Manila Standard - 2022 October 3 - Monday

NEW

TRANSPORT operators and drivers need to have the new fare matrix ap proved by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board that takes effect today (Monday) before they can start charging commuters higher

IN

fares.

Transportation Sec. Jaime Bautista said public utility vehicles must first post the new fare matrix inside their ve hicle before implementing the fare hike.

“Passengers must see the new ma

TODAY,

trix,” Bautista said. LTFRB chairperson Cheloy Gara fil said PUVs with no new fare matrix must collect only the old fare rates.

Bautista also appealed for under

433 win P236m lotto jackpot

Senators to look into ‘suspicious’ result, but PCSO insists it’s no ‘freak’

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

FOUR hundred thirty-three bettors won the PCSO Grand Lotto jackpot of over P236 million drawn Saturday night – a first in Philippine lotto history which Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III described as “strange and unusual” as he pushed for an investigation.

The winning combination for the 6/55 lottery was 09-45-36-27-18-54 –all multiples of 9 – with the winners splitting among them the P236 million jackpot for a prize of P545,245 each, subject to a final tax of 20 percent.

Mel Robles, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager, admitted that he initially thought the

result was a “freak” but attributed it to the popularity of “lucky number nine” as well as bettor’s pattern and loyalty to their numbers.

“It’s the first time in a game of chance…[But] so far the event last night (Saturday evening) was just one of the ordinary events except we have a

PH-US joint military drill ‘Kamandag’ starts

THE Philippines will begin a 12-day bilateral military exercise with the United States today (Monday).

In a statement, the Philippine Ma rine Corps said the 6th iteration of its

Over

“Kamandag” – abbreviation for “Kaa gapay Ng Mga Mandirigma ng Da gat” – exercises with the US Armed Forces throughout Luzon will run un til Oct. 14.

people still displaced as new bad weather affects Luzon

A WEEK after Typhoon Karding hit Luzon, some 46,452 people remain displaced, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said Sunday.

The NDRRMC said of the displaced,

3,098 are staying in 26 evacuation cent ers, while the rest are located elsewhere.

Over a million people or close to 300,000 families across Luzon have been affected by the typhoon that left 12 people dead. At least 52 people were

injured while five remain missing. Some 58,172 houses were damaged by the typhoon, of which 7,150 were to tally wrecked.

Meanwhile, two weather sys tems – the easterlies and the in

tertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) –will bring rain over some areas of the

POGO probe on, visas of 48k Sino workers cancelled

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

twitter.com/ MlaStandard facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH manilastandard.net Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net Comelec proposes to criminalize practice of running as nuisance bets

THE Senate begins its investigation into the operations of Philippine Off shore Gaming Operators (POGOs) to day, Oct. 3, to determine its economic costs and benefits, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said Sunday.

At the same time, the Department of Justice said the Bureau of Immigra tion will cancel the visas of more than 48,000 Chinese nationals employed by POGOs whose licenses have been revoked, which will allow them to vol untarily leave the country instead of being deported.

Gatchalian, who said he was frus trated by lower-than-expected revenue collection from POGOs, said the gov ernment allowed them into the coun try precisely for the purpose of gener ating additional income.

“If we are not able to realize this, then we must have a careful review of POGO operations to determine whether they should remain in the country,” Gatchalian said.

Palace no word on reported SIN trip of President

THERE is no word yet from Mala canang Palace on the reported week end trip of President Ferdinand Mar cos Jr. to Singapore.

The President was reportedly in vited by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to attend the Sin gapore Grand Prix which marks the return of Formula One to Asia since the pandemic.

THE Commission on Elections (Come lec) will propose to criminalize nui sance candidates, spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said Sunday.

Laudiangco said this after the poll body recently invalidated the electoral win of Negros Oriental Governor Henry Teves in the May 9 gubernatorial race, when the votes garnered by a certain

nuisance candidate, “Ruel Degamo,” were credited to another candidate, for mer Governor Roel Degamo.

Based on Comelec Rules of Proce dure Part V, Rule 24, any candidate is identified to have no bona fide inten tion to run for public office if he or she puts the election process in “mockery or

RUSSIAN TROOPS CLEARED FROM UKRAINE

Photos of the President with Singa pore Transport Minister S. Iswaran Formula 1 President & CEO Stefano

The PMC said this will be the first time military personnel from Japan and South Korea will join the said ex ercises, but only as observers.

PRACTICE AND THEORY. A Philippine Naval Forces West group executes amphibious operations during Exercise Pagsisikap 2022 at Brooke’s Point in Palawan ahead of joint exercises with US troops on Monday.

Meanwhile, Sen. Imee Marcos (center, inset) meets with Greg Poling, director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative and Southeast Asia program; Henry Howard, found ing director of the US-Philippines Society; Jaime Ramon Ascalon Jr., deputy chief of mission of the Philippine embassy in Washington D.C.; and Thomas Hubbard, former US ambassador to the Philippines, in New York as they discussed US-PH relations. PH Navy photo

‘PH can do drug probe on its own’

By Rey E. Requejo

THE Office of the Solicitor General on Sunday said the Philippines does not need the help of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in investigating the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs because the country can do the probe on its own.

Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said the National Bureau of Investiga tion (NBI) is already investigating the 52 cases of police operations that re sulted in the deaths of alleged drug sus pects, of which over 20 findings have been submitted to the Department of Justice for a preliminary investigation to determine probable cause.

“Why do you [ICC] have to inter fere in our investigations? You may not be happy with the results so far, but it doesn’t mean that our judicial and le gal system is not functioning. We don’t

need you,” he said in an interview with radio dzBB.

ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said last week that the Philippine government’s arguments against the resumption of the ICC investigation on the Duterte ad ministration’s war on drugs were with out merit. He also reiterated his request that the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber order the resumption of the probe.

The Philippine government earlier asked the ICC to dismiss the case, say ing the international tribunal lacks ju risdiction on the matter, and that the al

leged crimes are insufficiently grave to warrant further action. It also pointed out that it has investigated and prose cuted the alleged crimes or is currently doing so.

Guevarra also admitted that it takes longer for the NBI to investigate the bloody war on drugs due to the lack of witnesses.

“The problem is the witnesses...It is really hard for the NBI to validate the cases because the witnesses who may have known what really happened re fuse to testify. Even the relatives of the deceased drug suspects are not show ing up,” he said.

Nonetheless, the Solicitor General urged the witnesses to appear before the DOJ instead, if they are afraid of the consequences of testifying to the Philippine National Police.

Guevarra also underscored that the Philippines is no longer a member of

the ICC, which gives the country more reason not to allow the international tri bunal to investigate the drug war.

In 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte withdrew the Philippines’ membership from the Rome Statute, the treaty that governs the Hague-based International Criminal Court. The withdrawal took effect in 2019 after the tribunal began a preliminary probe into the killings un der the war on illegal drugs.

“As long as the issue on the admis sibility of the case is not finalized or settled, the Philippine government will not allow the ICC prosecutor to inter fere in the Philippine’s own investiga tion into the matter,” Guevarra said.

Reports indicate that at least 6,200 drug suspects have been killed in police operations from June 2016 until Novem ber 2021. Several human rights groups, however, said the actual death toll could be between 12,000 and 30,000.

Financial losses led to layoff of 4,485 workers in Cebu ecozone

By Othel V. Campos

THE Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) confirmed re ports that 4,485 workers were re trenched following mass lay-offs by at least five garment companies op erating in the Mactan Export Pro cessing Zone (MEPZ).

PEZA OIC Tereso Panga said finan cial pressures due to the global reces sion forced the companies to make “aggressive decisions.”

“Severe financial losses due to global decline in demand for their products prompted the retrenchment,” he said Sunday.

From

standing among commuters, noting that the fare hike is long overdue.

“Our drivers earn so little because of the increase in the prices of gaso line and maintenance. Because of in flation, we also have to adjust the fare rates,” he said.

Starting today, traditional and mod ern jeepneys will implement a P1 in crease in their minimum fare at P12 and P14, respectively.

For every succeeding kilometer, an additional P1.80 will be charged for traditional jeepneys and P2.20 for modern jeepneys.

Buses, on the other hand, will in crease their minimum fare by P2 to put it at P13, with a P2.25 increment for every succeeding kilometer.

The fare for air-conditioned buses, on the other hand, will begin at P15 and will have a P2.65 increase for eve ry succeeding kilometer.

The LTFRB also raised the flagdown rates of taxis and transport net work vehicle service (TNVS) by P5, with no additional fees for succeeding kilometers.

Bautista said provincial bus groups are also set to petition for a fare hike.

The DOTr is also the upward fare request of LRT-1 and other train lines, he said.

“Under the contract, they can in crease every two years. They held a meeting last week where they said they will request since they have not made any fare adjustment since 2016, 2018 and 2020,” he said.

From

disrepute or to cause confusion among the voters by the similarity of the names of the registered candidates or who by other acts or circumstances.”

This may then result in the candi date’s declaration as a nuisance and his or her certificate of candidacy de nied due course or canceled.

Laudiangco said the emergence of nuisance candidates has become a trend every election, thus those in volved already need to be penalized.

“(Comelec) Chairman George Gar cia’s administration will push for the declaration of the criminalization of nui sance candidates because it is becoming a trend. Every election, there are candi dates running with the same names as their rivals to make the election a mock ery or to confuse the people,” he said in a Super Radyo dzBB interview.

“So, Comelec will propose for it to be criminalized so that they will be punished with jail time and fines,” he added.

From

lot of winners,” he said.

But Pimentel and his fellow opposi tion Sen. Risa Hontiveros remained un convinced.

“I will file a resolution because this is my concern. These lotto games are authorized by the Republic of the Philippines. Therefore, we need to maintain and protect the integrity of these gambling games that we have authorized,” he said.

“The result is very strange. For 433 to win, supposed to be your chances of winning is one in how many mil lions. That means, it’s that hard to win in that draw and then to say that 433 won, there is something suspicious. Many were astonished because sta tistically speaking, this is a very rare event,” Pimentel added.

“We just want to rule out any

doubts in the public mind that the re sults have been manipulated. While we recognize that people tend to bet in patterns, we also want to make sure the system is secure, free from glitches, and trustworthy,” Hon tiveros said in a statement.

According to University of the Phil ippines’s Institute of Mathematics Pro fessor and OCTA Research Fellow Dr. Guido David, the probability that a bet tor would get six numbers out of the 55 is “one out of 30 million.”

“[But] because there is a pattern [mul tiples of 9], there may be more bettors using this sequence of numbers because of the pattern, so we are not saying this is impossible,” he said.

“[But] there is a very little probability that there would be 400 winners at the same time,” David said.

Robles, however, brushed off sugges tions of foul play or irregularity.

“PCSO assures every Filipino wheth er you are playing lotto or not that the

conduct and result of every draw is very transparent and of utmost integrity,” he said, adding that the result of the Oct. 1 Grand Lotto draw is an indication that the more one plays the lotto, the more a person has chances of winning.

He said the games of PCSO are games of chance and there is no science nor statistics involved in determining the winning numbers unless they will play all the number combinations.

“No one can predict the result, no one can predict the number of winners or if there will be a winner as the numbers are randomly drawn during the actual draw,” he said.

He noted that the actual draws are conducted in the presence of a Com mission on Audit representative and telecast live via People’s Television Network (PTV).

The draws are also streamed live over the official Facebook pages of PSCO, PCSO Games Hub, and PTV, and PCSO YouTube.

Confederation of Wearable Ex porters of the Philippines (CON WEP) executive director Maritess Agoncillo, also confirmed the re port, citing the slowdown of the US economy and the competitive dis advantage of the Philippines as fac tors that led to the mass dismissal of MEPZ workers.

Panga said the government has en gaged the local government of Cebu and the Department of and Employ ment (DOLE) for assistance that may be extended to displaced workers.

“Most of the employees were given their separation pay already. There were a series of meetings conducted among PEZA, LGU, DOLE, and the PNP (Philippine National Police) to ensure a smooth and orderly conduct of the proceed ings,” Panga said.

The DOLE offered to give job op portunities to dismissed workers through its Public Employment Ser vice Office (PESO) program.

PESO is an ongoing program that aims to fill job vacancies through referral and placement, career coun seling, training, and seminars.

According to PEZA the number of retrenched workers make up about a fourth of the total combined work force of 18,000 employees from the garment factories.

Currently, there are 1.79 million workers employed inside the econom ic zones.

Investments from January to Au gust 2022 amounted to $31.12 billion.

Palace...

From

Domenicali went viral on social me dia yesterday.

During his earlier trip to Singa pore last month, Mr. Marcos se cured investment pledges of $6.54 billion for projects such as electric tricycles, floating solar technology and an in-country data center in the Philippines.

From

Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Crisp in Remulla said canceling the visas of Chinese nationals instead of deporting them was “a more cost-efficient and hu manitarian approach.”

