Manila Standard - 2022 June 18 - Saturday

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BBM eyes ‘balanced’ sea tack Aussie envoy: Marcos to take ‘very measured’ stance with China on SCS

VOL. XXXVI • NO. 122 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

By Rey E. Requejo

P

RESIDENT-ELECT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will take a “very measured and balanced” approach to the country’s territorial disputes with China over the West Philippine Sea Marcos made this commitment during a meeting with Australian Ambassador James Robinson, one of five diplomats that he met Friday (see related story below – Editors).

After his courtesy call, Robinson said he assured Marcos that Australia would continue to support the Philippines’ victory in the arbitral case against China’s sweeping claims over the South China Sea. “I think the President-elect is going to take a very measured and balanced approach in terms of how he approaches

CABINET ADDITIONS. President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (left) and incoming Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez meets with former Armed Forces Chief of Staff Jose Faustino Jr. (right), who accepted the nomination as Undersecretary and Officer-in-Charge designate of the Department of National Defense (DND). Earlier, Marcos and Rodriguez met with Justice Next page Secretary Menardo Guevarra (above photo), who will become the next Solicitor General. BBM Media Bureau

Enrile, Guevarra, Faustino in new Cabinet Avail of free COVID-19 booster shots, Bongbong urges public Menardo Guevarra have joined the incoming administration of Presidentelect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as Presidential FORMER Senate President Juan Ponce Legal Counsel and Solicitor General, Enrile and outgoing Justice Secretary respectively.

By Rey E. Requejo and Mervin Vince Lopez

Press Secretary-designate Rose Beatrix Cruz-Angeles also revealed that Marcos has designated retired Armed Forces chief of staff Gen. Jose Faustino Jr. as senior undersecretary and officer-

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Cebu gov defies mask order, says ordinance stays

By Willie Casas, Rio N. Araja, and Macon Ramos-Araneta FANTASTIC FOUR. Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green, Klay

Thompson, and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors flash four fingers to note the number of times they have won the NBA championship together after defeating the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the NBA Fianls on Thursday. AFP

Warriors back on top, trip Celts for crown BOSTON—A dazzling performance 103-90 victory over the Boston Celtics from Stephen Curry powered the to clinch a 4-2 series triumph.

Golden State Warriors to a seventh NBA Warriors talisman Curry produced Next page Finals crown on Thursday, securing a

CEBU Governor Gwen Garcia is defying the national government’s orders to comply with its mask-wearing policy against COVID-19 within three days or by this weekend, saying her province's optional use of face masks in open and well-ventilated spaces stays.

"Here in the province of Cebu, the ordinance that rationalizes the use of face mask stands," Garcia said in a press briefing Friday.

This developed as the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATFNext page

PRESIDENT-ELECT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday urged the public to avail of the free booster shots being offered by the government after the Department of Health (DOH) warned of a possible increase in severe and critical COVID-19 cases by August due to the waning immunity of the primary vaccine series.

Marcos emphasized the urgency of taking booster doses, saying the waning immunity stems from the effect of the

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Diesel seen going up P2.30/l in 3rd week of oil price hikes FILIPINOS must brace for a third straight week of increases in the pump prices of petroleum products, with diesel seen to rise to as much as P2.30 a liter and gasoline moving up P0.50 a liter, industry sources said Friday.

Based on oil trading monitoring from June 13 to 16, sources told the Standard local oil firms would adjust the price of diesel per liter by at least P2.00 and gasoline by a minimum of 20 centavos

by Tuesday next week.

Last Tuesday, fuel firms hiked

gasoline prices by P2.15 per liter and diesel by P4.30 per liter. This brought the year-to-date adjustments at a net increase of P28.70 per liter for gasoline and P41.15 per liter for diesel.

Oil Industry Management Bureau director Rino Abad of the Department of Energy said the possible price increase is tempered “most likely due to (the COVID-19) China lockdown.”

“But it did not cause a rollback, so we still expect increase next week but amounts Next page

Peso loses more ground to dollar, at 44-month low

Envoys seek PH defense, food security deals POLAND wants to enhance its defense cooperation with the Philippines and explore how the European country can contribute to the strengthening of the country’s food security, its envoy told Presidentelect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday.

Meanwhile, India’s government expects that its cordial relationship

highly transmissible Omicron variant on the primary vaccine series.

“With the COVID pandemic still ongoing, different variants may still emerge…. Hence, there is a need to enhance our immunity by getting booster shots. There is a need for added protection,” Marcos said.

Marcos also urged the public to strictly adhere to minimum public health

By Julito G. Rada

ENVOYS WITH BBM. Australian Ambassador Steven James Robinson (left photo) and Ambassador Peter Francis Tavita Kell of New Zealand give gifts to President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in separate courtesy calls on Friday. BBM Media Bureau

THE peso depreciated further against the US dollar on Friday in the wake of the US Federal Reserve's rate increase on Wednesday, but the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said it remains in the middle of the pack of the currencies in the region.

The peso lost P0.28 to close at 53.75 from 53.47 per dollar on Thursday. It Next page

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News

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Militants who killed expats nabbed

J

OLO—Two Islamic militants accused of kidnapping and killing four foreigners in the restive southern Philippines were detained Friday after surrendering to the military, authorities said.

The fugitives were members of the feared kidnap-for-ransom group Abu Sayyaf and have been handed over to police on Jolo island in Sulu province, regional military spokesman Alaric Delos Santos told AFP. "Their surrender does not extinguish their responsibility for these cases. That's why we turned them over to the police," Delos Santos said.

Abu Sayyaf is a loose grouping of Muslim rebels, some of them allied to the Islamic State group, which has carried out bombings and ransom kidnappings in the past three decades.

The two suspects—Almujer Yadah and Ben Quirino—have been accused of the November 2016 kidnapping and subsequent murders of German sailor Jurgen Kantner and his female partner

and compatriot.

The body of the woman was found with a gunshot wound aboard the yacht that went adrift in the Sulu Sea after kidnappers boarded it.

Kantner was taken to Jolo and beheaded by his captors in early 2017 after they reportedly tried to negotiate a ransom.

The militants also allegedly carried out the murders of Canadians John Ridsdel and Robert Hall, who were abducted in September 2015 alongside Halls' Filipino girlfriend and a Norwegian man from a tourist resort.

The Abu Sayyaf beheaded Ridsdel and Hall in 2016, but later released the

woman and the Norwegian, who were both unharmed.

Delos Santos said there have been no kidnappings in the region for the past two years. Only about 20 Abu Sayyaf militants were still operating in the area, he added.

The group is known to have raised millions of dollars in ransoms to finance their armed campaign and in previous years have targeted merchant ships in the south, abducting Malaysian, Indonesian and Vietnamese crewmen.

In May 2017 Abu Sayyaf gunmen along with other pro-Islamic State allies seized the centre of Marawi city, the Islamic capital of the mainly Catholic nation. AFP

Enrile,...

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in-charge of the Department of National Defense.

Faustino will later assume the DND Secretary’s post on Nov. 13, 2022, in compliance with the one-year ban on the appointment of retired military officers under Republic Act 6975.

Angeles said Enrile will re-enter public service as presidential legal counsel, six years after announcing his retirement from politics in 2016.

Enrile, a staunch supporter of Marcos and Vice President-elect Sara Duterte during the 2022 elections, reaffirmed his commitment to serve the country and ensure the success of the incoming government.

The 98-year-old statesman has served in the government in various capacities for the past 50 years, including interim secretary of Finance from 1966 to 1968, secretary of Justice from 1968 to 1970, and minister of National Defense from 1972 to 1986.

He served four terms in the Senate, where he also became the 21st Senate President during the 15th Congress from 2008 to 2013.

Guevarra, the outgoing Justice secretary, has accepted the nomination as Solicitor General-designate during his meeting with Marcos on Thursday.

Confirming his acceptance of the post, Guevarra said: “Ten years ago, I was offered both the SOJ [Secretary of Justice] and OSG [Office of the Solicitor General] positions. Maybe the time wasn’t ripe then. Now everything’s coming back to me. It’s the hand of God at work. Ecclesiastes.”

Guevarra admitted he would have preferred to take the Solicitor General position then.

“Honestly, yes. The SOJ is very highprofile and has more administrative work, supervising many attached agencies. The Solgen position, I thought, better suited me because I had been in law firm practice for 25 years.”

“I intend to stick to the role of the OSG as the defender of the republic and tribune of the people,” he said.

Guevarra graduated magna cum laude majoring in Political Science from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1974.

He obtained his Master’s in Economics from the University of the Philippines and worked at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) from 1977 to 1983. He received his Bachelor of Laws degree from the Ateneo and placed second in the 1985 Bar exams.

Guevarra began private law practice in 1986 and started teaching at his alma mater Ateneo in 1990 as part of the Law School faculty, specializing in civil law, criminal law, and administrative litigation. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Avail...

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standards to prevent another surge of cases that could impede the country’s economic recovery.

“We have already made economic headway and we should not allow them to be brought to naught. This is why I am urging everyone to take part in preventing another surge that could block our way to economic recovery,” Marcos said.

“We have to wear face masks and comply with other health standards to ensure our safety and that of our loved ones,” Marcos said.

Earlier, the Health department has warned of a possible increase in severe and critical COVID-19 cases by August due to the waning immunity of the public.

It also warned that while hospitals are not overwhelmed at present, there could be

Envoys...

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with the Philippines under President Rodrigo Duterte will continue under the administration of Marcos Jr. The Philippines is among the participants at the Asean-India media exchange program in New Delhi on June 14 to 20 and the Special Asean-India

NCRPO: No-fly zone over BBM inaugural site

By Joel E. Zurbano THE National Capital Region Police Office will enforce a no-fly zone policy in the areas surrounding the National Museum in Manila to protect the inauguration of President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on June 30.

NCRPO chief Police Maj. Gen. Felipe Natividad said the airspace within one kilometer radius of the National Museum will be declared as no-fly and no-drone zones, while all the ports and waterways will be secured to preempt entry of what he described as “would-be saboteurs.”

The no-fly zone is one of the security measures the police force will enforce before, during and after the event, he said.

“To ensure success, zero casualty and any untoward incident in the upcoming inauguration, final security preparation has been finalized and laid down. This is to guarantee smooth transition of political leadership in the country amid the continuing threat of the current health crisis,” said Natividad.

Three days before inauguration day, the Philippine National Police will also suspend the Permit to Carry Firearms Outside Residenc (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Peso...

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ROMUALDEZ WITH ENVOYS. House Majority Leader and

Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin G. Romualdez and Ilocos Norte Representativeelect Sandro Marcos meet with Korean Ambassador Inchul Kim (left) Thursday at the latter's residence, while Romualdez paid British Ambassador Laure Beaufils a visit at her home to discuss stronger relations with the incoming Marcos government. Ver Noveno

and undermine the country’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and legitimate maritime entitlements.”

The DFA said its diplomatic protests are “sufficiently grounded” on recommendations and reports from the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS).

“The DFA, as the chief implementer of an independent foreign policy, as mandated by the Philippine Constitution, is not beholden to any foreign entity and serves only the interests of the Philippines and the Filipino people,” the statement said.

Nonetheless, the department assured the public that it “upholds only the country’s national interest and the interest of the Filipino people, and it shall relentlessly defend the sovereignty of the republic.”

The DFA statement was a reaction to a column published by a national daily insinuating that the DFA protests against China were “controlled by the US State Department.”

The DFA said most of the Philippines’ diplomatic protests were lodged against China “simply because it is the country that has been conducting the most illegal and provocative actions in the WPS.” These activities range from the harassment of Filipino fishermen, shadowing and harassment of Philippine maritime assets, unauthorized marine scientific research, and non-innocent passage in the Philippines’ archipelagic waters, even during military exercises.

“China undertakes these activities in spite of the agreement between President Duterte and President Xi to exercise selfrestraint in the conduct of activities in the SCS (South China Sea),” the DFA said.

It also said the framework for filing of protests is “clear and automatic: once a transgression is verified, a protest is filed.”

Under the Duterte administration, the department has filed over 300 protests

against unprovoked Chinese illegal activities in the West Philippine Sea. It has also filed six protests against illegal activities by Vietnam in the Philippines’ legitimate maritime zones.

“The timing and publication of information on diplomatic protests is the sole prerogative of the DFA and of no other entity. Unless this framework is changed by the next administration, protests will continue to be filed,” the DFA said.

On the case of the reported harassment of RV Legend, a Taiwanese research vessel also carrying Filipino scientists, the department underscored that the “blatant Chinese actions against the Philippines” prompted the DFA to protest and publicize it.

Friday saw the conclusion of joint training exercises between the Philippines and the United States.

Held from June 6 to June 17, 2022, the initial two-week joint training conducted in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, and Puerto Princesa City, Palawan enhanced the interoperability and aviation-related capabilities of the US Marine Corps (USMC) and Philippine Marine Corps (PMC).

Troops from the Philippine Air Force and the Philippine Naval Wing also joined the military exercise.

A Philippine military statement said both the PMC and the USMCdemonstrated aviation assets as they conducted training on combined and joint forward arming and refueling, high mobility artillery rocket system rapid Infiltration, and unmanned aviation systems.

“Training side by side increases our combined military capability, but also our friendship, which directly contributes to the strength of our alliance,” US Marine Forces Pacific Commanding General Lt. Gen. Stteven Rudder said in a US Embassy statement.

“This exercise builds on decades of cooperation, friendship, and shared experience,” he added.

an increase in hospitalization by August.

The agency reported that the average number of new cases per day rose to 270 from 182 per day last week.

Meanwhile, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said his successor should have experience in addressing the pandemic.

Duque also served as the Health chief of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

“I know people want the next secretary of Health to have some knowledge in addressing the pandemic, so the wheel is not reinvented, so to speak. So that there's continuity,” Duque said.

The Philippine Medical Association and the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc. have endorsed Dr. Ted Herbosa, adviser of the National Task Force Against COVID-19, as the next secretary of Health. Rey E. Requejo, Willie Casas, Rio N. Araja, and Othel V. Campos (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Cebu...

EID), which sets the national policy on COVID-19 with President Rodrigo Duterte’s approval, insistedon the need to wear face masks, both indoors and outdoors.

Secretary Vince Dizon, IATF-EID deputy chief implementor, said other countries record higher daily cases than the Philippines because they have stopped the mandatory use of face masks.

But in her presser, Garcia stressed her executive order is supported by a provincial ordinance and slammed as "trivial" the debate on optional mask-wearing order despite other pressing issues, such as the soaring prices of fuel products.

The governor, who earned a second term in the May 9 elections, claimed that it amounts to "pure ridiculousness" if the public is still required to use mask outdoors

even after having received COVID-19 vaccination and booster shots.

The governor said the provincial government follows the rule of law and "not the rule of men who imagine themselves to still be powerful".

Garcia even said Interior Secretary Eduardo Año and Philippine National Police officer-in-charge Lt. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr.—who have both given orders that the national mask mandate be enforced—had been pictured not wearing masks in air-conditioned rooms.

"But I guess it does not apply to them.

I guess to the generals you don't, the PNP can't confront, apprehend, and arrest," she added.

