Manila Standard - 2022 November 23 - Wednesday

PBBM: Ask China to explain

Orders DFA to file note verbale regarding rocket debris incident in SCS

By Vince Lopez

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Foreign Affairs to send a note verbale to China to ask Beijing to explain its “more benign” account of an incident involving Chinese coast guard taking rocket debris from Filipino soldiers in the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

“Yes, I think that that’s what we need to do,” President Marcos said in an in terview with reporters Tuesday. “We’ll have to find a way to

Harris urges nations to honor The Hague decision on EEZ

By Rey E. Requejo

ALL nations must respect the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration de cision that rejected China’s expan sive claims in the South China Sea and upholding the Philippines’ ex clusive economic zone in the area, US Vice President Kamala Harris said Tuesday.

Harris issued the statement in a speech on board the Philippine Coast Guard vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua.

“The United States is proud of our longstanding ties with the peo ple of the Philippines. I am here in Palawan to underscore the impor tance of our partnership in order to create economic opportunities, protect coastal ecosystems, main tain peace and stability, and uphold international rules and norms here in the South China Sea and around the world. To the Philippine Coast Guard, you are on the frontlines of standing up for the international rules-based order,” said Harris, the highest ranking US government of ficial to visit Palawan.

Gov’t to review ‘gray zone’ in defense pact with US

THE government has formed a study group to review the country’s 1951 Mutu al Defense Treaty (MDT) with the United States, National Security Adviser Secre tary Clarita Carlos said Tuesday.

The group is composed of officials from the National Security Council

(NSC), the Department of National Defense (DND), and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Carlos told Dobol B TV.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave the directive, Carlos said.

“I will lead this (group). The NSC,

the DND, and the DFA, we have already formed a study group that will clarify and review the MDT,” she said.

There is no “automaticity” under the treaty for either country to extend assis tance in case of an attack on the other,

THE operations of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) will not be dis rupted despite the suspension of its chief, Benny Antiporda, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. guaranteed on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event at the Philippine International Convention Center, Mr. Marcos said he

would find out first what happened to Antiporda and why he was suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman.

The President, who is concurrently

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

resolve this...With the way that the re gion—Asia-Pacific—is heating up, if someone messes up, if many

PH to pursue talks with US on climate loss and damage

By Vince Lopez

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. explored possible cooperation with the United States on climate loss and damage during his meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday.

In a statement issued Tuesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Marcos is interested in partnering with Washington D.C. beyond cli mate mitigation and relief.

“(President Marcos) expressed in

Finance

REPORTS that Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno would be replaced by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda are “fake news,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Tuesday.

“I don’t know where it comes from. Why will I do that? We have assembled a great team,” Mr. Mar cos told reporters.

“We’re trying to go down a cer tain direction...it’s a very, very poor time to, as they say, change horses in midstream.”

Diokno, who also served as Socio economic Secretary in the previous Du terte administration, has said he main tains good relations with the President, adding he is “old enough in this game to even bother” about such rumors.

Salceda, touted as the economist of the House of Representatives, earlier denied that he would succeed Diokno

THE powerful Commission on Appointments on Tuesday suspended deliberations on the appointment of Social Wel fare Secretary Erwin Tulfo after CA member-congressmen Oscar Malapitan and Rodante Marcoleta raised issues on his previous service in the American military and his libel cases

terest in pursuing further discussions and possible cooperation with the US on the damage and loss concept, be yond mitigation and relief, to build on the discussions at the COP27,” the agency said.

Loss and damage refers to climate change’s negative impact that cannot be avoided by mitigation and adapta tion, such as extreme weather events, sea level rise, and glacial retreat among others.

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as finance chief.

Diokno said he has since spoken with Salceda, whom he described as a friend.

“Oh no. Hindi po,” Salceda, the chairman of the House Committee on

Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno

SHOW OF SUPPORT. United States Vice President Kamala Harris observes the monitoring system used by the Philippine Coast Guard on board the BRP Teresa Magbanua docked at Puerto Princesa Port in Palawan, the province closest to the disputed waters of the South China Sea. Harris, together with her husband Douglas Emhoff, left Puerto Princesa Tuesday afternoon on her way to Yokota Air Base in Japan. P/Ens Berbigal / CGPA

MINING DIRECTIVES. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday directs officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to bolster the DENR’s regulatory powers on small and large-scale mining.

Indonesia quake toll jumps to 268

THE death toll from an earthquake on Indonesia’s main island of Java jumped to 268 on Tuesday, as rescuers searched for survivors in the rubble and relatives started to bury their loved ones.

As body bags emerged from crum pled buildings in Indonesia’s most pop ulous province, West Java, rescue ef forts turned to any survivors still under debris in areas made hard to reach by the mass of obstacles thrown onto the roads by the quake.

The epicenter of the shallow 5.6-mag nitude quake on Monday was near the

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Ways and Means, said when asked about the reports.

“I have nothing to do or start this DOF news flow. It is not my style,” he added.

Salceda said he was content with shep herding fiscal strategies of the administra tions he had worked with since 2006.

“Do not covet thy neighbor’s job. In past administrations, as in the present, I was able to move fiscal policy from my seat in Congress,” the lawmaker said in a statement.

“From the fiscal reforms of 20032006 to the economic reforms dur ing the 2008 global financial crisis to the Duterte-era CTRP (Compre hensive Tax Reform Program), up to the present, I have worked with the Secretary of Finance, not as the Sec retary of Finance,” he added.

Salceda vowed to continue work ing with Diokno, saying the President knew best.

“Secretary Ben is a good friend and as long as he’s Secretary of Finance, I will work closely with him,” he said.

“The President ultimately makes the decisions on appointments. The Cabinet, after all, is his official family. He has an SOF already. Until he says otherwise, any talk of any appointment is pointless speculation,” the Albay solon added.

town of Cianjur where most of the vic tims were killed, hundreds were injured and dozens feared trapped as buildings collapsed and landslides were triggered.

The death toll jumped dramatically again later on Tuesday from 162 to 268, Suharyanto, the head of Indonesia’s national disaster mitigation agency, or BNPB, told a press conference.

PBBM:...

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mistakes occur, if misunderstanding occurs, then the flame will only get big ger,” he added.

He said National Security Adviser Secretary Clarita Carlos recommended sending China a note verbale regarding the incident.

“The report of the Philippine Navy and the report which came from China were inconsistent because the word ‘forcibly’ was used in the Philippine Navy report. And that was not the characterization in the Chinese Navy report or the report coming from China,” Mr. Marcos said.

“So we have to now ask the Chinese: why is it that their account is so differ ent and it’s much more benign?” the President said.

The commander-in-chief said he has complete trust in the Philippine Navy and believes its account of the incident.

A senior Philippine Navy official on Monday accused the Chinese coast guard of “forcefully” seizing parts of a rocket fairing that landed in the waters of the Spratly Islands in the hotly con tested South China Sea.

But Beijing insisted the handover took place after “friendly consultation.”

The South China Sea is a long standing source of tensions between the two nations.

Beijing claims sovereignty over al most the entire sea and has ignored an international court ruling that its claims have no legal basis.

At least 151 people remain missing and more than 1,000 have been injured, said the official, who like many Indone sians goes by one name.

“The focus is still on the search and evac uation of victims. That’s the priority,” he said. “When the emergency response ends, hopefully everyone has been found.”

Many of those killed were children, according to the head of Indonesia’s na tional rescue agency Basarnas.

“They were at school, at 1 pm, they were still studying,” Henri Alfiandi told a press conference.

Some of those dead were students at

The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei have overlapping claims to parts of it.

Marcos’s remarks came as US Vice President Kamala Harris wrapped up a visit to Palawan near the disputed sea in a show of support for the long time US ally.

Harris said the United States “stands with the Philippines in the face of in timidation and coercion in the South China Sea.”

Marcos has insisted he will not let China trample on the Philippines’ mari time rights -- in contrast to his prede cessor Rodrigo Duterte who was reluc tant to criticize the superpower.

In Sunday’s incident, a Chinese coast guard vessel “blocked” a Filipino rub ber boat towing an “unidentified float ing object,” Vice Admiral Alberto Car los said Monday.

The Chinese coast guard vessel then deployed an inflatable boat team which “forcefully retrieved said floating object by cutting the towing line attached to the (Filipino) rubber boat,” he said.

The object was then taken to the Chinese coast guard vessel as the Filipino troops returned to their sta tion, Carlos said.

Carlos said Tuesday the Filipino sail ors “heard shots” apparently fired from an unknown location as they towed the object to the Philippine-garrisoned Thi tu island.

She said the note verbale would bring up the recent meeting between Marcos and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Association of South

an Islamic boarding school, while oth ers were killed in their homes when roofs and walls caved in on them.

