Manila Standard - 2022 November 1 - Tuesday

’Paeng’ deaths jump to 101

Gov’t: Little hope in finding survivors in worst-hit areas

Just

“We

By Rio N. Araja

was still wide enough to hoist Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 1 in several parts of Luzon.

Although Queenie intensified into a tropical storm, it is not seen to affect the country’s weather conditions as it is

By Maricel V. Cruz and Darwin Amojelar

expected to weaken into a low-pressure area when it reaches the Visayas by Fri day, the weather bureau said Monday. In a bulletin posted at noon, the Phil ippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and

By Mervin Lopez

THERE is no need to declare a national state of calamity after Severe Tropical Storm Paeng ravaged different parts of the country because the damage was “highly localized,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Monday.

Paeng weakened into a tropical storm status on Sunday but intensified again into a severe tropical storm on Monday as it continued to move over the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Atmos pheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA)

said (see related story on A1 – Editors).

Marcos’s statement came a day after the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recommended a declaration of a nation al state of calamity.

“I don’t think it’s necessary. I came to that conclusion in consultation with DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources]. They said it wasn’t extensive. The damage is highly localized,” he told reporters in a press briefing in Noveleta, Cavite.

Citing government reports, he said

By Willie Casas and Macon Ramos-Araneta

By Willie Casas

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has placed 32 areas under COVID-19 Alert Level 2 from November 1 to 15, the De

partment of Health said on Monday.

Some 89 out of 121 provinces, highly urbanized cities, and independent com ponent cities, on the other hand, includ ing the whole of Metro Manila, were

placed under Alert Level 1, the loosest of a 5-tier alert system.

“This means that our key indicators, such as the healthcare utilization rate

TROPICAL Storm “Queenie” entered the Philippine area of responsibility on Monday just as Severe Tropical Storm “Paeng” exited the PAR, but the latter

Disaster Risk

and Management Council

DESPERATE SEARCH. Members of the Philippine Coast Guard District BARMM search in waist-deep mud on Monday for possible survivors of a landslide that engulfed Barangay Kusiong in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao, four days after tropical storm ‘Paeng’ hit the area. Meanwhile, an aerial view (inset) shows flood-inundated houses at Capitol Hills in Ali bagu, Ilagan City, Isabela, as the death toll from the storm jumped to 98. PCG, AFP photos

AIDING CAVITENOS. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. walks the muddy streets of Noveleta, Cavite after conducting an aerial inspection of the province with Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla on Monday. Mr. Marcos and Social Welfare Secretary Erwin Tulfo then hand out hygiene kits and cash aid to recipients in Barangay San Jose, with Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. and Noveleta Mayor Dino Reyes Chua watching. Presidential photos

‘Autopsy confirms Palaña murder’

ATOP forensic pathologist who conducted a second autopsy on the body of the alleged middleman in the murder of broadcaster Percival Mabasa said her findings were consistent with a testimony that Cristito “Jun Villamor” Palaña was killed.

“They had confirmed information that was how he was killed,” Dr. Raquel Fortun told ANC’s “Dateline.”

Fortun said she was informed by Jus tice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla that Palaña was suffocated with a plas tic bag.

“When Secretary Remulla informed me of information that they got that it was a plastic bag, I said, ‘Okay, that is consistent with the findings actually,’” she said.

Over the weekend, Fortun, in a joint press conference with Remulla, said the independent autopsy on Palaña’s re mains showed a “history of asphyxia by plastic bag suffocation.”

“Based on available information re garding the circumstances surround ing death, the manner is homicide,” she said.

Villamor died on October 18 inside the New Bilibid Prison, hours after selfconfessed gunman Joel Escorial surren

dered to authorities and identified the alleged middleman.

“When he (Remulla) showed me a text message allegedly by Mr. Villamor expressing fear for his life, that was sent before he died, you know, that’s so uncanny. You wouldn’t die a natu ral death like that where you got the individual knowing he’s in danger. Re member, this is not an ordinary person out in the open with liberty. You have someone in jail, not in control of his safety,” Fortun said.

For his part, Brig. Gen. Jonnel Es tomo, chief of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), said there were no lapses in police coordi nation with the Bureau of Corrections after Palaña died inside the New Bili

bid Prison.

Estomo belied the accusation of sus pended BuCor chief Gerald Bantag that the Philippine National Police did not coordinate with the BuCor to secure the middleman.

“I just want to clarify that there were no lapses in PNP. My SITG (special investigation task force) was snappy. Like what the Chief PNP said, the in vestigation in the Lapid cases has been good. We are the one who made a breakthrough,” Estomo said.

Estomo said the police indeed failed to instruct BuCor to secure Villamor because the bureau already told them that there is no one named Crisanto Villamor in the Bilibid.

It was later revealed the middleman

APO Hiking’s Danny Javier passes away

only three provinces – Quezon, Cav ite, and Maguindanao -- suffered the most damage to infrastructure.

“We’re talking about the east coast Quezon, here in Cavite, and then Maguindanao. Those are the areas. It doesn’t warrant a national calamity,” he said.

Marcos said it was enough for the NDRRMC to implement the state of calamity status in specific areas only.

“I think we will focus better if we stay with the calamity status as we have now,” he added.

On Sunday, the NDRRMC declared a state of calamity in 55 areas in the Bicol (Region 5), Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BAR MM), and Soccsksargen (Region 12).

These areas were heavily damaged by Paeng, which brought massive flooding and landslides that resulted in casualties.

The NDRRMC said the storm dam aged 4,188 houses worth about P12.415 million and did infrastructure damage worth P757.84 million.

On Monday morning, Marcos con ducted an aerial survey over areas hit by the severe tropical storm, particu larly parts of Cavite.

He also led the ceremonial distri bution of aid to families in Barangay San Jose II in Noveleta, Cavite, and assured them that the government will ensure their safe return to their homes.

Marcos earlier presided over a full council meeting of the NDR RMC on Saturday.

SINGER-SONGWRITER Danny Javi er, one-third of the iconic APO Hiking Society, passed away on Monday, ac cording to his family. He was 75.

The veteran performer succumbed to “complications due to his prolonged ill nesses,” his daughter Justine Javier Long said in a joint statement with her siblings.

“In life, as in his death, our Pop nev er stopped fighting for what he loved, what he believed in and what he was passionate about,” Long said. “He left this world with his passion and strength of will intact and we know he would not have it any other way.”

Javier died at around 5 p.m. due to cardiac arrest at the National Kidney

Transplant Institute, where he had been confined for treatments, his brother George told ABS-CBN News.

Long requested the public to “respect our family’s privacy” at this time, as they ar range the details of Javier’s memorial and funeral, which they will announce later.

“Our family would like to thank everyone for the outpouring of love, prayers and condolences at this difficult time,” she wrote.

Quoting lyrics from the memorable APO Hiking Society song “Awit ng Barka da,” Long said, “Sa lungkot at ligaya, hirap at ginhawa, kami’y kasama mo.”

Javier, alongside Jim Paredes and Boboy Garrovillo, are credited as pil

water, and other relief to victims.

Marcos said preemptive evacuations in Noveleta had saved lives.

lars of Original Pilipino Music or OPM, with enduring hits that would later be come a stage musical, aside from being pop culture favorites.

The trio also became television sta ples, notably with their variety shows including “Sang Linggo nAPO Sila” on ABS-CBN in the late ‘90s.

Paredes, in a phone interview with ABS-CBN News, shared his grief over Javier’s passing. He recounted just re cently spending time with Javier, who had been under intensive care.

“I was able to visit him, and we were able to talk for 45 minutes. He was get ting better until this happened,” Pare des said.

Fuel rollback set: 60c for diesel, 25c for gas, kerosene

By Alena Mae S. Flores

OIL firms cut pump prices anew by P0.60 per liter for diesel and P0.25 per liter for gasoline and kerosene effective 6 a.m. Tuesday to reflect the movement of prices in the world oil market.

“Petron will implement the follow ing price rollbacks effective 6 a.m. on Nov 1: P0.25/li for gasoline; P0.60/li for diesel and P0.25/li for kerosene. These reflect movements in the inter national oil market,” Petron Corp. said in its advisory.

This is the second consecutive week of oil price rollback even as oil firms are anticipating a possible increase in lique fied petroleum gas or cooking gas.

Oil prices declined week-on-week af ter China, one of the biggest oil-consum ing economies implemented lockdowns to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Oil companies implemented a per liter cut in gasoline by P0.35, diesel by P1.10, and P0.45 for kerosene on October 25.

These resulted in the year-to-date total adjustments to stand at a net increase of P16.10/liter for gasoline, P37.40/liter for diesel, and P29.20/liter for kerosene.

Despite the announcement of the Organization of the Petroleum Export ing Countries and its allies (OPEC+) to make its biggest output cut since the onset of the pandemic, the World Bank projected that oil prices in the global market would decline next year.

“Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, energy prices have been quite volatile but are now expected to decline.

After surging by about 60 percent in 2022, energy prices are projected to decline 11 percent in 2023,” the World Bank said in a statement last week.

civil defense chief of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mind anao (BARMM).

The number of fatalities is likely to rise, with the national disaster agency recording 63 people still missing and scores of others injured.

The Philippine Coast Guard posted pictures on Facebook showing its per sonnel in the devastated Kusiong village, in Maguindanao del Norte province of Mindanao, wading through thick, thighhigh mud and water, and using long piec es of timber in the search for more bodies.

Kusiong was buried by a massive landslide, which created a huge mound of debris, just below several picturesque mountain peaks.

Meanwhile, survivors faced the heartbreaking task of cleaning up their sodden homes.

“While the calamity was huge, the number of casualties was not that high, although there’s a lot of damage to in frastructure,” he said.

Nalgae inundated villages, destroyed crops, and knocked out power in many regions as it swept across the country.

It struck on an extended weekend for All Saints’ Day, which is on Tuesday when millions of Filipinos travel to visit the graves of loved ones.

Scientists have warned that deadly and destructive storms are becoming more powerful as the world gets warm er because of climate change.

The state weather forecaster warned that another tropical storm was heading towards the Philippines even as Paeng moved across the South China Sea.

need, and the person from BARRM said, they don’t need anything for now. They would exhaust all their resources first af ter which they will ask for help if the need arises,” the Interior Secretary said.

He also pointed out that relief packs and 30 desalination machines were sent even if BARMM officials have yet to seek as sistance from the national government. Abalos said the DILG is also working with concerned national government agencies to respond to affected families and mitigate the loss of lives and dam age to property.

“Further, the department is closely coordinating with the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government of the BARMM which is now under a state of calamity to help them access their calamity funds to provide assistance to the affected families,” he added.

Astronomical Services Administra tion (PAGASA) said Queenie was last located 815 km east of northeastern Mindanao.

It packed maximum sustained winds of 65 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph. It was mov ing west-southwestward at 25 km/h Queenie may weaken into a tropical depression this or evening and fur ther weakening into a remnant low is likely by Thursday or possibly earlier, PAGASA added.

“Nonetheless, the PNP remains vig ilant, and the majority of our person nel are deployed nationwide in various areas of convergence and are ready to provide security and other public safe ty services and are to respond to any eventualities,” PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said.

The Manila South Cemetery reo pened to the public yesterday, two days after being closed due to severe tropical storm “Paeng.”

Manila South Cemetery director Jon athan Garzon said that to avoid conges tion, the sections of P. Ocampo and of South Avenue leading to the cemetery are closed to vehicular traffic.

At the Manila North Cemetery – the largest public cemetery in the Philip pines – the public are only allowed en try from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Manila Police District director Brig. Gen. Adrei Dizon said they expect 1.4 million people to flock to Manila cem eteries until Undas.

At least a thousand police personnel have been deployed in these areas to en sure the security of the public, Dizon said.

Residents shoveled mud from their houses and shops after piling their furniture and other belongings in the streets of Noveleta, Cavite.

“In my entire life living here, it’s the first time we experienced this kind of flooding,” said Joselito Ilano, 55, whose house was flooded by waist-high water.

“I am used to flooding here but this is just the worst, I was caught by surprise.”

Perfidia Seguendia, 71, and her fam ily lost all their belongings except the clothes they were wearing when they fled to their neighbor’s two-story house.

“Everything was flooded -- our fridge, washing machine, motorcycle, TV, everything,” Seguendia said.

“All we managed to do was to cry be cause we can’t really do anything about it. We weren’t able to save anything, just our lives.”

MORE RAIN ON THE WAY

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. be gan touring some of the hard-hit areas on Monday, including Noveleta, as aid agencies rushed food packs, drinking

tive Region, Benguet, Ifugao, Calabar zon, Quezon Province, Mimaropa, Pal awan, Bicol Region, Camarines Norte, and Masbate;

Starting Wednesday, the new weather system could bring more heavy rain and misery to southern and central regions badly affected by Paeng (see related story on A1 – Editors)

Landslides and flash floods originat ing from largely deforested mountain sides have been among the deadliest hazards posed by storms in recent years.

Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benja min Abalos Jr. on Monday brushed off claims that the national government had neglected Mindanao, particularly the BARMM, during the onslaught of Se vere Tropical Storm Paeng.

“No. That’s not true. We have to un derstand the structure of government, we have a structure,” Abalos said in Filipino during a radio interview.

The BARMM has its own govern ment structure, which has its own fund ing and agencies that are independent of the national government.

Abalos said the department is also closely working with BARMM regard ing the status of the search, rescue, and retrieval operations and the manage ment of the dead and the missing.

“Yesterday we asked them what they

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) announced on Sunday that it has submit ted a resolution recommending a declara tion of a national state of calamity, which would trigger a price freeze and will al low the release of emergency funds.

The declaration will allow access to calamity response funds and will im plement a price freeze on basic goods.

Under the Philippine Disaster Risk Re duction and Management Act, the decla ration of a state of calamity imposes price caps on basic necessities and prime com modities and requires agencies to moni tor and stop overpricing, profiteering, and hoarding of food, medicines, and fuel.

2.1 MILLION AFFECTED

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said about 2.1 million people or 560,000 families were affected by the storm.

DSWD Undersecretary Edu Punay said 297,341 people were sheltering in 3,208 evacuation centers across 17 regions.

“We have distributed P48.1 million of food and non-food items so far and the distribution is still ongoing,” Punay said during a televised briefing. AFP with Joel E. Zurbano and Alena Mae Flores

donated used clothes and other items that can be used by typhoon victims.

No wind signal has been hoisted in any part of the country due to Queenie so far.

As for Paeng, as of 5 p.m. signal no. 1 was raised over Abra, the western por tion of Benguet, the southern portion of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, the central and western portions of Pangasi nan, the central and western portions of Tarlac, and the northern and central por tions of Zambales.

The center of Paeng was estimated at 400 kilometers west of Sinait, Ilo cos Sur as it regained strength over the West Philippine Sea.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 110 km/h near the center and gustiness of up to 135 km/h, the storm was moving north-northwest ward at 15 km/h.

Paeng is heading toward China, the weather bureau said.

Moderate to heavy rains are still fore cast over Batanes, Zambales, and Bataan.

Light to moderate with at times heavy rains remained possible over the Ilocos Region, Cordillera Admin istrative Region, Cavite, Batangas, Laguna, the southern portion of Qu ezon, Western Visayas, Babuyan Is lands, Mimaropa, and the rest of Cen tral Luzon.

(HCUR), are showing improvements. We attribute this development to every Filipino who continues to cooperate with our COVID-19 response,” DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Ver geire said in a statement.

“But while we see a continuous de cline in case and admission trends, we must remember that de-escalation does not mean that the battle with COVID-19 is already over. These current numbers are not permanent; we must all work to gether to maintain these low numbers,” she added.