Even then, the country’s biggest hospital group advised the public Friday to continue wearing face masks as an added protection against the spread of COVID-19. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Foreign Ministers’ meeting and the 12th Delhi Dialogue on June 16 and 17.

Poland Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Jaroslaw Szczepankiewicz said he discussed with Marcos food security and enhanced defense cooperationwith his country.

“Mostly, we arrived at the questions of food security in the Philippines and the contribution of Poland to assure food security, especially in the meat sector,” Szczepankiewicz told reporters, after

his courtesy visit to Marcos at the BBM headquarters in MandaluyongCity.

According to Szczepankiewicz, they also discussed the possible extension of cooperation in the defense sector between the two countries, saying Poland manufactures Black Hawk helicopters for the Philippine Air Force.

Marcos also took note of the importance of digitalization in the Philippines during the discussion, with

Szczepankiewicz mentioning that Poland was the first digitalized administration in the European Union.

“Opportunities for the development of cultural and scientific cooperation and mainly in terms of the Polish scholarship for Filipino students. So, we hope that some decisions will be taken soon and very quickly, and the President knows about some problems," Szczepankiewicz said. Rey E. Requejo (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

BBM...

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all of these issues to seek the best outcome he can for the Philippines. And I think any pragmatic politician would do exactly the same — to try and work out how do you get the best for your country in difficult circumstances. And that's what I'm anticipating from the President[-elect],” he said.

Robinson said he also relayed Australia’s commitment to support the Philippines “as it goes forward dealing with difficult regional issues.”

Robinson did not bring up Manila’s displeasure at Australia’s recent failure to support the Philippines' bid for a seat on the UN’s Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.

On July 12, 2016, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled in favor of the Philippines' petition to invalidate China's claim of historic rights over almost the entire SCS. China has ignored the PCA ruling.

Marcos, the successor of Duterte, earlier promised to uphold the PCA ruling.

On June 10, National Security Adviser-designate Clarita Carlos said bilateral and multilateral negotiations with China to settle the SCS territorial disputes will continue under the Marcos administration.

China, the Philippines, and several other littoral states are locked in a territorial dispute over the SCS where Beijing claims around 80 percent of the strategic waters.

Ongoing negotiations include the crafting of the binding Code of Conduct with other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

On Friday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) vowed to exercise its constitutional mandate to protest “any act by foreign entities that threaten

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was the local unit's weakest level in almost 44 months since the 53.8 on Oct. 25, 2018. Total volume traded stood at $962.5 million, down from $1.141 billion previously.

BSP Department of Economic Research managing director Zeno Ronald Abenoja said during the balance of payments' online briefing the peso's movement reflected partly the shifts in sentiments following the recent policy pronouncement from advanced economies, particularly the US Federal Reserve.

Abenoja said financial markets were impacted as a result.

"We are looking at developments in the markets... [So far], the peso is comparable to other markets. We have one of the lower [and reasonable] movements to date," Abenoja said.

Senior Assistant Governor Iluminada Sicat of the BSP Monetary Policy SubSector said the peso depreciated against the US dollar by 4.23 percent as of June 14 compared to end-December 2021.

Comparatively, she said the Thai baht depreciated by 4.95 percent, Malaysian ringgit by 5.69 percent, Chinese yuan by 5.58 percent, and Korean won by 7.5 percent. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

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are relatively smaller compared to last week,” Abad said.

He added that the European Union ban on Russian oil imports triggered by the latter’s war with Ukraine is still causing fuel prices to rise.

Oil companies usually announce fuel price adjustments every Monday, to be implemented the following day.

On Tuesday, June 7, oil firms implemented price hikes of P6.55 per liter for diesel, P2.70 per liter for gasoline and P5.45 per liter for kerosene.

This prompted the government to approve a provisional P1 increase of the minimum fare for public utility jeepneys in Metro Manila and Regions 3 and 4, raising it to P10, even as the Department of Energy said there was no relief in sight from the constant increases. With Alena Mae Flores (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Warriors...

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yet another masterpiece with 34 points, seven assists and seven rebounds as Golden State wrapped up their fourth title in eight years to silence Boston's raucous TD Garden.

The 34-year-old Curry was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player after the victory—the first time the four-time NBA champion has scooped the award.

"I'm so proud of our group, I thank god every day that I get to play this game with some amazing people," an emotional Curry said afterwards.

"This is what it's all about, especially after everything we've gone through in the past three years."

The win completed a dramatic journey back to the pinnacle of the NBA for the Warriors, who just two seasons ago had the worst record in theleague as the franchise battled injuries and the departure of key personnel.

"At the beginning of the season nobody thought we'd be here—except everybody on this court right now. It's surreal," Curry added. AFP (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

News

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

Migz tells Alan: Blue Ribbon slot not mine to give

OATH-TAKING.

Members of the Brotherhood of Brave Maharlikan Tiger, a group loyal to incoming President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, and supported his electoral campaign, take their oath of office administered by Climate Change Commission commissioner Albert Deal Cruz and lawyer Larry Gadon as chairman and president, respectively, in a ceremony held at the Mariotte Hotel.

Danny Pata

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

Rody wants BBM to sustain drug war P

RESIDENT Duterte remained committed to his drug war and expected the incoming Marcos administration to continue the crusade with specific focus on politicians involved in the drug trade, Malacanang said on Friday.

The President particularly cited Iloilo City Mayor Jed Mabilog who has reportedly fled the country to evade arrest and prosecution.

But Mabilog’s wife countered that Duterte’s charges as “lies” and “old news.”

“The President’s remarks on Iloilo City Mayor Jed Mabilog reflect his resolute stance against narcopolitics,” acting Presidential Spokesperson and Communications Secretary Martin An-

danar said in a press statement.

Andanar said the Chief Executive was giving emphasis to Mabilog’s case to encourage the incoming administration to continue his anti-narcotics campaign.

“President Duterte expects (that) his administration’s very successful antidrug campaign, where millions have voluntarily surrendered to authorities, will be continued by the incoming administration,” he said.

Duterte was convinced that Mabilog, accused of protecting drug lords, would remain in hiding for another six years.

Duterte issued the statement to emphasize that the drug problem in the country should be taken seriously.

Duterte accused Mabilog of protecting the supposed drug syndicate of Melvin Odicta, an alleged drug lord who was killed in 2017, along with his wife.

Mabilog has not returned to the country after attending a disaster management summit in Japan and an urban environment accords forum in Malaysia in 2017.

His wife and children have also left the country.

The Office of the Ombudsman in October 2017 dismissed Mabilog for his supposed failure to fully declare his wealth. The Court of Appeals however, reversed the decision in a 2021, but Duterte continued to tag Mabilog as one of the so-called narco-politicians.

Marcos, for his part, vowed to continue the drug war and sought to go after big-time drug dealers.

“You had six years to prove to the world that Jed is guilty of your charges and you came up empty. Zero. Zilch.

That is why you could never get over him. Your lies just blew in your face,” Mrs. Mabilog said in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

DAR vows to give land titles to Hacienda Tinang farmers THERE is now light at the end of the tunnel for the farmers’ struggle to own the land they till in a sugarcane plantation in Concepcion, Tarlac.

The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) on Friday said it would award certificates of land ownership to the farmers in Hacienda Tinang in Concepcion before June 30.

Some 90 farmers and their supporters were recently arrested during a protest action in disputed Hacienda Tinang.

At least 177 farmers were deemed qualified to receive certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) based on a validation conducted last month, said DAR Assistant Secretary John Laña.

A total of 236 individuals claim to be beneficiaries of agrarian reform in the plantation.

“Many have sold their individual

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SENATE Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, who emerged unopposed in his bid for the Senate presidency, on Friday said he still needed to talk to the majority regarding the request of Senator-elect Alan Peter Cayetano to head the powerful Blue Ribbon Committee.

Cayetano said earlier he would join the majority bloc in the Senate only if he would be given chairmanship of the Blue Ribbon Committee.

He disclosed that Zubiri, who is eyeing the Senate President post, asked him to join the majority considering their history of working together.

But Zubiri said he had already discussed the blue ribbon chairmanship issue with Senator Francis Tolentino who had accepted to lead the panel.

“So it’s not my decision to make at this moment,” said Zubiri.

Zubiri said a number of senators are on vacation for the next two weeks and he could call for an initial meeting of the super majority upon their return.

“We can only make a decision then,” he said.

While Tolentino agreed to head the Blue Ribbon, he still needed the votes of the majority.

According to Cayetano, he would be able to do his job as a fiscalizer if he was given the Blue Ribbon Committee.

“But if you will me a give me committee where I cannot fiscalize or only a few will fiscalize or those who will fiscalize are in are in disagreement, that would be difficult,” Cayetano explained to Zubiri.

FILM FESTIVAL.

Tabaco City Mayor Krisel LagmanLuistro cuts the ceremonial ribbon to open the film fest dubbed Tabak Festival 2022.

Norman Cruz

rights. Some did not even work for the Dominicans who gave up the land, others converted their land without approval from DAR,” said in a public briefing.

“We promised that we will award the CLOAs to qualified beneficiaries before June 30. I am not saying all 236 will get one, so far only 177 are qualified in the initial list,” Laña said.

The government issued a collective CLOA on Sept. 26, 1995, Laña noted.

He said he was puzzled why it has yet to be distributed to farmers.

Another group of 400 farmers were also claiming parts of the disputed land, but have no records with DAR, Laña said.

“Wala rin po [sila] sa register of deeds, Land Registration Authority. In short, what we only have as of this moment is only 236 individuals in the collective CLOA,” the official said.

One-hour fire COA directs Justice Dept. to liquidate P75.1M in cash advances hits MET, deals minor damage FIRE of still undetermined origin broke out Friday morning at the Metropolitan (MET) Theater, but caused no major damage to the historic edifice.

The Manila Fire Department reported that the fire was tapped in at about 8:55 a.m. and was put under control one hour later.

In a statement, the MET management said nobody was hurt and only old and worn-out items were razed in the fire that broke out in one of the rooms on the ground floor that is still under renovation.

“The fire started in a room on the first floor of the Padre Burgos Wing that is being renovated under the Phase 3 of the project. The fire did not spread to other parts of the complex and to the theater),” read the statement posted on Facebook.

The MET management was also thankful for the outpouring of concern and the swift action of authorities to contain the fire at the “Grand Old Dame”.

“We thank those who expressed concern through social media. It only continued to strengthen our desire to serve more and to finally revive the theater,” it added.

The Bureau of Fire Protection was still determining the cause of the fire and the extent of damage.

MET, the oldest existing theater in the Philippines, is known for its deco designed by architect Juan Arellano in January 1930.

THE Commission on Audit has told the Department of Justice (DOJ) to liquidate a total of P75.141 million in cash advances made by officers and staff of the agency.

State auditors noted that the 2021 annual audit report submitted by the DOJ, showed that out of P190.22 million cash advances, P115.078 million were either liquidated or refunded, leaving a balance of P75.141 million.

“We recommended that management direct all concerned accountable officers to liquidate their cash advances within the prescribed period,” the auditors said.

A breakdown of the balance showed unliquidated cash advances to the Office of the Secretary Confidential Fund worth 23.698 million, Witness Protection Security and Benefit Program Con-

fidential Fund worth P44.777 million and the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking Confidential Fund amounting to P6.619 million.

Other advances were for operating expenses and those made by other officers and employees of the DOJ. The auditors reiterated that all cash advances must be fully liquidated at the end of each year.

ANTI-CHILD ABUSE FACILITY.

The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center under executive director Undersecretary Cezar Mancao and deputy executive director Assistant Secretary James Layug, unveils the latest state-of-the art Digital Forensics Platform and Laboratory designed to enhance the unit’s anti-child abuse capability.

Manny Palmero

CICC unwraps modern facility vs. child abuse

By Rio N. Araja THE Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) on Friday vowed to go after online sexual abuse of children using its “powerful” stateof-the-art technology that could help probers identify and arrest perpetrators.

At a media briefing, CICC executive director Cezar Mancao II introduced the agency’s Digital Forensics

Platform and Laboratory (DFPAL), saying “it is an important tool of the government’s fight against the rising cybercrimes, especially online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC).”

DFPAL would allow CICC to monitor and coordinate with the other law enforcement agencies in the conduct of thorough digital and forensic investigations, and assist authorities to prosecute cybercriminals, he said.

“A cash advance shall be reported on and liquidated as soon as the purpose for which it was given has been served,” the auditors said.

The audit report also noted unobligated or unutilized allotments amounting to P316.209 million, mainly due to unimplemented planned projects. This is around 3.26 percent of the total allotments for the department worth P9.712 billion.

CHR looks into arrest of activist in Laguna THE Commission on Human Rights has stepped into the case of an environmental activist who was recently arrested in Laguna “for no apparent reason.”

CHR executive director Jacqueline Ann de Guia said their office in Region IV-A was already conducting a voluntary investigation into the apprehension of Daisy Macapanpan in Pakil, Laguna last June 11.

Macapanpan was reportedly arrested after she delivered a speech denouncing the construction of the Ahunan pumped-storage hydropower project on top of Mt. Inumpong of the Sierra Madre mountain range, which was believed to adversely affect the environment, wild life, and religious practices of the people in the area.

“CHR will be looking into these allegations of several human rights violations — noting allegations of police brutality crackdown on dissent, as well as redtagging said to have links to the environmental cause of Macapanpan,” De Guia said.

She said CHR Region IV-A had already talked to Macapanpan, who was being detained in Pagbilao, Quezon.

The CHR would also talk to other parties as part of its independent investigation, she added.

The arrest was reportedly carried out by a 25-member Philippine National Police-Special Action Force team using an alias to identify Macapanpan and by virtue of a warrant for an alleged rebellion case in 2008. Rio N. Araja

A4

News

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

RIZAL’S PORTRAIT. Artist Cheyzer Manalo shows a portrait of Jose Rizal painted using coffee during the commemorative art fair at Museum ni Jose Rizal in Fort Santiago, Intramuros, Manila on June 17 to celebrate the 161st birth anniversary of the national hero on June 19.

(Inset) Seller Jaymee Liz Borja shows Jose Rizal cookies during the commemorative art fair at the same museum.

The three-day event features various works of art, an on-the-spot art contest for kids, commemorative songs and dances, and a photography exhibit from Art Show Philippines and Lucban Art Club. Danny Pata

Duterte confers Order of Lakandula to finance chief

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has conferred the Order of Lakandula with the Rank of Grand Cross (Bayani) to outgoing Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Carlos Dominguez III for his exemplary service to the nation that helped contribute to the resounding success of the Chief Executive’s signature infrastructure modernization program “Build, Build, Build.”

The Order of Lakandula is awarded to distinguished persons of political and civic merit.

“I accepted the Order of Lakandula rank of Bayani (Grand Cross) on behalf of the DOF team. Your hard work made this possible,” Dominguez said.

The honor is in memory of Lakandula’s dedication to the responsibilities of leadership, prudence, fortitude, courage and resolve in the service of one’s people.

Aside from Dominguez, the President also conferred the Order of Lakandula with the Rank of Grand Cross to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and the other members of the government’s infrastructure team, namely, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade and Presidential Adviser on Flagship Programs and Projects Vivencio Dizon.

