs for the people after series of disruptive lockdowns and we can only do that by gradually reopening our economy. While we support the easing of restrictions, we should alaways be guided by science in opening various businesses,” said Romualdez, a lawyer from the University of the Philippines (UP) and president of the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa).

Manila Rep. Manny Lopez, chairman of the House committee on metro manila development, said the government is left with no option but to reopen the economy to ensure livelihood for the people.

“There is a need to open up especially now that Christmas is coming. NCR residents should return to work. All that should be done is for the local governments to maintain strict health protocols,” said Lopez as he echoed Romualdez’s view.

Meanwhile, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco backed the proposed lowering of the Covid-19 Alert Level in Metro Manila.

“We fully support the proposal to further ease COVID-19 restrictions in the National Capital Region (NCR) amid the steady decline in new infections as this would result in broader reopening of the economy,” Velasco said.

Isko won’t be hard on critics, vows open ear IF ELECTED president in the 2022 elections, Aksyon Demokratiko presidential candidate Manila City Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso said he will not be hostile to critics of his administration, saying he will even encourage the opposition to voice out their criticisms and grievances against his government.

Moreno even vowed to listen to the political opposition without setting aside the need for urgent action on important matters in government.

Meanwhile, to reach more minors aged 12 to 17, Domagoso plans to bringthe vaccination program to malls.

Domagoso met with Vice Mayor Honey Lacuna to lay down plans to bring the inoculation to the shopping malls to accomodate more of the target population.

The Manila mayor described as “encouraging” the high turnout of minors who availed of the free mass vaccination in Manila.

As for his critics, he said: “I will try to be reasonable to them. I will listen first to them, if their opposition to something is valid.

Then, if it makes sense, then I’ll listen.

If not, go straight again.

Because people voted for you.”

“You are the one expected to govern.

You will be in charge,” he said, in a radio interview. Rey Requejo and Macon Ramos-Araneta

Leni supporters Bato, Rody not preparing to defend selves with ICC probe looming roll out works for‘Kakampink’

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

REELING from the economic crunch due to the government’s “mishandling” of the pandemic, volunteers and supporters of presidential candidate and Vice President Leni Robredo rolled off various activities for the benefit of the underprivileged on “KakamPINK” Wednesday.

This was their response to Robredo’s aim of making her campaign all about unity and to bring out the goodness in the Filipino by helping needy communities, especially during the pandemic.

Robredo’s supporters and volunteers in Kidapawan City conducted a feeding program where they served hot “lugaw” with pink “puto” to poor residents.

Similar activities were conducted by their counterparts in Barangay Cembo in Makati City, Sitio Malalad Libertad in Butuan City, Pagbilao in Quezon province, San Simon in Pampanga, Bagong Silang in Oriental Mindoro.

Aside from “lugaw”, members of Tropang Leni Robredo San Simon Chapter also served hot pandesal, hard boiled egg and mineral water to 500 people, mostly children and senior citizens.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte and Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa are not preparing nor contacting good international lawyers to defend them in the pending International Criminal Court (ICC) probe on the country’s bloody drug war.

PDP-Laban presidential candidate

Dela Rosa stressed Wednesday there are no ongoing efforts to prepare for the ICC investigation, and he and the President do not particularly discuss it.

“I will just ensure that I come with a clean heart and conscience,” said Dela Rosa, the standard bearer of the Cusi faction of the ruling PDPLaban.

Dela Rosa alongside Duterte face charges for alleged crimes against humanity over the alleged rampant human rights violations and extra-judicial killings in the implementation of the country’s fight against illegal drugs.

Meanwhile, Dela Rosa is upbeat on a better condition of the country if he becomes the President and Duterte

becomes Senate President, should the latter decide to run for a seat in the Upper Chamber.

With good teamwork between the Executive and Legislative departments, Dela Rosa said the country is geared towards one direction in nation building.

He said the national interest instead of personal interests would prevail.

‘To ease MM traffic, return to provinces’

PINK PARTY. Tiwi Mayor Jaime C. Villanueva (second from right) holds a photo of a ‘kakampink’ that he presents to Vice President Leni Robredo (second from left) as she continues her presidential campaign tour in Albay, stopping to visit Rep. Edcel Lagman and Tabaco Mayor Krisel Lagman at their home and to meet supporters after inaugurating two Angat Buhay projects in the island barangays of Tabaco and Bacacay.

PARTIDO Reporma chairman and standard-bearer Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is doing away with building more road networks in Metro Manila, saying the best way to improve its traffic situation is to let more people move away from the cities and go back to the provinces.

In his conversation with radio hosts Ted Failon and DJ Chacha over Radyo Singko on Wednesday, Lacson said his plans to decongest the National Capital Region (NCR) are tied to his Budget Reform Advocacy for Village Empowerment (BRAVE) policy agenda.

BRAVE has been one of the flagship legislative proposals of Lacson, which

aims to infuse better public funding for community development projects to be facilitated by the local government units (LGU) themselves down to the barangay level.

“Fixing the traffic situation is attached to village empowerment. Because when you disburse the resources of the government and it results in development, livelihood for the people in distant places, they will naturally move to those areas,” he said.

Lacson indicated he is not enthusiastic about adding more infrastructure projects for Metro Manila since it already has too many layers of skyways serving motorists across different cities to nearby Luzon provinces.

Opinion Leni Robredo can be PH’s Angela Merkel

TOWARD the end of 2020, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that she would not be standing for election in this year’s German general election.

In so doing the Chancellor signalled the impending exit from the international political arena of one of its most influential figures and the beginning of the end of one of Germany’s most successful political careers of the last 50 years.

The remarkable thing about Angela Merkel’s political career is that it started in East Germany, the communist-ruled part of Central Europe’s most powerful country. When East Germany collapsed following the removal of the Berlin Wall, the bright young activist moved west and started getting involved in the politics of democratic West Germany.

The succeeded in winning a seat in the Bundestag, the now-unified Germany’s lower legislative chamber, and became active in the chamber’s strategic committees. The rest, as the cliche goes, is history.

Angela Merkel was Germany’s longestserving Chancellor of the post-World War II era. Given Germany’s superior economic clout - it has the world’s fourthlargest economy - the German Chancellor has for some time been the ‘primus inter pares’ of Western Europe’s political leaders. With her intellect, her political skills and her bearing, Angela Merkel played the role well.

The retirement of Germany’s muchadmired Chancellor has come at a time when the voters of this country are preparing for the election of a new President of the Philippines and contemplating the victory prospects of the sole female candidate for that position, namely, Vice President Leni Robredo.

Can the Vice President be the firstrate national leader that the people of this country have long been wishing for? Can Leni Robredo be the Philippines’ Angela Merkel?

She very well can. Leni Robredo’s personal qualities, temperament,

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EDITORIAL

professional achievements and political philosophy mirror those of the former German Chancellor.

Like Angela Merkel, Leni Robredo is a decent, God-fearing individual. She has demonstrated an enormous capacity for empathy, like the German Chancellor, who stood up to her fellow-European Union colleagues and allowed the entry into Germany of tens of thousands of Middle Eastern and North African refugees.

Can the Vice President be the firstrate national leader that the people of this country have long been wishing for?

Vice-President Robredo is a composed and patient person who has displayed resilience in the face of personal tragedy and official humiliation. She has soldiered on in the despite the shabby treatment she has received from President Duterte during the last five and a half years.

Like Angela Merkel, Robredo has authentic compassion for the poor those who she terms “yung mga nasa laylayan ng lipunan.” The former German Chancellor was born to a middle-class family in northeastern Germany and knows what it’s like to live in a modestmeans environment.

Most importantly, Leni Robredo and Angela Merkel are firm believers in democracy, the rule of law and human rights. During Angela Merkel’s Chancellorship, Germany was in the forefront of the European Union’s push for human rights and personal liberties around the world.

In Angela Merkel the German people had an Ina ng Bayan. During her vice presidency, Leni Robredo has functioned as the Ina ng Bayan, using her limited power and even more limited resources to bring good cheer, solace and, above all, hope to the millions of Filipinos who elected her to the position she occupies today. As the nation’s Chief Executive, Leni Robredo will be a greater Ina ng Bayan.

The 2022 elections

THE election period is under way. As early as now, candidates are going around the country and meeting with various groups ahead of the official campaign period. As I mentioned before, the coming elections will determine the country’s fate in its fight against COVID-19. The next leaders will have to address the increasingly challenging post-pandemic scenario. They should have the ability to decide how and where to steer the country—hopefully, toward healing and recovery on all levels.

Just as the 2020 US national elections significantly affected their political, economic, and social climate amid the pandemic, the 2022 Philippine elections will most likely do the same. The road to recovery has already been started by the current administration, but saving our pandemic-ravaged economy and restoring the pre-COVID growth rates are a massive undertaking. Moreover, the unprecedented challenges of this public health crisis remain to be addressed, along with social inequities made more glaring by the pandemic.

Hence, it is important that the 2022 elections be secure and transparent amid the health and safety restrictions and automated system. Let me emphasize that Republic Act No. 9369, the very law that provides for automated elections, mandates that the process be “transparent and credible” and that the results be “fast, accurate and reflective of the genuine will of the people.”

With this, the Commission on Elections

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

has already begun its dry runs. The agency has also inked contracts for the automated elections. Smartmatic has once again won the bidding for the provision of the software, refurbishment of votecounting machines, and transmission.

However, if we recall, since the first automated polls in 2010, Smartmatic has been called out several times for reports of malfunctioning machines, transmission delays, rejected ballots, programming errors, and allegations of fraud.

It will decide our fate with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the minority during the last Congress, I called for the investigation of Smartmatic for the use of its vote-counting machines that were marred with irregularities. Now, should Smartmatic continue servicing our automated elections, they must swear to be willing to be put under scrutiny, cooperate fully with investigations, and be properly and justly sanctioned for any election irregularity, if found committed.

Let me reiterate my call for transparency in the 2022 elections. In compliance with its mandate, I urge the Comelec to institute measures, aligned with health restrictions, that will ensure the transparency and credibility of the upcoming elections. As we have learned in 2010, Comelec must ensure that transparency servers receive timely results as the Comelec servers.

With almost 65 million voters registered, the poll body, by now, should plan for a smoother transmission of votes to prevent system glitches. Election precincts must be secured to prevent disorder in the conduct of this crucial election.

As there will be a limited number of

A dark and bloody legacy

O

N THE heels of a damaging Justice Department report that cast doubt that police truly acted in self-defense when they killed drug suspects in 52 operations, now come more disturbing revelations that the authorities recommended rewards for officers involved in “shootouts.”

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) this week said police reports on drug raids in which the suspect was killed sought to reward the cops involved and absolve them from liability.

The CHR came to this conclusion after analyzing 579 killings and incidents of violence documented since the Duterte administration’s war on drugs began in 2016 up until February 2020.