The following areas have been placed under Alert Level 2 from Nov. 1 to 15:

- For Luzon: Cordillera Administra

- For Visayas: Western Visayas, Antique, Negros Occidental, Cen tral Visayas, Bohol, Cebu Province, Negros Oriental, Eastern Visayas, Leyte, Northern Samar, and West ern Samar; and

- For Mindanao: Zamboanga Penin sula, City of Isabela, Zamboanga Del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Northern Mindanao, Lanao del Norte, Davao Re gion, Davao De Oro, Davao Del Norte, Davao Del Sur, Davao Occidental, Soc csksargen, North Cotabato, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, Caraga, Dinagat Is lands, Surigao del Norte, Basilan, La nao Del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-tawi.

for sorting and repacking relief goods.

On top of the P49.2 million, Romual dez, who represents Leyte’s 1st Dis trict, has also received pledges of as sistance from the private sector, which committed to helping in the production of much-needed relief packs. Some of these items were already sent to ty phoon victims in Cavite and Laguna.

The fund drive was led by Speaker Romualdez; his wife, House commit tee on accounts chairperson and Tin gog Party-list Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez; and House committee on appropriations chairman and Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co.

House employees and officials also

Paeng struck the country during a break in the sessions at the House, which meant most of the congressmen were at their respective districts.

Their presence at their districts has allowed for better coordination on the ground in connecting with the Speak er’s relief drive.

Meanwhile, the country’s two largest telecom companies are ramping up a nationwide rollout of free calls, charg ing and load assistance to communities affected by Tropical Storm Paeng.

PLDT and its wireless unit Smart Com munications, Inc. (Smart) added more Libreng Tawag (free calls) and Libreng Charging (free charging) stations to serve the communication needs of communi ties affected by Typhoon Paeng.

“The Group has begun offering free calls and charging in Quezon, Sultan Kudarat, and Maguindanao del Norte to provide communication as aid to those who need it most. PLDT and Smart also provided the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Offices (PDRRMOs) of Batangas, Ak lan, Capiz, Southern Leyte, and Magu indanao del Norte with emergency load to support their coordination efforts,” Cathy Yang, first vice president and Group Head of Corporate Communica tions at PLDT and Smart said.

Globe, on the other hand, started crucial restoration work in areas hit by Paeng as several provinces across the country reeled from power outag es, floods, landslides and widespread damage wrought by the tropical storm.

With Macon Ramos-Araneta

Salceda presses ‘loss and damage’ to address impacts of climate change

By Maricel V. Cruz

ALBAY Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda on Mon day said that countries like the Philippines must continue to push for acknowledg ment and compensation for “loss and damage.”

Salceda, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, noted that “Typhoon Paeng wasn’t supposed to be that strong, and yet killed dozens of people due to stronger than expected floods.”

“Climate change kills. There is loss and damage. And countries like the Philip pines that are the most at-risk due to its im pacts have a moral responsibility and the moral ascendancy to fight for the principle of loss and damage,” Salceda said.

Loss and damage, in international cli mate law, refers to the permanent loss or reparable damage caused by climate change, including extreme weather events like typhoons, as well as slow-onset events such as sea-level rise, Salceda explained.

Salceda, who was formerly the co-chair of the United Nations Green Climate Fund, will be part of the Philippine dele gation to the Conference of Parties (COP) 27, or the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, set in Egypt this year.

“International aid and green financing are not enough. There has to be some form of compensation to the most vulnerable and affected countries,” Salceda said.

“Due to climate risks, we are now the most at-risk country in the world according to the 2022 Global Risk Report. Arguably, nobody is more affected by climate change than we are. If we are soft on this position, we throw other climate-vulnerable countries under the bus. So, we have to be strong on loss and damage,” Salceda added.

“Paeng isn’t even that strong, as far as typhoons in the October-November season go. Some 45 people dead during a ‘normal’ storm is no small matter. It’s the climate problem manifesting itself in the death toll.”

“It didn’t even hit Mindanao, as far as landfalls go. But most of the dead is from Mindanao. More communities are be coming vulnerable to the effects of stron ger weather events.”

ACT: Gov’t lax on return of in-person classes

PUBLIC school teachers on Monday asserted that the government “did not do its homework” in preparing for the resumption of full face-to-face classes, ending two years of online and hybrid learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“To be honest, they did not do their homework,” the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) said during a press brief ing.

ACT Secretary-General Raymond Basilio also renewed their call for ad equate classrooms and armchairs, more support personnel, and reduced work load.

The group also batted for reduction of the number of students per class to 35

students, as well as additional learning and teaching devices such as laptops and internet connections.

“Kung handa ba ang Department of Education, handa ba ang gobyernong Marcos para sa full face-to-face classes, sa totoo lang, hindi kasi nila ginawa ‘yung assignment nila eh no,” Basilio said.

“Ang nakakatawa dito ay more than 100 days na sila sa pwesto, ay wala si

lang naaayos dito, maliban sa sinabi lang nila na magbubukas tayo ng faceto-face classes at parang iniwan sa ere ‘yung mga teachers at mga school heads na maghanap ng solusyon kung papaano matitiyak ‘yung pagbubukas ng klase by November 2,” he added.

ACT likewise pressed for an increase in the budget for the schools’ maintenance and other operating expenses, setting up of safety and health facilities, provision of financial assistance to poor families so their children could go to schools, and im plementation of an evidence-based educa tion recovery program.

Basilio said the teachers had told the government since June that the basic problems of the schools was inadequate budget for the Department of Education to be able to meet their challenges.

Basilio said teachers supported the re opening of schools to resume face-to-face classes as students had suffered learning losses amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among the problems which appeared with partial face-to-face classes that start ed on August 22, were the lack of teachers and the shortage of classrooms.

DepEd spokesman Michael Poa admit ted earlier there was a shortage of around 40,000 classrooms nationwide.

Vice President and Education Secre tary Sara Duterte however said classroom shortage should not be an excuse to keep the students from going back to in-person classes this year.

To address the lack of teachers, on the other hand, DepEd said it was hiring around 10,000 teachers for school year 2023-2024.

Lawmaker nixes BSP plan to raise ceiling on credit card interest rates

A CONGRESSIONAL leader strongly opposes proposals for the Bangko Sen tral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to adjust the cur rent credit card interest rate caps of two percent per month. BSP Governor Fe lipe Medalla recently announced efforts to review the credit card interest ceilings given higher BSP policy rates.

Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said the proposal will ”just go to pad bank profits.” “Why we would want to adjust 27 percent per-annum interest rates upward as if that’s not high enough is beyond me.”

He said his committee will review any move by the BSP to raise credit card interest rate caps invoking mon etary policy.

“Monetary policy is the sphere of the Committee on Ways and Means, based on our mandate. While we respect the independence of the Central Bank to make decisions, those decisions are not free from Congressional accountabil ity,” Salceda said.

Sen. Ejercito files bill mandating crop insurance for small farmers

SENATOR Joseph Victor Ejercito has filed a bill seeking mandatory insurance coverage for small farmers, thereby pre venting them from borrowing money at high interest rates.

Senate Bill 390, or Crop Insur ance Program for Small Farmers Act, mandates the Department of Agricul ture (DA) to provide crop insurance to farmers tilling eight hectares. The

scheme will spare the marginal farm ers from borrowing money, usually at high interest rates, and subsequently compelling them to sell their products at lower prices to the lenders. Under the measure, the DA would pay half of the insurance premiums on behalf of the farmers.

“Needless to say, crop insurance is imperative for a country like the Phil

ippines, where farmers are the poorest among the various sectors of the soci ety,” Ejercito said.

Ejercito pointed out that the damage wrought by tropical cyclones Karding and Paeng underscored the importance of providing financial assistance to small farmers, who suffer the most when natural disasters strike.

As reported by the DA, Karding dam

aged at least PHP3.12 billion in agri culture in September while the initial estimated damage caused by Paeng over the weekend was pegged at PHP200 mil lion.

“In an effort to help farmers in times of need, to improve agricultural produc tivity and to ensure food security, it is imperative to have a mandatory crop in surance,” Ejercito said.

Gatchalian wants to expand MTRCB powers to cover video/online games

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian

seeks to expand the powers and functions of the Movie and Tele vision Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) to include regula tion of video and online games.

He said the setup would ensure the safety and well-being of chil dren amid their exposure to new technologies.

Gatchalian filed Senate Bill No. 1063 or the Video and Online Games and Outdoor Media Regu lation Act which seeks to amend Presidential Decree No. 1986 that created the MTRCB.

The 2020 gaming statistics, he said, reveal that 43 million gam ers drove the unprecedented rise in the Philippine gaming industry and

across Southeast Asia.

He noted that 74 percent of the Philippine online gaming popula tion play on their mobile devices, 65 percent on PC games, and 45 per cent on the classic console games.

Moreover, he stressed that 43 million gamers in the country spent $572 million on games in 2019.

This made the Philippines the world’s 25th’s biggest market by game revenues, as well as a key driver of Southeast Asia’s overall games market during that time.

Aside from video and online games, Gatchalian also proposes that the MTRCB also regulate out door media, which includes adver tising signs, Light Emitting Diode (LED) signs and billboards, ground signs, roof signs, and sign infra structures.

Solon: Robust tourism to drive regional recovery

REVITALIZING and strengthening the tourism industry is a primary ingredient in “jumpstarting” the pandemic-stricken economy across the AsiaPacific Region, Sen. Francis Tolentino said.

Addressing the 30th annual meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum in Bangkok, Thailand, the Philippine senator said the need to revive the tourism industry among nations across Asia-Pacific requires policy response, not only to address the demands of a re-awakened tour ism industry, but as well as to meet current and emerging needs.

“The future of Asia-Pacific tourism shall be largely shaped by the policy response of today. An integrated regional tourism policy for the Asia Pacific Region will be essential as the poli cies and actions of one country may have impli cations on the policies and actions of another,” Tolentino said.

He noted that applying “enabling legislation”

will play a crucial element in establishing a more adaptive Asia-Pacific tourism economy—one that will be vibrant, diverse, and inclusive, adding that having a sustainable tourism for the region “will entail expanded collaboration not only among na tional governments, but as well as building partner ships with private and non-government sectors.”

The global tourism in general, he said, has been painfully crippled by the restrictions of CO VID-19 pandemic as it suffered unimaginable, and perhaps irrecoverable, losses at the begin ning of the new decade.

International tourist arrivals in January to May 2020 decreased by as much as 56 percent com pared to the pre-pandemic levels of 2019—the significant drop tantamount to a staggering loss of about $910 billion to $1.2 trillion in exports from tourism based in the August 2020 study by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNTWO). Macon Ramos-Araneta

According to him, “the BSP Charter mentions reporting to Congress at least 14 times, including a quarterly report explaining the decisions it makes. We’ll assert that congressional function if needed. I urge the BSP to be more cir cumspect about this decision on credit card interest rate caps.”

Salceda cited that, based on disclo sures to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the largest banks in the country have be come significantly more profitable com pared to last year’s numbers.

“The biggest banks in the country have increased profits by 12 to 72 per cent. Higher credit card interest rates will merely boost those profits while hurting the middle class,” he added.

Maricel V. Cruz

Villafuerte: PBBM order making face mask optional opens PH doors wider

MALACANANG’S directive to of ficially lift the mandatory use of face masks even indoors “accelerates the country’s adaptation to the ‘new normal’ and sends a loud message” to the world that it has “opened wide its doors” to tourists and investors.

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte, president of the National Unity Party, made this observation as he also appealed to local executives to fully support Executive Order No. 7 by ramping up their anti-coronavirus vaccination rollouts and complying with the President’s order by sub mitting to the Department of Health (DOH) regular updates on the prog ress of their respective regular and booster shot programs.

“With President Marcos’ prompt is suance of EO No. 7, we are sending a loud message to the world that we have marched on from the almost threeyear pandemic and that we have at last opened wide our doors to tourists and investors alike as a way to speed up our economy’s return to its pre-COVID high upward trajectory,” Villafuerte said.

The President’s issued last Oct. 28 Executive Order (EO) 7 making mask wearing optional in both indoor and outdoor settings, just days after he ap proved the recommendation by the In teragency Task Force on the Manage ment of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) on mandatory masking that had been enforced nationwide since March 2020.

Maricel V. Cruz

LIFE AFTER THE STORM. Residents of Barangay San Juan-1 in Noveleta, Cavite had to deal with thick mud dumped in their neighborhood by the flood set loose by Typhoon Paeng. Norman Cruz

HOMEWARD BOUND. Passengers wait for their buses at the Paranaque In tegrated Terminal Exchange in Paranaque City to go to their respective provinces for the traditional observance of All Saints Day and All Souls Day. Danny Pata

TYPHOON PAENG’S AFTERMATH. Grade 5 science teacher John Alexis Funtilar of the Wagas Elementary School in Kawit, Cavite struggles to dry up test papers soaked by Paeng’s downpour. Danny Pata

SC set to decide on postponement of ‘22 Bar exams

By Rey E. Requejo

THESupreme Court (SC) will determine on Wednesday, Nov. 2, if pleadings and requests are filed with the Office of the Bar Confidant seeking to postpone the 2022 online and regionalized Bar exami nations.

If pleadings and requests were made, the SC is likely to resolve the matter on Wednesday or within the week as the four-day Bar exams officially start on November 9.

Responding to queries by reporters, SC spokesman lawyer Brian Keith Ho saka said that they have to wait for No vember 2 to find out if such pleadings or requests are filed with the Office of the Bar Confidant.

“I think it would be premature to say that the OBC has received a formal request or petition on this (Bar exams postponement) considering the official holidays. I would have to wait for Nov. 2 to be able to respond to your ques tion,” Hosaka said, in a text message.

Hosaka’s statement was confirmed by Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo.

Deaths caused by severe tropical storm “Paeng” have ballooned to 98 while more than 1.8 million individuals were reported to have been affected in 14 out of 17 regions nationwide.

A total of 9,916 law graduates are expected to take the 2022 online and regionalized Bar examinations to be administered by the SC in 14 local test ing centers (LTCs) nationwide on Nov. 9, 13, 16, and 20.

Hosaka said a total of 10,075 law graduates originally applied and were

PBBM cracks joke about being in Japan while in Cavite

PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. on Monday reportedly joked about being in Japan after a visit in Cavite, one of the provinces flooded by Typhoon Paeng over the weekend.

Marcos made the joke a day af ter the Palace denied claims that the President was in Japan while Paeng ((international name: Nal gae) brought heavy rains and caused flooding in several areas on Satur day, GMA News reported.

“Welcome to Hokkaido [Japan]!,” Mr. Marcos reportedly said in jest after a news conference in Cavite.

On Sunday, an eatery in Laoag, Ilocos Norte shared photos on social media of the President having lunch there. The Palace, however, did not make an official announcement about the said activity.

In the same news conference, Mr. Marcos said there was no need to declare a nationwide state of calamity in the after math of the onslaught caused by Paeng, a decision contrary to the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Man agement Council to have a 1-year nationwide state of calamity de clared.

A declaration of nationwide state of calamity would allow local gov ernment units to tap the calamity fund to aid communities affected by Paeng and impose a price freeze on basic commodities.

“I don’t think it’s necessary. I came to that conclusion in consulta tion with DENR (Department of En vironment and Natural Resources),” the President said, adding that the damage were “very highly local ized.”

Mr. Marcos also said on Monday that preemptive evacuations and long-term solutions to preventing flash floods should be in place to prevent casualties caused by storms.

accepted but 159 of them withdrew their applications. He said he did know the reasons for the withdrawal.

“I believe a formal notice would have been sent by them to the OBC,” he added.

Earlier, Associate Justice Alfredo Ben jamin S. Caguioa, chairperson of the 2022 Bar examinations committee, advised the examinees “to monitor their Bar PLUS dashboard to view their final LTCs.”

Caguioa said “all venue assignments are final and requests for changes of the venue at this point will no longer be en tertained.”