Dominguez and his fellow “Build, Build, Build” team members received the honors in ceremonies held at Malacañan Palace on Thursday night. The Duterte presidency was able to reverse the govern-

34% of Pinoys say life got ‘worse’

By Vito Barcelo

A

T LEAST 34 percent of Filipino adults believed that their quality of life got worse compared to a year ago, the first-quarter survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) said.

Results of the non-commissioned poll done face-to-face from April 19 to 27 among 1,440 adults also showed that 32 percent believed that it got better (“gainers”), while 34 percent said it was the same (“unchanged”), compared to 12 months before.

The April 2022 Net Gainer score is 14 points up from the mediocre -16 in De-

cember 2021, but still 20 points below the pre-pandemic level of the very high +18 in December 2019.

The survey question on the respondents’ assessment of their change in quality of life in the past 12 months has been fielded 144 times since April 1983.

The Net Gainer score was generally nega-

tive until 2015 when it rose to positive numbers until the drastic deterioration beginning with the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. It has since trended back upwards but still has not reached the positive range.

The SWS said the 14-point improvement in the national Net Gainer score between December 2021 and April 2022 was due to increases in all areas.

Compared to December 2021, Net Gainers rose from mediocre to high in Metro Manila, up by 14 points from -11 to +4.

It also rose from mediocre to high in Balance Luzon, up by 13 points from -11 to +1. It eased from very low to mediocre in the Visayas, up by 19 points from -31 to -12.

It eased from mediocre to fair in Mindanao, up by 11 points from -15 to -4.

Malacañang meanwhile said the improved life of more Filipinos is an indication that the Duterte administration’s measures against COVID-19 are “working.”

In a press statement, acting Presidential Spokesperson and Communications Secretary Martin Andanar welcomed the results of the Social Weather Station’s (SWS) April 19 to 27 poll which showed that 32 percent of adult Filipinos believed their life got better in the past 12 months.

The latest figure was higher than the 24 percent registered in December 2021.

“We view this improvement as incontrovertible proof that the current government’s pandemic response is working, where we put premium on both health and the economy,” Andanar said.

Comelec explains approval of Guanzon party-list bid

TILTED TRUCK. A police officer looks at an overloaded cargo truck that tilted on its side after the bridge that the truck was crossing collapsed in Catigbian, in central Bohol province. AFP

COMMISSION on Elections acting spokesperson Rex Laudiangco on Friday explained why the poll body approved its former commissioner Rowena Guanzon’s bid to become a party-list representative.

Laudiangco told TeleRadyo that Comelec Resolution 10717, which set the November 15 substitution deadline, does not tackle events that take place after the elections.

“The rules do not provide for what must be done after the elections. Like in the case of P3PWD party-list, all their nominees resigned after the polls,” the poll official said.

The lawyer said the poll body approved Guanzon’s bid to replace the group’s original nominees on the basis of Sections 8 and 16 of Republic Act 7941 or the Party-list System Act. The original set of nominees of Komunidad ng Pamilya Pasyente at Persons with Disabilities party-list, which won a seat in the House of Representatives, resigned on June 14.

“Section 8 of that law states that alterations or change of names cannot happen after they have been submitted to Comelec. But the nominees resigned--and as

you already know, the Comelec has no power to force nominees to stay in their position,” Laudiangco said.

“So the Comelec law department saw that the affidavits of withdrawal met legal requirements--they were signed, under oath, and notarized, and P3PWD itself submitted a board resolution about the withdrawal of the acceptance of nomination,” the official said, adding that “their Secretary-General also submitted a signed affidavit on this, and submitted a new list, so they met all the legal requirements.”

Laudiangco noted that Section 16 of the Party-list System Act requires that a group must submit a new list of nominees in the case of vacancy in the seats reserved for their representatives.

“Otherwise po kasi, hindi mapupunan yung vacancy na naganap (the vacancy won’t be filled),” he said.

He noted that this is not the first time this has happened to a party-list group.

Laudiangco had earlier said that those opposed to Guanzon’s substitution as P3PWD party-list nominee have until June 30 to file their petition before the poll body.

SUV hit-and-run suspect skips preliminary investigation hearing THE suspect in a hit-and-run in Mandaluyong City skipped the first hearing of the preliminary investigation of the incident.

The suspect, Jose Antonio Sanvicente, driver of the SUV, has received a copy of the affidavit of security guard Christian Floralde, who was rammed and run over by the SUV while he was directing traffic at a mall last June 5.

Sanvicente’s legal counsel Atty. Danny Macalino confirmed the receipt of the

said affidavit.

Macalino said Sanvicente was asked to submit a counter affidavit on June 23, when the next hearing is also slated, ABS-CBN News reported. The lawyer said his client has to appear during the next hearing to take his oath as he submits the counter affidavit.

Macalino added that he spoke with the camp of Floralde “in a very cordial manner”.

But Macalino clarified his client was not after any settlement with the victim.

LRT2 extends operating hours THE Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) has extended the LRT2 railway’s operating hours.

Commuters are now expected to have more time to catch the last ride of the LRT2.

In an advisory on Friday, the LRTA said that starting June 17, 2022, the operations of LRT2 will be extended “to serve more passengers.”

“From the original schedule of 8:30 p.m., the last commercial train depar ting from Antipolo station will be adjusted to 9:00 p.m.,” it said.

The LRTA further said the last commercial train departing from Recto station will be at 9:30 p.m. from the original 9:00 p.m.

“The move is in line with the goal of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), under the leadership of Secretary Art Tugade, and the Light Rail Transit Authority to aid the commuting needs of the riding public by serving for longer hours as more employees are returning to onsite work and students attending face-to-face classes,” the LRTA, quoted by a GMA News report said.

The 17-kilometer LRT2 has 13 stations, stretching from Recto Avenue in Manila to Masinag in Antipolo, Rizal.

Federico Biolena, the victim’s lawyer, said he was disappointed over Sanvicente’s absence, the report said.

“I hope so na nandito siya para makasumpa siya (I hope he’s here to take his oath). He cannot submit his counter affidavit without him being present in the Prosecutor’s Office,” Biolena said.

The first preliminary investigation on the complaints of frustrated murder and abandonment of one’s own victim filed against Sanvicente lasted over an hour.

Floralde declined to give interviews to members of media.

“The victim gave his sworn statement, and we submitted evidence to prove who was responsible for the crime,” Floralde, quoted by ABS-CBN News, said, adding that Sanvicente “has yet to make a formal to shoulder the cost of treatment for the guard’s injuries.”

Authorities earlier said there is no legal basis to take Sanvicente into custody due to the “lack of a warrant of arrest.”

‘BACK-TO-VAX.’ Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Francisco Duque III, together with Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año, testing zcar Secretary Vince Hizon, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairperson Romando Artes, and SM Supermall President Steven Tan, lead the launch of “Backto-Vax Champion” COVID-19 vaccination program in SM City North City in Quezon City. Manny Palmero

ment’s chronic underspending on infrastructure by raising spending on this sector to above 5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), double the level recorded by the previous four administrations.

Infrastructure investments on the last stretch of the Duterte administration is targeted to reach 5.9 percent this year, Dominguez earlier said.

During Dominguez’s tenure as Secretary of Finance, the DOF worked closely with the Congress to pass into law the country’s most comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) ever, which significantly reduced income taxes for both individuals and corporations.

These game-changing measures, particularly the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law, has provided the government with a steady revenue stream to support the country’s unprecedented “Build, Build, Build” program.

Under Dominguez’s leadership, the DOF was able to effectively implement President Duterte’s policy of fiscal discipline and responsibility, which earned for the country its highest credit ratings that were sustained even amid the pandemic.

This, in turn, enabled the government to access highly concessional financing from its bilateral and multilateral partners for its “Build, Build, Build” projects, including the country’s single biggest infrastructure project and first-ever underground railway system—the Metro Manila Subway.

IN BRIEF Court okays De Lima’s ‘urgent’ furlough plea SEN. Leila de Lima’s request for a medical furlough has been granted, her lawyer said.

The detained lawmaker’s camp asked the courts handling her drug-related cases for a medical leave for a “major procedure” that would remove part of her uterus as it has already become a “concern,” ABS-CBN reported.

De Lima’s legal counsel Atty. Filibon Tacardon, quoted in the report, said “De Lima’s medical furlough was approved, and she is set to go to Manila Doctors for her medical procedure.

The lawyer said the “extremely urgent motion” was filed as she was advised by doctors “to undergo a vaginal hysterectomy with anterior and posterior colporrhaphy or vaginal wall repair at the soonest possible time.”

De Lima’s surgery would start on June 19 and the medical furlough would last until June 23, the report said.

Her lawyer also said they were on standby to request additional days for the furlough in case the senator needed more time for her recovery.

Detained since 2017, De Lima calls the drug charges against her “political persecution” allegedly spurred by her criticism of President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti narcotics crackdown, which his administration denies.

Several witnesses recently recanted their allegations against her.

BSP urged to look into ‘unlicensed’ online firm AN infrastructure-oriented thinktank has urged the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to clamp down on Binance, an online platform for virtual asset trading, for operating in the Philippines without any license from the government.

Former congressman and Infrawatch PH convenor Terry Ridon made the statement as his group filed a six-page letter-request to BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno calling for the conduct of motu proprio proceedings on Binance operations in the country.

“No less than Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III confirms the lack of registration and authorization of Binance, last Thursday, June 9, 2022, when he reminded the public about the dangers of dealing with non-registered entities. He said that the public cannot get legal protection from the BSP if they deal with non-registered entities. As such, it is urgent for the BSP to immediately inquire on Binance activities in the Philippines and order an immediate suspension of its operations,” Ridon said in a statement.

Ridon said Binance has been offering its services in the Philippines for several years already, allowing Filipinos to buy and sell cryptocurrencies and performing the functions of a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) through an unregulated platform. Maricel V. Cruz

MMDA work on flooded areas in Navotas, Malabon THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is hastening the repairs of the damaged Navigational Gate which has caused flooding in low-lying areas in Navotas and Malabon during high tides.

MMDA Flood Control and Sewerage Management Office chief engineer Baltazar Melgar said they have decided to temporarily cease the operations of the Navigational Gate located at the mouth of the Tangos River in Navotas City to give way to its immediate repair.

The structure, according to Melgar, needed to undergo an emergency repair after problems were encountered last March.

“The structure is already more than a decade old since its completion in 2008 and some of its mechanical and electrical components have deteriorated and would continue to deteriorate if not repaired,” he said.

Repair work includes the re-alignment of the link arm and replacement of damaged parts.

Melgar admitted that private contractors are having difficulty since repairs are conducted underwater. Also, the silt and damage accumulated on the gate and chamber were severe, thus, mud blasting and desilting activities have to be conducted to lessen the weight of the gate leaf and prevent the gate’s trunnions from further misalignment. Joel E. Zurbano

Opinion SMC’s nonstop infra, environmental projects EvEryman

By Melandrew T. Velasco THERE is no stopping San Miguel Corporation from pursuing its infrastructure and environmental projects.

These projects, preceded by thorough studies to ensure there will be no irreparable damage to the environment, promote sustainable development.

One of these is the Metro Rail Transit 7, spanning 22 kilometers from North Avenue in Quezon City to San Jose del Monte, Bulacan with 14 stations, which which can accommodate 650,000 passengers daily.

According to SMC, construction work for MRT 7 focused on the first 12 stations and is estimated over 60 per cent complete.

SMC is now constructing the train depot on a 20-hectare property in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan. Aside from accommodating the train cars, the depot will house facilities for the maintenance and operation of the trains.

The New Manila International Airport project in Bulacan is also on track after it got the nod of the Dutch government of an Export Credit Insurance for the land development phase.

The project’s long-term environmental and social impact mitigation measures were reviewed to ensure the project is sustainable and aligned with the country’s climate ambitions.

Environmental and social impact assessment was conducted by a group of experts.

The ECI was extended to Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. to cover its EUR1.5 billion contract for land development works at the airport site in Bulacan. The New Manila International Airport project is the largest in Boskalis’ history.

The new airport will feature four parallel runways, a world class terminal, and a modern and interlinked infrastructure network that includes expressways and railways.

The designs of the NMIA, prepared by the architectural firm Palafox Associates “reflect the vision of a modern Philippine city that provides built-in solutions to various socio-economic, environmental, and climate issues, and correct the mistakes seen in many urban developments of Metro Manila.”

“These designs presented to us by Arch. Palafox and his team will be close to actual. There will probably be some adjustments by the time we implement, and we will still continue to improve as needed, but in terms of the overall concept, design, and the features, this is it,” SMC President and CEO Ramon S. Ang said.

He added the aerocity project, designed and built with sustainability in mind, will be properly zoned, with areas dedicated to agriculture and food production, logistics, health and wellness, aeronautics, finance, science and technology, commerce, residences, education, tourism, entertainment, recreation, and government among others. It will utilize renewable energy.

The design will adopt green architectural and green urbanism guidelines over and above the country’s building and zoning codes, and follow

structural codes of other countries similarly situated in earthquake zones like the Philippines.

As SMC undertakes a massive infrastructure like the NMIA, it continues to uphold its commitment to restore and rehabilitate the existing mangrove forest cover at the Bulacan coastal area.

The initiative is a major component of the project to address flooding in Bulacan.

It is admirable that in the business community there are companies like SMC that are actively involved in environment protection.

Last year, SMC signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to conduct major clean-up and dredging of the Pasig River.

Pasig River stretches 25.2 kilometers connecting Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay.

As SMC undertakes a massive infrastructure like the NMIA, it continues to uphold its commitment to restore and rehabilitate the existing mangrove forest cover at the Bulacan coastal area The DENR Pasig Rehabilitation Program lists 47 identified Pasig River tributaries grouped into nine clusters.

It is the conglomerate’s commitment in line with DENR’s Adopt-a-River Program and complements efforts to rehabilitate Manila Bay. The clean-up and dredging activities, which started in July 2021, will improve water flow and mitigate flooding.

Ang identified priority dredging sites: narrow and shallow portions of the river along the Pandacan-Paco area, Estrella in Makati City and near C5 Road, Manila Bay and EDSA. A total 437,890 tons of silt and waste from the Pasig River has been extracted by SMC’s dredging teams to date.

SMC has allotted P 2-billion for the Pasig River rehabilitation effort.

From their previous depths of two-three meters, completed sections of the Pasig River now measure five to six meters deep.

Recently, the project got a boost with the arrival of more equipment from Japan shipping giant NYK Line. The two high-capacity excavators form part of NYK’s $1.5 million donation to the SMC river rehabilitation initiative.

(Velasco, the official biographer of FVR’s family, is a book author with at least 50 titles to his credit. His recent works include “Silver Linings” featuring some of the EDSA I heroes and a coffeetable book on Paranaque City.)

aged 12 — but declined to say how many have signed up so far.

With little over a fortnight to go, officials have yet to say whether Xi or any other state leader will attend the swearing-in celebrations ‘One country, two systems’ China remains committed to a strict zero-COVID strategy that quashes outbreaks with social distancing, lockdowns and border controls.

Hong Kong has its own version of zero-COVID, which has kept the international business hub isolated for much of the pandemic.

But the city’s controls are less strict than mainland China’s and have begun to ease in recent months.

The difference in policy means Hong Kongers coming into close contact with Chinese leaders will likely be required to undergo quarantine, according to local media.