The CHR said 77 out of 90 police reports made recommendations that the officers involved in the killings be “awarded, rewarded or recognized.”

Some reports upheld the legitimacy of the operations, and a few “recommended that participating operatives be absolved from criminal or administrative liability.”

Moreover, the CHR found that only 2.36 percent of 466 drug suspects who police claimed resisted arrest in the National Capital Region, Central Luzon and Calabarzon, survived.

Out of all incidents analyzed, 451 were police operations that targeted 705 people. At least 538—or 76 percent--of them were killed.

Records of at least 87 victims contained information on the wounds or injuries found—mostly multiple gunshot

wounds on different parts of the body, usually the head, chest, trunk and abdomen. Blunt force and injury and lacerations were also found on some of the victims

Surely we are better than this.

Of the 870 people recorded as victims, at least 71 were women and at least 24 were minors.

The CHR said it could have done a more exhaustive report but was systematically denied access to police records.

Facing an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC), the President—who initiated the bloody war on drugs and served as its biggest cheerleader—is singularly unrepentant, saying he is ready to go to jail for the drug killings if a Filipino court finds him guilty. His surrogate candidate for president next year, Senator Ronald dela Rosa, oversaw the bloody campaign, admitted he is “a little” worried about the ICC probe, but says he is ready to face any investigation.

In 2016, he told the BBC the an-

ti-drug campaign was not “perfect,” but said he was proud of his record.

“I can say we attacked the problem head-on,” he said at the time. “We did not shy away from the problem.”

He also dismissed as hyperbole the suggestion that the President had ordered cops to kill indiscriminately— despite what Mr. Duterte said in 2016: “If [drug suspects’ pull out a gun, kill them. If they don’t, kill them still, son of a whore, so it’s over, lest you lose your gun. I’ll take care of you.”

This, then, is the dark and bloody legacy of the President and his surrogate candidate, and now the chickens have come home to roost.

President Rodrigo Duterte’s violent war on drugs has led to 6,201 deaths in police anti-drug operations alone as of Sept. 30, according to official government data. This count does not include victims of vigilante-style killings, which human rights groups estimate could reach 27,000 to 30,000.

How many of these, we must ask, were big-time drug distributors, and how many were just impoverished, small-time peddlers, addicts, or worse, innocent bystanders?

As the elections draw near, we need to ask ourselves if this is the kind of society we are—one that seeks but ultimately fails to solve a social disease with indiscriminate killing. Do we really want national and local leaders who will continue this legacy and lead us down this blood-soaked path yet again? Surely, we are better than this.

What are the voters looking for? group, peer pressure and religion. These are the most common. Voting for someone just because he is the son or daughter of a former president is something else.

We hope our next leader will have what it takes to grapple with our complex problems.

IN THE history of our republic, the country has had two parent-and-child presidencies. The first was President Diosdado Macapagal who was followed by his daughter Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

The second was President Corazon C. Aquino followed by her son President Benigno Simeon Aquino lll. In earlier times, Sergio Osmena Jr. tried to follow in his father’s footsteps but failed.

For the 2022 presidential election, another son also wants to be like his father.

Bongbong Marcos, the youngest child of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, is one of six presidential candidates. There would have been two had Mayor Sara Duterte Carpio not decided to run as mayor again.

Will we be seeing another presidential son winning in next year’s election? It is a tantalizing prospect.

This phenomenon is, of course, not unique to this country. We have seen this happen in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. In Thailand it was two siblings becoming prime ministers. The United States has also had two father-and-son presidencies. In the case of President Benigno Aquino lll, his election was clearly due to the so-called Cory mystique.

There seems to be a tendency of Filipino voters to vote for presidents’ children as shown in two presidential elections.

Something is drawing the people to want to vote for the son or daughter which I wish had a simple rational explanation other than nostalgia.

Normally, voters vote for their candidates because of the following reasons; relative competence, physical attributes of the candidate, family choice, candidates belonging to the same ethno-linguistic

In the case of BBM who is leading in the current surveys of presidential candidates, it seems that the father is rising from the grave to give the son a huge helping hand. For one, BBM’s mannerisms are reminiscent of the former president. His gestures and speeches seem to remind people of his father which may be strange to some but it shows that after all these years the father has maintained a lot of his diehard followers. The literature that we read about the late president today were mostly written by the victors, so to speak. There are not too many alternative interpretations of events about the 20 years that the late strongman ruled the country. The current narrative is that everything about martial law was bad and evil.

In a way, BBM is also fighting for his father’s legacy — and the prospective voters are responding. It would be a monumental redemption if BBM goes on to win next year’s presidential elections. It would be much bigger than the redemption of wartime President Jose P. Laurel when voters elected him as senator after being branded as a Japanese collaborator.

Still, the election is months away. A lead in the surveys at this time does not equate to sure victory. A lot of things could still happen. For instance, who among the candidates have a well-oiled campaign machinery to mount an effective winning campaign? Of the six candidates, Senator

people allowed in precincts, Comelec should ensure that poll watchers are wellrepresented. Moreover, random manual audits, a safeguard provided for by law, should be done immediately in public to confirm the integrity of ballots.

As the old saying goes, “democracy is not a spectator sport.” As election activities intensify, we must stay vigilant

on the preparations. Taking advantage of this pandemic may be tempting. It is imperative that we seek accountability for any election irregularity or fraud that defies public trust and defeats the very essence of democracy. The 2022 polls are pivotal, to say the least, and so the government’s duty to preserve its integrity cannot be overemphasized.

Ping Lacson has probably the best prepared program of government. Yet, he is fourth or fifth in the surveys. Senator Pacquiao is rating better simply for distributing rice and cash in his sorties. VP Leni Robredo who is the bearer of Cory’s torch and legacy is running third or fourth.

This coming election like any other presidential election is crucial but perhaps more so than the four previous presidential elections. This is because there is clearly a need for the country to return to a semblance of predictability in governance.

In the last five years, our country’s governance was basically dictated by the sheer force of President Duterte’s personality. What is needed now is a government with predictable and stable policies. With a new administration demonstrating more clarity of vision and policy stability, foreign investors will hopefully return with more investments.

In the end, all that we can really hope for is that our next leader will have what it takes to grapple with all the complex problems at hand. The pandemic, South China Sea problem, climate change, burgeoning national debt and many more. We would also hope that our next president is someone who truly believes in our system of government and will work within the system and not always try to put the system under stress just to test the limits of our constitutional government. We want a strong leader but not a strongman.

Lastly, let’s hope that the next president will see the anomaly of always electing a minority president and have the election law amended to require a runoff election for the first and second placer so we’ll have a majority president.

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EU Parliament delegation visits Taiwan despite China warnings

OIL SPILL. Oil Heads, climate activists from the Ocean Rebellion group, demonstrate outside the INEOS integrated refinery and petrochemicals center plant in Grangemouth, Scotland, during the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference taking place in Glasgow on November 2, 2021. World leaders meeting at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow have pledged to end deforestation by 2030 but that date is too distant for campaigners who want action sooner to save the planet’s lungs. AFP

A EUROPEAN Parliament delegation arrived in Taiwan Wednesday, part of an effort to build closer ties with the island despite warnings from China.

The visit comes during high tensions between Taiwan and China, which claims the self-ruled island and has vowed to take it one day, by force if needed.

Beijing has intensified efforts in recent years to isolate Taiwan on the international stage, bristling at any attempts to treat the island as an independent state.

The seven-member group led by French MEP Raphael Glucksmann will meet with Taiwan President Tsai Ingwen and other top officials during the three-day trip, said the island’s foreign ministry, describing it as the first “official” delegation from the European parliament.

“We look forward to fruitful discussions on the defence of democracy,

freedom, rule of law and respect for human rights with our like-minded European partners,” it added in a statement.

Glucksmann, a vocal China critic, was among five lawmakers sanctioned

by Beijing in March.

“Neither the threats nor the sanctions will impress me. Never. And I will continue, always, to stand with those who fight for democracy and human rights.

So here it is: I’m going to Taiwan,” he tweeted.

The Chinese mission in Brussels had warned earlier that a Taiwan visit

by MEPs would “damage China’s core interest and undermine the healthy development of China-EU relations.”

Beijing reacted with anger when a group of French senators travelled to Taiwan last month, and to Taiwanese foreign minister Joseph Wu’s recent visits to Slovakia and the Czech Republic. AFP

150,000 BABIES KILLED EACH YEAR

WHO urges vaccine vs. GBS bacteria

T

HE World Health Organization on Wednesday called for the urgent development of a vaccine against a bacterial infection responsible for nearly 150,000 stillbirths and infant deaths each year.

cy and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that the impact of Group B Streptococcus infection (GBS), which is estimated to live harmlessly in the intestinal tracts of up to a third of all adults, is a far bigger cause of preterm births and disability than previously thought.

The report confirmed a previous devastating finding from 2017 that the bacterium causes almost 100,000 newborn A fresh report by the UN health agen- deaths and close to 50,000 stillbirths

each year, although it pointed to significant data gaps suggesting the true figures could be higher.

And for the first time it quantified the impact on preterm births, finding that GBS is behind more than half a million early deliveries each year, leading to significant long-term disability.

In light of such staggering numbers, the report authors lamented that more progress had not been made towards developing a vaccine.

“This new research shows that Group B strep is a major and underappreciated threat to newborn survival and wellbeing, bringing devastating impacts for so many families globally,” Phillipp Lambach of WHO’s immunisation department said in a statement.

“WHO joins partners in calling for urgent development of a maternal GBS vaccine, which would have profound benefits in countries worldwide.”

Professor Joy Lawn, who heads

LSHTM’s maternal adolescent, reproductive and child health center, agreed.

“Maternal vaccination could save the lives of hundreds of thousands of babies in the years to come,” she said, decrying the lack of progress since the idea of developing a jab against GBS was first raised three decades ago.

On average, 15 percent of pregnant women worldwide, or nearly 20 million annually, carry the GBS bacterium in their vagina.AFP

France calls leaked Macron text ‘new low’ in Australia subs row THE Australia-France row over the collapse of a submarine deal reached an “unprecedented new low” when a text message from the French president to Australia’s leader was leaked, France’s ambassador to Canberra said Wednesday.

Emmanuel Macron sent the message to Prime Minister Scott Morrison two days before Australia announced that it had torn up a decade-old multi-billiondollar contract with France to build a new fleet of submarines.

Paris reacted furiously, and Macron added to the furor at the weekend by accusing Morrison of lying to him, a charge the Australian has batted away.

In a fiery speech on Wednesday, French ambassador to Australia JeanPierre Thebault said the leaking of the private text was an “unprecedented new low.”

“You don’t behave like this on per-

sonal exchanges of leaders who are allies. But maybe it is just confirmation that we were never seen as an ally,” he told Australia’s National Press Club.

