Manila Standard - 2022 February 26 - Saturday

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HUGE ILOILO CROWDS FOR BBM-SARA NEWS / A2 The UniTeam of Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte-Carpio greets thousands of supporters during a proclamation rally at Tamasak Arena, Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo. Photos by Ver Noveno

Rody still won’t back any prexy bet

VOL. XXXV • NO. 16 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 •SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

By Alena Mae S. Flores and Maricel V. Cruz

P

UMP prices will go up for the ninth consecutive week, with gasoline expected to hit P80 per liter, and no end in sight to the inflationary spiral triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has already driven world oil prices north of $100 a barrel.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said Friday he is not yet backing any candidate to succeed him in the May 9 national elections, unless a “compelling reason” urges him to do so.

In an interview aired on state television, the President -- whose daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio is running for vice president -- said he would like to stay neutral as much as possible.

“I may or I may not but preferably, I would like to stay neutral. It means I will not support any candidate. Unless there will be a compelling reason for me to go out or tell the people what it is,” Duterte told Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar.

“I’d like to bide my time, I am not in a

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Oil price jolt: P80/liter No end in fuel cost shock amid Ukraine crisis

Industry sources said the projected increase of 80 centavos per liter for gasoline next week is based on Thursday’s world price movement and could still increase further.

Friday’s trading could still raise the estimate, one source said.

Based on data from the Department of Energy, gasoline (95 RON) is now at a high of P75 per liter and diesel at P66 per liter in the National Capital Region.

On Feb. 22, the oil companies raised gasoline prices by P0.80 per liter, diesel by P0.65 per liter, and kerosene by P0.45 per liter. These resulted in year-to-date net increases of P8.75 per liter for gasoline, P10.85 per liter for diesel and P9.55 per liter for kerosene.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has Next page

COSTS OF WAR. A Ukrainian military medic approaches the bodies of Russian servicemen wearing Ukrainian service

uniforms lying beside and inside a vehicle after their raiding party were shot during a skirmish in the capital of Kyiv on February 25. Below shows a wounded woman outside a hospital after the bombing of the eastern Ukraine town of Chuguiv on February 24, as Russian armed forces attempt to invade Ukraine from several directions. AFP

BREAKTHROUGH: RUSSIA-UKRAINE TALKS UP MOSCOW—The Kremlin on Friday said President Vladimir Putin was ready to send a delegation to Belarus for talks with Ukraine, as Russian forces approached Kyiv on the second day of Moscow’s invasion.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian leader was “ready” to send a high-level delegation “for talks with a Ukrainian delegation”

to Belarusian capital Minsk, which has previously hosted rounds of peace talks over the Ukraine crisis.

He said Putin’s ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, told him that he would “create the conditions” for such a summit.

This developed as the European Union has agreed to freeze European assets linked to Putin and Russian Next page

Ukraine president cries for combat aid, decries slow West response DFA evacuates peans with “combat experience” to take up arms and defend Ukraine against invading Russian forces, adding KYIV—Ukrainian President Volody- the West was too slow to help his myr Zelensky on Friday called on Euro- country.

By Dave Clark and Dmytro Gorshkov

His dramatic call for help came as Russian forces were approaching the Ukrainian capital, with some units reportedly reaching the city’s

northern suburbs.

“If you have combat experience in Europe and do not want to look at the indecision of politicians, you can come Next page

37 Pinoys from Kyiv to Poland

By Rey E. Requejo and Macon Ramos-Araneta

Duterte calls on Filipinos to uphold spirit of EDSA

By Vito Barcelo PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Friday urged Filipinos to emulate the heroism and compassion of those who symbolize the “true essence” of the EDSA People Power Revolution during the 36th anniversary of

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THE Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday said 37 Filipinos in Ukraine are now being transported out of its capital, Kyiv, as part of the Philippine government’s repatriation efforts following Russia’s invasion of its European neighbor.

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New alert level in NCR known this weekend

By Willie Casas

EDSA AT 36. Confetti rains on the monument of the EDSA People Power Revolution for the 36th anniversary of the uprising, led by Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano and National Historical Commission of the Philippines commissioner Reinere Policarpio. Danny Pata

THE COVID-19 alert level in the National Capital Region starting March will be known either on Saturday or Sunday, an official of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said Friday.

Interviewed on ANC, MMDA officerin-charge and general manager Romando Artes said presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles will make the announcement.

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News

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Huge Ilonggo crowds for BBM-Sara a minuscule and forgettable 4.05 percent,” the video narration said.

The Kalye Surveys showed that of the 4,343 respondents from the three continents of Asia, North America, and Europe, Marcos was preferred by 3,812 or 87.77 percent.

In Barotac Nuevo, among those who attended the event were incumbent Iloilo Reps. Braeden John Biron (4th district, NP) and Janette Garin (1st district, NP) – the Health Secretary under the administration of the late President Benigno Simeon Aquino III. Another congressman, Rep. Raul Tupas, joined the grand rally. Passi City, Iloilo Vice Mayor Jesry Palmares, the Lakas-CMD provincial chairman, also attended the grand rally.

Mayor Duterte is the Lakas-CMD chairperson.

Senatorial candidates under the UniTeam ticket who attended the grand rally were Sherwin Gatchalian, Herbert Bautista, Rodante Marcoleta, Robin Padillla, Jinggoy Estrada, and Mark Villar.

Another Senate hopeful, Harry Roque, sent a recorded message.

The festive atmosphere Thursday was further ramped up by a surprise performance from Padilla, who sang “Pagsubok” by Orient Pearl in a duet with actress-host and Tingog party-list nominee Karla Estrada.

Padilla, himself a movie star, then sang “Wonderful Tonight” by Eric Clapton solo.

Celebrity Toni Gonzaga, a known BBM-Sara supporter, also came out to sing “Roar” by Katy Perry.

Marcos Jr. continues to expand his message of unity as more supporters welcomed him in Iloilo province during his second-day visit to Western Visayas on Thursday.

Marcos and Duterte visited Tamasak Arena in the Municipality of Barotac Nuevo where more than 10,000 supporters were wearing red and green T-shirts, all happy to see the UniTeam.

Everyone shouted “BBM” when the host asked the supporters who were they waiting for. Cheers seemed to be non-stop as everyone was excited to see the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) standard-bearer.

fast-disbursing financing,” Malpass said, adding that the World Bank and IMF were coordinating to monitor the impact of the Russian aggression.

Meanwhile, energy players said the Russian attack on Ukraine puts the spotlight on the country’s dependence on imported fuels.

“There is no overnight solution to reduce oil prices in our country.

The only way to do that is to reduce our dependence on imported oil by exploring more domestic sources of oil and gas and transition to electric vehicles in the years to come,” Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on energy said.

AC Energy Corp. (ACEN) president and chief executive officer Eric Francia said in a forum the volatilities and uncertainties caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine “emphasizes the need for energy independence and security especially for a country like the Philippines.”

“It raises the question of more investments on indigenous sources, be it oil and gas resources… or renewable energy,” he said.

Gatchalian said oil prices go up because consumption of oil increases as economies open because of the rapid decline of COVID-19 cases.

He said the higher price trend is aggravated by the uncertainty created by the invasion by Russia, which is a major oil and gas supplier in the world market.

“Even if Russia is not a supplier of oil and gas to the Philippines, the global supply disruptions will cause oil prices to escalate in the short to medium term,” Gatchalian said.

Gatchalian called on the government to implement the Pantawid Pasada (PP) subsidy for public utility drivers by using e-wallets to deliver cash instantaneously.

He also urged the government to extend PP to food transporters by using ewallets as well.

Gatchalian said DOE should formulate contingency plans in case of supply disruptions and monitor global oil prices closely, which may escalate in months to come due to uncertainty.

Transport groups, meanwhile, called for fare increases as their fuel costs rise.

In the House, Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda proposed a five-point plan to respond to the threat of rising oil prices amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“Russia accounts for 12 percent of global oil supply, on top of 24 percent of natural gas supply, whose absence will also have substitution effects on oil prices,” Salceda said.

“Although it is not very likely that Russian oil exports will be severely restrained, still expect some near-term oil price hikes at the very least,” Salceda added.

He outlined his five-point plan.

“First, we need to draw a line in the sand in terms of the fuel excise tax. If crude oil prices are still at US$100 by March 15, President Duterte should call for a special session to consider options for the reduction or suspension of the fuel excise taxes under the TRAIN Law.” “The most fiscally sensible option is, at the very least, to reduce the oil excise tax at a level that is equivalent to what we will gain in VAT to prevent the government from going further into already elevated deficit levels,” Salceda said.

“Reducing fuel prices at a level equivalent to VAT gains would already result in a P2.06 reduction in gasoline prices, P2.34 in diesel prices, and P2.89 in kerosene prices,” Salceda said.

“Second, the government should open all public transportation options to full capacity immediately. This will help lower transport costs for those who are forced to take private cars due to the lack of available alternatives after the COVID-19 restrictions.

It will also lower our consumption of fuel,” Salceda added. With AFP

“Decisions were made but as the usual protocol, it will be Secretary Karlo Nograles who will announce the decision probably by Saturday or Sunday because there are some guidelines being finalized before the proper announcement,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) recorded another 1,671 fresh cases of COVID-19 on Friday, slightly low-

er than the 1,745 new cases reported on Thursday based on the latest case tracker.

This is the seventh consecutive day of new cases below 2,000, with the country logging its lowest daily cases for this year at 1,019 on February 22.

Artes said he attended the Thursday meeting of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF), where the metrics to qualify for de-escalation to Alert Level 1 have been adjusted.

Despite the changes, he said the NCR is still good for the lowest alert level classification, saying Metro Manila was

“already qualified.”

Secretary Eduardo Año of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) echoed this Friday, as the IATF is set to finalize the metrics for areas that will be downgraded to Alert Level 1.

Based on the metrics, Año said the NCR is qualified to be downgraded from Alert Level 2 but the question on the region’s readiness for the major shift remains as some sectors raised concerns this may cause another COVID-19 surge.

Duterte also vowed Friday that he would protect every Filipino’s right to vote this coming May by ensuring a fair and honest elections, adding he would treat friends and hurry,” he added. foes equally by staying “neutral.”

Duterte said that if “the interest of the “Even with (Defense Secretary people is at stake,” he would be “forced” Delfin) Lorenzana, we talked straight to give a name. yesterday. That this election under me “Until now I have yet to decide wheth- would be without fear-mongering, voteer or not to support a candidate. At this buying, but you cannot hide that,” the time nobody is in my mind, actually.” chief executive told Andanar.

Duterte added that he also asked law enforcement authorities to uphold the Constitution in “producing a clean and honest elections,” warning politicians who would plan otherwise.

“I will be neutral, and the military and the police will see to it that the Constitution, mandated by the Constitution upon their shoulders, will produce clean and honest elections,” he said.

Last year, the President said he would

call on the military to ensure that the rule of law would be implemented in the upcoming elections.

Duterte’s longtime aide, Sen. Christopher Go, had filed a certificate of candidacy as the substitute standard-bearer of a different party, the Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan (PDDS).

In December though, Go withdrew from the presidential race, leaving Duterte without an anointed successor.

By Maricel V. Cruz and Rey E. Requejo

S

OMETHING big usually goes down whenever Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) presidential candidate former Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte of Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD), link up on the campaign trail.

This was again the case late Thursday when Marcos and Duterte joined each other for the BBM-Sara UniTeam grand rally at the Barotac Nuevo football field in Iloilo.

A sea of red shirt-clad supporters served as the foreground of the Saint Anthony of Padua Church while the stage occupied by the UniTeam ticket glowed in green light.

The turnout of people was impressive to say the least, since Iloilo is considered opposition territory, the BBM-Sara camp said in a statement.

“The grand rally was very successful.

We will work hard to ensure UniTeam candidates’ victory,” said former Iloilo 4th district Rep. Ferjenel Biron, who is running for Congress and is provincial

chairman of Nacionalista Party (NP), who also introduced Marcos to the roaring crowd.

Meanwhile, PFP standard-bearer Marcos Jr. is the preferred presidential bet of nine out of ten Filipinos abroad, according to Kalye Surveys conducted in different parts of the globe.

Based on the data in Pulso ng Pilipino, a summation of the different realtime, real man on the streets surveys conducted from October 2021 to January 31, 2022, Marcos is the unanimous choice of Filipinos all over the world, with a preference rate of 84.77 percent.

“This means that he is the preferred presidential candidate of nine out of ten Filipinos abroad. Second place VP Leni Robredo has a global preference of

Ukraine...

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Oil...

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to our country and join us in defending Europe, where it is very necessary now,” Zelensky, who appeared tired, said in a video.

Speaking on the second day of the attack launched by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Zelensky also asked Europeans to “demand from your governments that Ukraine receive more financial, more military aid.”

The 44-year-old leader also said the West was in no hurry to help Ukraine against the Russian invasion.

“How are you going to defend yourself when you are so slowly helping us in Ukraine?” he said. “State institutions in Europe are not in a hurry with really strong decisions.”

An advance party of Russia’s invasion force left a trail of damage in its wake as clashes erupted inside Ukraine’s capital Kyiv for the first time, amid rising fears the city is about to be stormed or come under siege.

Pedestrians ran for safety as small arms fire and explosions erupted in the Obolonsky district in the city’s north.

The larger blasts could be heard in the city center, where residents endured a first tense night under curfew and the sounds of bombing.

Eyewitnesses said they saw corpses of what looked to be two dead Russian soldiers near the truck, but the Ukrainian military, who were inspecting the wrecked car, did not allow Agence France-Presse to come closer.

Ukrainian forces fought off Russian invaders in the streets of Kyiv as Zelensky accused Moscow of targeting civilians and called for more international sanctions.

Pre-dawn blasts in Kyiv set off a second day of violence after Russian President Vladimir Putin defied Western warnings to unleash a full-scale invasion on Thursday that quickly claimed dozens of lives and displaced at least 100,000 people.

The United States and its allies responded with a barrage of sanctions, but the Russian forces looked to press home their advantage after a string of key strategic victories in their air and ground assault.

“Horrific Russian rocket strikes on Kyiv,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba posted on Twitter after the initial explosions were heard in the capital Friday morning. AFP

yet to verify reports that some gas stations are charging over P100 per liter, but industry sources said pump prices tend to be higher in small islands because of abusive dealers.

“In some islands like Tablas, Polilio or even Boracay it’s happening. There is abuse because there is not much choice.

Consumers suffer because there is no supply,” one industry source said, requesting anonymity.

The leaders of the World Bank and IMF signaled Thursday they were ready to help Ukraine, while warning that Russia’s invasion will have repercussions for the global economic recovery.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said she was “deeply concerned” about the fighting’s impact on the people of Ukraine and cautioned in a tweet that the conflict “adds significant economic risk for the region and the world.”