Authorities have planned a “closed-loop system” to isolate around 1,000 people — including outgoing city leader Carrie Lam, her successor Lee and other top officials -- ahead of a possible visit by a state leader, the South China Morning Post reported.

Lawmakers may also be asked to enter quarantine, with accommodations made for them to attend legislature meetings, according to media reports.

Xi has not traveled outside mainland China since January 2020, when the coronavirus burst from the central city of Wuhan, touching off a global pandemic.

He has since cocooned himself — and China

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EDITORIAL

HK school quarantine call hints at Xi handover visit A HONG KONG primary school is looking for pupils to spend a week in hotel quarantine ahead of next month’s handover anniversary, fueling speculation a strict “closed-loop” system will allow Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit.

The first day of July marks 25 years since Hong Kong was handed to China by colonial Britain, as well as the first day in office for the city’s new Beijing-anointed leader John Lee. China’s top leaders have attended the swearingin of every Hong Kong chief executive since the 1997 handover, but Xi has not left the mainland since the coronavirus pandemic began.

With little over a fortnight to go, officials have yet to say whether Xi or any other state leader will attend the celebrations.

But local media has been filled with reports suggesting extraordinary measures will be in place to protect dignitaries from the coronavirus, including sequestering hundreds of participants in quarantine.

Those reports have mostly cited unnamed sources, but one such order has been confirmed.

Parents of students at Wong Cho Bao School, which is run by the pro-Beijing Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, have been asked to sign their children up to greet visiting dignitaries.

The arrangement will require the pupils to undergo seven days of hotel quarantine away from their families with the government footing the bill, according to a notice shown to AFP by school principal Wong Kam-leung.

The notice encouraged parents to volunteer their kids for a “rare honorable mission” to greet unspecified visitors at the airport on June 30 and send them off a day later.

The students involved will start hotel quarantine on June 23 under teacher supervision, and will attend classes via Zoom, the notice said, adding they must be double-vaccinated.

School principal Wong told AFP the notice was “internal administrative procedure” to gauge parent interest, and that the government had yet to finalise plans.

Wong, who also chairs the HKFEW, said the notice went out to primary six students -- usually

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

Developing a more sound environs

I

T’S high time the government developed a more sound environment for the growing community of motorbikes and bicycle riders.

The continued rise of fuel prices in stratospheric proportions has forced many car owners to go for motorcycles and commuters to resort to the bike-to-work in the face of the inefficient public transport system.

Even before the evils of COVID-19 lock downs and the high cost of fuel came to hound Philippine roads, motor bikers were already complaining about discrimination on the road.

Riders cry about being the usual suspects (in criminal activities) and targets of checkpoints. Riders are most often chastised for being disrespectful on the road, but there are “kamote” riders. The good guys still make up the majority.

To make the road safer for everyone – both for the four-wheel drivers and twowheel riders – the government should initiate the return to basics. In martial arts, they call it KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid).

The Metro Manila Development Authority created motorcycle lanes for riders, but they were not made exclusive. Slowmoving cars and heavily loaded trucks can encroach on the lanes any time.

Motorcycles are not allowed to use the usually vacant bike lanes. In developed nations like China and Japan riders and cyclists share the lanes. Still, in Japan, cyclists and pedestrians share the sidewalk.

In the fast-rising economies like Viet-

nam, riders have always been kings of the road. In The Netherlands, bikers are wellrespected by motorists.

Our officials should learn from these countries. There are existing effective systems that can be used as models.

The MMDA has a proposal to have elevated bike lanes and walkways and is still studying proposals and will consult stakeholders on whether to give motorcycles dedicated lanes along major thoroughfares The MMDA has a proposal to have elevated bike lanes and walkways and is still studying proposals and will consult stakeholders on whether to give motorcycles dedicated lanes along major thoroughfares.

The recent move by the MMDA to put up a motorcycle and bicycle repair station in Quezon Avenue along EDSA is yet an-

other good start. We just hope it gets continued with the new MMDA leadership.

According to the MMDA, the repair station is equipped with basic repair and vulcanizing tools, as well as trained MMDA personnel who will help those whose bikes and motorcycles broke down on the road.

Currently, there are two repair stations in EDSA and another one on Roxas Boulevard.

No less than MMDA chairman Roman Artes presided over the launch with congressman-elect Bonifacio Bosita as one of the guests.

Bosita and the MMDA enforcers group are, most of the time, at loggerheads on a lot of issues, especially when motorcycle riders are involved.

Your see, Bosita, a rider himself, has been playing the crusader’s role for motorcyclists, especially those who are victims of injustice on the road. He does that as a private citizen although he possesses some measure of respect as a former police officer.

Now that he holds a position in the government as a lawmaker, representing 1 Rider Party-List, it looks like riders, especially the more responsible ones, will have bigger voices. If we have to have more “Bositas” in our midst, so be it.

United, we can create a more responsible riding community.

This is not just about the riders, though, it’s making road travel safer and convenient for everybody — riders, cyclists and four-wheel drivers, and even pedestrians.

A recipe for disaster OOPS! My source for the next Solicitor General was way off the mark. My apologies.

Yesterday, the camp of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos released a list of three more additional nominees for incoming Cabinet posts and named SolGen as outgoing Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.

As the day for BBM’s official takeover of the country’s highest post draws near, more and more names are being floated as possible successors to President Rodrigo Duterte’s outgoing Cabinet men.

While I have stated before I am not in the business of predicting who BBM will appoint to this or that position, or to question his choices, there is one particular agency I am most concerned with, and whoever is appointed to head the said office – the Presidential Task Force on Media Security.

Yesterday, I ran across a social media post of former journalist Dale de Vera (Heard he had resigned already from his media outlet), stating reporter Edu Punay has resigned from Philippine Star and is set to head the PTFOMS. I don’t know Edu Punay personally. In fact, the closest thing I have gotten to know him was when he was assigned to the Congress beat.

But then, I was on my way out. At that time, I decided to cease covering beats and instead simply focus on column writing.

Anyway, who is Edu Punay? I’m pretty sure not everyone in the media industry is familiar with him. du is former Philippine Star reporter (As it was announced by Dale), who covered the BBM presidential campaign. According to sources within the BBM camp, the PTFOMS post was promised to Edu as a reward for his campaign coverage by no less than the head of BBM’s media team Rey Briones.

Reportedly, Briones wants Punay to take over the PTFOMS now headed by Undersecretary Joel Egco. What!

I don’t mean to undermine Punay. As I’ve said before, it’s not my business to question BBM’s choices to his official family. It’s too early for that.

Also, it is not in my character to hinder a colleague’s endeavor or success.

But Egco was not picked to head PTFOMS just to reward him for anything else.

He was placed there because he earned that post. He was a senior reporter or chief of reporters, if I remember right, of the Manila Times before getting elected to head the prestigious National Press Club.

And when he got the job to handle media security, no one among the media industry players or -—from the rest of the world, keeping borders mostly closed and eschewing international travel.

The Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this year were the one time during the pandemic that Xi met world leaders face to face.

An enormous, interlinked closed loop system was put in place to successfully host the Games.

The Chinese Communist Party places huge stock in anniversaries, and Hong Kong’s handover

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

practitioners protested because we respect him. We trust him. We know he can lead and he will always be at the forefront fighting for our interest.

And he has proven that countless times. Records will show how he handled the Ampatuan Massacre which has apparently been neglected during the past administration; how he handled violence including killings committed against media practitioners leading to the arrest of the perpetrators and the resolution of the cases.

True to his slogan during the NPC campaign, “Dala ko ang egg ko, Joel really has the balls to lead which resulted in a drastic reduction of violence against media during the six years he has held the rein of the PTFOMS. I don’t think the same holds for Edu. No offense meant. But I don’t think he even has had the opportunity of heading a press corps. This is no time to put an OJT as head of PTFOMS. Digging deeper into the rumor of Punay taking over the agency tasked to handle media security, my inside source bared that Briones and Punay are planning to dissolve the PTFOMS and instead replace it with the Presidential Commission on Media Welfare.

And it could be the clincher. As the word welfare is almost synonymous with funding.

But lest they forget, the government is prohibited from extending funds to private individuals or groups, and that is precisely the reason why the Media Welfare fund was deleted from the Media Welfare Act, which incidentally is being pushed hard by Egco for enactment into a law.

By transforming the PTFOMS into PCMA, the source said Punay and Briones will reportedly drop its security and investigation aspect and focus on media’s welfare, mainly on financial assistance.

To do that, the two are reportedly eyeing making the PCMA under the Presidential Communications Operations Office. By doing so, the newly-formed office will lose its security and in-

vestigation functions as PCOO has no prosecutorial power.

Presently, PTFOMS is directly under the Office of the President and is chaired by the Justice Secretary.

So essentially, the plan of the Punay-Briones tandem might be directly in confrontation with the thrust of incoming Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla.

The plan, if it pushes through, will make a great recipe for disaster as first and foremost: Placing PTFOMS under the PCOO will greatly diminish its mandate.

Losing its power to investigate and prosecute which is PH commitment under various international treatises will defeat the very purpose of its existence.

There are institutional processes which these people are missing.

I may not be a Duterte fan but I believe this is one of his strongest legacies.

The vast improvement in the government’s handling of the media is lauded in the international media community. Why fix when it ain’t broke?

Why reinvent the wheel?

The PTFOMS’ accomplishments, under Egco’s watch, are simply stellar.

All people have to do is google. Lately, there are black operations or demolition jobs being waged against PTFOMS. We don’t want to surmise, but you do the math in analyzing who might be behind these.

But if there are plans to make PTFOMS a milking cow by transforming it into a welfare office for the media, whoever is behind this may only be courting future criminal and administrative charges.

By the way, with news leaking out Punay is replacing Egco, rumors are also circulating in media groups active in PTFOMS are already threatening to pull out.

I hate to say this, but I don’t think whoever is pushing for this has his or their own interest in mind and not that of the people.

BBM ought to watch his back because he could be surrounded by people who, despite their projections, are the least trusted among practitioners.

And when it comes to reasons why someone is considered least trusted in the media circle, only one reason stands out. Ask any media practitioner.

But knowing Egco, he will just shrug these machinations off and not pay so much attention to them because no one can keep any secret from him. And surely, he knows how to get back and handle the matter.

As for me, all I want is an assurance we are working in a safe environment given the work we are into.

That’s why I trust the present status and composition of the PTFOMS.

presents Xi with a major propaganda opportunity.

In 2017, he stayed in Hong Kong for three days to mark the 20th anniversary, and past state leaders have tended to make such a trip every five years.

Xi has declared “a new chapter” for the city after huge and sometimes violent democracy protests in 2019 were crushed by authorities, helped by a sweeping security law that has criminalized much

dissent.

China promised Hong Kong could maintain key freedoms and autonomy for 50 years after the British handover under a “One Country, Two Systems” model.

Beijing says that system remains intact.

Critics, including many Western nations, say it has been eviscerated less than halfway through.

AFP

If there are plans to make PTFOMS a milking cow by transforming it into a welfare office for the media, whoever is behind this may only be courting future criminal and administrative charges

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

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Joyce Pangco Pañares Jimbo Owen Gulle

Associate Editors News Editor City Editor

Emil P. Jurado

Honor Blanco Cabie Opinion Editor Lino M. Santos Chief Photographer

Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

B2

World

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

IN MAJOR MILITARY MILESTONE

China launches third aircraft carrier

S

HANGHAI—China on Friday launched its biggest and most modern aircraft carrier, the first designed and built entirely in the country, marking a major military advance for the Asian superpower.

The announcement comes at a time of heightened tensions between China and the United States over Beijing’s saber-rattling towards Taiwan, which it views as a breakaway province to be seized by force if necessary.

China’s carrier development programme is part of a massive overhaul of the People’s Liberation Army under President Xi Jinping, who has vowed to build a “fully modern” force to rival the US military by 2027.

The new carrier, named Fujian, is the “first catapult aircraft carrier wholly designed and built by China”, said state broadcaster CCTV. Columns of sailors in white uniforms applauded under colorful clouds of smoke as jets of water arced over the gigantic vessel to mark its launch.

Colorful streamers hung from its flight deck, on which large banners

BIG ACHIEVEMENT. This screen grab made from video released by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV shows the launch

ceremony of the Fujian, a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft carrier, at a shipyard in Shanghai on June 17. The carrier is the first designed and built entirely in the country, marking a major military advance for the Asian superpower. AFP

read: “Strive for the comprehensive construction of a... first-class navy.”

The launch of the carrier marks a major milestone for the Chinese military.

It has significantly more advanced technology than China’s two other carri-

ers, including electromagnetic catapults And with a displacement of more than to launch aircraft off its deck, the offi- 80,000 tonnes, according to Xinhua, it is cial Xinhua news agency reported. comparable in size to the supercarriers The other carriers—the Liaoning and of the United States Navy, analysts said. the Shandong—use a ski-jump-style ‘Game changer’ ramp for takeoffs.

Collin Koh, a research fellow at

EU body to give fast-tracked opinion on Ukraine’s bid for full membership

BROTHERLY HUG. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) and French

President Emmanuel Macron embrace after giving a press conference in at Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv, on June 16. The leaders of major EU powers France, Germany and Italy vowed to help Ukraine defeat Russia and to rebuild its shattered cities, in a visit to a wartorn Kyiv suburb. AFP

KYIV—The European Commission will meet Friday to give its fast-tracked opinion on Ukraine’s bid for EU candidacy, a step closer to membership for the country a day after the bloc’s most powerful leaders visited Kyiv as it battles Russia’s invasion.

Never before has an opinion been given so quickly on EU candidacy, which must be approved by all 27 member states.

The opinion will serve as a basis for discussion at next week’s EU summit, where leaders are expected to approve Ukraine’s candidate status with strict conditions, though membership may take years or even decades.

France, Germany, Italy, and Romania are in favor of Ukraine receiving “immediate” candidate status, French President Emmanuel Macron said in Kyiv Thursday.

Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian premier Mario Draghi arrived in Ukraine by train and were joined by Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis before meeting Ukrai-

nian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who has been lobbying allies for support.

“The most important message of our visit is that Italy wants Ukraine in the EU,” Draghi said at a joint press conference.

Scholz said Ukraine “belongs in the European family” and that Berlin would continue to send Kyiv weapons “for as long as it is needed”.

After meeting the visiting leaders, Zelensky said he explained “essential needs in the field of defense”.

“We are expecting new deliveries, above all heavy weapons, modern artillery, anti-aircraft defense systems,” he said, even as Macron said France would send six Caesar self-propelled howitzers to add to the 12 already deployed on Ukraine’s eastern front.

Zelensky promised Ukraine was ready to put in the work to become an EU member.

Think tank director Sebastien Maillard said he expects a positive opinion on Ukraine’s EU status, but with conditions and a deadline. AFP

Australia parries Biden coup buoys Saudi crown prince after 5 years at helm Solomon Islands move by China HONIARA, Solomon Islands—Australia pushed back against China’s new security pact with Solomon Islands on Friday, saying the Pacific region has no need of outside help to protect itself.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong delivered the message on a one-day visit to the capital Honiara, the latest destination in a South Pacific travel blitz to parry China’s diplomatic and security maneuvers in the region.