“Doing so also sends a very worrying signal for all heads of state: beware, in Australia, there will be leaks.

And what you say in confidence to your partners will be eventually used and weaponised against you one day.”

In the message, Macron had asked Morrison: “Should I expect good or bad news for our joint submarine ambitions?”

Reports said the leak could have been engineered by Morrison’s office in retaliation for the “lying” charge.

Australia announced in mid-September it was abandoning the French diesel submarines in favor of nuclearpowered submarines as it joined a new defense alliance with Britain and the United States dubbed AUKUS.AFP

UPCYCLED BEAUTY. A woman stands in front of a light installation at Dubai Garden Glow in the Gulf emirate. The installations are made from over one million energy saver bulbs and recycled luminous fabric made by artists from all over the world. AFP

Hong Kong activist becomes youngest convict of security law

Tony Chung

A 20-YEAR-OLD Hong Kong independence activist was facing life in prison Wednesday after becoming the youngest person convicted under the city’s national security law, but told the court he had “nothing to be ashamed of.”

Tony Chung had pleaded guilty to secession in the fourth case to come to trial under the sweeping new legislation, which authorities are using to snuff out dissent in the semi-autonomous Chinese city.

“I have nothing to be ashamed of,” Chung said in court as he entered his plea.

Judge Stanley Chan then immediately warned Chung that no talk of politics

would be allowed in the courtroom.

Chung is the former convenor of Student Localism, a small group that advocated Hong Kong’s independence from China.

The group was founded in 2016 and disbanded its Hong Kong network shortly before Beijing imposed the security law in 2020, but it has kept its overseas chapters going.

The prosecution said the group advocated that Hong Kong “get rid of the Chinese Communist colonial rule” and “build a Hong Kong republic.”

They disseminated their message through social media, street booths, calling on people to join protests and

selling merchandise with independence messages.

Prosecutors said the group issued an appeal to the United States to pass a law imposing sanctions on Hong Kong and China.

The organisation also opposed the teaching of Mandarin, the form of Chinese commonly used throughout the mainland, in Hong Kong schools, the court heard.

Chung was also convicted of a money laundering charge Wednesday and in exchange the prosecution agreed to shelve a sedition charge as well as a second money laundering charge, both of which he pleaded not guilty to. AFP

‘My name is Cleo’: 4-year-old Australian girl found after 18-day hunt A FOUR-YEAR-OLD Australian girl abducted from a campsite 18 days ago was found “alive and well” in a locked house Wednesday, telling elated police officers: “My name is Cleo.”

Cleo Smith disappeared from her family’s tent in Western Australia last month, sparking a frantic air, sea and ground search involving 100 officers, one that most feared would end in tragedy.

The little girl was found alone inside a locked house in the coastal town of Carnarvon, a short drive away from where she disappeared, Western Australia police said.

“One of the officers picked her up into his arms and asked her ‘what’s your name?’” police deputy commissioner Col Blanch said.

“She said ‘My name is Cleo’.”

Police detained a 36-year-old local man with no connection to the family after breaking into the house at about 1 a.m. local time.

The young girl was reunited with her

parents a short time later, with her mother Ellie taking to social media to express her relief.

“Our family is whole again,” she posted on Instagram under a photo of Cleo.

Ellie Smith had earlier described her distress at waking at 6 a.m. To find the family’s tent unzipped and her oldest daughter missing.

Her public pleas for help to bring Cleo home had prompted an outpouring of support from across Australia.

Blanch told local radio that he saw “seasoned detectives openly crying with relief” after Cleo was found, calling the rescue “just incredible.”

“It’s very rare. It’s something we all hoped in our hearts, and it’s come true,” he said.

State premier Mark McGowan expressed elation at receiving the news overnight.

He first received a call at 1:38 a.m., but sheepishly admitted: “I didn’t answer it, I was asleep.” Still, within a few hours, he

had received a “lovely” image of the girl smiling from a hospital bed.

“There will be movies made about this,” he said. “You never know what to expect, you hope for the best, but you prepare for the worst.”

“It’s great to provide the country with positive news.”

While police used human intelligence, surveillance footage and forensic analysis to find the girl, scores of volunteers scoured nearby bushland for clues.

Investigators had been determined they “were not going to leave any stone unturned,” even as the search dragged on, Western Australia police commissioner Chris Dawson said.

“We had been following a lot of the forensic leads and it led us to a particular house,” he told ABC radio. “We put everything we had at it.”

“Hope was never lost and the fact she’s been found alive, I think Australia is rejoicing. It is such a wonderful outcome.”

AFP

This handout photo taken and received on November 3, 2021 from the Western Australian Police Force shows four-yearold Cleo Smith recovering in a hospital after she was abducted from her family’s tent in Western Australia during the early hours of October 16, sparking an extensive air, sea and ground search. AFP

Senior Taliban commander slain in hospital attack A TALIBAN military commander was killed when his men responded to an Islamic State suicide bomb and gun attack on a hospital in the Afghan capital, officials said Wednesday.

The Taliban spent 20 years waging an insurgency against the ousted USbacked government before seizing control of Kabul in August.

Now they face the struggle of bringing stability to Afghanistan, which has been hit in recent weeks by a series of bloody assaults claimed by rivals, the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K).

At least 19 people were killed in Tuesday’s attack on Kabul’s main military hospital, according to a health ministry official who did not want to be named.

Hamdullah Mokhlis, a member of the hardline Haqqani network and an officer in the Badri Corps special forces, is the most senior figure to have been killed since the Taliban seized Kabul.

“When he got the information that Sardar Daud Khan Hospital was under attack, Maulvi Hamdullah (Mokhlis), the commander of the Kabul corps, immediately rushed to the scene,” the Taliban media official said.

“We tried to stop him but he laughed.

Later we found out that he was martyred in the face-to-face fight at the hospital,” he added.

The attack began with a suicide bomber detonating his explosives near the facility’s entrance before gunmen broke into the hospital grounds.

As part of the response, Kabul’s new rulers deployed their special forces to the roof of the building in a helicopter captured from Afghanistan’s former US-backed government.AFP

Business

Lufthansa back in the black with 3rd quarter profit

PSEi NOVEMBER 3, 2021

TOP GAINERS 1

ALLDY

LAST PRICE 0.9

% CHANGE CHANGE 0.3 50.00%

2 3 4

BMM MAC MED

71.9 5.85 0.34

10.85 0.55 0.025

17.77% 10.38% 7.94%

5 6

EEI ATN

6.98 0.51

0.5 0.04

7.72% 7.37%

7 8 9

SLF CA MRC

2890 50.5 0.315

190 3.25 0.02

7.04% 6.88% 6.78%

10

PRIM

1.65

0.09

5.77%

TOP LOSERS 1

NRCP

LAST PRICE 0.63

% CHANGE CHANGE -0.07 -10.00%

2 3 4

ABG OPM MACAY

5.43 0.01 6.31

-0.57 -0.001 -0.49

-9.50% -9.09% -7.21%

5 6 7

SBS AB BKR

4.02 6.35 1.7

-0.28 -0.34 -0.09

-6.51% -5.08% -5.03%

8 9 10

PHA CAB GEO

0.77 56 0.214

-0.04 -2.9 -0.011

-4.94% -4.92% -4.89%

MOST ACTIVE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

BPI ALLDY AC MREIT LTG URC ACEN JFC AP SMPH

VOLUME 5,389,830 450,806,000 409,950 18,902,900 28,116,700 2,060,520 21,763,300 1,131,720 7,654,700 7,064,000

VALUE (PHP) 487,888,286 405,725,400 356,473,720 347,013,592 286,639,982 274,626,312 266,196,404 265,223,176 255,497,055 243,802,620

CHRISTMAS TOYS.

A member of staff displays toys for a photo call as DreamToys predicts the 12 most sought after toys by kids this Christmas in central London on November 2, 2021. AFP

Stock market advances; AllDay Marts jumps 50% S HARE prices rallied Wednesday on the removal of curfew hours and easing COVID-19 restrictions in Metro Manila following a drop in the daily infection rate.

B3

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

With prices rising at rates not seen for years, central banks are being forced to row back the vast financial support put in place at the start of the pandemic, which has been credited with sending equities to records and helping the economic recovery.

While some have already lifted borrowing costs or started to tighten the purse strings, the main focus is on the Fed, which is expected to say Wednesday when it will begin tapering its own massive bond-buying program, with particular attention on rates.

“There does appear to be a growing recognition amongst a rising number of Fed officials that inflation is likely to be much more persistent than was previously envisaged,” said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.

“It is clear that the Fed’s narrative for acting has shifted away from the labor market, and there is a wider acknowledgement about rising inflation risk.

“However, once the taper timetable has been outlined Fed officials will then come under increasing pressure to outline a timetable for an increase in interest rates, a move that Fed Chair Jay Powell has already indicated is not imminent and could be as long as a year away.” With AFP

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index rose 78.71 points, or 1.1 percent, to 7,184.72 on a value turnover of P7.5 billion.

Gainers beat losers, 104 to 99, withy 46 issues unchanged.

Bank of the Philippine Islands of the Ayala Group,, the thirdbiggest lender in terms of assets, climbed 3.4 percent to P91, while Aboitiz Power Corp. of the Aboitiz Group advanced 4.8 percent to P34.

AllDay Marts Inc., the grocery chain owned by the Villar Group, soared 50 percent in its market debut to P0.90, while SM Prime Holdings Inc. of the Sy Group gained 3.6 percent at P34.70.

The rest of Asian markets drifted Wednesday with investors biding their time ahead of a hotly anticipated Federal Reserve meeting, though Hong Kong and Shanghai were again weighed by concerns about China’s economy as leaders struggle to contain a new wave of COVID infections.

Manila A third straight day of records for Wall Street’s Standard TODAY three main indexes and a first all-time high for 21 years in Paris—fanned by strong earnings—were unable to provide much inspiration in the face of long-running fears about surging inflation and the prospect of higher interest rates.

FRANKFURT, Germany—German national carrier Lufthansa said Wednesday that it was back in the black in the third quarter of this year— for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic—as restrictions are lifted and air travel takes off again.

“With rising demand for business travel and a record result of Lufthansa Cargo, we have mastered another milestone on our way out of the crisis: we are back to black,” chief executive Carsten Spohr said in a statement.

The airline said its revenues almost doubled in the period from July through September, and it posted a small underlying, or operating, profit of 17 million euros ($20 million), compared with a loss of 1.3 billion euros a year earlier.

Looking ahead, Lufthansa said it expects to narrow its full-year operating loss to “less than half” the 5.5 billion euros it booked for 2020 when travel restrictions shut down large parts of the airline industry.

Its third-quarter performance this year was driven mainly by record operating profit of 301 million euros at its Lufthansa Cargo division, the statement said.