The International Monetary Fund continues to assess the economic impact but will “stand ready to support our members as needed,” she said.

The Washington-based crisis lender is in the process of deploying $2.2 billion in assistance to Ukraine under a loan program set to end in June.

Georgieva has said the fund could provide aid to other countries affected by any spillover effects of the conflict, if needed.

World Bank President David Malpass said in a statement the Washingtonbased development lender “is horrified by the shocking violence and loss of life,” and warned that “the devastating developments in Ukraine will have farreaching economic and social impacts.”

“We stand ready to provide immediate support to Ukraine and are preparing options for such support, including

New alert...

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Rody...

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Duterte...

From A1 the movement that toppled the Marcos dictatorship.

In his message, Duterte said that public servants, community volunteers, and medical front-liners are among those who keep the legacy of the historic movement alive in the present day.

“As we honor the courage and solidarity of those who have come before us and fought to uphold our democracy, let us also honor and thank those who continue to keep alive the legacy of this largely peaceful and non-violent revolution,” Duterte said.

“Let us emulate their heroism, selflessness and compassion as we strive to recover from our present challenges and march forward to a better Philippines for all,” he added.

Breakthrough:...

From A1 Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov over their decision to invade Ukraine, EU officials told AFP on Friday.

The measures were added Friday after being raised in overnight discussions by EU leaders on a new sanctions package that EU foreign ministers from the 27-nation bloc were to validate.

Germany and Italy were hesitant to apply the measure, but most EU countries were in favor of it, two officials said on condition of anonymity.

The asset freeze on Putin and Lavrov was first reported by the Financial Times based on three sources who said neither of the Russians would be subject to an EU travel ban in order to keep diplomatic channels open.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday the new EU sanctions package targeted “the highest officials” in Russia.

Bar exams now always online, says High Court THE Supreme Court on Friday announced that it will continue the holding of all Bar examinations starting 2022 online or in a computerized format.

The High Court made the decision after the successful holding of the first-ever online and localized bar examinations in the country that the SC administered last February 4 and 6 for the 2020-2021 law graduates in various testing centers nationwide.

Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo revealed the continuation of all Bar examinations online during the hybrid launching of the Legal Education Advancement Program (LEAP) of the Legal Education Board (LEB) last Thursday, Feb. 24.

“To sustain the momentum of this digital shift, the Court will pursue the conduct of all succeeding Bar Examinations in a computerized format, a long-overdue innovation, to align with our Strategic Plan’s drive towards running all of the judiciary’s adjudicative and administrative systems digitally,” Gesmundo said, in his speech.

He solicited the help of the LEB and the Philippine Association of Law Schools (PALS) “to adopt the necessary change in policies and methodologies as the Court fully transitions to this new platform for administering the Bar Examinations.”

“We suggest a complementary remodeling of pedagogical tools, therefore, to maximize the students’ use of technology in their learning, to better equip our law students with the adaptive skills to prepare them not only for a digitized Bar Examinations but the digital world that they will practice law in,” he stressed. Rey E. Requejo

DFA...

From A1 This came as Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said that he was traveling with other department officials to personally see and ensure the safety of Filipinos at the Ukrainian border.

He also thanked Poland for allowing Filipinos to cross amid the intensified conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola said the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw, which has jurisdiction over Filipinos in Ukraine, rented a bus to transport them to the border of neighboring Poland.

“As of now, there are 37 Filipinos on the road, on the way to Lviv for... repatriation… Our embassy will bring them to Poland,” Arriola said in a press briefing.

The Department of National Defense (DND) on Friday said they were also ready to assist Philippine government agencies in the repatriation of Filipinos from Ukraine amid the attack of Russian military forces.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said they were also closely monitoring the situation, committing to help the DFA in assisting affected Filipinos.

“We are monitoring the situation closely and are standing by to assist our other government agencies led by the DFA in repatriating our citizens from Ukraine, if and when we are called upon to do so,” Lorenzana said in a statement.

“We hope that the situation does not escalate beyond what can still be resolved through diplomacy and the international rules-based order,” he added.

The DFA said free repatriation flights for those who want to return to the Philippines are currently being done through the border of Poland as Ukraine’s airports have been closed.

News

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

IN BRIEF

Defensor seeks to hike enrollees of QC University CONGRESSMAN Michael “Mike” Defensor said he wants to double to 17,000 the number of students enrolled in the local government-run Quezon City University (QCU).

“We want QCU to offer a wider range of bachelor’s degree programs to draw in more students,” Defensor, who is running for Quezon City mayor, said in a statement on Friday.

“Our target is to increase the university’s enrollment by 15 percent every year until we double it,” Defensor said.

Defensor said he envisions QCU producing highly-qualified college graduates who are readily employable, and who can help lift their families out of poverty.

QCU students became eligible for free tuition and miscellaneous fees last year under the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act. “We will form a partnership between the University of the Philippines (UP) and QCU to aggressively develop the latter’s liberal arts education,” said Defensor, a UP alumnus.

“We want QCU to have a strong liberal arts education, so we will hire highly qualified faculty to teach general education courses,” he added.

At present, QCU offers only six bachelor’s degree programs in Accountancy, Entrepreneurship, Early Childhood Education, Industrial Engineering, Electronics Engineering, and Information Technology.

Defensor also vowed to expand QCU’s main campus and its satellite campuses so that students would be able to go to school closer to their homes

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Upgraded airport taxiway opened

SENDING A MESSAGE.

Anti-war artist-activist Avianna Castaño dons a costume inspired by the Russian punk anti-fascist band Pussy Riot as she poses for photographers at the People Power Monument in Quezon City on February 25, 2022, the 36th anniversary of the 1986 EDSA Revolt.

Jimmy A. Domingo

80% survival rate for patients with lymphoma, expert says

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

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ITH aggressive treatment and a combination drugs available, a cancer expert on Thursday said there is an 80 percent of survival rate for those afflicted with lymphoma.

“So one should be happier if diagnosed with lymphoma than any other cancer,” said Dr. Jorge Ignacio, Director of the UP-PGH Cancer Institute.

But still, he cited the importance of early detection of the presence of lymph nodes.

While conceding that is difficult to treat severe lymphoma or Stage 4 of the cancer, Ignacio said one should not lose hope.

“There’s always hope for you. Don’t give up upon yourself,” he said during the Takeda Healthcare Philippines’ vir-

tual launch of “Spot Lymphoma, Stop Lymphoma.”

Takeda medical director Dr. Joy Pabellon said the “Spot Lymphoma, Stop Lymphoma” initiative was launched to answer the call of the government’s National Integrated Cancer Control Act for medical stakeholders to come together and work towards a cancer-free Philippines.

The initiative aims to raise awareness about lymphoma and improve access to lymphoma treatments in the Philippines by providing free testing to patients, partnering with relevant organizations and institutions, and sponsoring talks and seminars to educate the public about the disease.

As part of this initiative, Takeda Philippines has ongoing partnerships with several organizations to improve access to testing and raise awareness about the disease.

One of its recently concluded partner-

ships is with the Philippine Cancer Society, where Takeda Philippines provided support to patients through free CD30 testing to help detect Hodgkin lymphoma.

To date, the partnership has provided free testing to over 60 patients all over the country.

“Rare cancers like lymphoma continue to be a problem due to lack of awareness and information available to the public, which is why patients continue to search for treatment options and support in managing their disease.

With the ‘Spot Lymphoma, Stop Lymphoma’ initiative, we hope to reinforce our commitment in providing access to innovative medicines to lymphoma patients and to address gaps in the areas of screening, diagnosis, treatment and patient support,” said Loreann Villanueva, Country Manager of Takeda Philippines.

THE Manila International Airport Authority on Friday inaugurated Taxiway Charlie, one of the facilities at the country’s premier airport, which was repaired and upgraded to ensure the efficient use of the runway and improve aircraft safety.

MIAA general manager Eddie Monreal said the upgrading of airside facilities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport will make aircraft movement from the runway to the tarmac faster, and can accommodate more arrivals and departures per day.

Monreal said the improvement can also increase the maximum number of aircraft movements in the country’s primary gateway.

“As the man gateway to the country, the NAIA has been catering to millions of passengers locally and internationally,” he said.

The MIAA stated that prior to the upgrading of airside facilities, aircraft traffic onground affected landing and take-off time as many aircraft line up to take-off and land.

With improved taxiways, aircraft can safely exit the runway and open it up for the next arrival and departure flights safely.

The government spent P1.1 billion for the project, which include civil and electrical works. Joel E. Zurbano

BI foils almost 700 trafficking attempts THE Bureau of Immigration has foiled a total of 688 attempts of human trafficking and illegal recruitment in the country’s international ports.

BI commissioner Jaime Morenet called for increased vigilance against emerging schemes employed by trafficking syndicates and illegal recruiters to Filipinos who wish to work overseas.

“Over the years, we have observed the tactics of these illegal recruiters. The victims would usually be given fake documents or fed fake statements, either to work illegally abroad or to attempt to depart for countries with imposed deployment bans,” Morente said.

According to Morente, the warning is aimed at raising awareness on the dangers of human trafficking, especially during the global pandemic.

The BI deferred the departure of a total of 13,680 passengers in 2021.

“In these trying times, Filipinos in dire financial need become easy prey to illegal recruiters who will assure them of lucrative jobs abroad,” he said. Vito Barcelo

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

120 Jesuits underwrite Robredo

Lacson backs ‘fat-free’ ‘22 nat’l budget

By Rio N. Araja

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

OVER 120 Jesuits are backing the presidential bid of Vice President Leni Robredo and her running-mate Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan.

In a statement, the priests said the Philippines’ “collective soul as a people” was at stake in the upcoming elections.

“After assessing each Presidential and Vice Presidential candidate, we endorse Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Kiko Pangilinan,” they said.

“We believe VP Leni and Senator Kiko display the least self interest and are the most capable and morally-credible to promote truth and social justice, protect our democratic principles and freedoms, and pursue our vision as a nation,” they added.

They recognized being part of a society that tolerated incompetence and vulgarity, and said Filipinos have been accustomed to moral decay.

“We acknowledge our complicity in the loss of our collective soul, and we seek conversion,” they said.

They, however, clarified their support for Robredo was an individual decision, and and not as an organizational stand.

Fr. Manoling Francisco of Tanging Yaman Foundation said he had been working closely with the Office of the Vice President in typhoon relief programs.

The international council of the Couples for Christ Catholic lay movement also backed Robredo.

KEEPING the national budget for the coming years fat-free will be crucial in helping the country recover from the effects of the pandemic, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Friday.

He aired his support for the National Economic and Development Authority’s fiscal consolidation plan for the next President, who will start a six-year term on June 30.

“Thank you NEDA. This is what I’ve always been saying during budget deliberations. With a yearly average of P328B unused appropriations for the past 10 years (2010-2020) and P700B in misused/ abused budget each year, there couldn’t be a better advice,” Lacson, who is running for President under Partido Reporma, said on his Twitter account.

Meanwhile, with the downward trend in new COVID-19 cases, Lacson urged Filipinos to become local tourists once again and visit the Philippines’ best spots before choosing to roam abroad.

With many areas reopening to business and majority of Filipinos already having complete doses of the coronavirus vaccine, Lacson said it was a good time to patronize our own country’s tourist spots.

Speaking after his recent two-day visit to Baguio City with running mate Senate President Sotto III, Lacson admitted he himself had not visited some parts of the Philippines. He wishes to discover more of the hidden destinations in the country.

Lacson was referring to the lack of proper planning that led to an average of P328 billion in appropriations in the budget going unused every year from 2010 to 2020 - and corruption that led to the loss of some P700 billion a year, quoting a statement from former Deputy Ombudsman Cyril Ramos.

The NEDA is now crafting the plan to repay the country’s ballooning debt and narrow the budget deficit caused by the pandemic.

Socioeconomic Planning Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon was quoted in reports as saying the plan will include proposed cuts on non-priority budget items.

Isko hoping more bets will join him

By Rey E. Requejo AKSYON Demokratiko standard bearer Isko Moreno Domagoso said he was not discounting the possibility for more senatorial candidates joining his team after former Agrarian Reform Secretary John Castriciones formally joined his slate.

“Why not? We’ll never know. It’s only up to 12 (slots). As long as they help us, they will help us, so why not, especially since me who called on our countrymen to help us and give us a chance and opportunity to serve them,” Moreno told reporters this week during a campaign sortie in Marikina City .

Since the start of the national campaign last Feb. 8, Moreno, his vice presidential teammate Doc Willie Ong and Aksyon Demokratiko senatorial hopefuls Dr. Carl Balita, Samira Gutoc, and Jopet Sison have been on the campaign trail almost six days a week doing motorcades and town hall meetings.

“For us, any help will do. We are really gathering all kinds of support. Endorsement of Juan dela Cruz, endorsement of Maria, endorsement of groups, endorsement of institutions and so on and so forth.

I’m hoping it (would be) soon but you know we have to meet as a team and we will consult each other, then after that we will let you know,” Moreno said.

Ernest Ramel, chairman of Aksyon Demokratiko, said the addition of Castriciones in Mayor Isko’s senatorial line-up was very much welcome and was a concrete indication that more personalities from the other side of the political fence are joining Team Isko.

“Former DAR Secretary John Castriciones is a welcome addition to the team.

He will not only bring his integrity, experience and knowledge in helping out our farmers who are one of those closest to Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso’s heart.

Our standard bearer has repeatedly said that the lack of food security is a threat to national security,” Ramel said.

“In addition, the inclusion of Sec. John is proof of the continued expansion and strengthening of the Filipino people’s support for the Real Solution, Fast Action led

by Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso. #SwitchToIsko is on the rise,” he said.

MORENO SUPPORTERS. Aksyon Demokratiko Presidential aspirant Manila Mayor Isko Moreno is greeted by his supporters at Sunny Brooke 2 Covered Court in Barangay San Francisco, General Trias Cavite.

UniTeam’s Sara won’t attend Comelec-sponsored debate V ICE presidential candidate and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte will not participate in the debate organized by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on March 20, her spokesperson said Friday.

In a text message, Liloan Mayor Cristina Frasco said Mayor Sara’s camp did not receive any formal invitation from the poll body regarding the debate.

“Vice Presidential candidate Sara Duterte and her team have not received any formal invitation from the Comelec to join the debate despite their public announcement of her confirmation to attend the event,” Frasco said.

“Be that as it may, whether or not there is an invitation, Sara Duterte will not be attending the debate,” she added.

There was no immediate reaction from the Comelec, the government’s election watchdog.

Two days into the weekend, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said all vice presidential bets confirmed their atten-

dance except for House Deputy Speaker Lito Atienza, who is undergoing surgery.

Earlier this week, on Wednesday, the Comelec approved during its en banc session on Wednesday the staging of the historic debates set this weekend at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila.