The search operation on Tuesday was made more challenging because of sev ered road links and temporary power outages in parts of the largely rural, mountainous region.

Those who survived camped out side in near-total darkness surrounded by fallen debris, shattered glass and chunks of concrete.

Doctors treated patients outdoors at makeshift wards after the quake, which was felt as far away as the capital Jakarta. AFP

east Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where the two leaders discussed efforts to give priority to constructive engagement and critical dialogue.

Given that these incidents happen again and again, Carlos questioned Xi’s sincerity about peacefully set tling the territorial dispute between the two countries.

She said the Philippines remains open to dialogue with China but expressed hope that Beijing would also recognize the country’s desire to protect its na tional interest in the disputed waters.

The President said his planned visit to China in January could be an opportunity to find a way to avoid further incidents.

“We want to have a mechanism, we have to find a way to prevent this from happening again,” Mr. Marcos said.

Residents of Pag-asa island heard “thunder-like sounds” for at least four hours after authorities spot ted suspected rocket debris floating near the island, a municipal officer said Tuesday.

Ariel Carlos, Kalayaan municipal information officer told ABS-CBN that several residents confirmed hear ing the thunder-like sounds after the Philippine Navy spotted an unidenti fied floating object less than a kilom eter away from shore.

Carlos said the booming sounds start ed at 11 a.m. and lasted until 3 p.m.

Senator Imee Marcos cautioned the public against jumping to conclusions and assuming this was an act of aggression.

With Macon Ramos-Araneta, AFP

Mr. Marcos...

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Agriculture Secretary, said the NIA’s food security program would not be affected by the issue.

“In fact, if there was that conflict inside the agency, now that has been removed, the operations might even improve,” he said.

“There are enough people there in the NIA who know what to do. In fact, I’m meeting them after this to make sure that the functions of the NIA con tinue on.”

“We have to find out what happened to Benny, see what really is the situ ation there, (and) why Ombudsman Martires suspended him. So it hap pened all when I was away. I’ve asked them to give me the background on what happened. But the function of the NIA is – does not – is not going to change,” he added.

The Office of the Ombudsman placed Antiporda under preventive suspension for six months follow ing administrative complaints filed against him by NIA staff.

Ombudsman Samuel Martires or dered the suspension after NIA em ployees Lloyd Allain Cudal and Mi chelle Gonzales Raymundo complained against Antiporda’s alleged conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the ser vice, grave misconduct, harassment, op pression, and ignorance of the law.

Antiporda was accused of applying “retaliatory tactics” such as threatening employees, using flag ceremonies as an avenue for bullying and fake news, ma ligning his employees, and misleading the President, among others.

PH...

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On Sunday, the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt closed with a breakthrough agreement to establish a new fund to help vulnerable countries respond to loss and damage.

One of the main focus of Harris’ trip to the Philippines is to spur coopera tion on a range of issues, including ad vancing clean energy and addressing the climate crisis.

Among the United States’ latest initiatives are the establishment of an energy policy dialogue as well as the launch of negotiations for civil nuclear energy cooperation or the so-called “123 agreement.”

Carlos said, adding this must still un dergo constitutional processes.

“They will go through their con stitutional processes. It means it’s up to their Congress, their President (to ratify it),” she said.

The Philippines also needs to re view the MDT considering that its En hanced Defense Cooperation Agree ment (EDCA) with the US, which is seen to advance the treaty’s imple mentation, is up for termination or re newal in April next year, Carlos said.

During her courtesy call on Mr. Mar cos at Malacañag on Monday, visiting US Vice President Kamala Harris said attacks made against Philippine forces in the South China Sea will invoke the US mutual defense promises.

Under the Duterte administration, then-Defense Secretary Delfin Loren zana called for a review of MDT, cit ing new regional security challenges and China’s vast territorial claims in the South China Sea, including in ar eas that belong to the Philippines.

This is to ensure the Philippines and US could better respond to China’s “grey zone” and “cabbage” tactics of aggressively pressing its claims over the waters, where Chinese maritime militia have been intimidating smaller claimants, Lorenzana said.

Harris...

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“As you patrol these waters, you uphold the rules and norms that are vital to the prosperity of the Filipino people, and people around the world.

As the United States has long made clear: We support the 2016 ruling of the UN Arbitral Tribunal, which delivered a unanimous and final decision firmly rejecting China’s expansive South China Sea mari time claims. The tribunal’s decision is legally-binding, and must be re spected,” she said.

China has refused to recognize the tribunal’s decision.

“We must stand up for principles such as respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, unimpeded lawful commerce, the peaceful resolution of disputes, and the freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea, and throughout the Indo-Pacific,” she added.

Harris urged Philippine leaders to defend such principles, especially against illicit activities and harass ment experienced by Filipino fishers in the disputed waters.

“Communities like this have seen the consequences. And people here know the impact when foreign vessels enter Philippine waters and illegally deplete the fishing stock, when they harass and intimidate global fishers, when they pollute the ocean and destroy the ma rine ecosystem,” Harris said.

Harris reminded members of the Philippine Coast Guard that they are “in the frontlines for standing up for the international rules-based order.”

“Each and every day, as you patrol these waters, you uphold the rules and norms that are vital to the prosperity of the Filipino people and the people around the world,” she said.

Harris said the US and the world “have a profound stake” in the future of the Indo-Pacific region.

“America’s prosperity relies on the billions of dollars that flow through these waters every day. And we are proud to work with you in your mis sion,” the US official said.

Harris said the US is ready to stand with the Philippines “in the face of in timidation and coercion in the South China Sea.”

“We will continue to rally our allies and partners against unlawful and ir

responsible behavior. When the inter national rules-based order is threatened somewhere, it is threatened every where,” she said.

The US Vice President also an nounced a $7.5 million worth of assis tance to help the country fight illegal, unregulated and unreported illegal fish ing, which she said go against internal norms and rules.

She also said the US will help the Philippines enhance its monitoring sys tems and upgrade its equipment.

Harris said the US will give the Philippines “a wider and more ac curate picture of their territorial wa ters” through an initiative that uses space-based platforms to deliver a common operating picture of IndoPacific waterways.

It would “promote transparency. so that our allies and partners can better protect vulnerable fisheries, respond to humanitarian disasters, and detect and counter illicit activities,” she added.

In Palawan, Harris met with fisher men in a coastal village and members of the Philippine Coast Guard.

Harris’s trip to Palawan comes a day after she held talks with President Fer dinand Marcos Jr. in Manila. With AFP

The 123 agreement, once in force, would allow the US exports of nu clear equipment and material to sup port the country’s energy security and climate goals.

Aside from climate change, Marcos and Harris also discussed peace and security against the backdrop of glob al and regional developments.

The two underscored the importance of upholding an international rulesbased regime and maintaining open communication lines between and among partners to prevent any miscal culations and misunderstandings.

“President Marcos reiterated the in dependent foreign policy adopted by the Philippines, which is based on na tional interest and the country’s com mitment to peace,” the DFA said.

On Tuesday, the President called on disaster officials to study the United States Federal Emergency Management Agency (US-FEMA) to get its best prac tices for disaster management.

The President made this sugges tion in a meeting in Malacañang, the primary agenda of which is to make the government more responsive to people’s needs in the immediate after math of a disaster.

FEMA, an agency under the De partment of Homeland Security, pri marily coordinates the response to a disaster that has occurred in the US.

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as a journalist.

The CA, however, gave the green light to the ad interim appointment of Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan after a one-hour confirmation hearing.

Bonoan received praise from the lawmaker-members of the bicameral committee, with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri saying there was no ob jection to the confirmation of the secre tary who previously served the Depart ment of Public Works and Highways with “flying colors” for 44 years.

Appointed to the post by President Fer dinand Marcos Jr. after moving to the pri vate sector following his retirement from

the DPWH in 2010, Bonoan was also branded as “ROTC” or “Return of the Comeback” and a manager well-loved by his staff and the department secretariat.

But for Tulfo, Malapitan of the First District of Caloocan ques tioned his previous enlistment to the United States Army.

“You were enlisted with the US Army from 1988 to 1992. My question is did you denounce your Filipino citizen ship?” Malapitan asked.

Tulfo then asked for an execu tive session, but Bacolod Rep. Greg Gasataya, who chairs the CA Labor, Employment, Social Welfare, and Mi grant Workers Committee, allowed the deliberation to continue, leading to a follow-up question from SAGIP party-list Rep. Marcoleta.

“Correct me if I’m wrong but to be an enlisted in the US Army, either you are a citizen by birth or you have ac quired US citizenship by naturaliza tion or that you are a lawful perma nent resident. What is the status of your citizenship when you were an enlisted member of the US Army and when you served in active military service in Europe?” Marcoleta asked.