“Instead of deporting them, the can cellation of alien visas would simply allow the Chinese nationals to volun tarily exit the country within a nonextendible period of 59 days,” the DOJ said in a statement.

The Bureau of Immigration is set to cancel 48,782 alien visas and is verify ing whether these Chinese nationals are still in the country.

tion of Mindanao, will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms due to easterlies and ITCZ.

“To be clear, it is only after the Chi nese nationals refuse to leave the coun try within the allowable period that summary deportation will be resorted to,” the DOJ said.

Some 372 Chinese nationals are already in custody after being ar rested by the NBI or PNP. They are set to be deported.

“The department is aware of the effects this operation may have on the economy. However, given the many reports of mur der, kidnapping and other criminal ac tivities, the social cost of keeping illegal aliens heavily outweighs the projected effect it will have on the affected indus tries,” the DOJ statement said.

“Even so, the department will be sure to coordinate with the national econom

PH-US...

Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said Sunday.

The weather bureau said the east ern sections of Luzon and Visayas particularly Isabela, Aurora, Qu ezon, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, and Catanduanes will experi ence cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms due to easterlies.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country, particularly the southern por

Damage to agriculture from Kard ing was placed at P3.076 billion, with 104,500 farmers affected, while dam age to infrastructure stood at more than P304.2 million.

For its part, the Department of La bor and Employment has initially al located P455.6 million for the ongo ing implementation of its emergency employment program in Central Lu zon and Calabarzon in the wake of Karding’s destruction.

The exercises aim to “enhance bilat eral cooperation and interoperability among participating forces in the con duct of combined tactical operations that focus on capacitating the Marine Amphibious Ready Unit and enhanc ing their capabilities in Special Op erations, Coastal Defense Capability, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HADR) Operations, and Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Operations.”

ic team to counter any negative effects on the country,” it said.

Former Department of Finance (DOF) secretary Carlos Dominguez III projected in October 2021 that total revenue collections from POGOs for the year 2022 to 2023 could reach P76.2 bil lion. However, recent data showed that revenues from POGO operations in the first quarter reached only P1.55 billion.

Also, tax collections from the indus try reached only P3.91 billion in 2021 compared to P7.176 billion in 2020 and P6.424 billion in 2019.

Gatchalian also pointed out that due to the growing incidence of crimes at tributable to the POGO industry, both national and local authorities are ramp ing up their efforts to curb these crimes

For its part, the US Marine Corps said it will be deploying 5,500 of its personnel to join the exercises, with the Okinawa-based 3rd Marine Division in Japan to exercise command and control.

“These exercises will allow our forces to strengthen interoperability and readi ness to ensure we are prepared to rapidly respond to crises throughout the Indo-Pa cific,” 3rd Marine Division commander Maj. Gen. Jay Bargeron said.

Meanwhile, the re-examination, instead of revision, of the PH-US Mutual Defense Treaty and Visiting Forces Agreement topped the 7-Point Plan that Sen. Imee Marcos unveiled during a roundtable fo

and maintain peace and order in the country, which entails additional costs for the country.

“Clearly, any economic benefit that we derive from POGO operations should substantially outweigh any social cost that we must bear in exchange for their presence in the country,” Gatchal ian said, referring to the reported rise in criminality attributed to POGOs.

Senator Joel Villanueva also cited the need to re-examine the country’s policy on online gambling operations to deter mine if the economic benefits outweigh the social costs.

He said he filed Senate Resolution No. 225 precisely to investigate this matter, in the wake of rising criminal activities that involve POGOs.

rum in Washington D.C. this week.

“Do not make us choose between the US and China,” Marcos told a largely American assembly at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) where leading think tanks, em bassies, companies, and universities took part in the forum.

The presidential sister, who chairs the Senate Committee on Foreign Rela tions, said the Philippines and its South east Asian neighbors are calling for a “rational approach” to navigating rela tions between Washington and Beijing to prevent a return to the “melodrama” of the Cold War.

CLIMATE ACTION. Bikers and environmentalists participating in the third edition of Pedal for People and Planet pass by a mural depicting the revolutionary group ‘Katipunan’ in San Juan City on October 2, 2022. The bike event from San Juan City to Pasig City and other cities and eight countries calls for a rapid shift to 100% renewable energy before 2050. Jimmy A. Domingo

OCTA analyst urges public: Wear masks in open areas

By Willie Casas

AN ANALYST on Saturday urged the public to wear face masks even in open spaces as the Philippines experiences a high COVID-19 positivity rate.

From September 25 to 30, the coun try’s positivity rate was at 15.2 percent, three times higher than the 5-percent benchmark set by the World Health Or ganization (WHO).

The country is only testing an average of less than 20,000 daily.

“I’m hopeful that the surge in cases will go down eventually. But it would also really [require] that as individuals, we realize that what we do as citizens is more important than any government program in the fight against COVID,” Professor Ranjit Rye of OCTA Research Group said in an interview on ANC.

“That means being vigilant, that means considering wearing of the mask during times of high positivity,” he added.

Rye said that commuters must keep wearing face masks at all times inside public transportation.

This, as the Land Transportation Fran chising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has again allowed standing passengers inside public utility vehicles. “They’re actually quite necessary now especially since we have a new ruling on public transportation. We have public transpor tation where more people can come in. These are situations where we need to wear a mask - the high-risk situation… The risk of getting sick is quite high,” he said.

Rye, however, admitted that the in crease in cases cannot be automatically associated with the easing of the face mask rule.

But experts in OCTA, he said, believe that waning immunity, massive mobility of people with the resumption of in-per son classes, the public’s low compliance with the minimum public health stan dards, and the spread of more contagious variants are driving the spike.

“We are not where we’re supposed to be there yet as a country in terms of immunity. We still need to sustain this booster program,” he said.

Starvation wages, unsafe work push nurses to quit jobs – FNU

By Willie Casas

THE Filipino Nurses United (FNU) said they are not surprised by the disclosure of Department of Health (DOH) Officer-In-Charge Rosario Vergeire that the country’s health system needs 106,000 more nurses.

“What she failed to mention, howev er, are the reasons why many nurses opt not to practice the profession, a choice due to the starvation wages and the in humane and unsafe work conditions they are forced to bear,” Eleanor No lasco, FNU vice president, and Joc elyn Andamo, FNU secretary-general, in a statement, said.

Per DOH data, as of December 2021, there are a total of 617,898 practicing registered nurses, of which 172,589 are employed in private and public health facilities, while 124,999 are in unspeci fied practice, they said.

The latter constitutes 20 percent of the country’s nursing resources who have likely chosen to work elsewhere

instead of practice nursing because of the low pay and precarious work con ditions. DOH data also showed 316,405 registered nurses or 51.3 percent as hav ing migrated abroad presumably for the more lucrative offers of higher pay and better incentives.

The 2-year pandemic also highlighted the nurses’ sad plight that has been met by continued callousness and even in sults by the past administration.

The nurses’ vulnerability to CO VID-19 infection increased manifold due to the inhumane work conditions of extended unpaid duty hours of 12 to 24 hours and heavy patient and workload that weighed down nurses’ physical health but their mental health as well, they said.

A widespread and notorious labor

practice in the nursing profession is contractualization that comes in many forms like job order, contract of service, essentially depriving nurses security of tenure.

Health care being devolved, many locally employed nurses under LGUs (local government units), are contractu als. In most LGU hospitals (district, city and provincial), 70-80 percent nurses are contractuals who perform the same functions as those permanently em ployed.

“Yet, being contractuals they are not only deprived of the mandated mini mum monthly salary of P35,000 for public health nurses, but also the right to paid leaves (sick leave, vacation leave, etc) and COVID benefits, even access to government loans and the right of

Malacanang OKs Sermonia as new PNP 2nd in-command

LT. GEN. Rhodel Sermonia has been named Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Office of the Deputy Chief for Adminis tration, the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) second highest post, in place of Lt. Gen. Jose Chiquito Malayo who reached the mandatory retirement age of 56 on Sunday.

Sermonia was named Deputy Chief for Administration in March under then chief PNP Gen. Dionardo Carlos.

PNP chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr. implemented a major reshuffle a few days into his appointment in August, making Sermonia the chief APC in the Visayas.

“Sermonia, chief of the Area Police Command (APC) in the Visayas and in addition to his duties and responsibilities, is designated as OIC of the Office of the Deputy Chief of PNP for Administration effective on Sunday (October 2). Such designation shall only take effect until the designation of the new TDCA (The Dep uty Chief for Administration),” the order dated September 30 said.

In a message sent to the Philippine News Agency, Azurin said he recom mended three names to the National Po lice Commission for “evaluation, assess ment and hopefully, endorsement of our President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for official appointment as TDCA.

Court upholds dismissal raps filed against LTFRB exec

DFA unveils new game allowing

By Rey E. Requejo

THE Department of Foreign Af fairs (DFA) has launched an on line game where a user can ex plore the entire archipelago of the Philippines to raise awareness of the country’s archipelagic and maritime heritage.

The DFA inaugurated what it called “Islands Abridged” to close the celebration of Maritime and Ar chipelagic Nation Awareness Month 2022 (MANA Mo 2022) on Sept. 30.

Islands Abridged is an interactive exploration of the Philippines, its people, and how both have been shaped by its identity as an archipe lagic and maritime nation, the DFA said.

It can be accessed at the DFAMANA Mo 2022 site. The DFA said it features a character that can explore the entire archipelago of the Philippines including its provinces, famous landmarks, destinations, and natural wonders.

DHSUD: Gov’t rolling out housing projects in Bacolod, Roxas, Iloilo

By Rio N. Araja

THE Marcos administration’s hous ing program has been rolled out in the Visayas, particularly in the cities of Bacolod, Roxas, and Iloilo, ac cording to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).

The groundbreaking ceremonies in these areas signaled the roll-out of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino

Program: Zero ISF (informal settler family) 2028” in the Visayas.

DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar said the initiative indicated the Marcos administration’s solid commitment to helping realize the dream of every Filipino family, par ticularly the ISFs and low-income earners, to have a house of their own.

“This shows proof of the Presi dent’s sincerity to improve the lives of the people,” he said.

By Rey E. Requejo

THE Court of Appeals (CA) has upheld the 2020 ruling of the Office of the Om budsman (OMB) that ordered the dis missal of lawyer Samuel Aloysius M. Jardin as executive director of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regula tory Board (LTFRB).

In a decision, the CA’s Eleventh Division ordered Jardin dismissed for grave misconduct, conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, and vi olations of the Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (RACCS) and Republic Act No. 6713, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Pub lic Officials and Employees.

“The disciplinary authority over presidential appointees, such as the peti tioner (Jardin) in this case, belongs con currently to the Office of the President (OP) and the Office of the Ombudsman. Thus, the Office of the Ombudsman has the full administrative disciplinary authority, including the power to deter mine the appropriate penalty imposable on erring public officers or employees as warranted by the evidence, and, nec essarily, impose the said penalty,” the CA ruled.

“In the instant case, the administra tive case against the petitioner was properly initiated due to the Referral Letter dated February 26, 2020 issued by the Office of the President, through the Office of the Deputy Executive Sec retary for Legal Affairs. Specifically, the Referral Letter referred for investigation and adjudication several administrative complaints against the petitioner for his alleged corrupt acts,” it added.

RETURN TO NAVOTAS. Vice President Inday Sara Duterte visits residents of Navotas, including the fisherfolks of Barangay Tangos North. The Vice President also distributed food packs, face masks, alcohol, and school supplies.

Photo from Sara Duterte FB Page

LICENSURE EXAM. Examinees form a long queue for Licensure Exam for Teacher or LET at the University of the East in Recto, Manila. The LTE has re sumed after being postponed on September 25, the Professional Regulation Commission Board said Norman Cruz.

Villar sees SIM Card bill ready to become law

SEN. Cynthia A. Villar is optimistic that the SIM Card Registration Act, which mandates the ownership registration of all SIM (Subscriber Identity Modules) cards in the Philippines, will soon become law.

“It is just a step away from becoming a law after the bicameral conference report was ratified by both the Senate and the House of Representatives,” said Villar.

She hopes President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will soon sign into law this measure, which is a deterrent to online crimes, fraudulent digital activities, and scammers, and a huge help for law enforcers to track them.

While Villar has recognized the benefits of this modern technology-mobile phones and the internet, she lamented that its illegal or malicious use endangers people’s lives, damages property, poses hazards to public order, and even threatens the security of nations.

If passed into law, the senator said fraud and other crimes perpetrated by lawless elements using SIM cards, mobile phones, and the internet would be stopped.

She said this important piece of legislation was envisioned to curb criminal syndicates, which have become innovative through the years, from victimizing millions of Filipinos.

Villar said this will also address many forms of harassment, bullying, and even misleading advertisements and fraudulent sales promotions, among many others.

It also includes a provision against online trolls.