Additional information needed by examinees may be sourced thru:

1. Frequently Asked Questions on the Digitalized Examinations for the 2022 Bar Examinations at https://bit. ly/2022BarExamplifyFAQs

2. Bar Examinations Manual for Examplify (for Examinees) at https:// sc.judiciary.gov.ph/files/BAR-2022/ using-examplify-bar-2022- manual.pdf

3. Bar Bulletin No. 9, s. 2022 at htt ps://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/files/BAR2022/ Bar-Bulletin-9.pdf

4. Office of the Bar Confidant hotline numbers (02) 8552-9690 or (02) 8552- 9642, or through the On line Help Desk form via https://bit. ly/2022BarExamHelpDesk.

By Joel E. Zurbano

REAPPOINTED Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) act ing chair Romando Artes on Monday vowed to continue reforms he and his predecessors have started, and intro duce more programs to improve the agency’s services to the people.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reap pointed Artes who vacated the MMDA top post following the designation of engineer Carlo Dimayuga III in Au gust as acting chair.

“I am grateful to President Marcos for his trust and for my appointment as the Acting Chairman. The MMDA is close to my heart, having served as its

Assistant General Manager for Finance and Administration, General Manager, and Chairman in the past five years, during the term of then-President Rod rigo Duterte,” Artes said.

He said under his watch as AGM for Finance and Administration, the MMDA has been given an unqualified opinion from the Commission on Audit for three consecutive years, the highest audit rating given to government agen cies for good financial management.

Artes spearheaded the construction of the new MMDA building in Pasig City and assisted in the Department of Health’s vaccination campaign by launching and implementing the Res bakuna Kids Drive in the agency.

He said the opportunity given to him is enough motivation to continue initi ating reforms and formulate projects, resolutions, ordinances, and regula tions for Metro Manila, pushing for sustainable development of the Na tional Capital Region and furthering improve peoples’ lives.

Artes was earlier named acting gen eral manager of the MMDA, an agen cy he used to head during the term of President Rodrigo Duterte.

Malacañang, however, has yet to re lease a copy of Artes’ appointment pa pers. It has also not disclosed the rea son why the President replaced Carlo Dimayuga III, who was appointed act ing MMDA head only in August.

Navy spox says three half-submerged warships have been decommissioned

THE Philippine Navy (PN) clarified that the three warships seen on social media and described as “half submerged” are already decom missioned and are awaiting disposal through scrapping.

“The three vessels depicted as half-submerged in the picture are in fact the former PN vessels BRP Rajah Humabon (PS-11), BRP Sultan Kudarat (PS-22), and BRP Cebu (PS-28),” Navy spokesperson Com mander Benjo Negranza said in a statement late Sunday night.

He added that BRP Rajah Humabon was decommissioned on March 15, 2018, while the BRP Sultan Kudarat and the BRP Cebu were already taken out of service on July 5, 2019, and Oct. 1, 2019, respectively.

Decommissioned in Navy parlance means retired or deactivated.

These ships are in fact moored at the PN’s Graveyard Dock in Sang ley Point, Cavite where all decommissioned vessels are temporarily berthed until their final disposal.

“These former PN vessels have served the country well during their time and (have) exploits worthy of being written in the annals of the country’s military history,” Negranza said.

He also added that these decommissioned vessels have been stripped of all serviceable equipment and usable materials.

Negranza also stressed that there were no reported personnel casual ties during the onslaught of Paeng in Naval Station Pascual Ledesma, Cavite City.

“These decommissioned vessels are currently undergoing disposal process in accordance with existing policies and procedures and are likely to be sold as scrap,” Negranza said.

THE Philippine Atmospheric, Geophys ical and Astronomical Services Admin istration (PAGASA) said seven radial gates of Magat Dam in Luzon remained open on Monday morning to release wa ter after the onslaught of Tropical Storm Paeng. Magat Dam’s reservoir water level (RWL) was at 191.70 meters at 6 a.m.

Quezon Governor Angelina Tan led a zoom video conference of members of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) on Sunday, which approved the resolu tion.

The meeting also tackled PDRRMC damage and needs assessment reports, as well as initial assessment and dam age reports from the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, Pro vincial Engineering Office, four engi neering districts of the Department of Public Works and Highways, the De partment of Education, the Provincial Agriculturist’s Office, the Provincial Veterinarian’s Office, and other con cerned agencies.

As of 10 a.m. on Sunday, preliminary estimates show that the typhoon has cost the province a total of P281,390,091.83 in damages to farming and fishing.

In Lucena City, more than 500 hec tares of farmland were damaged by the previous typhoon, according to the ini tial report of the city agriculturist office.

It was estimated that about 23,902 families, or 82,385 people, were affect ed, and that about 10,500 food packets

on Monday, which is near the 193-meter spilling level or normal high water level (NHWL), PAGASA said.

The National Irrigation Adminis tration’s Magat River Integrated Ir rigation System Dam and Reservoir Division issued a notice that two gates will be closed, and two other gates’ openings will be reduced on

Monday morning, a report from GMA News said.

The dam, which straddles Isabela and Ifugao, is located on Magat River and is a major tributary of the Cagayan River.

Ifugao and the western portion of Isabela (Cordon, City of Santiago, San Mateo, Ramon, Alicia, San Isidro,

Customs stops shipment of nickel bound for China

SURIGAO CITY—The Bureau of Customs has ordered its District In spector in this city to immediately unload about 100,000 metric tons of nickel ore loaded at M/V Lucky Source and M/V De Xin Xing Long and allegedly bound for China.

In a signed memorandum dated Oc tober 26, 2022, Customs Acting Dis trict Collector Jonah Herbert Dollano stated that this step was undertaken pursuant to Customs laws and regula tions and in compliance to a memo randum their office received from DENR’s Mines and Geosciences Bureau, Regional Office X111.

The memorandum dated October 17, 2022 and signed by Romeo Dal odalo, chief of Geoscience Division, has issued a cease-and-desist order to Claver Mineral Development Corp. (CMDC) within the Mineral Produc tion Sharing Agreement covering an area of 433.9798 hectares located at Barangay Cagdianao, Claver, Surigao del Norte and Barangay Carrascal, Surigao del Sur from conducting all forms of mining activities within its contract area.

Copies of the said memorandum were also sent to the Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Ports Authority, and to concerned barangay officials and local government units.

However, Dalodalo said that despite this order, they received information that CMDC continues to haul, load, and ship nickel ore without the supporting Ore Transport Permit and Mineral Ore Export Permit. Roy Tomandao

MMDA chief vows to continue reforms, new programs

State of calamity in Quezon Province in Paeng wake

PAGASA: Magat Dam remains open to release water after storm’s onslaught

Quezon, Mallig, Roxas, San Manuel, Aurora, Cabatuan) are among the ar eas under Tropical Cyclone Wind Sig nal No. 1 on Monday morning due to Paeng.

The weather bureau said the Cordil lera Administrative Region may possi bly have light to moderate with at times heavy rains.

THE Quezon Province Sangguniang Panglalawigan has passed a resolution declaring that the province is now in a state of calamity in the aftermath of Ty phoon Paeng.

FOR TYPHOON VICTIMS. Employees of the Office of Speaker and House secretariat take part Monday morning in the sorting and packing of relief goods for the families affected by Severe Tropical Storm Paeng at the South Wing Lobby of the House of Repre sentatives. (Inset) Philippine National Police Acting Regional Director, PBGen Jonnel C Estomo leads the distribution of relief packs to families temporarily sheltered in evacuation centers in San Juan and Quezon City after the onslaught of the typhoon. Ver Noveno

WHIMSICAL CHRISTMAS. Children pose at the SM mall in San Mateo Rizal’s “Whimsical Christmas,” display featuring a 9-foot Christmas wreath at the center of the display. The centerpiece also highlights huge Christmas ball chairs, and Santa Claus. Manny Palmero

HELPING EVACUEES IN MALABON. Malabon Mayor Jeannie Sandoval comforts a baby and led the distribution of hot meals and relief goods to evacuees in various barangays in Malabon City due to Typhoon Paeng. Andrew Rabulan

were sent out starting on Friday. The local disaster risk reduction and management office also reported that five people were victims of drowning incidents, identified as Arnel Tienza, 52 of Brgy Dagatan, Dolores, Quezon; Mi chael Mercado Perez, 49 of Brgy. Ligpit Bantayan, Ginayangan, Quezon; Brgy Pinagbayanan, Pagbilao, Quezon; Jerald

Conchada Sinar of Brgy. Boboin, Infan ta, Quezon; Felipe Monteraso Porte, 58 of Brgy. Tulay Buhangin, Padre Burgos, Quezon; and an identified naked man found at the seashore of Purok Dulong Bunhangin, Dalahican, Lucena City. A certain Ronaldo Lustado Abrea, 59, was also reportedly killed after being hit by a collapsed wall. Benjie Antioquia

Death and

AS WE celebrate All Saints Day today and All Souls Day tomorrow, let us take time to reflect on the words of St. John Marie Vianney, who, in life as in death, followed in the footsteps of our savior Jesus Christ and joined the communion of saints.

By his utter devotion to his Master and Savior, St. John Marie Vianney has shown us how to lead our lives in the face of death and judgment -- our inevitable destiny.

In the words of the patron of all priests: “A day will come, perhaps it is not far off, when we must bid adieu to life, adieu to the world, adieu to our relations, adieu to our friends. When we shall ever return my children?

“Never. . . Our poor body that we care of much goes away into dust and our soul goes trembling, goes to appear before the good God.

“When we quit this world where we shall appear no more and our last breath of life escapes and we say our last adieu, we shall wish to have passed our life in solitude, in the depths of a desert far from the world and its pleasures . . .

“We pass our life gaily, without troubling ourselves about thoughts of eternity by our indifference to the service of the good God, one would think we were never going to die . .

. some people pass their whole life never thinking of death. . . when it comes, and behold, they have nothing . . .”

What is then the reason for man’s existence?

To Vianney, we exist for the sole purpose of glorifying the Creator.

God, therefore, places us on earth to serve Him, to try if we love Him and be faithful to his law, and after this short moment of trial, he promises a recompense. It is thus just for God to punish the wicked and reward the faithful.

Our saint from France, a humble priest and favored confessor, asks the rhetorical question: “Should the Trappist who had passed his life lamenting and weeping over his sins, be treated the same as the bad Christian who has lived in abundance in the midst of all enjoyments of life?

“Of course, the inevitable answer is NO! For the holy man, human exists, not to enjoy the pleasures of the world but to labor for our salvation.”

It is an imperative that we prepare for our passing, and, on this, we all must tarry, according to Vianney.

For death, like a thief in the night, comes when we least expect it. Yet, we are assured that while there is much to be feared, God does not want us either to despair.

According to Vianney, God has given us hope by showing us the example of the good thief touched with repentance.

We can only trust in God’s mercy. For, as the Saint points out, we have not done anything to deserve God’s favor.

The story of a Trappist father who trembled at perceiving the approach of death, illustrates this.

When asked what he was afraid of? The monk replied that he was terrified of the judgment of God.

According to Vianney, we must seriously examine ourselves regularly in order not to fail to correct ourselves and to become fervent Christians in a short time, so that when death knocks on the door, when we breathe our last, we are ready to face God’s tribunal.

Indeed, Our Lord has measured out our years and of those years that have resolved to leave us on this earth he has marked out one which shall be our last one.

Focus on children’s mental health

COVID-19 pandemic stormed ashore in mid March of 2020.

In 2015, suicide became the second leading cause of death for 15 to 29 years old. It further reported that social media envy became a predictor of depression with High School students in the Philippines.

We support the celebration across the country, themed “Kalusugan, Kaisipan, at Kapakanan ng Bawat Bata Ating Tutukan!” led by the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Council for the Welfare of Children, and National Youth Commission.

By Paula Ramon

JOSE was reunited with his wife and fouryear-old child in the United States minutes after Washington shut its southern border to Venezuelans.

But his happiness was short-lived.

His adult son, currently battling through the treacherous Darien Gap jungle that straddles Colombia and Panama, will likely be turned away from the United States -- if he even makes it that far.

“Last night I was happier than a child at Christmas,” he told AFP by telephone.

“But when I saw the news I immediately called my son and asked him not to continue his journey.”

AFP has changed the names of migrants interviewed for this story because of their vul nerable status, or the risk of retribution from human traffickers.

Humanitarian program

The Department of Homeland Security has announced that Venezuelans entering the Unit ed States by land will be returned to Mexico, in line with almost all other migrants without visas coming over the border.

Thus: “Woe to the soul entering on its eternity surprised, bewildered, separated thenceforth from its relations and friends, and as it were, “surrounded with divine light it will find in its creator no longer a merciful father but an inflexible judge.”

Vianney continues: “One can just imagine finding ourselves a soul before God’s tribunal with heaven on one side, hell on the other. . .”

One can only shudder at the thought. It must be terrible because, according to the saint, nothing is hidden from God, his infinite wisdom knows our most inmost thought, his gaze penetrating to the bottom of our hearts.

“No secret is hidden and everything is unveiled. And sinners, in God’s infinite wisdom, cannot hope to avoid the light of day so that every “unfaithfulness in his service, our forgetfulness of his commandments, our transgression of his law, the profanation of his churches, the attachment to the world, will be brought to light.”

In the face of this reality, the saint warns us to be fools no more but to wait in anticipation of Christ’s return.

He announces the joy in not waiting until the very moment of death but instead preparing ourselves to meet Christ every moment of our lives, and long before our Messiah arrives.

Website: tonylavina.com. Facebook: deantonylavs Twitter: tonylavs

The celebration, decked by various activities, aims to raise public awareness on the initiatives that address the mental health needs of Filipino children and to disseminate accurate information to combat the negative stereotypes on mental health.

Because of the pandemic, the National Steering Committee on Children’s Rights Advocacy led by the CWC, in partnership with the DSWD and the NYC, enjoins other government agencies and nongovernment organizations to participate in, and conduct their own hybrid activities in line with the celebration to promote their programs and services on mental health for children.

The National Center for Mental Health has been alarmed that there is a growing mental health concern among Filipinos – even long before the COVID-19 pandemic stormed ashore in mid March of 2020Indeed, Our Lord has measured out our years and of those years that have resolved to leave us on this earth he has marked out one which shall be our last one

We give our hand to DSWD for its continuing advocacy to address the plight, often glossed over, perhaps sans intention, of vulnerable sectors of Philippine society including those, but not limited to, the marginalized children once described as future leaders of the community.

And as we shift to higher gear in celebrating National Children’s Month,

we look at the bulletin board raised by the Geneva-based World Health Organization and are flustered by the alarming particulars on rising mental health problems.

Good mental health is the state of wellbeing where an individual can deal with the daily challenges of life, enables the child to work productively, recognize his abilities so he can better contribute to the community.

However, the National Center for Mental Health has been alarmed that there is a growing mental health concern among Filipinos—even long before the

From January to March 2015, the Global School-Based Student Health Survey stated that 7 percent of high school students aged 13 to 15 years old have attempted to commit suicide, while 12 percent have seriously considered suicide attempts, and 11 percent have planned how they will conduct the suicide.

Suicide-related calls grew three times more over the course of the pandemic regardless of age, and the NCMH received an increase in the average daily calls from 32 to 27 in their Crisis Hotline.

In the overall number of calls, 9.7 percent is suicide-related and 251 of the callers were minors.

Most of the concerns of the callers cited stressful life incidents, feeling of sadness, finding someone to talk or rely to, feeling anxious, experiencing bullying in-person or in cyberspace, experiencing personal and family problems, abuse or violence, and concerns in academics among others.

Following the concerns experienced by the children since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Council for the Welfare of Children with the Consuelo Foundation initiated the Kuwentuhan (Learning/Consultation Sessions with Children) during the 29th National Children’s Month in November 2021.

Laudable partnership which we feel is long-lasting.

Resiliency, unity amid calamity

As Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), I am pleased to report that the agency in cooperation with the local government units (LGUs) and non-government organizations, provided aid worth P23.3 million to Paeng victims.

WE SHARE the grief and pain of our fellow Filipinos severely affected by tropical storm Paeng that reportedly left at least 80 dead and billions of pesos in property damage and lost livelihood.