Despite saying he supported Tulfo’s appointment to the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Marcoleta then opened discussion on Tulfo’s previ ous conviction for four counts of libel.

The party-list solon said he was try ing to determine whether the former broadcast journalist’s conviction for four counts of libel will be an issue in the process of his confirmation.

“As the Supreme Court enunciated in several cases, libel is an offense that involves moral turpitude. In some other cases disposed of by the Su preme Court, there were certain peo ple who were disqualified from hold ing positions because they have been convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude,” he said.

“I could not have asked you this question, Secretary, if it did not ap pear in the report submitted to us by the Commission on Appointments,” Marcoleta added.

For Bonoan, Marcoleta, in the plena ry confirmation, cited his four decades of service at the DPWH starting in 1966 as a clerk until he became a civil engi neer and Senior Undersecretary when he retired in 2010.

From DPWH, Bonoan worked in big private sector companies until he was appointed last June by Mr. Marcos.

Sen. Imee Marcos, the President’s sister, said Bonoan is highly qualified for the position and told the panel in jest that Ilocos Norte is having dif ficulty in explaining the secretary’s “unexplained poverty.”

“I thought my career in government had already reached its peak and had come into conclusion. It is quite unim aginable how one day, my apparently concluded career in the department sud denly resurrected,” Bonoan said in his introductory speech.

He said he accepted the Presi dent’s offer to join the Cabinet for the love of the country, despite his family’s reluctance.

Speaker vows full support for PBBM’s Agenda for Prosperity with needed laws

By Maricel V. Cruz

“We in Congress are one with the President in this mission,” Romualdez said.

This is why the House, shortly after the 19th Congress convened in July, adopted - through Concurrent Resolution No. 2, the administration’s Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTTF) and eight-point socioeconomic plan, which comprise the roadmap for the Agenda for Prosperity, Romualdez said.

the second quarter, with the country reported as the second best performer among major emerging economies in Southeast Asia.

He credited such growth to the Agenda for Prosperity and the “sound economic plan of our President and economic managers.”

“These encouraging figures strengthen our resolve, as lawmakers, to remain fully committed in supporting the Agenda for Prosperity with the necessary legislative measures,” Romualdez said.

Addressing the 2022 Asia CEO Forum, a gathering of captains of industry at Marriott Hotel in Pasay City, Romualdez laid out measures that would help the Marcos administration achieve the goals of its prosperity roadmap.

Romualdez promised the businessmen that they would be consulted on these legislative proposals.

“As stakeholders, you will be consulted

IN BRIEF

PH now clear of monkeypox—DOH

THERE has been no “suspected case” of monkeypox reported in the country since the last detection of the disease in August, the Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday.

At present, the Philippines’ tally of monkeypox infections remains at four. All patients have recovered, the DOH said.

“Right now, our suspect cases for this month are at zero. None of those submitted fit the criteria,” DOH officer-incharge Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a press briefing.

The country’s fourth monkeypox case was discharged from isolation last Sept. 15.

Vergeire also said there were 20 suspected monkeypox cases reported in August, but their test results turned out negative.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a suspected case refers to a person who is a contact of a probable or confirmed monkeypox case in the 21 days before the onset of signs or symptoms. Willie Casas

in every measure that we tackle, especially those involving commerce and industry. Please make your positions very clear on the issues…as I want all stakeholders heard before we pass these measures,” Romualdez said.

He said the Marcos administration’s prosperity blueprint “has as its core mission the country’s economic transformation towards inclusivity and sustainability.”

MMDA opens new park in Navotas

THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has inaugurated its latest adopt-a-park program—the Greenzone Park Phase 2 in Barangay Bangkulasi in Navotas City.

MMDA acting chairman Romando Artes, Navotas City Mayor John Rey Tiangco, and Congressman Toby Tiangco led the inauguration and blessing of the 3,500 square meter park.

Artes said the Greenzone Park Phase 2 is one of the 17 projects of the MMDA that aims to provide pocket parks to all the local government units (LGU) in the National Capital Region.

“Every year, the agency will set aside funds to support the development of parks for each LGU,” Artes said.

“Earlier, Mayor Tiangco and I have discussed the idea of developing more open areas such as the old creek which was converted into a box culvert. Mayor Tiangco proposed to have it developed into a park for people to enjoy,” he added.

The Greenzone Park used to be an abandoned area where residents throw their garbage at and the area was used as a chicken den. Joel E. Zurbano

“For the first time, the country has a clear six-year agenda with clearly defined goals,” he stressed.

The Speaker pointed out that the President’s socio-economic development masterplan has started to achieve significant results.

Romualdez noted that the economy grew by 7.6 percent in the third quarter of this year, faster than the 7.5-percent expansion in

He said the immediate focus of the House would be on helping the government boost domestic demand and increase the competitiveness of local production to sustain and further accelerate economic recovery.

Romualdez also said his chamber has already passed the proposed P5.268-trillion 2023 national budget, which includes P1.528 trillion for economic services.

DOLE chief orders suspension of labor inspections this Dec.

By Vito Barcelo

THE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will suspend all labor inspection activities in December to focus on pending labor standards cases for the year and preparing the inspection program for 2023.

Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma issued Administrative Order No. 342, directing all DOLE regional directors to temporarily cease all labor inspections in their respective regions starting December 1.

Exempted from the suspension, however, are complaint inspections; Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) standards investigations; technical safety inspections, such as inspection of boilers, pressure vessels, and mechanical and electrical wiring installation; and other inspection activities as directed by the DOLE Secretary.

During the period of suspension, Laguesma encouraged the DOLE regional offices to conduct training activities, such as Level 1A: Basic Course for Labor Inspectors.

“This is to ensure that the labor inspectorate is updated with the latest issuances and are highly skilled and equipped to perform their duties in enforcing labor laws and OSH standards,” Laguesma said.

The DOLE regional directors were also tasked to ensure that all results of inspections were uploaded in the Labor Inspection–Management Information System (MIS) before the end of December, while the Regional MIS focal persons are directed to conduct an inventory of all mobile gadgets and data plan subscriptions used for inspection activities.

As of October 31, a total of 74,945 establishments were inspected by the DOLE labor inspectors.

The initial compliance rate is 78.08 percent on general labor standards, 53.96 percent on OSHS, and 94.49 percent on minimum wage.

After the inspected establishments have implemented the necessary corrections, the compliance rate is at 88.24 percent on general labor standards and 72.61 percent on OSHS.

After 30 years, CHR must have own Charter, says Epres

By Rio N. Araja

THE Commission on Human Rights (CHR) wants a charter of its own, lamenting that it did not have one for more than 30 years.

“We do not have one. CHR has already been in existence for 30 years but it does not have its own Charter,” CHR Commissioner Beda Epres said in an interview on national television.

Despite previous recommendations to strengthen its functions and structure in compliance with the Paris Principle on national institutions for the promotion of human rights as adopted by the United Nations, the Philippine CHR has been operating without a charter since its creation in 1987.

Then CHR chairperson Leila de Lima filed a Senate bill seeking to regard CHR as a national human rights institution, and to strengthen its powers and functions.

According to Epres, once a charter is passed, the CHR would be able to come up with its clear-cut powers and functions.

In September, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed Epres to become a CHR commissioner to replace Commissioner Eugenio Cadiz whose seven-year term ended on Sept. 15.

Epres will serve as CHR commissioner from 2022 until 2029.

Also during the Mangahas Interviews, Epres said he sees the need to give more teeth to the investigative powers of the , and he would recommend that the commission be the nominal complainant in high-profile cases.

“So our monitoring of cases would be continuous from the time of the fact-fi nding investigation up to the fi ling of a complaint with the appropriate agencies, or even with the courts,” he noted.

SPEAKER Martin Romualdez on Tuesday assured the business community that the House of Representatives is committed to support with the necessary legislation the Agenda for Prosperity of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr..

No end in sight to Myanmar crisis

you – too soon to say.”

Japan’s chief Cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno earlier said Japan will continue to de mand Myanmar take specific and appropriate actions to rebuild democratic society, and to solve problems peacefully and seriously.

AFTER the recent summit of the Associa tion of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia where leaders dis cussed the Myanmar situation as a matter of grave concern, what did the ruling military junta in that country do?

They freed on November 17 a former Brit ish ambassador, a Japanese filmmaker and an Australian economic adviser to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi, aside from 6,000 other prisoners as part of a mass amnesty.

State-controlled media said the amnesty included 5,774 prisoners and foreigners were released “for the relationship with other coun tries and also for humanitarian purposes”.

Does that indicate a change of heart by the ruling military, that they are now willing to give up power and allow the duly elected civil ian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi to take over?

Not by a long shot.

While the release of 6,000 dissenters is a big step forward in resolving the crisis, it does not signify that the Myanmar ruling junta led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing will pursue the five-point peace plan agreed to in an Asean meeting in Jakarta in April last year.