The CNN Philippines management assured the poll body that it had invited all candidates and complied with the health guidelines set by Comelec and InterAgency Task Force.

The network will also submit all documents necessary for the accreditation of the highly anticipated debates.

At the same time, CNN reported that representatives of the candidates attended the pre-event briefing at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion where they were

briefed on the health and security protocols, and podium assignments to be observed during the debates.

Comelec also said the appearance of candidates in the poll body-accredited debates would not be counted against their airtime.

Seven out of the nine vice presidential bets will participate in Saturday’s debate: former party-list representative Walden Bello, radio commentator Rizalito David, activist Manny SD Lopez, Dr. Willie Ong, Senator Francis Pangilinan, religious group leader Carlos Serapio, and Senate President Vicente Sotto III. In the presidential debate on Sunday, only former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos will not be present.

Former presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella, former Defense chief Norberto Gonzales, labor leader Leody De Guzman, Senator Panfilo Lacson, Muslim leader Faisal Mangondato, physician-lawyer Joey Montemayor, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, Senator Manny Pacquiao, and Vice President Leni Robredo have all confirmed their attendance.

Solon urges Du30: Fill 3 Comelec vacancies

By Maricel V. Cruz A CONGRESSIONAL leader urged President Rodrigo Duterte Friday to fill the three vacancies in the seven-member Commission on Elections (Comelec) soon.

“The May 9 elections are fast approaching, and the Comelec needs all the help it can get like the appointment of additional members to ensure the holding of honest, peaceful and orderly balloting,” Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez said.

He said a full Comelec membership “is definitely more desirable and helpful than having just four commissioners.”

“Seven heads are better than four. Also it is the practice that a Commissioner handles at least 2 of the 16 regions of the country, and it will be difficult for only 4 commissioners to handle the preparations and the elections in these 16 regions,” Rodriguez said.

He said he wished for the new appointees to have sufficient background in law and information technology, and an unblemished integrity and record of public or private sector service.

He added that the filling of the vacancies “will reinforce the Comelec in its preparations for the May 9 polls and in monitoring and ensuring compliance with its rules on campaigning and related activities bycandidates and their supporters.”

He noted that there had been numerous complaints about alleged violations of health protocols prescribed by the poll body and of regulations on postering, tarpaulins and other campaign paraphernalia.

However, none of the supposed violators had been sanctioned, he said.

“Let us not give the Comelec an excuse for whatever inefficiencies, omissions or failures it might have in relation to the May 9 balloting,” the House leader said.

He said the confusion on who would participate in the projected Comelec-sponsored debates among presidential candidates

on March 19 was not helpful in assuring people on the efficiency and integrity of the electoral process.

The three vacancies in the poll body arose with the recent retirement of former chairman Sheriff Abas and former commissioners Rowena Guanzon and Antonio Kho Jr. President Duterte has appointed Kho to the Supreme Court.

LENI’S SIGNATURE. Despite the searing heat, the people of Pototan, Iloilo gather round Vice President Leni Robredo to show their support, with some getting the fortune to have her signature. She is with daughters Aika, Jillian, and Tricia. Robredo Media Bureau

Lawmaker: ‘Let’s boost our products’ A PARTY-LIST lawmaker has pushed for the promotion of locally-produced clothes, especially those made of Sulu’s woven cloth, the pis syabit.

Rep. Shernee Tan-Tambut of the Kusug Tausug party list recently met with internationally known Filipino designer Ann F. Ong to come up with plans to promote Sulu province’s pis syabit and Tausug culture along with other Philippine designs being promoted by Ong. At the meeting attended by Ong, her husband, Jason, and their son, John, also a designer and digital marketing expert plus a few others, the two discussed how pis syabit may be promoted first in New York and later in other fashion capitals of the world.

Inspecting the pis syabit samples that Tan-Tambut brought along, Ong and her son agreed with the Congresswoman that the Sulu cloth has much potential especially in then international market.

The pis syabit is a one-of-a-kind piece of cloth exclusively woven in Sulu. It is made of cotton and/or silk, sometimes with metallic gold threads incorporated in the weave.

It used to be worn by Tausug men during very special occasions as a headdress or a décor hung on one’s shoulder to indicate their high social status. In modern times, the pis syabit has been used as the main material or accent for clothes and are also used to make fashion accessories.

Being woven by Muslims, it only has geometrical patterns because Islam forbids reproducing the likeness of living things, whether human, flora or fauna.

Maricel V. Cruz

5 NPA suspects, lumad teacher slain in clash ELDERLY INCENTIVE.

Grandfather Isidoro Cao receives his centenarian incentive from the office of the mayor in Tabaco City.

Norman Cruz

FIVE alleged members of the communist New People’s Army (NPA), including an activist lumad teacher, were killed in an encounter with government troops in New Bataan town in Davao de Oro Thursday morning, the military said.

The Communist Party of the Philippines, in a tweet, immediately denied that an encounter happened in New Bataan.

Marco Valbuena, chief information officer of the CPP, said this was told to them by the local unit of the NPA in the area.

“The AFP’s ‘encounter’ claim is an outright lie. This would not be the first time,” said Valbuena.

In a report released by the 10th Infantry Division, the fatalities were identified as alias Rain, alias Chad, a certain alias Daday and two still unidentified males.

The individuals allegedly withdrew southwards after a 15-minute firefight, the military said.

They added that the suspects left an M653 rifle, a caliber .45 pistol, a hand grenade, an anti-personnel mine, assorted food supplies, and personal belongings.

“Chad” was among the personalities arrested February last year in a Bakwit school located in San Carlos University – Talamban Campus in Cebu City for alleged trafficking of Indigenous People from Talaingod, Davao del Norte.

He was later released along with six others following the decision of the court in Cebu.

“Chad” graduated cum laude from UP Diliman with a degree of Bachelor of Computer Science.

After his college days, he volunteered as a Mathematics teacher in the Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural Development in Lianga, Surigao del Sur, and later volunteered for the Bakwit School in Cebu.

Meanwhile, according to the 10th Infantry Division, “Rain” graduated from Liceo de Tagum and was also a volunteer teacher in Community Technical College of Southern Mindanao in Barangay Lapulapu, Maco, Davao de Oro.

Opinion My Martial Law experience

THIRTY-six years ago, the dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Sr. and his family were booted out of Malacañang when tens of thousands of Filipinos trooped to EDSA in response to the call of then Cardinal Jaime Sin to support the rebel military forces that have turned their backs on Marcos. These military forces were led by Juan Ponce Enrile, Marcos’ Defense Chief and Fidel V. Ramos, then the Vice Chief-of-Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. For many years, Enrile and Ramos served Marcos especially during Martial Law. I was in EDSA and it was an experience of a lifetime. I witnessed the power of the people. We kicked Marcos out.

I was in junior high school when Marcos declared Martial Law. What I experienced during the early years of his military rule may not be as harsh as what others went through. There was curfew so people could be arrested just because they were out during curfew hours. For teenagers like us, it meant going home from parties early. The other option was to “stay-in.”

I knew that one could not be critical of Marcos especially in public. My family was poor to begin with. I lived with my Lola in an urban poor community in San Juan because my mom passed on when I was in sixth grade. I was in school only because of scholarships. Money was scarce so being able to eat a slice of 3M Pizza was a real treat for me. So, my worldview was quite limited.

I did not know about human rights. Still, I knew that people were whispering how hard life was, and that government was not doing right by the people.

While ordinary Filipinos were wallowing in poverty, while we needed to fall in line to buy rice and other staple food, we were constantly bombarded with images of the regal and beautiful Imelda Marcos decked in jewels wearing her “terno.” I had that nagging feeling that something was very wrong. Even I, who did not know about human rights, knew that people were not free.

I knew that fear of being arrested by the notorious “METROCOM” was pervasive.

Every now and then, there were talks in our neighborhood of some people getting arrested but for what, I did not know. I never imagined that there were activists in our area. I only knew one activist at that time, one cousin of mine but he did not live in our community.

I remember talks about TV personality Ariel Ureta being arrested and made to ride a bicycle in Crame for the whole day. His crime? He allegedly spoofed the Marcos propaganda line “Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, disiplina ang kailangan” into “Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, bisikleta ang kailangan.” Of course, we did not know if this was true.

Oh, we were bombarded with that line!

It was played regularly in radios and the television. We also often heard “Ang Bagong Lipunan” played over and over again. To this

day I still know the lyrics of the song. I had goosebumps all over when I recently saw a video clip of Imee Marcos and company dancing to that tune of that song in a party.

Entering the University of the Philippines exposed me to what was happening then.

Whereas in San Juan I only heard about arrests, in UP I knew that students were being arrested and incarcerated. I was not part of any activist organization but still, everyone in the campus knew. I was in UP when I saw the one and only television interview of Ninoy Aquino who was still in prison. I was blown away.

People will wake up and see the truth.

When Ninoy Aquino was assassinated on August 21, 1983, things came to a head.

Ninoy’s death shocked and opened the eyes of many to the brutality that can be faced by critics of Marcos. It was the last straw. I was already working in Makati then and it was when I truly became an activist by joining rallies on my own. The voices calling for Marcos’ resignation became louder and louder.

The color yellow became a craze. Yellow shirts with Ninoy’s face proliferated, yellow ribbons were tied on trees, vehicles, grills, and yellow confetti rained on rallies that became bigger and bigger. Many of the antiMarcos groups that worked “underground” for many years and hunted by the dictator courageously surfaced. Many more organizations from different sectors, including the upper and middle classes were formed to protest the Marcoses and their atrocities. Shouts of “Marcos resign!” became louder, more insistent, more determined, and more powerful. It came to a point when Marcos himself could no longer ignore the clamor.

To prove that he still enjoyed the Filipino people’s support, Marcos called for presidential snap elections. Corazon “Cory” Aquino became the people’s candidate against Marcos. The elections were held on February 7, 1986 and on February 20, Marcos proclaimed himself the winner.

The Filipino people knew that Marcos cheated and there was no way for the people to accept this. The angry nation became angrier, and the restive military began to move against Marcos.

Just 18 days after proclaiming himself president (still), EDSA happened and Marcos was forced to flee.

I see parallelisms with what’s happening now. I was young when ML happened. I was not arrested but knew that people were not free. I did not experience brutality but I knew it happened. I was not tortured or raped but know that thousands were. My family experienced the poverty that many go through now that perhaps would not be as bad if government really worked for the people.

Like me, people will wake up and see the truth. Let EDSA be a reminder to those who plan to undermine the people’s will.

‘Pariah’ Putin mocks global isolation – analysts

By Olga Rotenberg, with Anais Llobet in Nicosia RUSSIA’S invasion of Ukraine risks making President Vladimir Putin an international pariah, but he does not fear such isolation — quite the contrary, experts say.

The attack on Thursday led the United States and its allies to agree on a “devastating” sanctions package against Russia, after NATO, EU and G7 leaders condemned the invasion and vowed to hold Moscow accountable.

“Putin is now recognized as THE most imminent threat to our system of Western liberal market democracy,” said Timothy Ash, an emerging markets strategist at BlueBay Asset Management.

Western leaders “feel totally let down and threatened by Putin”, who has marked himself out as “the number one pariah” of the West, he added in a note to clients.

The result, said Comfort Ero, president and CEO of the International Crisis Group think-tank, is that Russia “is likely to find itself in unprecedented political and economic isolation for a long time”.

Russia was already targeted with rounds of sanctions after Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and after the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in 2020.

But no measure seemed to have any effect on the Russian president, other than increasing his intransigence.

“For a year and a half the Kremlin has actively prepared for the fact that the West will impose the most severe sanctions possible,” Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of the R.Politik analysis firm, told AFP. For Putin, “sanctions don’t have the aim of preventing Russian aggression but of curbing Russia’s development,” she said, adding that Moscow expects a long confrontation with the West.

Among possible further measures, Washington and Brussels could cut Russia off from SWIFT, the global financial messaging system used to move money around the world, although US President Joe Biden noted on Thursday that is not a step much of Europe yet “wishes to take”.

Russia has prepared itself, particularly by growing its foreign exchange reserves, which total about $640 billion.

“Abundant currency reserves, the soaring price of oil and a low debt-to-GDP ratio will help Russia weather the immediate hit of the sanctions,” said Oleg Ignatov, a Russia expert with the International Crisis Group.

“But in the longer-term, they will compound the country’s economic stagnation.”

The Russian leader has only increased his intransigence.

‘Necessary measures’ Russia is one of the world’s leading producers of crude, which soared to levels not seen since 2014 after the invasion began.

Massive sanctions would make Russia “a global market pariah and uninvestable”, said Ash, pointing to the free-fall experienced by Russia’s stock market on Thursday.

The Kremlin says it has foreseen such developments. “In order that this emotional period be as temporary as possible, all necessary measures have been taken,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He also downplayed the diplomatic impact.

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EDITORIAL

T

Need to be careful

HE National Capital Region, where 13 million people live, appears ready to switch from Alert Level 2 to the most relaxed Alert Level 1 to enable, shift proponents argue, the domestic economy to rebound.

But concerns remain as regards enforcement of public health protocols during the campaign season, which has seen fractures in the different regions, with supporters of candidates literally making an overactive throng as they catch a glimpse of their respective candidates for the May 2022 elections.

These frenzied throngs have been a daily sight since February 8 following the start of the campaign period for national elective officials. Next month, local officials will have their gears ready.

During the most relaxed Alert Level 1, intrazonal and interzonal travel shall be allowed without regard to age and comorbidities.

At the same time all establishments, persons or activities, are allowed to

operate, work, or be undertaken at full on-site or venue/seating capacity provided it is consistent with minimum public health standards.

And provided, additionally, that face-to-face classes for basic education shall be subject to prior approval of the Office of the President.

We’re down to Alert Level 1.

We lean towards the persuasive declaration of some officials, like those from the Department of Interior and Local Government, due to the risks of another COVID-19 surge from frenetic campaign activities, like caravans in the different communities which invite not just hundreds but tens and scores of thousands in just a few hours.

We have also heard the Private Hospitals Association Philippines urge the government to delay for two more weeks and monitor the trend of COVID-19 cases before de-escalating the National Capital Region to Alert Level 1.

During the Laging Handa briefing,

PHAPI president Jose de Grano said people might disregard the minimum health standards with the switch to the lowest alert level.

De Grano’s words echoed well: “On our part, our recommendation is, if possible, we wait for two more weeks.

But if that is the decision of the IATF, we will follow.”

De Grano said the hospitals group was also wary of the possible surge in COVID-19 cases considering the election campaign period.

Given the culture of Filipinos during political campaigns – politics being a top Filipino pastime – we share the worries of the doctors and some local government officials that minimum health protocols may just be disregarded, prompting a surge in COVID cases.