As of this writing, President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. (PBBM) welcomed the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) to declare a year-long national state of calamity.

PBBM is carefully assessing the extent of the destruction wrought by Paeng which may have aggravated the effects of previous natural disasters like super typhoon Karding in various regions.

The nation’s lawmakers are in sync with PBBM in tweaking the proposed P5.26 trillion 2023 national budget to ensure funding for recovery efforts and rehabilitation of areas hardest-hit by the series of tragedies.

House Speaker Martin Romualdez strongly supports NDRRMC’s proposal for declaration of national calamity for a more efficient delivery of services and recovery efforts, following reports of widespread destruction.

“We will do everything to help our kababayans affected by Paeng,” Speaker Romualdez stressed.

PBBM is carefully assessing the extent of the destruction wrought by Paeng which may have aggravated the effects of previous natural disasters like super typhoon Karding in various regions

The DSWD’s Disaster Response Operations Monitoring and Information Center said about 295,000 households or 1. 27 million people were affected by Paeng.

Just days before Paeng’s onslaught, we rushed to Abra province which was pinpointed as the epicenter of the recent 6.4-intensity earthquake.

The tremor, initially reported as intensity 6.7, damaged roads, bridges and historical structures, hindering access to several areas.

Joy and worry for Venezuelans as US shuts land border

Until now they have been granted excep tions because of Washington’s distrust of the hard-left regime in Caracas, which it says pun ishes political opponents.

Instead, the United States will allow 24,000 Venezuelans to apply for entry under a hu manitarian program, similar to a scheme that has welcomed tens of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion of their country.

The program—launched a month ahead of elections—is a bid by President Joe Biden’s administration to chart a path between Demo cratic demands for helping desperate migrants and Republican calls to stem what they paint as a “tide” of illegal migration.

In the year to September, border authorities encountered more than 155,000 Venezuelans, more than triple the previous year.

Most, like Jose, arrive in Texas.

He set foot on US soil on Sunday after wad ing across the chest-deep waters of the Rio Grande river near Eagle Pass.

“It was nothing compared to what I had to do to get here,” he said as he stood in the bak ing Texas sun, his clothes wet and his shoes muddy.

In his backpack were the few clothes he still

The Department of Homeland Security has announced that Venezuelans entering the United States by land will be returned to Mexico, in line with almost all other migrants without visas coming over the border

owned. “The others I left on the road.”

Crisis

Millions of Venezuelans have left the coun try in recent years, fleeing a political and

economic crisis under authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro.

Many have traveled to nearby Latin Ameri can countries but an increasing number are heading for the United States—despite the dis tance and the danger.

Videos on TikTok— a main source of news for Venezuelans—show columns of people with backpacks making their way through dense vegetation.

Stories of rapes, robberies, murders and bribery are common among those who make it.

Jose’s seven-country journey took him a month.

After reuniting with his wife and young child, he thought things were finally coming together, with his 22-year-old son setting off from Caracas to join him.

Then the US government changed the rules.

“I am very sad, and so is he, because we were all going to be together finally,” he says.

“It would give me a lot of pain if he makes such a big effort and they send him back to Mexico, where the people are very good but the immigration agents and the police mistreat us a lot.”

Jose says his time in Mexico was the hardest

Back in July, at least 11 people were killed and 615 were injured when a magnitude 7.0 quake jolted Abra province, triggering landslides and cracks on the ground.

Among those most severely affected by the latest tropical storm are Western Visayas, Maguindanao and Zamboanga while heavy downpour caused flooding in Central Luzon, as well as Cavite south of Metro Manila.

It is truly sad that we have to endure these difficulties as we honor the memory of our departed loved ones on the occasion of All Saints Day and All Souls Day. We would like to assure everyone that the national leadership is doing everything it can to address the needs of calamity victims, particularly those made homeless by the strong rains, floods and landslides. At my end, we will continue to bring more family food packs and other essential items to evacuation centers and relocation areas in calamity areas.

We will welcome good-hearted individuals who would like to volunteer to help repack FFPs at the DSWD operations centers.

Individuals or organizations can call Clifford Gabatin at 09569226155 or Ms. Nica at 09152921875 or visit the DSWD NROC at Chapel Road, Pasay.

We endured over two years of crisis due to COVID-19 pandemic that devastated more than 200 countries in terms of deaths and economic losses.

We must all agree, as PBBM said, the Filipino resiliency and unity have time and again prevailed and, this time again, will get us through this state of calamity.

part of the trip.

“In the jungle they put a bracelet on you to distinguish those who pay from those who don’t. Those who don’t pay are mistreated.

“In Mexico, the coyote tells you it’s $500, but if you tell him ‘I have $200,’ he accepts it.

“But a Mexican cop will tell you it’s $500 and if you don’t give it to him, he’ll beat you or rob you.”

Maria, who also arrived in Eagle Pass on Sunday, was reunited with her boyfriend in Georgia on Wednesday.

“I was lucky, but the Mexican agents took my friends and beat them. They detained them for two weeks, and released them somewhere else. Now they won’t be able to get into the US,” she says.

Maria’s boyfriend is overjoyed that she made it to the United States, where he hopes she will be able to get treatment for a chronic illness.

But he frets over what will happen now to his three sisters, who are somewhere deep in the Darien Gap.

“I do nothing but think, I’m happy because Maria is finally here, but I don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said. AFP

Honor Blanco Cabie,

Rolando

INTO RIVER

India bridge collapse kills more than 130

MORBI, India—At least 132 people died in India when a colonial-era pedestrian bridge packed with revellers collapsed into the river below, police said Monday.

CCTV footage showed the structure in the western state of Gujarat swaying —with a few people apparently delib erately rocking it -- before it suddenly gave way.

AFFIDAVIT OF SELF-ADJUDICATION BY SOLE HEIR

The walkway and one fence crashed into the river, leaving the other side dan gling in mid-air and hundreds of people in the water.

Notice is hereby given that the estate of the late GABRIEL RARAS JOSE who died on February 3, 2021 in the City of Taguig Philippines have been extrajudicially settled to Rizalina Raras Jose. The deceased left a condominium unit at the Shore 2 Residences, Seaside and Sunrise Drive MOA

Authorities said nearly 500 people were celebrating the last day of the Di wali festival on and around the nearly 150-year-old suspension bridge in Mor bi when supporting cables snapped after dark on Sunday.

“I saw the bridge collapse before my eyes,” said one witness who worked all night on rescue efforts, without giving his name.

“It was traumatic when a woman showed me a photo of her daughter and asked if I had rescued her. I could not

AFFIDAVIT OF SELF-ADJUDICATION BY SOLE HEIR

Notice is hereby given that the estate of the late MARIO ANGELES SY who died intestate

Republic

EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF THE ESTATE OF THE LATE MARIO ANGELES SY

tell her that her daughter had died.”

Another witness named Supran said the bridge was “jam-packed”.

“The cables snapped and the bridge came down in a split second. People fell on each other and into the river,” he told local media.

News reports showed footage of peo ple clinging onto the twisted remains of the bridge or trying to swim to safety in the dark.

Most Indians cannot swim and an other Morbi resident, Ranjanbhai Patel, said he helped pull out those who had been able to reach the banks.

“As most of the people had fallen into the river, we were not able to save them,” he said.

Senior police official Ashok Kumar Yadav told AFP on Monday morning that the death toll stood at 132.

Sources said that most of the victims were women and children.

One local MP, Kalyanji Kundariya, told media he had lost 12 family mem bers in the accident, including five chil dren.

The bridge over the Machchhu river, a popular tourist spot, had only reopened several days earlier for the local Guja

rati New Year holiday after months of repairs.

‘No certificate’

Authorities launched a rescue opera tion following the collapse, with boats and divers searching the river all night and on Monday morning.

P. Dekavadiya, the head of police in Morbi, told AFP that more than 130 sur vivors had been rescued.

The suspension bridge, 233 metres (764 feet) long and 1.5 metres wide, was inau gurated in 1880 by the British colonial au thorities and made with materials shipped from England, reports said. AFP

Explosions rock Kyiv days after Black Sea attack

KYIV—Several blasts shook Kyiv on Monday, days after Russia blamed Ukraine for drone attacks on its Crimea fleet in the Black Sea.

At least five explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital between 8:00 am (0600 GMT) and 8:20 am, accord ing to AFP journalists.

Kyiv had already been hit on Octo ber 10 and 17 by drones.

138; Page No. 29; Book No. 15; Series of 2022. (MStandard-Oct. 25, Nov. 1 & 8, 2022)

IN RE: PETITION FOR CORRECTION OF ENTRY IN THE CERTIFICATE OF LIVE BIRTH OF JAY FRANCIS C. GERVACIO AND THE CANCELLATION OF THE CERTIFICATE OF LIVE BIRTH BELATEDLY REGISTERED JAY FRANCIS C. GERVACIO, Petitioner, SP. PROC. NO. QZN-21-10941-SP

OFFICE OF THE CIVIL REGISTRAR GENERAL, OFFICE OF THE LOCAL CIVIL REGISTRAR OF QUEZON CITY, OFFICE OF THE LOCAL CIVIL REGISTRAR OF TAGUIG CITY, EDUARDO O. CASTRO and LALAINE CASTILLON GERVACIO Respondents.

ORDER

The Court notes the Manifestation of Compliance dated June 27, 2022 filed by the petitioner.

The petitioner Jay Francis Gervacio filed a verified petition for the correction of entry in his Certificate of Live Birth and for the cancellation of the Certificate of Live Birth belatedly registered.

The petitioner alleges that he was born June 11, 1989 at East Avenue Medical Center with the name Jay Francis Soriano, as indicated in his Certificate Live Birth No. 91-58078. In his Certificate of Live Birth the name of his father was Eduardo Ortañez Soriano and his mother is Lalaine Castillon Gervacio. It was also indicated therein that his father and mother were married at Batac, Ilocos, Norte on September 29, 1987. He was also belatedly registered under the name Jay Francis Castillon Gervacio in his Certificate of Live Birth No. 2001-3780 of the Registry of Deeds of Taguig City. A perusal of his Certificate of Live Birth No. 2001-3780 discloses that there is an Affidavit of Delayed Registration executed by Lalaine G. Soriano by reason of negligence. Lalaine C. Gervacio supplied erroneous information including the name of his father in his Certificate of Live Birth to hide the fact that she is a single mother and his son was born out of wedlock. However, when he started to go to school, petitioner started to use the name Jay Francis Castillon Gervacio since his mother did not like to follow the erroneous information stated in his Certificate of Live Birth.

To avoid confusion, petitioner prays that after due notice, publication and hearing, an Order be issued cancelling his Certificate of Live Birth No. 2001-3780. Petitioner also prays that the following corrections be made in his Certificate of Live Birth No. 91-58078.

1. In Entry No. 1 pertaining to the name from SORIANO to GERVACIO.

2. The middlename from GERVACIO to CASTILLON 3. In Entry No. 9 pertaining to the name of the father, to correct the entry from Eduardo Ortanez Soriano to Eduardo Ortaliza Castro

4. In Entry No. 12 pertaining to the Date and Place of Marriage of Parents to correct the same from

Branson

SINGAPORE—British tycoon Richard Branson has rejected an invitation to debate Singapore’s interior minister on the death penalty but doubled down on criticism that grew over the ex ecution of a Malaysian man.

The Ministry of Home Affairs invited Branson, a long-time campaigner against capital pun ishment, this month for a live televised debate with the interi or minister on the death penalty and Singapore’s approach to il licit drugs.

The ministry even offered to fly the Virgin Group founder to the city-state to show why Singapore should do away with laws it said had kept its “safe from the global scourge of drug abuse”.

The British billionaire turned down the invitation and said the “brave thing” for officials to do would be to engage with local activists.

“They deserve to be listened to, not ignored, or worse yet, ha rassed,” Branson said in a letter posted on the Virgin website.

“A television debate— limited in time and scope, always at risk of prioritizing personalities over issues - cannot do the complexity of the death penalty any service,” he said.

The ministry had questioned Branson’s credentials on the subject, saying it did not accept anyone in the West was “entitled to impose their values on other societies”.

“Nor do we believe that a coun try that prosecuted two wars in China in the 19th century to force the Chinese to accept opium im ports has any moral right to lec ture Asians on drugs,” it said in its original statement. AFP

US, China discuss relations, war in Ukraine in weekend dialogue

WASHINGTON—US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the rivalry between the two superpowers and Rus sia’s war in Ukraine in a call Sunday, the State Department and Beijing’s foreign ministry said.

The top diplomats talked about the need to “responsibly manage the compe tition between our two countries,” Blink en said in a tweet.

They also discussed the need for Bei jing and Washington to keep open lines of communications and held talks about the war in Ukraine, the US State Depart ment said.

Blinken “raised Russia’s war against Ukraine and the threats it poses to global security and economic stability,” State

Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

China has steadfastly avoided criti cizing Russia for invading Ukraine and instead blames the United States and NATO for the war.

The call comes as relations between the two superpowers nosedive over Taiwan and a litany of other issues and is the first between the diplomats since Blinken warned China was speeding up its plans to retake the democratic selfruled island.

Beijing said Wang had raised on the call recent sanctions by the US on China aimed at limiting its access to high-end semiconductors with military uses and had called for “diplomatic efforts” in Ukraine. AFP

After Monday’s blasts, mayor Vi tali Klitschko said in a Telegram mes sage: “An area of Kyiv is without electricity and certain areas without water following Russian strikes.”

Monday’s attack on the Ukrainian capital comes after Russia pulled out of a landmark agreement that allowed vital grain shipments via a maritime safety corridor.

The July deal to unlock grain ex ports signed between warring nations Russia and Ukraine -- and brokered by Turkey and the United Nations -is critical to easing the global food crisis caused by the conflict.

“(A) bulk carrier loaded with 40 tons of grain was supposed to leave the Ukraine port today,” Infrastruc ture Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov tweeted.

“These foodstuffs were intended for Ethiopians, that are on the verge of famine. But due to the blockage of the ‘grain corridor’ by Russia the export is impossible,” the Ukrainian minister said.

The agreement, which established a corridor through which vessels could travel to Istanbul for inspections, had already allowed more than nine mil lion tonnes of Ukrainian grain to be exported and was due to be renewed on November 19.

But Russia announced Saturday it would pull out of the deal after accus ing Kyiv of a “massive” drone attack on its Black Sea fleet, which Ukraine labelled a “false pretext”.

US President Joe Biden called the move “purely outrageous” while Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Moscow was “weaponising food”.

Russia’s defence ministry alleged Sunday the attack drones had “Cana dian-made navigation modules”, and that they “were moving in the safe zone of the ‘grain corridor’”.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed “deep concern” about the situation, his spokesman said, and delayed his de parture for an Arab League Summit in Algiers by a day “to focus on the issue”.

The EU on Sunday urged Russia to “revert its decision”.

- Enough grain to ‘feed millions’The centre coordinating the logis tics of the deal said in a statement that no traffic would move through the safety corridor on Sunday. AFP

SAO PAULO—Brazilian presidentelect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for “peace and unity” after narrowly winning a divisive runoff election Sunday, capping a remarkable politi cal comeback by defeating far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro -- who has yet to accept defeat.

The victory marks a stunning turn around for the charismatic but tar nished leftist heavyweight, who left office in 2010 as the most popular president in Brazilian history, fell into disgrace when he was impris oned for 18 months on controversial, since-quashed corruption charges, and now returns for an unprecedent ed third term at age 77.

All eyes will now be on how Bol sonaro and his supporters react to the result after months of alleging -- without evidence -- that Brazil’s electronic voting system is plagued by fraud and that the courts, media, and other institutions had conspired against his far-right movement.

“This country needs peace and unity,” Lula said to loud cheers in a victory speech in Sao Paulo.

“The challenge is immense,” he said of the job ahead, citing a hunger crisis, the economy, bitter political division, and deforestation in the Amazon.