The peace plan called for an immediate end to violence in Myanmar, the holding of dia logue among all parties, the appointment of a special envoy, the delivery of humanitarian as sistance from ASEAN and a visit of the special envoy to Myanmar to meet with all parties.

We have been following events in Myan mar since February 2021 when the Tatmadaw, as the Myanmar military is called, mounted a coup d’etat and arrested Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of the National Unity Gov ernment, thus putting an abrupt halt to the gradual transition to a fragile democracy that Suu Kyi had led after a long period of house arrest.

The military takeover of Myanmar triggered months of civil disobedience by various sectors in key cities that were violently suppressed by the police and the military, resulting in the killing of more than a thousand street protesters and the ar rest and detention of thousands more.

The violent crackdown on the civil dis obedience movement, however, also led to the forging of unity by various rebel groups in the countryside and armed resistance that continues to this day, even as the rebel groups are outnumbered and outgunned by the vastly superior Myanmar military.

International condemnation of the bloody suppression of the pro-democracy movement in Myanmar has reached a crescendo, with the ASEAN member-states and other nations join ing the clamor for the Myanmar ruling junta to stop the carnage and bring back the country on the road to democracy.

Speaking in Bangkok where he attended one of the ASEAN summit meetings, US Sec retary of State Antony Blinken said the release was “one bright spot in what is otherwise an incredibly dark time.”

“Whether this signals anything more broad ly about the intentions of the regime, I can’t tell

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said people should not be jailed for expressing political views: “One hopes this release will not be a one-off event but rather the start of a process by the junta to release all political prisoners.”

Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Gov ernment, which backs the resistance move ment, welcomed the amnesty, but said the world should not be duped.

We agree with the view that direct engagement by the ruling junta with all stakeholders, including the political opposition, is the only way out of the Myanmar crisis

“These types of hostage tactics by the junta should not fool the international community into believing that the military has changed its colors,” said Htin Linn Aung, an NUG minis ter and spokesperson.

Human rights groups have said the deten tion and recent release of the three foreigners, as well as thousands of others, were politically motivated.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which has been document ing the military’s crackdown, said the junta had freed the foreigners to ease political pres sure. “Yet again, political prisoners are being used as bargaining chips,” it warned.

Even as some members of ASEAN wanted to kick Myanmar out of the regional body, President Marcos Jr. called for the speedy im plementation of the peace plan.

“While the Philippines adheres to the ASE AN principles of non-interference and consen sus, the protracted suffering of the people in Myanmar, in part due to the lack of progress in the implementation of the Five-Point Consen sus, also challenges the ASEAN-honored prin ciples of democracy and the respect for and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined in the ASEAN Charter,” he pointed out.

We agree with the view that direct engage ment by the ruling junta with all stakeholders, including the political opposition, is the only way out of the Myanmar crisis.

If they refuse to do so, the ASEAN should move to expel Myanmar from the regional bloc, and impose economic and other sanc tions to force the junta to hand over power to the duly elected civilian government so that the process of implementing political reforms and upholding respect for human rights can start in earnest.

(Email: ernhil@yahoo.com)

Ending violence vs. women and children

this experiment for yourselves – round up sev eral friends and ask how many have been hurt or assaulted emotionally, verbally, physically, economically, or in any other way when they were children or as adults.

MUCH is expected from both sides when the echoes of polite laughter and carefully crafted language of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and visiting US Vice President Kamala Harris have subsided.

The two leaders met in Mala canang Monday, the day after Harris arrived in the Philippines, where she attended the Asia Pacific Economic Conference summit in Bangkok which Mr. Marcos also attended.

It was in that meeting in Mala canang, the official residence of the Philippine head of state and govern ment, by the Pasig River that the lis tening walls of the old palace heard the 58-year-old Harris reaffirmed Washington’s ‘’unwavering’’ securi ty guarantees to Washington’s oldest Asian ally the Philippines.

“We must reiterate always that we stand with you in defense of interna tional rules and norms as they relate to the South China Sea,” said Har ris, the highest ranking US official to visit this country of 114 million under President Marcos.

She added, “an armed attack on the Philippines’ armed forces, pub lic vessels or aircraft in the South China Sea would invoke US mutual defense commitments. And that is an unwavering commitment that we have to the Philippines.”

The Filipino leader, who spoke

THIS Friday, November 25, the country will observe a special day that few people know about, much less have heard of – the National Consciousness Day For The Elimination Of Violence Against Women And Children (VAWC).

VAWC is still very much “one of the coun try’s pervasive social problems and grave manifestations of gender inequality,” said the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW).

The PCW is a national government agency mandated to “to review, evaluate, and recom mend measures, including priorities to ensure the full integration of women for economic, social, and cultural development at national, regional, and international levels, and to en sure further equality between women and men.”

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2022, the Philip pines is ranked 19th out of 146 countries in terms of efforts toward gender parity.

Despite the country’s gains in attempting to narrow down the gender gap, it still has much to do in terms of eliminating VAWC.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Author ity’s National Demographic Health Surveys of 2008, 2013, and 2017 showed that “1 in 4 Filipino women aged 15-49 had experienced physical, emotional, or sexual violence from their husband or partner.”

Globally, the figure is higher – “1 in 3 women (35 percent) have experienced either physical and/or sexual violence from an inti mate partner or non-partner in their lifetime,” according to the World Health Organization.

To understand how prevalent VAWC is, try

In 2013, President Benigno S. Aquino III signed into law Republic Act 10398: An Act Declaring November Twenty-Five Of Every Year As “National Consciousness Day For The Elimination Of Violence Against Women And Children.”

This law recognizes “the need to establish a comprehensive and structured campaign for national consciousness on anti-violence against women.”

More than ever, with the issue still very much prevalent in society and causing untold harm to generations of Filipinos, it is time to end violence against women and children

In 2006, President Gloria Arroyo signed Proclamation 1172: Declaring November 25 to December 12 of Every Year as the “18-Day Campaign to End Violence against Women.” The campaign is spearheaded annually by the PCW.

I write this column today, to spread aware ness about this event and encourage you to look around your homes, your communities to see how you can reflect on this issue and be engaged in efforts to eradicate the machismo mentality and toxic elements of patriarchal culture that en

I HAVE a lawyer-daughter, Ivy Lopez Ca baltica, and a lawyer son-in-law, Benedict Cabaltica. They are both based in the United States, with my grandchildren, Enzo, Gio, and Audrey, all the pride and joy of my life.

The law class of Ivy and Bene is the 1998 batch of Ateneo Law School.

The Ateneo de Manila Law School Class of 1998 hosts the landmark homecoming “True Blue in ’22” this Friday, November 25, 2022 at the Centennial Hall of the Ma nila Hotel.

At 86, Ateneo Law is considered by many as the Philippines’ leading law school and one of Asia’s best and most venerable.

Declares its website: “Since 1936, the At eneo de Manila University School of Law has formed men and women not only skilled in the science and art of the law, but also imbued with a burning passion for justice and the fer vent desire to serve others.”

The institution adds: “Ateneo Law School is at the forefront of the Philippine legal and judicial landscape. For generations, its graduates have been influential forces in the ranks of the judiciary, in private practice, and in public service.”

With their school’s heritage and genes, it is not surprising that the Ateneo Law Class of 1998 is remarkable. Indeed, the ’98 class is justifiably proud of its astounding imprint, on the profession, on society, and in the life of the nation.

Without lawyers, of the quality that Ateneo produces with happy perfunctory, society it self is, to paraphrase Irish poet William Butler Yeats, “a tattered coat upon a stick.”

Ateneo Law 1998 produced four bar top notchers, a governor, mayor, and congress man; commissioners; regional trial court judges; legal luminaries and influencers; ex ecutives; authors; media personalities; profes

able behaviors that lead to VAWC.

VAWC violates the rights and fundamen tal freedoms of women and children, who are among the most vulnerable sectors in society.

The effects of the trauma caused by such vi olence and abuse lingers on for a long time, and affects the entire person holistically, from their overall personality and welfare to their health, well-being, and personal development.

As such, because it impairs the woman on so many levels, it also affects her family and communities.

Given the severe impact of VAWC, the Phil ippines has increased efforts to bring aware ness of the issue to the attention of the general public.

In line with this is PCW’s “annual par ticipation in the global campaign to end VAW which the Philippines has been observing since 2002,” aligned with Proc. 1172 and other rel evant laws.

According to the PCW, the 2022 national campaign highlights “the strides made in anti-

Beyond doubt, capitals in the region and nearby, including particularly Beijing, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Hanoi and Canberra have watched the historic meeting and read quick official printouts of the bilateral discussions

before Harris, seven years his ju nior, himself recognized Manila’s long-standing alliance with Wash ington, stressing “I have said many times, I do not see a future for the Philippines that does not include the United States. That really has come from the very long relationship that we have had with the US.”