The proposed measure requires all public telecommunications entities (PTEs) to register SIM cards as a prerequisite to their sale and activation in the Philippines, which has more than 120 million mobile subscribers. Macon Ramos-Araneta

PAGCOR gives cash aid to kin of flood heroes

THE Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) on September 30 extended financial assistance worth P100,000 to each of the families of the five rescue workers in Malolos, Bulacan who perished recently in the line of duty at the height of Super Typhoon Karding.

PAGCOR provided the cash aid in recognition of the heroism of Narciso Calayag, Jr., Jerson Resurreccion, Marby Bartolome, George Agustin, and Troy Justin Agustin.

The victims drowned in floodwater when a wall collapsed on them while performing rescue duties last September 25.

Apart from providing financial assistance to the families of the five fallen rescue workers, the state-run gaming firm joined hands with the Bridges of Benevolent Initiative Foundation, Inc. (BBFI), the charitable arm of The Midori Clark Casino operated by BB International Leisure and Resort Development Corp. (BBI), in conducting relief operations for the typhoon victims in the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga.

The recipients in the towns of San Miguel and Sto. Nino, Pampanga received 400 and 150 food relief packs, respectively, while a total of 300 families in Hagonoy, Bulacan, were also provided relief items. Each relief pack contained rice, instant noodles, coffee, and canned goods.

As of September 30, 2022, PAGCOR and its licensees have distributed 4,700 relief packs in different areas in Luzon affected by the recent typhoon and are set to conduct more distributions in the upcoming days.

News

Robin cleared to go home following heart procedure

SENATOR Robinhood “Robin” C. Padilla has been cleared to go home after undergoing a heart procedure at the Asian Hospital in Muntinlupa City on Saturday.

A statement from his office on Sunday did not say the kind of heart procedure the actor turned politician went through.

While Padilla did not categorically name the procedure, angioplasty is a heart procedure to remove a blockage.

It said Padilla will continue with his recovery during the weekend. He is expected to return to his work and normal routines soonest.

The same statement said the senator is “deeply thankful for the outpouring of prayers and well-wishes for his speedy recovery.”

“We will provide further updates on Sen. Padilla as needed,” the statement added.

Padilla said he has no illness “not until the last May elections,” when his blood pressure shot up.

Since he arrived from Spain where he took a break after the elections, his blood pressure has been going up.

“The Cardinal Santos (Medical Center) did an endoscopy and colonoscopy to look

inside his body. He passed all these tests,” his office’s statement read.

According to the senator, he was also subjected to a pulmonary test, which he also passed. But when a 2D echo test was done on his heart, he was advised to see a cardiologist.

Padilla then went to Asian Hospital and underwent a stress test.

“They saw a blockage in my heart, so I underwent a heart procedure,” Padilla related to reporters later.

At present, his blood pressure is being closely monitored.

The senator’s wife, actress-host Mariel Rodriguez-Padilla, said in an Instagram Post on Saturday it was a roller coaster of emotions after a successful procedure.

“Ultimately we are just so grateful, and we are so blessed that Robin is okay,” she said.

Her family thanked the doctors and nurses of the Asian Hospital and Cardinal Santos Medical Center for the procedure.

Padilla was last seen virtually in a Senate finance subcommittee hearing on the budget of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Macon Ramos-Araneta

Pimentel flags P544b lump-sum fund under DPWH as pork barrel

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

SENATE

Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel

III on Sunday flagged P544 billion in lump-sum appropriations lodged under the Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH)’s proposed budget for 2023, which he warned can be a source of “pork barrel” funds.

“What I fear the most is it could be a rich source of pork barrel funds. That is why DPWH should disaggregate them and publicize the details immediately,” Pimentel stressed.

The Supreme Court declared in 2014 that pork barrel funds—government funds for projects designed to please voters or legislators and win votes—are unconstitutional.

Stressing this is no small amount, Pimentel noted that the P544 billion lumpsum funds are equivalent to 75 percent of the total appropriation of the DPWH for next year.

Under the proposed P5.268 trillion National Expenditures Program (NEP), DPWH has a P718.4 billion budget for next year.

“In the spirit of transparency, I call on

the DPWH to provide the details of this huge allocation, down to the last centavo, so the Senate and the public will be able to scrutinize it,” said Pimentel.

“Every peso in the budget should be disaggregated. Hiding billions in lump sums is an old tune. Let’s shun this practice,” Pimentel said.

“Lump-sum amounts are prone to abuse and discretion.”

If Congress allows lump-sum appropriations in the budget, Pimentel warned this is tantamount to giving the executive a blanket authority to spend, in the case of DPWH, P544 billion at its own discretion.

The Senate chief fiscalizer and current chairman of the PDP-Laban noted that lump-sum funds are mostly lodged under the agency’s central office.

Of the lump-sum appropriation, he said P213.95 billion are for convergence and special support programs, which includes P104.82 billion for SIPAG or Sustainable Infrastructure Projects Alleviating Gap and P52.45 billion for BIP or Basic Infrastructure Program.

Pimentel emphasized that both programs—SIPAG and BIP—seem to serve duplicative functions and have purposes beyond the implementation of a national infrastructure program.

Of the P544 billion, P10.89 billion will go for widening of primary roads, P11.46 billion for secondary roads, and P6.52 billion for tertiary roads.

Pimentel also said the lump-sum funds include P86.18 billion for asset preservation program or road rehabilitation, reconstruction and upgrading.

Separate budgets for ALS, SPED under DepEd sought

SENATOR Win Gatchalian is pushing to have separate line items for the budgets of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) and Special Education (SPED) under the Department of Education.

Gatchalian made this call during the Senate Committee on Finance’s hearing on the proposed budget of the DepEd and its attached agencies for Fiscal Year 2023.

While the DepEd proposed a P532 million budget for SPED, the program is unfunded under the proposed 2023 National Expenditure Program (NEP).

Funding for ALS, on the other hand, is lodged under DepEd’s Flexible Learning Options (FLOs).

Considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures on ALS learners and learners with disabilities, the chairman of the

Senate Committee on Basic Education has been emphasizing the need to support ALS learners and learners with disabilities.

Based on DepEd data as of March 14, 2022, there were 126,598 learners with disabilities enrolled in DepEd schools for School Year (SY) 20212022, 65% lower than the 360,879 recorded for SY 2019-2020. For SY 2021-2022, there were 472,869 learners enrolled in ALS, 38% lower compared to pre-pandemic levels.

“Hopefully, we can allocate an additional budget for SPED, I think that is an item that we can improve on,” said Gatchalian. “We can also improve on the allocation for ALS.”

Traditionally, he said, “we are encouraging the Department to create a separate line item for that so that ALS will have its own line item to spend.” Macon Ramos-Araneta

Solon wants drug tests for actors before work

By Rio N. Araja

committee on dangerous drugs, reacted Sunday to the arrest of actor Dominic Roco, son of multi-awarded actor Bembol Roco, and four other companions by the Quezon City Police District in a buy-bust operation before dawn on Saturday in Quezon City.

“Actors, actresses, and other movie celebrities should all be drug-

SM, Fast Retailing plant trees in Nasugbu

SM Foundation, Inc. the social good arm of the SM group, and the Fast Retailing Foundation (FR Foundation), a general incorporated foundation in Japan, formally launched the “Grow Trees Community” project in Nasugbu, Batangas last September 27 as the first stop of three provinces for their “treescaping” and reforestation initiative.

The Grow Trees Community project aims to plant and grow trees across the Philippines while helping create livelihood opportunities by working closely with the people”s organizations in the communities.

The project also joins hands with Costa del Hamilo, Inc., Manila Southcoast Development, Inc and the local government of Nasugbu.

“The core of our program is to go beyond planting trees. It also addresses the social and economic needs of communities by providing them with the means to engage in agroforestry. With this in mind, we want to build a

strong foundation to keep growing communities by fostering collaboration and leadership in caring for the environment” said Cristie S. Angeles, SM Foundation Assistant Vice President for Livelihood.

“Facilitating sustainable development is one of the core activities of FR Foundation and we support this program to further promote environmental stewardship, preservation, and economic development among communities. We are delighted to partner with SM Foundation who has an extensive experience in community development and tree planting programs in the Philippines,” Mr. Yoshio Ishida, Secretary-General of FR Foundation said.

Some 8,400 Palawan Cherry blossom trees locally known as “balayong” and the bellshaped Tabebuia pink flowering trees are being planted along the 7-kilometer TarnateNasugbu road leading to Hamilo Coast.

free because they are public figures that are being idolized by the public, particularly the Filipino youth. They would be setting bad examples if they would be involved in the use of drugs, or worse selling drugs,” he said.

“As far as I know, almost all our artists are drug-free. But there are some who lost their way using or selling il-

legal drugs,” Barbers added.

The suspects yielded P112,000 worth of shabu, P14,000 worth of dried marijuana, a weighing scale, and marked peso bills.

The younger Roco was arrested together with Reynaldo Sanchez, 45; Eugene Marvin Tolentino, 27; Renz Anthony Cruz, 33, and Dexie Diamante, 21.

SURIGAO del Norte Rep. Robert Ace

Barbers wants mandatory drug tests on actors and other celebrities who are being idolized by the public, particularly the youth, before they are commissioned to make movies and other related undertakings.

Barbers, chairperson of the House

NATIVE WARES. An indigenous artist shows her wares as travel agencies, tour companies, and hotels mark the last day of the Philippine Travel Mart with more regional presentations at the SMX Co vention Center in Pasay City. Diana B. Noche

Volunteers from SM Foundation and community members undertake the planting of owering trees in Nasugbu, Batangas.

BLESSED ANIMALS. A Roman Catholic priest blesses a pet cat in a car during an annual drive-thru tradition at a mall in Pasig City, while others bring their animals to the Malate Church in Manila to be vaccinated ahead of October 4 – World Animal Day and the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. AFP with Norman Cruz

Torquemada’s heiress

The Supreme Court should not leave this felony unchallenged. She should be held accountable lest the culture of impunity, so prevalent in our dismal society, persist.

‘Keep right’ policy for motorcycles

TOMAS de Torquemada was a medieval period Dominican priest whom King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I of Spain appointed to head the Spanish court of the Inquisition.

The Catholic monarchs could not have chosen a more loyal implementor of their zealotry, which was ordained by the Vatican itself through a 1478 papal bull by Sixtus IV who wanted to enforce religious uniformity, meaning Roman Catholicism throughout Europe.

For Ferdinand and Isabella, the papal imprimatur was also a way to strengthen their hold on the throne as well as enlarge the empire.

It was under these monarchs who reigned after Catholic Aragon and Castilla reconquered Andalucia, the stronghold of the Moors, that Spain embarked on overseas expansion, through navigators like Columbus and Magellan.

Sixtus and succeeding popes, including the infamous Alexander VI, a Borgia born in Aragon, legalized the Inquisition, which aside from expelling the Jews, persecuted through kangaroo courts so-called heretics and “false” Catholics, while dispossessing them of their treasures and lands which further enriched the monarchy.

Torquemada presided over these “ecclesiastical” courts where mere suspects as non-believers of the faith were tortured, imprisoned, and publicly executed by hanging or burning.

I am reminded of Torquemada after reading about the social media fulminations of Madame Lorraine Badoy, a former press undersecretary, against the decision of Manila RTC Judge Marlo Magdoza-Malgar who ruled against the DOJ and refuted therein the classification of the CPP-NPA as a “terrorist” organization, making a fine distinction between the latter and rebellion.

I leave it to the lawyers who are so numerous in this country to debate the merits or demerits of Judge Magdoza-Malgar’s decision. The DOJ Secretary, Jesus Crispin Remulla, has soberly stated that they will appeal the decision to the appellate court. So there.

But what Ms. Badoy has so virulently made public, which she claimed in tongue-andcheek fashion as not a threat, describing her statements as “merely a hypothetical syllogism that are workhorses of deductive logic” after the high tribunal sternly rebuked her, are far too alarming to let pass.

The Supreme Court said that “to threaten our judges…no less than an assault on the judiciary is to shake the very bedrock on which the rule of law stands.”

But the rule of law is farthest from the mind of this modern-day reincarnation of Torquemada.

Accusing the judge of “lawyering” for the Communists through a “judgment straight from the bowels of communist hell” may be considered par for the course for any public official operating under the democratic space of free speech.

But Torquemada’s heiress could not contain herself, maybe from a sense of false entitlement even when her time in government has expired. Or has it?

She warned: “If I kill this judge and I do so out of my political belief that all allies of the CPP-NPA-NDF must be killed because there is no difference in my mind between a member of the CPP-NPA-NDF and their friends, then please be lenient with me.”

Now that is straight out of Tomas de Torquemada’s template. Ms. Badoy has judged; she wants to prosecute; and she will sentence the “friend” of the communists to death.

Yet she pleads for leniency, as if she does not want to join Torquemada in hell.

I fully agree with the statement released by the Free Legal Aid Group, for indeed what Torquemada’s heiress in these benighted isles, a colony of Isabela La Catolica’s heirs, is not “protected speech.”