The global supply chain crunch has increased already high demand for air freight.

A week before the United States opens its borders to vaccinated travelers—a key route for the group— Lufthansa said bookings had reached 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

In the July-September period, Lufthansa operated at 50 percent of its pre-pandemic capacity, as measured by kilometers travelled by passengers.

The airline expects this key indicator to increase to 60 percent in the fourth quarter and then to 70 percent in 2022.

Lufthansa, which also includes Austrian, Swiss and Brussels Airlines, was saved from bankruptcy last year by a German government bailout. AFP

Sheep graze on the beach eating seaweed at North Ronaldsay, Orkney on September 7, 2021.

The distinctive native sheep with brown, beige or black wool, learned to survive on the foreshore, eating the most commonly available food: seaweed. AFP

Orkneys’ seaweed-eating sheep offer hopes for reducing methane emissions

NORTH RONALDSAY, United Kingdom— On a tiny island in Scotland’s far-flung Orkneys, thousands of sheep spend the winter munching on seaweed, a unique diet that scientists say offers hope for reducing planetwarming methane emissions.

Around 60 people share North Ronaldsay— an island just over 3 miles (5 kilometers) long, ringed by rocky beaches and turquoise waters off the north coast of mainland Britain—with the distinctive native sheep.

Boasting brown, beige or black wool, the animals are hemmed into its foreshore owing to a large system of stone walls—called a sheep dyke—built in the early 19th century to keep them away from fields and roads.

The island’s crofters—people who live and work on so-called croft agricultural land— wanted to use every available space to grow crops and as pasture for cows.

The unintended result: in summer the sheep can nibble on grass, but by winter eating the plentiful seaweed is their only means of survival.

While some other mammals—including Shetland ponies native to the neighboring island chain, and red deer—are known to snack on seaweed, scientists say that the North Ronaldsay sheep are unique worldwide for spending months eating only the marine plants.

Methane reduction With the world facing a deepening climate emergency, they are increasingly seen by some as a case study that could lead to a breakthrough in methods for raising livestock, which is a major source of greenhouse gases.

Farm animals belch and fart methane gas which, though trivial sounding, is about 30 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Given the vast scale of the global meat in-

dustry, the issue has become a major focus for climate scientists—just as world leaders gathered in the Scottish city Glasgow from Sunday for the crucial COP26 summit.

The seaweed diet of the Orkney sheep has an effect on their complex digestive system and appears to reduce the amount of methane produced.

“There’s different components in the seaweed that actually interfere with the process (of) how methane is made,” said Gordon McDougall, a researcher at The James Hutton Institute in Dundee in eastern Scotland who has been examining the sheep’s diet for two decades.

Researchers at The University of California, Davis, published results in March showing that a “bit of seaweed in cattle feed could reduce methane emissions from beef cattle as much as 82 percent.”

David Beattie, another James Hutton Institute scientist, stressed there is huge interest in such innovation.

“There’s a really big movement within the industry to try and cut out the carbon footprint that the industry as a whole has,” he told AFP. “I see seaweed playing a part in that.”

Scale This would not necessarily mean cows and sheep switching to a diet entirely comprised of seaweed like the North Ronaldsay sheep, but it could supplement their usual feed.

Seaweed is not available in large enough quantities to feed so many animals, McDougall noted, and taking away too much from the sea could also damage the environment and ecosystems.

But the marine plants—good sources of minerals, vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids— could partly replace soy, which is heavily used in animal feed but transported for thousands of miles and linked to deforestation. AFP

(MS-NOV. 4, 2021)

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

B4

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

PH posts second fastest car sales growth in ASEAN

By Othel V. Campos THE Philippines posted the second fastest automotive sales recovery in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations with a 29.5-percent growth in the first nine months to 191,605 units from 148,012 units in the same period in 2020.

A recent sales report released by the ASEAN Automotive Federation showed the sales recovery of the Philippines came after Indonesia with a 68.7-percent increase in the comparable period to 627,537 units from 372,046 units last year.

Singapore and Vietnam reported positive sales growth of 19.5 percent to 48,167 units from 39,480 units, and 188,937 from 179,156 units, respectively.

The rest of ASEAN Federation members registered slower sales over the pandemic period. Malaysia reported a 7.3-percent drop in sales over the first nine months to 318,874 units from 344,019 units in 2020.

Myanmar posted a decline of 51.2 percent to 7,526 units from 15,433 units a year earlier while Thailand saw sales contract by 0.5 percent to 531,931 units from 634,765 units.

Total sales in the region went up by 17.2 percent to 1.91 million units in the nine-month period from 1.63 million units a year earlier.

Meanwhile, sales of motorcycles and scooters went up 12.5 percent to 2.57 million units in the first three quarters from 2.29 million units in 2020.

The Philippines recorded the fastest growth of 29.2 percent to 1 million units from 807,020 units while Singapore sold 8,830 units in 2021, up by 15.2 percent from 7,665 units in 2020.

Thailand sold 1.2 million units in the first nine months, or 4.9 percent higher than 2021 sales of 1.15 million.

Ayala Land’s profit rose 38% to P2.55b in the third quarter

By Jenniffer B. Austria PROPERTY developer Ayala Land Inc. said Wednesday third-quarter net income climbed 38 percent to P2.55 billion from P1.85 billion in the same period last year despite the reimposition of stricter quarantine restrictions from August to September.

Ayala Land said in a disclosure to the stock exchange third-quarter revenues rose 7 percent to P23.55 billion. Residential and office businesses remained stable while mall and hotel businesses were affected by mobility restrictions.

“Our business recovery was sustained despite the reimposition of stricter quarantine measures last August. This was led by our residential business which continued to benefit from stable construction and sales this year,” said Ayala Land president and chief executive Bernard Vincent Dy. “We remain positive that with the reopening of the economy, business activity will gain momentum in the fourth quarter, especially for segments like our malls, hotels and resorts which broadly rely on increased mobility,” he said.

Ayala Land said net come in the first three quarters also climbed by 35 percent to P8.6 billion as revenues improved 15 percent to P72.6 billion.

Residential business rose 27 percent to P51.5 billion in the nine-month period. Commercial leasing revenues were affected by the stricter quarantine measures implemented in August, registering 18-percent lower at P14.2 billion.

Mall occupancy rates remained stable, but revenues from shopping centers declined 35 percent to P4.9 billion, given the limited operations and rent discounts granted to support tenants.

Revenues from office leasing remained a strong point, growing 5 percent to P7.5 billion as business process outsourcing and headquarter operations were steady throughout the period.

Meanwhile, hotel and resort revenues declined 29 percent to P1.9 billion as resort operations were again further restricted.

Business

Economists become more bullish on Q3 performance

By Julito G. Rada

P

RIVATE economists see a brighter outlook for the economy based on the latest data showing improved performance in manufacturing, employment, exports and imports.

Economists of First Metro Investment Corp. and University of Asia & the Pacific said in the October 2021 issue of The Market Call that the latest data “paint a brighter outlook for gross domestic product in the third quarter than earlier projected.”

“Surprisingly, the manufacturing sector has shown more exuberance than expected, with more than 400-percent year-onyear gains in June to August. In fact, these months in 2020 posted the lowest figures last year, but the current levels fall short of pre-pandemic levels by just over 5 percent,” they said.

They said that in terms of employment, the sector created 680,000 jobs

from November 2020 to August 2021, or more than double those added in the construction sector (383,000) in the same period.

Economists said the greater discipline and regular testing of those in the sector probably aided the robust performance, which export data also supported.

Exports also continued their doubledigit growth pace with 17.6 percent in August to average 16.8 percent from June to August, which partly arose from low base effects.

“Strong recoveries in China, the US, Germany and Taiwan have pushed demand for Philippine products. Although the global recovery will likely slow

down in the second half, demand from these and other East Asian countries should be sufficient to achieve our projected 15 percent to 18 percent growth in FY 2021,” they said.

The economy created 2.6 million jobs in August, but fell 25 percent short of the lost jobs in July. Total employment increased 11 percent to 44.2 million in August from 39.8 million in October 2020.

“The services sector remained as the laggard in job generation, but that should change for the better starting September 2021 with less restrictions and more vaccinations done especially in Metro Manila Plus,” they said.

Capital goods imports sustained their double-digit growth for the past five months and showed that businesses began to adjust to the new normal, they said.

They also expect inflation to remain elevated, possibly topping 5 percent in October with the lagged local effect of the renewed surge in crude oil prices. They said inflation might settle below 4 percent starting December 2021.

PSE INDEX CLOSING

Wednesday, November 3, 2021 78.71 PTS. 7,184.72

TOTAL VOLUME

2,330,379,267

TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE

88,956 7,519,932,291.43

ADVANCES

104

DECLINES UNCHANGED

99 46

F oreign e xchange r ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2021

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

50.4530

Japan

Yen

0.008777

0.4428

UK

Pound

1.361900

68.7119

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128505

6.4835

Switzerland

Franc

1.093733

55.1821

Canada

Dollar

0.806192

40.6748

Singapore

Dollar

0.741400

37.4059

Australia

Dollar

0.743000

37.4866

Bahrain

Dinar

2.653224

133.8631

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266596

13.4506

Brunei

Dollar

0.738662

37.2677

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000070

0.0035

Thailand

Baht

0.030093

1.5183

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

13.7377

Euro

Euro

1.158100

58.4296

Korea

Won

0.000848

0.0428

China

Yuan

0.156245

7.8830

India

Rupee

0.013385

0.6753

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.241196

12.1691

New Zealand

Dollar

0.712200

35.9326

Taiwan

Dollar

0.035895

1.8110 Source: BSP

IN BRIEF AllDay Marts sizzles on first trading day

THE share price of Villar-owned grocery chain AllDay Marts Inc., sizzled in its trading debut at the Philippine Stock Exchange Wednesday as investors bought into the company that is expected to be disrupt the supermarket landscape in the country.

AllDay shares immediately hit the ceiling at the start of trading to close at P0.90, up 50 percent from the initial public offering price of P0.60.

“We are truly excited to bring the AllDay experience public. We have long believed in the Filipinos deserving a better supermarket experience, one that is at par with the best in the world, and this IPO helps us do just that,” said Manuel Villar, chairman of AllDay. “When we priced the IPO, we did so with a mind to help maximize long-term value for our new institutional and retail investors. The brisk market uptake of our shares validates this price and we are very pleased and grateful for the warm reception that the AllDay IPO was given. This confirms that many share our vision in how to disrupt the supermarket landscape, and that many believe in AllDay’s capability to bring an elevated supermarket experience to more and more Filipinos across the country,” he said.