Beyond doubt, capitals in the re

Guarded positive attitude Ateneo Law homecoming

gion and nearby, including particu larly Beijing, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Hanoi and Canberra have watched the histor ic meeting and read quick official printouts of the bilateral discus sions.

They must have noted that secu rity is at the top of the vice presi dent’s agenda, marking down with keen eyes Harris’ visit Tuesday to Palawan fronting the South China Sea, a strategic waterway, where Beijing has flexed its military brawn to assert its cross-disciplin ary claim.

Six years ago, the Philippines won an international arbitration case, where China did not participate in and has repeatedly nixed such rul ing.

It is understood that Harris also sought to bolster security coopera tion through the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which gives the US armed forces access to Philippine military bases.

Washington, according to a senior US administration official said, has allocated $82 million for EDCA’s implementation “and more is on the way.”

“There are currently five EDCA locations. And we’re announcing now that we have identified new lo cations to deepen our work togeth er,” the official said.

sors; and partners of prestigious law firms here and abroad.

Class valedictorian Dominique Gallego became a Partner in the prominent New York firm Sidley Austin LLP; Salutatorian and an other bar topnotcher Kenneth Chua is a part ner at Quisumbing Torres and a Top 100 Best Lawyers in the Philippines; CPA Benedict Cabaltica, a scholar who graduated with Sec ond Honors, is a Tax Managing Director at the Global Big Four consulting firm KPMG.

Meanwhile, the Ateneo alumni’s fervor to serve others keeps burning like an eternal light

Margie Colinayo-Goodsell, a bar topnotch er, has an excellent practice in New York; Ar thur Defensor, Jr is governor of Iloilo; Sharon Garin is a former congressman and, currently, an undersecretary of the Department of En ergy.

Ethel Mercado-Gutay is a Makati RTC Judge; Jennifer Humiding is an RTC Judge in Benguet; Jon Bello is a partner and a recog nized expert in privacy laws; Jude Espiritu is a VP-Associate General Counsel at Harman In ternational; and Dennis Judan and Roel Pulido are accomplished authors.

Equally notable alums are: Ambrosio Cantada - Bar topnotcher Brian Hosaka - Supreme Court Public In formation Chief Ma. Victoria Cardona -former Commis sioner of the Commission on Human Rights Christian Robert Lim - former Commis sioner of COMELEC Norman Flores is the CFO of an interna

VAW efforts in line with the Philippines’ 20th year of participation in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.”

This year’s campaign also seeks “to gain in sights as to where the country is in understand ing and acting on VAW.

“The major activities will endeavor to gauge the awareness of citizens on VAW and its forms and manifestations as well as underscore the gains attained in the journey towards a VAWfree community.”

Among this year’s campaign activities are a launch on Nov. 25 and the kick-off of other activities such as the Orange Exhibit, VAW Dokyu, and the dissemination of informational and educational materials.

“The Orange Exhibit: Journey towards a VAW-free Philippines” showcases the high lights of 20 years of Philippine anti-VAW cam paigns, from 2002 to the present.

The social media hashtags for public dis course are #RaiseYourVoice to tag content related to personal experiences of violence;

tional professional organization; and Charlie Cuna is a sportscaster Rommel Angan - former Zamboanga May or Charlie Cuna – sportscaster

The Nov. 25, 2022 grand reunion will honor the classes of 1962, 1972, 1982, and 1997, whose notable alumni include retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Adolfo Az cuna and the late Fr. Joaquin Bernas, SJ, an eminent constitutionalist and Dean Emeritus of the Ateneo de Manila University.

In keeping with the Ignatian teaching of being “men and women for others,” pro ceeds from this milestone event will support the scholarship program of the Ateneo Law Alumni Association.

To celebrate this first in-person reunion af ter two years of virtual events, Ateneans will enjoy a raffle, alumni performances, and mu sic from Side A.

ALS class of 1998 appreciates the gener ous support of its sponsors: Platinum: Cruz Marcelo and Tenefrancia Law Firm; National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP); Quisumbing Torres Law Firm; San Miguel Corporation (SMC). Gold: An gara Abello Concepcion Regalla & Cruz Law Offices (ACCRALAW); Cong. Richard Go mez and Mayor Lucy Torres Gomez; Medi aldea Bello & Suarez Law Firm (MBS Law); Misibis Bay Resort; Movers and Managers Corporation; New World Diagnostics; Jobe Nkemakolam; Optimum Enforcement Manu facturing Inc.; Oriental Group; PAGCOR; Pascual Laboratories; Personal Collection Direct Selling Inc.; Technolux Equipment and Supply Corporation; Textra Corporation; Thunderbird Resort and Casinos. Silver: B2B Technologies; Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI); Gerodias Suchianco Estrella Law Firm (GSE Law); Jay Khemani; Sycip Salazaar Hernandez & Gatmaitan Law Firm (SyCipLaw); Rang-Ay Eco-Adventure and Resort; Romorcon Gaming OPC.

Meanwhile, the Ateneo alumni’s fervor to serve others keeps burning like an eternal light.

#VowToEndVAW to mark a commitment cam paign to contribute to a VAW-free community; and #VAWfreePH to sustain the drive towards a VAW-free community.

PCW has digital materials, stickers, and other online collaterals that may be used by government agencies, schools, institutions, LGUs, and the general public to promote the advocacy.

As a victim of domestic violence myself, this is one of my advocacies.

The trauma from those dark days affected not only myself but my children as well; we are still healing from the hurt and pain.

Now, more than ever, with the issue still very much prevalent in society and causing un told harm to generations of Filipinos, it is time to end violence against women and children.

* * * Dr. Ortuoste is a board member of PEN Philippines, member of the Manila Crit ics Circle, and judge of the National Book Awards. FB and Twitter: @DrJennyO

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Baldwin R. Felipe Head—Ad Solutions Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager Emil

Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Associate Editors

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher

Honor Blanco Cabie Opinion Editor Lino M. Santos Chief Photographer

Bantag’s fate up to PBBM amid murder raps—Remulla

By Rey E. Requejo

Remulla stressed that his October 21 order that placed Bantag under

“I will see the President very soon and I will ask him his decision about this matter,” Remulla said, in an inter view with CNN Philippines.

However, he clarified that he will not make any recommendations. “He (the President) can discern very well what the problem is,” he said.

Apart from the two murder com plaints for the deaths of radio com mentator Percival “Percy Lapid” Ma basa and inmate Cristito Villamor Palana, the alleged middleman in the slaying of the broadcaster, several investigations are ongoing or will be conducted at BuCor under the leader ship of Bantag.

These investigations include the joint venture agreement (JVA) signed by Bantag with a private real estate developer for the turnover of the NBP compound in Muntinlupa City in ex change for a piece of land in Nueva Ecija where NBP would be transferred and the 35-percent NBP earnings from the development of NBP, the excava tion at NBP, and the entry of various prohibited items like beers, two-way radios, cellular telephones, and deadly weapons inside NBP.

Bantag also reportedly signed a memorandum of agreement with a savings bank for the grant of loans to BuCor personnel at “hefty interest rates.”

DENR ordered to require mining firms to update safety programs

By Vince Lopez

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday directed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to require small- and large-scale mining firms to comply with policies that

In a meeting with DENR officials at Malacañan Palace on Tuesday, Mr. Marcos lamented the failure of min ing firms, particularly those involved in illegal activities, to provide adequate safety measures inside the mines.

“The miners are victims here. They have no safety. A lot of them die,” he said.

The President said there is a need to enhance social protection and security for workers in the mining industry. “We might be able to access financing, they might be able to access social protection.”

He also asked the agency to ensure that standards are updated and that mining firms are strictly implementing health programs for workers.

The Cxief Executive further urged the DENR to address bottlenecks to regu late the small-scale mining industry.

“We want to legalize the small-scale mining firms because many of them are illegal, so the miners have no protec tion),” Mr. Marcos said, adding that “we want to strengthen the regulatory framework so they can operate le gally, to give our miners assistance and protection for their safe work.”

Mr. Marcos earlier called for the amendment of the Republic Act (RA) 7076 or the People’s SmallScale Mining Act of 1991 to in centivize small-scale mining and provide social assistance and labor protection for all small-scale min ers.

“I think for now the need is for the regulatory capabilities, especially the small scale,” the President said.

Under the law, small-scale mining refers to a mining activity that relies heavily on manual labor using simple implementations and methods.

According to the President, seafarers would need additional training to be able to handle alternative fuels in a bid to meet global decarbonization objectives.

President Marcos’ assertion also comes in the wake of climate change talks at the 27th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) held in Egypt from No vember 8 to 18.