Her Red-tagging has gone beyond the limits, never mind of decency, never mind of fairness, never mind even of Philippine or international law which she and her ilk do not recognize anyway when her hateful beliefs are challenged.

By Peter Murphy

STARVED of news and contact with the outside world during six months of occupation by Russian forces, residents of recently liberated Izyum are grateful for a makeshift wifi spot in the shattered Ukrainian city.

Outside an apartment block dozens of people queue before a sign that reads “15 minutes of wifi,” where an aid worker takes each phone and enters the password.

Izyum, a predominantly Russian-speaking city of about 50,000 people before the war, had been fully occupied since April until it was recaptured earlier this month during Kyiv’s lightning counter-offensive.

Soon after the liberation, investigation teams found what they said were 447 bodies buried during the occupation.

Residents told AFP Thursday that with electricity and mobile infrastructure networks badly damaged during the fighting,

As the common “tao” would compare the yokel who falsely jokes about carrying a bomb in the airport, or that Zambales teacher who in his Facebook post threatened to “kill the president,” versus the statements of Ms. Badoy, there ought to be a penalty beyond stern rebuke.

Just a trivial footnote, by the way: The Philippines has honored, not Isabel la Catolica, even if it was under her auspices that we were colonized in the name of “Christianity,” but Isabella II, the short-reigned queen who pushed for the beginnings of Constitutional monarchy in the 19th century, through naming a province (Isabela), and erecting a monument and an Intramuros portal after her. ***

But enough of Torquemada’s heiress.

The recent typhoon once again demonstrated the very fragile state of our food security.

The road to greater agricultural productivity is more a function of LGUs doing coordinated actions rather than policies and programs evolved from the Elliptical Circle

I praised President Marcos Jr. when he took over the agriculture portfolio. That singular and unexpected act has focused everybody’s attention on the woeful state of our agriculture, and putting his money where his mouth was, the budget for the DA, so paltry in the past, has been amply increased.

But now may be the time to appoint a full-time secretary to helm the troubled department.

Several presidents have previously chosen a DA Secretary from the ranks of academicians or technocrats, or lawyers with little knowledge of farming, or worse, politicians pretending to have hearts bleeding for farmers.

Yet managing a multi-faceted department charged with the all-too-important responsibility of ensuring food security might best be given to a local government official who has demonstrable achievements in harnessing limited resources, through skill and imagination, towards improving the lives of his farmer constituents.

For after all, DA policies are operationalized best when the LGUs are part of the planning and the implementation.

And if the LGU official has been recognized through continued re-election by his people, and has shown management skills which DILG regional officials and NGOs can attest to through their metrics of competency, then Pres. Marcos Jr. will have a short list from which to choose his agriculture secretary.

There is a mayor from the president’s home province who I met when I was chair of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, and with whose municipality both the Taipei representative office and we were planning to have complementary projects had the coronavirus pandemic not interrupted.

We were impressed with the projects he had already implemented in his town of Piddig, from water-impounding projects to soil enhancement and other technologies which were a novelty in the country.

I have always maintained that the road to greater agricultural productivity is more a function of LGUs doing coordinated actions rather than policies and programs evolved from the Elliptical Circle.

Food security must be tackled from both the macro and the micro, but if asked to choose between the two, I submit that it is easier for someone who understands the hands-on tasks of micro-management to elevate praxis into the national, rather than swivel-chair technocrats thinking big but fail to comprehend the nuts and bolts of downto-earth management.

It’s the sane and sensible solution to what has become pure bedlam and chaos on city streets with the proliferation of the two-wheeled vehicles since the government restricted mobility and imposed lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

Motorcycles have become an ubiquitous presence in major Metro Manila thoroughfares, such as EDSA, Commonwealth Avenue, and Quezon Avenue, among others.

We do recognize the need for motorcycles as a convenient way to get around the city. But it’s the lack of clear rules on how they should reach Point A to Point B that’s the problem.

Our motorcycle drivers, especially those working for online shopping and food deliveries, must be the most impatient people hereabouts as they fill up every

available space on our roads, even those spaces between four-wheeled vehicles, just so they can reach their destinations faster than everyone.

The Hanoi example appears to the casual observer as unwieldy and dangerous, but somehow it works, and pedestrians can cross the streets without fear that they could get sideswiped by speeding motorcycles

Motorcyclists overtake four-wheeled vehicles on the left, on the right, and perhaps even overhead if they had the means to go airborne.

Road accidents involving motorcycles have therefore increased, leading to death and injury on an unprecedented scale.

It’s time for the Metro Manila Development Authority and the Land Transportation Office to rationalize the traffic system in Metro Manila and designate the rightmost lanes in the major thoroughfares for motorcycles.

Sometime back, the MMDA put up a

dedicated lane for motorcycles along the sixlane EDSA—the second lane on the left— but also allowed four-wheeled vehicles to use them.

Over time, the motorcycle lanes fell to disuse, with the result that now motorcyclists jostle for every available space on EDSA and other major streets, with no regard for their own safety and that of others.

If the MMDA saw it fit to designate the rightmost part of EDSA as an exclusive bicycle lane, it makes sense to also keep motorcycles on a lane adjacent to the bicycle lane.

But motorcycles can also use the lanes to their left and to their right as long as these are unoccupied.

The dedicated motorcycle lane in the city center is being implemented in other cities abroad, such as Kuala Lumpur. Hanoi also keeps motorcycles on the rightmost lane, mostly in wide roads, except in the city center where they can occupy every available lane.

The Hanoi example appears to the casual observer as unwieldy and dangerous, but somehow it works, and pedestrians can cross the streets without fear that they could get sideswiped by speeding motorcycles.

We can understand if motorcyclists would raise a howl and launch protest actions if authorities keep them on a designated lane along the major roads in Metro Manila.

But they should also understand that it’s for their own safety and that of their pillion riders, and not a discriminatory move against those who can only afford to own twowheeled vehicles.

Secure our digital space

you to website that will ask you to disclose sensitive personal information that will eventually be used in cybercrime operations.

Some text scammers even know your name and have creatively crafted messages to entice you to give your personal data.

EVERY day there are instances where I find myself looking for my smart phone.

Then with a sense of panic, I try to trace back my last movements to look for my primary and indispensable tool for work and, well, any interaction that can be done virtually.

Being a strong advocate of inclusive digital transformation, each time I encounter a computer glitch or interruptions in internet connection, it’s like hitting an invisible wall and having an “oh no” moment.

We are at an age when our existence as humans have become dependent on technology.

Just look around and you can see how everything is a product of technological innovation.

The existential threat of the pandemic was overcome by lifesaving vaccines developed at an unprecedented pace by the most advanced health technologies.

Each product or service we use represents interlinked industries that use digital technologies in every level of their operations.

The COVID 19 pandemic pushed the world to abruptly shift to digital technologies in the cloud to stay connected and functional.

Evolving into a cloud-based global digital economy is an exciting prospect that presents a bright horizon of opportunities but like any innovation inspired to improve the human lifestyle, there are new risks that will need its own set of mitigating solutions.

More widespread than the COVID virus are the text scam messages we receive every day.

Everyone I know gets several text messages offering jobs, winning instant cash, and all sorts of gimmickry to fool you to click on the link in the text which diverts

As convenor of consumer advocacy group CitizenWatch Philippines, we have been a strong advocate to require Subscriber Identity Mode (SIM) Registration Act which already has an approved Bicameral Committee Report and will hopefully be soon signed into law by President Marcos Jr.

Safeguarding the digital environment needs synergy between the telco networks, the consumers, and the government

This legislative initiative is a good model of coming up with a responsive policy that has broad support from its stakeholders which include the government regulators, the telco players, consumer groups, and the business sector.

When enforced, all SIM cards must be registered so that identity of each user can be traced and effectively strike out the shield of anonymity so cunningly used by criminals to prey on their victims.

Safeguarding the digital environment needs synergy between the telco networks, the consumers, and the government.

As telcos must secure their networks, user awareness of safe online behavior, their rights to data privacy, and constant vigilance especially when doing online transactions are key elements in fighting cybercrime.

Government must have a strong digital governance framework developed thru thorough multi-stakeholder consultations.

Makeshift wifi spot reconnects shattered Ukraine city

and still not restored, lack of information has kept them in the dark about what was happening.

But thanks to a power generator provided by the army, they can now reconnect to the internet -- at least for a brief window each day.

“From 8:00 am to 7:00 pm, some three to four thousand per day can connect,” Seraphim, a soldier, told AFP.

“If too many people get connected at the same time the internet goes down, hence the 15-minute limit,” explained resident Olga German.

“After zero minutes a day, 15 is quite a lot. Now we can check the news online, and compare sources, and keep in touch with our families,” the 34-year-old English teacher said.

The eight-story block is one of the few buildings in the devastated town to have escaped relatively unscathed, although many windows are broken, with the sound

Outside an apartment block dozens of people queue before a sign that reads ‘15 minutes of wifi,’ where an aid worker takes each phone and enters the password

of sawing and hammers emanating from many floors.

A TV screen on a stand beside the queue showed a Ukrainian channel broadcasting news about the war, while people huddled on

the ground charging their telephones from extension cables connected to the generator.

Residents ate borshch beetroot soup cooked on a nearby campfire, as children chopped firewood.

Around the corner a half-torn poster hung from a billboard: “Russia for ever,” it said.

Information vacuum

German said the six-month period of occupation felt like “purgatory.”

“We were living in an information vacuum, we couldn’t get in touch with our relatives, and we could feel that the information we got from the Russians was not objective.

“So we lived only on gossip, and the stories got twisted.”

Nadezda Oleksandrivna, a 64-year-old dog-trainer waiting for her turn in the queue, said being deprived of news and contact with friends felt “like having a bag on my head.”

It could have a serious impact on mental

The education sector plays a foundational role in training a cyber-ready workforce that integrates the right skills and instills cybersecurity consciousness as part of the professional work ethic.

Achieving a balance between tech savviness and good values should be the norm in both the physical and virtual worlds.

As we commit to a more digital way of life, the risk of disrupted telecommunications and internet connection becomes a serious risk at the level of utility services.

We’ve all experienced losing our phones, computer crashes, and how these temporary interruptions to internet connections can stop whatever we are doing.

Imagine that happening to Metro-Manila and the adjacent areas which incidentally are the most productive regions of the country.

A blackout in telco and internet access is a scary possibility. This elevates cybersecurity as a matter of national security.

Cyberattacks causing disruptions at a nationwide scale is a risk that governments are now taking very seriously.

Several news articles have featured cases of cyber espionage, and other illicit digital activities, such as hacking into government websites to steal sensitive data and even deny access, are well documented.

In this geopolitical context and in celebrating Cybersecurity Month, the Stratbase ADR Institute, in partnership with the US Embassy in the Philippines, will be hosting a hybrid event with the theme “Establishing a Strong and Credible Cyber Defense Posture in the Philippines” on October 25 where thought leaders from government, the private sector, and civil society groups will exchange insights on strategies to effectively respond to cyberattacks.

A safe and trusted digital environment is a critical component for sustainable economic recovery and is a global concern in this emerging digital economic system.

Technological innovators will continue to develop a digitally empowered world. All humans must learn to co-exist in the real and digital space where there are unlimited opportunities for everyone to prosper.

health, she added.

Oleksandrivna said she stayed in Izyum during the occupation because she did not want to abandon her two dogs.

Before the war she was an avid internetuser, keeping up with relatives, bloggers, politics and international news.

Now, she said she gets around the 15-minute wifi limit by returning to the back of the line when her time is up.

For a group of teenagers scrolling their phones in the corner, the wifi spot is an opportunity to catch up with friends on Viber and Telegram.

“Everyone started messaging me, including friends I have in Germany and the Czech Republic, they were really worried about me,” said 16-year-old resident Anton.

“When I first got connection back I didn’t know what to do, I noticed that my TikTok really changed.

“Now it’s only about the war,” he said. AFP

WITH Cebu City considering implementing a policy to keep motorcycles on the rightmost lanes on major streets as a preventive measure against road accidents, shouldn’t Metro Manila follow suit?

US, Australia and Japan vow to work together to counter China’s influence

THE defense ministers of the United States, Australia and Japan agreed Saturday to boost military cooperation in the face of China’s growing ambitions “to shape the world around it.”

Washington is pressing a diplomatic of fensive to counter Chinese influence across the Asia-Pacific.

“We are deeply concerned by China’s in creasingly aggressive and bullying behavior in the Taiwan Strait, and elsewhere in the re gion,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said as he welcomed his counterparts from Australia and Japan to the US military head quarters for the Pacific region in Hawaii.

“Our interest lies in the upholding of the global rules-based order. But we see that

order under pressure in the Indo-Pacific as well, as China is seeking to shape the world around it in a way that we’ve not seen be fore,” said Richard Marles, the Australian defense minister.

On Thursday, Washington announced an $810 million aid package for Pacific Island nations where the United States plans to in tensify its diplomatic presence.