But in the event the Inter-Agency Task Force, having reviewed all the parameters and convinced it should give the go-ahead, we ask that the people exercise the highest caution – not only for their own health but for the health of others in their respective communities.

The general public will accept nothing less.

Leni can never unite the Filipino people was pillage, looting, and confiscation and sequestration of properties for their pockets and as ordered by the US pursuant to the policy of privatization.

We have a totally preposterous system of democracy in this country.

HISTORY will never be generous to Vice President Leni Robredo even in the years that will follow after this election.

The yellow curse will forever haunt them that whoever parades as the disciple of hypocrisy will forever carry the stigma of condemnation by our people. Politicians who insist on condemning the past as his or her political capital are bound to end up in ignominy. The history they ushered in to our people brought about poverty, hunger, unemployment, chaos and mayhem. It is this chapter in our history that our people avoid remembering.

Robredo should bear in mind that the past where the political party she associated with is the progenitor of bogus freedom and democracy is the same party that our people hate and want to forget. The communists and the terrorists joined her cause because they have become desperate in wanting to grab power shamelessly aligning themselves with the imperialist.

The trouble with the followers of Robredo is they can only make promises. This is why most of the people no longer like candidates who make promises. Most of them came from the yellow opposition who previously served but failed to make good while in power. Their situation is a dilemma, much that promises only dims their chance to be elected.

Robredo won as VP despite the questionable result of the election. As a politician seeking reelection, she should have exerted her best to serve as an elected official, as that will determine her chances to be elected to the highest position of the land.

Her reelection will serve as a barometer of how she served the people and not by her religious devotion. This means that if Leni made good during her term, the candidacy of Bongbong Marcos (BBM) means nothing.

But as it is, her candidacy is something of a double jeopardy, for it seems people are being punished twice without thinking they elected a demagogue who cheated them in 2016.

This explains why she is having much difficulty raising her political rating and to erase that historic shame of massive electoral fraud assisted by her alien political handlers.

To this, the pretending to be a pious political leader remains arrogant, ignoring that she has a lackluster performance now epitomized by her being anti-Filipino stance.

The horde of political cannibals opted to change color and called “kakampink” for people to forget their past misdeeds. In the first place, there is no achievement she could cite. All what happened since 1986

Robredo and her traitorous cabal could not expound her policies. Even the stooge that was forcibly installed literally acted as a vandal for it seems her role was to destroy everything built by the past administration.

In particular, those industries that were built and could have served as ledger for our progress were either sold, dismantled, disallowed to operate with the usual alibi that it is better for the country to import than produce them locally.

The country was already on the verge of industrialization when the American lackey was installed to power under cover of people power without the Filipino people knowing that Cory Aquino was out to deindustrialize the nation. A classic example was her decision to stop the operation of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, only to be disassembled and sold to foreign buyers. The Filipino people could not do anything. This idol of the religious demagogue did nothing to ease the sufferings of the consumers.

The Filipino people have no idea of what a “de-industrialization” means. Many were duped to believe she was saint, but in truth a modern-day charlatan out to protect the interest of the Church, the same practice of practice now vainly being duplicated by Robredo.

The same problem now besieges Ukraine. Its entry into NATO is not really about the threat of Western alliance but more of the policy of the neocons to deindustrialize Ukraine by converting the whole of Europe stretching up to the Russian border as an American colony where it could freely dump its surplus goods and armaments in a civil strife which the Americans fanned to ignite. US is treating US soldiers like chickens to be harvested at any given moment to sustain the needs of the arms industry because of their involvement in global war. The first thing the US targeted was the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany. It has difficulty sanctioning banks through Swift because it will only expose it as having no more bank deposits.

This explains why the Catholic Church to this day is brisling their teeth with anger. It is not about human rights that the hypocrites care much about but the fear that BBM will revive the old decrees taxing the church of their businesses, income and properties, and the restoration of oil and

“Of course we could have problems with a number of states. But we were having problems with these states even before,” Peskov said.

In fact, Putin’s Russia seems determined to shake the foundations of international security.

“This is not just a European security crisis,” said Ero. “The repercussions of this war for global security, too, will be severe

and lasting.”

Alexander Baunov, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center, said Russia will obviously become “for a time, a pariah”, and the longer its Ukraine operation lasts “the more economic links and engagements between Russia and other countries will unravel”.

Isolated diplomatically and economically from the West, Putin could turn elsewhere,

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

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

gas as state-owned industries. The old administration which this demagogue is now trying to imbibe simply does not understand the consequence of creating a system of unequal society bearing the fruits of poverty, hunger, unemployment, criminality and ultimately a breakdown of law and order.

Robredo and many of her pro-American stooges were induced to run to put up a semblance of democratic electoral exercise to keep alive the falsities of freedom and democracy. They really have no choice but to read the script handed to them by a bankrupt and desperate empire. Their only role is to badmouth the candidacy of BBM because beyond that, they could not cite their plan to take over industries from the US control and not for the Filipino people.

We have a totally preposterous system of democracy in this country. We do not even understand that our democracy is totally different from our exercise of freedom.

The Americans completely reduced our candidates as stooges. We have democracy but without freedom. Many have failed to take note that in a capitalist society, the exercise of freedom often entails capital.

We cannot just open our mouth and say anything or write something without using the necessary instruments to enhance and widen what we are going to say at least through the radio and television or to write something without the medium of the press or newspapers to circulate our ideas to the widest readers.

While to the American democracy is for everybody to enjoy and feel, freedom is totally different. Democracy is more of ideas and beliefs compiled as ideology, but nothing about it can be felt and enjoyed without our right to exercise those various freedoms. It is in the exercise of those freedoms given in the constitution that the capitalist society remains religiously silent. It is the capital that keeps alive and gives substance to our freedom which is often not known to our people.

A good example is that the opposition always centers their attack in criticizing the shortcomings of our freedom. However, taking a close look at the state of affairs of our mass media, the exercise of freedom is centered mostly on who owns the mess media. Sad to say, it is mostly dominated by the private sector by more than five to one. Some of them are operating without a license, franchise or permit like Rappler.

Most of these privately operated, often owned and operated by the US imperialist and by the Church. Both take turns in lambasting the government and spend most of their time discrediting political rivals viz. supporting the stooge of the US. Yet, these are the same groups of people who talk much about the lack of freedom and democracy in this country. rpkapunan@gmail.com such as China or Iran. Both of those countries have so far seemed hesitant to condemn Russia.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan was visiting Moscow on Thursday.

Beijing said it understands Moscow’s “reasonable concerns on security issues” over Ukraine, while Tehran said “the Ukraine crisis is rooted in NATO’s provocations.”

AFP

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Joyce Pangco Pañares

Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor

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

Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

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World

Plastic treaty a rare, historic feat for planet–UNEP chief

Manila

Standard THE world has

a rare opportunity to clean upTODAY the planet for future generations by uniting behind an ambitious treaty to tackle plastic trash, the UN environment chief told AFP. Inger Andersen said a global plastics treaty being negotiated in Nairobi “holds the potential and the promise of being the biggest multilateral environmental breakthrough” since the Paris climate accords signed in 2015.

“This is a big moment. This is one for the history books,” the executive director of the UN Environment Program (UNEP) told AFP in an interview.

The framework for a legally binding plastics agreement is still being hammered out ahead of a UN environment summit starting on Monday in Nairobi, where UNEP is headquartered.

There are competing proposals being considered but more than 50 countries have backed calls for a treaty that includes tough new controls on plastics, which are largely derived from oil and gas.

This could include limits on the manufacture of new plastic, or the phasingout of single-use products that choke oceans and marine life and take centuries to break down.

Delegates meeting in Nairobi are expected to agree on the broad template for a treaty and establish a negotiating committee to finalize the terms, a process that would take at least two years.

Andersen said it was too early to speculate about specific details of the treaty but stressed it was “hopeless” to try to curb plastic litter without addressing the source. AFP

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MASS ACTION. Demonstrators protest Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in the Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles, California on February 24, 2022. AFP

DEMONSTRATORS MARCH VS. PUTIN’S ‘SURREAL WAR’

Ukraine flags fly in Europe, US in protest Ex-cops guilty P of violating ROTESTERS turned out in cities around the world on Thursday in solidarity with Ukraine against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “surreal war,” as hundreds of demonstrators who marched in Russia itself were arrested.

Police made more than 1,700 arrests in 51 cities across Russia, an independent monitor said, cracking down on dissent after authorities warned citizens against marching.

In Berlin, several hundred people rallied at the Brandenburg Gate, lit up in the blue and yellow colours of the Ukraine flag for the second evening.

Anton Kushch, 35, a Ukrainian software engineer, said he woke up to “a push notification on my phone about war” and had been sent “messages on my phone with all these burning tanks on the roads.”

“It’s hard to believe, it’s surreal,” he said. “This is just catastrophic for the whole world... But we have what we have, a tyrant sitting there in the Kremlin.”

Student Sofia Avdeeva, 22, from the disputed Donetsk region, described Putin as a “war criminal” and said she hoped “the same thing he is putting people through happens to him and his family.”

Russians also joined the protests, with some holding placards outside the Russian embassy.

“We want to show that we are against the war,” said Ekaterina Studnitzky, 40,

A tale of 2 very different cities: HK, Singapore COVID response

Manila

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TODAY

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Both adopted strict suppression tactics when the panManila demic emerged, closing borders to keep infections low NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC EXTRA-JUDICIAL Standard Notice is hereby given thatofStock SETTLEMENT within their densely populated territories.

TODAY Certificate No. 458 – 5,000 shares, ESTATE Now they present competing visions as they manage Stock Certificate No. 21 – 1,250 NoticeandisStock hereby given shares Certificate No. the highly transmissible Omicron variant -- with Hong that –the estate ofof2GO theGroup, late 2251 62 shares Inc. issued in the name of Liza G. RIGOBERTO MARCIANO Kong floundering under soaring infections while SingaAcab has been reported and SALAMANCA has lostbeen the holder of the said shares have extra-judicially settled among pore offers a pandemic exit strategy. applied to theWITH Company to issue his heirs DEED OF duplicate share certificates.

In the heart of Singapore’s financial district, analyst ASSIGNMENT consisting of cashperson deposits Any who in: has a claim in Camille Chautard sipped a coffee on a bench at Raffles • BPI New Farmers respect of said shares should lodge Branch QC the Company the claims or inform Place during the busy lunchtime rush hour. at its SA registered address within one No. 4273-0173-78 (1) theNo. last publication of Asyear perfrom Doc. 346; Page “Now that it seems the new variant is less deadly, this If no claims/ No.notice.

71; Book No. 23;objections Series or at least the infections are less severe, it’s probably a are period, of received 2022 during beforethis Notary the Company shall be free to issue Public ATTY. ROQUE O. good time for Singapore to lead the way in the region duplicate share certificate.

ROSALES. and open up,” she told AFP. Earlier this week, health minister Ong Ye Kung said EXTRA-JUDICIAL ERRATUM Singapore was moving closer towards normalcy, noting SETTLEMENT of ESTATE that “Omicron poses less of a risk,” This refers to the ad of Notice is hereby given Hong Kong’s leader Carrie Lam had a starkly differPHILIPPINE OF that the estateBANK of the late MARCIANO ent message.

CRIGOBERTO O M M U N I C A T I O N S SALAMANCA has been Announcing compulsory testing for all 7.4 million extra-judiciallylast settled among (“PBCOM”) February his heirs WITH DEED OF residents, the tightest social distancing rules to date and 18, 2022.

The ad should ASSIGNMENT consisting of cash deposits in: plans to isolate all those infected, she said the city must have read as NOTICE OF • BPI New Farmers “win the war.”

Branch QC SPECIAL MEETING OF SA No. 4273-0173-78 “(Singapore) is miles ahead of Hong Kong in terms of STOCKHOLDERS andPage not As per Doc. No. 346; No. 71; Book No. 23; Series dealing with these waves and especially mitigating the as published.

For this we of 2022 before Notary impact of the pandemic,” Karen Grepin, a public health Public ATTY. ROQUE O. apologize, thus this erratum.

ROSALES. expert at the University of Hong Kong, told AFP. AFP (MS-Feb 19, 26 & Mar 5, 2022)

(MS-Feb 19, 26 & Mar 5,5,2022) (MS-FEB. 19/26/MAR. 2022)

(MS-FEB. 19, 2022) (MS-FEB. 19/26/MAR. 5, 2022)

NOTICE ERRATUM

Notice hereby given that MERG REALTY This refers CORPORATION to the ad of (Owner/Developer) has filed with this Department PHILIPPINE BANKfor the OF change of project name from CBROOKLYN O M M U N I CHOUSE A T I O NtoS FILMORE APARTMENTS, (“PBCOM”) last February located at Filmore corner Casino Sts., Brgy. Palanan, 18, 2022. City,The ad should Makati specifically described 10-D (LRC) have readasasLotNOTICE OF Psd-119014, covered by TCT No. S-53310,MEETING Lot 10-A (LRC) SPECIAL OF Psd-119014, covered by TCT No. S-53311, Lot 10-Cand (LRC) STOCKHOLDERS not Psd-119014, covered by TCT as we No. published.

S-53312; LotFor 10-Bthis (LRC) Psd-119014, covered by TCT apologize, thusand this erratum.

No. S-53313; Lot 10-E (LRC) PSD-119014 covered (MS-FEB. 19, 2022)

by TCT No. 006-2017000841, having a total area of 284 square NOTICE meters. The project has been previously issued Certificate of given Registration No. Notice hereby that MERG 028105 License to Sell REALTY and CORPORATION No. 032440 both on (Owner/Developer) hasAugust filed 03, with2017. this Department for the change of project name from All papers relativeHOUSE thereto shall BROOKLYN to upon request and payment of FILMORE APARTMENTS, processing fee, be located at Filmoreavailable corner for inspection Casino Sts., during Brgy. business Palanan, hours having Makati by any City, person specifically legal interest described asthereon.

Lot 10-D (LRC) Psd-119014, covered by TCT Absent any legal No. S-53310, Lot impediment, 10-A (LRC) the above-cited project is Psd-119014, covered

by TCT deemed registered No. S-53311, Lot 10-Cand (LRC)a certificate, in evidence thereof, Psd-119014, covered by TCT shall forthwith Lot be issued after No. S-53312; 10-B (LRC) five (5) days from the last day Psd-119014, covered

by TCT of No.publication.

S-53313; and Lot 10-E (LRC) PSD-119014 covered Quezon City,006-2017000841, Metro Manila,

by TCT No. Jan. 11, a2022. having total area of 284 square meters. The project (SGD.) JEOFREY has been COL. previously issued DELOS Certificate of Registration No. REYES TUPAS (Ret.) 028105 and License to Sell Regional Director No. 032440 both on August 03, 2017.

