Manila Standard - 2021 November 22 - Monday

twitter.com/ MlaStandard

facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH

S

manilastandard.net

Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net

China backs off from Ayungin Lorenzana: Beijing won’t anymore block PH supply mission to Marines

C

HINA will not interfere with the resupply mission to Filipino troops stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Sunday, citing an assurance from China's ambassador to Manila.

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS.

In a message sent to reporters, Lon Lonrenzana confirmed Western Command chief Vice Admiral Ramil Roberto EnEn riquez's comments that the resupply will proceed in accordance with his orders.

Lorenzana added that the supply boats would not be escorted by Coast Guard or Navy vessels because the Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian, with whom he had been in talks since Nov. 20, said China would not interfere.

Asked to comment on Chinese claims that their coast guard vessels water cancan noned the Philippine boats because they were trespassing, Lorenzana said it was sov China that had violated the country's sovexclu ereign rights inside the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

"They are the one’s violating our sov sovereign rights within our EEZ,” Lorenzana

Returning overseas Filipino workers wear personal protective equipment as they line up at the Bureau of Immigration at the Terminal 1 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021.

OFWs have started to return to the Philippines to spend the Christmas holidays with their loved ones. Danny Pata

Next page

PNP chief calls on election bets to test for drugs PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Dionardo Carlos on Sunday urged all presidential candidates to submit to a drug test.

“The PNP acknowledges that no law mandates the candidate to undergo a drug test but doing so will set an example to their countrymen by proving that they aren’t users of illegal drugs,” Carlos said.

Carlos's call came after President Rodrigo Duterte alleged that a presidential candidate that he did not name was a cocaine user.

Carlos has ordered the PNP's Drug Enforcement Group to look into President Duterte's allegation.

Presidential spokesman and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said the Palace was leaving the fate of the alleged illegal drug user to law enforcement agencies.

“PDEG has been tasked to work on this info,” Carlos said in a text message sent to reporters on Saturday.

VOL. XXXV • NO. 280 • 2 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

DOJ: No special treatment for Quiboloy

By Rey E. Requejo THE pending appeal on a rape complaint against Apollo Quiboloy, President Duterte's spiritual adviser, will not stop his possible extradition to the United States on sex trafficking charges, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Sunday.

Guevarra said that although there is an appeal on a criminal complaint against the 71-year-old Quiboloy, this could not be used as a ground to stall his possible extradition to the US, since no charges have been filed against him before a Philippine court.

“The pendency of the appeal before the Office of the Secretary is not an obstacle to extradition because

there is no indictment in a Philippine court as yet,” the Justice Secretary said.

“But extradition is not a simple process,” he added.

Guevarra said the Department of Justice and the Department of Foreign Affairs must first evaluate and determine if the US case is covered by the extradition treaty between the United States and the Philippines.

Guevarra earlier revealed that a complaint of rape, child abuse, illtreatment under the Revised Penal Code, trafficking in persons through forced labor and trafficking in persons through sexual abuse were filed against Pastor Quiboloy in Davao City last year.

However, these charges were dis-missed and a petition for review was filed before the DO last year. There was only one complainant.

Guevarra assured the public that there would be no special treatment given to Quiboloy. The DOJ “would perform its mandate under the law, regardless of the persons involved,” he said.

Aside from the extradition treaty, the Philippines also has an existing Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the US that could be used in dealing with crimi-nal matters in their country.

On Nov. 18, the US prosecutors announced that sex trafficking charges were filed against Quiboloy and

Next page

Next page

More funds for state schools pushed

2,826,410 2,227

21,101

47,074

175

2,758,235

3,152

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

the funding of the Department of Education (DepEd) and the State Universities IN ANTICIPATION of the likely ex- and Colleges (SUCs) under the 2022 napansion of face-to-face classes in more tional budget.

Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, who schools next year, the Senate Committee Next page on Finance is pushing for an increase in

DOH expands booster shots to seniors BEAUTIES FOR A CAUSE. Destiny Wagner of Belize clinches the coveted Miss Earth 2021 title. The 25-year-old Wagner made history for giving Belize its first beauty pageant title. She manages the non-profit organization ‘Operation Kingdom’ that is dedicated to combating child hunger and fighting for equal education. Her court includes (Inset, from left) Chile’s Romina Denecken as Miss Earth-Water, USA’s Marisa Butler as Miss Earth-Air, and Thailand’s Baitong Petson as Miss Earth-Fire. Also making it to the Top 8 were delegates from the Netherlands, Philippines, Russia, and Venezuela.

(As of 4 PM, NOV. 21)

THE Department of Health yesterday expanded the eligibility for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to senior citizens and individuals with comorbidities.

The DOH said the phased administration of booster doses to those part of priority groups A2 and A3 will

begin today (Monday, Nov. 22).

Phase 1 will cover all senior citizens and A3 individuals in immunocompromised state. Phase 2 will include all remaining A3 population with other comorbidities.

SHOW OF FORCE: BBM-SARA CARAVANS

CHINA NAVY WARNS PING’S DELEGATION

PACMAN: CONDEMN AYUNGIN ATTACK

LENI WORKS HARD FOR CEBU VOTE

MAKE ‘BILIS KILOS’ NATIONWIDE—ISKO

NEWS / A5

NEWS / A5

NEWS / A5

NEWS / A5

NEWS / A5

Next page

A2

News

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

WORLD YOUTH DAY. Pope Francis swings a thurible of incense by a 1650 oil on canvas entitled "Madonna and Child" by Sassoferrato (Giovan Battista Salvi) as he celebrates a mass as part of World Youth Day on November 21, 2021 at St. Peter's Basilica in The Vatican. AFP

China...

From A1

said. “Our EEZ was granted to the Philippines (by) the 1982 UNCLOS which, by the way, was ratified by China.

Therefore, they have no right to impede, prevent or harass our ships within our EEZ whether we are fishing or bringing supplies to our detachment in the Sierra Madre in Ayungin shoal," Lorenzana said.

The Western Command earlier reported that three Chinese Coast Guard vessels “blocked and water cannoned” two Philippine supply boats or "bancas" on Nov. 6.

No one was hurt but the Philippine vessels, which were identified as Un-

DOJ:...

From A1

two other top officials from his Kingdom of Jesus Christ, The Name Above Every Name (KJC) for allegedly coercing young girls and women to have sex with him and threatening them with “eternal damnation” if they refused.

Also named as accused were Teresita Tolibas Dandan and Felina Salinas, for reportedly recruiting females aged 12 to 25 to work as personal assistants or “pastorals” for the religious leader. One

DOH...

From A1

Immunocompromised individuals who are eligible to receive the additional vaccine dose include those with immunodeficiency state, people living with HIV, active cancer or malignancy, transplant patients, and patients under immunosuppressive treatments.

The DOH said those belonging to A2 and A3 categories are eligible to be given a single booster dose, either a homologous (same vaccine brand) or a heterologous (mixed brand) dose.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health reported Sunday 2,227 new cases of COVID-19, raising the Philippines' total case count to 2,826,410.

According to the DOH, the new cases brought the country's active case count to 21,101, of which 56.9 percent are mild, 4.4 percent are asymptomatic, 13 percent are severe, and 5.5 percent are in critical condition.

Total recoveries climbed to 2,758,235 after 3,152 more patients defeated the respiratory illness.

The number of deaths breached the 47,000-mark with 175 new fatalities, bringing the death toll to 47,074.

For its part, the Air Carriers Association of

PNP...

From A1

The Commission on Elections last week said it cannot force candidates in the 2022 national elections to submit to mandatory drug testing as substance abuse is not a ground for disqualification.

“Substance abuse is not among the disqualifications provided for by law. In any case, the Comelec did try to require candidates to submit a negative drug test [result] several elections ago. The move was disapproved by the Supreme Court,” Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said in a statement Friday.

Duterte on Thursday refused to name

aiza Mae 1 and 3, had to abort their mission after one of them had its outrigger damaged by the water cannon.

On Friday, Malacañang said the government will not abandon the Filipino troops serving as a detachment at the Ayungin Shoal.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, acting Palace spokesperson, said despite its mended ties with China, the Philippines would continue to assert its sovereign rights over its territories, including the Ayungin Shoal.

Six countries have expressed support for the Philippines as they condemned the Chinese blockade and water cannon attack on Philippine resupply boats at the Ayungin Shoal.

The German and French embassies in Manila expressed "serious con-

cerns" on the latest Ayungin incident involving three Chinese Coast Guard ships that blocked and fired water cannons on two Filipino boats.

"Germany and France share serious concerns on the latest incident caused by three Chinese vessels against two Philippine supply boats in the South China Sea. We call to refrain from conduct that endangers stability in the Indo-Pacific," German Ambassador to the Philippines Anke Reiffenstuel said Saturday night. "(We) firmly support dialogue between stakeholders, on the basis of international law," she added.

The statement was tweeted separately by the German envoy and French Ambassador to the Philippines Michèle Boccoz.

Meanwhile, the Australian Embassy in Manila also asserted the 2016 arbitral ruling in the South China Sea and expressed solidarity with Manila.

"Australia has consistently expressed support for UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award and an open and inclusive region," Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Steven Robinson AO said Saturday.

"We continue to work with and support our Philippines partners on maritime issues and are concerned with recent destabilizing incidents in the South China Sea," he added.

In a tweet on Sunday, Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines Pe-

ter MacArthur said Canada stands by United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 South China Sea Arbitration decision, which affirmed Manila's claims over parts of South China Sea. The ruling by the international tribunal also invalidated China's sweeping claims over nearly the entire sea.

Earlier, the United States and Japanese governments also raised their concerns and called for South China Sea parties to adhere to international law.

In a press conference hours after the Philippine side publicly protested Beijing's actions in the Ayungin last Nov. 18, Chinese Foreign Minister Zhao Lijian said the two nations are "in communication" on the issue.

of their tasks was to allegedly perform “night duty”or to have sex with him.

Of the five female victims, three were reportedly minors during the time that the sex trafficking act was committed.

The KJC legal counsel expressed confidence that they could defend Quiboloy and their KJC leaders. “We trust the process of justice and we certainly expect the truth to prevail, and the Kingdom ministry will continue to prosper.”

Earlier, the DOJ said it would take a second look at the rape case filed against Quiboloy, after his indictment Thursday for sex trafficking charges in the United

States.

Meanwhile, the Philippine consulate in Los Angeles said it is hoping for justice for alleged victims in the sex trafficking case involving Quiboloy, as they continue to monitor the indictment by a US federal grand jury.

Consul General Edgar Badajos said they are also prepared to assist Filipino citizens involved in the case, whether alleged victims or accused.

"It is our responsibility to provide assistance to any of the accused and the victims who are still Filipinos to extend the necessary and appropriate consular

assistance," he said.

In a 74-page document, federal prosecutors in the US charged Quiboloy for sex trafficking involving victims as young as 12 years old.

The victims, who were church members, were flown to the United States to solicit donations to a non-existent children’s charity, which was allegedly used to fund Quiboloy’s lavish lifestyle.

The indictment also alleged that the victims, called “pastorals,” were required to prepare Quiboy’s meals, clean his homes, give him massages and have sex with him during what was called the

“night duty.”

Guevarra said the DOJ has yet to receive any communication from the US regarding Quiboloy’s indictment.

“As of this date, the DOJ has not received any request for extradition from the US DOJ, nor the US State Department through the DFA,” he said.

Several of the defendants and alleged victims are based in Los Angeles. The neighborhood of Van Nuys is home to the church's North American headquarters, which was also raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) last year amid immigration fraud charges.

the Philippines (ACAP) wants the government to further simplify the requirements for travelers, and make necessary adjustments in Philippine travel policies to meet the resurging travel demand during the holidays.

Currently, the Philippine airline industry is experiencing high demand for flights based on forward bookings and passenger inquiries.

However, passenger sentiments expressed through the various platforms of all ACAP members indicate the challenges they face with varied requirements set by the local government units.

On domestic travel, ACAP is urging LGUs to accept vaccine cards, with or without QR codes. This will simplify the proof of vaccination requirement regardless of the origin of the vaccine card.

Likewise, ACAP is also appealing to the government to increase the prevailing cap of four thousand to ten thousand passengers daily on international arrivals for inbound passengers carried by all international airlines into the country.

ACAP also shared the view that fully vaccinated inbound travelers from “Green List” countries should no longer form part of, and be excluded from the daily cap on international arrivals, considering that these travelers are no longer undergoing facilitybased quarantine upon their arrival.

More... heads the Committee on Finance, noted the absence of any provision in the National Expenditure Program and General Appropriations Bill for the preparations and implementation of face-to-face classes in the basic and higher education institutions.

With the rollout of the pilot implementation of in-person classes in 100 public schools last Monday and in 20 private schools starting this November 22, Angara said the DepEd and the SUCs should be provided with the necessary funding support especially with the expectation that more schools would be allowed to resume classes in the coming months.

“In response to the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes, the committee saw it fit to recommend increases in the budgets of the DepEd and SUCs." "We will ensure that our students and teachers are safe and start as soon as possible so that many students will

be inside their classrooms," he said.

The committee recommended an increase in the budget of the DepEd to cover for the resumption of face-toface classes.

For the 116 SUCs, including the University of the Philippines System, the Committee included an augmentation in their funds for their own preparations for in-person classes.

Angara said the funds may be used by the DepEd and school administrators for the retrofitting of their classrooms and other facilities to comply with the safety standards set by the health authorities.

These could include the modification of the layout and ventilation of the classrooms, laboratories and other parts of the schools.

The funds could also be used for the COVID testing of the faculty and staff to ensure that they and the students are protected when they hold classes.

If necessary, Angara said the funds could also go to the purchase of supplies and other equipment for the implementation of safety protocols and standards.

“We want to give them some degree

of flexibility in the use of the funds since each institution would have different needs. This is why we included in the menu of programs—assistance to the students, teachers and staff for their transportation requirements, which include the purchase of non-motorized forms of transportation such as bicycles,” Angara said.

Additional funding was also recommended for the Special Education Program of DepEd to assist the learners with disabilities.

Additional support was also included for the Last Mile Schools Program for the construction of more school buildings, tech-voc laboratories, water and sanitation facilities, and the installation of solar panels in the far-flung areas.

“We want to make sure that no child is left behind when it comes to access to quality education. This is even more critical at this time when some families are faced with the prospect of suspending their children’s education due to financial constraints and other challenges under an alternative learning setup,” Angara said.

the presidential aspirant, but said the person is among the top contenders.

"There’s even a presidential candidate who does cocaine... There are candidates who take cocaine. These are rich kids," Duterte said.

The camp of presidential aspirant and former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday brushed off the President’s claims that a candidate for chief executive is a cocaine user.

“We don’t feel alluded to,” Marcos’ spokesperson, lawyer Vic Rodriguez, said in a radio interview, adding that Marcos has the “highest respect” for Duterte.

Malacañang on Friday assured the public the unnamed presidential aspirant accused of being a cocaine user would

not get any preferential treatment from the government.

In an online press briefing, Nograles said the President may have gotten the information from "intelligence reports."

He added that Duterte might eventually reveal the identity of the presidential aspirant in his future public engagements.

Duterte did not divulge the identity of the presidential hopeful but dropped hints the person is a male with a "very weak" character and comes from a wealthy family with a prominent patriarch.

Among the male presidential candidates are incumbent senators Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao and Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong"

Marcos Jr., and Manila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso.

“I am 1,000 percent sure he (President) was not referring to me. I have no comment,” said Lacson, a former chief of the Philippine National Police who also led a presidential anti-drug task force.

Domagoso on Friday warned that presidential candidates who use drugs may become drug lords themselves.

"What is my moral ascendancy to go against drugs if I’m a drug user?” the Manila mayor said in an ambush interview.

Pacquiao said a mandatory drug test must be required for anyone who wants to work in government, elective or appointed, adding he would not prevent any

reformed drug user from being appointed to his administration.

Go, whom Duterte endorsed for the presidency, said he is ready to subject himself to a drug test “anytime and anywhere.”

He noted that before choosing a candidate, the Filipino people have the right to know that a candidate who will lead them is “clean.”

Vice President Leni Robredo, the only woman in the current field of presidential bets, on Friday said she favors surprise drug tests for candidates.

“It should not be announced so the candidates would not be able to prepare for it," she told reporters during an event in Quezon.

From A1

News

A3

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

‘Ensure smooth Malampaya switch’ S URIGAO del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel urged the Department of Energy (DOE) to ensure the “seamless transfer” of Malampaya’s dayto-day gas business despite calls for an inquiry into the $460 million operator switch from Shell Petroleum B.V. to Udenna Corp.

“We are counting on a smooth handover with zero disruption to Malampaya’s vital gas operations that supply up to 20 percent of the country’s electricity demand and provide the government a 60 percent share in net revenues,” Pimentel, House good government and public accountability committee vice chairperson, said in a statement on Sunday.

Pimentel’s remarks came after a second reelectionist senator pressed for an inquiry into Udenna subsidiary Malampaya Energy XP Pte Ltd’s acquisition of Shell’s operating stake in the offshore gas field.

Responding to the call for a probe, Pimentel said: “We’re not surprised at all by the political noise coming from senatorial candidates who might want to stir things up to put themselves in the limelight.”

“The candidates who are ranked No. 7 to No. 15 in the surveys are the ones under pressure to target everything under the sun for them to stand out. Those in the top six in the senatorial surveys are fairly quiet, because they are already assured of winning. They are not going overboard to advertise themselves,” Pimentel said.