Vice President Kamala Harris traveled last week to Japan and South Korea and said the United States would act without fear or hesi tation throughout Asia, including the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing considers Taiwan to be part of China and also claims the thin and busy channel of water that separates the two. AFP

‘ONE OF THE WORLD’S DEADLIEST SPORTING STADIUM DISASTERS’

129 dead in Indonesia football stadium riot

be declared NULL and VOID due to psychological incapacity under Article 36 of the Family Code of the Philippines. Respondent JENNIFER G. AGONOYDOÑOS must file her verified ANSWER within sixty (60) days from the last publication of this Summons in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines, serving at the same time a copy thereof upon the petitioner ERNESTO E. DOÑOS, JR. or his legal counsel, Atty. Bejamin S. Formoso with address at 32 J. Abad Santos Street, Little Baguio, San Juan City, Metro Manila.

In case the respondent fails to file her verified Answer within the reglementary period, this Court shall direct the Public Prosecutor to investigate whether collusion exists between the parties. If the Court is convinced that there is no collusion, the petitioner shall be allowed to present his evidence in support of the petition. However, if the Public Prosecutor finds that collusion exists, the Court shall set the report for hearing and if convinced that the parties are in collusion, the Court shall dismiss the petition.

Respondent is reminded to observe restraint in filing a motion to dismiss and instead allege the grounds thereof as defenses in the verified Answer, in conformity with IBP-OCA Memorandum on Policy Guidelines dated March 12, 2002.

WITNESS THE HONORABLE JOSE L. BAUTISTA, JR., Presiding Judge of this Court, this 28th day of June 2022 in Quezon City, Philippines. (Sgd.) ATTY. ETHELENE G. VELASCO-GOTOHIO Branch Clerk of Court V Republic of the Philippines REGIONAL TRIAL COURT National Capital Judicial Region BRANCH 107, QUEZON CITY Email Address: rtc1qzn107@judiciary.gov.ph

also at the expense of the petitioner.

After publication shall have been completed, petitioner is DIRECTED to SUBMIT to this Court not later than fifteen,(15) days from the last issue of publication 1) the original copy of the Affidavit of Publication, to which a copy of the newspaper clipping shall be attached, AND 2) the affidavit showing that this Order and Summons, together with the verified Petition .and its Annexes, had been sent to the respondent pursuant to Section 22 Rule 14 of the Rules of Court, as amended. Failure of the petitioner to submit compliance as directed shall cause the dismissal of the

AT

least 129 people died at an Indonesian football stadium riot in which thousands of angry home fans invaded the pitch and police responded with tear gas that triggered a stampede, authorities said Sunday.

The tragedy on Saturday night in the eastern city of Malang, which also left 180 injured, was one of the world’s deadliest sporting stadium disasters.

Arema FC supporters at the Kanju ruhan stadium stormed the pitch late on Saturday after their team lost 3-2 to the visiting team and bitter rivals, Persebaya Surabaya.

Police, who described the unrest as “riots,” said they tried to force fans to

return to the stands and fired tear gas after two officers were killed.

Many of the victims were trampled or choked to death, according to po lice.

Survivors described panicking spectators in a packed crowd as tear gas rained down on them.

“Officers fired tear gas, and au tomatically people were rushing to come out, pushing each other and it caused many victims,” 43-year-old

spectator Doni, who declined to give his last name, told AFP.

“Nothing was happening, there was no riot. I don’t know what the issue was, they suddenly fired tear gas. That’s what shocked me, didn’t they think about kids, women?”

President Joko Widodo ordered an investigation into the tragedy, a safety review into all football matches and directed the country’s football association to suspend all matches until “security improve ments” were completed.

“I deeply regret this tragedy and I hope this football tragedy will be the last in our country,” Widodo said.

A hospital director told local TV that one of the victims was five years old.

Images taken from inside the stadium

during the stampede showed police fir ing huge amounts of tear gas and people clambering over fences.

People were carrying injured specta tors through the chaos.

Video footage circulating on social media showed people shouting obscen ities at police, who were holding riot shields and wielding batons.

Torched vehicles, including a police truck, littered the streets outside the sta dium on Sunday morning. Police said 13 vehicles in total were damaged.

The stadium holds 42,000 people and authorities said it was a sell-out. Police said 3,000 people stormed the pitch.

“We would like to convey that... not all of them were anarchic. Only about 3,000 who entered the pitch,” Afinta said. AFP

American held in Iran allowed to leave, son also freed–UN

THE United Nations said Saturday that an Iranian-American blocked from leaving Iran can now depart and that his son was released from deten tion.

The United States has been pressing for the release of these two men and two other Americans amid efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major western powers.

After an appeal from UN Sec retary-General Antonio Guterres, Baquer Namazi, 85, “has been per mitted to leave Iran for medical treat ment abroad,” and his son Siamak Namazi, 50, has been released from detention, UN spokesman Stephan Dujarric said.

26 killed as tractor trailer carrying pilgrims crashes in India

A TRACTOR pulling a trolley packed with religious pilgrims in India over turned and plunged into a pond, kill ing 26 and seriously injuring 16, of ficials said Sunday.

The trailer was carrying around 50 people, mostly women and children, when the incident happened in Kanpur in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, senior local official Sud heer Kumar said.

“Twenty-six people died in the inci dent,” Kumar said.

Traffic accidents are frequent in

India with more than 150,000 people killed last year, or over 400 per day, according to official statistics which are likely an underestimate.

People being transported on tractor trailers is also common, particularly in rural areas, on often poorly main tained roads where there is scant re gard for safety and traffic regulations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of fered his condolences after the latest incident which happened as the trac tor was on its way back from a Hindu temple.

Venezuela frees 7 Americans in swap for nephews of Venezuela’s First Lady

CARACAS on Saturday freed sev en detained Americans—including five oil executives—in exchange for the release of two nephews of Venezuela’s first lady who were jailed in the United States for drug trafficking.

President Joe Biden issued the an nouncement that the Americans were on their way home – and a senior of ficial in his administration confirmed shortly afterward that the US leader had made the “painful decision” to greenlight the prisoner swap to se cure their freedom.

“Today, after years of being wrongfully detained in Venezuela, we are bringing home Jorge Toledo, Tomeu Vadell, Alirio Zambrano, Jose Luis Zambrano, Jose Pereira, Matthew Heath, and Osman Khan,” Biden said in a statement.

The negotiated release of “two young Venezuelans” held in the United States was confirmed in a near-simultaneous statement by Ca racas – whose relations with Wash ington have been severely strained for years.

While Venezuelan authorities did not name the pair, they were identified by the senior US official as Francisco Flores de Freitas and his cousin Efrain Antonio Campos Flores – both nephews of President Nicolas Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores.

“As a result of various conversa tions held since March 5 with rep resentatives of the government of the United States, the release of two young Venezuelans unjustly im prisoned in that country has been achieved,” said the communique from Caracas.

AFP

“Distressed by the tractor-trolley mis hap took place in Kanpur. My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones and prayers with the injured,” Modi tweeted.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said this kind of vehicle –a tractor pulling a large cart – should be used only to transport farm goods and freight, not people, according to The Hindu newspaper.

“The road accident in Kanpur dis trict is very heart-wrenching,” he said. AFP

Baquer Namazi is a former UNI CEF official who was detained in February 2016 when he went to Iran to press for the release of his son Sia mak, who had been arrested in Octo ber of the previous year.

Both were convicted of espionage in October 2016 and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The father was released on medical leave in 2018 and had been serving his sentence under house arrest.

“We were deeply gratified to learn from the UN Secretary-General today that Iran has lifted the travel ban imposed on Baquer Namazi,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement, adding that both men had been “unjustly detained.” AFP

LEISURELY WALK. People walk in an alley in Qianmen street during the second day of the National Day holiday in Beijing on October 2, 2022. AFP

PROTEST VS. FEMICIDE. A woman holds a scarf reading ‘Not one (woman) less’ during a protest in front of the police headquarters after knowing that the body of María Belen Bernal was found murdered in a police officers’ school and which main suspect – Bernal’s husband police lieutenant German Caceres—is at large, in northern Quito, on October 1, 2022. AFP

SALEM’S BALL. A woman dressed as a vampire sits on the hotel lobby floor at the Endless Night Salem Vampire Ball in Salem, Massachusetts on October 1, 2022. AFP

5,741.07

IN BRIEF

Phoenix Petroleum in talks with creditors

PHOENIX Petroleum Philippines said over the weekend it is in talks with creditors and lenders as it maintains “businessas-usual” operations.

Phoenix senior vice president for external affairs Raymond Zorrilla said the company issued a statement to the stock exchange in response to reports that a Batangas court ruled in favor of Absolut Distillers Inc., a company led by tycoon Lucio Tan, over the collection of P157-million debt from the petroleum company led by businessman Dennis Uy.

The company said it had not officially received any legal notice about the case over the alleged unpaid debt.

The Batangas Regional Trial issued on Sept. 28 a writ of preliminary attachment against Phoenix for its alleged failure to pay P157.255 million worth of bioethanol products supplied by Absolut Distillers.

Asian Alcohol Corp., the second largest distillery based in Negros Occidental and a sister company of Absolut Distillery, also filed a case against Phoenix over the collection of P127 million, including P89-million principal debt and interest.

“Notwithstanding such reports, we continue to discuss with our creditors, and our commitment to our lenders and other stakeholders remain steadfast,” Phoenix Petroleum said.

“We shall also maintain business-as-usual operations as we continue to serve customers,” it said. Alena Mae S. Flores

BanKo ramps up digitalization e orts

BPI Direct BanKo, the microfinance arm of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, is ramping up digitalization efforts to widen its coverage and reach more Filipinos.

BanKo senior vice president Rod Mabiasen said in an online media briefing that digital banking has become a necessity especially during the pandemic.

“This is the reason BanKo continues to innovate the way we deliver our products and services to benefit self-employed microentrepreneurs and underserved individuals,” Mabiasen said.

He said the BanKo Mobile is designed as a convenient mobile app that allows clients to fulfill their banking needs—including opening an account; applying, monitoring and paying loans; buying load; paying bills; and sending money—anytime and anywhere.

The BanKo app also houses competitive products and services such as TODO Savings—a high-interest earning digital savings account; and NegosyoKo Lite for business loans as low as P10,000 with simple requirements. Julito G. Rada

Maynilad connects 3.2m poor households

WEST zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. reached a milestone for connecting 3.2 million Filipinos with “water for the poor” programs, providing sustainable water access to marginalized communities.

The programs “Samahang Tubig ng Maynilad” and “Pag-asa sa Tubig Partnership” connected urban poor households to Maynilad’s water network and organized marginalized communities into cooperatives to manage water system in their respective areas.

“These communities no longer have to get their supply from unsanitary sources and illegal water retailers. Not only does this improve their living conditions, it also helps to avert practices like illegally connecting to the pipe system, which can affect water pressure and supply availability,” said Maynilad customer experience and retail operations head Christopher Lichauco.

The company said from spending P40 per 200-liter drum daily, poor communities now only spend P2.38 per drum or 1 centavo per liter under subsidized rates. Othel V. Campos

Cavite to start Swiss Challenge on SMC’s proposed P27-b road

By Darwin G. Amojelar

THE provincial government of Cavite is preparing for the start of the Swiss Challenge in November on San Miguel Corp.’s unsolicited proposal to construct a P27-billion expressway from Cavite to Batangas.

Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla said the province’s public-private partnership selection committee began the process of preparing the tender documents for the Swiss Challenge.

Swiss Challenge is a form of procurement, usually required in an unso-

licited project, where other parties are given an opportunity to challenge the bid of the proponent.

“We are looking at the first week of November for the publication of the request for proposals,” Remulla said.

The Cavite government earlier granted an original proponent status to San Miguel Holdings Corp. for the development, design, financing, maintenance and construction of the Cavite-Batangas Expressway Project.

San Miguel Holdings is the infrastructure arm of San Miguel Corp., the country’s largest and most diversified conglomerate.

The project is a 27.06-kilometer toll road from Silang to Amadeo, Tagaytay, Indang, Mendez and Afonso in Cavite and Nasugbu Batangas.

Remulla said the proposal of the San Miguel Group was done under a

local PPP code.

“Its approval was in consonance with all applicable laws and regulations. To what effect it has on the MPIC [Metro Pacific Investments Corp.] project with the DPWH [Department of Public Works and Highways] is beyond my control,” he said.

“Our evaluation only covered the SMC project. We were never consulted by DPWH nor NEDA [National Economic and Development Authority] regarding the MPIC proposal,” Remulla said.

Remulla was referring to Metro Pacific Tollway’s Corp.’s P22.4-billion Cavite-Tagaytay-Batangas Expressway Project with DPWH.

The Public Works Department granted the original proponent status to MPTC for the construction of CTBEX in 2018. The project is still under NEDA’s evaluation.