(MS-FEB. 19 & 26, 2022)

All papers relative thereto shall upon request and payment of processing fee, be available for inspection during business hours by any person having legal interest thereon.

Absent any legal impediment,

NOTICE

NOTICE

Notice hereby given that INNO REALTY CORPORATION (Owner/Developer) has filed with this Department a sworn registration statement for the sale of condominium units at AURORA 700 CONDMINIUM located at Aurora Blvd., Project 3, Quezon City specifically described as Lot 10-B of the subd. plan (LRC) Psd-27747; and covered by TCT No. N-330358 having total area of 770.50 square meters.

Notice hereby given that WJD PRIME PROPERTIES, INC. (Owner) and WJLAND INC. (Developer) has filed with this Department a sworn registration statement for the sale of lots/ units at INARO RESIDENCES located at Marelino St., Isadora Hills Subdivision, Brgy. Holy Spirit, District II, Quezon City specifically described as Lots 1 to 11 of the subd. plan Pcs00-015226; and covered by TCT Nos. 004-2018015099 to 004-2018015109 Iinclusive), respectively, having a total area of 1,008.00 square meters.

The foregoing project is utilizing the Participation through Investment-Incentivized Compliance by depositing in a trust account under Escrow Agreement between the Department of Human Settlements and Urban NOTICE Development, Inno Realty Corporation, and thatUnited Notice hereby given INNO Cococnut Bank, as its REALTY Planters CORPORATION compliance pursuant to (Owner/Developer) hasSection filed 18 Republic Act (RA) No. withofthis Department a sworn 7279, as amended registration statementbyfor R.A. the 10884. sale of condominium units at AURORA 700 CONDMINIUM All papers relativeBlvd., thereto shall located at Aurora Project upon request City and payment of 3, Quezon specifically processing fee, be available described as Lot 10-B of the for inspection during business subd. plan (LRC) Psd-27747; hours by any person and covered

by TCThaving No. legal interest thereon.

N-330358 having total area of 770.50 square meters.

Absent any legal impediment, the above-cited is The foregoing projectproject is utilizing deemed registered and the Participation througha certificate, in evidence thereof, Investment-Incentivized shall forthwith by be issued after Compliance depositing five the lastunder day in (5) a days trust from account of publication.

Escrow Agreement between the Department of Human Quezon City, Metro Settlements andManila Urban Development, Inno Realty (SGD.) Corporation,COL.and JEOFREY United DELOS Cococnut Planters Bank, as its REYES TUPAS (Ret.)to Section compliance pursuant Regional DirectorAct (RA) No. 18 of Republic 7279, as amended by& 26,R.A. (MS-FEB. 19 2022) 10884.

All papers relative thereto shall upon request and payment of processing fee, be available for inspection during business hours by any person having legal interest thereon.

The foregoing project is utilizing the Participation through InvestmentIncentivized Compliance by depositing in a trust account under NOTICE Escrow Agreement between the Department of Human Settlements Notice hereby given and that Urban WJD Development, WJLand, Inc. INC. and PRIME PROPERTIES, China (Owner)Banking and Corporation-Trust WJLAND INC. and Asset Management Group, as (Developer) has filed with this its compliancea pursuant to Section Department sworn registration 18 of Republic Act (RA) No. 7279, statement for the sale of lots/ as amended

by R.A.RESIDENCES 10884. units at INARO located at Marelino St., Isadora All relative thereto Hillspapers Subdivision, Brgy. shall Holy upon paymentCity of Spirit, request District and II, Quezon processing fee, be available specifically described as Lots for inspection during business 1 to 11 of the subd. plan Pcshours by any person having legal 00-015226; and covered by interest thereon.

TCT Nos. 004-2018015099 to 004-2018015109 Iinclusive), Absent any legal impediment, the respectively, having a total area above-cited projectmeters. is deemed of 1,008.00 square registered and a certificate, in evidence thereof, forthwith The foregoing projectshall is utilizing the be issued after five (5)Investmentdays from Participation through the last day of publication.

Incentivized Compliance by depositing in a trust account Quezon Metro Manila under City, Escrow Agreement between the Department of (SGD.) JEOFREY Human COL. Settlements andDELOS Urban REYES TUPASWJLand, (Ret.) Inc. and Development, Regional DirectorCorporation-Trust China Banking and Asset Management Group, as its compliance pursuant (MS-FEB.to 19 Section & 26, 2022) 18 of Republic Act (RA) No. 7279, as amended by R.A. 10884.

All papers relative thereto shall upon request and payment of processing fee, be available for inspection during business hours by any person having legal

a teacher from Moscow, holding a cardboard Ukraine flag.

“Ukraine was always a very friendly and close country to us. We have a lot of relatives there, a lot of friends. Nobody wants this war,” she said.

“This is just terrible. Ukrainian and Russian people are brothers and sisters,” said Olga Krupacina, 32, a student from Kaliningrad.

Thousands rallied on Prague’s Wenceslas Square then marched toward the Russian embassy, with demonstrators carrying a large poster featuring Hitler and Putin and the tagline 1938-2022, referring to the year of Nazi Germany’s occupation of Czechoslovakia.

Protesters shouted “Pack up your bags!” and “Glory to Ukraine, glory to the heroes!”

In Paris, several hundred people gathered outside the Russian embassy.

Protesters chanted “Stop Putin, stop

the war” and carried placards with slogans declaring “No war” and “Putin Ukraine 2022, Hitler Poland 1939.”

“We are here to support the people of Ukraine, those who are still there,” said French-Ukrainian protester Teresa Voytanovska, 42.

In New York, around 200 protesters marched from Times Square to Russia’s UN office. Among them was 34-yearold Kateryna Bieliaieva.

“I feel so powerless, this is the only thing I could do. I want to do more,” she told AFP. In Madrid, Oscar-winning Spanish actor Javier Bardem was among roughly 50 people who gathered outside the Russian embassy.

He told a local television station he was protesting Putin’s “absurd, cruel and voracious attack” on Ukraine, describing the Russian leader as an “ultranationalist.” AFP

civil rights of George Floyd

A JURY found three former Minneapolis police officers guilty on Thursday of violating the civil rights of George Floyd, the African-American man whose May 2020 murder sparked nationwide protests.

Tou Thao, 36, J. Alexander Kueng, 28, and Thomas Lane, 38, were convicted after a month-long federal trial in Saint Paul, the sister city of Minneapolis, of showing “deliberate indifference” to Floyd’s medical CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK needs.

Thao and Kueng were also found guilty of failing to intervene to stop the use of “unreasonable force” against Floyd by a fourth officer, Derek Chauvin.

Chauvin, who is white and was the senior officer on the scene, kneeled on the neck of a handcuffed Floyd for nearly 10 minutes until he passed out and died.

He was convicted of murder last year and is serving 22 years in prisCYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK on.

Floyd’s death, which was filmed by a bystander in a video that went viral, sparked months of protests against racial injustice and police brutality in the United States and around the world.

Speaking to reporters after the verdict, Brandon Williams, Floyd’s nephew, called it a “small victory.”

“Oftentimes, you know, officers kill Black and brown men and women and we get little to no consequences,” Williams said. “A lot of times, we don’t even get charges, let alone a conviction.”

The all-white jury of eight women and four men deliberated for 13 hours over two days before finding the three former officers guilty of all the charges against them.

The maximum sentence is life in prison but the three are not expected to get such a lengthy punishment.

Thao and Kueng did not react BATTLING COVID. A vendor arranges COVID-19 test kits for sale on a street in Hong as the verdicts were read but Lane Kong on February 25, 2022, as yet another record high number of new infections were recorded in the city. AFP

6.2-magnitude earthquake strikes Sumatra island A 6.2-MAGNITUDE earthquake struck Indonesia’s Sumatra island on Friday, the United States Geological Survey said, with residents sent fleeing from their homes.

The quake hit the island’s north at a depth of 12 kilometers (7.5 miles), about 70 kilometers from the town of Bukittinggi in West Sumatra province, according to USGS. No tsunami warning was issued and there were no immediate reports of serious damage, but the quake was felt in the neighbouring provinces of Riau and North Sumatra and as far away as Malaysia and Singapore.

Residents said the 6.2 quake – which struck just after 8:30 am – came minutes after a less violent quake recorded by USGS as 5.0 magnitude.

Alim Bazar, head of the disaster mitigation agency of Pasaman city near the quake’s epicenter, told AFP some buildings suffered cracks.

“The mayor called and ordered all second and third floors in every building should be vacated,” he said.

Bazar said there were reports of some injuries, but did not have any details.

Irpanda, a resident of Pasaman city who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told Metro TV that he felt both the first and second tremors.

“At first, the quake only lasted for a few seconds.

People fled their homes and buildings nearby were

swaying,” he said.

Tremors were also felt in Singapore, “But then another quake happened witnesses and police said. and it was so strong. More people fled “Earth tremors were... felt in certain their houses,” he said, adding patients parts of Singapore at about 9:45 am,” at a local hospital were moved outside. the police said in a statement. AFP

DEADLY BEAUTIFUL. Lighting strikes over the city of Lhokseumawe, Aceh

on February 24, 2022. AFP

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Business PSEi February 24, 2022

TOP GAINERS

1 PXP

LAST % PRICE CHANGE CHANGE 6.55 0.7 11.97%

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

OPM PX RLT PNX APL LCB CEU PRF3B

0.013 6.06 0.27 10.74 0.068 0.17 6.85 1130

0.001 0.43 0.015 0.52 0.003 0.007 0.25 40

8.33% 7.64% 5.88% 5.09% 4.62% 4.29% 3.79% 3.67%

10

LC

0.172

0.006

3.61%

TOP LOSERS

1 KEEPR

LAST % PRICE CHANGE CHANGE 1.21 -0.17 -12.32%

2 3 4

MACAY PHA FEU

5.7 0.75 532

-0.8 -0.1 -61

-12.31% -11.76% -10.29%

5 6 7 8 9 10

MRC MAC TBGI MM DIZ ATN

0.27 5.6 0.335 2.1 4.87 0.64

-0.03 -0.59 -0.035 -0.21 -0.47 -0.06

-10.00% -9.53% -9.46% -9.09% -8.80% -8.57%

A7

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

Markets rally as traders weigh Russia sanctions A SIAN equities bounced back Friday from the previous day’s rout with investors taking their lead from a rally on Wall Street after Washington decided against imposing the stiffest sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to send troops into Ukraine sent shockwaves through Asian and European markets and pushed oil past $100 for the first time since 2014 as traders contemplated a major conflict in Eastern Europe.

Speculation had been growing for weeks about an incursion, which has stoked fears about supplies of key commodities including wheat, metals and

crude.

Investors have also been fretting over the impact of any sanctions Western leaders would impose on Moscow.

Despite a chorus of outrage at Putin’s move, the punishments have so far been seen as well short of the most stringent.

While the latest measures from Washington target Russia’s two largest banks and see controls on high-tech items aimed at crippling its defense and aerospace sectors, US President Joe Biden has not cut off oil exports.

The news provided a big boost to Wall Street, where all three main indexes surged from deep in the red to end Thursday on a positive note, while crude eased back below $100.

The Nasdaq was the standout performer, ending more than three percent higher as commentators said the crisis could keep the Federal Reserve from embarking on an aggressive series of interest rate hikes to tame inflation.

Tech firms are more susceptible to

US Fed official sees big hike at March meeting

higher borrowing costs and have been hammered in recent months on bets for tighter monetary policy.

“Stocks don’t always move in the way we expect them to,” Callie Cox, at trading platform eToro, said on Bloomberg’s “QuickTake Stock” broadcast.

“We’re sitting here processing these headlines and trying to understand what they mean for the global economy, but first and foremost, fear is a contrarian indicator.

“While we’re all rightfully fearful right now, some investors may be seeing this as a time to jump back in.”

The gains in New York filtered through to Asia, where Tokyo climbed two percent and Mumbai 2.4 percent, while Seoul, Jakarta, Bangkok and Wellington added more than one percent.

There were also gains in Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore and Taipei, though Hong Kong struggled to hold early advances and saw fresh selling. Manila was closed for holiday. With AFP

MOST ACTIVE

VOLUME

VALUE (PHP)

1 2 3 4 5 6

MBT ICT BDO SMPH SM ALI

11,343,510 3,165,180 4,849,480 11,416,500 480,190 8,293,800

683,123,853 678,434,146 638,636,152 436,028,645 422,899,580 313,847,970

7 8 9 10

CREIT MONDE DITO GLO

113,911,000 19,719,800 46,378,900 90,070

312,327,830 298,034,812 296,996,621 240,831,820

Manila

Standard

TODAY

POWERLESS. A shopkeeper lights up a candle to sell goods in his store amid power cuts in

Colombo on February 24, 2022. Sri Lanka’s state-run petroleum company has run out of cash to buy oil, and fuel shortages across the country could get worse. Several thermal power stations have also closed after running out of fuel, leading Sri Lanka’s energy utility to announce the resumption of rotating power cuts across the country. AFP

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(MS-FEB. 26, 2022)

Swiss fondue robot out to cause a stir in Paris trade fair

By Robin Millard SIERRE, Switzerland—Switzerland’s national dish is fondue, a simmering pot of heartwarming melted cheese—that can now be prepared, stirred up and served by a robot, thanks to some hi-tech wizardry.

A Swiss team has been beavering away on Bouebot, the robotic creation putting a futuristic twist on an Alpine tradition.

Outside in the Rhone glacial valley bisecting Switzerland’s southern Wallis region, crisp mountain air blows down from the glistening snowy peaks.

But inside Workshop 4.0’s headquarters in Sierre, below the Crans-Montana ski resort, the air is hot from Bouebot’s whirring servers and thick with the smell of melted cheese.

The robot is set to make its grand debut at the Paris International Agricultural Show, one of the world’s major food production trade fairs, which runs from February 26 to March 6.

Bouebot is for demonstration purposes only and is far from appearing in kitchenware stores.

The entire project cost 250,000 to 300,000 Swiss francs ($270,000 to $325,000, 235,000 to 285,000 euros), with the robot arm alone costing 80,000 francs.

‘Cheese passion’ Workshop 4.0 co-director Nicolas Fontaine, 30, who wears a black baseball cap reading “cheese passion,” said Bouebot had been nearly two years in the making.

“We wanted to do a... project that combined innovation with Swiss tradition, and fondue was the perfect choice,” Fontaine told AFP. “For the Swiss, fondue is emblematic. It’s something very emotional too because it’s part of our identity, our know-how.

“Fondue is something con-

Picture shows a robot built by the start-up Workshop 4.0 cooking a Swiss fondue in Sierre on February 18, 2022. AFP

vivial... it’s a nice opportunity to draw people in to talk about robotics and how it can be used.”

Whether at home, in a restaurant or in an Alpine cabin, sharing a fondue remains the heart of Swiss social life.