Effective Jan. 1, 2022, Udenna will become the Malampaya operator, following Shell’s decision to sell for $460 million its 100 percent stake in Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. (SPEX).

SPEX holds a 45 percent operating interest in Malampaya under Service Contract 38.

HOLIDAY CHEER. Kids

have their photo taken with Santa Claus at SM Taytay on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021. The government has appealed to parents not to bring their unvaccinated children to malls to avoid pediatric COVID-19 infections.

Danny Pata

PNPA gets 1st Muslim grad in roster of generals

By Nash Maulana A POLICE official, once bypassed in political choices of police director in his native Maguindanao in 2009, becomes the first MuslimFilipino police-general among graduates of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA).

Police Brig. Gen. Esmael Pua Ali currently heads the Regional Learning and Doctrine

Development Division of the Regional Police Office of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Ali’s late father once related that it was a blessing in disguise that the powers-that-be at the time declined his son’s potential nomination to become Maguindanao’s police director, weeks before the gruesome Maguindanao Massacre happened on November 23, 2009.

Ali is a member of the PNPA Sandigan

Class of 1994 for a second degree course in Bachelor of Science in Public Safety.

He finished Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at the Notre Dame University in Cotabato City as a full state scholar in 1990.

Fresh from his PNPA graduation, Ali was sent to a peacekeeping deployment in Basilan where an encounter with terrorist group Abu Sayyaf became inevitable in 1994.

Displaced OFW wins house and lot in Villar summit

By Macon Ramos-Araneta AN OVERSEAS Filipino Worker (OFW) whose contract was terminated in Kuwait in August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic won a Lessandra house and lot, the grand prize during the 10th OFW and Family Summit.

“This is a beautiful Christmas gift. We prayed for this,” said Rodrigo Pido as he thanked Senator Cynthia Villar and her family members — former Sen. Manny Villar, former Public Works Sec. Mark Villar, House Deputy Speaker Rep. Camille Villar and Vista Land President Paolo Villar.

Pido, a resident of Pasig City, described

the annual summit as a huge help to OFWs and their families.

More than 5,000 OFWs coming from different countries all over the world participated in this year’s summit.

“Thank you po to the Villar family!

Thank you to Villar SIPAG Foundation,” said Pido.

PNP chief fetes 4 wounded SAF commandos

By Ronald O. Reyes TACLOBAN City — Philippine National Police chief Gen. Dionardo Bernardo Carlos conferred on Sunday the “Medalya ng Sugatang Magiting” to four wounded personnel of the elite Special Action Force (SAF) who encountered suspected rebels in Gamay, Northern Samar on Saturday.

“Let us thank the Lord for keeping you alive. You rest well here and recover soonest. The fight is not over yet. We’ll do our best so justice will be served to you and those who have died,” Carlos personally told the wounded policemen in Tacloban.

The police general also extended P50,000 cash assistance to each of the four injured SAF commandos, namely Lt. Jay-ar Rimorin, Lt. Jayson Banganan, Pat. Ruben Ringor Jr, and Pssg. Cristobal Hen-Achan.

All their wounds were caused by shrapnel from improvised explosive devices (IEDs) detonated by the armed rebels, according to the information released by the Police Regional Office-Eastern Visayas.

Meanwhile, the clash also led to the death of two other SAF troopers.

They were identified as Pat. Franklin Marquez and Pat. Jimmy Caraggayan.

Carlos assured the assistance for the bereaved families of the fallen police officers.

Poverty-stricken Eastern Visayas, particularly the Samar Island, has remained a stronghold of the New People’s Army (NPA), which has been waging a Maoist-war since the 1960s.

A4

Opinion

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Alliances and allegiances ALL politics are local, it is often said. But the current state of politics in the country seems to disprove this long-held view. With every shift in national politics – and with every survey results, local politicians have been left with no choice than to tread carefully around supposed national alliances and party allegiances.

In an unexpected twist, for example, the supposed monolith of a political party lost both its presidential and vice-presidential candidates who withdrew their candidacies after the November 15 deadline on the substitution of candidates. Recent survey results tend to be as fluid as this month’s political happenings, leaving many local political candidates in a conundrum on where to place their allegiances in the upcoming elections.

A significant amount of political responsibility should accrue to one’s membership in a political party, and changing party affiliation should not be taken lightly or carelessly done.

But there is one lesson to be learned from this – election reform should be a priority in the next term. There is an urgent need to review our existing policies on at least three aspects: political party reform, the nomination and substitution of candidates and automatic registration of voters.

Political party reform is long overdue. First and foremost, there is a need to emphasize, both in policy and practice, that political parties are public institutions. Thus, a significant amount of political responsibility should accrue to one’s membership in a political party, and changing party affiliation should not be taken lightly or carelessly done. If we were to ensure the growth and maturity of our political parties, there is no other option than to strengthen safeguards in establishing political parties, and regulating political party membership.

For example, as in many European countries, party membership should be declared in one’s voting record. True to its character as a public institution, a person who intends to join a political party must register one’s membership before the election registrar. This way, it would be difficult to change party membership whimsically, or simply on account of some convenience or even mere technicality.

Many have pointed out the need to veer away from politics shaped by personalities, to that of a politics anchored on political platforms and programs. This is, of course, ideal — but the inconvenient truth is that in an actual political exercise, plain ideologies and other abstractions alone would not suffice to influence or direct electoral choice. Personification of these abstractions is necessary, as every idea needs a voice to articulate it. This is why our politics appear to be fixated on personalities, rather than on platforms and programs.

Strengthening political parties would significantly help correct this malaise. Instead of the undue attention given to a single individual who is expected to personify any or such position on current issues of concern, a political party would not only elevate the level of discourse, but it will also effectively serve to inform and educate the voters

on the pros and cons of issues. Thus, collective action would prove to be more compelling and intentional. Even with a change in administration, a strong political party system would guarantee continuity in government policy, thus addressing long-term social and economic challenges.

But how do we sustain political party reform?

Only if we tie it up with the nomination and substitution of candidates. In many countries, nomination quotas are imposed before a particular political party is able to nominate a candidate.

Say, for example, before a specific party can nominate a candidate for governor, it should meet the required nomination quota. If the quota is a party membership of at least two percentum of registered voters in each of a majority of municipalities of the province, for a party to field a candidate for governor, said political party should have a membership equivalent to at least two percentum of the voting population, in at least fifteen, if there are 20 municipalities.

Similarly, before it is able to field a candidate for president, a political party would be required to have a registered membership of at least two percent of the voting population in 56 out of 81 provinces in the country. Thus, if a party intends to have a candidate for the highest position in the land, a focused nationwide constituency building should be part of the plan.

Imposing nomination quotas would prove to be an effective and commensurate incentive for party membership and constituency building. If party membership would be entered into one’s voting record, then the election registrar can easily establish if the nomination quota has been met. If the party fails to meet the nomination quota, then it would not be able to field a candidate for that po position. This would correct the seeming prevalence of nuisance candidates that frankly speaking seem to desecrate the electoral process.

Independent candidates, however, also would need to reach the nomination quota, albeit a higher one, for example, five percentum of the total voting population.

With nomination quotas in place, it would then be necessary to require holding political conventions, with election authorities in attendance and even conducting party primaries beforehand – thus eliminating the need for substitution of candidates.

There are also other reforms needed to strengthen our political parties, such as government financing based on electoral performance, and the ban on changing political parties after an election.

In many countries, elected officials who change political party membership effectively lose the positions to which they were elected; they are barred from running under a new party for at least two election cycles. In case an elected official would no longer want to be part of the political party, one is left with only one choice – go independent and that means meeting a higher nomination quota in the next elections.

Lastly, automatic voter registration. The right to suffrage is at the very core of the social contract upon which governments are founded, and to which obligations of citizenship are bound. Thus, elections are meant to include, not exclude, voters.

Unfortunately the current process of voter registration causes, at times, the disenfranchisement of a number of voters.

With the ongoing rollout of the national identification system, it is now possible to identify all Filipinos of voting age and extract their biometrics data, without a need for a separate voter registration process. Given the current use of an electronic voting system, it would be possible to simply migrate the database to the voting system, with sufficient safeguards to prevent “flying voters” and other forms of election fraud.

So, the next time we vote, all we have to do is simply show up on election day with our national ID on hand. That would be more than enough for each of our votes to be cast, and for local election registrars to verify, because, after all, all politics is local.

DQ and mudslinging are their only options now referring to.

And expectedly, as if on cue, the Pinklaws exploited the president’s statement to the hilt, calling for the filing of charges against whoever the President is alluding to.

WITH the overwhelming people’s support pouring for Partido Federal ng Pilipinas standard bearer Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, it seems the only options left for his opponents, including administration bet Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go, are his disqualification and the continuous barrage of black propaganda aimed at destroying his personality.

Unexpectedly, President Rodrigo Duterte has become the biggest ally of the Pinklaws, as together, they try to counter the phenomenal snowballing of support going BBM’s way.

Duterte, whose daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara is seeking the vice presidency as BBM’s running mate, red-tagged the former senator saying he is a supporter of the local communist group.

The next day, without naming names, the president insinuated that BBM was into cocaine, together with his group of friends from Davao.

BBM is known to be a friend of former Davao del Norte Congressman Anton Lagdameo. We don’t need to hire a top sleuth to analyze who Duterte is

President Rodrigo Duterte has become the biggest ally of the Pinklaws.

And while BBM’s opponents were riding on the cocaine issue, another disqualification case was filed against the PFP standard bearer, with rumors flying that Marcos would indeed be disqualified before the year ends.

Unfortunately for them, BBM and his supporters remain unperturbed, seemingly unaffected by whatever they are throwing against the presidential frontrunner.

Yesterday, BBM again emerged on top of an online mock polls in the world’s first and largest blockchain simulated elections organized by Publicus Asia Inc. and iVote.ph.

As of Friday, November 19, a total of 3,800 votes were already cast for the presidential race, according to Publicus.

ManilaStandard

Published Monday to Sunday by Philippine Manila Standard Publishing Inc. at 6/F Universal Re Building, 106 Paseo de Roxas, corner Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati City. Telephone numbers 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558 (connecting all departments), (Editorial) 832-5554, (Advertising) 832-5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www. manilastandard.net

ONLINE

can be accessed at: manilastandard.net

MEMBER

PPI

Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

EDITORIAL

A

Poverty in learning

WORLD Bank report last week confirmed what we had some sense of all along: That the protracted lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a serious blow to education systems in the world, in general, and in the Philippines, is particular.

Remote learning has not been equally effective everywhere, and its effectiveness is mixed, at best, said Cristobal Cobo, World Bank senior education and technology specialist.

“Some countries provided online digital learning solutions, although a majority of students lacked digital devices or connectivity, thus resulting in uneven participation, which further exacerbated existing inequalities,” he said.

Here in the Philippines, the gaps are heartbreaking. As of March 2021, remote learning in the Philippines covered only 20 percent of households with schoolchildren — this is the lowest rate, comparable only to Ethiopia’s, among the countries surveyed.

Only 26.9 percent of students in the Philippines have broadband internet access, even as 88.8 percent have access to mobile technology, according to the World Bank.

Educational levels of parents and guardians also proved significant.

Just 9 percent of children with elder household members who had no education participated in remote learning activities. The number improves to 16 percent when the adult family members reached at least

primary or secondary education, and to 40 percent for children with parents or guardians with college education.

How do we develop a digitally empowered and, more importantly, critically thinking citizenry?

As a result, learning poverty, defined as the share of 10-year-olds who cannot read nor understand a simple story, was estimated to have hit 90 percent in August.

The World Bank — through its global director for education Jaime Saavedra — also said that hybrid learning, which employs a combination of online and in-person methods of delivery, is here to stay.

How, then, do we best respond to these findings, in the light of the specter of the reopening of schools in the next few weeks? In fact, the Department of Education started the pilot run of face-to-face classes in select areas last week, and the

Commission on Higher Education is preparing to do the same for tertiary level schools in the near future.

We take cue from the World Bank’s characterization of hybrid learning as something that will remain even after the COVID numbers have continued to go down. Effective teaching, suitable technology, and engaged learners are crucial to the achievement of education goals as we try to reclaim and move forward with our way of life.

The problems of the education system that existed before the pandemic should be addressed alongside new efforts to improve internet access and digital adaptability.

There is no going back to a purely offline way of learning, so we have to find a way to use technology to boost the human factor in delivering quality education for more young Filipinos.

Underlying all this is the need to develop citizens who will be able to think on their own — seeking evidence, verifying claims, and coming up with their own conclusions instead of parroting a script.

This is a tall order for the education of officials of the next administration.

This is all the more reason Filipinos should be more exacting of their candidates in the next elections. Reject leaders who consign the youth to intellectual laziness and dishonesty, and support only those who have an actual plan to develop a digitally empowered and, more importantly, critically thinking, citizenry.

Another Chinese attack and the 211th diplomatic note

IN YET another act of aggression and in blatant violation of Philippine territory, Chinese coast guard vessels blocked two Philippine supply boats and sprayed water cannons in a resupply mission in Ayungin Shoal.

This reportedly happened November 16 and has sparked another diplomatic protest – the 211th diplomatic note against China during the Duterte administration – and a barrage of strongly worded denouncements from, well everybody.

The attack happened in Ayungin Shoal which is part of the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) and well within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. The Philippines has sovereign rights and jurisdiction over this.

US State Department spokesperson Ned Price in a statement issued two days after the incident said, “The United States stands with our ally, the Philippines, in the face of this escalation that directly threatens regional peace and stability, escalates regional tensions, infringes upon freedom of navigation in the South China Sea as guaranteed under international law, and undermines the rules-based international order.”

Timely was the latest virtual town hall discussion of international think tank Stratbase ADR Marcos was number one in the presidential derby with 3,496 votes (90.10 percent), followed by Leni Robredo with 313 votes (8.06 percent).

Manila Mayor Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso had 38 votes (0.9 percent), Sen. Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Pacquiao with 11 votes (0.2 percent) and Sen. Christopher ‘Bong’ Go had one vote (0.02 percent).

Publicus Asia Inc. and iVote.ph teamed up to host the first and largest blockchain election simulation in the country and invited Filipinos from more than 150 countries to support the simulated polls.

The creators of iVote.ph digital voting system, assured their system could not be easily hacked.

Early last week, BBM also topped a the Publicus Asia survey, Pahayag, conducted from November 16 to November 18, a day after the substitution deadline, showing the PFP standard bearer leading across all regional groups with 56.7 percent compared to Leni Robredo’s 15.4 percent mark and Manila Mayor Francisco Domagoso Moreno’s 6.9 percent.

Behind them are Senators Bong Go, 4.1 percent, Manny Pacquiao, 3.0 percent, and Panfilo Lacson, 2.9 percent.

Marcos held a commanding lead across all regional groups, maintaining his widest lead in North Central Luzon 60.3 percent and Mindanao 70 percent.

The lead was narrowest in the National Capital Region and South Luzon, where Robredo polled above the 20 percent mark. Moreno is at third with seven percent and Go at four percent, consistent with his previous numbers from earlier surveys conducted by Publicus.

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Anita F. Grefal Baldwin R. Felipe Edgar M. Valmorida

Institute (ADRi), on “Responding to Emerging Maritime Security Challenges in the Indo-Pacific” wherein German Ambassador H.E. Anke Reiffenstuel in her keynote speech said, “Incidents like the one reported just this week (the Ayungin Shoal incident) contribute to increasing tensions and to deteriorating maritime security environment as well as a threat to the peaceful development of the region. At the same time, it becomes evident that multilateral cooperation is the right way to address these challenges.”

The next leaders we elect will put our interests first — not Beijing’s.

Indo-Pa Amb. Reiffenstuel sees Asia and the Indo-Pacific region as one of growing global economic, political and geostrategic importance against the background of the strategic rivalry between the US and China.

“It is obvious that the shape of tomorrow’s international order will be decided in the Indo-Pacific region. Conscious of this situation, a reliable international rules-based maritime order is indispensable.”

She emphasized that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provides this necessary comprehensive multilateral framework for a rules based maritime order as Comparatively speaking, Marcos posted a seven percent gain from his previous numbers, polling around 49 percent.

Meanwhile, Robredo dropped by six percent because of lower scores in South Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. She, however, maintained her numbers in NCR and SL. Marcos also recorded the highest votes among respondents who are unlikely to change their preference, with at least 80 percent maintaining that they will definitely not change their choice.

Robredo posted similar numbers, with close to 60 percent of respondents indicating that they are set with their choice and another 18 percent indicating that they will likely not change their preference.

The other candidates polling on or above the three percent mark notched markedly lower “firmness” shares than Marcos and Robredo.

However, the conversion may prove difficult for many who have chosen a particular candidate. Across all candidates, most of those who are not viewed as “firm” in their choice indicated that they are 50-50 at best – rather than inclined to switch, suggesting that conversion may prove difficult moving forward.

Also, in the Manila Bulletin online survey, BBM again led the way, getting 53.7 percent of the 633,000 votes cast.

Assigned with the heart emoji, BBM got 340,000 votes, followed by Moreno’s wow emoji at 143,000, Robredo’s care emoji at 125,000, Go, thumbs up with 18,600, Leody de Guzman sad emoji with 2,300, Lacson’s laughing emoji at 1,900 and Pacquiao’s angry emoji at 1,100.