1.00000058.9100

Japan Yen 0.0069220.4078

UKPound1.11270065.5492

Hong KongDollar0.1273937.5047

SwitzerlandFranc1.02543160.4081 CanadaDollar0.73099443.0629 SingaporeDollar0.69822741.1326 AustraliaDollar0.64980038.2797 BahrainDinar2.650762156.1564

Saudi Arabia Rial 0.26609915.6759 BruneiDollar0.69579740.9894 IndonesiaRupiah0.0000660.0039 Thailand Baht 0.0263991.5552 UAE Dirham0.27227916.0400

EuroEuro 0.98190057.8437

Korea Won 0.0007000.0412 ChinaYuan0.1404308.2727 IndiaRupee0.0122760.7232 MalaysiaRinggit0.21584312.7153 New Zealand Dollar 0.57280033.7436 TaiwanDollar0.0316171.8626

Source: BSP

IPOPHL worried on country’s drop in innovation rank

By Othel V. Campos

THE Intellectual Property Offi ce of the Philippines expressed dismay over results of the Global Innovation Index 2022 which saw the Philippines drop 8 places to 59th among the 132 countries featured in the report.

The IPOPHL also called for the acceleration of work the National Innovation Councilto improve the country’s ranking.

“We regret to see the decline of the Philippines in the 2022 Global Innovation Index. Our slide of eight rungs is most alarming,” the agency said in a statement.

The agency traced the decline to double-digit decreases on the education and tertiary education sub-indicators under human capital and research; knowledge creation and knowledge impact sub-indicators under knowledge and technology outputs; creative goods and services sub-indicator under creative outputs.

The report showed that the laggard sub-indicators related to intellectual property were industrial designs where the Philippines fell 10 spots in ranking; followed by cultural and creative services exports that declined 9 spots; utility models, 7 spots; patent families, by 7 spots; university-industry R&D collaboration and trademarks, by 3 notches each.

ERC readies decision on power rate hike led by Meralco, San Miguel

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Energy Regulatory Commission is set to issue a decision this week on the temporary relief filed by San Miguel Corp. and Manila Electric Co. on their 2019 power supply agreements.

“We are trying to finish it today [Sunday]. Still working all weekend,” ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta said.

SMC, through South Premiere Power Corp. and San Miguel Energy Corp., administrators of the 1,200-megawatt Ilijan natural gas and 1,200-MW Sual coal-fired power plants, respectively,

along with Meralco, is seeking a temporary rate hike of P0.30 per kilowatt-hour over six months.

Dimalanta earlier said the commission would come out with a decision before Oct. 4, the date indicated by SMC in its letter to Meralco in seeking to terminate the supply deals.

Dimalanta had assured a “fair and transparent” evaluation of SMC’s and Meralco’s application for temporary relief on the supply agreements.

SMC asked the ERC for a fair and objective assessment of the petition in the wake of the record rise in global fuel

prices, driven by economic and geopolitical forces.

“We know any price increase is unpopular, and normally we never ask for one―which is what we did for all of last year when we absorbed expanding costs that we do not pass on to consumers. The war in Ukraine has taken prices far beyond what we and Meralco could have even imagined in 2019 when we signed the PSAs. At the time, the forecast for coal was only $65 per metric ton for ten years. Now it is already at $400 per MT,” SMC president Ramon Ang said earlier.

“We would like to note that the decline in ID, UM and trademarks may be due to the fact that the report based its data on 2020 when IPOPHL saw a decline in application across all types of IP due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The drop cumulatively totaled to be the biggest decline in filing activities throughout IPOPHL’s 25 year in office,” IPOPHL said.

The said it would engage more proactively with the country’s creative economy and ensure yielding positive outcomes from the creatives-based partnerships it has been forging over the years.

“We also see the recently legislated Creative Industries Development Act as providing a boost to bring our creative genius to the global stage,” it said.

BPI and Robinsons Bank expect to complete merger by end of 2023

By Julito G. Rada

BANK of the Philippine Islands and Robinsons Bank Corp. expect to complete their merger, with the former as the surviving entity, before the end of 2023.

DOE preparing amendments to implementing guidelines of Renewable Energy Act

THE Department of Energy said over the weekend it is preparing the proposed changes in the implementing rules and regulations of the Renewable Energy Law to address the 40-percent equity limit on foreign investors.

It issued the statement after the Department of Justice released a legal opinion that the exploration, development and utilization of inexhaustible renewable energy sources are not subject to the

60:40 foreign equity limitation as provided under Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution.

“Private sector investments are central in achieving our renewable energy targets and vision for the Filipino people, and this is a welcome development for our foreign investors to invest in renewable energy production here in our country,” Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla said.

The DOE said the DOJ opinion meant

that foreign ownership restrictions that hamper the flow of investments in the RE sector may now be relaxed.

“This will certainly contribute to our target share of renewable energy in the power generation mix of 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040,” Lotilla said.

The agency said the DOJ opinion would help accelerate the attainment of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s programs to develop the country’s in-

digenous and renewable energy.

“The DOE is preparing the necessary amendments to Rule 6, Section 19 of the IRR of the RE Law,” Lotilla said.

Rule 6, Section 19(B) of the IRR of the RE Law stipulates that “the exploration, development, production and utilization of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of the State.”

Alena Mae S. Flores

through the merged entity and enhance the overall banking experience of RBC customers, JG Summit said. JG Summit Capital Services Corp. and Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc., another unit of JG Summit, own 99.9984 percent of the outstanding capital stock of RBC. The parties said that upon the effectivity of the proposed merger after receipt of all corporate and regulatory approvals, the shareholders of RBC would collectively hold 6 percent of the resulting outstanding capital stock of BPI.

RBC has 189 branches and branchlite units, including 14 branches and 14 branch-lite units of subsidiary Legazpi Savings Bank, 354 ATMs and online and mobile banking channels. It had total assets of P175.9 billion, including net loans and receivables of P102.4 billion and total liabilities of P156.0 billion, including deposits of P139.0 billion as of end June.

“Through the years, the Gokongwei Group has built and supported the growth of Robinsons Bank from a small savings bank to become one of the fastest-growing, full-service commercial banks in the country today. However, we reviewed our strategic options to determine its future and we are cognizant that banking is a scale game and will continue to require additional capital for growth,” said JG Summit president and chief executive Lance Gokongwei.

BPI said its board of directors and those of Robinsons Bank, Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. and JG Summit Capital Services Corp. approved the execution of an agreement between BPI, RBC and the RBC shareholders for the merger, subject to shareholders and regulatory approvals.

The merger, which the parties hope to complete next year, will unlock various synergies across several products and service platforms, expand the customer and deposit base of both banks

Ray S.

MPT PROJECT. Metro Paci c Tollways South, a subsidiary of Metro Paci c Tollways Corp., launches ‘Bayani Ka’ activity book—an interactive book for kids that aims to instill in children knowledge of road signages and get them familiar with safety features of the roads, especially on the expressways. Together with learners from Sto. Nino Elementary School in Parañaque City are (from left) MPTC

chief corporate governance and risk o cer Cynthia Casino, Department of Education Youth Formation Division o cer-in-charge Rovin James Canja, MPT South Management Corp. assistant vice president for communications and stakeholder management Arlette Capistrano, Parañaque Mayor Eric Olivares, Mario Jimenez representing Cong. Edwin Olivarez, Parañaque Special Services O ce o cer-in-charge Maria Angelie Co and Parañaque City Library head Cisette Ricardo. Roy Tomandao

WILCON IN CALAPAN. Wilcon Depot, a leading home improvement and construction retailer, reaches another milestone as it opens its 80th store in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro. Attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony are (from left) Wilcon Depot assistant vice president for sales and operations Rowell Suarez, Wilcon Depot president and chief executive Lorraine Belo-Cincochan, Oriental Mindoro Governor Humerlito Rodolfo Ignacio, Hiyas Govinda Dolor, Calapan Mayor Marilou Morillo and Wilcon Depot senior vice president for product development Eden Godino.

Chiefs foil Cardinals’ mutiny, post 64-59 win

Games tomorrow (Filoil EcoOil Centre)

12 noon – JRU vs San Beda

3 p.m. – Perpetual vs EAC

ARELLANO University weathered Mapua’s late uprising to carve out a 64-59 victory in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Sunday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.

Shane Menina drilled the game’s biggest basket, a step back triple to give the Chiefs the needed separation at 64-56 in the final 28.7 seconds after the Cardinals rallied from 11 points down to cut the deficit to two.

Arellano improved to 4-3, while Mapua, whose seasonopening win to San Beda was recently forfeited for fielding in an ineligible player, fell to 0-7.

Cade Flores starred in the Chiefs’ third-quarter breakaway, erecting a 46-36 advantage.

Down 38-49 early in the fourth, the Cardinals fought back and threatened at 54-56 on Rence Nocum’s back-to-back baskets with 3:13 remaining.

Arellano held a 59-54 lead on a Wilmar Oftana triple, which Paolo Hernandez countered for Mapua to trim the gap at 56-59.

Prior to Menina’s heroics, Axel Doromal nailed two free throws for a 61-56 Chiefs lead with 55 seconds left.

Doromal finished with 16 points, Flores produced a doubledouble outing of 14 points and 11 rebounds to go with five assists, two steals and two blocks, while Menina chipped in 13 points, seven boards and two assists for Arellano.

Paolo Hernandez had 14 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, Arvin Gamboa chipped in 11 points and nine boards, while Nocum and Warren Bonifacio each had 10 points for the Cardinals.

No excuses for Cebu, Manila after 3x3 stint

By Peter Atencio

CEBUCity—No excuses were made after two Philippine squads, Cebu Chooks and Manila Chooks, lost to highly regarded opponents Sunday in the ongoing FIBA 3x3 Cebu Masters at the SM Seaside Mall in Cebu City.

Both squads have already played in high-level competitions against top-ranked club teams, flying in to Sta. Rosa, Laguna and into the Queen City of the South over the last two months to play, earn points and claim the hefty cash prizes.

But the grind doesn’t stop for Cebu Chooks and Manila Chooks, which will just join more high-performance tournaments abroad to toughen up their skills further, this time under the guidance of new head coach Chico Lanete as they seek points that will help them enter Olympic Qualifying meets for the Paris Olympics.

“Hindi man namin nakuha

iyung mga panalo dahil sa mga lapses, kailangan na lang namin bumawi sa mga susunod na mga games,” said Lanete after Cebu Chooks absorbed a 14-21 setback to Omaha 3BALL of the USA.

Lanete was given a retirement ceremony by the organizers, led by BAVI chief Ronald Mascarinas.

Two tournaments are in store for them -- in Taiwan this October and in Saudi Arabia in November, with Lanete supervising the team.

Lanete is taking on his new role months after Aldin Ayo left the

LPGT crown at Riviera

RIANNE Malixi will be doubly motivated as she shoots for a third victory in as many stints on the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour this year, armed with a game that must’ve instilled fear on the country’s top pros and fellow amateurs following a dominant triumph in the last LPGT stop at Valley Golf Club.

But more than the confidence, Malixi will be playing on an exacting course so dear to her.

“Langer is in great shape so far. I have fond memories of this course, so I’m confident playing this course in competitive means,” said Malixi, who edged now Epson Tour campaigner Abby Arevalo on the third extra hole to snare the Philippine National Stroke Play crown in 2020, becoming the youngest winner at 12 of what used to be the Philippine Amateur Golf Championship.

That should make her the player to beat again when the ICTSI Riviera Championship

is fired off tomorrow (Tuesday) at the par-71 Langer layout ready to challenge both the women and men of the tour.

Malixi nipped multi-titled Princess Superal by one in this year’s kickoff leg at Luisita last March after closing out the 2021 LPGT season with a runway victory at Midlands last December. She skipped the next six LPGT events to campaign in the US junior and amateur championships then returned and beat Chihiro Ikeda by 13 strokes at Valley last month.

While Ikeda and fellow pros Sunshine Baraquiel, Harmie Constantino, Sarah Ababa, Marvi Monsalve, Martina Miñoza, Pamela Mariano, Lovelynn Guioguio, Kristine Fleetwood and Gretchen Villacencio, among others, have also honed up for this week’s battle to fan their respective title drive and halt the young star’s run, Malixi remains upbeat of her chances in the 54-hole championship put up by ICTSI.

Also out to provide a challenge are Malixi’s fellow amateurs Laurea Duque, Burberry Zhang, Korean Kim Seo Yun and ICTSI teammate Mafy Singson, who also humbled the pros at Splendido Taal last May but struggled to finish joint third with Constantino and Villacencio at Valley.

Completing the cast in the P750,000 tournament organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. are Apple Fudolin, Lucy Landicho, Majorie Pulumbarit and Eva Miñoza.

Meanwhile, the tournament also serves as part of Malixi’s buildup for three tough events in Thailand.