Leading organizations across the shipping value chain, joined by the largest producers of green hydrogen, signed on November 14 a joint statement at COP27, committing to the rapid production and use of low-carbon fuels based on green hydrogen to accelerate decar bonization of global shipping.

The shipping sector currently accounts for 3 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions but is expected to grow to 50 percent by 2050 without intervention.

The seafaring industry, Mr. Marcos said, needs to create habits to help with carbon emission reduction. Vince Lopez

DOH seeking new alert system for COVID

THE Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday they will be recommending a new alert system that will serve as a warning signal to the public amid the easing of CO VID-19 restrictions in the country.

In a press briefing, DOH officer-incharge Maria Rosario Vergeire said the cur rent alert level system is still based on the risk case classification and healthcare utili zation rate of an area.

However, Vergeire said the DOH will present in a meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) on December 5 a revised alert level system similar to the tropi cal cyclone warning system of PAGASA.

“[It’s] not to really revise the alert level system as to the indicators, but to revise and to redirect the alert level kung saan ang main objective na niya [wherein it’s new main objective] is to serve as a warning sys tem for all of us,” Vergeire said.

“Parang ‘yung sa PAGASA na typhoon signals. ‘Pag sinabi ng PAGASA na Signal Number 1 tayong lahat, alam ng ating komunidad, ng ating public how they are going to respond at ganon din ang gusto natin sa alert level system (It’s like the typhoon signals of PAGASA. When PAGASA says that we are under Signal Number 1, the public knows how to respond and that is what we want in the alert level system.),” she said. Willie Casas

DMW creates whitelist and blacklist of OFW recruiters

THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said it is creating a whitelist and blacklist of recruitment firms as the Philippine government reopens the deployment of Filipino workers to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).

At a televised public briefing, DMW Undersecretary Hans Leo Cac dac said the Department would only allow whitelisted agencies to recruit overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to KSA.

“We are already categorizing recruitment agencies under whitelists and blacklists to ensure that OFWs would not apply to agencies that belong to the blacklist but the whitelist,” Cacdac, quoted by a GMA News report, said.

The first batch of OFWs since the reopening will be deployed to KSA soon, Cacdac said, adding that this was one of the changes made after the Philippines lifted its ban on the

deployment of OFWs to KSA on November 7.

Last year, the Philippine govern ment imposed a deployment ban on household service workers to KSA due to unpaid salaries of overseas Fili pino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia.

The KSA recently committed to al locate some 2 billion riyals for the un paid salaries of some 10,000 overseas Filipinos employed by construction companies that declared bankruptcy.

House adopts PH-Vietnam resolution on stronger ties

By Maricel V. Cruz

THE House of Representatives led by Speaker Martin G. Romualdez has adopted a resolution that would boost the cooperation between the Philippines and Vietnam through the establishment of the PhilippineVietnam Parliamentarians’ Friendship Society.

Lawmakers

TINGOG Party-list Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez on Tuesday said the pas sage of House Bill (HB) 5, which man dates onsite, in-city, near-city, or off-city relocation of informal settler families (ISFs) would address urban housing problem and crucial in safeguarding the urban poor’s rights.

Romualdez, chairperson of the House committee on accounts, stressed this af ter the House of Representatives with an overwhelming 254 votes approved HB 5 on third and final reading.

She said the proposed law also consid ers informal settlers as stakeholders and not just beneficiaries of the government resettlement program.

Romualdez said it is important to em power informal settlers by making them active partners of the government in the planning and management of their own resettlement to ensure that the plans thereon reflect and uphold their shelter needs and aspirations.

According to the 2017 statistics, 51

percent of informal settlers in the Philip pines are located in danger-prone areas and 39 percent of the total households were identified as informal settler fami lies in Metro Manila.

Tingog Rep. Jude Acidre reiterated that an in-city or at least near-city reset tlement is key in addressing the urban poor woes.

“While residents may have better shel ter and security, they nevertheless lose mobility and access to income and liveli hood and social services.”

For years, Acidre said socialized hous ing has been one of the solutions to ad dress the chronic housing problem in the country.

However, Acidre said the housing and resettlement policy is primarily off-site relocation, adding the government builds houses for informal settler families in areas outside Metro Manila or in rural areas, where there is a lack of employ ment, sustainable livelihood, and social services. Maricel V. Cruz

The resolution effectively solidified the existing exchange of visits program by both countries’ respective parliamentarians and further strengthened the ties between the two nations by designating the officials and members of the parliamentarian society.

That since then respondent is my regular acquaintance in my Facebook account and as the days goes by, we became friends and became familiar with each other;

That the respondent began to court petitioner and as our conversation goes along the way for a longer period of time, respondent began to propose our wedding as soon as we return to the Philippines;

That the petitioner responded favorably to the proposal considering that she is unmarried and respondent as per his statement and assurance, is also a single person, and this fact was firmly believed in good faith by the petitioner; 8. That there was a time that respondent introduced me to his cousin who used to work in Saudi Arabia and it was same person whom he instructed to on the year 2015 to secure papers in Manila proving the fact that respondent is single; 9. That thereafter, since petitioner is of marrying age and ready for any responsibility, she decided to return to the Philippines on the year 2015 and be with respondent to be his bride on December 2015; 10. That after the wedding, petitioner return to work abroad on January 2016 to resume her employment contract; 11. That petitioner was surprised that respondent cannot be contacted anymore at his previous number and petitioner was able to installed an IMO App in the Internet under respondent number and was again surprised that somebody a female responded; 12. That petitioner used the respondent number, it is as if he is the one communicating to the woman at Saudi Arabia, and the latter responded that the respondent had pending account with her; 13. That she even told the woman that she is a single person; 14. That the said other unidentified female was demanding payment of respondent account since he was working at Saudi Arabia and that female person was the other woman of the respondent; 15. That the woman of respondent and petitioner began to communicate regarding to his account obligation amounting to 2,500 Saudi Riyal and after knowing this, petitioner confronted the respondent and he twisted the facts and everything and we got quarreled; 16. That despite of the infirmities of the respondent, love and forgiveness of petitioner prevails and all the patience has been shown by the petitioner in order to maintain their relationship despite the odds; 17. That thru their promise, the petitioner and respondent decided to tie the knot on December 8, 2015 at Ermita, Manila, and copy of their Marriage Contract is hereto attached and marked as ANNEX “A” and made integral part hereof; 18. That at the time of her marriage, petitioner was not aware that respondent is already married to a certain Anecita Talomiya Tinggas on March 7, 1992 as this fact was revealed only after their marriage and he even told me lies that the said Anecita was his sister and she maligned me because of what discovered; 19. That the petitioner and respondent have no biological child of their own during their marriage; 20. They have even no real properties established during their marital union; 21. That sometime on August 30, 2019, petitioner was able to secure a CENOMAR at the Philippine Statistic Authority (PSA) and discovered that indeed respondent have Two (2) existing marriages, one from Anecita Talomiya on March 7, 1992 and the other subsequent marriage is with petitioner on December 8, 2015, copy of the said NSO SECPA CENOMAR is attached and marked as ANNEX “B” and made integral part hereof; 22. That subsequent marriage was contracted by respondent while his first valid marriage is still subsisting-hence, the second is a bigamous marriage; 23. That the petitioner discovered the said first existing marriage on the year 1992; 24. That thereafter, the petitioner confronted the respondent about his first existing marriage and respondent just ignored the petitioner as if nothing happens and frequent quarrels ensued; 25. That petitioner and respondent separated ways already; 26. That respondent before, during and after the marriage was an irresponsible, arrogant, unfaithful, impulsive, aggressive, tactless, argumentative, whose revolves only around himself particularly on what he wants and how he makes happy over and above any other things; even if it means hurting others. BASIS OF THE ACTION

27. It may immediately be noticed that herein parties were only driven into marriage for the purposes of convenience. While mutual physical attraction was present, love and the desire to build a home was entirely absent. Petitioner matured in the process but respondent did not, thus he buried himself into vices, mental immaturity, irresponsibility and oblivious of his obligations toward his wife. 28. This is not the kind objective that is envisioned by law. “Art. 1. Marriage is a special contract of permanent union between a man and a woman entered into in accordance with law for the establishment of conjugal and family life. It is the foundation of the family and an inviolable social institution whose nature, consequences, and incidents are governed by law and not subject to stipulation, except that marriage settlements may fix the property relations during the marriage within the limits provided by this Code. (52a)”

“

… To further strengthen the longstanding friendship, the Philippines and Vietnam have pledged to continue the exchange of visits by their respective parliamentarians,” House Resolution (HR) 571 said.

“

… It is the mutual desire of the Philippines and Vietnam to deepen and broaden their joint efforts towards the attainment of regional peace and prosperity, foster mutual understanding and cooperation and further strengthen the ties of friendship and solidarity between them through the friendship society,” it added.