Indeed, at this point in time, there’s no way they can stop the surge of BBM’s growing support.

And resorting to back propaganda has only further strengthened him. Disqualification? They can try.

But they have to be prepared to face the people’s wrath should they push for it as legal experts have already declared there is absolutely no grounds to disqualify the “people’s chosen one.”

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher

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

well as the adequate instruments and mechanisms, and it provides the basis for regional and global cooperation and partnerships in the maritime domain.

“It wouldn’t really make a difference that supports the multilateral approach to bring in the EU as a strategic partner with the EU and its Indo-Pacific guidelines and growing commitment to engage and to increasingly engage in the region. It would not only make sense, but also welcome and confirm the commitment that has been made by the EU,” Amb. Reiffenstuel said.

Prof. Rüdiger Wolfrum, Director emeritus, Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law and Former Judge of the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea said that even if China does not believe the claim of the Philippines, blocking the Philippine supply vessels was the wrong means and the wrong attitude. He said that the issue should be brought up before the International Court of Justice in accordance with Article 33 of the United Nations Charter to which China must abide.

He pointed out that instead of unilateral acts, there should be multilateral response and advocated for regional cooperation under the ASEAN. “I believe it is now for ASEAN to take an initiative to build peace, modify or to downgrade the tension that is evidently existing in this area. Unilateralism in this respect will only aggravate the situation and create new challenges,” Prof. Wolrum said.

Stratbase ADRi President Prof. Dindo Manhit likewise stated that the institute firmly believes that the future of the Indo-Pacific lies in the multilateral and inclusive cooperation among like-minded states in the region such as the United States, Australia, India, and Japan, as well as members of the European Union such as Germany.

“Given these challenges coupled with the regions’ evolving security architecture, the Filipino people should remain vigilant against any attempt by foreign countries to encroach on the country’s jurisdiction.”

“The upcoming May 2022 elections is an opportunity to move away from this appeasement policy towards China that permits aggressive attacks against Filipinos and to elect leaders who will remain committed to protecting the country’s national security and sovereign rights in the disputed territory,” Prof. Manhit said.

This new Chinese incursion into our sovereign territory in another calculated — short of a shooting — assault against Philippine vessels will not be the last of its escalating acts of aggression in the West Philippine Sea. The President’s preferential policy towards China manifested by his words and acts betrays his duty to the country. While we must be more vigilant and assertive in guarding our territories, we must make sure that the next leaders we elect will put our interests first, and not Beijing’s.

Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Joyce Pangco Pañares

Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor

Emil P. Jurado

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

Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

News

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

A5

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

IN BRIEF House measure seeks frontliners insurance

CARAVAN FOR BONGBONG.

Hundreds of supporters of former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, occupy the Aguinaldo Highway in Dasmarinas Cavite on Sunday during a caravan in support of Marcos and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio. Danny Pata

Aircraft carrying Lacson ‘warned’

by Chinese Navy SENATOR Panfilo “Ping” Lacson’s Partido Reporma released a video showing that Lacson and his team were given “warnings” by the Chinese Navy while they were en route to Pag-asa Island.

The video recording caught the radio message from the Chinese Navy saying that “You are approaching our military zone. Please stay away from the area and leave immediately. Your actions are unfriendly and dangerous.

Your actions are dangerous.”

But there were no untoward incidents, according to Ashley Acedillo, Partido Reporma spokesperson Ashley Acedillo.

Acedillo said they were able to give a standard reply to the radio message and that there was already coordination between the pilot and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

A GMA News report said Lacson found the warning “unusual.” Lacson also said he received a “Welcome to China” message on his mobile phone as soon as his party landed in the said island.

Lacson maintained that diplomacy must still reign supreme when it comes to dealing with issues concerning the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

Citing his observations following his visit to Pag-asa Island in Kalayaan, Palawan over the weekend, Lacson maintained that one of the best ways for the Philippines to defend its territorial integrity is to create a “balance of power” in the region.

By aligning with other nations that support freedom of navigation over the disputed waters of WPS, Lacson believes the country could refrain China from bullying its weaker neighbors, which are trying to exercise maritime rights in their respective exclusive economic zones (EEZ).

“There has to be a common fishing ground, common possession, that is what is being discussed. But for one country to bully its neighbor and drive its people away from their own territory, like the Ayungin Shoal, to me that’s unacceptable,” he said.

Bongbong-Sara caravans held in various provinces

By Rey E. Requejo

T

HOUSANDS of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos. Jr. and Davao Mayor Sara Duterte supporters on Sunday showed strength by staging what they described as the caravan for peace, unity and progress in more than dozens of cities and provinces all over the country.

The simultaneous BBM-Sara Uniteam cavalcade started as early as 8 a.m. in more than 30 cities and 15 provinces in Mindanao, Bicol Region, Calabarzon, Abra, certain provinces in Northern Luzon, and Metro Manila.

The series of caravans, which was attended by the two candidates in Davao Del Norte, was the first since they separately announced their candidacy.

Both aspirants led their supporters in a massive show of force in Carmen and Tagum City with the numbers swelling to more than 10,000 participants, practically turning the streets into a sea of red and green.

For the first time, the tandem addressed their supporters together and thanked them “for their support in our effort to rise again.”

Marcos Jr. and Inday Sara also led the oath-taking of new officials and candidates of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), followed by the blessing and opening of the PFP headquarters in Tagum City.

Thousands also joined the caravan in Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur, further fortifying the “Solid North” that have been traditionally behind the Marcos family.

Residents of Isabela at least 15,000 supporters trooped to the streets in Abra behind Abra Rep. JB Bernos and other local officials. Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, and Bataan also had “unity rides.”

Thousands also joined the caravans in Bicol Region, Cavite, Batangas, Quezon and Laguna.

VICE President and presidential bet Leni Robredo said she is “not entitled to anything” as she vowed to work hard to gain the support of the Cebuanos.

“Cebu is very important. It is one of the biggest provinces in the country. Although I won here in 2016, I am not entitled to anything. I have to work hard to get the support of the Cebuanos,” she said.

She said the campaign in the 2016 is entirely different from the 2021 presidential campaign. “The passion of the

DISTRICT 2 Councilor and vice mayoral bet Winnie Castelo is batting for the grant of a tax amnesty to thousands of delinquent business establishments in Quezon City.

Under his proposed Ordinance No. 513-2021, he said it cannot be denied that the COVID-19 pandemic and the series of lockdowns have caused untold suffering on businesses and the people in general.

He lamented that the pandemic has disrupted business operations, resulting in reduced income, reduction of workforce, or closure of establishments. Rio N. Araja

Agents seize smuggled products worth P66m THE Bureau of Customs – Port of Subic seized smuggled agricultural products with an estimated value of P66 million on Nov. 18.

The said port issued Pre-Lodgement Control Orders (PLCO) against the 9x40’ container shipment consigned to JKJ International Co. and 13x40’ container shipment consigned to EMV Consumer Goods Trading after District Collector Maritess T. Martin received information from the Intelligence Group (IG) that the upcoming shipments from the abovementioned consignees contain agricultural products.

By Rey E. Requejo

ONG IN MARIKINA. Volunteer groups for Aksyon Demokratiko along with vice presidential candidate, Dr. Willie Ong with senatorial bets Samira Gutoc, Atty. Jopeth Sison, and Carl Balita hold shoes as a symbol of the revival of the shoe industry in Marikina. Manny Palmero

China is a signatory of the said convention.

“This incident is certainly a cause of deep concern. Ayungin Shoal is part of our country’s exclusive economic zone and our continental shelf,” said Pacquiao, quoted by a GMANews report.

Pacquiao also urged China “to end these incursions in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines’ claims in certain islands and waters in some parts of the

Leni seeks support from Cebuanos

By Rio N. Araja

Tax amnesty sought for QC businesses

Isko: ‘Bilis Kilos’ program can be done nationwide

Manny calls for more countries to condemn Ayungin shoal ‘attack’ SENATOR Manny Pacquiao has called on other countries to condemn the actions of a Chinese Navy vessel who “attacked” two Philippine supply boats with water cannon as the local boats were en route to Ayungin Shoal.

Pacquiao, who is running for president in the national polls next year, said the firing of water cannons is a violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea.

CAMARINES Sur Rep. Luis Ray Villafuerte is hoping that a measure designed to provide insurance coverage, special risk allowance, and other benefits to health workers would be approved “soon enough as an early Christmas gift to the country’s frontliners against COVID-19.”

He said the benefits would cover both public and private health care workers and would be granted to them during the period of the state of national calamity resulting from the pandemic.

“This measure will ensure that our heroes in the fight against COVID-19 will resume receiving the benefits granted to them under the Bayanihan 2 law, which expired in June,” he added. Rio N. Araja

volunteers makes up for what we do not have,” she added, referring to the support of local chief executives.

“The support of the Cebuanos is very overwhelming. Ever since I became vice president, I have been visiting Cebu every now and then for some projects,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Vice President called on the public to stay vigilant for the awarding of the Malampaya natural gas-to-power deal to Udenna Corp. belonging to Davao businessman Dennis Uy. She said the government should have bought the plant.

South China Sea.” “I urge China to immediately stop these aggressive and provocative actions and pursue cooperative undertakings that are beneficial to all,” Pacquiao said.

Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. earlier ex-

pressed to China the Philippines’ “outrage, condemnation, and protest” on the attack against the two Philippine supply ships last November 16.

President Rodrigo Duterte has yet to release an official statement on the reported attack on the local vessels.

AKSYON Demokratiko presidential candidate and Manila City Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso said the success of his “Bilis Kilos” agenda of governance in Manila will be replicated in the entire country if he is elected president in next year’s 2022 elections.

“We are in a pandemic. Man’s life and future depend on it. So I thought that what we did in Manila, we will do all over the country, ”Moreno said in a radio interview.

The “Bilis Kilos” 10-Point Agenda of Governance reflects the accomplishments of Moreno as Manila mayor, which include the construction of mass housing for the poor of Baseco, Tondo, and Binondo; the construction of a COVID-19 field hospital and a new Ospital ng Maynila; provision of free antigen testing and free Remdisivir and Tocilizumab for COVID patients; and the continuous delivery of relief boxes to residents.

“People need to feel that someone

SUCCESFUL OPERATION.

Bureau of Customs Port of Subic District Collector Maritess Martin (extreme right) led the apprehension of a 9x40 container van of smuggled agricultural goods on Nov. 18, 2021, with an estimated market value of P66 million.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK Manila

Standard

A6

World

TODAY MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Tens of thousands rally vs. COVID lockdowns in Europe and Australia

TENS of thousands took to the streets in tandard cities across Europe and Australia Satur-

Manila

TODAY day as anger mounted over fresh COVID restrictions imposed against a resurgent pandemic.

And Dutch police faced a second night of rioting – this time in The Hague – after the previous NOTICE OF night’s violence EXTRA-JUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF in the port city of ESTATE Rotterdam.

Notice is hereby given Clashes eruptthat the estate of the late ed after a day of ERWIN D. SAMONTE has been extra-judicially mainly peaceful settled among his wife and heirs on the 30 of protests elseMarch, 2021 as per Doc. where in the No. 292; Page No. 59; Manila Book No. 25; Series of Netherlands, Standard 2021; under the Notarial RegisterTODAY of Atty. Marty with rioters Franz F. Toralba, for and throwing stones in Camiling, Tarlac. and fireworks at th

(MS-NOV. 15/22/29, 2021)

police and setting fire to bicycles. Several people were arrested.

Europe is battling a fresh wave of infections and several countries have tightened curbs, with Austria on Friday announcing a nationwide partial lockdown – the most dramatic restrictions in Western Europe for months.

The Netherlands went back into partial lockdown last Saturday with at least three weeks of curbs, and is now planning to ban unvaccinated people from entering some venues, the so-called 2G option.

Several thousand protesters angry at the latest measures gathered in Amsterdam. Another thousand marched through the southern city of Breda near the Belgian border, carrying banners with slogans such as “No Lockdown.” AFP

NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION The public is hereby notified that RITTAL SYSTEMS INC., a corporation organized and existing under Philippine laws, with registered address at 88 Corporate Center, 141 Valero Street corner Sedeño Street, Salcedo Village, Makati City, Philippines, will be DISSOLVED through shortening of its corporate term in accordance with Section 136 of the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines. The corporation’s dissolution will automatically take effect on the day following the last day of its shortened corporate term as stated in the corporation’s amended articles of incorporation, without the need for the issuance by the Securities and Exchange Commission of a certificate of dissolution.

(MS-NOV. 22/29/DEC. 6, 2021)

Manila

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES Standard REGIONAL TRIAL COURT

TODAY

NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION BRANCH 225 – QUEZON CITY

IN THE MATTER OF PETITION FOR JUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF THE INTESTATE ESTATE OF DECEASED PATRICIA LYN VICTORIO MONASTERIAL (also known thru her Married name Patricia Lyn Monasterial-Eusebio) ROSARIO YUMI MONASTERIALVILLANUEVA, ROWENA MONASTERIAL-GARCES, MARIA RAQUEL JOY MONASTERIALRASING, and JOSE ANTHONY V. MONASTERIAL, Petitioners, -versus-

Case No. R-QZN-21-05039-SP

That the names and residences of the surviving heirs of the decedent are as follows: Names

Addresses

Rosario Yumi V. Monasterial-Villanueva

140-7 General Pio Valenzuela St., Caloocan City

Maria Raquel Joy Monasterial-Rasing

Winnipeg, Canada

Rowena MonasterialGarces

Melbourne, Australia

Joseph Anthony Monasterial

V.

Blk. 2 Lot 7 Francisco Compound, Road 23, Project 8, Brgy. Bahay Toro, Quezon City

Dominador Almodiel Eusebio (surviving spouse)

No. 14-A Scout Chuatoco St., Brgy.

Paligsahan, Quezon City

Finding the verified petition to be sufficient in form and substance, the Court gives due course thereto.

WHEREFORE, let copy of this Order and petition be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks at petitioner’s expense, upon coordination with the Office of the Clerk of Court, Regional Trial Court, Quezon City. Hearing on the verified petition is hereby set on December 2, 2021 at 8:30 o’clock in the morning, at 7th Floor, Hall of Justice Annex Building, Quezon City, at which time and place, any person having interest in the petition may appear.

Let copies of this Order be posted by the Branch Sheriff thirty (30) days before the hearing date at the following places at the expense of petitioners: 1. at the main entrance of the City Hall Building of Quezon City; 2. on the Bulletin Board of the Court, Hall of Justice, Quezon City, and 3. at the Barangay Hall of the barangay where the petitioners resided.

Let copies of this Order be furnished all the surviving heirs who are hereby ordered to be present on the hearing date and time above-mentioned.

Further, petitioners through counsel are ordered to furnish the surviving heirs, namely: Maria Raquel Joy Monasterial-Rasing and Rowena Monasterial-Garces with a copy of this Order and their petition as well as its annexes at their given addresses outside the Philippines and to show proofs of compliance before the hearing date.

SO ORDERED. August 3, 2021, Quezon City, Metro Manila.

(Sgd.) MARIA LUISA LESLE G. GONZALEZ-BETIC Presiding Judge CC: Atty. Portia Flores-Diesta / Atty. Eliseo S. Calma Jr., - Padilla Adaza Diesta Calma & Associates AFIC Padilla Bldg., G/F No. 77 Anahaw St., Veterans Village, 1105 Quezon City Rosario Yumi V. Monasterial-Villanueva 140-7 General Pio Valenzuela St., Caloocan City Maria Raquel Joy Monasterial-Rasing – Winnepeg, Canada Rowena Monasterial-Garces – Melbourne, Australia Joseph Anthony V. Monasterial – Blk. 2 Lot 7 Francisco Compound, Road 23, Project 8, Brgy. Bahay Toro, Quezon City Dominador Almodiel Eusebio – No. 14-A Scout Chuatoco St., Brgy. Paligsahan, Quezon City The Registry of Deeds of Quezon City – LRA Complex, East Avenue, Quezon City The Registry of Deeds of Tagaytay City – Akle St., Kaybagal South, Tagaytay City The Registry of Deeds for the Province of Cavite – Region 4 Corporate Office, Cavite Provincial Capitol Compound, Governor’s Drive, Brgy. San Agustin, Trece Martirez, Cavite (Mstandard-Nov. 15, 22 & 29, 2021)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

China downgrades Lithuania ties C HINA has officially downgraded diplomatic ties with Lithuania in protest, the foreign ministry in Beijing said Sunday, after Taiwan established a de facto embassy in Vilnius.

China baulks at any official use of the establishment of diplomatic relations” That prompted a fierce rebuke from word “Taiwan,” lest it lend a sense of inter- with China.

China. It withdrew its ambassador from national legitimacy to the island – which it It was a reference to the “One China” Lithuania and demanded Vilnius do the CYAN MAGENTA considers a part of its territory to be taken policy, under which countries officially same, which itYELLOW eventuallyBLACK did. one day. recognize Beijing over Taipei.

China also halted freight trains to LithuRepublic of the Philippines 30 January 2014 food Php3,233,689.63 “The Chinese government had to low- REGIONAL Lithuania’s foreign ministry on Sunday79516916 ania and stopped issuing export perTRIAL COURT Capital Judicial Region er diplomatic relations between the two National said it “regrets” China’s decision to down- mits.

TOTAL Php9,676,709.13 Branch 100, Quezon City countries... to safeguard its sovereignty grade ties.