Bouebot is named after the bouebos: teenage boys who spent the summer up in the mountain chalets, helping herdsmen while they took care of making cheese.

Grate, stir, eat, repeat Pivoting on six different axes, Bouebot swings into action.

It glugs the right amount of white wine into the “caquelon” pot, then places it under the cheese grater.

The classic fondue mix is called a half-and-half—an even amount of Vacherin Fribourgeois and Gruyere cheese.

The project’s technical manager Ludovic Aymon, using his control pad, maneuvers the robot arm down towards each cheese triangle, which is lifted up by creating a vacuum on the top.

After shearing off the rind on a circular blade, it starts swiping the underside down the grater.

Back on the heater, Bouebot does some vigorous figureof-eight stirring as the cheese melts, then wipes off the spoon and sprinkles in some pepper.

It then picks up a metal

spike, pierces a piece of bread, swipes it around the caquelon before placing it in a holder for fondue-lovers to try before the gooey cheese drips down.

Aymon said the biggest challenge was to get a precision mechanical robot to cope with imprecise organic material.

The cheese wedges are not perfectly flat, nor the same height, while Vacherin is much softer than Gruyere.

However, there is no chance of the traditional duo being changed for more robot-friendly cheeses—not if the creators wants to stay alive, jokes Aymon.

Rise of the robots When seeing Bouebot at work, some onlookers are thrilled by the future possibilities for such technology, while others worry about machines encroaching into the human sphere.

“The effect I find the most interesting is fear... that fear of being replaced by something more powerful,” Aymon told AFP. “Robotics should not be to the detriment of human beings.

It should help humans.

“It could help someone cook in the future. It shows that it could be done, for people who can’t do it themselves.”

With each run-through, Aymon spots tiny modifications to make, requiring yet more slabs from the cheese-stuffed fridge.

“I can’t just work with a 3D simulation, like I could with lots of industrial processes.

I have to do real tests,” the 35-year-old said.

And with every fondue made, the end result must be eaten quickly.

“I think I’ll never be sick of fondue, but there are times when I just can’t stand the smell of cheese in here any longer,” Aymon said. AFP

WASHINGTON, United States— The US economy is healthy enough that interest rates should go from their current zero level to one percent by summer, and the first hike could be twice as big as normal, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said Thursday.

However, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatening to drive up global commodity prices and disrupt the US recovery at a time of high inflation, Waller said the Fed may have to change its plans to end the easy money policies it put in place to support the economy as COVID-19 spread.

“I expect inflation to remain elevated and only show modest signs of deceleration over the next several months,” Waller said in a speech at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

“As a result, I believe appropriate interest rate policy brings the target range up to 1 to 1.25 percent early in the summer.”

With consumer prices last year having increased at the highest rate in decades, the central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) at its meeting next month is expected to increase interest rates for the first time since slashing them to zero when the pandemic began.

The central bank typically increases by a quarter percent, but Waller said an increase at the March 15-16 meeting of half a percentage point “would help convey the Committee’s determination to address high inflation, about which there should be no question,” Waller said.

“Of course, it is possible that the state of the world will be different in the wake of the Ukraine attack, and that may mean that a more modest tightening is appropriate, but that remains to be seen,” he added.

Getting the rate up to one percent by the summer “would be a bit below where rates were at the outbreak of the pandemic,” Waller said, noting that future hikes would depend on how inflation fluctuates over the course of the year. AFP

NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC Free 2GB for Entertainment & Games Mechanics: 1.

This promo is exclusive to HBO GO, WeTV, Vivamax, Mobile Legends, and Garena users only.

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The promo period is from March 1 to May 31, 2022. This promo is an add-on when a subscriber purchase any of the following: a. WeTV 30-day subscription b. Mobile Legends diamonds 300, 500, 1000, 2000, 5000 c. Garena Shells 300, 500, 1000 d. HBO GO 30-day, 90-day subscription e. Vivamax 30-day subscription

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(MS-FEB. 26, 2022)

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

A8

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

Business

PSE INDEX CLOSING Thursday, February 24, 2022 -151.98 PTS. 7,212.23

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE (IN PHP) ADVANCES DECLINES UNCHANGED

2,816,416,567 132,348 9,938,179,671.79 43 168 34

F oreign E xchange R ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

51.2710

Japan

Yen

0.008698

0.4460

UK

Pound

1.354600

69.4517

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128126

6.5691

Switzerland

Franc

1.089206

55.8447

Canada

Dollar

0.785484

40.2726

Singapore

Dollar

0.742776

38.0829

Australia

Dollar

0.723300

37.0843

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652801

136.0118

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266546

13.6661

Brunei

Dollar

0.740028

37.9420

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000070

0.0036

Thailand

Baht

0.030979

1.5883

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

13.9604

Euro

Euro

1.131300

58.0029

Korea

Won

0.000839

0.0430

China

Yuan

0.158373

8.1199

India

Rupee

0.013399

0.6870

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.239006

12.2541

New Zealand

Dollar

0.677200

34.7207

Taiwan

Dollar

0.035863

1.8387 Source: BSP

T

HE Philippine is working on renewing the preferential trade agreement with the US as a step toward pursuing the Philippine-US Free Trade Agreement.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said during the third virtual economic briefing organized by the Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C. the Philippines was keen on continuing the US Generalized System of Preferences and having a free trade agreement with the world’s largest economy.

“We are grateful for the GSP program that the US has provided the Philip-

SOLAR VENTURE. Aboitiz Power Corp. team members plant a narra tree sapling in Cayanga, Bugallon, Pangasinan, where the company’s 94-megawatt peak solar power plant will soon rise. The sturdy and durable narra, considered as the Philippines’ national tree, symbolizes AboitizPower’s strong resolve to contribute to a more reliable, cost-efficient and sustainable power system for the country.

pines. The next step, really, is how we can elevate it into an FTA so that it becomes a longer, lasting kind of trade arrangement,” he said.

“We believe that the current effort on this bilateral strategic dialog is a step in the way, and the trade and investment framework agreement would be the steps that we could take in order that it can lead us to an FTA, a much stronger trade relationship,” he said.

Lopez told US participants the Philippines is prepared to hold discussions both on the GSP renewal and the FTA. The Philippines is enjoying a good GSP program with the United States that has been a big help to many of the marginalized sectors in the Philippines, “for which the Philippines is truly grateful”, he said.

“A lot of exporters and other micro

SMEs who have been part of the global value chain have started to enjoy exporting products like canned tuna, marine products, seaweeds, coconut based products, which as you know have graduated into more high value added coconut products and electronics, among others,” Lopez said.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III told American investors in the same briefing that now is the best time to do business in the Philippines, as the economy recovers from the devastating impact of the COVID-19 and is reinforced by a fresh set of economic liberalization measures to lure more investments.

“Now is the best time to do business in the Philippines... This year, we are well on our way to returning to normal with the Philippine economy expected to expand further between 7 and 9 per-

cent,” Dominguez told about 200 American business leaders and policymakers gathered via teleconferencing for the virtual briefing.

“Our economy is recovering rapidly.

In the last quarter of 2021, our GDP grew by 7.7 percent, making the country’s expansion the highest in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region and among our credit rating peers globally,” Dominguez said.

Dominguez said the recent enactment of the amendatory bill to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, along with the Congress-approved amendments to the Public Service Act and Foreign Investments Act that will soon be signed into law by President Duterte, complete the set of economic reform initiatives that make the Philippines’ a premier investment destination in the region.

RASLAG investing P3.6b in 2 new solar farms in Pampanga

By Alena Mae S. Flores LOCAL renewable energy company RASLAG Corp. is developing two more solar plants with a combined capacity of 95.2 megawatts in Pampanga at a cost of P3.6 billion.

RASLAG said in a statement Thursday it was positioning itself to increase generation capacity in the next few years. The company’s third solar plant, the 18.011-MW RASLAG-3 in Mabalacat and Magalang, is scheduled for commercial operations by May. The company also commenced work for the development of the 35.2MW peak RASLAG-4 solar plant costing P1.5 billion and acquired the site for the 60-MWp RASLAG-5 solar plant costing P2.1 billion.

“These solar power plants are strategically located to harness the potential of Central Luzon for large, utility-scale solar projects. The region is an ideal site for solar energy development considering its vast and flat terrains, stable transmission backbone, economic growth and high demand for energy,” the company said.

RASLAG is one of the pioneers in the country’s grid-scale solar energy development led by Peter Nepomuceno, the patriarch of the Nepomuceno Group of Companies of Angeles City and the man who built Angeles Electric Corp. into one of the largest power distributors in Luzon.

Nepomuceno and his team are now working on transforming RASLAG into a leading player in the RE industry by providing reliable yet cost-effective renewable energy to customers through high-quality solar power projects.

RASLAG’s first two projects in in Mexico, Pampanga achieved the most coveted solar feed-in tariff rates in 2015 and 2016.

The 10.046-MW RASLAG-1 was the second solar plant to be granted the first round solar FIT rate of P9.68 per kWh, while the 13.141 MW RASLAG-2 was awarded the second round solar FIT rate of P8.69 per kWh.

DOE set to sign US deal on nuclear cooperation ENERGY Secretary Alfonso Cusi said Friday he is set to sign next month a cooperation agreement with the US on nuclear power development, specifically in the area of small modular reactors, as part of the government’s move toward energy security.

“We’re pushing for the inclusion of SMR are in our energy mix, and we have already prepared all the frameworks, and all we need now is to get the approval of the President to have it in our energy mix. In fact, I’m going to the US, I think in the first week of March to sign a cooperation on nuclear [and the MOU],” Cusi said during the virtual economic briefing organized by the Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C. Under the definition of the International Atomic Energy Agency, SMRs “are advanced nuclear reactors that have a power capacity of up to 300 MW(e) per unit, which is about one-third of the generating capacity of traditional nuclear power reactors”.

SMRs are considered ideal for industrial utilization, as well as for use in remote areas with limited grid access because of their size.

Alena Mae S. Flores

LRT-1 to deploy new trains in 2nd quarter

PH to pursue free trade talks with US

By Othel V. Campos

IN BRIEF

CASHLESS ECONOMY. The Department of Trade and Industry in the MIMAROPA region, comprising of Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan provinces, and ShopeePay Philippines organize the ‘Cashless For All Series: The Rise of Inclusive Digital Payment Solutions’ virtual information session. The half-day event is the first of the lined-up activities of DTI MIMAROPA for 2022. The agency supports micro, small and medium enterprises in the growth and evolution of technology, its platforms and economy. As more consumers purchase goods and services online, local businesses are encouraged to pivot to e-commerce.

Foreign portfolio investments posted $15-m net inflows in January

By Julito G. Rada FOREIGN portfolio investments, or hot money, yielded net inflows of $15 million in January, a reversal of the $4-million net outflows registered in December 2021, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas show.

The January 2022 figure, however, was down 85 percent from the $98-million net inflows recorded in the same month last year.

The BSP said in a statement Friday the January net inflows resulted from the $731-million gross inflows and $717-billion gross outflows for the month.

Registered investments decreased by

45.1 percent or $600 million in January from $1.3 billion recorded in December2021. “Majority of investments [or 68.0 percent] registered were in Philippine Stock Exchange-listed securities [investments mainly in holding firms; property; banks; food, beverage and tobacco; and telecommunications] while the remaining 32.0 percent went to investments in peso government securities,” the BSP said.

The top five sources of these funds were the United Kingdom, the United States, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Malaysia, with combined share of 82.0 percent.

The $717-million gross outflows went

down by 46.4 percent, or by $619 million, from $1.3 billion recorded in December 2021.

Foreign portfolio investments are also called “hot money” because of the ease they are invested in and taken out of the domestic financial markets.

Registration of inward foreign investments with the BSP is optional under the rules on foreign exchange transactions. It is required only if the investor or its representative will purchase foreign exchange from authorized agent banks and/or their subsidiary/affiliate foreign exchange corporations for repatriation of capital and remittance of earnings that accrue on the registered investment.

THE Department of Transportation said Friday it expects new trains to be deployed on the LRT Line 1 system in the second quarter.

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the deployment of the light rail vehicles would be done in phases. Twenty new Gen-4 train sets, out of the expected 30, already arrived in the Philippines.

Light Rail Manila Corp., the operator of LRT Line 1, received the Gen-4 train sets in batches since the arrival of the first set in January 2021.

The new trains will be used for the existing line, and the future LRT-1 Cavite Extension whose construction is in full swing, with 69 percent completion rate as of end January 2022.

The LRT-1 Baclaran Expansion Depot was recently completed, increasing the depot’s stabling capacity from 130 to 182 LRVs. The expansion will also ease up movements of trains, as it will give enough space for ingress and egress inside the depot leading to increased train availability. An additional satellite depot, also funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency, is also nearing completion.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Smart gets high score for mobile broadband SMART Communications Inc. said Friday it obtained an overall score of 785 out of a maximum of 1,000 points for its mobile broadband coverage, user download speed and latency in the Philippines, in a certificate report commissioned from global benchmarking company umlaut, now part of Accenture.

“These results are a testament to our unrelenting network improvement initiatives, as we continue to strive to deliver world-class service to our customers nationwide. We aim to persistently achieve these milestones each year as proof that we deliver consistent customer experience wherever our customers are,” PLDT INc. and Smart president and chief executive Alfredo Panlilio said in a statement.

“This means that whether they are in Batanes, Metro Manila or Jolo in Mindanao, our customers can access and enjoy our services,” he said.

This is the third consecutive year that Smart received high scores for its network.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Citicore obtains three-year Clark power contract CITICORE Renewable Energy Corp. said Friday it signed a new three-year power supply agreement with Cogent Energy, the local retail electricity supplier unit of Clark Electric Distribution Corp.

Cogent tapped CREC, parent company of the country’s first energyfocused REIT, Citicore Energy REIT Corp., as a renewable energy partner to ensure a stable and reliable energy supply to the Luzon grid, especially within Clark and other areas in Pampanga.

The PSA started as a short-term contract, which extended to a longer maturity with an expanded scope, from an initial volume of 2 megawatts to 5 MW based on the renewed terms.

“With a growing interest among consumers in renewable energy, Citicore’s end-to-end value chain and vertical integration allows us to operate more efficiently and provide more flexibility that work better with clients,” said CREC president and chief executive Oliver Tan. “We were among the early birds in the solar power business and for the past six years, we were able to sharpen our expertise of developing greenfield projects, from design, procurement, construction, up to plant operation and maintenance of solar power plants,” said Tan. CEDC is a private electric power distribution utility granted by the Clark Freeport Zone a franchise to own, operate and maintain a power distribution system exclusively within the Clark Special Economic Zone.