“A week in Langer will definitely tell me where I stand prepping for Thailand,” said Malixi, who is set to vie in the Singha Thailand Amateur Open on Oct.18-21 in Bangkok, the Singha Thailand Junior World Championship on Oct 27-30 in Hua Hin, and the Women’s Asia Pacific Amateur Championship on Nov. 3-6 in Chonburi.

Obiena wants international training for PH athletes

MORE national athletes should be encouraged to go into international training camps.

The country’s top pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena said this is in his wish list as he gets ready to go back into training and prepare to join qualifiers for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“I would want my fellow teammates in the national team to experience what I have experienced in Europe. While there, I was able to see the effects of being able to train with the best of the best in the world,” said Obiena.

The 26-year-old Obiena talked about his aspirations in his discussions with Philippine Sports Commission chairman Noli Eala and in another separate talk with officials of the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association.

Eala listened to Obiena as he discussed his thoughts about his teammates during his weekly program, “Power and Play.”

So far, Obiena’s idea has caught the interest of Eala, who hopes to help Filipino athletes train and perform better in the international stage.

Obiena believes that by bringing them to train overseas, this would inspire them to be better athletes.

He will have two years to prepare for his next Olympic quest. For now, Obiena has taken his time off until he finally leaves the country to go back to Formia, Italy to resume training.

The indoor competitions are up next this January and they are expected to help Obiena build confidence while participating in other competitions by then.

“We’re gonna work on a lot of things that would make my v aulting a lot more efficient than ever. Hopefully, that would maximize my potential going forward,” revealed Obiena. Peter Atencio

Torrecampo steals show in PPS Puerto Princesa

Villamar, 6-3, 6-2, to pocket the boys’ 16-U plum and though he fell short of his bid for a second title against top seed John David Velez from Ormoc City in the 18-U finals, 5-7, 1-6, the Bacolod, Lanao del Norte bet clinched and shared the MVP honors with Torrecampo in the event presented by Dunlop.

Torrecampo rode on the momentum of her 6-0, 6-3 romp over Ronielle Oliveros in the semis then clipped Dagoon, who upended Mitchellen Cruspero, 6-3, 6-3, in the Final Four, with her energy and grit as the rising Los Baños star led the mix of players who shone in the weeklong tournament held side-by-side with the Open Championship topped by Johnny Arcilla. Gomera, meanwhile, crushed Cyd

No. 2 AJ Acabo, from Zamboanga Sigubay, upended top seed Christine Gulagula from Dapitan City, 6-2, 6-2, to win the girls’ 18-U trophy; unfancied Chelsea Bernaldez from Tagum City repulsed No. 1 Therese Gauran, 4-1, 5-3, in the semis, then foiled Angel Vosotros, 6-1, 4-6, 10-5, to snare the 16-U crown; and Imus, Cavite’s Sandra Bautista routed Gauran, 6-1, 6-2, for the 14-U title in

the country’s longest-talent search put up by Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

Benedict Lim from Lanao del Norte, on the other hand, survived Lexious Cruz from Nueva Ecija in a grueling encounter, 7-6(3), 4-6, 10-8, to nail the boys’ 14-U trophy with Cruz winning the 12-U crown with a 6-1, 6-1 rout of top seed Rafa Callao.

Meanwhile, action in the circuit, backed by ProtekTODO, PalawanPay, the Unified Tennis Philippines and UTR (Universal Tennis Rating), resumes today (Sunday) with the Buglasan Festival Open and Legends tournaments in Dumaguete City with junior hostilities to start on Oct. 6.

For details, contact Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.

MAYOR VOWS TO SUPPORT YOUNG SWIMMERS. Members of the La Union Bull Sharks’ Team had a courtesy visit to

Agoo, La Union Mayor Frank Sibuma, who promised to support the young swimmers in their endeavors. Formed in 2007, the La Union Bull Sharks is a group of 30 young swimmers, coached by Isagani Corpuz. The team competes in swimming and triathlon.

Maristella Torrecampo (right) beams as she shares MVP honors with Mcleen Gomera during awards rites graced by PPSPEPP director for Business Development and Corporate Services Roberto Ben Castro (left).

Rianne Malixi ready to blast the opposition at Langer

TINY Maristella Torrecampo put up a show of her own in the PPS-PEPP Puerto Princesa National Juniors tennis championships, overpowering Cadee Dagoon, 6-1, 6-2, in the girls’ 12-and-under finals and sharing top podium with Mcleen Gomera at the Karawatan-ESJ-PNP courts in Palawan recently.

team to handle the Converge FiberXers in the Philippine Basketball Association.

Consistency in their game play is something that players that will be under him will work on, with Lanete taking the lead.

Chico Lanete and his family during his retirement ceremony

Whimsical TV series reimagines Maria Clara and Ibarra ’s romance

MARIA Clara at Ibarra , described by its creators as a historical portal fantasy series, doesn’t just talk about the love between the two main leads, it also tackles patriotism and promotes nationalism.

The series, which premieres tonight on GMA, is top-billed by Barbie Forteza as Klay, Julie Anne San Jose as Maria Clara, and Dennis Trillo as Ibarra.

“We created this series to further tell the youth why it is so important to study our history, our literature. We wanted to elevate the conversation. Hindi lang ito tungko, sa isang pag-iibigan, ito rin ay tumatalakay ng mga usapin ukol sa pag-ibig sa bayan ,” Zig Dulay , the director, told Manila Standard Entertainment during the series’ media conference held in Intramuros, Manila last week.

“The series will discuss why revisiting Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, and other novels based on our history is important. We wanted the viewers to learn why the issues discussed in these books are still relevant to the issues that confront us today,” Dulay added.

Maria Clara at Ibarra follows the story of Klay, a Gen Z nursing student who aims to work and bring her family abroad. She is almost graduating soon, but not until she failed a minor subject – Rizal Studies. Klay believes that this subject is irrelevant to her life and future career.

Mr. Jose Torres, Klay’s professor, gave her another chance to pass Rizal Studies and he lent her a book of Noli Me Tangere. Klay had not even read several pages of the novel when she got bored and fell asleep.

The mystery begins when Klay wakes up in the world of Noli Me Tangere. Much to her surprise, Klay finds Mr. Torres in the alternate timeline.

Klay was told that she can only return to the present once she finishes the book and learns all the lessons from the novel of Dr. Jose Rizal

As she navigates the real world of Noli Me Tangere, Klay meets Maria Clara, Crisostomo Ibarra, the curates, the ilustrados, and the indios. This will open her eyes to the realities and sufferings of ancient Filipinos during the Spanish colonization.

Amid her historical adventure, Klay forms a bond with Maria Clara and discovers the differences and similarities between a Filipina, then and now. She also witnesses the love story of Maria Clara and Ibarra.

Dulay also reveals their efforts to keep the accuracy and credibility of Jose Rizal’s novels by hiring consultants for the show, “We have consultants and historians. We even have a language coach.”

Meanwhile, the show’s Creative Consultant, Suzette Doctolero, shares the extensive research they have been doing to ensure the quality of this complex story that tackles history.

“The entire creative team is required to read Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo, and books on Philippine history. Mahalaga rin na mismong mga writers, may stand sa mga importanteng

usapin sa kasaysayan

Playing equally important roles in the series are Tirso Cruz III Padre Damaso, a Franciscan friar who has deep-seated resentment against Ibarra; Manilyn Reynes as Narsing, the softhearted and loving mother of Klay; Nacino as Elias, a fugitive who will become Ibarra’s devoted supporter; David Licauco Fidel, a playboy businessman and Ibarra’s friend; Trivino as Padre Salvi, a cunning and ruthless friar who has a secret desire for Maria Clara; Rodrigo as Kapitan Tiago, the influential gobernadorcillo and a friend of the friars; Ces Quesada as Tiya Isabel, the cousin of Kapitan Tiago who raised Maria Clara as her own child; Dennis Padilla

as Mang Adong, a loyal servant of Ibarra; Lou Veloso as Mr. Jose Torres, the professor of Klay in Rizal studies and the reason behind her time travel; Gilleth Sandico as Donya Victorina, a pretentious Filipina who tries to look and speak like a mestiza; Karenina Haniel as Victoria, the close friend of Maria Clara; and Andrea Torres as Sisa, the affectionate mother of Crispin and Basilio who loses her mind while searching for her sons.

Maria Clara at Ibarra premieres tonight at 8:00 and airs weeknights on GMA and GTV.

From movie producer to public servant

BOXING champ Floyd Mayweather, Jr. got the warmest of welcomes at The Cove in Okada Manila for his latest Philippine project as the official ambassador for local streaming service AQ Prime. Present on this momentous occasion were AQ Prime President/CEO Atty. Aldrin Alegre, COO Atty. Mary Melanie “Honey” Quiño, Creative Director RS Francisco, their Korean partners, and members of the Philippine media.

As we all know, AQ Prime entertainment offerings include local and international movie and TV show offerings from various genres. Awards shows and sporting events are also for the taking of this latest addition to the growing online entertainment universe in the Philippines.

The man dubbed as the “Fighter of the Decade” has no traces of the boxing warrior that we are all accustomed to watching. He answered queries with a gentle and sincere tone. He was straightforward and always emphasized the importance of helping out.

As a man who had his lion’s share of struggles and fought his way to success, what he carries within him that continues to motivate him to do better is: “When you’ve accomplished so much and you constantly keep proving to people wrong. So many people wanna see you fail and you deal with so much racism each and every day. But, you know, I just still have a positive path, surround myself with a great team.” He carries on: “My team, it’s just so fun. I love to be with my security, great guys. I like to have fun, we laugh, we joke, and that’s what life is about. Life is about smiling, life is about having fun, life is about helping one another, and that’s what I’m all about.”

The little-boy dreams he wishes to realize still are: “There’s a lot of things or goals that I’m still gonna fulfill. It has nothing to do with money, it has something to do with helping the loved ones that surround me. I wanna help them each and every day, I wanna help my loved ones become better, I want my kids to be better than me. I wanna continue to be around more and more positive people, and the people around me with great energy.”

What the public can expect, now that he is an AQ Prime Ambassador: “Hopefully, we’re able to put my documentary on their platform. Everything that is behind the scenes, since 1996… twenty-six years ago, everything that’s behind the scenes with family, with friends, my ups, my downs, things that you guys don’t get the chance to see on cable or pay-per-view.”

Adds Mayweather: “On this documentary, this gonna bring you closer to my life. You may get the chance to really really know Floyd Mayweather. You may see a few little things, but most of my personal life I’d like to keep it, you know, behind the scenes.”

COO Atty. Honey Quiño promises, “Now that we’re working with Floyd Mayweather, we can make a documentary film for him. What we plan to present in the documentary we will soon produce is not just for entertainment, we want to inspire people because Floyd’s life experiences are truly inspirational.”

Will Floyd welcome the idea of a biopic about him? “I’m not against it, you know. I love to watch movies. I love to support movies,” the boxing legend swift replied.

As to him starring it, he says: “Acting in it will take so much of my time. You know, I get offers all the time to be in movies, and I spoke about it on numerous occasions, everything isn’t for everybody.”

The AQ Prime Ambassador says: “You guys have embraced me with open arms, so I just really wanna say thank you to the whole country of the Philippines, I am just happy to be here again. And my role as AQ Prime Ambassador adds another layer of happiness and excitement for me because the Filipino culture is unreal.

From what I have seen and experienced, all of you are kind-hearted, diligent, and passionate.

He concludes: “I love entertainment and I love to be entertained. Entertainment is more than valuable at this time and age.”

TO MAKE a big jump from one field to another is nothing new for Atty. Mary Melanie “Honey” Quiño, now Deputy Administrator for Operations of Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA). In fact, she’s not one to leave a profession she has been embracing for long. She’s incorporating whatever her new task into her kind of routine.

Everything in DA Honey’s life is intertwined, connected in such a way they complement each other. Small wonder that prior to becoming OWWA’s DA, she has long been known in the entertainment industry as a film producer. And before showbiz spotlight zeroed in on her, her circle had long found her as a likable, no-nonsense lawyer.

“As a law practitioner prior to government service, it’s instilled in my mind that it is my job to protect and defend one’s right. So when I joined OWWA I used my skills to defend the rights of OFW and promote their welfare through the agency’s program,” DA Honey said.

As a legal expert, she gained respect. When she entered the movie industry she won public acclaim. Naturally, when the pandemic hit, her vision covered those that really needed help.

“Compared to the international film industry which is already in

recovering phase, our local industry is still struggling,” she expressed. “The new normal has greatly affected the income performance of theatrical release. As result thereof, local producers were discouraged to produce theatrical movies. But our company A and Q films was brave enough to venture into filmmaking with the primary consideration of helping local film workers. We thought of giving them jobs instead of ayuda, because job would really help improve the worker’s self-esteem and confidence which is very important for mental health.”

She further noted, “To sustain our advocacy of providing jobs, we launched our own Over-The-Top business which is now called AQ prime stream or AQ PRIME. With this online platform, A and Q films can now continuously produce movies without worrying about theatrical performance. Audiences can watch quality films on their mobile phone in their comfort.”