It was the highest-ranking Australian visit since the Solomons signed a secretive security pact with China in April, sparking alarm in the United States and its allies in the Pacific.

“Australia’s view does remain that the Pacific family should be responsible for our security,” she said after meeting with Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare.

“The Pacific family is more than capable of providing that security,” said Wong, who took office after her centre-left Labor Party won power in May elections.

Wong told reporters that she welcomed Sogavare’s reassurances “that there will not be a military base nor a persistent foreign military base here in Solomon Islands”.

The security pact had fed fears in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan that China may establish a military presence in Solomon Islands, less than 2,000 kilometres (1,200 miles) from Australia.

The agreement has not been made public, but a leaked draft showed it would allow Chinese naval deployments to the islands. AFP

RIYADH—Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has long been sidelined on the world stage but as he prepares to mark five years as de facto leader, he is finally coming in from the cold.

Next month’s visit by US President Joe Biden will complete the international rehabilitation of the 36-year-old prince, who was widely reviled over the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Biden’s trip—after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent oil prices soaring, piling on economic pain—follows visits by the leaders of France, Britain, and Turkey.

It represents an unqualified victory for Prince Mohammed, who has led his country on a rollercoaster ride since being named the heir of his father King Salman, 86, on June 21, 2017.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

In his time as unofficial ruler of Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter and the home of Islam’s two holiest sites, “MBS” has liberalized many aspects of daily life while asserting stern control over others.

Yet his drive to transform the conservative kingdom risked being completely overshadowed by Khashoggi’s murder, an act so abhorrent that Biden’s trip -- a routine move for past American leaders -- has sparked controversy.

Saudi agents killed and dismembered Khashoggi, an insider turned critic, in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate in October 2018.

US intelligence concluded that Prince Mohammed “approved” an operation to capture or kill Khashoggi, a charge he denies.

Following the visits by France’s President Emmanuel Macron, Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the planned meeting with Biden is a major validation of Prince Mohammed. AFP

Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, said it could be a “game changer” for the Chinese navy.

“The conventional flight deck with (electromagnetic catapults) will at least in theory allow the carrier to launch aircraft faster and with heavier payloads -- which constitute key deciding factors during battle,” he told AFP. “At a strategic level, the new carrier heralds the coming of age of a bluewater PLA Navy.”

Blue-water navies are able to operate around the world at vast ranges.

It will take years before the Fujian becomes operational, however. Authorities have not said when it will enter service.

The Liaoning was commissioned in 2012, and the Shandong entered service in 2019.

The United States has by far the most aircraft carriers in service at 11 ships, followed by China and Britain at two each, according to defence magazine Janes.

Unlike the US Navy’s nuclear-powered supercarriers, the Fujian uses conventional propulsion. Nuclear vessels have significant advantages over conventional ships as they can operate for long periods without the need to dock and refuel. AFP

Britain clears US extradition for Assange LONDON—Britain’s government on Friday approved the extradition to the United States of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face trial over the publication of secret files relating to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Home Secretary Priti Patel’s interior ministry said Assange had 14 days to appeal the decision, which comes after a UK court issued a formal order clearing his removal.

Assange’s supporters have held frequent rallies to protest the planned deportation.

His wife, Stella, has pleaded for his release from custody after they had two children in secret while the 50-year-old campaigner was holed up for years in Ecuador’s London embassy.

WikiLeaks called Patel’s decision a “dark day for press freedom and for British democracy” and vowed to pursue the appeal to the High Court, accusing the United States of having “plotted his assassination”.

“Julian did nothing wrong. He has committed no crime and is not a criminal. He is a journalist and a publisher, and he is being punished for doing his job,” the group said in a statement.

WikiLeaks said the case was “political”, as Assange published evidence that the United States “committed war crimes and covered them up”.

The extradition was an attempt to “try to disappear him into the darkest recesses of their prison system for the rest of his life to deter others from holding governments to account”.

A Home Office spokesperson said there were no grounds for Patel to block the order.

“In this case, the UK courts have not found that it would be oppressive, unjust or an abuse of process to extradite Mr Assange,” the spokesperson said. AFP

Putin’s health still shrouded in uncertainty

But scrutiny has now increased with PARIS—Baths in blood extracted from the antlers of Siberian deer. Excrements the war that Putin unleashed against scooped up by loyal officials to evade Russia’s neighbour.

The most in-depth investigation into analysis. Mysterious absences for emerPutin’s health was published in gency medical treatment.

April by the Russian-lanThe claims made about guage news site Proekt, the health of Russian which used open-source President Vladimir Putin, data to conclude that the who will be 70 in Octopresident’s trips to the ber, are lurid and macasouthern resort city of bre, as well as impossible Sochi were synchronised to verify. with those of a large But they illustrate how Russian President number of doctors. little is known about the Vladimir Putin They included specialist health of a leader whose in thyroid cancer Yevgeny medical condition is fundamental to the future of Europe, all the Selivanov, whose visits to Sochi frequentmore so after he ordered Russia’s inva- ly coincided with Putin’s sudden absences from the public eye over the past years. sion of Ukraine.

It also alleged that one of the methods Over the course of Putin’s two decades in power, remarkably little has used by Putin to ensure longevity were emerged about his health, beyond the baths in blood extracted from deer antfamous images provided by the Krem- lers in Siberia, a method recommended lin showing him bare-chested in a bid by his friend Defence Minister Sergei to project an image of macho strength. Shoigu, who is from Siberia. AFP

HOUSES COLLAPSE. Rescuers search for survivors after houses collapsed on June 16 in the district of Attecoube following heavy rains in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. AFP

Business PSE INDEX CLOSING Friday, June 17, 2021

-61.45 PTS. 6,331.56

TOTAL VOLUME 917,403,765 TOTAL TRADES 67,935 TOTAL VALUE (IN PHP) 11,713,363,854.33 ADVANCES 57 DECLINES 133 UNCHANGED 45

F oreign e xchange r ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2021

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

53.3720

Japan

Yen

0.007559

0.4034

UK

Pound

1.235500

65.9411

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.127395

6.7993

Switzerland

Franc

1.035090

55.2448

Canada

Dollar

0.772260

41.2171

Singapore

Dollar

0.722961

38.5859

Australia

Dollar

0.704700

37.6112

Bahrain

Dinar

2.653153

141.6041

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266525

14.2250

Brunei

Dollar

0.720357

38.4469

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000068

0.0036

Thailand

Baht

0.028592

1.5260

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

14.5325

Euro

Euro

1.055400

56.3288

Korea

Won

0.000777

0.0415

China

Yuan

0.149165

7.9612

India

Rupee

0.012829

0.6847

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.227273

12.1300

New Zealand

Dollar

0.635800

33.9339

Taiwan

Dollar

0.033658

1.7964 Source: BSP

Pueblo de Oro on track to finish Cebu township

B3

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

SM Group forms company to invest in foreign assets

By Jenniffer B. Austria

C

ONGLOMERATE SM Investments Corp. of the Sy family said Friday it formed a new investment holding company that will invest in minority stakes in foreign assets.

SM Investments announced in a disclosure to the stock exchange the incorporation of SMIC SG Holdings Pte. Ltd. in Singapore.

“SMIC SG Holdings Pte. Ltd. is a newly-incorporated company, 100-percent owned subsidiary by SMIC. The company was incorporated as an investment holding company for potential minority stakes in foreign companies,” SM Investments said.

It did not provide other details, including the capitalization of SMIC SG. SM Investments is primarily engaged in banking, real estate and retail businesses. It has investments in growth sectors and market leaders including logistics, gaming and leisure, food manufacturing, natural resources, dormitories and office properties.

The conglomerate’s property arm SM Prime Holdings Inc. has investments in China where it operates eight shopping malls. These include SM shopping centers in Xiamen, Jinjiang, Chengdu, Suzhou, Chongqing, Zibo, Tianjin and Yangzhou.

Regina Capital Development Corp managing director Luis Limlingan said the decision of SM Investments to look for investment opportunities overseas could boost the group’s overall business.

“SM Investments is one of the biggest, if not the biggest conglomerate in the Philippines. To keep on growing

at an accelerated pace, it would make sense to seek other opportunities outside the country,” Limlingan said.

Chris Mangun research head of AAA Securities, said the SM Group has been planning to enter the Singapore market since 2017.

“This is a good start for its expansion outside the Philippines and China,” Mangun said.

Mangun said while the Philippines would remain the SM Group’s main market, this move is part of the group’s diversification strategy.

“They [SM Investments] will continue to seize and maximize all opportunities locally,” he said.

SM Investments reported a net income of P12 billion in the first quarter, up 27 percent from P9.5 billion in the same period last year.

Consolidated revenues rose 16 percent in the first quarter to P112.1 billion from P96.9 billion in the same period last year.

Tourism employment up 4.1% to 4.9m in ‘21

EMPLOYMENT in the tourism sector posted rose lightly by 4.1 percent to 4.9 million in 2021 from 4.68 million in 2020.

Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the Department of Tourism (DOT) also noted an increase in internal tourism expenditures by 16.3 percent.

The PSA estimated a marginal growth to 5.2 percent on the contribution of tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA) to the country’s gross domestic product from 5.1 percent in 2020.

The TDGVA amounted to P1.30 trillion, 9.2 percent higher than P917. 20 billion in 2020.

The DOT said the figures are positive indicators of the government’s initiatives to stimulate the industry to a sustained recovery.

“The sustained influx of tourists in the Philippines is a good measure of the industry’s success in its preparations to welcome foreign tourists in the new normal. Our high vaccination rate among tourism workers and reportedly low cases around the country have helped restore the confidence of travelers to visit the Philippines during the summer season,” the DOT said. Othel V. Campos

DOE urged to review 2 operators of WESM

By Othel V. Campos PUEBLO de Oro Development Corporation (PDO), the property development unit of the ICCP Group, is on track to complete its 27.4-hectare township in Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu with plans to launch another residential project in the area.

“Cebu remains one of the most important provinces in the country in terms of progress and development,” said Pueblo de Oro vice president and general manager for Visayas operations Ronald Allan Uy. The property developer recently inaugurated the 3.7-hectare Park Place II in Babag, Lapu-Lapu City , the firms’s third exclusive subdivision in Cebu township Pueblo de Oro Townscapes Mactan.

Park Place II is an addition to the highly successful La Aldea Del Mar and Park Place residential developments.

Park Place II offers 194 single attached housing units, with three bedrooms. Regular lot size is 88 square meters with a total floor area of 106.5 square meters. Prices are estimated to start at P5.5 million per unit.

The P1.63-billion Townscapes Mactan expects the completion of the Pueblo de Oro Townsquare, a three-level commercial strip due to start operations by the fourth quarter of this year.

PDO said a nearby community mall will provide residents with the ease and convenience of shopping for their daily needs. A second building is planned in 2023.

Future developments within Townscapes Mactan include the soon-to-rise Pueblo de Oro Storeys Lapu-Lapu Condominiums. The four-building, six-story project will house 450 modern Asianinspired units. The first building is set to be completed by 2025.

Uy said the business prospects in Cebu looks promising as the economy begins to recover from pandemic restrictions and from the effects of Typhoon Odette.

“The province itself is also full of natural beauty, and we are honored to have the opportunity to offer quality housing projects so that homeowners can share in the splendor that Cebu has to offer,” he added.

Pueblo de Oro township in Cebu, according to him, has grown to become one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the province. The development is 700 meters away from the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) T-intersection, and is an easy 15-minute drive to and from Cebu City.

IN BRIEF

PET WELFARE. Metro Pacific Tollways South, a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., the toll road development arm of Metro Pacific Investment Corp., signs a memorandum of understanding with the Philippine Animal Welfare Society to address cases of stray animals wandering on the busy roads of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway, CAVITEX C5 Link and the Cavite-Laguna Expressway. Under the MoU, MPT South and PAWS will work to implement a corporate social responsibility program called ‘Love Pets, Save Lives. Leading the signing ceremony are MPT South president and general manager Raul Ignacio (third from left) and PAWS executive director Anna Cabrera (second from left). Roy Tomandao

PH, ADB sign first $4.3-b loan package for South rail

By Julito G. Rada THE Philippines and the Asian Development Bank have signed the first tranche of the multilateral institution’s US$4.3-billion (approximately P223.6 billion) funding support for the South Commuter Railway Project, one of the Duterte administration’s big-ticket infrastructure projects under the “Build, Build, Build” program.

The Department of Finance said in a statement Friday it was ADB’s largest single infrastructure loan package to date. President Rodrigo Duterte witnessed the signing of the agreement

by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and ADB president Masatsugu

Asakawa on the first tranche of the loan amounting to US$1.75 billion in ceremonies held at Malacañan Palace Thursday night (June 16).

Dominguez said ADB’s high level of approved financing to the Philippines—totaling over US$30 billion since 1969 and of which more than half was released under the Duterte administration—was “a vote of confidence for President Duterte’s economic development agenda and fiscal management.”

Other ADB-supported projects in the country have attracted total of US$8.7 billion in co-financing from several partner institutions, or about 74 percent of the total sovereign co-funding

from 1972 to 2022.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency, which has extended US$4.5 billion to ADB’s projects in the Philippines since 2017, has been the largest of these co-financing partners.

Under the Duterte administration, the Philippines-ADB portfolio has also been rebalanced to closely align with the priorities set by the Philippine government, such as the “Build, Build, Build” program and the ambitious climate action agenda, which led the bank to extend its first-ever climate change policy-based loan to the country.

ADB has provided technical assistance to the government for the design of several projects.

BSP sees big balance of payments deficit of $6.3b this year THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Friday it expects the country’s balance of payments position to post a larger deficit of $6.3 billion this year amid the buildup of external risks, including the aggressive monetary policy normalization in advanced economies, the slowdown in China, the war between Russia and Ukraine and the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

It said in an online briefing the revised projection of $6.3-billion BOP deficit equivalent to -1.5 percent of GDP this year would be larger than the initial estimate of a $4.3-billion shortfall (-1.0 percent of GDP).

The BSP made the revision following the downgraded global growth outlook with the escalation of the Ukraine-Russia conflict and its international ramifications, such as the increase in food and fuel prices.

“The anticipated slowdown of China’s economy could also put pressure on trade prospects. Meanwhile, capital flows could be particularly volatile following the abrupt monetary policy normalization in the US and in other major economies,” said BSP

Department of Economic Research managing director Zeno Ronald Abenoja.

Abenoja said the widening of the current account deficit to $19.1 billion (-4.6 percent of GDP) from the earlier projection of $16.3 Manila billion (-3.8 percent of GDP)Standard would contribute to the larger BOP deficit. TODAY “This development is reflective of the foreseen sustained acceleration of goods imports by 18 percent driven mainly by the surge in international commodity prices alongside continued recovery of the domestic economy, while goods exports growth is forecasted to moderate to 7 percent due to lingering supply constraints, high input costs, and prospects of weaker global demand,” Abenoja said.Julito G. Rada

DITO Telecom subscribers exceed 9m after expansion

By Darwin G. Amojelar

BDO PROMO WINNERS. Two overseas Filipino beneficiaries receive a ‘pangkabuhayan’ package of Grainsmart rice retail business franchise in the Remit 2 Win promo of BDO Remit and WorldRemit. The two companies launched the promo to help the beneficiaries affected by the pandemic. Both BDO Remit and WorldRemit are committed to supporting the overseas Filipino workers and their families in challenging times, apart from providing a safe, fast and reliable remittance service.