Jenniffer B. Austria

Diokno supports tech-savvy economy

FOOD FAIR. The 2021 Hybrid National Food Fair completes its year-long program to assist Filipino micro, small and medium enterprises engaged in the food industry with a physical event held at the Festival Mall in Alabang, Muntinlupa City. The face-to-face selling event is part of the Department of Trade and Industry’s initiatives to support the reopening of the economy. At the ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the partnership between the DTI and Filinvest Land Inc. are (from left) Filinvest Land senior manager for exhibits conventions group Emily de Leon, DTI-Bureau of Domestic Trade Promotion director Marievic Bonoan, Trade Undersecretary Abdulgani Macatoman, Filinvest Land assistant vice president for marketing Denise Rae Lagayan and Muntinlupa City business permit and licensing office division chief examiner Abby Sagum-Garcia.

Business groups call on Congress to pass priority economic reforms LOCAL and foreign business groups called on the House of Representatives and the Senate to pass priority economic reform bills.

The groups, in letters to the House and Senate leaders and the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, commended the legislative and executive branches for introducing and moving forward with various vital measures, including several recommended by the groups, to attract more investments and improve job creation.

They also expressed optimism for the early ratification of the reconciled versions of three bills under the bicameral conference committees, including the Electric Vehicles and Charging Stations Act, For-

eign Investment Act amendments and National Transportation Safety Board creation.

Signatories to the letter recommended the passage of more bills during the remaining session weeks of 18th Congress to address postpandemic economic recovery.

These bills include the amendments to the Public Service Act, Department of Water Resources Management Act, Ease of Paying Taxes bill, Freedom of Information, Open Access in Data Transmission, Philippine Creative Industries, Promotion of Digital Payments, Rural Agricultural and Fisheries Development Financing System Act, Secrecy of Bank Deposits Law amendments, Tax

Reform Package 3: Property Valuation and Assessment Reform and Tax Reform Package 4: Passive Income and Financial Intermediary Taxation.

Most of these eleven reform bills reached advanced stages in either chamber of Congress and only require counterpart action in the other chamber.

While supporting the amendments to the Public Service Act, the business groups and foreign chambers expressed opposition to the inclusion of any provision in the pending Senate version, SB 2094, that expands the legislative franchise requirement to public services beyond those provided under existing laws.

Othel V. Campos

BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said a technologicallyadvanced economy is important to sustain the recovery from the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Diokno said during the recent Standard Chartered Sovereign-Investor Forum that the BSP remained at the forefront of broad initiatives to foster a stronger and more techsavvy economy.

“Technology aids exponential growth in output. In finance, it makes transactions easier and faster which speeds up income generation,” he said in a presentation.

A key BSP initiative is the implementation of the Digital Payment Transformation Roadmap, which was launched last year.

The roadmap aims to transform the Philippines into a cash-lite economy by 2023 through digitalization of financial services.

Under the roadmap, the BSP aims to strengthen customer preference for digital payments by converting 50 percent of the total volume of retail payments into digital form and onboarding 70 percent of Filipino adults to the formal financial system through payment or transaction accounts by 2023.

Julito G. Rada

AC Energy launches biggest solar farm

AC ENERGY Corp. started the construction of a 283-megawatt solar farm in San Marcelino, Zambales as it continues to expand its renewables capacity in the Philippines.

The company, through wholly-owned subsidiary Santa Cruz Solar Energy Inc. as project owner, tapped Power Construction Corp. of China Ltd. and PowerChina Philippines Corp. as the engineering procurement and construction contractors for the project.

The project will be the largest solar farm in the country, capable of producing over 421 gigawatt-hours of renewable energy per year and eliminating 287,796 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

“The San Marcelino solar farm marks the fifth facility that we have commenced with construction this year, and these project milestones all make for a fascinating period in the expansion of our renewable energy portfolio,” said AC Energy chief development officer Jose Maria Zabaleta in a statement.

The company aims to complete the project by the first half of 2023.

Alena Mae S. Flores

GMA Network earned over P6b in 9 months

By Darwin G. Amojelar

LIVELIHOOD KIT. RAFI Micro-finance Inc. teams up with Pilmico & Gold Coin Group to champion sustainable livelihood and backyard farming entrepreneurship opportunities that aim to boost the agribusiness industry. The program will provide low-income Filipinos with alternative livelihood opportunities, such as backyard farming, bakery and agri-posts businesses. Under the backyard farming program, each beneficiary will receive an egg machine livelihood kit with ready-to-lay hens complete with cages, drinkers, weighing scale and a month worth of feeds.

GMA Network Inc. said Wednesday net income rose 54 percent in the first nine months from a year ago, on the back of higher revenues from traditional advertising and political advocacies.

The broadcast network led by Felipe Gozon said net income amounted to P6.01 billion from January to September, higher than the P3.91 billion it earned in the same period last year.

“With GMA’s broadcasting operations currently enjoying the widest reach in the free-to-air arena, consolidated sales of the company for the past nine months breached the P16 billion mark at P16.56 billion up 31 percent compared to the same period last year,” GMA said.

Advertising revenues comprised 93 percent of the total revenue pie and was the driver for the considerable

improvement in the top line—both through airtime sales and through the company’s presence in the online landscape.

“This year’s top line growth was influenced by the improvement in both average rate per minute as well as total minutes load,” GMA said.

“The incremental minutes this year was buoyed by some advertisers shifting to GMA when ABS-CBN went offair staring May last year owing to the expiration of its franchise and its eventual non-renewal,” it said.

GMA said political advocacies already started to trickle in, thus providing additional sources of revenues for the company.

Advertising revenues from online/ digital also played upbeat sales, finishing off the nine-month period this year with an improvement by 51 percent in its top line.

Sports

Atlanta Braves overpower Astros to win World Series LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Max Fried hurled six shutout innings and Jorge Soler smashed a towering home run as the Atlanta Braves captured their first World Series since 1995 with a 7-0 rout of the Houston Astros on Tuesday.

Starting pitcher Fried put on a clinic in game six striking out six batters for the Braves, who wrapped up the bestof-seven series four games to two in front of a crowd of 42,060 at Minute Maid Park in Texas.

“I had to dig deep,” said the lefthander Fried. “I knew how much they believed in me and I just had to go out there and give it one more outing.

I couldn’t be happier to do it with this group of guys.”

Fried got plenty of support from the Braves’ batters, who scored most of their runs on Tuesday via the long ball.

Cuba’s Soler was the biggest contributer on offence and was named MVP of the 2021 World Series. The veteran outfielder, whom the Braves acquired at the Major League Baseball trade deadline, hit his third go-ahead home run of the series.

The designated hitter clobbered a 446-foot three run homer out of the ballpark in the third, Dansby Swanson belted a two-run shot two innings later to give the Braves a commanding 5-0 lead and Freddie Freeman had a solo shot in the seventh to round out the scoring.

Closer Will Smith got Astros batter Yuli Gurriel to ground out to shortstop Swanson for the final out, sparking a wild celebration on the field.

While the 27-year-old Fried rebounded from a pair of subpar performances in his two previous outings, the Astros couldn’t overcome their pitching woes, which included a patchwork of relievers coming on after an early exit by rookie starter Luis Garcia.

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

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The Atlanta Braves celebrate their 7-0 victory against the Houston Astros in Game 6 to win the 2021 World Series at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. AFP

Saso turning Japanese

By Peter Atencio

R

EIGNING Women’s US Open champion Yuka Saso is expected to choose Japanese citizenship before she turns 22 on June 20, 2023.

Under Japanese law, dual citizens like 22. the 20-year-old Saso are required to select “It is true that I chose the Japanese cititheir nationality when they reach the age of zenship,” Saso said during a press conference on the eve of the Toto Japan Classic in Shiga Kyodo News reported.

“I thought about it and I will eventually choose it,” said Saso, whose Tokyo Olympic campaign will now prove to be her last under the Philippine Yuka Saso tri-colors.

— Japanese citizen “(But) No matter which one I choose, I am

both Japanese and Filipino,” she said.

Saso’s biggest claim to fame was when the Filipino-Japanese sensation became the first and only athlete from the Philippines to win a golf major following her stunning victory in the Women’s US Open in June.

Prior to this, Saso has won has won on almost all levels of her career, from local tournaments hosted by her sports godfather Enrique K. Razon and International Container Terminals Services, Inc., to the World Junior Golf, the Asian Games, the LPGA Japan Tour and the LPGA. The Fil-Japanese made a killing at the Japanese Tour, where she is currently 10th on the money list with earnings of ¥97,721,942 (P42 million), even though she has left the tour for the more lucrative LPGA, with the US Open her crowning glory as it netted her a whopping $1 million prize.

The win was a validation of her second Athlete of the Year honor from the Philip Philip-

Amateurs steal show; Singson leads with 70 GEN. TRIAS, Cavite – Mafy Singson outshot Laurea Duque at the finish in a fierce duel of amateurs in windy conditions, coming away with a two-under 70 as the young turks upstaged the pros in the opener of the ICTSI Aoki Classic at Eagle Ridge here yesterday.

Singson broke a two-birdie, two-bogey round with birdies on Nos. 15 and 16 then watched flightmate Duque stumble with a bogey-birdie-bogey card from No. 15 to move from one-down to two-up after 18 holes of the event marking the restart of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour after a three-month hiatus.

“I played pretty well. It was windy and just tried to hit it in the middle,” said Singson, who birdied Nos. 7 and 12 to negate her mishaps on Nos. 11 and 13.

She stayed in shape during the break through regular practice and workout but stressed the need for consistency in anticipation of the big guns’ charge in the next two days.

“I hope to keep it up, hit the fairways and greens and be more consistent,” added Singson.

Duque, the low amateur at Eagle Ridge-Aoki ruled by Harmie Constantino last March, bucked a bogey-bogey start with three birdies in an eight-hole stretch from No. 6 to wrest control by one over Singson after 14 holes. But her wobbly finish enabled her fellow Manila Southwoods team member to take command in the early going of the 54-hole championship put up by ICTSi. Still, she said she was more than satisfied with her performance given the tough playing conditions.

“My game was pretty solid. I started out with two bogeys but holed in some putts and ended up shooting even,” said Duque, who, however, opted to tone down expectations of a big finish this week.

“I just want to have fun, no expectations but I know I’m playing well,” she added.

While two of the five amateurs in the fold put up an impressive start in hot conditions, the pros struggled coming off a long break with Constantino barely surviving a day-long struggle in sweltering heat, hitting four birdies but fumbling with five bogeys to settle for third with a 73.

The PSI National Selection meet at the New Clark City Aquatics Center was the first swimming competition held in the country since community quarantine restrictions were enforced amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nambatac inks max pact with Painters

By Argie Paul Candare

Mafy Singson

Filipino swimmers laud bubble setup in Clark, New Clark City sports facilities FILIPINO swimmers commended the successful bubble hosting of Philippine Swimming Inc. Swimming National Selection Meet in New Clark City and Clark Freeport Zone, thanking organizers for giving them an opportunity to safely go back in competition after more than a year of the pandemic.