The opening of the Vilnius office is the For the first check, plaintiff issued Official Receipt No. 107618 “Lithuania reaffirms its adherence to latest sign that some Baltic and central and the basic norms of international reladated 13 November 2013 and for the second check, Official IGROS MARKETING CORPORATION dated 12 are Marchseeking 2014. However, Reoeipt European No. 107644 countries China’ policy, but at the same closer the retions,” the ministry said in a statement an- the ‘OnePlaintiff, remaining balance of Php3,209,329.87 was unpaid. Despite lations with Taiwan, even if that angers nouncing the downgrade to the charge d’ time has the right to expand cooperaseveral demands to defendants, the last of which were dated 27 - versusR - QZN - 14 - 06813 - CV to settle the same, the same fell on deaf ears. tion with Taiwan,” the ministry saidMarch in 2014, China. affaires level.

Lithuania allowing Taipei to open an PEREGRINE a statement.

In May,plaintiff Lithuania it was “The Lithuanian government must bear DEVELOPMENT The issue is whether is entitled announced to its claim.

INTERNATIONAL INC., (Foreign office using the name Taiwan was a sig- all consequences that arise from this.”

Taiwan announced in July that it would quitting China’s 17+1 cooperation forum Corporation), PERIGRINE This Court answers in the affirmative.

DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL, nificant diplomatic departure that defied a open the office, its first new diplomatic with central and eastern European states, It added that Lithuania had “abandoned INC. (Domestic Corporation), pressure campaign by Beijing.

A contract is a meeting of minds between outpost in Europe in 18 years. calling it “divisive.”

AFP two persons whereby the political commitment made upon the EDWIN MARSHALL BIRKINS IV

SMOG ON THE WATER.

ORDER A verified petition was filed on June 21, 2021 by petitioners through counsel praying that a Judgment be rendered or an Order be issued to settle the real and personal properties of the deceased Patrica Lyn V. Monasterial-Eusebio to and in favor of herein petitioners in accordance with existing applicable laws and jurisprudence particularly granting ½ share/portion from the exclusive property of the decedent covered by TCT No. N-290740 of the Registry of Deeds of Quezon City, situated at No. 14-A Scout Chuatoco St., Brgy. Paligsahan, Quezon City – to and in favor of herein petitioners; and ½ share/portion from that real property covered by TCT No. 076-2017000798 of the Registry of Deeds of Tagaytay City, and ½ share/portion from that real property identified as Lot No. 2225-A, Plan No. Psd -042465431, situated at Brgy. Pasong Kawayan 1, Municipality of General Trias, Province of Cavite, containing an area of 5,000 square meters-particularly that portion thereof registered in the name of respondent Dominador Eusebio - to and in favor of herein petitioners, and from each of these aforementioned ½ shares/portions from the properties covered by TCT No. 0762017000798 (Tagaytay lot) and TCT No. 057-2017058281 (Gen. Trias, Cavite lot), to be further divided or distributed equally among herein named petitioners.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

OVER TAIWAN DE FACTO EMBASSY ROW

People enjoy a boat ride on the banks of the Yamuna River amid fog and smog conditions in New Delhi on November 21, 2021. AFP

DOMINADOR ALMODIEL EUSEBIO, THE REGISTRY OF DEEDS FOR QUEZON CITY, Thru its Registrar of Deeds of Quezon City LRA Complex, East Avenue, Brgy. Pinyahan, Quezon City; THE REGISTRY OF DEEDS FOR TAGAYTAY CITY, thru its Register of Deeds, Atty. Roberto R. Salcedo, Akle St., Kaybagal South, Tagaytay City; THE REGISTRY OF DEEDS FOR THE PROVINCE OF CAVITE, thru its Registrar of Deeds Region 4 Corporate Office, Cavite Provincial Capitol Compound, Governor’s Drive, Brgy. San Agustin, Trece Martirez City, Cavite Respondents. x-------------------------------------------------x

Protesters rally against vaccine mandates in New York City.

A US Circuit Court granted an emergency stay to temporarily stop the Biden administration’s vaccine requirement for businesses with 100 or more workers. AFP

16

17

18

and DENNIS LLOYD WRIGHT, Defendants. x----------------------------------------------x DECISION This case for Sum of Money and Damages arose out of defendants’ broken promise to pay their joint and solidary monetary obligations with plaintiff.

Plaintiff prayed in their Amended Complaint that: WHEREFORE, it is respectfully prayed of this Honorable Court that after trial on the merits, judgment be rendered as follows: (i) Defendants PEREGRINE DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL, INC., - PHILIPPINE BRANCH (FOREIGN CORPORATION), PEREGRINE DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL, INC. (DOMESTIC CORPORATION), EDWIN BIRKINS IV and DENNIS LLOYD WRIGHT be ordered to pay to IGROS MARKETING CORPORATION the principal amount of Three Million Two Hundred Nine Thousand Three Hundred Twenty - Nine and 87/100 Pesos (P3,209,329.87) plus legal interest of 6% p.a. computed from the filing of the case ON 25 JULY 2014 up to the time the principal amount is fully paid and actually paid to the plaintiff; (ii) Defendants be ordered to pay to plaintiff the amount of Three Hundred Thousand Pesos (P300,000.00), as and by way of exemplary damages; (iii) Defendants be ordered to pay to plaintiff the amount of One Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php100,000.00), as and by way of reimbursement for attorney’s fees incurred by the plaintiff; and (iv) Defendants be ordered to reimburse plaintiff for the litigation expenses incurred by plaintiff and proved during the trial, plus legal interest and cost of suit.

Other reliefs just and equitable under the premises are likewise prayed for.

one binds himself, with respect to the other, to give something or to render some service.19 As shown by the Purohase Order herein, parties entered into a contract of sale for the delivery of construction materials, whereby defendants bound themselves, to pay the purchase price indicated therein. The effects of which are elaborated, thus:

Police hunt felon over ‘accidental’ gun discharge at Atlanta airport

A contract of sale is defined in Article 1458 of the Civil Code, to wit:

ART. 1458. By the contract of sale, one of the contracting parties obligates himself to transfer the ownership of and to deliver a determinate thing, and the other to pay therefor a price certain in money or its equivalent.

A contract of sale may be absolute or conditional.

The Court in Sps. Ramos v. Sps. Heruela (Ramos) differentiated an absolute sale from a conditional sale as follows: Article 1458 of the Civil Code provides that a contract of sale may be absolute or conditional. A contract of sale is absolute when title to the property passes to the vendee upon delivery of the thing sold. A deed of sale is absolute when there is no stipulation in the contract that title to the property remains with the seller until full payment of the purchase price. The sale is also absolute if there is no stipulation giving the vendor the right to cancel unilaterally the contract the moment the vendee falls to pay within a fixed period. In a conditional sale, as in a contract to sell, ownership remains with the vendor and does not pass to the vendee until full payment of the purchase price parktakes of a suspensive condition, and non-fulfillment of the condition prevents the obligation to sell from arising.

POLICE were hunting a convicted felon who fled Atlanta’s international airport after his gun accidentally discharged during a security search and sparked panic.

The incident on Saturday sent dozens of passengers scurrying for cover, and resulted in three injuries, none of which were caused by the discharge.

Pursuant to Ramos, DAS is an absolute sale this because there “We aretheactively pursuing indiis no stipulation in the contract that title to the property remains vidual,” Atlanta Police’s Major Regiwith the sellers until full payment of the purchase price and there is The antecedents: no stipulation the vendorssaid the right the naldgiving Moorman in toacancel pressunilaterally conferThis case was originally raffled 0ff to the Regional Trial Court, contract the moment the vendee fails to pay within a fixed period.

Quezon City, Branch 224. ence after identifying the suspect as It will be recalled that after the execution of the DAS, Norma Immediately took possession of the Wells. subject lot and there was no 42-year-old Kenny Upon service of the summons, original defendants Peregrine retention of ownership by the heirs of Vicentico until full payment Development International, Inc., Marshall Edwin Birkings IV , and ThepriceTransportation Security Adof the purchase

by Norma that was stipulated in the DAS. Dennis Lloyd Wright filed the Motion to Dismiss (ad cautelam) What then is the legal effect of the non-payment of the purchase dated 16 September 2014. The same was denied in the Order ministration (TSA) said the incident price of P50,000.00 by Norma to petitioners? dated 14 January 2015. occurred after a “prohibited item” was Pursuant to Article 1468 of the CiVil Code, a contract of sale is a reciprocal obligation to give; and the prestationbaggage or obligation After asking for several extensions, said defendants filed their identified inside a passenger’s of the seller or vendor is “to transfer the ownership of and to Answer Ad Cautelam (With compulsory Counterclaim) dated an X-Ray deliver aby determinate thing”machine. while the prestation or obligation of 15 May 2015. The mediation proceedings before the Philippine the buyer or vendee is into pay therefor a price certain in money Mediation Center failed as shown by the Mediator’s Report dated As a security officer opened the comor its equivalent.”

08 October 2015. containing the item, “the pasThe fullpartment payment of the purchase price is the buyer’s prestation.

The non-payment of the purchase price by the buyer after the Defendants then filed their Motion for Production and Inspection senger lunged into the bag and grabbed seller has delivered the object of the sale to the buyer constitutes and to Reset Pre-Trial (ad cautelam) dated 19 October 2015. the buyer’sat prestatlon a contract of sale. The buyer whichinpoint it discharged.”

POLISH Prime Minister Mateusz migrants – mostly from the Middle East – anda breachaoffirearm, has contravened the very tenor of the contract.

The subsequent Judicial Dispute Resolution conducted by the “The passenger then fled“[a]ctions the area, Morawiecki on Sunday called the migrant taking them to the border with promises of an Generally, under Article 1594 of the Civil Code, for Court was unsuccessful. Hence, the case was re-raffled to this breach of the contract of sale of goods shall be governed running out of the airport exit,” the crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border, the easy crossing into the European Union.

Branch. particularly by the provisions of this Chapter [Chapter 6 on ‘Actions TSA said, adding that the officer had EU’s eastern frontier, the “greatest attempt Belarus has denied the claim, instead for Breach of Contract of Sale of Goods], and as to matters not The case was covered under A.M. No. 14-03-02-SC. In the specifically provided for herein, bynot other provisions told the passenger toapplicable touch the item.of to destabilize Europe” since the ColdOrder War.datedcriticizing EU for notfortaking in the 18 July 2017, the defendants’ Motion Production and mithis Title [Title VI on Sales].”

Inspection and to Reset Pre-Trial (ad cautelam) was denied.

One person was injured in a fall in the Later Sunday the Polish head of govern- grants. is provided to Wit: complained ensuing panicArticle and 1595, two others ment will meet his counterparts from thePlaintiff Bal- then submitted Belarusian President Lukash-One remedy its Omnibus MotionAlexander dated 11 September A . 1595. Where, under a contract of sale, the ownership 2017 praying that: of breath, said. tic states – two of which also share a border enko told the BBC on Friday that it was of of theshortness goods has passed to the police buyer, and he wrongfully neglects or refuses to pay for incident the goods according to the after the at around WHEREFORE, Plaintiff Igros Marketing Corporation with Belarus – to discuss the conflict, before “absolutely possible” his forcesrespectfully had helped terms Shortly of the contract of sale, the seller may maintain an prays that this Honorable Court: 1:30 pm (1830 GMT), the airport said visiting other EU capitals this week. people cross into the EU but denied orches- action again him for the price of the goods.

Inon addition, the buyer may be held liable under Twitter that there wasfor damages no active Grant Plaintiff leave file its Amended Complaint; Belarusian President Alexander 1.“Lutrating theto operation.

Article 596, to wit: 2. Admit the attached Amended Complaint into the records of the shooter, and “there is no danger to paskashenko launched a hybrid war against “We’re Slavs.

We have hearts.

Our troops ART 1596, Where the buyer wrongfully neglects or refuses above – captioned case and be considered in resolving the same; to sengers aceppt and or payemployees.” for the goods, the seller may maintain an Order the issuance service of summons and to the Germany...

Amended the EU. This is (the) greatest attempt to3. deknow theandmigrants are going action against him for damages for nonacceptance.

Complaint anew to all Defendants in the instant case; and Police gave theis the all-clear before The measure of damages estimatedjust loss directly and stabilize Europe in 30 years,” Morawiecki Maybe someone helped said.

4. Order the deferment of the filing of the them,” Plaintiff’s he Terms of naturally resulting in the ordinary course of events from the Reference to another convenient to this Honorable Court, but 3:00 pm. said on Twitter.

“Buttime I didn’t invite them here.” buyer’s breach of contract. only after the resolution of the present Omnibus Motion.

The loud noise sent many people “Poland will not yield to blackmailPlaintiff and likewise Though are signs thejust crisis is easing prays for there other measures of relief and proper Yet, defendants failed to comply with their obligations. Only the premises. ducking and running, knocking over will do everything to defend the EU’sunder bora little, on Sunday Poland’s border guardspartial amount was paid by them, that is, the amount covered by (2) checks. and The balance of Php3,209,329.87 remained stanchions as they scramders.” reported new attempted crossings, includ-the two suitcases Attached thereto is the Amended Complaint whereby the following unsettled. Despite several demands made upon them to pay the are made defendants: Peregrine Development International, Inc. bled to escape, footage aired by CNN The West accuses Belarus of artificially ing by a “very aggressive group of around said obligation, the latter failed to do so. In the absence of any (Foreign Corporation), Peregrine Development International, Inc. evidenceshowed. to the contrary, AFPplaintiff’s evidence suffice. Defendants’ creating the crisis by bringing in would-be 100” migrants.

(Domestic Corporation), MarshallAFP Edwin Birkins IV and Dennis

15 worshippers Poland: Border crisis ‘greatest’ move to destabilize Europe since Cold War dead in Myanmar pagoda drowning 1

2

3

AT LEAST 15 people drowned on Sunday while crossing a flooded causeway in Myanmar to reach a Buddhist temple for a festival, rescue workers told AFP. The tragedy unfolded as thousands of worshippers tried to reach the Kyeik Hne pagoda, which lies on a rocky outcrop around three kilometers (two miles) off the coast near the town of Thanbyuzayat in southern Mon state.

Local officials said some died when they tried to cross the poorly marked causeway, which is only around four meters wide, while the tide was too high.

“We normally allow the people to come at 6:30 am but they would not listen to us and started trying to walk across too early,” local official Nai Sahai Eain told AFP. More drowned later when they were jostled from the crowded walkway into the sea.

Ko Kyaw Thu, an emergency responder from Thanbyuzayat, told AFP that 15 bodies had been taken to hospital and three people were still missing.

Local resident Nai Wona told AFP the causeway was not marked out clearly enough, making it hard to navigate. AFP

20

Lloyd Wright.

Venezuela sets largest orchestra world record

In the Order dated 27 December 2017, the said Omnibus Motion was granted. Per Officer’s Return dated 09 May 2018 summons to the said defendants could not be served. The service thereof was endorsed to the Office of the Clerk of Court (OCC) and ExOfficio Sheriff, Third Judicial Region, Regional Trial Court (RTC), City of San Fernando, Pampanga per letter of the Branch dated 15 May 2018. However, in a letter dated 25 June 2018, the same was returned to the Branch as it appears that OCC, RTC, San Fernando Pampanga had no jurisdiction over the given address of defendants. Hence, plaintiff filed its Ex-Parte Motion for the Issuance of Alias Summons dated 10 July 2018 praying that the summons be served upon defendants’ resident agent, Rodrigo Berenguer & Guino Law Offices. The same was withdrawn in open Court on 26 March 2019.

liability is already established by preponderance of evidence. The concept of “preponderance of evidence” refers to evidence which is of greater weight, or more convincing, that which is offered in opposition to it, at bottom, it means probability of truth.21

Said amount is still subject to 6% interest from date of extrajudicial demand until full satisfaction. As stated by the Supreme Court: Thus, in the absence of any stipulation as to interest in the agreement between the parties herein, the matter of interest award arising from the dispute in this case would actually fall under the second paragraph of the above-quoted guidelines in the landmark case of Eastern Shipping Lines, which necessitates the imposition of interest at the rate of 6%, instead of the 12% imposed by the courts below.

VENEZUELA on Saturday locked in the Guinness record for the world’s largest orchestra after thousands of local musicians performed Tchaikovsky’s “Slavonic The 6% interest rate shall further be imposed from the March.” finality of the judgment herein until satisfaction thereof, in The performers were brought together by Venezulight of our recent ruling in Nacar v. Gallery Frames.

For the meantime, the Branch endorsed the service of the ela’s publicly funded “El Sistema” program, which summons to thewas OCC and Ex-Officio Sheriff, RTC, City of Angeles, Note, however, that contrary to FBI’s assertion, we find founded in 1975 and has since providedPampanga, classicalthrough musica letter dated 06 August 2018. Per Sheriff’s no error in the RTC’s ruling that the interest shall begin Return of Summons (Unserved) dated 02 April 2019 of Claude B. to run from August 30, 1991 as this is the date when FBI Balasbas, Sheriff IV, of OCC, RTC, Angeles City, the diligent efforts training to thousands of working-class children. extrajudicially made its claim against FBI through a letter to locate the office addresses of defendants were rendered futile, Gustavo Dudamel, the music director of the Paris demanding payment for its services. hence the summons was unserved.