Fortunately, she and her team have Korean partners who share the same advocacy and mission.

As a movie producer, Quiño has produced films such as Nelia, the Joel Lamangan-directed Peyri Teyl, Ligalig, helmed by Topel Lee and starring National Artist Nora Aunor, and the soon-to-be-released internationally Pura Serbidora directed by Louie Ignacio

As proof of how she fits well into her new OWWA job, Honey has actually been producing films that cater to OFWs’ experiences. She has a pool of directors more than willing to create films dedicated to OFWs. She believes that here in the Philippines, most people have family members who are OFWs. Many Filipinos find such films relatable. Her films not only tackle the dark experiences of OFWs, but also their success, light-hearted moments, and romantic experiences.

It’s a plus that DA Honey gets along well with OWWA Administrator Arnell Ignacio. She noted, “Arnell is very dedicated to his work and I really like that about him. He fuels my passion for work and continuously supports me in everything that I do. We always learn something just by talking to each other. I enjoy working with him because he is very energetic and insightful.”

She added, “We always work as a team and we have developed a perfect balance. He’s always open to hearing my ideas and with that, we were able to build a better learning environment for our employees.”

So far, DA Honey was able to help several distressed OFW and provide assistance for their livelihood. Her tandem with Arnell leads them to create new programs for the well-being of OFWs and their families.

The 16 programs and personalities of ABS-CBN will be up against national winners from other countries in the Asia Pacific region including current Best Entertainment Host Vice Ganda who is nominated again in the same category.

The Broken Marriage Vow claimed six national winner titles with Jodi Sta. Maria as the national winner for Best Leading Actress and Zaijan Jaranilla as the Best Actor in a Supporting Role. The hit series was also named national winner for Best Adaptation of An Existing Format, Best

Four ABS-CBN programs also won in their respective categories including KBYN: Kaagapay ng Bayan (Best Current Affairs Programme or Series), ASAP Natin ‘To (Best Music or Dance Programme), Maalaala Mo Kaya - “Beauty Behind Bars Episode” (Best Single Drama or Telemovie/ Anthology Episode); and Metro Channel’s The Crawl Singapore (Best Lifestyle Programme).

Kapamilya artists also emerged at the top as they clinched their national winner titles including Viral Scandal’s Dimples Romana (Best Actress in a Supporting Role) and My Papa Pi’s Pepe Herrera (Best Comedy Performance).

Meanwhile, ABS-CBN Film’s Kun Maupay Man It Panahon (Whether The Weather Is Fine) took the award for Best

Film.

Nickie Wang, Editor

Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant

THE country’s leading content provider, ABS-CBN, bagged 16 national honors at the 2022 Asian Academy Creative Awards (AAA), which will be representing the Philippines in the regional awards in Singapore on December 8.

The cast of ‘Maria Clara at Ibarra’

From left: Barbie Forteza, Dennis Trillo, and Julie Anne San Jose bring a modern take on Filipino classic literature

Boxing icon Floyd“Money”Mayweather Jr. joins the AQ Prime family as its official ambassador

Premier staycations and well curated adventures for the family

Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort’s ‘Discover Clark’ activation features a collection of Clark Freeport Zone’s many exciting and nearby destinations. In-house guests who book a visit to any of the Clark attractions through the hotel’s concierge team enjoy exclusive savings and offers. Tee-up amid lush valley greens at the nearby Clark Sun Valley Country Club; be immersed in the rich history of Clark at the Clark Museum and 4D Theater; journey into a land before time at Dinosaurs Island Clark; go on an adrenaline-pumping thrill at Deca Wakepark Clark; zoom on over at the Clark International Speedway; or enjoy a ‘water-mazing adventure’ at Aqua Planet; among others.

“Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort’s collaborative effort with our many stakeholders is one of the key factors that will drive back the tourism in dustry to its former glory days. This initiative encourages growth in the primary and secondary sectors of the tourism industry,” shares Carol Uy Department of Tourism Region 3 Regional Director.

The hotel presents guests with well-appointed guest rooms and suites, mouth-watering culinary adventures featuring fresh produce from the North, and a host of in-hotel family-friendly activities by the pool, outdoor rubberized playground, Kids Club, and more. The hotel also highlights its newly opened Apricus Wellness Spa, where patrons may embark on a ho listic journey into rejuvenation and relaxation.

“We welcome this initiative from Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort that highlights the Freeport Zone’s unique tourist attractions. As we move be yond the New Normal, it is important for us to work together and strengthen our partnership in promoting Clark as a safe, family-friendly destination,” said Noemi Julian, CDC Tourism Promotions Manager

Through the Hilton CleanStay Program, an International set of stringent protocols ensuring the health and safety of its guests and team members, Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort provides its guests a safe haven where they can create beautiful and lasting memories.

For inquiries or more information, please visit clarksunvalleyresort.hilton. com or call +63 45 598 5400.

Tourism events popping out all over

ONE can easily tell that our tourism industry is on its way back to its pre-pandemic stature because my social calendar is now filled with industry events that further feed everybody’s appetite for travel. Here are some of these events that have definitely kept our Industry stakeholders brimming with delight and hopeful anticipation.

Travel, Brands, and Lifestyle Fair

The National Association of Independent Travel Agencies (NAITAS) recently partnered with Metro Creative Themes Inc. (MCTI) in putting together the highly successful Travel, Brands, and Lifestyle Fair at the SMX Mall of Asia. After more than two years of being quiet on the travel front, events like this certainly prove that the industry is alive once again, raring to put across its much-valued contri bution to our country’s economic recovery.

NAITAS President Florence Rivera was brimming with joy as she shared the list of eager exhibitors in the three-day Expo which attracted a large crowd dur ing its opening day. She also announced the Launch of their nationwide search for Mrs. Face of Tourism, which is expected to attract a lot of candidates, all of them ladies involved with the Tourism Industry.

A major national travel association representing the Travel and Tours sector, NAITAS has seventeen chapters around the country and is always involved with the local, regional and national concerns of this particular sector of our tourism industry.

Trabaho, Turismo, Asenso

The Department of Tourism (DOT), together with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), hosted this Job Fair at the SMX Mall of Asia, in response to the need of our tourism stake holders to hire competent staff to beef up the Indus try’s currently inadequate human capital. During the Listening Tour of Tourism Secretary Frasco, she found out that most of the Tourism establishments in the country are looking for qualified staff to man their respective businesses. During the pandemic, these establishments had to let go of most of their staff. Naturally, for reasons of self-preservation, those employees had to look for other sources of income, and most of them are now gainfully em ployed abroad.

To solve this shortage of qualified staff in the Industry, DOT Asec. Rica Bueno, with the cooperation of Jing Lagandaon , COO of Glob al-Link MP Events Int’l., put up the very wellattended three-day Trabaho, Turismo, Asenso Job Fair as part of the highly successful Hotel Suppliers Show staged annually by Lagandaon. There were 8000 jobs up for grabs, which was

YOUR MONDAY CHUCKLE Birthdays are good for you.  Statistics show that the people who celebrate the most live the longest!

why a huge crowd of fresh graduates and eager applicants packed the humongous halls of SMX, especially because they learned that many have been hired on the spot.

Travel Tour Expo 2023

At their recent General Membership Meeting (GMM), the Philippine Trav el Agencies Association (PTAA) also launched their popular Travel Tour Expo which will take place early next year. This annual event has become very well at tended the past many years before the pan demic, as it offers large discounts on air line tickets for domestic and international destinations, and on accommodations in resorts and hotels all over the country.

To spice up their GMM, PTAA Presi dent Michelle Taylan invited Israel Am bassador Ilan Fluss

Dr. Armin Shaaban of the Egyptian Embassy, and Turkish Embassy’s Third Secretary Taha Coskun to showcase the various tourism destinations of their re spective countries. Naturally, these whet the travel appetite of the audience, all travel agents who are raring to jet off to various destinations, now that most in ternational borders are open.

Philippine Travel Mart

Just the other day, the Philippine Tour Opera tors Association (PHILTOA) unleashed its longestrunning interactive Tourism Expo, the Philippine Travel Mart, at the SMX Mall of Asia. Its Presi dent, Fe Abling-Yu, proudly declared that the as sociation has been waiting for a long time to restage this annual event which, naturally, had to be stopped during the pandemic.

This Expo has been designed to support the tour ism industry’s many MSMEs by exploring eve rything our country has to offer to tourists. Tours to other countries were also made available to the throng which trooped to the venue non-stop, much to the delight of PHILTOA officers.

World Tourism Day

Our Department of Tourism organized the cel ebration of this year’s World Tourism Day a few days ago, through a day-long Conference at the Manila Hotel, with the theme, “Rethinking Tour ism.” It was part of the UNWTO’s commemoration of the adoption of the Statutes of the Organization in 1970 which paved the way for its establishment five years later. During UNWTO’s 1979 General Assembly in Torremolinos, Spain, they decided to celebrate World Tourism Day starting the following year, 1980, and the significant day has been marked every year since.

The Conference at the Manila Hotel featured a variety of multi-stakeholder speakers, as well as breakout sessions that discussed, “Rethinking Tour ism as a Key Element of Recovery.” An SRO crowd of tourism professionals from all over the country attended the all-important celebration.

For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com.

Celebrate sweet moments with a bottle of wine

AS THE life-changing pandemic also brought about changes in perspective, people have become more grounded and appreciative of what they have. Their social circles may have also evolved into more inti mate bubbles, prioritizing genuine connections with their closest and most trusted loved ones.

This is why whenever those sweet moments go by, it’s always good to enjoy them with family, close friends, colleagues, or your partner – those who mat ter the most. Whether it’s as substantial as a marriage proposal or as day-to-day as new food discovery, every sweet moment calls for a toast to a great life. A great way to keep the momentum is a quality wine that everyone can enjoy.

Jacob’s Creek, Aus tralia’s No. 1 bottled wine brand which is carried by multinational wine and spir its company Pernod Ri card, recently launched a fruity red wine called Jacob’s Creek Cherry Red.

Breaking away from traditional red wine expec tations, this new variant is semi-sweet, approachable, and playful.

Its light body and fruity flavor make it less intimidating to those who generally find red wine too bitter.

A whiff of the Jacob’s Creek Cherry Red will give off an aroma of ripe black and red berries with a touch of toastiness from oak. In terms of taste, it lends a touch of juicy plum fruit with a round and sweet fin ish. It is best enjoyed chilled and either on its own or paired with flavorful Asian dishes – even spicy ones for the ultimate balance of taste profiles!

This vibrant wine can be enjoyed by any wine drinker from veterans to first-time experimenters and can complete those lighthearted, intimate occasions. Customers can be confident to share a bottle while spending quality time with others, or even to wind down by themselves after a long day.

Jacob’s Creek Cherry Red was launched in Manila House Private Club, Inc. in June 2022, in which par ticipants enjoyed a food and wine tasting session with Jacob’s Creek Wine Ambassador, Billy Brigham who also introduced the new variant.

Jacob’s Creek Cherry Red is available at leading su permarkets and e-commerce sites and platforms start ing at P500.00. For more information, follow Jacob’s Creek on Facebook.

Australia’s No. 1 bottled wine brand recently launched a fruity red wine called Jacob’s Creek Cherry Red

This vibrant wine can be enjoyed by all wine drinkers and complete any occasion

Nickie

Patricia Taculao Editorial Assistant

Joba Botana, Associate Editor

HILTON Clark Sun Valley Resort invites guests of all ages to take advan tage of special room rates coupled with a host of benefits at some of Clark Freeport Zone’s leading tourist attractions and leisure hubs.

“We wanted to present our guests with well-curated, fun-filled, North ern staycations that they can enjoy with their family and friends. When at the hotel, they get to experience worry-free stays, and when out and about here at Clark, they may take advantage of special benefits when visiting nearby attractions as our esteemed hotel guests,” says Denise Molintas Hotel General Manager.

One of the hotel’s well-appointed guest rooms and suite that offers comfort and relaxation

This family-friendly resort offers a host of in-house activities and amenities for the kids including this Kid’s Area.

The façade of Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort in Clark Freeport Zone

From left: Cebu PESO Manager Fidel Magno, Savoy Hotel Mactan GM Josef Chiongbian, DOT-7 Officer Judy Gabato, Davijun Pardillo who was hired-on-the-spot as Chief Concierge, and Belmont Hotel Mactan GM Johnson del Valle

From left: Jonathan Rodriguez, Annie Refrea, MCTI President Mika Templo, Ara Mina, PAL AVP Marissa Dimaano, Pasay Mayor’s Chief of Staff Peter Parbo, Kathleen Hermosa, NAITAS President Florence Rivera, Loida Abrenica, and Racquel Sabucido

PTAA President Michelle Taylan, with Israel Ambassador Ilan Fluss.

PHILTOA President Fe Abling-Yu and 2nd VP Arjun Shroff are all smiles, as they savor the tremendous success of this year’s Philippine Travel Mart