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority, in partnership with the Clark Development Corp. and PSI, hosted a total of 71 swimmers at the SNS Meet last October 22 to 24 at the New Clark City Aquatics Center in Capas, Tarlac. Bubble participants were billeted at the Hotel Stotsenberg in Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga.

This was the first competition held at the New Clark City Aquatics Center since the 30th Southeast Asian Games in 2019, a few months before the COVID-19 virus ravaged the country. It was also the first local swimming competition hosted by the PSI since the 2019 Philippine National Open, also at the same facility.

Many participating swimmers ex-

pine Sportswriters Association in the last three years, but the first time as an individual awardee as she previously shared the accolade with fellow golfers Bianca Pagdanganan and Lois Kaye Go, along with weightlifer Hidilyn Diaz during the 2018 edition of the annual event following their gold-medal romp in the Jakarta Asian Games.

Entering 2021, Saso ranked 45th in the world. After only 10 months, she is now at no. 6, the youngest in the Top 10.

Born in San Ildefonso, Bulacan to a Filipino mother Fritzie and Japanese father Masakazu, Saso acquired her love for golf from her dad.

The family left the Philippines when she was four, but after living in Japan for four years, Saso pleaded her parents to allow her to play golf.

Thinking that she can excel better in the Philippines, her parents came back to the country, where she was homeschooled until she graduated from high school.

pressed their exhilaration for being able to participate in a local competition despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

“To hold a competition during a global pandemic is extremely difficult so I feel very grateful for the opportunity to be able to compete during this time,” Chloe Daos said.

Ianiko Limfilipino, for his part, said the meet was able to remind him again “what it feels like to compete.”

“I surely missed the rush of the competition. I’m also happy to see so many familiar faces from coaches, swimmers and officials,” he said.

Thanya dela Cruz, who shattered the national record for the women’s 50m breaststroke at the Aquatics Center, said that, “Having this competition through a bubble is the best setup as we have assurance of isolating ourselves to avoid being infected.” As for setting a new record, she said: “[I’m] still out of words. Coming here, I didn’t really expect anything. I feel like I still need to process it for myself, to really feel like I own it.”

Turn to C2

RAIN or Shine Elasto Painter guard Rey Nambatac signed a three-year max deal as he extended his four-year tenure with the team, which drafted him.

The 5’10”, high-scoring Letran standout is one of the key players of the Chris Gavina-coached squad.

Last conference, he averaged 10.73 points, 4.55 rebounds and 1.91 assists, second in scoring behind ace forward Jayvee Mocon with 12.91 markers. He also improved his numbers from his bubble performance.

Rain or Shine is coming off a quarterfinal exit in the Philippine Cup, eliminated by eventual runner-up Magnolia Pambansang Manok Hotshots.

The team aims for a better finish in the coming Governors’ Cup, where the Painters are bringing in former Blackwater import Henry Walker.

The well-travelled NBA veteran Walker previously led the Elite in 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup to fifth seed and a quarterfinals finish.

The Nambatac and Walker duo is expected to merge with E-Painters’ roster of a balanced, young and up-and-coming players and veteran contributors.

The PBA Veteran Maximum contract will allow Nambatac to receive P420,0 0 0 e v e r y month, as per league rules.

Rey Nambatac: Max player

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Sports

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

Filipino...

Bryant crash victim families win $2.5m over photos LOS ANGELES — Relatives of people who perished in the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant will receive $2.5 million in compensation over graphic photos of the accident that were snapped surreptitiously by sheriff’s deputies and firefighters.

The settlement, agreed Tuesday by Los Angeles County, does not apply to the widow of the NBA legend, who is also suing over those unauthorized pictures.

Los Angeles Lakers star Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others died in the crash in hills near Los Angeles in January 2020.

The only people authorized to take pictures of the scene were investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and the coroner’s office.

But it emerged that deputies and firefighters working for Los Angeles County also took pictures on their phones and shared them with others.

Families of the victims sued the county for emotional trauma.

Matthew Mauser, whose wife Christine died in the accident, will receive $1.25 million. Siblings JJ Altobelli and Alexis Altobelli, whose mother, father and sister were killed, will share another $1.25 million.

Bryant’s widow Vanessa has also sued Los Angeles County, alleging that she and her family suffered emotional distress over the pictures.

That lawsuit continues.

An investigation into the crash found the pilot had probably become disorientated after flying the Sikorsky S-76 into clouds.

Bryant is widely recognized as one of the greatest basketball players ever, a figure who became the face of his sport during a glittering two decades with the Lakers.

He was a five-time NBA champion in a career that began in 1996 straight out of high school and lasted until his retirement in 2016.

He was also a two-time Olympic gold medalist, helping spark the US squad of NBA stars to titles in 2008 in Beijing and 2012 in London. AFP

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SMC president Ramon S. Ang (third from left) with Olympic boxing medalists Eumir Marcial (left), Nesthy Petecio (second from left) and Carlo Paalam (right)

RSA hands financial incentives to 3 Olympic boxing medalists S AN Miguel Corporation president Ramon S. Ang wished Tokyo Olympic medalists Eumir Marcial, Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio the best as they gun for the Philippines’ first Olympic gold in boxing in the Paris Olympics three years from now, which also marks the country’s 100th year of participation in the quadrennial meet.

This, as Ang personally handed his P2 million incentive to Marcial for his bronze medal feat, while Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio received P5 million each for winning silver medals.

Aside from the cash incentives, Ang said San Miguel Corporation will provide the three boxers with any SMC business of their choice that they can put up in their respective home provinces.

All three boxers are from Mindanao.

Marcial is from Zamboanga City while Paalam and Petecio hail from Cagayan de Oro and Davao del Sur, respectively.

“At a time when our country is seeing the initial signs of hope to recover from the pandemic, our Olympic medalists

continue to inspire us to do our best and rise above all difficulties. As we wish them further success in boxing in the coming Olympics and in Eumir’s case, his next professional bout, we also taking steps to further secure their future with the San Miguel businesses of their choice,”Ang said.

The SMC chief added that the country’s first Olympic gold, courtesy of weightlifter Hidllyn Diaz in the Tokyo Olympics would serve to inspire the three Olympic boxers to vie for the gold in one of the Filipinos’ favorite sport, where Anthony Villanueva and Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco went as far as a silver finish in 1964 in Tokyo and

1996 in Atlanta, respectively.

Earlier, Ang also gave a P10 million incentive to weightlifter Diaz, who won the gold in the Tokyo Olympics.

Ang also sees the middleweight Marcial, who turned pro last year, as one of the brightest spots in Philippine boxing as he beat American Andrew Whitfield in his professional debut last December before becoming the first Filipino pro boxer to compete and win a medal in the Olympics.

“Eumir’s first bout is impressive, considering that he turned pro and fought his first pro bout following a long layoff due to the pandemic. I see him reaching the greater heights like great boxers Flash Elorde and Manny Pacquiao, who have long been associated with San Miguel during and even after their professional careers,”Ang said.

“If he becomes a champion in his division in the coming years and also wins a gold medal in the Paris Olympics in 2024, then he will have the unique distinction of being the first one to do so,”he added.

World-class facilities PSI bubble participants also praised the New Clark City Aquatics Center for its world-class pools and facilities that have been kept in tip-top condition even with the slowdown in sports activities.

“This is by far the best aquatic facilities we have here in the Philippines. In my opinion, the New Clark City Aquatics Center is at world-class standards, and it’s always a wonderful experience to compete there,” Xiandi Chua said. The AllStar Swim Club standout swept all of her three events during the PSI meet.

“It (the Aquatics Center) looks amazing and clean even if no one was able to use it for more than a year,” Miguel Barreto added.

New normal in swimming Despite changes in sporting events because of the bubble format, participants of the SNS recognized the need for strict health and safety arrangements as part of the new normal.

Joy Rodgers, who previously held the women’s 50m breaststroke record, lauded the organizers of the PSI meet for ensuring the safety of all athletes, coaches and technical staff.

“I really appreciate the efforts of the officiating bodies in implementing the safety protocols to the best of their abilities for this meet to be as safe as possible for everyone, from the weeks leading up to the event up to now,” Rodgers said during the bubble.

She added, “It’s definitely a new and different experience which we all would need getting used to, and of course there will always be room for improvement. Seeing how neat the event is being held, now that I’m here experiencing all of this, I’m getting hopeful and am very much looking forward to the following events to come.”

Rodgers expressed hope that this event would encourage athletes and coaches to focus more on their training, leading to better swimming performances in 2022.

Local swimmers joined the PSI event in a bid to qualify for the 15th Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA) World Swimming Championships 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates this December, and the 19th FINA World Championships 2022 to be held in Fukuoka, Japan in May next year.

In a Facebook post, PSI President Lani Velasco thanked the Philippine Sports Commission for supporting the swimming bubble and giving grassroots swimmers an opportunity to go back in the pool. She also commended the PSI volunteers who worked hard in preparing for the event.

PlayPark PH, gaming community donate P1M+ to COVID-19 response PLAYPARK and its community came together and shared their blessings to raise a total of P1,066,252.

The community was able to raise more than P300,000 during Cabal Mobile’s Charity Stream event last August.

PlayPark, on their part, matched and raised the amount and covered more than P700,000 to reach over one million pesos. The amount was duly turned over to the Philippine General Hospital Medical Foundation Inc., along with several other charitable institutions that offer services to our COVID-19 affected countrymen.

All the beneficiaries were notified of their respective donations ahead of time, and all safety precautions were observed prior, during, and after the turnovers were conducted during the month of September.

“In behalf of our kababayans affected by COVID-19, taos puso akong nagpapasalamat sa lahat ng nagbigay ng tulong. Our community’s willingness and heart for sharing are beams of Shown here are (from left) figure skater Skye Frances Patenia, cross-country skier Amadeo Kaus and TUP light in the midst of the pandemic,” said Apollo president Dr. Jesus Rodrigo Torres.

Dionglay, Managing Director for PlayPark Big Boys with Big Hearts charity streaming Philippines.

I love the countryside, NY, Chicago

IT was a glorious two-night, three-day workbreak for me and my family last weekend. Tiring, but certainly worth every moment.

I took advantage of the holiday, All Saints’ Day, which fell on a Monday. I just hope my deceased parents do not decide to visit me at home as I failed to visit them in the cemetery. Me, my wife Marissa, our only apo Livi, my son JM with his longtime fiancee Joy, and daughter Eunice, drove around Batangas with a side trip to Tagaytay in Cavite thrown in.

Billeted at the Lima Park Hotel in Lipa City, we first went to the nearby

The Outlet, which was full of people with the easing of travel restrictions.