Attending the awarding ceremony are (from left) WorldRemit country director Earl Melivo, promo winners Ellane Gueco of Pampanga and Joshebern Bonnevie of Quezon City, and BDO Remit senior assistant vice president and business development head for Europe Cesca Policarpio.

DITO Telecommunity Corp. said Friday its subscriber base reached more than nine million this month as it plans to expand in more areas nationwide.

“Hitting milestone after milestone, DITO is once again preparing for the yearly government audit and is confident of hitting 70 percent of the country’s population shortly before July 2022, allowing it to finally go head-to-head against the country’s two legacy MNOs [mobile network operators] in terms of presence,” DITO chief administrative officer Adel Tamano said.

Tamano said that since 2019, DITO has been ramping up its network roll-out despite the difficulties of the global pandemic and made its presence felt in more than 540 cities and municipalities.

The company said it built over 110,000 sales touch points, 20 DITO experience stores and erected close to 5,000 cellular towers.

Tamano said the company constructed more than 100 data centers and laid out more than 30,000 kilometers of fiber cable to link the archipelago.

(MS-JUNE 18, 2022)

INDEPENDENT Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc. urged the Department of Energy to assess the viability of having two entities operating and governing the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

IEMOP president and chief executive officer Richard Nethercott said company personnel were demoralized by the criticisms hurled against the agency as operator of the WESM, the trading floor of electricity.

He said DOE should revisit DOE Circular No. DC2018-01-0002 and “reassess the viability of maintaining the twoentity set-up of the WESM operations and governance.”

IEMOP operates the WESM, while Philippine Electricity Market Corp. governs the WESM. Under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, the DOE promulgated DOE Circular No. DC2018-01-0002, “Adopting Policies for the Effective and Efficient Transition to the Independent Market Operator for the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market.”

Alena Mae S. Flores

Hedcor Bukidnon gets P8.4-m fine for outages

THE Energy Regulatory Commission has slapped Hedcor Bukidnon Inc. (HBI) with penalties amounting to P8.38 million for exceeding the allowable outage allowance on generating plants.

Aboitiz Power Corp. disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday that HBI informed it of the penalties as part of the review and investigation conducted by the ERC on power generation companies.

Aboitiz Power said the ERC promulgated a decision dated June 15, directing HBI to pay the penalty of P8.38 million for having incurred outage allowance days over the period January 3, 2021, to April 25, 2021, exceeding the ERC’s standard of 6.8 days per year.

The case arose after torrential rains resulted in landslides that caused extensive damage to the run-of-river hydro units of HBI in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon.

The damage resulting from the landslides forced HBI to have 102.1 days of excess unplanned outage days to bring each of the Manolo Fortich 1 hydroelectric power plant’s Unit 3 and Unit 4 back online. Alena Mae S. Flores

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor

B4

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors celebrate with the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award after Game 6 of the 2022 NBA Finals at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. AFP

Yulo bags silver in Asian tilt, makes finals in 4 more events

By Peter Atencio

T

OKYO Olympics’ veteran Carlos Yulo settled for a silver medal in the men’s all-around event and made the finals of four more at the end of the qualification rounds of the 9th Senior Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships at the Aspire Dome on Thursday evening in Doha, Qatar.

The feat earned Yulo a spot in FIG Artistic World Championships, scheduled in Liverpool from October 29 to November 6.

And he can get more slots if he does well in the finals of the floor exercises, the rings, the vault and the parallel bars.

All the podium finishers together, with fourth and fifth-placers, will qualify for the world meet as well.

Twenty-one-year-old Cong Shi took the men’s all-around gold to contribute to China’s domination of the Asian meet with 83.33 points, ahead of Yulo, a two-time world champion, who came in second with 83.867 points.

Top favorite China swept men’s and women’s team honors and claimed the all-around crowns in both divisions.

Another Chinese, Jiaxing Yang bagged the bronze with 83.731 points.

Yulo’s teammates Juancho Besanan, Justine Timbang and John Ivan Cruz settled for 30th, 31st and 50th places, respectively.

Last month, Yulo emerged with five golds and two silvers in a dominant show in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.

In the first two days of the Doha meet, Yulo topped the qualifying event of the floor exercises with 14.8 points to become the leader of the eight finalists, with Japanese Kohi Maeda in second (14.433) and Ryu Sunghyun of Korea in third (14.433 points).

Yulo received the nod of the judges in the vault with a 14.977 points to also emerge as no. 1 and become one of eight qualifiers, with Wai Hung Shek of Hong Kong (14.3) and Shiga Tachibana (Japan) with 14.284.

The Tokyo-based Yulo was sixth with 14.1 points to qualify in the ring finals with leaders Lan Xing Yu of China (14.9 points) and Ling Guan Yi of Taipei (14.367 points), with Mahdi Ahmad Kohani of Iran in third (14.367).

It was a seventh-place finish as Yulo collected 14.367 points and made it to the 8-man finals of the parallel bars, with Chinese top-notchers Lin Chaopan (14.284), Shi (14.867) and Yin Dehang with 14.833.

He missed the cut in the pommel horse after Yulo took 20th place and in the horizontal bar, where he ranked 19th.

PSC chief Ramirez gets Presidential Medal of Merit PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte conferred a Presidential Medal of Merit to Philippine Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez in simple rites held at the Malacañang Palace, Thursday.

Along with only a handful of cabinet members and heads of agencies, Ramirez received the said award from the president for his unparalleled work as the government’s sports agency chief.

Ramirez thanked Duterte for the

opportunity to lead the PSC and be part of the President’s team.

“The President asked me, Butch, how long have you been with me?

I realized I have worked with him for more than 15 years in different capacities,” said the only two-term PSC chief.

“When one works in government he goes about his work because it is his responsibility and commitment. I did not expect this,” shared Ramirez who dedicated the award

to the athletes, coaches and PSC employees saying that he is privileged to represent them, and that the recognition is a nod to the collective hard work of all involved in Philippine sports.

The Presidential Medal of Merit was established in 1949 and is awarded by the President of the Philippines in recognition of meritorious achievements and services.

PSC chairman William Ramirez

Avaricio rolls to 3rd LPGT win, tops ICTSI Pradera by 6

Chanelle Avaricio kisses a third LPGT trophy on a 6-shot romp at Pradera Verde. Manny Marcelo

LUBAO, Pampanga—Chanelle Avaricio completed a dominant campaign to nail her third victory in the last five Ladies Philippine Golf Tour events, beating Sarah Ababa and Chihiro Ikeda by six on a closing 72 here yesterday and adding the ICTSI Pradera Verde Ladies Classic crown to her growing trophy collection.

Unlike in her playoff win over Princess Superal at Hallow Ridge and a one-stroke escape over Ikeda at Caliraya Springs, Avaricio hardly found any challenge in the last 18 holes of the P750,000 championship, keeping her overnight four-stroke lead intact over nine holes, padding it to seven after No. 14 before settling for a sixstroke triumph with a last-hole miscue for the second straight day.

“I didn’t expect to win and just tried to focus on every shot. But my first round (64) was the key, it kind of pushed me to where I am today (yesterday),” said Avaricio, who took control with a Tour record eight-under card Wednesday, stayed in command despite a 75 in the second round and banked another P90,000 with a fiveunder 211 total.

Ikeda did threaten to within two with a birdie on No. 7 coupled with Avaricio’s mishap on the fifth

but the latter fought back with a birdie on the eighth and sat on another four-cushion at the turn on an Ikeda bogey on the night.

It was cruise control for the Alabama State U alumna at the back, pulling away with a birdie-bogey-birdie run from No. 12 against Ikeda’s bogeys on Nos. 13 and 15, enabling Ababa, who fell behind with a 39 card after 11 holes in another blistering day at the flat but challenging Pradera layout, to get into a fierce duel for runner-up honors with birdies on Nos. 12 and 15.

Ababa finished with a 73 while Ikeda hobbled with a 74 as they tied for second at 217 and split the combined P114,750 purse.

“I played pretty steady. I had a couple of bad shots but I was able to recover in some holes,” said Avaricio, who scored an LPGT breakthrough with a runaway triumph at Riviera-Couples in bubble setup last year. “But I’ll try to keep on improving, especially my irons and short game.”

Marvi Monsalve holed out with a birdie to break back-to-back 74s with a 72 as she snatched solo fourth at 220, while Sunshine Baraquiel, winner at Highlands last year, skied to a 77 and wound up tied for fifth at 222 with Pamela Mariano, who limped with a 78.

Klay savors 4th title after devastating injuries BOSTON—Klay Thompson didn’t stint on the celebrations of his fourth NBA title, one that came in the wake of two devastating injuries that showed the Golden State star just how fragile and NBA career can be.

“Oh, man, I was feeling absolutely incredible,” said Thompson, who danced with teammate Stephen Curry as the trophy was awarded in the wake of their game six victory over the Celtics in Boston.

“I was feeling just so high on life that I did not want to leave the stage, and I just know how hard this is, and to be here for a fourth time, like so grateful for my teammates.”

Thompson’s journey embodied the Warriors’ unlikely return to the summit, after their NBA title runs in 2015, 2017 and 2018.

He returned from a 31-month injury absence in January, and his latest Finals run comes three years after he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in game six of the 2019 NBA Finals.

He was on his way back from that injury when, more than 17 months later, he tore his right Achilles tendon.

“The anguish that Klay has felt over the last three years ... people can guess as to what it is like, but we saw it up close,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

“And, you know, between a second year-long injury and losing what he loves to do most in life, you know, playing the game, it’s been a rough go for him.”

But even though he didn’t take the court until the season was almost half over, Thompson said he knew the Warriors could be title contenders again.

“I saw it in the beginning of season,” he said. “People called me crazy. I said championship or bust, because I saw how we came out of the gate, 18-2. And playing just that Warriors brand of basketball that made us so successful, and then knowing I was going to be inserted in that, I knew we had a chance to do something special, and here we are.”

Thompson said his 2019 injury “was easier to accept because I had never been hurt before and that five-year run took a lot out of us.

“But the second time it happened it was like, what the heck is going on, man.

Just to stay with it, just calf raise after calf raise, after underwater treadmill, so many days, not even touching a ball.

“Then to go through this season with the ups and downs, and even these playoffs, I’m just at a loss for words at times.

“Because I knew this was possible but to be here in real time, man, I don’t want to leave. I want to enjoy every second of this. I know how fleeting it can be.” AFP

Fuel Masters frustrate Dyip for 1st victory JASON Perkins and three others picked up the cudgels for scoring leader Matthew Wright and carried the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters to a 97-74 smothering of Terrafirma Dyip on Friday in the Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Perkins unloaded 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists for the Fuel Masters, who picked up their first victory in three matches.

Wright, who averages 19 points, was limited all afternoon to just 11 points as the Dyip’s defense focused on him. But he had 10 rebounds and four assists.

With the Javee Mocon, RJ Jazul and Encho Serrano coming forward on behalf of Wright, the Fuel Masters unravelled a decisive 14-4 run in the second period to grab a big 44-24 halftime lead.

Joseph Gabayni tallied 16 points and nine boards for the winless Dyip, who dropped behind in the standings with their third straight loss.

Coach Topex Robinson said his players learned a lot from their setback to Meralco, 98-109 , last week.

“Lessons were learned from our game with Meralco in how to really stick together when the going gets tough. We knew from the start that they won’t allow Matthew to score, given the defense that they gave Matthew. But as long as we’re moving the ball and we’re playing good basketball, we have a chance to win,” said Robinson.

Mocon, Jazul and Serrano each had 10 points for the Fuel Masters, who widened a 18-14 lead off a 14-4 blast, which Aljun Melecio capped with a threepointer in the 5:57 mark of the second period to give Phoenix a 32-19 spread.

Defense limited the Dyip to 10 points in the second canto, pushing the Fuel Masters to a 20-point edge off Serrano’s two freebies, 44-24, at halftime. Peter Atencio

HAPPY FATHER’S DAYSpecial Issue

By Patricia Taculao

A

S THE men of the house, fathers have three distinct responsibilities that are similar in many cultures across the globe. They are the protectors, providers, and disciplinarians of the family.

But much like how mothers can fulfil this role, fathers also serve as emotional pillars, who prepare their children to face the struggles of the real world.

Today, fathers also provide emotional and mental support for their children to help them grow into well-rounded individuals with a fortified core.

Whichever role fathers may play in their children’s lives, acknowledging their love and dedication to their families is a must. That’s why every third Sunday of June is devoted to them and their efforts. Every Father’s Day is a chance for everyone to show the men of their houses how much they are loved.

Each family celebrates Father’s Day differently. While some choose to spend some quality time by going on a family vacation, eating together, or relaxing in a quiet location, others prefer giving practical gifts that coincide with their father’s interests, whether it’s cooking, driving, gaming, or more.

Here are some ideas on what to give Dad this Father’s Day: A new car Most fathers spend a lot of their time inside cars. They drive around from place to place to run errands or bring their family safely to specific locations. However, this can be challenging without a comfortable and well-performing car. Fortunately, several car brands in the Philippines offer a smooth ride without compromising other qualities drivers look for in a vehicle, like comfort, safety, and design.

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SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 advertise@manilastandard.net

Show dad your appreciation with these gift ideas One of these brands is Toyota. As the largest automotive company in the country, Toyota offers 20 car models to fit the lifestyle of their customers. Its top two car models include the Vios and the Innova.

The Vios is suitable for small families who want to navigate the city easily. It also has 6.75-inches display audio that provides entertainment and convenience for fathers and families who are always on the go.

In the meantime, the Innova is a wellknown multi-purpose vehicle appropriate for larger families or those planning to take a long road trip. The model can easily traverse through different sceneries inside and outside the city. Its interior is also sophisticated and spacious, giving the family room to relax and enjoy themselves.

Both models, along with other Toyota vehicles, promise overall safety with features like airbags and warnings from obstructions to secure the well-being of their occupants.

Low financing schemes are available at your nearest Toyota dealers, so purchasing a car is now easier for the family, especially if the children that the loving father raised well are now earning quite a sum.

A fine set of tools With so many things happening around the house, fathers always keep an eye out for any repairs to prevent endangering their families and causing further damage. Many fathers, as a result, keep toolboxes within reach for quick and easy fixes.

BLACK+DECKER has a plethora of powerful items in their arsenal, from outdoor tools to multi-purpose equipment, to meet fathers’ repairing needs effectively. They also offer toolboxes to help fathers organize their items to keep them well-maintained for longer use.

The brand also offers cleaning equipment like power washers and vacuums to minimize the mess around the house and uphold the home’s quality throughout the years.

Some fathers, on the other hand, love tinkering with mechanisms. Having the appropriate tools around allows them to work around tiny pieces, giving them better experiences to enjoy their hobbies, such as making ships in a bottle, scale models, and elaborate 3D puzzles.

For that, heads of the household can turn to Stanley and its many precision tools suitable for their hobbies or repairing small equipment at home. Whether it’s for attaching two tiny pieces or fixing the children’s toys, dads will find a use for these tools.