Opera and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is one of its While defendants may be made liable for the foregoing, they, Plaintiff submitted its Motion for Leave of Court to Effect Service most notable alumni. however, cannot be made answerable for other damages. There of Summons by Publication dated 23 April 2019. In the Order are no factual bases forwarded to support the same. As the 27 May 2019, it was ruled: “I can confirm that this attempt hasdated been successSupreme Court held: ful, congratulations,” an official in chargeWHEREFORE, of deliv- premises considered, let Alias Summons On the matter of the spouses’ prayer for moral damages, together ering the verdict announced on a screenissue during a with the Amended Complaint and annexes the Court holds that aside from their bare allegations, the concerning defendant foreign corporation, Peregrine Spouses Serrano failed to show compelling reason to ceremony at the El Sistema headquarters.Development “You are International Inc., to be served c/o the warrant the award of the same, considering that the filing Securities and Exchange Commission. officially amazing.” alone of a civil action should not be a ground for an award of moral damages the same way that aduring clearly unfounded About 12,000 musicians, including both children and 05 Members In the Order dated July 2019, plaintiff’s for Leave of of theMotion National System of Orchestras of inVenezuela play an civil action is not among the grounds for moral damages.

Court to Effect Service of Summons by Publication was granted. adults who are members of the country’s main orchesattempt to enter the Guinness BookThe of Records largest same holdsfor truethe for their claim orchestra for exemplaryin damages in view of the they failed to prove their tra, the Simon Bolivar, played for the record on filed Novemthe dated world, more 12,000 musicians, atfact thethatMilitary Academy ofentitlement the Plaintiff its Compliance 20 with February 2020 than as regards to moral, temperate or compensatory damages as required the service of the summons and other Army documents to defendants.

Bolivarian in Fuerte Tiuna Military Complex, in Caracas. AFP ber 13.

by Article 2234. Similarly, the Court finds that the Spouses In its Manifestation dated 27 October 2020, it stated among others 22

that publication of the required documents were already made on 13 October 2020.

Serrano are likewise not entitled to attorney’s fees for it is a

Plaintiff submitted its Manifestations with Motion to Declare Defendants in Default dated 21 March 2021. The same was granted in the Order dated 26 May 2021 and it was allowed to

automatic grant of attorney’s fees.23

rule that no premium should be placed on the right CYANsettled MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK to litigate and that not every winning party is entitled to an

WHEREFORE, premises considered, judgment is hereby

Business

A7

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

Stock market weighs rising inflation rate PSEi November 19, 2021

TOP GAINERS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

MARC RLT MB PRMX GLO FERRO PIZZA

LAST PRICE 1.18 0.234 0.43 2.09 3630 3.45 8.94

8 9 10

BCOR CPM PHN

6.44 2.71 16

CHANGE 0.08 0.014 0.025 0.11 190 0.18 0.42

% CHANGE 7.27% 6.36% 6.17% 5.56% 5.52% 5.50% 4.93%

0.29 0.11 0.52

4.72% 4.23% 3.36%

TOP LOSERS 1 2 3 4

KEEPR PHR BSC MG

LAST PRICE 1.69 0.79 0.62 0.163

% CHANGE CHANGE -11.13 -86.82% -0.08 -9.20% -0.05 -7.46% -0.012 -6.86%

5 6 7 8 9

FAF CDC PRIM ABA DITO

0.59 0.75 1.3 0.99 5.16

-0.04 -0.05 -0.07 -0.05 -0.26

-6.35% -6.25% -5.11% -4.81% -4.80%

10

SCC

22.2

-1.1

-4.72%

MOST ACTIVE 1 2

CNVRG KEEPR

VOLUME VALUE (PHP) 43,170,900 1,353,247,735 644,169,500 1,109,809,142

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

MONDE GLO SGP BDO ACEN ICT MBT

33,751,700 108,515 23,236,100 2,312,060 23,347,600 1,405,950 4,700,950

606,467,812 389,885,480 344,468,788 290,582,663 276,454,876 265,587,753 234,230,046

10 URC 1,743,370 Standard

229,226,777

Manila

TODAY

By Jenniffer B. Austria

S

HARE prices are expected to trade sideways this week as concerns about rising inflation rate and a possible interest rate hike continue weigh on the market.

Analysts said investors worry over the surge in the inflation rate that may continue early next year due to high oil prices and global logistics problem, although the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas kept rates unchanged last week to support the growth of the domestic economy.

First Metro Investments Corp. head of equity research Mark Angeles said in a recent forum inflation and interest rate risks

Vietnam tourist island Phu Quoc reopens with big hopes

By Tran Thi Ha And Alice Philipson PHU QUOC, Vietnam—Tour guide Lai Chi Phuc has been counting down the days until travelers return to the white-sand beaches and thick tropical jungle of Vietnam’s Phu Quoc, a once-poor fishing island pushing to be Asia’s next holiday hotspot as pandemic restrictions ease.

On Saturday, around 200 South Koreans touched down on the island, which lies a few kilometers off Cambodia in the azure waters of the Gulf of Thailand, after a vaccine passport scheme kicked off this month in Vietnam.

Among the arrivals was Tae Hyeong Lee, who was returning to the island for a third time and keen to make a beeline for the beach.

“It’s wonderful to be here. This is my first time traveling out of South Korea since the pandemic started,” he told AFP. But others may skip the lazy beach break in favor of action and entertainment as they shuffle between a 12,000room hotel complex, an amusement park, 18-hole golf course, casino, safari park and miniature Venice.

The $2.8-billion leisure resort, part of the “sleepless city” model, opened six months ago as COVID-19 ravaged tourism across the world—and as other Asian countries reliant on the industry, like Thailand, were rethinking their mass tourism frameworks.

For 33-year-old Phuc, who remembers a poverty-stricken childhood where “everyone wanted to escape Phu Quoc,” the island’s growing popularity gave him a way to return home after years of scratching out a living as a salesman in the nearby cities of the Mekong Delta.

“But it’s a pity also,” he told AFP, lamenting the loss of the island’s palm-fringed beaches to resorts.

Flood of plastic Ahead of Saturday’s reopening, staff

NOTICE OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’ MEETING To All Stockholders: Please be advised that the annual meeting of stockholders of BRIGHT KINDLE RESOURCES & INVESTMENTS, INC. (the “Corporation”) will be held virtually on 15 December 2021 (Wednesday) at 2:00 p.m. To ensure and safeguard everyone’s health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be no physical venue for the meeting. The meeting will be held virtually via remote communication at https://conveneagm.com/ph/brightkindle, with the Chairman of the meeting presiding from Makati City.

The agenda of the meeting is as follows: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

were the major concerns of investors.

While the current high inflation rate is transitory, Angeles said inflation rate may continue to pick up as the economy starts to reopen. Revenge spending by consumers may also contribute to a higher inflation rate.

“Inflation rate may settle higher than range set by the BSP for next year,” Angeles said.

The BSP on Thursday retained its

2022 inflation forecast of 3.3 percent and lowered the 2021 target slightly to 4.3 percent from 4.4 percent.

The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index last week declined 1.4 percent to 7,280.57.

All major counters ended in the negative, led by mining and oil (-3.9 percent), financials (-2.2 percent), holding firms (-1.3 percent) and property (-1.3 percent). Services and industrial sectors also fell by 1.18 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively.

Foreign investors were net sellers for the week by P1.7 billion while the average daily value traded reached P10.9 billion from the previous week’s average of P9.3 billion.

Call to Order Proof of Notice and Certification of Quorum Approval of Minutes of the Previous Stockholders’ Meeting Approval of the Management Report and Audited Financial Statements for the year ending 31 December 2020 Ratification of All Acts of the Board of Directors and Management Election of Directors Appointment of the Independent External Auditor Other Matters Adjournment

For purposes of the meeting, stockholders of record as of 15 November 2021 are entitled to receive notice and to vote at the said meeting. Stockholders intending to participate by remote communication should pre-register at https://conveneagm.com/ ph/brightkindle on or before 5 December 2021. Please refer to the Procedure for Participation and Voting at the 2021 Annual Stockholders’ Meeting (attached to the Definitive Information Statement) for detailed information on participation by remote communication and voting in absentia (electronic voting) or by proxy.

Pursuant to SEC’s Notice dated 16 March 2021, a copy of the Notice of the meeting, Definitive Information Statement, Management Report, minutes of the previous meeting of the stockholders, and other documents related to the meeting may be accessed through the Corporation’s website https:/ /www.brightkindle.com/and PSE Edge.

For any question about the conduct of the virtual meeting, you may refer to the Frequently Asked Questions at https://conveneagm. com/ph/brightkindle or email mdc.bkr@gmail.com Makati City, 19 November 2021

MAILA LOURDES G. DE CASTRO Corporate Secretary * All proxies which have been previously submitted shall remain valid unless revoked.

(MS-NOV. 22 & 23, 2021

Weekly top price gainers were Monde Nissin Corp., which rose 6.6 percent to P18.08, AREIT Inc., which advanced 6.1 percent to P47.75, and Globe Telecom Inc., which climbed 5.9 percent to P3,630.

Weekly top price losers were DITO DME Holdings Corp., which dropped 18.5 percent to P5.16, Converge Information and Communications Technology Solutions Inc. which declined 11.9 percent to P31.25, and Nickel Asia Corp., which slipped 9.8 percent to P5.02.

Meanwhile, European stocks fell Friday along with the euro as Austria announced a new partial lockdown to try to curb surging COVID cases, which also triggered heavy losses for oil prices. AFP

Fed should rush stimulus pullback due to inflation

WASHINGTON—The sharp rise in US inflation even as the labor market rapidly improves means the Federal Reserve should remove stimulus from the economy more quickly, a central bank official said Friday.

The Fed this month began slowing the pace of bond purchases it started early in the pandemic to provide liquidity to the economy, but has expressed caution over when it will increase interest rates even as consumer prices hit a 30-year high.

Fed board member Christopher This photo taken on November 19, 2021 shows an aerial view of part of the Vinpearl Waller said “the rapid improvement leisure complex in Phu Quoc, as the island prepares for its first international tourists in the labor market and the deterioto arrive after a COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine passport scheme kicked off this month rating inflation data have pushed me in Vietnam. AFP towards favoring a faster pace of tapering and a more rapid removal of at Vinpearl resort—where the arrivals Globally popular vacation spots such accommodation in 2022.” are staying—swept beaches, arranged as Thailand’s Phuket have given VietAs the world’s largest economy cutlery on tables and laid out sunbeds. nam something to aim for. has made a rapid recovery from the Others busied themselves painting deliAtkinson took a group of senior Vietdeepest downturn on record, prices cate flowers on conical hats. namese government officials there in have soared due to global supply bottlenecks and shortages, as well as “When we heard visitors were coming 2005—but while Phuket’s vibrant interlabor constraints. back, I was just so excited,” said duty national tourist scene took years to build The annual consumer price index manager Ngo Thi Bich Thuong. up: “Vietnam has a tendency of wanting in October hit 6.2 percent—its highBefore the pandemic in 2019, around to do everything all at once,” he noted. est level in more than three decades five million people, including half a mil“Unfortunately I don’t think there and well beyond the Fed’s two perlion foreigners—mostly from China, was enough attention given to what cent goal.

South Korea, Japan and Russia—holi- would be in the long-term benefit of Prices have “escalated substantialdayed on Phu Quoc. the island,” he added. ly this year,” Waller said, and “deVingroup—the enormously powerPhu Quoc is a UNESCO biosphere respite the highest wage gains in years, ful conglomerate behind the new com- serve—surrounding waters are stuffed with inflation this year has wiped out any plex—is pushing to make the island coral reefs and its beaches were once nesting real wage increase for the average “a new international destination on the spots for Hawksbill and Green turtles. worker.” world tourist map.”

But no nesting has taken place in re“High inflation is painful to AmerTo cater for the tourist boom, 40,000 ho- cent years, the UN body said in their last icans who have little choice about tel rooms have been built, planned or are assessment in 2018. the goods and services they buy for under construction, vice chairman of the The World Wide Fund for Nature everyday living,” he said in a preVietnam Tourism Advisory Board Ken At- (WWF) has warned of “an almost CYAN un- MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK pared speech.

AFP kinson told AFP—“that’s more hotel keys imaginable flood of plastic” that chokes than they have in Sydney, Australia.” rivers, canals and sea life.

Leadership and Sustainability

By Felicisimo Lazaro III ACCORDING to the United Nations Global Compact and Russell Reynolds Associates’ study on the characteristics of sustainable business leadership, sustainable leadership is when leaders of businesses (often CEOs) manage companies with the environment, society, and long-term sustainable development goals in mind. It’s often referred to as PPP, or the triple bottom line: people, planet, profit. Sustainable leaders consider stakeholders (anyone connected to a company from employees, consumers to future generations), not just shareholders (financially invested investors). The study also reiterates that “Sustainability is a leadership imperative. The time to act is now.” The study articulates that for a company to imbibe sustainability successfully, it must start from the top― the CEO and C-level leaders. The message must come from the most influential people in the organization to promote the company’s vision.

The business landscape is ever-changing―different challenges and opportunities arise. Our world is now facing a lot of uncertainties and challenges that threaten to debase the quality of life as we know it. Climate change, waste, pollution, poverty, hunger, viruses and diseases present challenges to everyone, especially businesses and industry. These shifts and changes call for a fundamentally different approach to business management and leadership. Increasing revenue and profitably are not going to cut it anymore. Business leaders must take a long-term view, which considers the economic side of business and the social and environmental aspects.

I have learned that there are eight main behaviors of sustainable leaders. Firstly, they promote its vision by crafting a

long-term strategy that focuses on serving the triple bottom line and developing policies to meet those goals. Secondly, they operationalize CSR, which means they do not stop at one-off projects, but instead escalate it to a level where sustainability becomes part of daily operations. The organization becomes a purpose-driven ecosystem.

Thirdly, they obtain top management support. Sustainable leaders ensure they get buy-in for actions that create visibility. Fourthly, they engage diverse if not all stakeholders and not just shareholders. Fifth on the list is that they empower and develop stakeholders. Building on the fourth behavior, they engage stakeholders and make an effort to strengthen their voice and position. These usually start by letting staff and employees get involved in different initiatives that progress sustainability.

Sixth is that leaders communicate with stakeholders. They support the diverse stakeholder groups they engage with, and they understand and empathize with them.

Seventh on the list of ideal behaviors is they measure performance. They understand that if anything is to be improved, it needs to be measured. Lastly, sustainable leaders set ethical standards. Sustainable leaders are personifications of these standards and values. They lead by example.

I think that outside of leadership and management, we need to consider a few more variables in navigating the world we live in. We live in a fascinating world.

On the one hand, I can’t help but think that this might be the best time to live throughout human history. Think of the internet and how connected we are. We have vaccines and effective medicine― we have increased life expectancy and significantly reduced child mortality.

On the other hand, our future looks very

FELICISIMO LAZARO III

GREEN LIGHT bleak and dreary. Despite the technological advances in food production and water filtration and purification, people are still hungry, and a huge portion of the population has no access to potable water. We are faced with the problem of climate change and the serious depletion of our natural resources.

The other variables that I believe are crucial are (1) technology (2) systems (3) values and (4) education. We need technology and innovation to make products and services we consume more sustainable. It cannot just be about making things faster and more efficient. It should be about making it so that it has less impact on the environment. We need systems that include laws and regulations that will force people and businesses to think about sustainability. The third is values, which arguably is the most important. We need to have principles and standards of behavior that align with sustainability and longevity. Lastly, education, which comes at the heels of leadership. We need to educate people and future business leaders about the importance of underpinning everything we do on the balance or synergy of the three pillars of sustainability: society, environment, and economy.

The author is an MBA student at the Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business, DLSU. He can be reached at felicisimo_ lazaro@dlsu.edu.ph.

The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty, and its administrators.

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

A8

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

IN BRIEF Panay power firm bags Meralco supply deal PANAY Energy Development Corp.

(PEDC) submitted the lowest bid for the contract to supply 70-megawatts to Manila Electric Co. during a competitive selection process or bidding held on Friday.

The Meralco Third-Party Bids and Awards Committee (TPBAC) overseeing the CSP announced in a statement that PEDC offered the lowest total headline rate of P2.9906 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and total levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) rate of P2.948 per kWh. PEDC owns and operates the 164-MW and 150-MW coal-fired power plants in Iloilo City using the circulating fluidized bed boiler technology. PEDC earlier supplied the same capacity to Meralco but the distributor had to conduct another bidding due to a Supreme Court ruling.

TPBAC said the offer was below the reserve prices of P5.0268 per kWh for the headline rate and P3.7898 per kWh for the LCOE rate that were set for the bidding.

TPBAC will now conduct a postqualification evaluation to determine if it should issue a notice of award to PEDC. Alena Mae S. Flores

Synergy Grid bares P0.20 cash dividend SYNERGY Grid and Development Phils.

Inc. announced over the weekend its dividend payout scheme of P0.20 per share.

SGP said in a statement it would pay the dividends amounting to over P1.05 billion on January 10, 2022 to stockholders on record date as of December 14, 2021.

“We are thankful to the investing public for their support since our follow-on offering. We are happy to announce this dividend payout after our follow-on offering; we look forward to a long fruitful partnership with our stockholders,” said SGP chairman Henry Sy Jr., “This dividend payout is proof of SGP’s fulfillment of its commitment with its partner investors. They can be assured that their investment in SGP will contribute to the development of the nation’s sole transmission network and will be used fully by National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to finance its capital expenditure requirements,” added SGP vice chairman Robert Coyiuto Jr. Alena Mae S. Flores

Megaworld eyes P6b from Bulacan project MEGAWORLD Corp. is set to generate P6 billion in revenues from the sale of commercial lots within its 85-hectare township development in Marilao-Bocaue Bulacan.