CREC’s presence in and collaboration with Clark Freeport Zone extends beyond the supply agreement, as the latter hosts Citicore Solar Clark, a solar power generation company whollyowned by CREC.Alena Mae S. Flores

Pag-IBIG registered record profit of P34.73 billion in 2021, allotted 86.5% for dividends PAG-IBIG Fund netted a net income of over P30 billion for the fifth consecutive year in 2021 despite the pandemic, according to the Pag-IBIG Fund chairman’s report.

“As we close our books for 2021, I am happy to report that your Pag-IBIG Fund achieved another milestone. Our strong performance last year led us to reach a net income of P34.73 billion. This is our highest net income ever, surpassing by 9.5 percent our P31.71 billion net income in 2020 and topping the previous record of P34.37 billion netted in 2019,” said Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, who heads the

Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.

“I’d also like to note that this is the fifth time that our net income breached the P30billion mark. Our members will directly benefit because we shall again go beyond what is required of us by declaring over 86 percent of our net income as dividends for their savings,” said del Rosario who also chairs the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund board of trustees.

Under the Pag-IBIG Fund charter, the agency is required to declare at least 70 percent of

its annual net income as dividends, which will be credited proportionately to its members’ savings. However, the management has a recommendation to set aside 86.56 percent of its net income as dividends to maximize the benefit to its members during the second year of the pandemic. This is now up for approval of the board, according to del Rosario.

Pag-IBIG Fund chief executive Acmad Rizaldy Moti said the dividend rates on member’s savings—both mandatory and voluntary—will remain higher than other instruments available in the market.

“We know that many of our members have been asking about the dividend rates.

Now we can finally share the news. For 2021, dividend rates will remain above 5 percent. Returns for the Pag-IBIG Regular Savings is recommended to be at 5.16 percent per annum, and the Modified PagIBIG 2 Savings to be at 5.66 percent per annum. Considering the challenges caused by the pandemic, Pag-IBIG’s dividend rates are still much higher than other savings accounts and financial products in the market today,” he said.

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

Warriors turn back Painters in overtime

TOWERING SHOT. Rain or Shine’s

Mike Nieto scores on a one-handed shot against NLEX in a PBA Governors’ Cup game on Friday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo. The Road Warriors won in overtime, 109-100.

THE NLEX Road Warriors turned to their free-throw shooting to repulse a tired Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 109-100, in overtime Friday in the PBA Governors’ Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.

With Henri Walker out on his sixth foul, Kevin Alas sank two of four charities that allowed the Road Warriors to move out of range and post their seventh in 10 games.

As the Road Warriors took a 101-97 edge off Alas’ freebies, KJ McDaniel added two more charities off Leonardo Santillan’s foul to hand the Road Warriors a sixpoint spread at 103-97.

A steal by Jericho Cruz and a floater from JR Quinahan widened the Road Warriors’ edge by 12, 109-97 in the last 1:56 of the extra period.

“For a while, we had no solution to Henri Walker and Rey Nambatac. Pinahirapan nila kami hanggang sa overtime.

Then, they got a little tired. Si Walker, nagpa-foul nang inatake namin siya,” said NLEX coach Yeng Guiao.

The Road War riors, who were behind by as much as 22 points in the third quarter, 3254, drew 35 points and 12 rebounds from McDaniels, while Alas had 15.

The Road Warriors are seeking one more win in their last elimination round game against Barangay Ginebra next Friday to earn a place within the top four, which carries with it a win-once advantage in the quarterfinals.

McDaniels’ floater with nine ticks left in regulation allowed the Road Warriors to force the extra period at 97-all.

Nambatac, who had a 27-point effort, nearly won it for the Painters but he missed a jumper in the last four seconds of regulation.

Peter Atencio

Ex-world champ Espinosa back, this time as a trainer

By Randy Caluag

A

FTER spending years abroad, former twotime world champion Luisito “Lindol” Espinosa will make a return to the Philippine boxing scene.

The former World Boxing Association bantamweight champion and the World Boxing Council featherweight king recently applied for a professional boxing trainer’s license from the Games and Amusement Board.

Espinosa will help prepare Rannie Baldonado for his bid for the WBA Asia Super Bantamweight title in an upcoming boxing promotion dubbed “The Ultimate Knockout Challenge” by VSP Promotions and Cucuy Elorde.

Baldonado is in for a tough match against undefeated and current Philip-

Korea vows never to forfeit future FIBA games THE Korean national men’s basketball team won’t be forfeiting any more of its future games in international competitions.

The Korea Basketball Association, through its chairman Kwon Hyuk-woon, said this in a statement on Friday, adding their absence in a FIBA competition won’t happen again.

The Korean national squad forfeited its four-game assignment in the second window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers this week at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

The KBA has been informed of the international federation’s (FIBA’s) decision to impose disciplinary actions and fines on the Korean federation for not attending the tournament.

The KBA decided to cancel the national team’s trip to Manila after one more player tested positive for COVID-19, just hours before they were to board a plane bound for the Philippines.

The KBA explained that the decision they made was in consideration of the safety of the players.

The player, who was confirmed positive, had been training with the national team, and was among the 10 remaining players, who previously tested negative during the camp that was held in Goyang. Peter Atencio

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pine Super Bantamweight champion Carl Jammes Martin.

Their matchup is one of the main events pitting former Olympian and undefeated Charly Suarez against Tomjune Mangubat for the WBA Asia Super Featherweight title and the Philippine Flyweight championship title bout between Bienvenido Ligas and Roland Jay Biendima.

The event will take place on March 12 at the Elorde Sports Complex in Sucat, Parañaque City.

Five years after turning pro, Espinosa took the WBA Bantamweight title

by knocking out Thailand’s Kaokor Galaxy in the first round.

In his comeback fight under a new manager, he outpointed Mexican Manuel Medina in 1995 to win the WBC feather title and defended the same seven times.

He retired in 2005 with a professional career record of 47 wins with 26 KOs, and 13 losses. He spend many years in the United States after his retirement and took on odd jobs. Just recently, he was invited to become a trainer in Hong Kong and that gave him an opportunity to go back home.

In a previous interview with the Manila Standard’s Sports Locker, Espinosa said he had always wanted to stay permanently in the Philippines. He now lives in Cavite.

With his job as a trainer at MSPS Stable, he might be staying longer in the country.

Luisito Espinosa applies for a trainer’s license at the GAB (GAB photo)

UAAP to hold 2 seasons in 2022

By Peter Atencio TWO seasons will be hosted by member schools of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines this year.

After Season 84 gets going with nine events starting on March 26, organizers hope to have a bigger tournament when they launch Season 85 by October.

League president Emmanuel Calanog of Season 84 host De La Salle University said this on Friday as organizers unveiled their plans to restart competitions following a two-year absence.

“In as much as we wanted to have all the sports played, the current situation particularly in the past few months made the board decide to only have the

covered sports and some sports which made our criteria,” said Calanog.

The La Salle exec revealed the league’s plans in the presence of executive director Rene “Rebo” Saguisag Jr. and Smarts sports executive Jude Turcuato at the Hai Chix Restaurant in Capitol Commons, Pasig.

Quadruple-header games in men’s basketball will be among the first that will be held, along with women’s volleyball and a cheerdance competition.

It was also decided that they will add men’s and women’s 3x3 basketball events, together with women’s beach volleyball, poomsae, men’s and women’s chess.

“So these are the sports that we

will be running, and part of the decision is the cost. But as for the running of the tournament, not as much,” added Calanog.

Many student-athletes from member schools like Ateneo, University of Santo Tomas, University of the Philippines, Far Eastern University, De La Salle University, Adamson University and National University have already gone into bubble training in their respective campuses.

And because no uncontrolled incidents of COVID-19 infections have been reported, the league was inspired to restart the season after shutting down their activities in March 2020.

“Having our athletes back on the

campuses for two to three months before the start, to safely have them back in competition shape is the one that really helped the board decide that we can really bring our athletes back,” said Calanog.

With bubble training of studentathletes now going on full blast, the next host, Adamson University is now preparing to have Season 85 fire off by October.

“There will be two seasons in the same year. And hopefully, this will be in a new normal situation,” said Calanog.

The league will now air its games on TV5, after parting ways with the long-time broadcaster ABS-CBN back in 2020.

Athletics’ road to Hanoi shifts to Imus

Clinton Bautista

THE MILO-PATAFA 2022 Performance Trials in Baguio City’s Baguio Athletic Bowl was the f i rst of t wo venues for athletes ai m i ng to qualif y for the 2022 Southeast Asian Games i n Hanoi, Vietnam.

There, Clinton Bautista and Alvin Vergel registered season’s best times of 14’21 and 14’57 respectively in the 110m hurdles.

Albert Mantua hit two birds with one stone by achieving his personal best and surpassing the SEAG bronze-medal standard in shot put, with a distance of 17.02 meters.

In high jump, Leonard Grospe’s 2.07 was his personal best.

In the second and penultimate day of the MILO-PATAFA 2022

Performance Trials Baguio leg, decathlete Janry Ubas accumulated a total of 6,973 points to win the decathlon event.

Trailing him were Aries Toledo with 6,947, followed by Kasi Jeovanie with 5,626 points.

Ubas cleared 4.90 meters in the pole vault, which is his personal best to Toledo’s clearance of 4.80 meters to clinch the crucial pole vault portion of the decathlon.

Aries and Janry won gold and bronze, respectively, in the 2019 SEAG giving the country a 1-3 finish in decathlon.

The highlight of the MILOPATAFA 2022 Performance Trials was newcomer Alexie Mae Camioso going toe to toe with Sarah Dequinan in the heptathlon, which the former won, al-

though both qualified for the 2022 SEA Games.

As the MILO-PATAFA 2022 SEA Games Performance Trials shifts to Imus at The City of Imus Grandstand and Track Oval on Sunday, February 27, 2019 SEA Games silver medalist Mark Harry Diones, 2019 SEA Games gold medalist Clinton Bautista, and comebacking athletics legend Marestella Torres Sunang, are all looking to not just win their respective events, but to qualify for the SEAG as well.

The MILO-PATAFA 2022 SEA Games Performance Trials is co-presented by Lily’s Peanut Butter and supported by Cellife Cellular Nutrition, GuanaPro-C, and Brooks.

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

Joel D. Lacsamana, Editor E-mail: jdlacsamana@gmail.com

Home/Design

A

Go-to lifestyle mall

YALA Malls was recently recognized at the international Marketing Excellence Awards (MEA) 2021.

The MEA is a platform for marketers to showcase their creative excellence, successful strategies, and effective delivery. Ayala Malls won five awards at the MEA 2021 for its excellence in

marketing and COVID-19 response.

Ayala Malls’ “DriveBuy”, a system of pick-up areas located in accessible mall driveways, won the silver award in the category “Excellence in Response to COVID-19”. Two other recognitions were awarded to Alabang Town Center’s “Homegrown Circle” campaign, a sustaining commitment to help rebuild and grow local micro, small, and medium enterprises (shown in photo), and the “Artists’ Alley” at the U.P.

Town Center, a campaign centered on a combination of on-ground and digital channels executed into mall murals, art exhibits, musical performances and fund-raising initiatives through custom-designed tote bags and digital art commissions (Inset).

“Pasyal”, utilized a lifestyle storytelling approach to content, to provide a safe and responsible digital malling journey through its official Pasyal blog and Youtube channel Pasyal TV.

One of a kind experience

Seaside sanctuary LG’s self-lit pixel technology delivers a The picture quality is so good that LG new way of viewing TV. LG OLED TVs OLED TVs are recognized by leading have self-lit pixels that can illuminate directors as the TVs that set the standard. one by one to ensure richness of color LG OLED TVs were honored by film and contrast without interference. experts at the 72nd Annual Technology

FUNCTION AND COMFORT. SM Development Corporation (SMDC) is setting up communities where residents can flourish and pursue their passions. SMDC properties are strategically located relative to road networks and near transportation hubs. They are close to business and commercial centers, making them a perfect place to live. The Light 2 Residences, located at the EDSA-Mandaluyong area, is a prime development with a direct connection to the EDSA-Boni MRT-3 Station. The Air Residences, situated within Makati’s central business district, has a luxurious hotel-like lobby, where residents and guests are welcomed by a doorman and receptionist.

The Shore Residences is a 9-hectare property in the Mall of Asia complex that lets you experience a premier waterfront lifestyle.

& Engineering Emmy® Awards. For gaming, LG OLED TVs ensure superb image quality, and its fast response time lets you take full advantage of G-SYNC compatibility.

Sports become more exciting with self-lit pixels’ smooth motion. LG OLED TVs can display fast-moving sports with less blur than backlit LED TVs. For more information regarding LG’s current specials, you can visit https://www.lg.com/ph/promotions.

SWEET HOMECOMING.

DAVAO-BASED property developer Damosa Land, Inc. (DLI) recently launched Bridgeport, a sprawling 13-hectare low-density marina development in Davao.

Located in Caliclic island, Samal, the mixed-use development is the real estate and agro-industrial developer’s latest project, inspired by the US East Coast community, featuring low-density condominium buildings, premium open lots, a condotel, commercial area and events place, and a marina.

“Bridgeport offers a scenic waterfront location, also brings

Publicly listed Sta. Lucia Land Inc. knows all too well the plight of millions of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who continue to endure long hours of work and hardships away from their families and friends. The goal of these modern-day heroes is to eventually come home to a stable, comfortable life with their loved ones.

in investment opportunities given its strategic location and distinct lifestyle experience,” said Ricardo F. Lagdameo, president of Damosa Land, Inc. Other projects of the company include Damosa Diamond Tower, Damosa Land’s 17-story tower that showcases sustainable green architecture designs; the agritourism component of Agriya, Naturetainment, which is an attraction that will allow children and adults to experience nature and farm life; and the Anflo Industrial Estate, a 63-hectare Special Economic Zone.

Thus, Sta. Lucia Land continues to come up with smart, practical and hassle-free home investments in secure communities. “We will continue to build communities that are built on the Filipinos’ desire to own a home and live a decent and purposeful life,” said Sta. Lucia Land Inc. president Exequiel Robles. For more information, visit www.stalucialand.com.ph

Tech & Gadgets BRAD expands SME logistics solutions outside NCR BRAD Warehouse and Logistics Services Inc. is expanding its operations to include small and medium enterprises in Laguna, Rizal, and Bulacan.

It also aims to establish presence in Visayas and Mindanao later this year to support the growth of more local businesses.

Being a tech-enabled provider of end-to-end supply chain technology solutions, BRAD, a subsidiary of the Asticom Group of Companies, is wellpositioned to understand and deliver the needs of Filipinos wherever they are in the country.

“Seeing the limited options for an on-demand logistics solution in the provinces, we are confident that BRAD will become a trusted partner of local businesses. Through delivering amazing customer experience and innovative logistics solutions, we look forward to supporting SMEs in their development and creating more opportunities for Filipinos,” said Mharicar Castillo-Reyes, President and CEO of Asticom Group of Companies, a shared services provider under the Ayala conglomerate.