We started to drive around the following day, had breakfast at Kuwatog’s nearby, lunch at The Lakeshore Resort in Balete, just beside Taal Lake, then to a bee farm in Lipa, to visit a friend and his wife from my Victoria Court Days, Noel and Gigi Resurreccion, then back to the hotel.

It was a cold and rainy Tuesday morning when we checked out of the hotel, decided it was worth a drive to Tagaytay through the Talisay zigzag, for brunch, and feasted on hot bulalo and tawilis. Next destination was a visit to my wife’s brother, Choy in Lemery, but the best was yet to come.

On the way home, we dropped by Tierra Cuta in Alitagtag, a beautiful private resthouse overlooking Taal Lake with Mt. Maculot looming on the right. It was opened to the public and hard to get reservations, but as Gen. Douglas MacArthur said, I shall

return.

And return we did after my son left his bag there with all his cards and cash. We were already in Lipa then, but had to turn around, very happy to be informed that a local help found it and turned it over to management.

Indeed, there are still a lot of honest people in this world.

With that, we resumed our trip home, but had an early dinner in a roadside resto in Cuenca that cost us the stupendous amount of P600 for all seven of us. We finally arrived home in Taguig close to 8 p.m., tired but happy.

But even as I was having a good time relaxing and enjoying the countryside, action was non-stop in the NBA, which I was monitoring and based on the standings as of Tuesday night, I can honestly say I love the Knicks and the Bulls, second to the Golden State Warriors and the Heat that is.

The Warriors were tied in first place

The caring and sharing do not end there, however. As Christmas is coming up, so is a beloved PlayPark tradition: the PlayPark Xtreme Paskuhan or PPXP! Expect a lot of tournaments, raff les, and a great Christmas party to spread a little cheer from the PlayPark family. In the spirit of the holiday season, another donation drive is planned to share the blessings we all had to our less fortunate sisters and brothers who have been greatly affected by the pandemic.

PlayPark Inc. hosts a wide variety of PC and mobile games on its site, ready for download and playing. Aside from the massively popular Cabal Mobile, PlayPark also offers other games like Club Audition Mobile, Cabal, RF Online, and others.

Stay tuned for exciting new game announcements to be released in the future!

For the latest news and information about Cabal Mobile: Heroes of Nevareth, check out the official website https://cabalmobile.playpark. com/ph/, as well as the official Facebook Page.

Look for @CabalMobilePH on Discord, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.

with the Jazz with similar 5-1 slates, with Dallas and the not so super team of the LA Lakers rounding out the top 4 with 4-2 and 4-3 records, in the Western Conference. Actually, Memphis and Denver also toted 4-3 records in the same conference.

The surprise teams were Minnesota and Sacramento at 3-3, while a disappointment would be Portland, 3-4, and last year’s finalist Phoenix in 10th at 2-3.

Of course, it is too early to predict anything but then who says it is against the law to do so? I expect the Top 4 teams to be the same teams as now, with some changes in the next 4.

But while it is more predictable in the Western Conference, I cannot say the same for the Eastern side, topped

by Chicago at 6-1, the Heat at 5-1 and New York, Washington and Philadelphia, without Joe Embiid with similar 5-2 records.

They were followed by Toronto and Charlotte, 5-3, Brooklyn and Atlanta, 4-3, Cleveland, 4-4, and defending champion Milwaukee, 3-4, and Boston, 2-5, outside the Top 10. I expect the Bucks, though, to make it in the

post season, all the way to the Top 4.

But it is the Knicks, one of the oldest teams in the league, dominant in the early 1970s with two championships behind Willis Reed and Walt Frazier, presently powered by Julius Randle, up-and-coming RJ Barrett, and two ageing but still very effective superstars in Derrick Rose and newcomer Kemba Walker, that I like.

The fans are back for them and basketball is alive and well in New York, same in Chicago, the team with six titles in the 1990s, behind Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.

Plus the addition of DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball, teaming up beautifully with Zach Lavine, makes the Bulls a serious contender. Too bad New York and Chicago cannot meet in the finals, except in the conference championships.

But if there is a team that can stop either of these two, the blue-collar team of Miami would be it after Kyle Lowry joined hands with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo this season.

A long way to go, but things are shaping up in the NBA.

Entertainment VERY WANG NICKIE WANG

Nickie Wang, Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

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Ten years of SUD music

O

NE night in September, SUD, composed Sud Ballecer (guitars, vocals), Jimbo Cuenco (drums), Michael Kohl Aguilar (keys), Carlos dela Fuente (sax), Raisa Racelis (bass, vocals), made sure to capture their electronic billboard on Edsa while traversing the busy thoroughfare.

Their billboard was shown on Spotify’s Tatak Pinoy playlist that featured other local groups and musicians. For them, it wasn’t just a simple milestone, it was proof that they “have arrived.”

In an exclusive interview with Manila Standard Entertainment, the group members shared how ecstatic they were seeing their faces on a massive tarp alongside other electric and gigantic billboards that welcome commuters passing through Edsa coming from Makati.

“That’s our first billboard in 10 years as a band. It’s a proud moment for us. The billboard was on Esda-Guadalupe, so a lot of people could see it. And even if we were shown just for a brief moment, you could see how supportive Warner and Spotify are of our music,” the indie band’s frontmant Ballecer said.

“Appearing on a billboard is a bonus for us. It’s like everything that has happened from the time we started as a band up until now, all those things have been worth it. It’s also a validation that if you put your heart and mind into something, you’ll be acknowledged for it and you’ll come to a certain level of success,” Fuente added.

Their appearance on the billboard coincided with their 10th anniversary celebration marked

by the release of their second full-length studio album under WMP titled Dumaloy, dropped in August.

“When I wrote the song, I was thinking of the things that people feel when they are in love like the heart skips a beat, there’s a butterfly in the stomach. We finished the song thinking that we wanted it to be a sincere outpour of emotions containing the words that you really want to tell someone you’re in love with,” Ballecer related.

The album is a 12 track, all-Filipino record, which the band describes as a summary of their personal and collective experiences as a band.

On the band’s Facebook page, the group shared that the studio album is a project that took them “five long years to create but only a minute for us to fall in love with.” ‘‘It’s all about stages and phases of love if you’re going to listen to songs chronologically starting off with young love, then it’ll shift to the point where there’s heartbreak thus the sad songs, and the third stage, it’s about finding true love. Dumadaloy yung story, there’s continuity,” Ballecer said of the album’s general theme. Read full article on manilastandard.net

Streaming giant launches mobile games for members worldwide NETFLIX on Tuesday released a set of mobile games playable for free by subscribers of the global streaming service as it strives to be the go-to venue for entertainment.

Two of the games are based on the hit Netflix horror series Stranger Things and the remaining three are basic card or skill games, according to the Silicon Valleybased company.

"We're excited to take our first step in launching Netflix games on mobile to the world. We want to begin to build a library of games that offers something for everyone,” the company said in a release.

The games that went global on Tuesday had already been available in Italy, Poland, and Spain.

All of the titles are tailored for play on Android-powered smartphones or tablets and are accessible through Netflix accounts.

It was not disclosed when versions

of the games might be available for iPhones or iPads, which run on Apple software.

Netflix recently acquired its first video game studio, as the streaming giant bids to expand its entertainment empire with a push into the lucrative gaming sector.

The company said it bought Californiabased Night School Studio, best known as the creators of paranormal thriller game Oxenfree.

It has openly said it aims to compete with hit games such as Fortnite for people's online entertainment time, and analysts suggest offering games could help attract new subscribers.

Netflix has recruited a video game veteran, Facebook's Mike Verdu, to lead its gaming team.

"Just like our series, films, and specials, we want to design games for any level of play and every kind of player," Netflix said. AFP

Two of the games Netflix releases are based on the horror series ‘Stranger Things’ starring Millie Bobby Brown.

The next heartbreak anthem SINGER-SONGWRITER Jon Guelas explores the “what ifs” and “what could have beens” of a past relationship in his single “Did I Let You Go,” dropping on music platforms tomorrow, Nov. 5.

The new Tarsier artist began his singing career when he joined The X Factor UK in 2018. During his stint on the show, he became part of boyband United Vibe, where he had the opportunity to perform in multiple headline shows around the globe.

Since departing from the group early this year, Jon has kick-started his solo career with singles “Wonderland” and “Out of Love.”

The honest-to-goodness track, “Did I Let You Go,” is a first of many projects for Jon under Tarsier Records, an ABS-CBN Music record label that seeks to bring Philippine music to the world stage.

“The song was inspired by a breakup, thinking about a relationship I let just slip out of my hands. I try to write from an honest and real perspective and I guess, heartbreak is really where most of that comes from,” Jon shared.

“I’ve held onto this song for over a year now and I think it's finally time to let go and release it to the world,” he added.

Paired with Jon’s captivating voice and a sound that crosses borders, “Did I Let You Go” is set to become the next

heartbreak anthem.

“Did I Let You Go” streamS on digital platforms starting 12:01 a.m. tomorrow with its music video dropping on Tarsier Records’ YouTube channel later in the day.

Jon Guelas is a Filipino-British singersongwriter

Indie rock band Sud celebrates a decade in the music scene with the launch of a new album, its second full-length release in almost five years.

Book of rhythm

The entry that carried the book’s name was inspired by the tragic tale of Eva Cassidy, an American singer YUGEL who died even before her LOSORATA moving voice was noticed in the music scene. Her version WHEN the King of Talk Boy of Sting’s “Fields Of Gold” Abunda wrote in the Foreword is arrestingly beautiful; of my new book Rhythm & it’s difficult to continue Bruise that I completed it partly whatever I’m doing when I while “missing performing with hear it. his band songs about love, loss, The TV icon opened heartbreak, dreams, and foibles,” his Foreword by referring he poetically hit the right note. to a 17th century Walt May I elaborate by informing Whitman poem “A Song that the book containing 18 short of Myself.” He expressed stories is loaded with musicdown the road, “We are related stuff. The book title itself rhythm in progress – until is a pun on the genre Jay-R and we are bruised enough – no Kyla crafted their careers from. one is never quite there.”

I called one story “Beauty and I wrote the short story Madz” which is obviously a entries during a devastating The back and front covers of the author’s new book ‘Rhythm & Bruise,’ wink on that classic ballad from period punctuated by the with Foreword by the King of Talk Boy Abunda. The short story Norwegian duo Fra Lippo passing of my older brother collection, loaded with music-related plots and details, is published in Lippi.

Boygic and father Yuli. The ebook and physical book format by Ukiyoto Publishing.

Four stories deal with bands: first story I wrote back last “The Band That Never Was,” year, or a month after my “Real Rocker,” “My James Band,” and “Rolet’s 12.” To say Kuya, a physician by profession, became a pandemic hero; that my experiences as a songwriting bassist have to do with my the last one a couple of weeks before my old man breathed penchant for the subject is an understatement. his last —on Sept. 16 in California. He died not because of As Tito Boy noted when showing readers glimpses of what the dreaded virus, yet his vitals went down having lost his to expect through narratives he singled out, “‘The Band That junior from it.