Megaworld in a statement sent over the weekend it would develop 16 hectares of land in Northwin Global City, which will become the township’s central business district.

Megaworld plans to offer 145 prime shophouse lots with sizes ranging from 250 square meters (sq m) to 550 sq m. and commercial lots from 450 sqm to 750 sqm.

Megaworld said the central business district to be called Northwin Main Street will be masterplanned like New York City’s Fifth Avenue ,where corporate buildings, shophouses, hotels and commercial towers are lined up in pedestrianfriendly streets surrounded by well-curated gardens and parks.

“Since the township is just conveniently located along the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), and just 20 kilometers away from Metro Manila, this will be the nearest business district outside of the capital where companies and businesses can build their shops and offices,” Megaworld executive vice president for sales and marketing Noli D. Hernandez said.

Jenniffer B. Austria

Business

PSE INDEX CLOSING Friday, November 19, 2021 -18.77 PTS. 7,280.57

F

INANCE Secretary Carlos Dominguez III warned that a proposal in Congress seeking to impose a “super-rich” tax on individuals with assets exceeding P1 billion will result in capital flight and aggressive tax avoidance.

Dominguez said in a letter to House Speaker Lord Allan Jay Velasco the proposal outlined in House Bill No. 10253 would defeat the purpose of generating more revenues. He said while the wealth tax could initially lead to gains in tax collections, it could also discourage growth and investments in the long haul.

Diminished investments will result in far greater revenue losses and fewer new

jobs to help Filipinos recover from the pandemic, he said.

“There is a risk of capital flight if the wealth tax is passed in the Philippines.

Currently, only four countries continue to implement the wealth tax―Belgium, Norway, Spain and Switzerland. Many countries that had wealth taxes before ended up repealing the said measures particularly because of the increased capital mobility and access to tax havens in other countries,” Dominguez said in the letter.

Under HB 10253, individuals with taxable assets that exceed P1 billion should pay a 1-percent tax, while a tax of 2 percent is imposed on taxable assets over P2 billion and 3 percent for over P3 billion.

Dominguez said while the measure was intended to improve the progressivity of the country’s taxation and generate more revenues for medical assistance and social programs, especially at this time of pandemic, he could not support the bill because it would likely scare away investors.

He said the bill was not consistent with

the current thrust of the government to attract more investments, as evidenced in the passage of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Law, which reduced the corporate income tax to bring in more foreign capital, encourage innovation and expansion of domestic enterprises and generate more jobs.

The proposed wealth tax will also discourage businesses from undertaking less profitable and riskier ventures that are beneficial to the public, Dominguez said.

Even when they generate low or even negative profits during the start of their operations, they will still be subject to tax liabilities because of the high capital value of their assets, he said.

Dominguez cited a study in Germany showing that wealth taxes could have a significant adverse impact on economic activity by stunting economic growth, investment and employment. According to the study, wealth taxes reduce income from wealth and savings, so potential taxpayers will tend to invest or save less.

The Department of Public Works and Highways increases its efforts to improve the transport logistics and mitigate vehicular traffic congestion in Davao City with the construction of a 2.3-kilometer two-tube mountain tunnel. Acting DPWH Secretary Roger Mercado (fourth from right), Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa (third from left), DPWH Undersecretary and chief implementer of ‘Build, Build, Build’ projects Emil Sadain (fourth from left) and other officials of DPWH and Japan International Cooperation Agency witness the start of the tunnel excavation works.

PNOC EC weighs options on Udenna-Shell Malampaya transaction THE sale of the 45-percent stake of Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. in the Malampaya gas project to the Udenna Group of businessman Dennis Uy has not reached its final stage, state-run PNOC Exploration Corp. said over the weekend.

PNOC EC, which has the right of first refusal over the deal, said in a statement the board was still studying its options.

“The statements of our detractors saying that this is a done deal is entirely false and at the same time, it belittles the efforts of our board of directors and officers who have put numerous options on the table, making sure that there is sufficient

evaluation to make certain the best choice emerges, not just for the company, but most importantly, for the energy security of this country and the Filipino people,” PNOC EC said.

Shell Petroleum N.V. in May signed an agreement with Malampaya Energy XP Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of Udenna, to sell its shareholding in Spex.

The Shell Group agreed to sell its 45 percent in the Malampaya gas project to Udenna, led by businessman Dennis Uy, for $460 million. Udenna through UC Malampaya Philippines in 2019 acquired Chevron Malampaya LLC’s 45-percent interest in Service Contract 38, or the Malampaya gas-to-power project.

22,068,160,949.46 66 127

UNCHANGED

49

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2021

DAVAO TUNNEL.

By Alena Mae S. Flores

2,110,235,384 115,172

TOTAL VALUE ADVANCES DECLINES

F OREIGN E XCHANGE R ATE

Proposed wealth tax likely to spark capital flight—DOF

By Julito G. Rada

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES

PNOC EC, a state-owned company, holds the remaining 10 percent in SC 38.

“It is against this backdrop that we want to assure the public, our partners, and our stakeholders that we have stringent control measures and systems in place to make certain that we come up with a sound business decision particularly to this transaction, and that we will fulfill our mandate to help sustain the growth of the economy and the social well-being of our nation,” PNOC EC said.

The officers and board of directors of the company earlier denied claims that they failed to exercise their mandate by not acquiring the stake of Chevron Malampaya.

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

50.3030

Japan

Yen

0.008754

0.4404

UK

Pound

1.349200

67.8688

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128391

6.4585

Switzerland

Franc

1.079914

54.3229

Canada

Dollar

0.793651

39.9230

Singapore

Dollar

0.737246

37.0857

Australia

Dollar

0.727900

36.6156

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652379

133.4226

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266603

13.4109

Brunei

Dollar

0.734538

36.9495

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000070

0.0035

Thailand

Baht

0.030703

1.5445

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

13.6969

Euro

Euro

1.137300

57.2096

Korea

Won

0.000846

0.0426

China

Yuan

0.156615

7.8782

India

Rupee

0.013484

0.6783

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.239234

12.0342

New Zealand

Dollar

0.703500

35.3882

Taiwan

Dollar

0.035989

1.8104 Source: BSP

Globe slams calls to probe ‘roadblocks’ to mobile switch

By Darwin G. Amojelar GLOBE Telecom Inc. criticized PLDT Group’s call for a probe in the mobile number portability “roadblocks” and advised its rival to focus on improving its business to make it more relevant to the market.

“We only have 2,000 I think who would been even interested in the [MNP] service,” Globe president and chief executive Ernest Cu said.

He said the MNP has no impact on its operations, adding that the service “doesn’t really matter.”

Cu’s statement came after PLDT and Smart president Al Panlilio urged telecom regulators to investigate “roadblocks” in the implementation of MNP. Smart earlier complained of delays from Globe in the implementation of MNP, which took effect on Sept. 30.

“Maybe they should look at the improving the plans, promos they offer to make them more relevant in the market and that way they get better results from the marketing campaign,” Cu said.

PLDT chairman Manuel Pangilinan earlier described the group’s market capitalization as undervalued, lagging behind rival Globe.

PLDT’s market capitalization stood at P366.86 billion as of Nov. 19, lower than Globe’s P459.6 billion.

Pangilinan attributed Globe’s upbeat market cap to the “halo” effect of the valuation of GCash, after parent firm Mynt raised $300 million from investors.

The transaction solidified Mynt’s status as the Philippines’ only unicorn, and as one of the leading fintech companies in Southeast Asia.

Pangilinan said the market has yet to appreciate the value of PayMaya, which made a lot of progress this year.

“They have to improve their narrative and say where the growth will come from. Clearly, PayMaya has made much progress this year and the idea is to catch up in value with how Globe has done this year,” Pangilinan said.

Anti-corruption group urges UN agency, contractor to deliver free internet project

HANDWASHING FACILITY. Manila

AN ANTI-CRIME and corruption watchdog asked a United Nations agency and its foreign contractor to explain the termination of phase 1, or half of the P1.36-billion government project, that will provide free internet access in remote communities across the country.

The Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption said the first phase of the Free Wifi project for 350,000 residents of the so-called geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas turned into a “scattered wasteland of expensive satellite equipment, vulnerable to vandalism and disrepair.”

VACC president Arsenio Evangelista, in a letter dated Nov. 4, 2021, asked the United Nations Development Program to set things straight and immediately address the problem, saying it is a “critical matter of nationwide public interest.”

Evangelista, in the letter to UNDP resident representative Dr. Selva Ramachandran, remind-

Water Foundation and Clark Water Corp. donate a hand washing facility to Clark Development Corp. CDC health and sanitation division manager Dr. Clemencita Dobles (center) thanks MWF executive director Reginald Andal (right) and CWC general manager Christina Cruz for the donation.

ed the agency of its commitment to deliver free internet connectivity to the ‘remote and underserved areas” in the country.

“Despite the difficulties, UNDP will continue to work to reach last mile sites, in line with our mandate to leave no one behind, here in the Philippines, as well as across the world,” the VACC leader quoted the UNDP as saying in its website posting.

Evangelista also called the attention of UNDP project contractor Speedcast Inc., an Australian telecom company, to explain the alleged violation of Customs rules on importation and taxation of its telco equipment.

Evangelista said the Department of Information and Communications Technology in 2018 signed a financing agreement with the UNDP, providing for the turnover to the UN agency full authority over the P1.36-billion “Free WiFi in Public Places” project funded by the Philippine government.

ERC issues resolution lifting moratorium on issuance of licenses to retail electricity suppliers THE Energy Regulatory Commission issued a resolution revoking the moratorium on the license issuance to retail electricity suppliers.

The regulator issued Resolution No. 9 series of 2021 dated Nov. 17 revoking Resolution No. 17 series of 2014 and suspending the issuance of RES licenses following a Supreme Court order.

It said the lifting of the moratorium would allow contestable customers to choose their own suppliers.

Eight RES, with 265 contestable customers, are expected to file for the renewal of their respective licenses within the year.

“These customers shall be left without a supplier and may be exposed to the higher prices of the supplier of last resort should the ERC fail to issue RES licenses,” the ERC said.

The Supreme Court recently declared as void the issuances of the ERC and Department of Energy pertaining to the manda-

tory compliance to the retail competition and open access rules.

RCOA allows power consumers to choose their own power suppliers as mandated by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001.

The SC granted the consolidated petitions seeking to void DOE Circular 201506-0110 and ERC Resolutions 5, 10, 11 and 28 series of 2016 in relation the implementation of RCOA. Several groups including the Philip-

pine Chamber of Commerce and Industry alleged that the DOE and ERC issuances which had been the subject of a temporary restraining order issued in February 2017 are unconstitutional and go against consumers’ “power of choice”.

The issuances required large power users or those with consumption of 500 kW and above to sign contracts with any of the 23 ERC-licensed RES under the stipulated deadlines.

Failure to comply would result in disconnection from their respective distribution utilities.

ERC Resolution 11 imposed restrictions on distribution utilities and retail electricity suppliers and prohibited DUs from participating as suppliers in the contestable market and gave local retail electricity suppliers three years to wind down their business. It also barred them from entering into new retail supply contracts. Alena Mae S. Flores

Sports

36ers go 3-0 in pre-season NBL games as Sotto sits

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22 2021

B1

By Argie Paul Candare THE ADELAIDE 36ers scored a comeback win against the Tasmania JackJumpers, 82-80, in the National Basketball League in Australia as their Filipino player Kai Sotto rested in his second straight game.

Dusty Hannahs had 19 points, three rebounds and four assists for the 36ers, while Daniel Johnson supported 17 points.

Down by 21 after the opening quarter (12-33), the 36ers rallied back in the second half, completely dissolving the first-half domination of the opponent.

The JackJumpers ultimately had a chance to steal the win after a split by Todd Withers, but Josh Magette’s long three came up short, concluding the game in Adelaide’s favor.

The 7’3” Sotto, who debuted in the first preseason game of the squad, was out due to soreness as per announcement by the team.

Adelaide clashes again with the Perth Wildcats Friday.

Bolts replace Muhammad THE Meralco Bolts are tapping Tony Bishop as their reinforcement this coming Gover nors’ Cup, replacing f irst choice Shabazz Muhammad.

Muhammad was unavailable due to personal reasons, while the Bolts’ residentimport Allen Durham had a prior commitment in Japan.

Bishop, a national team player for Panama, previously played in Puerto Rico for Mets de Guaynabo.

The 32-year-old forward averaged 19.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists there.

The Bolts are seeking a revenge campaign after coming up short in the 2019 Governors’ Cup, losing to Barangay Ginebra in the finals in five games.

Argie Paul Candare

SEED 8. NorthPort’s Jeepy Faundo tries to maneuver his way against Ginebra’s Denice Villamor in the knockout stage of the PBA 3x3 Lakas Ng Tatlo on Sunday. The Gin Kings won, 21-16, in the battle between the third best teams of Pools B and C to clinch the 8th seed in the quarterfinal round.

Obiena denies not paying coach, threatens to retire L

By Peter Atencio

EGENDARY pole vault coach Vitaly Petrov on Sunday denied allegations that he has not received any payment from Tokyo Olympian Ernest John Obiena for his services since 2018.

Petrov confirmed this in a letter to the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association president Philip Ella Juico, a dispatch he wrote after Obiena was accused by the association of falsifying liquidation reports and failing to turn over payment to him.

“I have no complaints against him.

Ernest is an outstanding athlete of your country. And my purpose is still to make a world-known athlete of EJ,” said Petrov after he presented his letter during a zoom conference with Filipino scribes Sunday night.

Both Obiena and Petrov denied the accusation from the PATAFA, which recently formed a committee to look into the claim that the pole vaulter’s camp failed to turn over an amount meant for his Ukrainian coach.

In that demand letter, the

PATAFA ordered Obiena to return around EUR85,000 (over P4.8 million) in financial assistance given to him by the Philippine Sports Commission through the athletics’ association.

Obiena said he has been hurt by the accusations and the probe being done by a fiveman committee, headed by Felix Tiukinhoy.

“The only thing I own is my reputation and it has damaged my reputation,” said Obiena, who is now contemplating of retiring from Ernest John Obiena: The only thing I own is my reputation and it (accusation) has damaged my reputation.

the sport.

The 24-year-old Obiena said he has filed complaints before the Philippine Olympic Committee, the International Olympic Committee and World Athletics over this matter, adding that he has intentions to pursue legal action for the matter.

Obiena has also asked the PATAFA to withdraw the investigation on its accusations and issue a public apology.

The 6’2” Obiena added that he is now considering the option of immediate retirement from the sport “that I love the most.”

For now, Obiena feels that the accusations have affected his preparations and training for future international events.

“As much as I believe that there’s more to me to achieve, I’m also evaluating myself in a way that I may or may not disclose. I will not continue to operate under this kind of situation. I am unable to focus and train properly with this hanging on my head,” said Obiena.

Obiena said he is not an accountant, so he has asked an auditing firm, Price Waterhouse Cooper to take care of his financial paperworks.

The other day, Juico sent Obiena a dispatch, demanding Obiena to return to the Philippine Sports Commission and the PATAFA the amount which represents coaches’ fees that the association said was not paid to Petrov.

Djokovic in a bind as Aussie Open requires vax jab TURIN—Novak Djokovic refused to reveal whether he would defend his Australian Open title after the tournament’s chief confirmed on Saturday that only vaccinated players would be able to take part in the first Grand Slam of the season.

The decision, revealed by Craig Tiley, piled more pressure on world number one Djokovic who has refused to reveal if he has been inoculated.

“We’ll see, we’ll have to wait and see,” Djokovic said to reporters after losing his ATP Finals semi-final against Alexander Zverev.

“I haven’t been talking to them (the tournament organisers), to be honest. I was just waiting to hear what the news is going to be, now

that I know, we’ll just have to wait and see.”

Melbourne, where January’s Grand Slam is held, has spent more than 260 days under lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic and the government of the state of Victoria made clear last month there would be no concessions for unvaccinated players.

Tiley said the playing group know they must get the jab to compete in the Australian Open, but that he would “love to see Novak here” and attempt to win a record 21st Grand Slam title at Melbourne Park.

Zverev, who was effusive in his praise of Djokovic after winning an exciting match in Turin 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 6-3, also said that he hoped his friend

would be Down Under.

“Look it’s a very tough one because it’s very political,” said Zverev.

“We are visiting another country, this is about the virus that is going around right, this is not about a tournament or tennis, this is we are visiting another country.

“If the country is allowing us to enter we need follow the rules and follow the guidelines. I hope he’s able to play.

“I’m number three in the world so if he doesn’t play it’s easier to win the tournament but also he’s number one in the world so he should be able to play. Hopefully the Australian government will make an exemption.”

Novak Djokovic

Figure skater Celestino ranks 22nd in Warsaw Cup FIGURE skater Edrian Celestino settled for 22nd place in the 2021 CS Warsaw Cup early Saturday (Manila time) at the Arena COS Torwar in Warsaw, Poland The 23-year-old Celestino tallied a total 117.08 points in the two-day event, won by defending champion Sota Yamamoto of Japan.