HR 571 was introduced by Speaker Romualdez, Majority Leader Manuel Jose M. Dalipe, Minority Leader Marcelino C. Libanan, Senior Deputy Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander A. Marcos, and Tingog Party-list Reps. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez and Jude A. Acidre.

ensure safe working conditions for mining workers.

say House Bill 5 crucial to address urban housing concerns

Marcos cites need to upskill Pinoy seafarers

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. cited the need to upskill and reskill the seafaring workforce to address the scheduled shift of ocean-going vessels to green hydrogen as a fuel source from 2030 to 2040.

Mr. Marcos made this remark in a meet ing with officials of the Department of En vironment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Malacañang on Tuesday.

DEPARTMENT of Justice (DOJ) Sec retary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Tues day said he is leaving it up to Presi dent Ferdinand Marcos Jr. whether or not to dismiss Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Executive Director Gerald Bantag.

preventive suspension was on orders of President Marcos.

DINAGYANG WARRIOR. An artist paints a Dinagyang warrior’s face on a wall in preparation for the Dinagyang Festival to be held next year in Iloilo. Arnold Almacen

JOB FAIR. San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora participates in the city government’s second mega job fair held at the San Juan City Hall. Dubbed ‘Disenteng Trabaho para sa San Juaneño,’ the job fair is in cooperation with the Department of Labor and Employment, Philhealth, Pagibig, Social Security System, Department of Migrant Workers, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. Manny Palmero

US, China defense chiefs meet to manage tensions

US DEFENSE Secretary Lloyd Austin met his Chinese counter part Wei Fenghe in Cambodia on Tuesday as the two sides moved to keep tensions in check.

The meeting on the sidelines of a conference of defense min isters in Siem Reap—which lasted for an hour and a half – was the first between Austin and Wei since June, before a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan sparked fury in Beijing.

But China and the United States have since sought to lower the temperature with meetings between top officials, and a senior US defence official characterised the talks between Austin and Wei as “productive” and “professional.”

“Both sides agreed that it’s important that our countries work together to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict,” but “competition remains the defining feature of the relationship”, the official told journalists.

Austin sought the “reopening of a number of military-to-mili tary dialogues and mechanisms to help manage that competition responsibly,” the official said, referring to steps that were scrapped by Beijing following Pelosi’s visit.

The two sides “agreed on the importance of restarting a number of these specific mechanisms that they discussed, and we’ll look forward to seeing those implemented in the months ahead.”

The Austin-Wei talks came after Joe Biden and Xi Jinping met for three hours at a Group of 20 summit in Bali on November 14, the first in-person talks between the leaders of the world’s two largest economies since they each became president. That was followed by a meeting between Xi and US Vice Presi dent Kamala Harris at an Asia-Pacific summit in Bangkok. AFP

Hunt for buried survivors as Indonesia quake kills 162

RESCUERS searched for survivors buried under rubble on Tuesday after an earthquake on Indonesia’s main island of Java killed 162 people, injured hundreds and left more feared trapped in collapsed buildings.

As bodybags emerged from crumpled build ings in Indonesia’s most populous province, rescue efforts turned to any survivors still un der debris in areas made hard to reach by the mass of obstacles thrown onto the roads by the quake.

The epicenter of the shallow 5.6-magnitude quake on Monday was near the town Cianjur in West Java where most of the victims were killed as buildings collapsed and landslides were triggered.

One of the dozens of rescuers, 34-year-old Dimas Reviansyah, said teams were using chainsaws and excavators to break through piles of felled trees and debris to reach areas where civilians were believed trapped.

“I haven’t slept at all since yesterday, but I must keep going because there are victims who have not been found,” he said.

Drone footage taken by AFP showed the ex tent of a quake-triggered landslide where a wall of brown earth is only punctuated by workers using heavy machinery to clear a road.

President Joko Widodo visited the area on Tuesday, offering compensation for victims and ordering disaster and rescue agencies to “mobilise their personnel” to prioritize the evacuation of victims.

“On behalf of myself, on behalf of the gov ernment, I would like to express my deepest condolences,” he said.

Indonesia’s national disaster mitigation agency, or BNPB, said at least 25 people were still buried under the rubble in Cianjur as dark ness fell Monday.

CSP, or not award the PSA at any time prior to the issuance of Notice of Award in accordance with the DOE Circular No. DC 2018-02-003, as amended in DC 2021-09-0030, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidders. ORMECO, Inc. also has no responsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify bidders for any expenses incurred in the preparation of their bids.

Who will become history’s first parastronaut?

THE first astronaut—or astronauts—with a physical disability could be announced as soon as Wednes day, according to the European Space Agency.

People with physical disabilities have previously been excluded from one of the most exclusive and demanding jobs on Earth—and beyond —due to strict selection requirements.

Guillaume Weerts, the ESA’s head of space medi cine, told AFP that the agency’s “parastronaut proj ect” required “a complete change in philosophy” about the concept of medical aptitude, which origi nally came from the military and the selection of fighter pilots.

After carrying out a feasibility study, the ESA said potential candidates could include people who

IN BRIEF

have deficiencies in their lower limbs, whether from amputation or congenital defects.

Shorter people of up to 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) tall or those with different leg lengths were also eligible to apply.

The educational and psychological requirements for the candidates remained the same as for any other astronaut. Applications closed in June 2021.

The ESA is expected to name between four to six new European astronauts—without disabilities— during its ministerial council in Paris on Wednesday.

While Weerts said the parastronaut project runs somewhat separately, “there is a real possibility that as part of the announcement one or more people with disabilities” will also be presented. AFP

38 killed in central China factory fire

THIRTY-EIGHT people were killed and two were injured in a fire at a factory in central China, state media said Tuesday, with authorities blaming workers for illegal welding.

The fire broke out at a plant in Anyang City in Henan Province on Monday afternoon, news agency Xinhua reported.

Rescue services first received reports of a fire at 4:22 pm (0822 GMT) at Anyang Kaixinda Trading Co., Ltd, according to state media.

“After receiving the alarm, the municipal fire rescue detachment immediately dispatched forces to the scene,” state broadcaster CCTV said.

It added that the fire was extinguished by around 11 pm local time.

Footage from the scene shared by CCTV showed thick plumes of black smoke from the fire, with at least two trucks in position to battle the flames. AFP

UN rights council eyes probe of Iran deadly crackdown

“There’s a possibility there are still more victims,” Rudy Saladin, a local military chief, told AFP. The BNPB offered a lower death toll of 103 as of Tuesday morning and said 31 people re main missing. AFP THE United Nations’ top rights body will hold an urgent meeting this week to con sider launching an international investiga tion into the deadly crackdown on mass protests rocking Iran.

The UN Human Rights Council is due to host a special session on Thursday on “the deteriorating human rights situa tion,” following a request by Germany and Iceland.

The meeting follows two months of protests in Iran sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, after she was arrested for an alleged breach of the coun try’s strict dress rules for women based on Islamic sharia law.

At least 378 people, including 47 chil dren, have been killed in the crackdown since Amini’s death, according to the Norway-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR).

The demonstrations have spread across the country and grown into a broad move ment against the theocracy that has ruled Iran since the fall of the shah in 1979.

Thousands of peaceful protesters have also been arrested, according to UN rights experts, including many women, children and journalists, and six people have so far been handed death sentences over the dem onstrations.

During Thursday’s session, diplomats will consider a draft resolution presented by Germany and Iceland calling on the council to create a high-level internation al investigation to probe all alleged viola tions connected with the ongoing protests in Iran. AFP

6 HK Apple Daily staffers plead guilty

SIX senior staffers from Hong Kong’s shuttered pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily pleaded guilty to colluding with foreign forces on Tuesday, and could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Their convictions were part of a landmark case in which the city’s sweeping national security law, imposed by Beijing in 2020 to crush dissent, was used against a news organisation and its staff for the first time.

Apple Daily was scathing in its criticism of the Chinese government for years, and backed the pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong in 2019.

It collapsed last year after its funds were frozen and many senior staff ers – including founder Jimmy Lai – were charged with national security violations.