A high-quality phone Many dads have a hectic schedule every day. Despite that, they find the time to

respond to their families’ texts and calls whenever they’re needed. Investing in a good quality phone allows fathers to multitask throughout the day.

The new French electronics brand, Wiko, offers smartphones that have an elegant aesthetic and superb performance. Its Wiko T10 has 64GB storage and a 13 MP rear camera, allowing fathers to capture memories for a longer time.

It also has a battery capacity of 5000mAh, allowing the phone to last longer and meet fathers’ needs to message family members, browse social media, or watch various videos, like news, entertainment, or sports.

Meanwhile, dads who are still gamers at heart can find the answer with Infinix. The electronics brand is known for its highperforming smartphones that provide a worthwhile gaming experience.

Recently, Infinix has dropped its new Infinix Note 12. Aside from having feather-light proportions and a sleek design, the new model is equipped with the ultra gaming processor Helio G88 to give users a quick and smooth gaming performance.

A complete set of cooking utensils Some fathers also spend a significant amount of time in the kitchen since they take pride in making sumptuous meals for their families. One way to make them feel like they rule the kitchen is by giving them a complete set of cookware that can easily make any recipe.

Tefal, a French cookware brand, is known for its non-stick and anti-scratch cookware suitable for all types of cuisine. They have individual pots and pans that come in different styles. These also come in sets of four, five, six, and eight for those who want to give their fathers choices they can use.

Other products include kitchenware, like ladles, spoons, spatulas, and highquality kitchen knives. These have an ergonomic design to give users mobility and comfort while they work in the kitchen.

Father’s Day is a time to appreciate the heads of the household for all their efforts in caring for the family. These suggestions are only some of the many others worth giving to fathers on their special day.

While giving gifts or spending quality time with them is a must during this annual occasion, fathers deserve love, attention, and appreciation from their families, much like how they treat their families every day.

Happy Father’s Day to all fathers out there, and thank you for everything you’ve done for your families.

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Tech & Gadgets

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

Super dads share how fatherhood

transformed their careers at Shopee

F

ng meaning ang aking buhay at trabaho.”

(Before the pandemic, I planned to return to Taiwan to continue providing for my family. I am grateful that my job as a Shopee Xpress partner rider allows me to come home to my children everyday.

Being able to play an active role in their lives has given my life and my job more meaning and purpose.)

One of the things Michael is most proud of in life, is being a present father in the lives of his children. “Ang pinakamalaking inspirasyon ko sa buhay ay ang aking mga anak. Ipinagmamalaki ko na natutupad ko ang aking tungkulin bilang tatay sa kanilang buhay.” (My children are my biggest inspiration in life. It is very meaningful for me that I now get to fulfill my role as a father in a better way.)

ATHERS provide, protect, and persevere at home and at work. In celebration of Father’s Day, three fathers from Shopee, the leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, share how fatherhood has allowed them to become better versions of themselves, including at the workplace.

Martin: Evolving as a leader and as a father

Shopee Philippines Director Martin Yu has been leading teams to help businesses shift online through Shopee since 2017 and has seen the platform grow. As a father of two young boys, Martin has observed a common aspect between being a father and a leader that he now applies every day: the need to evolve. “When Shopee started in the Philippines, I had to be more of a coach, but as we grew and built up a larger team, I had to adjust my leadership style.

I tried to foster a culture where my team is encouraged to speak up and contribute their ideas and initiatives. Now, my role is to ensure these align with our bigger business objectives.”

As a Father, Martin is mindful of how fast his sons are growing up and how he needs to similarly adapt his parenting style to keep up with their changing needs. “I encourage my children to try new things and try to be their buddy. I talk to my sons like we are friends now because they are developing their interests, and I want to encourage them to discover who they want to be in this fast-changing world. Looking ahead, I know I must adapt even more as they become teenagers and young adults.”

Martin’s ultimate hope is that his work will inspire his kids to pursue impactful careers. “My sons are still young, but I think it’s never too early to teach them the value of meaningful work that significantly im-

Mark: Giving his best as a father and a seller

pacts society and empowers them to pursue a career path that offers that opportunity.”

Michael: Building more meaningful relationships

Since becoming a father, Mark has learned what it truly means to work hard and persevere. He nearly lost his daughter nine years ago to biliary atresia, a rare condition that affected her liver and required her

Before coming to work for Shopee Xpress as a partner rider two years ago, Michael worked as an overseas Filipino worker in Taiwan, just like his father. Growing up, he found it difficult to form a solid connection with his father since their relationship mainly consisted of online video calls. When Michael became a father four years ago, he knew he wanted to be a more present figure in his daughter’s life.

As a Shopee Xpress partner rider, not only is Michael able to provide for his family’s needs, but he can also play a more active role in the lives of his two children, aged two and four. “Bago nagsimula ang pandemya, balak ko talaga bumalik sa Taiwan para masuportahan ko ang aking pamilya. Nagpapasalamat ako nang lubos na nakakauwi ako sa aking mga anak arawaraw dahil sa aking trabaho bilang Shopee Xpress rider. Dahil dito, mas nagkakaroon

to undergo an expensive procedure abroad.

By selling customized pillows on Shopee’s platform, Mark has been able to provide for his family’s needs, including his daughter’s regular medication.

As a father and a seller, Mark said, “Nine years ago, I fought to become a father, and I continue to fight for my family every day.

When I started my online business, I struggled to get orders, but I persevered and gave my all for them. Selling through Shopee has allowed my family to reach many milestones like building a home and a warehouse. Everything I do, whether as a father or a business owner, is driven by my love for my wife and daughters. Till today, I continue to give my best every day, not just for my family, but also for my customers.”

By embracing their roles as fathers, Martin, Michael, and Mark have come to understand better how to serve their customers and their teams in their respective roles as employees of Shopee and partners of Shopee Xpress. Their meaningful careers have enabled them to make a difference in the lives of others—both at home and in the workplace.

Radicati Group names Kaspersky ‘top player’ for endpoint security protect their assets in a managed way.” The comA NEW report from The Radicati Group has placed pany’s technologies were also recognized for conKaspersky among the top companies for endpoint venience of use. security aimed at businesses of all sizes, naming it According to the report, Kaspersky Security a “top player” in its “Endpoint Security - Market Center console for managing endpoint security Quadrant 2021.” products is a comprehensive tool that allows orgaGaining even higher scores for both functionalnizations to identify all endpoint assets, as well as ity and strategic vision, Kaspersky has been praised conduct fast vulnerability assessments and automatifor its Optimum Security Solution for the ninth year cally perform patch remediation and offer actionable in a row. administrator reporting. Thus, a high level of process Today endpoint security is an integral part of automation within a single solution allows users to an organization’s cyber defense infrastructure, save time on routine operations. which shares threat intelligence feeds and policy “As more businesses turn to hybrid and remote controls with all other major security compoworking, companies need reliable solutions to deal nents. This approach drives increased adoption with increased cyber risks posed by distributed of advanced endpoint solutions powered by EDR environment. To help organizations combat these capabilities and managed services. This has led evolving concerns we are constantly developing to 20% annual growth in the sector, according to our endpoint security solutions. We combine multiRadicati estimates. layered, next-generation threat protection with adRadicati’s “Endpoint Security – Market Quadditional proactive technologies to ensure that all rant 2021” report shows where different players Radicati’s “Endpoint Security – Market Quadrant 2021” report endpoints remain secure, across a company’s entire within the Endpoint Security market fit along infrastructure. It’s great to see that our efforts and four sectors, labeled as Specialists, Mature Playdrive into this field are recognized and supported ers, Trail Blazers and Top Players. Kaspersky, by the expert community,” said Nikita Zaychikov, having scored highly in both strategic vision and tem-critical processes and prevent leaks when using mafunctionality, was named a Top Player – highlighting chine learning-based behavior detection technology and senior product marketing manager at Kaspersky.

Endpoint security ensures every end-user device the company as a market leader in the field – ranked memory protection mechanisms. highly for both breadth and depth of functionality, as The report also highlighted the ease of Kaspersky so- across the network is protected from malicious activity, well as for “possess[ing] a solid vision for the future.” lutions’ ability to support a wide range of operating sys- evolving to keep sensitive data safe across multiple placKaspersky products were highly praised for their “low tems, as well as virtual environments, “making it easier es and devices, and ensuring companies keep on top of footprint, high-performance technologies” that guard sys- for organizations with heterogenous infrastructures to data security standards

Puregold sustains digital edge PUREGOLD has reinvented its way of serving its customers. With 435 stores nationwide, more than a million app downloads and over three million social media followers, Puregold expands its 'retailtainment' with a series of original content as a way to reach out to multitudes of digital users and spur them to a unique shopping experience.

Speaking on its latest successful undertaking on digital that is Puregold Channel, Vincent Co, President of Puregold Price Club, Inc. says, “We want to share nostalgic and engaging stories online that appeal to the organic audience we’ve built.”

Its first series, “GVBOYS,” garnered more than five million collective views from Facebook and YouTube. It has since earned a feature in Euromonitor International, highlighting Puregold’s pioneering of a megatrend in the Philippines.

The company’s digital pivot is very timely with its Puregold Mobile app, and complemented with original content in Puregold Channel. Such initiatives are poised to entertain consumers while leaving them with a strong brand perception. Not only does it appeal to new and broader demographics, Puregold’s distinct online presence is vital for staying ahead of the curve.

Co has buoyant expectations.

“Storytelling is a powerful tool.

Combining content with modern retailing, gives us more opportunities to connect with our customers,” Co explains.

Following up with an all-new offering, Puregold Channel has started airing its new digital series, “Ang Babae Sa Likod ng Face Mask” last June 11.

In this fresh romantic comedy series, the iconic sari-sari store will be highlighted again. It is Puregold’s way to uphold its advocacy and support to small and medium enterprises— crossing over the digital space.

Vincent Co, President of Puregold Price Club

SM Foundation: Producing responsible, tech-savvy citizens SM Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of the SM group, underscores how the power of doing social good, even to a single beneficiary, creates a ripple effect wherein more Filipinos can benefit from.

Since its establishment in 1983, SM Foundation’s wide array of programs has generated positive impacts to its host areas—uplifting the lives especially of those

living in grassroots communities. SMFI shares some of its beneficiaries, who are now spreading social good themselves in their own unique way.

Creating work opportunities A 2010 SM scholar graduate, Darmae Tan, who finished a computer science degree from the University of the PhilippinesCebu, is now managing her own software development company, MYT SoftDev So-

Jeffrey Toleran

lutions, Inc. and her latest venture, ErrandBoy.PH. ErrandBoy.PH provides on-demand help such as courier service, purchase service and bills payment service for people who are either too busy or have limited mobility because of the government-imposed restrictions to contain the spread of Covid-19.

The first employees Tan hired for her new company were displaced workers, mostly from the hospitality industries, affected by the pandemic.

Tan envisions ErrandBoy.PH as a tool in helping people have time for more important things in life like time for their families.

“This is exactly how SM Foundation helped me. Aside from the financial help that they extended for my college education, they also helped me develop myself and figure out what I wanted my future to be like - which is to extend a helping hand to others and spread social good,” Tan said.

“Not everyone is given the same opportunity, and I am very grateful to SMFI not only for the chance to have a quality college education but also for providing me with learning opportunities through various enrichment activities when I was still a scholar,” Tan further added.

Sharing his knowledge on farming Another SMFI beneficiary under its Kabalikat Sa Kabuhayan on Sustainable

Agriculture, who now shares his knowledge on farming to his community, is Jeffrey Toleran of Davao Cty. He is a High School Teacher at Emilio Ramos National High School designated as Gulayan Sa Paaralan Coordinator. With just a little knowledge on farming, Toleran exerted efforts to equip himself with the skillsets needed to run their school’s gardening initiative—that’s when he joined SMFI’s KSK training program under Batch 211 in 2019.

With what he has cemented in their school in terms of their Gulayan sa Paaralan project, it’s no surprise that Teacher Toleran was recognized not just at the school level but also on the regional level. While continuing what he has started at their school, he also expanded his platform and established the Barangay Angliongto Organic Practitioner Association (BAOPA) in his community.

“Ang BAOPA ay naglalayong makatulong sa ibang tao na mabigyan ng ideya sa pagtatanim at mahikayat na gawin ang home gardening na maaari nilang pagkunan ng pagkain para sa kanilang hapag kainan. Ang BAOPA ngayon ay rehistrado sa City Agriculture ng Davao City. Natutuwa ako na makitang hindi na ako nag-iisa sa pagtupad ng aking mga layunin. Mula sa ‘ako’, ngayon ay nag-

Darmae Tan

ing ‘kami’ na dahil sa asosasyong ito,” he concluded.

The stories of Darmae and Jeffrey are just a few among the thousands of SMFI beneficiaries, who are now making their own way to help others— fully embracing SMFI’s principle of people helping people.

To know more about the various social development impacts and social good stories of SM Foundation, read and download 2021 SMFI Primer: https://bit.ly/3xp7Z0u

Motoring

MILO RIVERA Sub-editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022

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Start reserving your next gen Ford Ranger

FORD Philippines announced recently that it is starting to accept reservations for the next-generation Ford Ranger in its Ford dealerships nationwide.

Customers and enthusiasts can contact or visit their nearest Ford dealer to make a reservation and to be among the first in the Philippines to own the best Ranger ever built.

Aside from officially opening its order books, Ford Philippines also unveiled pricing for the next-generation Ranger, which starts at P1,198,000. Full pricing and lineup will be announced closer to launch, which is scheduled within the next few weeks.

Mike Breen, managing director, Ford Philippines: “The huge anticipation towards the next-gen Ranger is truly gaining ground – from the positive feedback we’re seeing on social media and getting from our dealers, partners, and employees, so we’re starting our launch

festivities on a high note by kicking off reservations ahead of our local reveal.”

The next-gen Ranger takes its design cues from Ford’s global truck portfolio with a bold new design, a wider stance, larger grille, increased width and wheelbase, and signature C-clamp shaped headlamps that give the next-gen Ranger that unmistakable ‘Built Ford Tough’ look.

The cabin is completely redesigned with more comfort, technology, and functionality. New features include a new seat design, a 10” or 12” colored portrait touchscreen, and SYNC® 4A with Wireless Apple Carplay® and Android AutoTM compatibility.

Capability will remain in the nextgen Ranger’s core. It will be available in two powerful engines: the 2.0L BiTurbo mated with a 10-speed automatic transmission or the 2.0L Single Turbo mated with a 6-speed automatic or manual transmission. The next-gen Ranger will also deliver more confidence on the road with a suite of safety features and new driver assistance technologies, which includes the 360-degree camera.

For more information on the nextgeneration Ford Ranger, visit www.ford. com.ph/showroom/future-vehicle/nextgeneration-ranger/ or a Ford dealership near you.

Biggest Suzuki 3S shop opens in Bohol

SM Megamall visit may win Dad a new ride, thanks to Autohub Group

T

EN brands. One hall. One name, known to give excellent and superior quality automotive service—Autohub!

Another first for the country’s leading car dealership— Autohub launched its Dad’s Mega Ride event last June 13 at the Mega Fashion Hall of SM Megamall.