Launched in December 2021, BRAD initially offered its solutions to Metro Manila-based enterprises. But the company wants to widen its reach to serve more homegrown businesses and communities in different parts of the country, including Visayas and Mindanao.

BRAD currently has more than 30 merchants in its portfolio and over 150 riders based in different localities. It expects to grow the number significantly with the planned expansion.

“When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, one of those severely affected were local businesses, especially SMEs. We aim to empower them towards recovery and growth by providing fast, safe, and reliable logistics solutions,” said Richie Santos, General Manager of BRAD. BRAD’s services are tailored to fit the needs of businesses from various industries such as health and wellness, food and beverage, ecommerce, and telecommunications.

The company is also looking into the education, medical, pharmaceutical, and hospitality sectors.

The logistics solutions provider intends to connect enterprises to consumers by delivering essential items such as medicine, groceries, personal care items, appliances, gadgets, household care, and home essentials.

BRAD is one with the Globe Group in supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly UN SDG No. 9, highlighting the roles of infrastructure and innovation as crucial drivers of economic growth and development. It is committed to upholding the UN Global Compact principles and contributing to 10 UN SDGs. To learn more about BRAD, visit https://www.brad.ph/

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022 rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

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Cybercriminals forgo low-hanging fruit to go after banking, gaming I

N 2021, Kaspersky saw a steady decline in attacks on mobile devices, while cybercriminals consolidated their efforts to focus on more dangerous (and profitable) threats instead. New mobile malware has become increasingly complex, featuring new ways to steal users’ banking and gaming credentials, as well as other strands of personal data.

In 2021 Kaspersky detected more than 95,000 new mobile banking Trojans, but the number of attacks using such malware remained similar. Additionally, the share of Trojans—malicious programs capable of executing remote commands—doubled, reaching 8.8% in 2021. These and other findings are featured in Kaspersky’s Mobile Threats in 2021 report.

Kaspersky’s annual analysis of mobile threats demonstrated a positive trend—the number of attacks on mobile users worldwide has been declining, hitting 46 million in 2021 compared to 63 million in 2020. Experts attribute this development, in part, to the wave of attacks seen at the beginning of lockdown as users were forced to work from home. That period also saw increased use of various video conferencing and entertainment apps, increasing the volume and spread of attack opportunities. Now that the situation has stabilized, cybercriminal activity declined as a result.

Still, Kaspersky experts believe it is too early to relax. In 2021, 3.5 million malicious installation packages were detected, leading to 46.2 million attacks worldwide. Moreover, 80% of attacks were carried out by malware rather than adware (software

Kaspersky’s annual analysis of mobile threats demonstrated a positive trend—the number of attacks on mobile users worldwide has been declining, hitting 46 million in 2021 compared to 63 million in 2020.

that intrusively displays ads), or RiskTools (malicious programs with various functions such as concealing themselves from the screen).

“Indeed, there have been fewer mobile attacks in general, however, the attacks we are still seeing have become more complex and harder to spot. Cybercriminals tend to mask malicious apps under the guise of legitimate applications, which can often be downloaded from official app stores. On top of that, with mobile banking and payment apps becoming even more widespread, there is a higher chance of cybercriminals targeting these more actively. Staying cautious and careful on the internet and avoiding downloading unknown apps is good practice, but I also strongly recom-

mend using a reliable solution. When it comes to the security of finances, in particular, it is better to be safe than sorry,” comments Tatyana Shishkova, security researcher at Kaspersky.

To protect yourself from mobile threats, Kaspersky shares the following recommendations: It is safer to download your apps only from official stores like Apple App Store, Google Play, or Amazon Appstore. Apps from these markets are not 100% failsafe, but at least they get checked by shop representatives and there is some filtration system—not every app can get onto these stores.

Check the permissions of apps that you use and think carefully before permitting an app, especially when it

comes to high-risk permissions such as Accessibility Services. The only permission that a flashlight app needs is to the flashlight (which doesn’t even involve camera access).

A reliable security solution can help you to detect malicious apps and adware before they start behaving badly on your device. iPhone users have some privacy controls provided by Apple, and users can block app access to photos, contacts, and GPS features if they think these permissions are unnecessary.

A good piece of advice is to update your operating system and important apps as updates become available. Many safety issues can be solved by installing updated versions of software.

DepEd enlists Google Chromebooks as suitable devices for K12 schools CHROMEBOOKS have been added to the list of devices that can be provided or donated to public schools, teachers and learners.

This was said by the Department of Education’s Office of the Undersecretary for Administration, through the Information and Communications Technology Service, in a recent memorandum.

This means that local government units supporting DepEd can now acquire Chromebooks using their Special Education Fund and donate them to public schools in their areas to support the new learning requirements brought by the pandemic. As of 2021, there are 146 cities and 1,488 municipalities who have SEFs. Aside from LGUs, this memo is also applicable to NGOs and other organizations supporting DepEd and education initiatives.

Chromebooks will “help facilitate distance learning

Chromebooks are a range of affordable, simple yet powerful devices during the COVID-19 pandemic” and DepEd noted in the memorandum. “ensure dependability of devices in the Chromebooks are a range of affordconduct of face-to-face in the future”, the able, simple yet powerful devices with

built-in accessibility and security features to promote collaboration, deepen classroom connections and keep user information safe. They run on Google’s Chrome OS, an operating system that runs in the cloud to create a secure, reliable machine with a user-friendly interface. As Chromebooks are web-based, all apps and documents are stored securely in the cloud, enabling users to work or teach from anywhere. Chromebooks also have an offline mode to allow teachers and students to keep working even without an internet connection, as well as built-in accessibility features that let everyone participate without barriers. Chromebooks pair seamlessly with Google Workspace for Education to create an all-in-one device that offers a totally comprehensive teaching and learning environment.

Chromebooks are currently being used by millions of educators and learners worldwide. In the Philippines, brands that carry Chrome devices for education are Acer, Asus, HP and Lenovo.

For more information, visit https:// edu.google.com/new-school/.

Voter education campaigners: Protect democracy by fighting disinformation FILIPINOS can do their part in upholding our democracy not only by voting for the right candidates but, in this age of technology, fighting disinformation that distorts people’s ability to make sound decisions, panelists in a virtual town hall discussion said Tuesday.

During the launch of Vote Right 2022, a campaign of advocacy group Democracy Watch Philippines in partnership with the Commission on Elections, Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, characterized the conscientious voter as someone who possesses an open mind, actively searches for the truth, and who puts an effort into discerning which input from social media must, and must not, be believed.

A good and responsible citizen votes according to one’s conscience, he said.

“This is the candidate who will preserve and strengthen democracy,

follow the law, respect human dignity, defend our territory in a peaceful but firm way, and rectify the culture of corruption in government,” Bishop David said.

Meanwhile, Stratbase ADR Institute president Professor Victor Andres “Dindo” Manhit pointed to the apparent disconnect between what voters say they want in a candidate and who are emerging as frontrunners in early surveys – a phenomenon that’s best explained by the prevalence and power of fake news.

“Today’s social media space is infected with the pandemic of disinformation, perpetrated by forces who need to distort historical facts,” he said.

Manhit pointed out that next to television, the Internet is the second most influential source of election information.

The ordinary information consumer, however, does not necessarily fact check articles he or she sees online.

“The truth must be told. It must be told

again and again so it does not drown in the well-funded deluge of lies and disinformation,” he said, as he conjured a governance scenario produced by an election decided by disinformation.

“Voter education today must combat disinformation with untiring passion and resolve,” he said.

Meanwhile, Myla Villanueva, chairperson of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting, emphasized that the work they do is critical to maintaining the credibility of elections.

“The young people may not remember this, but in the days of manual elections, wholesale cheating was happening in the canvassing where 2000 votes become 20,000 or sometimes, they would remove from one candidate and add to another in very big fashion.”

The PPCRV is legally empowered by the Commission on Elections to perform unofficial parallel counts, conduct voter education and registration

campaigns, and be part of the voters’ assistance desk.

A big part of the PPCRV’s work is engaging the youth, especially encouraging first-time voters to take part in elections.

Commission on Elections spokesman and director for Education and Information James Jimenez meanwhile emphasized the ultimate benefits of an automated system which eliminates structural advantages such as perceived bailiwicks and command votes.

He also spoke about how the faster counting now eliminates any window of opportunity for dagdag -bawas (vote padding and shaving), and how the prompt release of election results protects election workers and potentially defuses tensions in hotly contested areas.

“When people no longer have time to condition the minds of the public to accept a predetermined result, then you have a fair environment for the elections where the election result is easier to accept for every-

one,” Jimenez said.

While a lot of the success of the 2022 election depends on voters and their vigilance, “we cannot trivialize the contribution of the automated election system to our safe elections.”

Other speakers at the virtual town hall were Atty. Ona Caritos, executive director of Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE), and Dr. Rachel Khan, associate dean of the UP College of Mass Communication and program coordinator of fact-checking initiative Tsek.ph.

In his closing remarks, Paco Pangalangan, convenor of Democracy Watch, sounded the call for Filipinos to exert due diligence in choosing candidates, to be more conscious of the source and quality of information, adopt a fact-checking mindset, open their senses and appreciate the evidence.

“The future of our nation is worth the effort,” he said.

RAMON L. TOMELDAN Editor

B4

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2022

Motoring

Toyota supplies PCSO’s PTV donations T

OYOTA Motor Philippines (TMP) has released the initial 50 of the committed 300 Hiace Commuter Deluxe Patient Transport Vehicle (PTV) units to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) in a meaningful turnover ceremony and Deed of Donation (DOD) signing between PCSO and PTV beneficiaries last February 4, 2021 at the Toyota Otis dealership.

Present during the ceremony were the officers and representatives of the initial 50 municipalities and cities, PCSO Vice Chairperson and General Manager Ms. Royina Marzan Garma, PCSO Charity Assistance Manager Atty. Marissa O. Medrano, PCSO Assistant General Manager Ms. Julieta F. Aseo, and PCSO Special Projects Division Chief Ms. Muriel G. Pajarillo.

In her speech, PCSO Vice Chairperson and General Manager Ms. Royina Marzan Garma expressed her appreciation to Toyota for producing high-quality vehicles that can be converted to PTVs to address the medical transportation requirements of Local Government Units (LGUs).

Guaranteed with the Toyota Sure Advantage of Quality, Durability, and Reliability, the Hiace units have been converted to meet the requirements of PCSO’s Patient

Transport Vehicle Distribution Program which provides medical transport vehicles to LGUs nationwide. Designed and built to navigate even to farflung areas while also providing sense of comfort during travel, the country’s top-selling utility van surely delivers quality performance to safely, reliably, and comfortably transport patients needing mobility assistance, and health care workers while they save lives on-the-go With Toyota’s nationwide dealer network, LGUs are assured of the accessible care and maintenance for these vehicles, so they can provide dependable service to the community. They may book their Periodic Maintenance appointment online through myTOYOTA APP or through direct contact with dealer Marketing Professionals and get the best and reliable service experience.

Chevron employees donate to families in Cavite

Chevron employees give second life to household items that would otherwise add to overburdened landfills but are still very useful and need by other people.

BY USING the KonMari method, Chevron employees learned how to declutter for better clarity, efficiency and productivity in both personal and professional lives.

The workshop and donations were part of Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI) Volunteer Week wherein “Project Joy” taught Chevron employees the Konmari method, Marie Kondo’s minimalist approach, to improve decluttering.

The volunteers were encouraged to let go of things that no longer spark joy in their lives but may be beneficial to others, particularly to disadvantaged families in Naic, Cavite.

CPI made the donations through Project Pearls which handed out the various household items to families

in Brgy. Malainen, Bago, Naic, Cavite, a relocation site for families from Tondo, Manila.

Chevron Volunteer Week is an annual week-long volunteer activity of CPI that bridges the gap between those who are willing to help and those who are willing to receive help.

“Volunteerism is a key value of Chevron. It helps keep us mentally and physically healthy by providing a sense of purpose. The decluttering workshop was beneficial to all of us, be it at work or at home. It is indeed very fortunate that our employees got to donate and help along the process. I can’t think of a better way to wrap up our 2021 Volunteer Week than with Project Joy,” shared Billy Liu, CPI country chairman and general manager.

Electric vehicles set record sales globally in ‘21

By Milo Rivera THE electric vehicle (EV) revolution is taking the world even more as each day goes by as thinking shifts from fossil fuels to all-electric - with visions of a brighter, more optimistic world come into view.

EV sales are increasing at such a rapid rate that new records were set on almost every month of 2021 with last November seeing over 720,000 new plug-in vehicle registrations. That record was convincingly thrashed the month after when numbers rose to over 907,000 - a nearly 60 percent increase in new EV registrations over December of 2020.

Aside from the increase of EV sales last year, its share of sales in the total vehicle market heightened as well, after recording about 15% of the entire vehicle registrations for the month

of December. According to “Inside EVs”, 11% of all vehicles sold in December were battery electric, while the remaining four percent were plugin hybrid electric vehicles. Meanwhile, traditional self-charging hybrids were responsible for 650,000 new purchases.

And with 6.5 million new electric vehicles sold last 2021, 2020’s numbers were trampled by more than double after its year-end figures only recorded 3.1 million in total units sold.

As expected, Tesla’s massive deliveries in 2021 were responsible for the lion’s share of this increase, with their Model 3 being the number one ‘best selling’ EV of the year, and their Model Y coming in third. Ranking second was China’s $5,000 Wuling Hong Guang Mini EV. The EV market share rates have risen to a total of 10 percent across Europe

and Asia. Meanwhile in the United States, hybrids are still - by far - topping over battery electric vehicles with 2021 seeing hybrid vehicle purchases rise to 76% - accounting for five percent of the total light vehicle sales.

Globally, the exponential growth of EV sales may be attributed to Tesla’s overwhelming popularity around the globe, but as more competition comes out from mainstream manufacturers and scales to meet demand, it can only be a question if Tesla shall continue to have the market dominance that it currently enjoys - or for how long. Given that 2021’s most popular electric vehicle will cost you over $40,000, while the next most popular EV is on sale for only an eighth of its American counterpart’s price, maybe it’s time for the whole industry to produce and sell “the cars of tomorrow” at more affordable price ranges.

THE LAST EVER PETROLENGINED LOTUS MASTERPIECE TO MAKE ITS WAY TO PH THIS YEAR. After celebrating their

23rd Anniversary, The Autohub Group announced that the Lotus Emira shall be available in the Philippine market come the third quarter of this year. Said to be the last petrol engine vehicle Lotus shall be manufacturing given the brand’s all-electric program moving forward, the Emira shall be “luckily” priced at PHP8,888,888.00 once it lands on the country’s shores.