He later addressed a tightly packed crowd of hundreds of thousands of supporters who flooded the city cen

ter clad in Workers’ Party red, vow ing: “democracy is back.”

‘He hasn’t called yet’ Bolsonaro, 67, was silent in the hours after the result was declared.

“Anywhere in the world, the losing president would already have called to admit defeat. He hasn’t called yet, I don’t know if he will call and con cede,” Lula told the massive crowd.

Some Bolsonaro supporters, gath ered in the capital Brasilia, refused to accept the results.

“The Brazilian people aren’t go ing to swallow a faked election and hand our nation over to a thief,” said 50-year-old teacher Ruth da Silva Barbosa.

Lula da Silva wins Brazil’s bitter presidential vote, incumbent Bolsonaro silent

CYAN MAGENTA

EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF THE ESTATE OF

LATE MARIO

RIVER SEARCH. Indian rescue personnel conduct search operations after a bridge across the river Machchhu collapsed in Morbi, some 220 kms from Ahmedabad, early on October 31. At least 130 people were killed on after an almost 150-year-old colonial-era pedestrian bridge collapsed, sending scores of people tumbling into the river below. AFP

IN MEMORIAM. Mourners pay tribute in front of a joint memorial altar for victims of the deadly Halloween crowd surge, outside the city hall in Seoul on October 31, 2022. AFP

TOP LOSERS

Asian markets rise ahead of Fed decision

rein in decades-high inflation.

to the positive mood has

an indication that others around the world are looking at slowing down, though the excitement was tempered Friday by record inflation readings in Europe and data showing prices re mained elevated.

Asian dealers were given a strong lead from Wall Street, where all three main indexes ended more than two per cent higher thanks to a rally in tech firms following a strong earnings report from Apple.

ton all piled on more than one percent, while Jakarta was also up.

However, Hong Kong and Shanghai fell on concerns about China’s growth outlook as the government continues its zero-Covid strategy of lockdowns, with restrictions imposed in towns and cities nationwide.

Data showing activity in the fac tory and services sectors contracted last month highlighted the impact the mea sures are having on the world’s number two economy.

two months, fanning concerns of further painful shutdowns.

All eyes are on the Fed’s policy meet ing, which ends Wednesday.

While it is widely expected to an nounce a fourth successive 75 basis point hike, traders will be poring over the post-meeting statement looking for a hint that officials are open to dialing back the pace of increases.

MOST ACTIVE

VOLUME

1 BDO 3,543,170 450,142,180

2 SMPH 13,844,500 439,449,930

3 SCC 8,714,600 309,490,685

4 ALI 10,104,800 259,662,925

191,531,160

179,963,240

that

a

Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Mumbai, Bangkok and Welling

The drops also come after China an nounced a tally of over 2,500 new virus cases, the biggest outbreak in more than

China’s factory activity contracts on COVID lockdowns

BEIJING, China—China’s factory ac tivity shrank in October, official data showed Monday, after industries were hit by strict COVID lockdowns.

The Purchasing Managers’ Index—a gauge of manufacturing in the world’s second-biggest economy—came in at 49.2, down from September’s 50.1 and be low the 50-point mark separating growth from contraction, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

Sporadic lockdowns around China have dampened demand and business confidence.

The manufacturing PMI has been in contraction territory for six out of the past eight months, as sweeping Covid restrictions paralyzed major industrial cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, and

people are creative

CREATIVITY involves transforming ideas, imagination and dreams into reality. Being creative allows you to explore hidden patterns, create con nections with unrelated things and brainstorm new and unique ideas. This was the case during our session with Ms. Roxy Araneta, one of the most cre ative minds I’ve ever met.

As soon as she introduced herself as a preschool teacher, I had fun-filled flashbacks from my past work as a preschool practitioner. As a former preschool teacher, I began to recollect the enjoyable moments during my pre school teacher years and how I trained myself to be creative for my students.

We started the class session with our minds being tested. We engaged in a healthy and fun discussion from ob serving different kinds of artworks of various artists. What caught my atten tion was our participation in different drawing activities to see our creativ ity. I was excited because I felt like a preschool teacher again. My mind was full of creative ideas during that time.

Flashback moments of me creating different artistic works for my students before also circled my mind. I was also eager to share during our discussions. From drawing circles to hand drawing, participating in this class session was such a joy.

After a while, I began to think about the concept of creativity being applied to my current work. Different ques tions suddenly circled my mind: how can I be creative in my current work? Does being creative apply to my cur rent work setup? In what ways can I be creative in my work? And so on.

My mind started to look for ideas for these questions. As creativity is not of ten applied in my current work setup, I began contemplating different ideas. We can apply the concept of creativity through our various monthly engage

ments and team-building activities, which can help increase camarade rie and boost our team’s morale. I became eager to come up with ways for future work engagements. As De cember is almost near, this may be when my team and I can come up with creative ideas for fun-filled and memo rable branch engagements. It will also benefit everyone if we can provide creative ideas to help foster a positive environment and excitement for our future engagement plans.

I had some realizations from this class session. Creativity is not just through magnificent artworks or im pressively written masterpieces. Still, it can be other things, such as inspir ing ideas for bettering yourself and the people around you. People might not like what you created nor gain their support, but as long as you believe in yourself, you will gain others’ trust.

Being creative is a significant factor in our integral human devel opment. Creativity opens doors to many wonderful things that can help you grow and flourish. How we de velop different creative ideas makes it easier for us to share and gain confidence from our peers and other people around us.

Participating in Ms. Roxy’s class session was a delight because we all had the opportunity to broaden our cre ative minds and impart our ideas to ev eryone. It was also a pleasure to learn from Ms. Roxy, especially the 12 steps to be more creative. These (hopefully) I can apply in my workplace. All in all, it was such a joy having this class ses sion. Creativity brings out the different kinds of artists we are supposed to be.

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

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

Chengdu and a summer of searing heat hit production.

“In October, affected by the frequent appearance of domestic outbreaks, China’s purchasing managers’ index declined,” NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe said in a statement.

Zhao added that “the foundation for China’s economic recovery and devel opment needs to be further consolidat ed”, noting both weakened demand and rising raw material prices.

While activity at larger businesses ex panded in October, work at small and medium-sized enterprises contracted sig nificantly, with Zhao saying, “the pressure on production and operation at small and medium-sized enterprises has increased”.

The non-manufacturing PMI came in at 48.7 points in October, a sharp de cline from 50.6 in September and “be low a critical point”, Zhao said in the statement.

Zhao added that Covid outbreaks in October had hit the service industry es pecially hard, with activity in transport, accommodation, and food and beverage businesses falling during a traditional peak period coinciding with week-long national holidays.

“We don’t expect the zero-Covid pol icy to be abandoned until 2024, which means virus disruptions will keep inperson services activity subdued,” Cap ital Economics analyst Zichun Huang said in a note on Monday. AFP

The gathering comes as other central banks have recently indicated they are willing to ease up, with Canada raising rates less than expected last week, while authorities in Australia and Europe have taken a more dovish view. AFP

US Fed poised to make fourth interest rate hike

WASHINGTON, United States—The US Federal Reserve is pegged to make a fourth straight steep hike in the key interest rate this week as it battles surg ing costs, with its aggressive stance fu eling expectations of a recession.

American households have been squeezed by soaring consumer pric es, propelling economic issues to the top spot among voter concerns in upcoming midterm elections. Fed of ficials walk a tightrope to try and rein in prices while avoiding a downturn.

To raise borrowing costs and cool demand, the US central bank has already cranked up the benchmark lending rate five times this year, in cluding three straight 0.75 percent age point raises.

But with persistently high inflation and a tight labor market supporting wag es and spending, analysts say another 0.75-point hike is almost certain at the central bankers’ next policy meeting.

The policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee starts its twoday policy meeting on Tuesday, and all eyes are on signals that it may be ready to slow its campaign in the months ahead.

There will be a focus on whether the committee is confident of being “on track” toward a policy stance re strictive enough to manage inflation risks, a Barclays analysis said.

Many economists expect the Fed to raise rates again by another half point in December.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has made it clear that there is no “painless way” to cool the econo my and avoid a repeat of the last time US inflation got out of control in the 1970s and early 1980s. AFP

HK banking summit a sales pitch but is anyone buying?

By Holmes Chan and Su Xinqi

HONG KONG, China—Hundreds of top bankers will arrive in Hong Kong this week to hear the government’s sales pitch that—despite lingering pandemic curbs and entrenched USChina tensions—the city is once again open for business.

The Chinese finance hub has pre pared a high-profile summit, includ ing a glitzy banquet at a newly opened art museum to woo financial bigwigs, hoping to outshine regional rivals like Singapore, London and Tokyo.

Wednesday’s gathering has come under fire from some United States lawmakers, who said Wall Street’s luminaries are “whitewashing human rights violations” with their presence and giving political cover to city leader John Lee.

Lee, who is scheduled to deliver an opening keynote speech, is among Chinese officials sanctioned by Wash ington for their role in cracking down on human rights in Hong Kong.

He is, as a result, unable to hold a bank account at the financial giants whose top executives will share the stage with him this week.

“Business as usual in Hong Kong is the wrong choice for these compa nies,” said the leaders of the bipartisan US Congressional-Executive Com mission on China.

The event still has plenty of cheer leaders from local industry, anxious to maintain Hong Kong’s standing as a global finance hub.

“We need to... paint a more positive picture about the real situation,” finan cial services sector lawmaker Robert Lee told AFP.

“Hong Kong is open for business. I think that message should be loud and clear.”

Restrictions remain

Since Lee’s administration took of fice in July, officials have billed the summit as a watershed moment to show that the city has left behind Chi na’s strict zero-Covid strategy.

Hong Kong finally scrapped man datory hotel quarantine in September.

Many controls, however, remain in place—curbs that rival cities have long abandoned.

Overseas arrivals must undergo fre quent testing and are unable to go to bars and restaurants for their first three days in the city.

Restrictions on various gatherings remain and masks are compulsory, in cluding outdoors.

The finance summit is being held at the Four Seasons hotel and partial ex emptions have been granted so bankers can “have meals with others in private rooms” and visit venues that would oth erwise be off-limits.

Those who test positive will be per mitted to skip isolation and leave by private flights if they can.

“Covid restrictions are hurting us,” said Mike Rowse, a former civil servant who promoted the city to foreign inves tors.

“I used to travel around the world selling Hong Kong... When you finish (that pitch) you say: ‘Come and see for yourself’. But right now, you can’t say that.”

The delicate balance between con venience and pandemic control was thrown into sharp relief last week when

Hong Kong finance chief Paul Chan caught the coronavirus while abroad —potentially forcing him to skip the conference.

Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser also con tracted the virus and pulled out of the event, removing one of the few senior women at a gathering otherwise domi nated by men.

Top officials have promised to keep reopening.

But Aries Wong, an economist at Hong Kong Baptist University, said the incremental tweaks mean little to foreign firms unless controls are fully scrapped.

“There is still policy uncertainty because if the controls remain on the books, it means they can potentially be tightened if things worsen again,” Wong told AFP.

Gateway to China

International firms are also caught in the middle of fraying US-China trade ties and competing sanction regimes that make compliance a headache.

The former British colony has been under Beijing’s tightening grip after authorities cracked down on huge and often violent pro-democracy protests in 2019. AFP

Green LiGht

LORENZ LUARCA

ENERGY DEAL. Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs and QatarEnergy president and chief executive Saad Sherida al-Kaabi (right) and American multinational corporation ConocoPhillips chief executive Ryan Lance attend a press conference after signing an agreement at the QatarEnergy headquarters in Doha on Oct. 30, 2022. AFP

People walk through Exchange Square in Hong Kong on Oct. 28, 2022. Hundreds of top bankers will take part in a summit in Hong Kong this week as the city prepares to reopen for business after the pandemic. AFP

Globe blocked 270.5m SMS in September

By Darwin G. Amojelar

GLOBE Telecom Inc. said Monday it blocked more than 270.5 million mes sages in September after implement ing a new measure against person-toperson messages with clickable links.

“Our data shows that we have been blocking record numbers of spam and scam messages through our intensified efforts, most recently unleashing our stringent measure against SMS with clickable links,” Globe chief information security officer Anton Bonifacio said.

“This shows our efforts have been paying off as we prepare for the full implementation of the SIM Registration Act, which was envisioned to give government and industry players a leg up in the fight against fraudsters,” he said.

Globe blocked 1.3 billion messages in the first nine months, exceeding last year’s full target of 1.15 billion. The monthly total of blocked SMS also saw a staggering 295.74 percent rise over the past nine months, from 68.34 million in January to 270.5 million in September.

The October figure may reach millions again as Globe started a new measure against spam and scam messages in the last week of September, the company said.

Under the unprecedented new security measure, all person-toperson SMS with clickable links from all networks are blocked. Fraudsters were noticeably crafting spam and scam SMS in new ways to circumvent the new measure, Globe said.

The total figure from January to September also included 49.3 million scam and spam messages related to banks and financial institutions. Globe said it nurtured partnerships with banks on data sharing to intensify parallel efforts against fraud.

Globe invested heavily in capital expenditures and man hours in the fight against spam and scam messages. The company said it spent $20 million or P1.1 billion to boost its capabilities in detecting and blocking scam and spam messages of international and domestic sources, including app-to-person and personto-person SMS.

BSP sees October inflation exceeding 7% on fare hikes

By Julito G. Rada

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said

Monday inflation rate in October likely exceeded 7 percent, faster than the four-year high of 6.9 percent in September, on transport fare hikes, higher fuel prices and weaker peso.

It said in a statement the October in flation would likely settle within a range of 7.1 percent to 7.9 percent. The Philip pine Statistics Authority will release the official inflation data later this week.

“Inflation pressures for the month are expected to emanate from transport fare hikes, elevated domestic petroleum prices, higher agricultural commodity prices due to recent typhoons and the depreciation of the peso,” the BSP said.

“This could be offset in part by the re duction in electricity rates for Meralcoserviced areas, lower LPG prices and

reduction in prices of fish,” it said.

It said inflation would gradually slow down in the succeeding months as the cost-push shocks due to weather distur bances and transport fare adjustments dissipate.

“Looking ahead, the BSP will con tinue to monitor closely emerging price developments to enable timely interven tion that could help prevent the further broadening of price pressures, in ac cordance with the BSP’s price stability mandate,” it said.

The onslaught of typhoon Karding in September in Luzon resulted in P1.29 bil lion worth of damage on the agricultural sector. The Department of Agriculture said at least 82,158 farmers and fisherfolk were affected, with volume of production loss at 72,231 metric tons and 141,312 hectares of agricultural areas.

Meanwhile, initial DA estimates showed that typhoon Paeng that struck over the weekend caused P49.54 million in damage and losses to agriculture. The DA’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Operations Center on Sunday said 1,949 hectares of

agricultural areas in Luzon and Western Visayas were affected.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort told Manila Standard in an email that storm damage could have led to some tempo rary increase in the prices of food and other agricultural commodities and im pact overall inflation until supply chains normalized.

Ricafort said this was “a pattern seen in recent years during the typhoon sea son in the country”.

“There would also be relief, recon struction, reparation, rebuilding and other rehabilitation activities in hard-hit areas by the storms that could offset any economic output/productivity losses in those areas,” he said.

Ricafort also said October inflation would likely reach 7.1 percent and would start to ease gradually starting the first quarter of 2023 on higher base/ denominator effects.

Inflation in September rose to 6.9 per cent from 6.3 percent in August, driven by faster increases in food and non-al coholic beverages.

Concepcion reported P19.3-m income in Q3

APPLIANCE maker Concepcion Industrial Corp. said third-quarter net income reached P19.3 mil lion, a turnaround from the P24.3-million net loss it booked in the same period last year.