Never Was’ is a tale about a college band, a potential hit song, a I am pleased that Tito Boy emphasized my personal take on the manager with the freakish smile who had the drummer rolled out fictional tales in “Rhythm & Bruise.” He knew I felt so much for of the band and someone gets killed.” my contemporaries who perished or forever scarred when music That potential hit, “Dances In Delight,” is actually a still- stopped at the Ozone Disco 25 years ago. So much so that I wrote unrecorded composition of mine that I wish to have my group two stories based on it.

The Pub Forties tackle. Truth, well, is stranger than fiction. The The Boy Abunda ultimately pointed out that “as a storyteller,” pandemic kept us bandmates from gathering to do it that a band I am “always personal.” It's the same approach I employ when I imagined in my head beat us to the draw. make or assess music.

K-Pop’s Seventeen leads Lazada’s 11.11 show; Alden, Bea, Maine make special appearance SET TO deliver more zest and joy to the region, Southeast Asia’s leading eCommerce platform Lazada is welcoming the members of leading K-pop superstar Seventeen as its first regional Happiness Ambassadors ahead of its annual flagship 11.11 shopping festival.

Composed of 13 members, Seventeen is one of South Korea’s most acclaimed K-pop groups. The band burst into the international music scene with its creative musical experimentation and electrifying performance acts.

Seventeen’s latest EP Your Choice debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Album Sales Chart, and its list of accolades include being nominated for ‘Top Social Artist’ at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards and winning the ‘Main Prize’ for four years at the Seoul Music Awards At Lazada’s signature 11.11 Super Show on Nov. 10, Seventeen will take the main stage to perform its hit songs like “Left & Right” and “Ready to love”. The star-studded countdown will also feature top local celebrities in Southeast Asia coming together to celebrate hope and joy.

Appearances will include Agnez Mo, Tiara Andini, and Via Vallen from Indonesia; Nora Danish and Dayang Nurfaizah from Malaysia; Alden Richards, Bea Alonzo, and Maine Mendoza from the Philippines; Wang Lei, Jasper Lai, and Chief Discount Officer Royce Lee from Singapore; Bright Vachirawit – Win Metawin, Billkin Putthipong – PP Krit, and JJ Kritsanaphum from Thailand; and Tran Thanh and Ninh Duong Lan Ngoc from Vietnam.

Across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore,

Thailand and Vietnam, shoppers can tune in to Lazada’s 11.11 Super Party concert via Lazada’s in-app livestream channel LazLive, as well as local broadcasting network GMA Network, and Lazada Philippines’ Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube pages.

The 13-member K-pop group also stars in Lazada’s latest 11.11 short film, which transports the Lazada Happiness Ambassadors into Lazada World, a dynamic and fantastical realm filled with larger-than-life everyday objects and exclusive 11.11 rewards.

Playfully dancing along to a special rendition of the global hit song “Low” by Flo Rida, Seventeen embarks on an adventure filled with surprising discoveries at every turn.

Lazada welcomes the members of Seventeen as its first regional Happiness Ambassadors ahead of its annual flagship 11.11 shopping festival starting at midnight on Nov. 11.

Life

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

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The jewel tones in this rustic holiday theme are complemented by reindeer in neutral color and burlap Christmas trees.

HOUSEHOLD

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2021

HOLIDAY HUES:

Red, white, blush

and a touch of dusk

W

HAT’S your Christmas theme this year?

It’s a classic, cozy, and dreamy holiday season at SM Home as it highlights its main color themes: frosty white, classic red, blush luxe, and dusk, across its wide range of holiday décor assortment.

The home section of the department store boasts more than 500 ornaments and other trimmings that can be mixed and matched in inspired, creative ways to celebrate the yuletide season.

Frosty white – A white palette, using white (shiny and matte) ornaments make a fir or frosted-berry tree merry and magical. To cop this theme, deck your tree with sparkly silver and white ornaments, paired with luxurious ribbons to create a cozy, snowy, and wintry

SM Home carries a wide assortment of holiday decor, including (from left) Nutcracker soldier tabletop figures, Christmas tree with silver and white ornaments, and pink and gold balls and baubles.

when it’s Christmas. SM Home highwonderland. Decorating tip: Add a few ies to make it lively. glittered snowmen and penguin plushClassic red – It’s hard to miss red lights this classic color theme, show-

casing items in bright red such as Nutcracker toy soldiers, potted berry trees, wreaths and Christmas trees, snow globes, and miniature vintage villages.

Decorating tip: Inject shades of white and a bit of sparkle for added flair.

Blush luxe – Metallic hues make an elegant and polished holiday look. For a chic Christmas, opt for a rosy palette of white and blush pink using Nordic Gonk plushies or Pink Angel dolls on the tabletop or under the tree.

Dusk – Veering from the traditional theme, this one brings together copper, blues, and other jewel tones to achieve that cozy cabin and rustic vibe. Decorating tip: Add some neutral-toned reindeers and burlap Christmas trees to complement the jewel tones.

Shop in stores or online at www. thesmstore.com or via Call to Deliver by dialing #143SM (#14376).

NATIONAL CHILDREN’S MONTH

Our bridge to the future Text and photos by Diana B. Noche

Globe Streamwatch turns a regular television into a smart TV, allowing users to download apps from the Play Store.

No smart TV? No problem!

A NEW entertainment box turns an Box Powered by Android TV,” said ordinary TV into one that lets viewers Barbie Dapul, vice president of maraccess shows on streaming platforms, keting at Globe At Home. watch content from their phones on The device also has a built-in casta larger screen, and use a voice com- ing feature that projects phone, tablet, mand function. or laptop screens onto the TV, and a G l o b e Google AssisSt reamwatch tant for fuss2-in-1 Enterfree searching tainment Box of new shows Powered by to watch even Android TV while the user is enables users working out or to choose and cooking dishes download any for the family. of the over 3.5 G l o b e million avail- Stream shows without touching the remote with S t r e a m w a t c h able apps on the help of Google Assistant. also allows usthe Google Play ers to watch Store – giving them access to content shows on local free TV clearly. on YouTube, HBO Go, Viu, WeTV, The device is exclusively available iQiyi, Discovery+, and more. for Globe At Home subscribers for “With screen time going upward P149 per month for 24 months. Every since the lockdown began, we want to purchase of Globe Streamwatch 2-in-1 encourage turning individual screen Entertainment Box comes with pretime to family screen time through mium subscription access to HBO GO, streamwatching via the new Globe Viu Premium, WeTV VIP, and iQiyi Streamwatch 2-in-1 Entertainment and a 12-month access to Discovery+.

A CHILD’S face is always worthy of love – actually, everything a child is deserves unconditional love.

The eyes could be shy and sad, casting a where’s-the-floor fugitive gaze and a mopish streak. He could be exceedingly polite, exhibiting a youthful earnestness and a wish to be always pleasant—never making a fuss and always went for his afternoon naps like an obedient Labrador.

Or he could be a crackling wire of energy and be generous with shrieks capable of puncturing eardrums. His stomach always starves for food, which, if left unchecked, can amount to a humongous poundage.

But a child’s upbringing is never a constant round of pleasure and amusement. It is not an anything-you-do-is-all-rightwith-us-dear school of licking them into fine shapes.

Children are empty receptacles that are easily filled up with spite or humaneness. It’s a desirably happy chance should a child not have particularly abusive parents or not be physically and emotionally pained by an alcohol-fogged father.

At middle childhood, an average kid will have spent more than five hours in front of a television, coming into their head good and bad content which can affect their values. Apropos to this, exposure

Children need a safe environment where they can survive, thrive, and enjoy their youth.

A pre-pandemic rainy day when kids can freely play outside.

to social media should not be discounted either.

By the time they reach the age of 18, they have absorbed most of the growing pains and gone through most of a teenager’s emotional crossroads, have been conditioned enough to be able to conform to society’s norms, and have, more or less, grappled with having to avoid wasting their enormous potential.

Children are our bridge to the future. They have to be raised well so that when they leave the family they are assured of a better quality of life. Sending them to school is of top priority.

Books and learning materials should be adequately provided.

Children’s welfare is a concern worldwide. The National Children’s Month, conceived in November 1989, focuses on raising awareness of children’s rights. It likewise aims to further the ways we can do to help the children develop and reach their full capabilities.

A broadened emphasis on strengthening a child’s positive upgrowth during the present pandemic and an accompanying sense of insecurity is this year’s salient point of activities.

COVID-19 has enormously challenged the environments where children can develop. Confined at home, they are exposed to distressed times within the family. Unable to enjoy past associations with friends, they spend more hours online or play electronic games.

Unborn children, likewise, have primary rights. They need a safe environment within which they can survive – medical attention and care during the mother’s pregnancy, after birth, and throughout childhood. A child’s basic needs such as balanced diet; clothing; decent shelter where they can feel safe and spared from violence, neglect, and abuse; healthcare; and protection from dangers, accidents, and elder abuse should be met.

And most fundamentally, a child should be able to play and enjoy their youth – and that may include participating in their favorite sports wearing a backward baseball cap.

Beneath the cotton-candy surface of childhood, when most things are sweet and adorable, there are realities that need to be addressed. As layers of innocence peel away, their survival can be painful and their lives harshly compromised.

SHOPPING

Ikea opens online store to Filipinos

AHEAD of its Pasay store opening in fourth quarter this year, Ikea on Wednesday opened its 24/7 online store to Filipino consumers.

“After several weeks of learning from our test run, we are glad that we are now accessible to more Filipinos,” said Georg Platzer, store manager of Ikea Pasay City. “We are very excited to be part of the lives of the many people in the Philippines and share in their dreams of a better life at home.”

In September, Ikea had a test run for its online store, during which it opened up online shopping with limited capacity to test all operational and

technical processes and ensure an enjoyable and hassle-free online shopping experience.

To shop online, customers must first create an Ikea website account (this is different from Ikea Family membership). After that, online shoppers can choose the products they want, add to cart, and then proceed to checkout. The store accepts payments via major credit cards, GCash, and installment via BDO. Ikea offers three delivery options: truck, parcel, and click and collect. Orders that do not exceed 30kg in weight and 1.8 meters in length and

height will be considered as parcel orders. If an order exceeds 30kg, and the height and length are more than 1.8 meters, it will be considered as a truck delivery order. Online shoppers can also choose to pick up their items in select collection points.

Truck delivery orders are currently limited to Metro Manila, only while parcel deliveries extend to the greater Metro Manila area including Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, parts of Quezon (up to Lucena), Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Bataan, and Subic.

Shoppers from the Philippines can now access Ikea’s online store.