Yamamoto retained the top honors with 247.65 points, while Daniel Grassl of Italy (242.96) and Petr Gumennik of Russia (242.91) wound up second and third, respectively.

Performing to the tune of “In This Shirt by The Irrepressibles” in his short program, Celestino got 66.58 points, which bettered his personal best of 65.1 he set last year in the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in South Korea.

The result added to Celestino’s score of 110.5 points in the free skates, where he usually does his routines to the tune of “You & Me”by Aron Wright or “You” (Piano & Strings) by Future of Forestry.

The 2021 Warsaw Cup served as part of the 2021-2022 International Skating Union Challenger Series happening from September to December.

The eighth and final event, the 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, is slated from December 8 to 11 in Croatia.

Philippine Skating Union president Nikki Cheng said Celestino still managed to hold his ground against the world’s best.

Peter Atencio

Unbeaten Crawford stops Porter to keep WBO title

WBO champion Terence Crawford (right) punches Shawn Porter during their welterweight title fight at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Crawford retained his title with a 10th-round TKO. AFP

LAS VEGAS—Unbeaten Terence Crawford made a successful defence of his WBO welterweight title on Saturday, stopping Shawn Porter by knocking the challenger down twice in the 10th round in Las Vegas.

Porter’s father and trainer, Ken, surprised the crowd at the Mandalay Bay casino by stopping the fight after the second knockdown to hand the 34-yearold Crawford his ninth-straight victory inside the distance.

“I was just the better man today,” said Crawford, who improved to 38-0, with 29 wins by knockouts. “I figured him out in round one. I figured I had

the reach and that he had to take chances to get in.

“He was trying to maul and push me back but I used my angles to push him back as well.”

Crawford initially felled Porter with a left uppercut on the button that buckled his knees early in the 10th.

It was all over at 1:21 of the round, when Crawford’s overhand right to the side of the head sent Porter to the canvas for a second time, prompting his father to climb the steps and ask referee Celestino Ruiz to halt the contest.

Porter got up from the second knockdown and appeared to be

ready to continue, but his father felt he had enough, saying later his son was fighting “blindfolded.”

“He didn’t prepare like I wanted him to prepare,” Ken Porter said. “It is like fighting this guy blindfolded when you are in a deficit like that.”

Shawn Porter, who dropped to 31-4-1 with 17 KOs, didn’t argue with the decision.

“I didn’t expect it but we have an understanding of that. (Crawford) was catching me clean and my timing was a little off,” he said.

Crawford said it was just a matter of time before he or the referee was going to end it.

“I saw in his face that he was re-

ally hurt. His dad did right thing.

I was coming with vengeance,” said Crawford, who is now 16-0 in world championship fights.

The fight was close through the first nine rounds with both fighters suffering cuts over their eyes due to accidental head butts. Their corners did a good job of stopping the bleeding between rounds so the fighters could continue.

Fighting blindfolded Porter was the more aggressive fighter from the outset and won several of the early rounds.

In his usual style, he came at Crawford like a pit bull, exerting pressure and trying to cut the ring off so he lands combinations. AFP

B2

Sports

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

Chooks-to-Go MPBL referees to undergo FIBA refresher course

Peng Shuai

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai reappears at public event PEKIN, China —Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai appeared at a Beijing tennis tournament Sunday, according to official event photos, after international pressure mounted for information about her wellbeing.

Peng can be seen in a navy sports jacket and white trackpants at the Fila Kids Junior Tennis Challenger Finals, according to photos published on the official Weibo account of the China Open —her first public appearance since her sexual abuse accusations were widely censored on the Chinese internet.

The two-time Grand Slam doubles champion had not been seen publicly since alleging earlier this month that former vice premier Zhang Gaoli, now in his 70s, “forced” her into sex during an on-off relationship spanning several years.

Following a global outcry, including from tennis superstars and the United Nations, Chinese state media reporters have released a flurry of footage purporting to show all is well with Peng.

A video from the event, tweeted by Global Times newspaper editor Hu Xijin, shows Peng standing in a stadium among a group of guests whose names are announced to a smattering of applause.

A Global Times reporter tweeted another video showing Peng signing autographs for children at what appears to be the same stadium before posing for photos with them.

Hu also posted two other videos on Saturday, the first showing Peng walking into a restaurant wearing a coat, knit cap and face mask.

A visible sign says Beijing Yibin Guesthouse, a famous restaurant a stone’s throw from Tiananmen Square, owned by the Sichuan local government.

In the second, Peng is maskless sitting at a table chatting with people over a meal.

AFP could not verify the authenticity of the videos.

Hu tweeted in English that the second video shows “Peng Shuai was having dinner with her coach and friends in a restaurant. The video content clearly shows they are shot on Saturday Beijing time.”

The conversation revolved around “tennis matches”. A man sitting with Peng and two women said “tomorrow is November 20th”.

But one of the women quickly corrects him, saying, “It is the 21st”, implying that the video was filmed on Saturday.

The chat appears to be staged. It was filmed in the evening hours with a mobile phone. Peng appears relaxed in the footage.

‘Insufficient’ Peng’s claims against Zhang were the first time China’s #MeToo movement has touched the highest echelons of the ruling Communist Party.

They were quickly scrubbed from the Twitter-like Weibo platform, and concerns have grown for her safety since.

Of the restaurant videos, Women’s Tennis Association boss Steve Simon said he was glad to see the images but “it remains unclear if she is free and able to make decisions and take actions on her own, without coercion or external interference.” AFP

Kim Keana Dy and Aby Marano in action

F2 mauls Baguio to stay unbeaten L

IPA CITY—F2 Logistics pulled off a dominant 25-12, 25-10, 25-6 win over Baguio City to remain unbeaten in the Philippine National Volleyball Federation Champions League on Sunday at the Aquamarine Recreational Center.

Kim Kianna Dy made 13 points for the Cargo Movers, who needed only 72 minutes to improve to 2-0.

The Lady Highlanders dropped to their second straight loss.

Baguio City couldn’t find an antidote to F2 Logistics’ strong start in each set, allowing coach Ramil de Jesus to shuffle his vastly-talented roster.

“We gave the other players exposure—just in case we’ll need them in future matches,” said De Jesus, whose team faces PetroGazz on Monday. “At least I see who I can get to in certain times.”

One of them was Ara Galang, who as a second set starter produced two service aces that pushed the Cargo Movers to an 8-1 start.

“I know where Ara came from. If you don’t know as a player, it’s so hard

for the coaches to know what to expect from her right now. Time will come when she’ll show what she can offer,” De Jesus said.

Galang, who finished with five points and two digs, is trying to bring the old form that made her a fan favorite at De La Salle.

“I’m taking it one game at a time, day-by-day. I’m focused on what I can contribute the team team,” Galang said.

“I just stayed focused, not only every game day. I need to trust myself.”

F2 Logistics sent 14-0 in the third set but Baguio City got its first point on substitute setter Rem Cailing’s service error.

Cailing scored all of her seven points from the service zone, while Majoy

Baron chipped in six points for the Cargo Movers.

De Jesus is looking forward to their 4 p.m. Monday match against the Angels in the tournament that has Rebisco, Pitmaster Foundation Inc., Top Speed, 1Pacman Partylist, Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Olympic Committee as platinum sponsors and F2 Logistics, Asics, PLDT, MVP Sports Foundation and Mikasa as gold sponsors and BCDA, Philippine Red Cross, Lipa City, Davis Paint and Emerald PVC Pipes, Fittings and Doors as silver sponsors with PNVF godfather, Taguig Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano, chairman of the Champions League, giving his full support.

“We need to be ready against PetroGazz. They have a deep rotation,” De Jesus said. “We need to see their weakness.”

The games are live streamed over the PNVF official website volleyballphilippines.com, iWantTFC for local and international audiences, Puso Pilipinas and Smart Sports Facebook pages and YouTube channels and Gigaplay.

WITH just 21 days before the Chooks-to-Go Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Invitational tournament opens its curtains, the referees that will officiate the games were given a FIBA-endorsed refresher course.

The 26 referees that will compose the pool were formed by Chooksto-Go Pilipinas technical head Hector Villanueva—himself a FIBAlicensed referee.

And he invited a good friend in Liberato Valenzuela to serve as the speaker for the orientation held at the Prestige Tower Roofdeck in Pasig City on Saturday evening.

Valenzuela is an honorary FIBA member and a FIBA Rules Contributor. He has recently retired from officiating.

“By the time mag start tayo we will be 110% ready,” said Villanueva.

“Magpapatuloy kasi ang physical conditioning namin like kanina nag drills and exercises tayo sa Victoria Sports.

And we also plan to hold regular meetings para lalong maging malinaw sa ating mga referees ‘yung mga bagong set of rules ng FIBA that will apply to the games sa Invitational.”

“Actually na-touch kami sa sinabi ni Comm. Kenneth (Duremdes) na hawak namin ang integrity ng liga.

We will make sure na maayos ang officiating sa liga,” he continued.

It also served as a course for the officials about certain new rules in the FIBA rulebook, which includes stricter enforcement for double fouls, windows for technical fouls, and instant replay.

“We reassure the viewers na magiging maganda ‘yung games natin lalo na sa officiating,” said Duremdes. “‘Yung integridad and professionalism kasi ng liga talagang nakasalalay sa good officiating and alam ko naman na our referees and technical officials are up to the task.

“This is also in line with the direction ng ating league founder [Manny Pacquiao] kaya wala akong duda na magiging maayos ang lahat.”

San Juan City zeroes in on FilBasket crown San Juan City’s Rhenz Abando goes for a layup during Game 1 of their best-of-three finals against AICC Manila in the FilBasket Subic Championship at the Subic gym Saturday. The Knights won, 80-74, to move a win away from the title.

SAN Juan City stepped up in the crunch to turn back AICC Manila, 80-74, and draw the first blood in their best-ofthree finals of the FilBasket Subic Championship at the Subic gym Saturday.

The Knights unleashed a 10-1 run with 4:29 left courtesy of Renato Ular, Larry Rodriguez, Alvin Abundo and Jhonard Clarito to grab the 7568 lead for good from a 66-65 deficit.

The feat not only avenged San Juan’s 75-69 eliminations defeat to Manila last Nov. 15 but also put the Knights a win away from clinching the crown.

Former University of Santo Tomas playmaker Rhenz

Abando, who will suit up for Letran in the next NCAA season, fired 17 points on a sixof-nine field goal shooting to steer San Juan, while skipper Orlan Wamar chipped in 12 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Rodriguez added 10 points on top of seven boards while Clarito contributed nine points, 11 rebounds and three assists.

San Juan, who booked a finals berth after surviving Davao Occidental, 85-84, in the knockout semifinals Friday, started hot by pulling away from a 15-14 opening quarter lead to 40-29 at the half.

Manila, however, sizzled

in the third with a 30-18 blast spearheaded by Chris Bitoon and Hesed Gabo to grab the 59-58 upperhand entering the fourth.

The Knights refused to be intimidated with Abando steering the crew and Ular and Rodriguez stepping up in the pivotal stretch.

Gabo and Bitoon finished with 22 and 15 points for Manila, but San Juan proved too much to handle.

San Juan also banked on its bench led by Abando, Rodriguez and Ular by scoring 49 points.

Game 2 of the finals is on Sunday with the Knights aiming for a sweep.

FESSAP names Fabro as delegation head for 2022 Chengdu Universiade

By Graham C. Lim MEMBERS of the Board of Trustees of the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines has designated businessman-sports patron Edwin C. Fabro as the country’s Head of Delegation to the 2022 Summer Universiade (World University Games) to be held in Chengdu, Sichuan province of the People’s Republic of China on June 26 to July 7 next year.

The choice was easy as Fabro is currently FESSAP President. Earlier, the FESSAP Executive Committee recommended him to the association’s Universiade Preparation and Monitor Committee, chaired by Prof. Robert Milton Calo, who is also the FESSAP Executive Vice President.

Alvin Tai Lian, the FESSAP Chairman of the Board, confirmed Fabro’s designation during a zoom online meeting with the majority member of the Board of Trustees.

A well-known sportsman-philanthro-

pist in the Chinese-Filipino Board as the Philippines’ Flag community, Fabro is an Bearer to the Chengdu Uniexecutive member of versiade. This will be the the Federation of Filipifirst time for Tai Lian as no Chinese Chamber of a flagbearer.

Commerce and Industry The following are Inc. the members of the The FESSAP has regFESSAP National istered with the Chengdu Secretariat: Cecil Universiade Delegation Sarmiento, Raquel Services in its intention to Lim, Antonio Quiza, field athletes in archery, athFructuso Raytos, Joseph letics, badminton, swimming, Sy and Romulo Raytos. table tennis, taekwondo, lawn ten- Tai Lian The International University nis, wushu, and gymnastics.

Sports Federation (FISU), the Instead of eight events, the organizer of the Summer Unicountry will now participate in nine versiade, together with the Executive events with the addition of gymnastics.

Committee of the Chengdu 2021 FISU The deadline for submission of events World University Games, has decided entries was October 26, 2021. to host the Heads of Delegation MeetThe search continues for the positions ing online due to the current global of Deputy Head of Delegation, Delega- COVID-19 pandemic and international tion Officials, a Team Leader for each of travel restriction. the nine competition events that the FESAn invitation will be sent to the FESSAP is taking part in.

SAP and the online meet will take place Tai Lian was also confirmed by the on February 28, 2022.

The FESSAP National Secrestudent-athlete is to excel in an tariat will assign two repreinternational sports competisentatives to attend the ontion. We support them all line meeting. Whatever the little way as the FESthe pertinent discussions SAP envisions the youthand reports from the ful athletes to be our fumeet will be forwarded ture national leaders as to Fabro and the FESwell,” he added.

SAP Board of Trustees.

For Fabro, “There are Held biennially, the no shortcuts to success.

FISU-sanctioned UniIt’s the same principle I versiade is an Olympicshave applied in my busitype competition among the ness. It is all about hard work best university athletes around Edwin C. Fabro and dedication in your craft, the world. A record of 185 and the sporting arena is no countries are affiliated with different.” the FISU. The following Members of the FES“It’s a great honor for me to head the SAP Executive Committee that nomiPhilippine delegation to such a presti- nated Fabro, were Graham C. Lim gious international sports event, such as as Chair, Prof Robert Milton Calo as the Universiade,” said Fabro.

Co-Chair, Atty. Maria Luz Arzaga“Only a few have been given that Mendoza, Corporate Secretary Cecil title and that opportunity. I am deep- Sarmiento, JC Clarito of Student-Athly honored. Though it will be a big, letes Union (SAU), Red Dumuk of NSA big challenge, we hope to do well in Affairs, and Joseph Sy of the Coaches Chengdu. The dream of every Filipino Committee.

Entertainment Smart has turned over Smart Bro Prepaid Pocket WiFi Advance kits for use at all the participating McDonald’s Classrooms across the country.

Smart powers 250 McDonald’s Classrooms nationwide BUILDING on the success of their partnership last year, leading mobile services provider Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) is once again supporting McDonald’s Philippines in its initiative to turn 250 unused party rooms in select branches into McDonald’s Classrooms – safe and quiet spaces where teachers and students may conduct their virtual classes and meet their online learning needs.

To ensure they can connect to fast and reliable internet for their e-learning, Smart has turned over Smart Bro Prepaid Pocket WiFi Advance kits for use at all the participating McDonald’s Classrooms across the country. This year’s program also adds 200 more branches to last year’s figure to cater to more users.

Powered by Smart Bro Prepaid Pocket WiFi Advance, teachers and students may enjoy twice the speed of regular LTE Pocket WiFi devices because of a feature called Carrier Aggregation, which enables the device to combine multiple signals from different cell sites for a much faster and more reliable connection. The device also connects up to 10 WiFienabled devices for easier sharing and worry-free surfing among multiple users.

Started last Oct. 11, McDonald’s Classrooms will run until Dec. 3 to cater to fully-vaccinated teachers and students aged 18 years and above.

To ensure the safety of users, only two teachers or students are allowed to use the free service at two available timeslots: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday. Each user also needs to reserve a slot at participating branches.

To know more about McDonald’s Classrooms’ guidelines, visit https:// mcdonalds.com.ph/ mcdoclassroom.

“We are grateful to Smart for their continued support of our McDonald’s Classroom initiative. Through Smart’s provision of Pocket WiFi, we are able to better serve and equip the teachers and students with their distance learning,” said Oliver Rabatan, Assistant Vice President for Marketing and Channels of McDonald’s Philippines “We are honored to continue our partnership with McDonald’s Philippines in this initiative to set up conducive spaces for teachers and students. This is just one of the many community programs we’ve been happy to support especially during these challenging times for educators and learners. As we transition to a hybrid work and learning setup, we shall continue to look for more ways to provide Filipinos with world-class connectivity to power their daily tasks at work or school,” said Jane J. Basas, SVP and Head of Consumer Wireless Business at Smart. Read full story on manilastandard.net

Nickie Wang, Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

B3

Characters don darker shades in ‘The World Between Us’ season return P

Dinna Bonnevie finds her character very caring in the first part of the story.

In the next installment, the senior actress ICKING up where interprets Rachel Cruz-Libradilla as someone who changes priorities and it left off, romantic becomes stricter as a person at the drama The World same time.