CIC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Friday the positive third-quarter performance was due to improved margins from higher volume and increased pricing which helped offset headwinds from higher commodity costs and weaker peso. Third-quarter sales climbed 15 percent to P3 billion from a year ago. The group’s consumer and commercial segments posted growth rates of 10 percent and 28 percent, respectively.

CIC said sales growth in the consumer chan nel was driven by increased pricing, while the commercial channel’s growth was led by higher backlog and new orders from the opening of busi ness establishments and easing of lockdown re strictions.

“The business environment remains difficult, but we have made the right investments to weather the storm, and thrive in the recovery that follows. We remain confident that the fundamentals for an eventual economic recovery are in place. Mean while, we continue to build our products, brands, our distribution, and logistics capabilities, while improving our operational execution,” CIC chair man and chief executive Raul Joseph Concepcion said. Jenniffer B. Austria

Meralco sets bidding to challenge Solar PH

POWER retailer Manila Electric Co. said it will conduct another round of competitive selection process to challenge the offer of Solar Philippines Batangas Baseload Corp. involving 200 mega watts of renewable energy.

Meralco said the competitive challenge for the unsolicited proposal of Solar Philippines to cover its baseload requirement starting March 2024 would undergo another bidding process. The first bidding failed because of the lack of challengers during the bid submission on Oct. 25.

Solar Philippines offered to supply Meral co up to 200 MW of baseload power from its 1,800-MW solar projects and 1,800-MW-hour battery storage plants in Nasugbu, Tuy and Balayan, Batangas.

Solar Philippines intends to supply reliable power in all weather conditions, with a plant de signed to produce the contracted energy even dur ing cloudy days. Excess during sunny days can be sold into the wholesale electricity spot market.

The company offered Meralco a fixed price of 4.65 per kilowatt-hour for 20 years, including value-added tax and other charges.

Meralco said it would also hold the second round of competitive challenge for the offer of Ahunan Power Inc. led by businessman Enrique Razon Jr. involving the supply of 500 MW of RE to cover Meralco’s mid-merit requirement starting March 2026. Meralco set the bid submission dead line on Nov. 8. Alena Mae S. Flores

ADB adopts roadmap for Asia and the Pacific

THE Asian Development Bank said it adopted a comprehensive reform roadmap featuring a new operating model to accelerate its transformation and more effectively serve the rapidly changing needs of developing member countries in Asia and the Pacific.

It said the new operating model would enable the ADB to increase its capacity as the region’s climate bank; strengthen its work to develop the private sector and mobilize private investments in the region; provide a larger range of high-quality development solutions for its developing mem ber countries; and modernize ways of working to make it more responsive, agile and closer to clients.

These four key shifts will help ADB deliver on the ambitious development goals of its corporate strategy, Strategy 2030.

“These reforms are both timely and essential,” said ADB president Masatsugu Asakawa.

“Our new operating model will position us to better respond to the complex development chal lenges now faced by Asia and the Pacific. It builds on ADB’s core strength, our staff, to help us deliv er solutions with the greatest development impact for the region,” he said.

Bank loans climb 13.4% as economy sustains recovery

Cebu Landmasters developing 21-hectare mountain resort

said.

By Jenniffer B. Austria

PROPERTY developer Cebu Land masters Inc. is bolstering its leisure and hospitality portfolio with the launch of a 21-hectare mountain resort in Balamban, Cebu.

The project, called Magsaysay Peak Resort and Villas, is a joint venture be tween CLI and MagsPeak Nature Park Inc. composed of Cebuano business men Bob Gothong, Segundino Selma Jr., Richard Ray King and Douglas Gacasan.

Under the plan, CLI’s hospitality arm will build 13 exclusive mountain villas and 20 hotel rooms within the re sort. It will also offer amenities includ ing clubhouse, infinity pools, a farmto-table restaurant and eco-friendly and outdoor programs such as hiking trails, camping facilities and other

child-friendly activities.

“We believe MagsPeak will further enhance the variety of tourist attrac tions in Cebu and the Visayas. It is our way of strategically anticipating the rebound of tourism in our country and also providing a sanctuary for those seeking spiritual retreat,” CLI chair man and chief executive Jose Sobera no III said.

CLI said the resort, which is set to open in 2025, was designed to cre ate a holistic mountain experience for visitors with an outdoor, religious and hospitality component and built with sustainability at its core.

“With sustainability integral to its development, MagsPeak showcases eco-friendly initiatives and outdoor programs such as hiking trails, camp ing facilities, and other child-friendly activities surrounded by nature,” CLI

CLI said it integrated environmen tal conservation and sustainability features in the project’s master plan through tree reforestation programs such as planting thousands of endemic trees prior to construction activities and a solar-powered water retention system promoting a sustainable and responsible development.

MagsPeak will have a 42-kilometer pilgrim trail, traversing the mountain side of Manunggal Balamban, going down to the municipality of Com postela whose patron is St. James the Apostle.

The latest project is expected to boost CLI’s pipeline of hospitality projects which include 10 hotels and resorts in the Visayas and Mindanao with more than 1,700 room keys upon completion.

Mindanao electricity spot market set to start commercial operations this year

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Wholesale Electricity Spot Market in Mindanao is set to start commercial operations by the end of the year, an offi cial of Mindanao Development Authority said Monday.

MinDA deputy executive director Ro meo Montenegro said market participants and power stakeholders were getting ready for the Mindanao Energy Market.

“With all systems in place and rules laid out, Mindanao gets ready to transi tion from bilateral contracts to market-op erated electricity regime with the antici pated commercial start of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market Mindanao by yearend,” Montenegro said.

He said the Department of Energy, En ergy Regulatory Commission and repre sentatives of various electric cooperatives

recently attended the WESM Mindanao Roadshow organized by WESM operator Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines and the Association of Mindanao Rural Electric Cooperatives.

“The electricity market is expected to unlock advantages such as having mar ket-driven electricity price, transparency of dispatch, power sourcing flexibility for grid-connected electric cooperatives and market viability for renewable energy players,” Montenegro said.

He said that as co-chair of the Mind anao Power Monitoring Committee, the MinDA had supported measures, poli cies and programs put forward by DOE to improve the Mindanao power situation, address pricing infirmities and accelerate renewable energy deployment especially in geographically-isolated and disadvan taged areas in the region.

BANK loans expanded by 13.4 per cent in September, faster than the 12.2-percent increase in August, on sustained demand for credit as the economy continues to recover from the impact of the global health crisis, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Monday.

Data showed that on a month-onmonth seasonally-adjusted basis, out standing universal and commercial bank loans, net of placements with the Bangko Sentral, increased 1.7 percent.

“The continued expansion in lend ing activity and ample liquidity will support the recovery of economic activity and domestic demand. Look ing ahead, the BSP will ensure that liquidity and lending conditions re main consistent with its price and fi nancial stability mandates,” the BSP said in a statement.

Outstanding loans to residents, net of reverse repurchase, rose 13.0 per cent in September following an ex pansion of 12.1 percent in August.

Outstanding loans for production activities also went up by 12.3 percent in September from an 11.5-percent in crease in the previous month, on higher lending to real estate activities (16.3 percent); manufacturing (16.2 per cent); information and communication (25.5 percent); and wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and mo torcycles (10.8 percent).

Consumer loans to residents grew by 20.5 percent in September, faster than 18.3 percent in August, driven by the year-on-year increase in credit card loans, motor vehicle loans and salary-based general purpose con sumption loans.

Outstanding loans to non-residents went up by 26.6 percent in September after a 16.3-percent expansion in the previous month.

The BSP also said that domestic liquidity or M3 grew by 5.0 percent year-on-year to about P15.4 trillion in September, slower than the 6.7-per cent growth in August. On a monthon-month seasonally-adjusted basis, M3 decreased by 0.2 percent.

Julito G. Rada

ALSONS SUPPORT. The Alsons Power group’s Siayan Sindangan Zambo-River Power Corp. affirms its commitment to advance technical education in its host communities through a memorandum of agreement with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority-Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9) and the municipality of Siayan, Zamboanga del Norte province. Signing the agreement are Siayan Mayor Alberto Bongcawel (center), TESDA regional director Dan Navarro (third from right) and SZPC project manager Francis Ruther Icao (third from left), with Sangguniang Bayan member Daisy Limbang, SB member Wencito Intoy, Siayan vice mayor Josecor Gepolongca and TESDA provincial director Alan Bacatan witnessing the event. SZPC also turned over electrical, construction and welding tools and equipment valued at P200,000 for the TESDA Tech Vocational Training Center in the Siayan.

DIPLOMATS MEETING. The Consular Corps of the Philippines headed by Dean Sergio Ortiz Luis Jr. (right), who is also the honorary consul general of Romania, presents a plaque of appreciation to US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Loss Carlson (center) as guest of honor and speaker at Conrad Hotel, where she discussed how interconnected the world has become and the important and vital role of consular officers to navigate the ever changing global landscape to increase cultural bonds and promote global trade. With them is Republic of Belarus honorary consult Anna Marie Ablan.

TNT still king of PBA 3x3

TNT lived up to its billing as king of PBA 3x3 when it captured the First Conference championship at the ex pense of Platinum Karaoke Sunday night at Robinsons Place Novaliches.

The Tropang Giga leaned on the clutch baskets of Almond Vosotros and Gyrann Mendoza down the stretch to take the close 20-17 victory and capped a dominant campaign in the opening tournament of Season 2.

Mendoza scored on a layup with 19 seconds to go in the grand finale to break the game’s final deadlock, after which Vosotros put the final nail on the coffin by hitting two-for-two from the line to run away with the title and the P750,000 prize money.

Vosotros led the team with eight points, Mendoza added seven, while big man Lervin Flores and Ping Ex ciminiano had three and two points, respectively, for TNT, which became the first team to win two conference championships in the standalone tour nament.

Ilocos Sur venues ready for Batang Pinoy hosting

By Peter Atencio

OFFICIALS of the Philippine Sports Commission assured the readiness of all the venues that will be used for the Batang Pinoy 2022 in Ilocos Sur.

PSC chairman Noli Eala said the ven ues and their facilities are undergoing daily inspections to ensure that they will remain unaffected and untouched by a series of calamities that have hit northern Luzon and the rest of the coun try lately.

“Handang-handa na kami. Hindi na kami mag-iisip ng alternative na ven

Ateneo, UP in contrasting badminton

wins

ue. Kampanteng kampante na kami na maganda ang itatakbo ng Batang Pinoy 2022,” said Eala.

The venues for the games that will be held in Bantay, Ilocos from Dec. 17 un til 22, are the San Ildefonso Elementary School for archery and table tennis, the President Elpidio Quirino Stadium in Bantay for athletics and swimming, the

VNP stadium for badmin ton and obstacle course, the provincial capitol for cycling and Caoayan for weightlift ing.

Northern Luzon has been hit by at least seven strong ty phoons, including ‘Paeng’ on Saturday, while a magnitude 6.4 earthquake rocked the province of Abra on Tuesday last week, but authorities have managed to keep the stadium and other venues from getting any serious damage Eala is in coordination with the Prov ince of Ilocos Sur, led by Gov. Jeremias “Jerry” Singson, who made the com

Fernandes was still lording over ONE’s bantamweight division right around the time Stephen Loman joined the world’s largest martial arts organi

ATENEO de Manila University and University of the Philippines fashioned differing wins, notching their second straight wins in the UAAP Season 85 Women’s Badminton, Monday at the Cen tro Atletico Badminton Center in Quezon City.

The Blue Eagles, the reigning two-time champions, leaned on national athlete Mika De Guzman to close out University of Santo Tomas, 4-1, after she swept her assignments of the day.

The Ateneo captain took down Charl ize Belen, 21-11, 21-9, in the first singles match, before teaming up with reigning back-to-back MVP Chanelle Lunod in the first doubles match, 21-13, 21-8, over Clara Ignacio and Elij Pena.

Rookie Jochelle Alvarez earlier made it a 2-0 lead for Ateneo with the second singles’ victory past Rhafi Santos also with 21-13, 21-8 score lines.

UST got one back with Santos and Jen nifer Saladaga pocketing the second dou bles match, 15-21, 21-17, 21-15, over Alva rez and Missy Cervantes, but Lunod made sure the defending champions get the last say with a sweep of Saladaga, 21-15, 2115, in the final singles match.

“It’s not easy to get 5-0 because each team has its own exceptional players, so it’s OK. It’s a learning experience for us. I look at it as something to be learned,” At eneo head coach Kennie Asuncion said.

On the other hand, UP flaunted its depth in a sweep of Adamson University, 5-0, with national team standouts Lea In ayo and Susmita Ramos closing it out in the first doubles match.

“The Sniper” knew right away that to make his World Title aspirations a reality, he’d somehow have to go through the Brazilian legend, one way or the other. Somehow, a collision course against “The Flash” has always felt inevitable. Loman finally gets his wish

mitment to host the games after they formally signed a Memorandum of Agree ment on the staging of the Batang Pinoy 2022 last week.

The multi-sports event was originally set De cember 4 to 10, but it was moved to Dec. 17 until 22, following a request from the Department of Education. Eala said they are pushing through with Batang Pinoy 2022 in Ilocos Sur because they are confident that the multievent sports competition will commence smoothly when the time comes.

in the main card of ONE on Prime Video 4: Abbasov vs. Lee at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on November 19.

The Team Lakay fighter will be taking on the toughest challenge of his career in what could be a potential World Title eliminator in the 145-pound ranks.

“In the past, I thought I was going to be matched up with him, but that didn’t hap pen. So for sure, my excitement for that match is still there. He’s the guy who de feated Kuya Kevin [Belingon], so I want to face him to see where my level is at right now,” said Loman.

While Fernandes lost his golden strap to John Lineker earlier this year, he’s still

“Sa practice pa lang, everyday, we take it seriously, and we make sure we stay focused kung gusto naming maulit yung nagawa namin last con ference,” said winning coach Mau Belen.

The Tropang Giga ended their Sea son 1 campaign by claiming the Third Conference championship behind a dramatic overtime win over Purefoods TJ Titans.

Then they picked up from where they left off as the team topped three out of the six legs at stake in the First Conference of the new season, mak ing the Tropang Giga the no. 1 seeded team heading into the grand finals.

TNT routed NorthPort in the quar terfinals, 21-11, and then turned back fourth seed Cavitex in the semis, 2116, to earn a return trip to the finals. Platinum Karaoke, meanwhile, went up the ladder after going through the pool play, and proved it is for real when it hacked out a 19-15 grind-out win against no. 3 J&T Express in the quarterfinals.

In the semis, the team of coach An ton Altamirano survived Meralco by the skin of its teeth, 16-15, to arrange the finals showdown with TNT.

Platinum fell early on, 5-0, but clawed its way back and even led, 15-14, after two free throws by Nico Salva inside the final two minutes.

ranked #1 in the division. Loman, who’s ranked fourth, knows a win against Fer nandes brings him one step closer to the now-vacant ONE Bantamweight World Title.

The Filipino fighter currently holds a 16-2 professional MMA record and is rid ing high on a 10-fight winning streak. His last two victories in the Circle have come against high-level competition.

There was no such thing as a feelingout process for Loman in ONE, as he was thrown into the lion’s den straight away. He lived up to the hype and more by knocking out BJJ black belt Yusup Saadulaev in his ONE debut last year.

CIGNAL best player Serrano rises for Phoenix

AS Phoenix continues its relent less rise from the ashes, another hero stepped up to the plate and added fuel to the team’s playoff drive in the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup.

After fellow rookie teammate Tyler Tio, it was Encho Serrano who soared this time and carried the Fuel Masters to another backto-back wins and stretch their run to five games in a row after a shaky 0-3 start in the importspiced meet.

Phoenix (5-3) is now at fourth spot, with Serrano’s imprints all over its streak of big wins over Rain or Shine and Talk ‘N Text.

The 19th overall rookie pick in the last rookie draft uncorked 17.0 points on a high 50 percent shooting accuracy, on top of 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists to claim the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week honor for the period Oct. 26-30.