Get to see Autohub’s premier roster of brands - namely Rolls-Royce, Shelby, MINI, Triumph Motorcycles, Vespa, Aprilia Scooters, Suzuki,

Mitsubishi, Nissan and Painthub all come together showcased in a 486 square meter display area.

This is a joint effort of SM Megamall and the Autohub Group,

especially created for the most loved man in the house—our Dads.

Catch exclusive promos just for this weekend, ongoing until tomorrow (June 19), Father’s Day!

Get to know Hino’s modern ‘Love Bus’

SUZUKI Motorcycle Philippines unveiled its biggest 3S (Sales, Spare Parts, and Service) Shop in the country in Talibon, Bohol, to serve as a landmark venue for the brand’s commitment to provide the best service possible, parts, and highquality motorcycle products.

The Suzuki Talibon HMAC 3S Shop is the first 3S Shop with HMAC and the 11th with SMDI. Suzuki Motorcycles Philippines President Mr. Akira Utsumi said the expansion in Bohol is “definitely worth the wait” after the pandemic-induced mobility restrictions prevented both HMAC and Suzuki from opening a new shop in the Visayas. HMAC is a subsidiary of SMDI, Suzuki’s long-term dealer partner, and owns

the largest Suzuki 3S Shops in the Philippines.

The Talibon 3S Shop hosts the latest line-up of Suzuki’s stylish, powerful and fuel-efficient motorcycles - the well-loved Maxi Scooter that you can afford the Burgman Street, the trendsetter Skydrive Sport and the first of its kind in the Philippines – the scooter for the paved and unpaved roads - the Skydrive Sport, the Underbone King – Raider R150 Fi and of course the Carburetor, the topselling Underbone Leisure motorcycle – Smash and the bike made for the Filipinos – Raider J Crossover alongside with its powerful backbones or full manual bikes – the Gixxer SF250, Gixxer 250, Gixxer Fi and the GSX-S150.

Honda PH wins ‘Motorcycle of Year’ at Motogarahe Awards

HONDA Philippines, Inc. (HPI) was awarded as the big winner in the recent Motogarahe Moto Awards 2022.

HPI received three of the six trophies given out in the annual event of Motogarahe.com Incorporated, which includes the “Motorcycle of the Year” award that went to the CLICK125i.

The Click 125i is tagged as a “GameChanger,” offering unmatched daily reliability and fuel efficiency models powered by a 125cc Liquid-cooled system, PGM-FI engine with Enhanced Smart Power, and an ACG starter, making it highly fuel-efficient at 53 km/L. The model also comes with the Combi Brake System and Park Brake Lock for added safety.

Meanwhile, the ADV150 was recognized as “Scooter of the Year.” Urban explorations are made more exciting with ADV150’s unique design and exemplary features. The scooter flexes an adjustable windscreen combined with a futuristic and masculine design, armed with the latest features of smart technology. It is also

equipped with an all-LED lighting system, a full digital meter panel for clear riding information reading, a console box with a power outlet, a 28L large utility box with a seat stopper, a naked handlebar, and the Smart Key System.

And last but not the least, the XR150L was awarded as “Off-Road and Dual Sport of the Year.” Designed for the most adventurous riders, there are no terrains too rough for the XR150L’s 4-stroke, Single Cylinder, Air-cooled, Overhead Cam, 150cc engine. It also has CRFinspired coloring and graphics, a wider dual seat for a comfortable ride, monoshock suspensions, and a well-balanced tire size meant for any adventure on or off-road.

The Motogarahe Moto Awards was launched by Motogarahe.com Incorporated to recognize the most popular motorcycles in the Philippines. Nominees come from the top 4 most-clicked motorcycles from www.motogarahe.com, while the winners are determined through online voting on Facebook.

HINO Motors Philippines (HMP) reignites the love bus nostalgia with its newest people carrier, the HS8J Low Floor City Bus. Keeping true to its predecessor’s legacy, this modern Love Bus offers smooth and pleasurable commutes for urban passengers.

Designed for city operations, the HS8J Low Floor Bus features a ground clearance of 375 mm. This allows for a lower center of gravity, enhancing ride stability while reducing sway and roll inside the cabin. This makes it the ideal ride, even for standing passengers.

Prioritizing passenger convenience, the new Hino Low Floor City Bus features a side kneeling function.

This provides ease of getting in and out of the vehicle as doors can be lowered to the standard gutter height. This emphasis on convenience is also apparent in the bus’s step-free design where passengers walk into a full-flat floor. With the HS8J’s design, commuters have ready access to the aisle and seats right upon boarding.

In fact, this bus features a larger flat-floor area compared with other low floor city

buses plying our roads. A folding ramp for boarding as well as a dedicated space for wheelchairs are integrated in the vehicle to accommodate priority passengers.

Adding on comfort, the HS8J optimizes cabin space with a combination of front and side-facing seats. This configuration creates a spacious aisle for standing passengers while maintaining generous legroom for those seated. This bus can carry up to 62 passengers, 36 seated and 26 standing. Equipped with warm LED interior lighting and built-in 32-inch TV

monitors, commuting can finally be enjoyable. The bus’s powerful air-conditioning by Denso comes with SHARP Plasmacluster Ion Generator that purifies cabin air by disabling airborne contaminants. This, along with its antibacterial and antiviral interior panels give commuters peace of mind as they utilize public transport.

A relaxing ride is only possible when the driver and passengers are at ease. The Hino Low Floor Bus runs on a J08E common rail, direct injection Euro 4 engine, coupled with a ZF 6-speed automatic transmission. This combination brings powerful performance at 280Ps output and 824Nm of torque while maintaining efficient fuel combustion for a smoother ride.

Through the years, the Love Bus has become an icon that made its mark not just on the roads, but also in the Filipino commuters’ hearts. Experience the modern Love Bus through the Hino HS8J Low Floor City Bus available at your nearest Hino dealership.

Power thru rainy days with exclusive Toyota deals THIS rainy reason, Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) is showering customers with deals on their favorite Toyota vehicles. From low payment schemes to rebates on trade-ins, customers can enjoy flexible options when they avail their dream Toyota this month.

Keep moving - whatever the weather with these fan favorite models: Get the Wigo 1.0 G AT at PHP98,700 per month through the Pay Low option (all-in cash out with down payment as low as 15%, free 1-year insurance and 3-year LTO registration, and no chattel mortgage at 60 months to pay). You can also opt to Pay Light (low monthly plan at 50% down payment with 60 months to pay) for the 1.0 E MT variant at PHP6,023 per month.

The classic Corolla Altis is available at PHP12,983 for the 1.6 V CVT variant in the Pay Light option or pay in cash and save PHP50,000 for the 1.6 V CVT and 1.8 V Hybrid variants.

Get the Raize 1.2 G CVT at PHP9,351, the Rush 1.5 E MT at PHP10,601 or the Fortuner 4x2 G MT at PHP17,303 per month under the Pay Light option.

You can never go wrong with the everreliable Vios. Get PHP55,000 in savings when you purchase a Vios XLE CVT in cash, PHP35,000 for the XLE MT or PHP18,500 for the XE CVT. You can also Pay Light at PHP7,850 per month for the 1.3 XE CVT. All brand-new G, E, and XLE units bought from authorized Toyota dealers also come with a 5-year warranty during this period.

A little rain shouldn’t keep you from making new memories with your friends and family. Enjoy travels together this season with the Innova 2.8 J DSL MT, available at PHP12,586 under the Pay Light option, or save PHP10,000 for the V, G, or J variants, PHP20,000 for the E MT variant, or PHP35,000 for the E AT variant when you purchase in cash.

Stay safe this rainy season by having your vehicle maintained regularly! Toyota is offering free periodic maintenance service (PMS) for select variants of the Vios, Avanza, Innova, Hilux, and Hiace, as well

as all variants of the Corolla Altis, Raize, Veloz, Rush, and Fortuner.

As the seasons change, so do our priorities.

Toyota is with you on your next journey!

Trade in your Fortuner for a Hilux and get a PHP20,000 rebate, or PHP35,000 when you upgrade your Wigo to a Vios. Use this rebate as cash discount when you purchase your new vehicle or buy an accessory for your Toyota.

All brand-new Veloz and Wigo, as well

as select variants of the Vios, Corolla Altis, Innova, Hilux, Avanza, Rush, and Fortuner purchased from any authorized Toyota dealers nationwide during this month are also covered by free 1-year comprehensive insurance provided by Toyota Insure.

Don’t let the season rain on your parade.

With a Toyota, you have the sure advantage!

Promo runs from June 10 to 30, 2022. View the full mechanics at https://toyota.com.ph/ promos/RainyDayDeals.

MPT-SOUTH, PAWS INK PACT. Metro Pacific Tollways South (MPT South),

signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) to address cases of stray animals wandering the busy roads of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway (CAVITEX), CAVITEX C5 Link, and the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX). MPT South and PAWS will be working to implement a CSR program called “Love Pets, Save Lives”. It will conduct responsible pet ownership seminars, free spaying and neutering (Kapon) procedures, and provide free vitamins for cats and dogs of the indigent pet owners in the communities of MPT South. PAWS is a registered non-profit, volunteer-based organization dedicated to protecting and promoting the humane treatment of all animals.

HAPPY FATHER’S DAYSpecial Issue

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|| SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 advertise@manilastandard.net

A way to a Dad’s heart this Father’s Day from S Maison

M Maison Mihara Yasuhiro DC Shoes Tribeca from Assembly.

AKE Dad feel special on Father’s Day with well-curated gifts from S Maison. These are gifts that highlight his special interests, as well as bring out his sense of style, and allow him to chill.

Check these out from your favorite stores at S Maison.

A Gift of Style. Whether he’s on top of his game in the boardroom or on the hardcourt; or a laidback weekend warrior,

Black Common Projects Derby Shine shoes from Assembly

Lightweight and breathable, dress shoes that feel like sneakers! Cole Haan’s 4 ZERØGRAND Stitchlite™ Oxford

The Jordan 4 RetroBred 2019 in black/fire red-cement grey-summit white colors from Shoe Game

The Air Jordan 11 Retro Low in black/gym red-white sail colors. Available at Titan 22.

surprise him with a gift of style. There are elegant dress shoes from Assembly for corporate or formal occasions; as well as Zerogrand from Cole Haan, dress shoes that feel like sneakers for casual Fridays.

If he’s the sporty type, surprise him with the “Michael Jordan feel” or the “Lebron James swag” with Titan 22 and Shoe Game Manila’s most exclusive sneakers; or streetwise casual wear from Urban Athletics.

A Gift of Cool. Gadgets are great gifts for Dad. Digital Walker Ph has some new cool smart phones and smart watches that will be perfect, as well as

Urban Athletics Adidas Vintage Mini bag with a throwback vibe is perfect for stashing Dad’s daily essentials.

Adidas Adillette Boost Slides is made for premium comfort.

This Titan Lightning Fist Logo Pullover Hoodie is made out of 50% cotton and 50% polyester blend with screenprint graphic in front and a custom Titan washtag.

Titan 22 is located at the second floor of S Maison.

earbuds that make them relax by listening to their favorite playlist.

A Gift of Wellness. For dads in need of chilling out after a long day, the OSIM uDream well-being chair is a perfect gift. OSIM’s uDivine V chair has intelligent V-hand technology to mimic the skillful techniques and flexibility of a massage therapist’s hand in the comfort of your home. There is also the A1 Biosensor, the world’s best 5 senses wellbeing chair, which measures, monitors and manages stress.

Get your perfect gift for dad this Father’s Day at S Maison!

Keep in touch with Dad with this fashionably light One Plus 10Pro that has the best performance in any OnePlus smartphone from Digital Walker

Let Dad enjoy his playlist with this Beats Studio Buds True Wireless Noise Cancelling Earphones from Digital Walker. It has immersive sound that pulls the emotion of music from the studio to your ears

For dads in need of relaxation, Osim’s uLove 2, a curated suite of auto massage programs, is customized to rejuvenate the mind and body while catering to your diverse needs.

Shoe Game’s Air Force 1 Low is comprised of an all-white leather upper with matching soles and detailing.

Measure, monitor and manage Dad’s stress with Osim’s UDream, the world’s 1st multi-senses well-being chair.

American Crew interviewed corporate dads on how they are able to balance work & personal life

WITH Father’s Day approaching, American Crew listened to Corporate Dads talking about their way of life, struggles, and how they can manage to keep all the hats and rocking it! Let us learn from these Dads and get inspiration on how to level up your Dad game!

First, on the list is a top salesman for the world’s most prestigious and luxurious automotive and real estate brands. Mr. Kerwin Michael O, is not only an exemplary salesman but he also tops being a Dad as his main motivation to strive hard is to provide for his family. In his line of work, Mr. O gets to meet a lot of people and one of the key in closing a sale is looking your best all the time, that is where the American Crew Forming Cream comes in as it provides hold, excellent pliability, and a natural shine for the hair. This styling product contains Glycerin that softens and swells the hair shaft making hair appear thicker. Surely, there’s an American Crew product perfect for every Dad, visit their local shopping site on newsummitcolors.com.

We’re also using this opportunity to greet Mr. O in his most recent achievement as 2021’s Ayala Land Premier Top #1 Overall in Sales.

Next is Ayala Malls, Regional Manager, Mr. Luke Lee, our first question to him is how can he manage work and family very well, he answered that “I draw my strength & determination from my faith and my famiLEE. One of the great challenges of our generation is juggling work and family so I reflect a lot on how to integrate my duties at work with my responsibilities at home.”. “My career growth shouldn’t come at the expense of my family, nor should being present at home compromise my ability to deliver the desired results at work. I’m blessed to have a very supportive family at work and at home.” Mr. Lee continued. As a young achiever that he is Mr. Lee mentioned that Dads like him should practice self-care, and one of which incare is finding a skroutine that fits well to your active lifestyle, and we recommended the American Crew Acu-

men Invigorating Body Wash to him because the AC ACUMEN COMPLEX contains vitamin combining antioxidant and moisturizing agents, followed by American Crew Acumen Energizing Hydrating Gel, as it is powered by Hyaluronic Acid to improve skin hydration and Ginger Root Extract to restore skin’s elasticity. Both American Crew Acumen products are best for that wellgroomed and invigorated you, ready to take on the corporate world.

Finally is Sven Group’s Executive Digital Director & President, Mr. Arvi Villacin. Mr. Villacin, has been in the Digital industry for 14 years, and about seven years ago, he landed a significant job being a Dad; with his many hats, it is interesting to know how Mr. Villacin manages to be on top of his game; “Juggling between work and family is a daily mindful balancing act for all work-in-progress parents. Life is also work, which we never stop doing, and parenting can be the greatest motivator for us to continue to become better individuals in multiple aspects”, mentioned Villacin.

As inspiring as Sven’s Chief’s success, Mr. Villacin accepts that family life and work are stressful. As stress gets into you, there could never be a second-best option for a bathroom essential than American Crew’s 3 in 1 Tea Tree, not only because of its refreshing scent but because it leaves hair dandruff free because of its tea tree component and allows the skin to stay acne-free because the exact product has anti-bacterial properties.

After hearing their stories, we invite everyone to make this month extra special for our Corporate Dads by telling them how much their efforts are appreciated and keeping them in style and well-groomed with American Crew’s products made for Dads available on Shopee Mall—American Crew.