“She becomes more cunny because Between Us, headlined by she starts to feel that the people around Alden Richards, Jasmine her are hiding a few secrets. She begins to investigate and eventually Curtis Smith, and Tom becomes wiser. She also becomes Rodriguez, returns with more intrusive in the lives of people who matter to her,” she says. bolder characters and a more Jasmine Curtis Smith sees growth in her character, but it’s not intricate plot. A big change the kind of growth audiences might in the story, if you will. expect from her who has been too naïve since the beginning of the story.

Talking to Manila Standard “Unfortunately, her character will Entertainment, program manager Anthony take a sad direction. Lia aims to become Pastorpide describes its season return as mature and be her own woman because of the sudden change in her life. She will almost achieve that kind of maturity but the chance will be taken away from her. She’ll be a bit lost and will kind of surrender. How she’ll bounce back is something that I’d like the audience to see, if that will still happen in the story,” she says describing her character.

Meanwhile, Alden Richards’ character as Louie has already been described as someone who takes a bolder route.

“Louie is no longer a pushover. He’s really changed and for him, it’s like payback time. We’ll see an interesting character arc for him. And I thank the people behind the series for doing a great The romantic drama centers on the love story job. I would like to stick to what I said Tom Rodriguez in a dramatic moment as previously that this is so far my best TV of Alden and Jasmine’s characters.

Bryan. explosive where viewers will witness the evolution of the main characters and the people surrounding them.

“It’s a total unraveling, and it’s the culmination of all the elements introduced before the season break. This will be the point where we will see the development of each character. Everyone in the story has an important story to tell especially the lead characters — how their lives are intertwined and how [the story] will end,” Pastorpide shares.

For Tom Rodriguez who plays Brian, it’s going to be a natural continuation of his charterer’s disposition, conflict, and selfish point of view.

“He always feels that he’s being slighted by the people he loves. He will find a pocket of people who will fuel the kind of hatred that he feels. Things are getting worse for him and the stakes are getting higher,” he shares.

Showbiz royals THE fascination with these two showbiz royals Kris Aquino and KC Concepcion continues.

But why are they considered ‘royals’ to begin with?

With Aquino, the last name speaks in volumes, a family name that has so much history, affluence, connection, and responsibility.

Concepcion, on the other hand, is the firstborn daughter of the Mega Star and considered as one of the last Philippine movie queens Sharon Cuneta and the forever heartthrob Gabby Concepcion.

That’s quite easy to explain, too.

How do we measure the ‘royalty value’ of Kris Aquino? Well, the bizarre love triangle between AJ Raval, Kylie Padilla, and Aljur Abrenica immediately became yesterday’s news, when at the height of the supposed triangle entanglement, Aquino dropped in her social media accounts, her relationship status — from being single to being engaged to Mel Sarmiento.

The whole of showbizlandia and the general public’s collective jaw dropped with the bomb from Kristina Bernadette, who for the longest time, had nothing but romantic flops and heartaches.

Aquino, finding the man of her dreams

in the person of Sarmiento — who undoubtedly a sneak peek at her rainbowhappens to be accomplished, well-bred, colored way of living.

KC has a jewelry line. And the and educated, emotionally healthy, and secure – gets the approval she truly manner she promotes it, she makes it an aspirational item that one must possess to deserves from the public.

Their fast food joint date where Aquino be able to have that stamp of “chi-chi” was dressed to the nines in a turquoise- approval from the discriminating set. hued dress and Read full story on manilastandard.net Sarmiento in an elegant barong Filipino, made it to the headlines and gave Kris Aquino the majority (left) and KC reasons to smile Concepcion for days.

With regard to the ‘royalty worth’ of KC, it’s all over her Yo u Tu b e vlogs. It is

Janella is Valentina in ‘Darna’ series

Janella Salvador makes a TV comeback as Valentina in the TV series version of ‘Darna.’

DARNA has found her villain. ABSCBN named Janella Salvador as the actress who will play the role of serpent queen and supervillain Valentina in the upcoming Darna: The TV Series. #TheValentinaReveal, which streamed live on ABS-CBN Entertainment YouTube channel and Facebook page on Friday (Nov. 19), introduced Janella as the lawyervlogger Regina/ Valentina, who is cursed with venomous snakes for hair and will become the archenemy of Pinoy superheroine Darna played by Jane De Leon.

The series’ director, Chito S. Roño, handpicked Janella from the talented artists who auditioned for the soughtafter role.

Darna is the big TV comeback of Janella who was last seen in the hit series The Killer Bride, which paved the way for her to be hailed as Princess of Philippines Television in the 2020 Box Office Entertainment Awards.

Fans can expect an exciting, hairraising battle between Darna and Valentina for the fight between good and evil.

Salvador joined the Darna cast and

crew, who started filming for the much-awaited series this week in the ABS-CBN Soundstage and nearby areas. Apart from De Leon and Salvador, the show will also star Iza Calzado, Joshua Garcia, Zaijian Jaranilla, Rio Locsin, Kiko Estrada, and many others. It is one of ABS-CBN’s biggest offerings for 2022.

Alden Richards takes a grey character as Louie in the season return of ‘The World Between Us.’

project,” he says.

Directed by Dominic Zapata, The World Between Us also stars Jaclyn Jose, Kelley Day, and Sid Lucero.

The season return features the special appearance of Ricky Davao. Watch it tonight on GMA-7.

Entertainment app for every Filipino POPTV Philippines, the first all-Pinoy streaming app in the country, further expands its services to cater to the streaming needs of more Filipinos nationwide with the upcoming launch of POPTV Kids and POPTV Trip.

POPTV Kids, which became available starting Sunday (Nov. 21), is the first allkids programming on mobile streaming specifically catered to Filipino kids ages 3 to 10.

“We are the first SVOD platform in the country to offer this kind of all kids programming especially now that we don’t get to see much kids content on free TV. Here, our children can enjoy different pre-school and kids content absolutely for free even without subscriptions, and the best part, everything is dubbed in Filipino.

This will surely give them more fun and more relatable viewing experience,” said POPTV COO Jackeline Chua.

POPTV Trip, meanwhile, is the first intransit streaming service in the country that will be made accessible to the commuting public via special POPTV buses.

“Data consumption has always played a vital role in the overall experience of users of any streaming service especially here in the Philippines. That is why POPTV came up with a technology that will make things easier for our customers as we give them all access to our app absolutely for free while on board these buses. POPTV Trip is just the beginning and we will continue to find ways to expand and improve user access to POPTV,” said CEO Jyotirmoy Saha.

Leading the roster of Filipinodubbed kids shows on POPTV Kids is the International Emmy Kids Awardsnominated pre-school show Tish Tash, which will broadcast for the first time ever in Philippine territory. Also airing for the first time are George of the Jungle, The Journey of Long, Ella Bella Bingo, Tilda Appleseed, and The Kids from Seagull Street, which are all co-produced by Saha and Chua via their respective animation companies August Media Holdings and Synergy88 Entertainment Media. Read full story on manilastandard.net

Thai BL series on PopTV app are dubbed in Filipino for local viewers to enjoy.

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

B4

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2021

Life

Pintxos paired with San Miguel Super Dry

FOOD

Don’t put ice in your beer, wine

Moist Chocolate Cake in Sweet Red Dark Ganache paired with Cerveza Negra

And other tips, food pairings to up your holiday feast at home

By Bernadette Lunas

B

EER is best served cold, but not too cold that it affects its flavor and not too warm that it tips the bitterness balance.

“Serve the beer at the right temperature, ideally 6-9 degrees Celsius. Beyond that will outweigh the balance of the bitterness, going lower can numb your tongue and the taste will not come out as good as it would at 6-9 degrees,” advised Alan Sienes, brewmaster at the largest beer producer in the country, San Miguel Beer.

But warm weather and changing temperatures can be a challenge for both the drinker and the host to enjoy and serve beer at its best flavor, so many Filipinos’ solution is to add ice, which Sienes does not recommend unless “you have no choice”.

“Chill the beer before you drink it,” he suggested.

“These beers,” he said, “were perfectly blended so the serving temperature gives you the best experience. It might change if you put ice; you’re also diluting the beer.”

San Miguel Foods Culinary Center (SMFCC), together with Sienes and other food and drinks experts from Ginebra San Miguel, Inc. (GSMI) and Wine Brothers Philippines, offered during a virtual event food pairing suggestions and tips for home entertaining in the holiday season.

within a bubble of safety,” said SMFCC head Chef Llena Tan-Arcenas. “Entertaining should not be difficult, all you need is good quality dishes matched with good quality drinks.”

Drinks highlighted, of course, included San Miguel beers – particularly Cerveza Negra, Super Dry, and Premium All-Malt Beer – to showcase how “beer generally matches with all kinds of food”. SMFCC and GSMI also introduced the next best thing in gin – the new 1834 Premium Distilled Gin made with classic juniper berries infused with calamansi and Sampaguita flower.

Dishes, meanwhile, featured San Miguel Foods’ brands Magnolia, Purefoods, and Monterey.

For the five-course food pairing, Chef Viboy Miranda of SMFCC played with contrasting and complementary flavors to bring out the best in each dish.

“The balance of flavor is important,” said Chef Viboy. “Combining different flavors will level up your food game – [for example] salty and sweet complements acidic flavors, salty and sweet tempers bitterness, creamy food tempers spiciness.”

Food pairings to try

Starting off the five-course meal presented were pintxos paired with San Miguel Super Dry. The pintxos were made of crostinis with two kinds of spreads: Cheese and Pimiento made with Magnolia Milky White Cheezee Spread and topped with Magnolia Milky White Cheese and green olives, and Roasted Garlic Butter made with Magnolia Gold Butter and topped with Purefoods Chorizo Bilbao Style.

Explore and experiment “A clean, crisp flavor profile like San Miguel with flavors “Holiday home entertaining is a good activity Super Dry tends to complement bold and complex to be enjoyed once again with family and friends flavors well,” according to SMFCC.

Gin Chicken Confit on Squash-Potato Mash and Balsamic Drizzled Green Pea Puree paired with Woomera Sauvignon Blanc

Mini Beef Wellington paired with The 1834 G&T (gin and tonic) Cocktail

Cream Cheese and Spinach Tortellini Style in Beetroot Beurre Blanc Sauce paired with Sweet Lemony Martini

Ginebra San Miguel Premium Gin was paired with Cream Cheese and Spinach Tortellini Style in Beetroot Beurre Blanc Sauce made with Magnolia Gold Butter, Magnolia Full Cream Milk, red onion, beetroot, and Ginebra San Miguel Premium Gin. The second dish was accompanied with Sweet Lemony Martini – one of Ginebra San Miguel Premium Gin’s classic cocktail recipes that GSMI’s mixologist Tabitha Rice made using gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and ice.

Chef Viboy’s Gin Chicken Confit on Squash-Potato Mash and Balsamic Drizzled Green Pea Puree was served with Woomera Sauvignon Blanc, a light and vibrant wine, which winemaker Mike Davies said was a good fit for the Philippines’ hot and humid weather. Speaking of weather and temperature and putting ice in your drinks, Davies recommends drinking white wines at 5-12 degrees Celsius and red wines at cooler than room temperature.

The light herbal notes from the chicken marinade (1834 Premium Distilled Gin and a blend of

herbs and spices) is best highlighted by a dry wine with a similar light and delicate flavor profile.

Different flavors came together in SMFCC’s Mini Beef Wellington paired with the 1834 G&T (gin and tonic) cocktail.

The dish was made of baked Monterey Beef Tenderloin covered in a layer of Purefoods Honeycured Bacon and mushroom duxelles wrapped in a golden puff pastry. It was served on a bed of greens and beer gravy, made with San Miguel Super Dry and Magnolia All Purpose Flour. Cutting through the intense mushroom flavor and salt from the bacon was Rice’s gin and tonic with dried ginger slices and peppercorns.

Finishing off the meal was the rich and sweet combination of Moist Chocolate Cake in Sweet Red Dark Ganache and Cerveza Negra – a decadent brew that features a unique caramel flavor that becomes more apparent when paired with desserts. The cake was made using Magnolia’s Devil’s Food Cake Mix infused with Woomera’s Sweet Red Wine.

Cebu’s ‘dampa’ is coming to town Along with the opening of the Maca- want to try the restaurant’s bestsellers, the CEBU’S favorite lechon, Rico’s Lechon is making its way to more locations in pagal branch on the 23rd, Rico’s Le- Lechon Boodle Feasta (P650) is the flagLuzon, offering its bestsellers and new chon will begin serving in its Manila ship meal good for two. branches two new offerings, Boodle Palayok Hotpot comes in eight variedining concepts.

Ti Feasta and Palayok Hotpot. ties: Seafood and Vegetable, Chicken Tibig Opening on Nov. 23 is the brand’s big( nowa, Fish Tinowa (tanigue gest branch to date at Blue Bay or seasonal fish available), Walk in Macapagal, Pasay.

Fish Tinowa (salmon), In an effort to share the ( Fish Sinigang (tanigue), Cebu culture with the Fish Sinigang (salmon), rest of the country, the Lechon Pork Bone branch will offer the Bu Soup, and Beef Buprovince’s version of lalo. dampa – sugba, tuwa, Each variety is kilaw or STK. available in mediRico’s STK can accommodate a total of Rico’s Lechon Boodle Feasta Set (good for two) and Boodle Feasta Set 3 (good for 9-12 pax) um and large sizes, good for four to 160 people in its indoor Boodle Feasta is a complete meal eight diners. For P580 to P1,100, patrons can dining, al fresco, and VIP areas. Also soon to come is the Merkado (palengke in for two to 12 consisting of rice, veg- dig into a Filipino-style shabu-shabu.

Following the Macapagal branch, Cebuano), the branch’s paluto area com- etables, choices of sauces, Rico’s leRico’s Lechon Circuit Makati will open plete with an aquarium design. Guests chon, and seafood.

It is available in four sets: Set 1 (P750) on Dec. 4. For pre-order and delivery, can also shop for fresh seafood at the resserves two to four people; Set 2 (P2,500) contact its Fulfillment Center at 0917taurant’s Merkado shop.

The new branch will also have its can feed five to eight; Set 3 (P3,500) is 814-7648 / (02) 7799-0810 or the Blue good for nine to 12 pax; and for those who Bay Walk branch at 0917-847-7541. own lechon roasting area.

RECIPE FILES

Cool hotdog snack KIDS love of hotdogs goes beyond the way they are cooked – fried, grilled, or boiled and they are a hit. But for moms (and dads) looking for new ways to serve this beloved meaty and tasty snack, Mekeni offers #MomApproved recipe featuring its Picnic Hotdog.

Ingredients: 6-8 pcs.

1 liter 1 cup

Corndog Mekeni Picnic Hotdog oil Japanese breadcrumbs thick BBQ sticks tall drinking glass (narrow)

Mekeni Picnic Hotdog’s corndog

of the ingredients until well incorporated and free from lumps. Set the mixture aside.

2. Prepare the Mekeni Picnic Hotdog pieces by peeling off the casing, skewering them on BBQ sticks, and patting them dry.

For the batter: 3. Heat the oil in a frying pan using medium heat. Pour 1 cup all-purpose flour the corndog batter into the drinking glass while waiting for 1/4 cup granulated sugar the oil to heat up. Tip: If you do not have a narrow drinking 1/2 tsp salt glass, dip the hotdog into the bowl and slowly spread the 1/2 tsp baking soda batter on the hotdog with a spoon.

1 tsp baking powder 4. Pour the breadcrumbs on a plate and roll the hotdogs 1 pc. egg until fully covered.

1/4 cup water 5. Slowly slide the battered hotdogs into the oil and fry 3 tbsp oil until golden brown.

6. Drain and place on paper towels and serve. Serve with Procedure: 1. To make the batter, mix flour, granulated sugar, salt, ketchup and/or mustard.

More recipes are available on Mekeni’s Facebook page. baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl and add the rest

Uncle Saba’s Poppadoms featured at Malaysia Fest in Robinsons Supermarket.

Festival highlights

Malaysian convenience food

IN THE recent Malaysia Fest at Robinsons Supermarket on Oct. 30 to Nov. 15, the Trade office of the Malaysian Embassy featured its country’s convenience food brands.

According to officials, Malaysian convenience food items are halal-certified (passed Islamic dietary laws and food preparation), healthy, and affordable.

“Malaysia offers halal-certified foods that cater not only to Muslims.

People who are looking for hygienic food will find them in our brands. A company can not receive a halal certification unless they get approval from HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point),” said Siti Azlina, trade commissioner of the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation.

Malaysia’s booming urban population has driven the demand for hasslefree food and drinks that complement fast-paced lifestyle, including frozen products, instant sauces, beverages, and packaged snacks.

Some of the popular Malaysian food items include Chek Hup coffee and milk tea, and Old Town Coffee whose founders discovered white coffee by experimenting with different beans and roasting procedures and mixed them with condensed milk.

Uncle Saba’s Poppadoms is a ready-toeat version of the classic papadam, deep-

Old Town White Coffee is one of the popular Malaysian food brands in the Philippines.

fried bean flour doughs. Kawan (“friend” in Malay) offers pastry shells and wraps.

SoyFresh’s Hershey’s Chocolate is available in several variants. Sun Soya comes in handy sachets for 3-in-1 coffees and its popular matcha latte.

For snacks, biscuit company Hwa Tai has been popular for its Luxury Cheese and Tiramisu crackers; Mr. Potato, Malaysia’s top potato chips brand, is known for its density and crunch; and Vochelle and Alfredo chocolate brands pride themselves on using premium ingredients.