Serrano’s feat came in the heels of the same Player of the Week ci tation earned by Tio earlier this

month as the Fuel Masters contin ued to thrive with solid contribu tion from their young guns.

The former La Salle stalwart started his impressive week with a career-best 18 points, five re bounds, five assists and a steal in only 21 minutes of play as Phoe nix drubbed Rain or Shine, 92-83, where Serrano was chosen as the Best Player of the Game.

Up against the fancied TNT squad, the 2022 Draft Combine MVP did not slow down and posted 16 markers, three boards, three dimes, and a steal in the Fuel Masters’ 91-88 win.

Serrano’s fine play featured a clutch freethrow in the final min ute to give Phoenix an 89-88 lead before Tio iced the deal with his own freebies.

Jeron Teng and Alec Stock ton of third running Converge, a team which is also on a winning streak, were also considered for the weekly citation being given by the men and women regularly covering the PBA beat.

where

level

at

Riera U. Mallari,

Caluag,

TNT players do the traditional “groufie” after winning the PBA 3x3 championship at the Robinsons Place Novaliches.

PSC chairman Noli Eala

Bibiano Fernandes

Fuel Master Encho Serrano

NU stays perfect in Shakey’s Super League

NATIONAL University stayed perfect after cruising past Uni versity of the Philippines, 2521, 25-16, 25-20, in the second round of the Shakey’s Super League Collegiate Pre-season Championship at the Rizal Me morial Coliseum Sunday night.

The veteran trio of Bella Bel en, Sheena Toring, and team captain Ces Robles did most of the damage for the Lady Bull dogs, who improved their car ryover win-loss record to 2-0, putting them in a good position to clinch the crossover quarter finals top seed in Pool E.

Meanwhile, Ateneo de Manila University escaped a feisty Uni versity of Perpetual Help, 25-21, 26-24, 26-24, for a 1-1 carryover record also in Pool E.

Alexis Miner led three other Blue Eagles in double figures with 15 points. Lyann De Guz man had 13 markers while Faith Nisperos and Vannie Gandler had 12 and 10 points, respec tively.

The Lady Altas, who got 15 points from Shaira Omipon in a lost cause, dropped to a 0-2 slate.

NU extended their winning run to four straight following a clean sweep of the group stage.

The reigning UAAP cham pions relied on their seasoned players to ward off the Fighting Maroons, who saw their fourgame winning streak snapped.

“As team captain I tried to lead the team by example,” said Robles, who had six points all coming off timely hits that re pelled UP’s attempts to mount a significant rally.

“We were a bit tentative in the opening set. Coach Karl (Di maculangan) just told us to stick with our game plan and execute what we prepared for in training and we just did what we were supposed to do,” she added.

Belen, the UAAP Season 84 Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player, and Toring had eight markers each while Erin Pangilinan had seven points

Monkey off Lakers’ backs with 1st win

Wild chase for last 2 PVL semis slots up for grabs

NINE playdates into the single round robin elims, one team is into the Final Four, another is a cinch to clinch the second semis berth, three are in the thick of the fight for the last two and three more still en tertain hopes of making it through the backdoor.

At 0-4, Army’s chances hinge on a sweep of its last four games and hope that only one from the contenders for the last two semis slots would go over four wins to at least figure in the tiebreak for the last seat although it seems to be a remote possibility at this stage of the Premier Volleyball League Re inforced Conference.

Still, stranger things happen in the league marked by unpredict ability and the All Saints Day break, including the games washed out by rains Saturday, has given all teams time to rest and plot their next offensive to fuel their respec tive semis bids in the season-end ing conference of the league orga nized by Sports Vision.

LOS

ANGELES—LeBron James scored a game-high 26 points and the Los Angeles Lakers became the last NBA team to win a game this season, defeating Denver 121110 on Sunday.

Anthony Davis added 23 points and 15 rebounds while Russell Westbrook came off the bench to contribute 18 points, eight rebounds and eight as sists as the host Lakers improved to 1-5 by ending their futility run.

“We needed this one,” Davis said. “We needed this for our team, our spirits, our fans, our organization. We come out and showed what we’re capable of. It could be the start of a run for us.”

The 0-5 start had matched the 201415 Lakers for the worst in the club’s history, which dates to 1947, but the victory avoided a new mark and gave coach Darvin Ham his first victory.

“It feels good to get that monkey off our back,” Davis said. “Get a win in the win column and try to get this thing going.”

The Lakers scored their most points of any game this season and grabbed their largest lead of the campaign late in the fourth quarter to subdue the

Nuggets, who fell to 4-3 despite 23 points and 14 assists by Nikola Jokic.

“When we play defense like that, we’re a tough team to beat,” Davis said. “But today we made shots.”

Davis played despite a painful back injury.

“It was killing me tonight but I tried to do whatever I could do to help the team get the win,” Davis said.

Earlier in Los Angeles, Zion Wil liamson made a triumphant return from a right hip injury with 21 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for New Orleans in a 112-91 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Pelicans improved to 4-2 on the season and 3-1 when Williamson, the top pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, is on the court.

Williamson played 31 minutes in his comeback game after he suffered the injury during a fall a week ago in a 122-121 overtime loss to Utah.

The 22-year-old American power

forward was driving for a fast break layup when he was blocked by Jordan Clarkson and fell hard to the court.

“I’m fine,” Williamson said. “I’m still a little sore. I can’t lie to you because that was a hard fall. But I’m fine.”

A knee injury limited Williamson to 24 games in his rookie season and he missed all of last season with a bro ken right foot.

So far this season, Williamson is av eraging 21.8 points and 8.0 rebounds a contest.

Cavs win ‘ugly’ Donovan Mitchell scored 38 points and passed off 12 assists, both game highs, to spark the host Cleveland Cavaliers over New York 121-108. Kevin Love added 29 points off the bench as the Cavs improved to 5-1.

“Sometimes you’ve got to win ugly and we did that tonight,” Love said.

Slovenian guard Luka Doncic scored 44 points to power the Dallas Mavericks to a 114-105 home victory over Orlando.

Stephen Curry scored a game-high 32 points and Jordan Poole added 30 for Golden State but the Detroit Pistons had five starters in double figures to defeat the reigning NBA champions 128-114. AFP

Gilas reinforcements from B.League coming

GILAS players who are seeing action in the Japan B. League will return to the country on November 1 and 2 for another tour of duty for our national team.

Dwight Ramos, Kiefer and Thirdy Rav ena and Ray Parks are expected to arrive on November 1 and 2 to play for Gilas Pilipi nas in the fifth window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers where the Philippines plays away games against Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

The Filipinos will take on their Jordanian rivals on November 10 then play the Saudis on November 13.

This coming week, Gilas will take advan tage of having additional reinforcements in the pool following the arrival of Ramos, the Ravena brothers and Parks and pending the potential inclusion of Kai Sotto at the last minute, Gilas might be able to practice a

few more days before leaving on November 7.

Sotto is still playing for the Adelaide 36ers in the National Basketball League Australia, but officials of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas are currently in talks with Sotto’s camp on the plans of bringing the 7-foot-3 cager in time for the fifth win dow.

Aside from the five overseas players, naturalized player Ange Kouame of Ateneo is also being eyed to join Gilas in the com ing window. They were all included in the pool to join reigning PBA Most Valuable Player Scottie Thompson, Japeth Aguilar and Jamie Malonzo of Barangay Ginebra, Calvin Oftana, Roger Pogoy and Poy Er ram of TNT, CJ Perez of San Miguel Beer, Arvin Tolentino and William Navarro of NorthPort, and Chris Newsome of Meralco,

collegiate stars Carl Tamayo of University of the Philippines and Kevin Quiambao of La Salle and former Ateneo high school standout Francis Lopez.

The final 12 will be known on the eve of its scheduled game against Jordan.

Gilas Pilipinas is looking to increase the number of workouts as soon as the four players from the B. League arrives.

Once the team gets settled in Jordan, it will still have a chance to train against its crack opponent which has a strong finish in the FIBA Asia Cup.

Jordan barely made it to the champion ship round of the FIBA Asia Cup, but lost to the Wael Arakji-led Lebanon team in the semifinals.

The Jordanians will be led by Amin Hawwas, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, and their own version of Arakji.

Choco Mucho will try to break off a tie with a resurgent F2 Lo gistics at 2-2 when action heats up on Thursday at the league’s home at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan as the Flying Titans battle the Akari Chargers at 5:30 p.m. with Cignal also out to snap a skid and improve its 1-2 card against Army at 2:30 p.m.

But focus will be on the explo sive Nov. 5 playdate back at the Sta. Rosa Sports Complex in Lagu na where first semifinalist Chery Tiggo stakes its unblemished run against an equally unbeaten Creamline in what many see as a preview of the championship.

The two powerhouse teams dis puted the league’s inaugural pro title in bubble setup in Ilocos Norte last year with the Crossovers stun ning the fancied Cool Smashers in an epic finale that went through the distance – three games and fifth set.

But while Creamline rebounded strongly this and swept the Open Conference and Invitationals to move a jewel away from complet ing a first grand slam, Chery Tiggo struggled due to health issues, end ing up a dismal eighth in both con ferences.

But with a healthy crew, led by Mylene Paat, EJ Laure and Cza Carandang, and a reliable import in Jelene Cvijovic, the Crossovers have lorded it over the field with victories over the F2 Logistics Car go Movers, the Cignal HD Spik ers, the Akari Chargers, the Choco Mucho Flying Titans and the UAIArmy Troopers.

After Creamline, Chery Tiggo will take on Petro Gazz and PLDT. The Cool Smashers, on the other hand, have also stamped their class despite drawing limited help from two-time MVP Tots Carlos, who is slowed down by back issues, the last few matches as Alyssa Valdez, Jema Galanza, Ced Domingo and playmaker Jia de Guzman and re inforcement Yeliz Basa continued to dish out big games.

Johnson claims lucrative LIV double with team victory

DORAL—American Dustin Johnson’s 4 Aces squad won the inaugural LIV Golf Series team champion ship at Trump National on Sunday to claim the $16 million top prize.

Johnson, who earned a reported $150 million by signing up to the Saudi-backed venture, pockets an other $4 million as his share of the team prize money to add to the rewards he gained through winning the debut season’s individual title.

Between team prizes throughout the season and individual event wins, plus his $18 million bonus for claiming the year’s individual crown, Johnson ends the inaugural LIV campaign with an eye-watering $35 million in earnings.

“Personally, my season, yeah, you add up the num bers and it was great, but I played good -- I didn’t play my best, so it always could be better, but that’s golf,” Johnson said.

“But I’m just happy that the 4 Aces just won this

tournament. That’s all that matters,” he said after shooting a two under-par 70 on the Doral Blue Mon ster course.

Johnson’s all-American team -- featuring Talor Gooch, Patrick Reed and Pat Perez -- shot a combined 7-under 281, winning by a shot over Cameron Smith’s all-Australian Punch GC.

British Open champion Smith shot a superb 65 and jousted with Johnson until the death.

The winning team were sprayed by champagne on the final green on a day in which $34 million in prize money was distributed to the four teams in the final.

While the celebrations were genuine and the team format certainly generated enthusiasm from play ers and attracted a decent crowd to the South Florida course owned by former US President Donald Trump, the first LIV season has caused division within golf that shows no signs of ending.

Reports suggest LIV Golf is looking to add more

top players to its lineup ahead of an expanded 14-event second season.

Johnson said LIV will go from strength to strength.

“Just look at what happened today,” he said. “Obvi ously, yeah, it was a team effort, but coming down the 18th hole, it ended up coming down to me and Cam playing the 18th hole to see who wins the team cham pionship.

“You couldn’t have drawn it up any better, but I think that’s what LIV is. Look at all the fans. Look how much fun they have. I think this season went in credible and I think next season is going to be even better.”

With legal cases heading to courts, disputes over world ranking points and Ryder Cup eligibility issues for LIV players, the rancour in the golf world doesn’t look to soon fade, not to mention criticism over the financial backing of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF over human rights issues in Saudi Arabia. AFP

LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers high five during the game against the Denver Nuggets at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. AFP

Dwight Ramos

Team Captain Dustin Johnson of 4 Aces GC sprays champagne on Team Captain Cameron Smith of Punch GC on the podium after the team championship strokeplay round of the LIV Golf Invitational - Miami at Trump National Doral Miami in Doral, Florida. AFP

still rocks at the tills

WARNER Bros.’ film Black Adam remained atop competition for the second weekend running, hauling in a modest estimated $27.7 million in North American box office receipts, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported Sunday.

A feature that explores the origin story behind 2019’s Shazam , the DC Comics superhero, Black Adam stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as a former slave bestowed with special powers.

Coming in second for the Friday-through-Sunday period was Universal’s Ticket to Paradise , a romantic comedy starring A-list stars George Clooney and Julia Roberts The flick brought in $10 million.

Horror films, though, scored more broadly at the box office in the run-up to Halloween.

Prey for the Devil , a Lionsgate flick, was in the number three spot, pulling in $7 million. Paramount’s Smile at fourth and Universal’s Halloween Ends at fifth, brought in $5 million and $3.8 million, respectively. AFP

Second chance

KathNiel debunks breakup rumors

JERIC Gonzales’

recent appearance on the GMA morning program TictoClock where his former girlfriend Rabiya Mateo is one of the hosts trended in social media. This was part of the promotion of StartUp PH where the actor is a member of the cast. That particular guesting, he was with Yasmien Kurdi Jeric had not seen Rabiya since their split-up until his guesting in the show, which is why people are curious to know what his reaction was when he knew he would be in the program and how he was convinced to make the appearance.

“I said yes mainly to promote Start-Up PH since Bea (Alonzo) and Alden (Richards) are busy and it so happened that Yas and I were the ones available that day,” avers Jeric.

Didn’t he feel nervous or awkward with the thought that he’d surely see Rabiya being one of the show’s hosts?

“To be honest, I didn’t think about it right away. But of course, at the back of my mind, I was feeling nervous as to how we’d meet if it would become awkward. But when we’re already there, Rab was game and so am I. When the production talked to us about what we’d do, we both said we could do it.”

In that particular episode of TictoClock, they were teased by the other hosts Kim Atienza and Pokwang. They were even made to hold hands and hug each other in the challenges given to them during the game.

“Things were so light then. There was no awkward or icky feeling because, in truth, we’re good friends. Actually, we never closed our doors to each other. Of course, our priority is our career, but we never forget that at one point, we had a romantic relationship.”

Interestingly, people want to know what caused their split up.

“I can say it’s because of misunderstanding. We have respective priorities in work, life, and career. But definitely, there’s no third party involved. We separated in good fate that’s why there’s no awkwardness when we bump into each other.”

Considering this, is there a possibility that they’ll get back into each other’s arms in the coming days?

“Of course, there is a possibility. There is a chance,” ends Jeric.

• • •

Real-life sweethearts Paul Salas and Mikee Quintos are both excited and proud to have a special participation in the latest installment of the Mano Po Legacy series on GMA. In The Flower Sisters headlined by Aiko Melendez, Thea Tolentino, Angel Guardian, and Beauty Gonzalez, the couple plays important roles. How does it feel to be working together on one project?

“Of course, I’m glad not only because I’m working with my girlfriend in the soap but also, I’ve watched all Mano Po movies in my growing up years and I know that all the actors tapped for the project are highly competent. That’s why it’s a huge honor to be part of the cast in this latest installment,” says Paul. The good-looking young actor treats his and Mikee’s participation in “The Flower Sisters” as a challenge.

“It’s a challenge indeed for both of us. We made adjustments in the first three taping days. I hope we were able to pull it off well.”

On her part, Mikee admits they really had struggles in the initial phase of the taping.

“There is confusion since it’s the first time that I’ve worked on a project with someone I’m romantically involved with. Good thing is, we talked about it and decided to make it a strength instead of a liability.

“At least, there’s the two of us who think about how to improve our scenes together. In the story, we play the characters of Leopoldo and Carmen so we simply wanted that the viewers will see them instead of Paul and Mikee!”

By Marron Joshua F. Mendoza and Lanzelle Cruz

KATHRYN

Bernardo and Daniel Padilla, stars of ABS-CBN’s hit drama series

2 Good 2 Be True, have debunked online rumors of their split. The power couple went together at the opening of Kathryn’s Isla Amara Boutique Resort in El Nido, Palawan, on Friday, October 28.

Daniel was present at the opening with fellow actor and Kathryn’s business partner Piolo Pascual, who helped her in the resort’s ribboncutting ceremony. The couple was seen together in a series of photos posted by showbiz reporter MJ Felipe on Twitter and by content creator Berwin Coroza on Instagram.

KathNiel fans were delighted that the rumors of their breakup were found untrue.

Rumors about Kathryn and Daniel splitting up popped up this week after a few netizens speculated that the two appeared “uncomfortable” in frames from the media conference for the series finale of 2 Good 2 Be True on Monday, October 24.

Fuelling the rumors were the couple’s answers to the media when asked about loyalty.

“Loyalty for me is being contented. Because if you’re contented you won’t look for any more

person, right? So loyalty equals your contentment,” Kathryn said.

Alam mo sinong pinaka-loyal? Yung aso ko, si Summer. Yan ang pinaka-loyal, dun ko makikita yung definition ng loyalty. Na kahit ano man ang pinagdadaanan ko ngayon, kung ano mang sitwasyon ng emosyon ko ngayon, sino ako ngayon, tatanggapin ako ng buong-buo nun. Yun ang loyalty. Walang judgment kung sino ka,” Daniel added.

After the speculations, Kathryn and Daniel posted photos of having a vacation in El Nido together, shutting down the rumors circulating in the media.

Their fans’ reactions also blasted on Twitter after spreading rumors of their break up.

KathNiel is one of the most well-known love teams in the Philippines today. They are well-loved for their roles in movies and shows such as She’s Dating the Gangster, Got to Believe, the 2015 remake of the 2000 series Pangako Sa ‘Yo Crazy Beautiful You Barcelona: A Love Untold, and The Hows of Us

The love team is known for their teamwork and progress as a couple on and off the screen. For a long year, they showed development by maturing together concurrently. KathNiel has since set a good example and left a

significant influence on their fans and audience as a strong couple, and no one can put them down.

Ending a good show

In 2 Good 2 Be True, the couple acts as Alisson “Ali” Fajardo and Elorde “Eloy” Borja, respectively, joining the likes of Ronaldo Valdez as Sebastian “Lolo Hugo” Agcaoili, also known as “Lolo Sir,” and Gloria Diaz as Helena Agcaoili.

“As much as we want to extend it kasi may ganito kami kagandang show, every story talaga kailangan mag-end. So itong run namin, nakita lahat yung journey ng characters pati flashbacks at back story na tinahi sa present time,” according to Kathryn. “You just watch the finale, and you’ll see what I’m saying. It’s enough.”

Daniel, on the other hand, shared that he did not expect a good reception from the viewers for 2G2BT Hindi ko inakala na tatanggapin ng ganito ang show namin na sobrang init kasi we have done many shows together,” he said.

For almost six months, 2 Good 2 viewers saw how Ali and Eloy’s relationship has developed from being enemies to lovers and how their lives have been connected by their pasts. In the last few episodes, will they overcome the biggest obstacle to achieving their dreams?

The series has captured the hearts of viewers and netizens, securing and retaining its spot as the most-watched series on Netflix Philippines. It is also the most-watched series on iWantTFC for five consecutive weeks. Aside from topping the streaming charts, 2 Good 2 Be True has been praised for its well-researched episodes that showed viewers the F.A.S.T method and proper CPR. Various netizens even shared their experiences on how the series helped them through emergency situations.

2 Good 2 Be True airs weeknights at 8:40 p.m. on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and A2Z and at 8:45 p.m. on TV5 and Jeepney TV. It is also available for streaming on iWantTFC and Netflix.

The show’s finale will air on Netflix on Tuesday, November 8.

THE spooky season officially began when Sparkle GMA Artist Center threw a big Halloween party via The Sparkle Spell: Ghosting Made Fun Kapuso celebrities and online personalities went all-out with their witty and unique costumes for the blood carpet event on October 23 at XYLO at The Palace in Taguig City.

Leading the first-ever Halloween spectacle were Sparkle Assistant Vice President for Talent Management Group Joy Marcelo and Consulting Head for Talent Imaging and Marketing Lawrence Tan Start-Up PH actor Alden Richards paid homage to one of his favorite game characters, Squall Leonhart of Final Fantasy, for his costume.

He totally rocked this look, thus winning the Male Best Dressed Award.

Andrea Torres bagged the Female Best Dressed Award as she channeled the hot and sultry Ursula. Couple Gabbi Garcia and Khalil Ramos pulled out all the stops with their infamous Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake denim outfits. They took home the Best Dressed Couple Award. Clad in her warrior princess outfit just like Urduja, Miss Universe Philippines Tourism 2022 Michelle Dee bagged the Sexiest Costume Award.

Miguel Tanfelix wowed everyone as he recreated the spooky character of Edward Scissorhands. His overall look earned him the Scariest Costume Award presented by Globe at Home.

Sofia Pablo was named Star of the Night, presented by JC Premiere, as she dressed up as the ever-classic Corpse Bride on the blood carpet. Meanwhile, Ken Chan, who donned a bright pink blazer and shorts as Ken Doll, and online sensation Sassa Gurl, who put his own spin on dressing as an online seller, were named Male and Female TikTok Crowd Favorites at #TheSparkleSpell.

Aside from the awardees, fans were equally captivated by the well-curated costumes of other celebrities and personalities. Netizens were undeniably hooked on the fun and momentous event, which received 88 million video views and counting in less than 36 hours across all social media posts of Sparkle and its talents.

Nickie Wang, Editor

Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant

‘Black Adam’ starring Dwayne Johnson (right) and Pierce Brosnan

Alden Richards as Squall Leonhart of ‘Final Fantasy’ Allen Ansay (left) and Sofia Pablo as characters from ‘The Corpse Bride’

Sassa Gurl brings his own take on an online seller

Zephanie looking sweet in her ‘Romeo + Juliet’ inspired costume

Kathryn (left) and Daniel holding hands at the opening of Isla Amara Boutique Resort in El Nido, Palawan

Life

By Joba Botana

SUPPOSE

you only have

three days in Dubai, where would you go and what would you do? Depending on what you want to see and do, Dubai has a gamut of experiences to offer. Now that travel restrictions in and out of the Philippines have eased out, it’s easier to plan your next trip. And if Dubai is top of your mind, let me give you a virtual tour of the emirate and perhaps help you plan your itinerary.

When the Philippines’ leading low-cost carrier (LCC), Cebu Pacific Air (CEB), invited select members of the press for its 9th anniversary of servicing the ManilaDubai route, I prepared myself for an adventure-packed three days in Dubai.

A home away from home

We arrived past midnight at the Dubai airport via CEB’s A330neo, its greenest aircraft with the lowest carbon footprint per passenger compared to its other air craft, and immediately checked in at the Rove City Centre Hotel, our home for the next few days. Its contemporary-designed lobby with a high ceiling greeted us. The minimalist-chic room was a perfect sanc tuary for my tired body needing some hours of good sleep.

If you are looking for one of the best places to stay as you explore Dubai, Rove City Centre is the perfect jump-off point for Dubai Creek and old Dubai. It is close to transport links that connect Rove City Centre to the new and old town, with easy access to Dubai International Airport within 10 minutes.

I love that it offers various amenities albeit I was not able to enjoy all. Here are among of its amenities: room service, full restaurant, 24-hour front desk, fitness cen ter, swimming pool, parking, game room, internet access, and locker room access which was absolutely helpful on our last day as we needed to check out early but still had a full day for a tour.

CEB’s ‘Homecoming’ event

For its 9th year of servicing the DubaiManila route, CEB held a press confer ence at the Rove hotel attended by some press in Dubai and our group from the Philippines as well as a “Homecoming” event in the evening attended by some Pinoy entrepreneurs and some OFWs. The event featured Pinoy dishes thus, it was like a homecoming to the Philippines for the attendees. Prior to the event, CEB also raffled off several plane tickets from

Around Dubai in three days

Cebu Pacific celebrates 9th year of servicing the Dubai route

Dubai to Manila and announced the lucky winners during the event to the excitement of the crowd.

These two separate events were graced by the Philippine Consul General to Dubai, Renato Dueñas, Jr., who later gave us an opportunity for an interview.

At the press conference, CEB’s Corpo rate Communications Director Carmina Romero shared some of the milestones of the Dubai-Manila route for the past nine years.

“Our first flight to Dubai was on Oct. 7, 2013. Since then, a lot of memorable events have transpired including a baby born inflight on August 14, 2016. CEB’s Bayanihan flights in 2021 have flown over 8,750 Filipinos and to date, we have served more than 1.6 million passengers,” she said.

Romero also highlighted the company’s sustainability initiatives. “Last year, two A330neo aircraft were added to the fleet. From March to July this year, four out of seven aircraft have been delivered,” she said.

The greenest aircraft of CEB, A330neo, is the first aircraft in the world that is cer tified to meet the company’s 2028 C02 emission reduction target.

Later, during the interview with Consul General Dueñas, he bared some of the re cent initiatives that the Philippine Consul ate has spearheaded.

“We have been pushing financial lit eracy among OFWs here in Dubai for the last six years or so. These programs are in partnership with several organiza tions including the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC)- Dubai and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA),” he said to Manila Standard.

Currently, there are over 700 thousand Filipinos—including children—living in the UAE and 500 thousand of these Pinoys are concentrated in Dubai.

“This year we started doing it in per son or via physical events. The aim is for OFWs in Dubai and the Northern Emirates to learn how to save, budget, and manage their debt and assets. We also teach the OFWs how to invest, for example in real estate, among others.”

Dueñas said that these physical and on line activities are usually well-attended with a diverse mix of participants from different industries such as retail, F&B, medical, and service.

Heritage tour

We had a full-day tour the following

day and CEB’s media partner in Dubai, the New Perspective Media Group helped arrange the tours, and the team assigned to us was a truly wonderful help. If you wish to explore the city and get to know Dubai’s past and present, a heritage walk ing tour, as well as downtown exploration, is a must. Don’t forget your sunscreen, a headscarf, or a hat.

At the Al Shindagha Museum, we learned about a family’s love affair for scents and perfumes that spanned across generations, as well as the importance of this practice of perfume-making to their culture. We then proceeded to the Grand Souq for unique Arabian souvenir items such as teas, spices, household items, and scarves, among many others.

We took the one-Dirham boat service or “Ride the Abra” to reach the Gold Souk on the other side of the creek, which is in fact a part of a saltwater creek, tidal inlet, and waterway in Dubai. Souq or souk means an open-air market in an Arabian city. The Gold Souk is perhaps one of the favorite places for Filipinos (as well as Indians and Africans, we were told) to visit as one can score a piece of jewelry for a price you will most likely not get from home. Suffice it to say, some of us in the group did bring home some lovely jewelry.

As night crawled on, we proceeded to the Dubai Mall, another must-see. You will need hours to explore this mall, so good call if you already have the shops in mind to go to. As for us, we went to see the Dubai Aquarium and The Human Water fall—both are a feast for the eyes. Before we called it a day, we went to see the Dubai Fountain and of course, the beautiful Burj Khalifa as seen from a good distance.

Dubai Miracle Garden, Desert Safari, and an Arabian night

It’s our last day and there are still several places to see. We are all excited and ready for the day. Just like the past few days, we

enjoy a sumptuous breakfast at Rove’s The Daily restaurant, after which, we check out and deposit our luggage at the hotel’s lock er room before heading out for the day.

The Dubai Miracle Garden was a sur prise for us as it was not included in the original itinerary. However, we were for tunate because on that same day we were told that Dubai Miracle Garden opened to the public, and off we went to see it.

“Why is it called a miracle garden?” We asked our tour guide. “It’s because Dubai is a desert country, and to be able to build a huge and beautiful garden as this one is some sort of a miracle,” he says to us. And indeed, it was lovely.

Before our Desert Safari experience, we had a bit of time exploring the Burjuman Mall, then before sunset, off we went on an adventure I didn’t foresee. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun – so much so that I must have been laughing-shrieking the entire time. My companions were more composed and collected than I was. We concluded the tour with a short ride on a camel’s back for the ‘gram, and an Arabian night featuring scrumptious Arab cuisine while being entertained by first, a fire dancer, then a belly dancer, and finally an exhibitionist imitating a carousel. A renewed appreciation of Arab cuisine

While all these are unforgettable ex periences to me, what cinched the entire trip really was my renewed appreciation for Arab cuisine. Prior to the trip, my ex perience with Middle-Eastern food was limited. Almost all, if not all of the meals we partook in were authentic Arab food— from Al Safadi Al Rigga restaurant to Al Fanar in Al Seef, Al Makan, and arguably one of the best shawarma in Dubai, the Al Safadi, which we all hand-carried back to Manila. If you are to ask me what will make me want to go back to Dubai, it’s definitely the food. Simply superb.

Subic’s

LEISURE travel in the new normal is often a con venient three to four-hour max drive from the metro, mostly day trips or overnight stays. Among the many nearby destinations that people seek are Subic and Bataan.

Prior to the pandemic, Subic has already been a top tourist destination for the many activities it offers.

The quintessential Subic tour includes animal en counters at Subic Safari or Ocean Adventure Subic Bay, hiking at Pamulaklakin Forest Trail or towards El Kabayo Waterfalls, water activities or simply re laxing by the beach at Inflatable Island or Capones Island, among others.

But Subic is more than just the aforementioned.

History buffs or those who simply want to revisit the past may opt for sites such as the Spanish Gate, Waterfront Road’s Historical Monuments, APEC Villas, Bicentennial Park, Magellan’s Landing Mari time Museum, among others.

Religious escapades can also be made at San Roque Chapel or at the Holy Land Subic Bay.

Having known all the activities, a day trip simply wouldn’t suffice. Those who wish to stay a day or two have a plethora of accommodations to choose from.

There is Le Charmé Suites which is quaint and biker-friendly, Subic Yacht Club for those who wish to rent yachts, ACEA Subic Bay which is situated at the beach for those who want to bask in vitamin sea, among others.

Bataan is also a majestic destination on its own.

It is greatly known for historical tours and heritage sites due to the historical events that shaped Filipinos today.

Bataan’s

It’s a sin not to go to Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar when visiting the province.

The 400-hectare resort and heritage site carries ancestral homes that have been uprooted from their original place and rebuilt on the lot.

There is also the Bataan Death March marker, the Shrine of Valor (Dambana ng Kagitingan) on Mt. Samat, and the Bataan World War II Museum where World War II memorabilia are stored, among others.

Similar to Subic, Bataan also offers various na ture sites and activities like the Pawikan Conserva tion Center where turtle eggs hatch and are released, the Bataan National Park which is the last remaining closed-canopy dipterocarp forest in Central Luzon, the Balanga Wetland and Nature Park which is a ha ven for bird watchers, etc.

As the country continues to face economical struggles, now is the perfect time to contribute to its growth by prioritizing one’s own. In this case, it’s choosing to travel locally.

destinations

The Desert Safari experience allows guests to ride a camel and bask in the serenity ofthe surroundings

Dubai has numerous experiences to offer tourists

The Miracle Garden proves that life finds a way, even in the most unlikely conditions

Dubai’s deserts are one of its many attractions that people flock to for photos and new experiences

People from all walks of life immerse in the city’s culture through its food, music, and dancing

Cebu Pacific representatives with select members of the Philippine press touring Dubai, making the most of their three-day stay

Zoobic

Tourists

Philippine Consul General to Dubai, Renato Dueñas, Jr. (center) with members of the Philippine press

CEB’s Corporate Communications Director Carmina Romero