Four former senior editors and two ex-executives pleaded guilty at the Hong Kong High Court on Tuesday to “conspiracy to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security.” AFP

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Approved for release:

SGD. JOHN EZEKIEL M. SANTIAGO, REE, MBA TPBAC Chairman

TRAGEDY. A villager carries the body of his dead son following a 5.6-magnitude earthquake that killed at least 162 people, with hundreds injured and others missing in Cianjur, Indonesia on November 22, 2022. AFP

HOLIDAY FEELS. People crowd the Christmas Market in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany on November 21, 2022. The Frankfurt Christmas Market runs from November 21 to December 22. It is one of the largest and oldest Christmas markets in Germany. AFP

TOP

LAST

1 DIZ 4.45 0.7 18.67%

2 MBC 7.42 1.02 15.94%

3 LAND 0.91 0.1 12.35%

4 MVC 6.72 0.67 11.07%

5 AB 7.76 0.46 6.30%

6 ALCO 0.55 0.03 5.77%

7 LPC 0.141 0.007 5.22%

8 SUN 0.95 0.04 4.40%

9 WPI 0.48 0.02 4.35%

10 FRUIT 1 0.04 4.17%

TOP LOSERS

LAST % PRICE CHANGE CHANGE

1 FFI 3.66 -0.84 -18.67%

2 ABA 2.38 -0.54 -18.49%

3 NRCP 0.53 -0.11 -17.19%

4 ZHI 0.14 -0.01 -6.67%

5 HOME 1.73 -0.12 -6.49%

6 SLI 2.88 -0.19 -6.19%

7 MA 0.0093 -0.0006 -6.06%

8 MB 0.32 -0.02 -5.88%

9 MHC 0.226 -0.014 -5.83%

10 DITO 3.01 -0.18 -5.64%

MOST

1 JFC 1,883,950 483,153,946 2

12,947,400 356,380,230 3 ICT 1,636,180 305,454,711 4 BDO 2,235,370 290,900,661 5 MER 929,230 270,948,136 6 ABA 84,913,000 221,092,120 7 SMPH 5,766,600 200,099,225 8 SM 224,300 192,732,155 9

3,425,220 180,628,206

10 AC 270,940 179,814,295

Household debt of South Korea hits record $1.38t

SEOUL—South Korea ‘s household debt hit a new record high in the third quarter as the moderated measures against the COVID-19 pandemic boosted the purchase of goods and services on credit, central bank data showed Tuesday.

Household credit, which includes debt owed by households to banks and other lenders, in addition to purchase on credit, came to 1,870.6 trillion won ($1.38 trillion ) at the end of Septem ber, up 2.2 trillion won ($1.6 billion) from three months earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.

It was the highest since relevant data began to be compiled in 2003, keeping an upward trend for the 38th straight quarter since the second quarter of 2013.

The purchase on credit gained 2.5 trillion won ($1.8 billion) from three months earlier to reach a new high of 113.8 trillion won ($83.9 billion) at the end of September.

The fast growth came as the govern ment lifted all anti-virus measures, ex cept an indoor mask mandate, in April to bolster private consumption.

Excluding the purchase on credit, the household credit shrank 300 billion won ($221 million) to 1,756.8 trillion won ($1.3 trillion) during the July-Sep tember quarter amid the higher interest rates.

The central bank began to tighten its monetary policy stance in August last year, hiking its policy rate in eight steps from a record low of 0.5 percent to 3.0 percent.

Mortgage loans to households in creased 6.5 trillion won ($4.8 billion) during the third quarter, but credit loans reduced by 6.8 trillion won ($5 billion), continuing to slide for the fourth con secutive quarter. Xinhua

Stocks rebound; SMIC, Metrobank lead gainers

STOCKS rebounded Tuesday, led by gains in the financial and property subsectors, as more companies reported hefty profit growth in the third quarter.

The PSE index, the 30-company benchmark of the Philippine Stock Ex change, gained 26 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 6,429.65, as three of the six subsectors advanced.

The broader all-share index also picked up 4 points, or 0.1 percent, to settle at 3,390.15 on a value turnover of P5.4 billion. Losers outmatched gain ers, 117 to 78, while 41 issues were un changed.

Five of the 10 most active stocks ended in the green, led by SM Invest ments Corp. which climbed 4 percent to P869.00 and SM Prime Holdings Inc. which went up 3.6 percent to P35.00.

Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. added 2.5 percent to finish at P53.00.

Meanwhile, growing fears about Chi na’s latest Covid-19 outbreaks Tuesday rattled investors, who fear authorities will revert to highly restrictive contain ment measures that have already dealt a chilling blow to the world’s number two economy this year.

After starting November with a rally thanks to easing inflation concerns and signs China was edging towards a loos er approach to the disease, the optimism has been given a massive jolt since the country announced its first virus deaths in six months.

They come as infections rise across the country, with residents in Beijing worried that a record number of new infections will lead to leaders introduc ing lockdown measures similar to those seen earlier in the year in Shanghai, which lasted for months.

The flare-ups come just a week after China said it would begin rolling back some of the strict Covid rules that have been in place since the pandemic started in 2020, even as the rest of the world has moved on.

Analysts said the latest developments highlight the long road ahead for China in emerging from the crisis as President Xi Jinping sticks solidly to a zero-Covid strategy that is widely blamed for the country’s economic troubles.

“Risk sentiment has been under pres sure on questions around China reopen ing,” said SPI Asset Management’s Ste phen Innes.

“Some investors are convinced that China’s reopening is a formality and will be catalysed by the [World Health Organization] downgrading Covid to an endemic. We know that China’s re opening will be laced with fits and starts as the two-step-forward-one-step-back routine becomes the norm.”

Hong Kong, which thundered more than 10 percent higher in a three-day surge earlier this month, fell for a fifth straight day, while Seoul was also lower along with Wellington, Bangkok and Ja karta.

Still, there were gains in Tokyo, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Manila and Mumbai. With AFP

World won’t return to business as usual, says EBRD

FRANKFURT, Germany—Lufthansa

The airline made huge losses when the virus brought global air travel to a halt, but a rebound in demand has helped it return to profit this year.

Lufthansa said it was seeking new hires in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Belgium, with roles ranging from pilots and flight attendants to technicians and IT specialists.

A spokesman said some of the roles were being newly created while some were replacements for people who had left.

“In order to be at the forefront of the industry, we need dedicated and motivated employees for a variety of tasks and challenges,” said personnel chief Michael Niggemann.

According to figures published in October, Lufthansa had 108,000 employees at the end of September. It had 138,000 at the end of 2019, prior to the pandemic.

The airline industry in Europe is scrambling to hire new staff to cope with the rebound in demand after many quit or were let go during the pandemic.

Lufthansa, which cut thousands of staff during the pandemic, faced strike action by pilots and ground staff over the summer due to worker shortages but also rising inflation.

The airline group subsequently agreed to pay hikes for staff in several different areas.

In the third quarter, the airline group—which also includes Eurowings, Austrian, Swiss, and Brussels Airlines—reported a healthy profit and declared it had “left the pandemic behind.”

Lufthansa made huge losses in 2020 and 2021 and had to be bailed out by the German government, but it reported that its finances stabilized earlier than expected. AFP

Saudi denies OPEC+ plan to raise oil output

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—Saudi Ara bia on Monday denied a report that oil producers were discussing a pro duction increase for their next meet ing, saying a cut approved last month would stay in place until the end of 2023.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Monday that Saudi Arabia, which co-leads the OPEC+ cartel along with Russia, and other mem bers were considering an “increase of up to 500,000 barrels a day”.

But the official Saudi Press Agen cy said on Monday night that en ergy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman “categorically denies” the report.

By Ben Perry

LONDON, United Kingdom—The world will not return to “business as usual” following the pandemic along side rocketing gas prices and forced mi gration in the wake of the Ukraine war, Europe’s development bank forecast Tuesday.

Such a coming together of events— including also supply-chain disruptions and extreme weather—“would be chal lenging enough for governments and firms if it was spread over a decade or more,” noted Beata Javorcik, chief economist at the European Bank for Re construction and Development.

“And yet, all of this has happened in the space of just three years, with the prospect of more turbulence to come. It is clear that there will be no going back to the ‘business as usual’ of the pre-pan demic period.”

Her forecast was contained in the 2022-23 EBRD Transition Report, titled “Business Unusual,” which also highlighted firms hit by record levels of debt.

It said that “zombie firms”, owing to artificial financial life support, were, in fact, dragging down healthier rivals.

Founded in 1991 to help former So viet bloc countries switch to free-market economies, the London-headquartered bank has since extended its reach to include nations in the Middle East and North Africa.

Refugees

The EBRD said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had resulted in “the largest forcible displacement of people in Eu rope since the 1940s”.

It added that “the influx of Ukrainian refugees has the potential to increase the European Union labor force by an esti mated 0.5 percent by the end of 2022”.

“This could alleviate some labor short ages in rapidly aging European economies if mismatches between available jobs and skills are minimized,” it said.

Data showed that nearly three in ten Ukrainian refugees in Europe are al ready employed in their current host country, the bank added.

“The number of people being forcibly displaced—either internally or across international borders—has increased considerably of late, with the total fig ure worldwide forecast to exceed 100 million by end 2022,” the report noted.

It said almost two-thirds of all refu gees come from Syria, Ukraine, the West Bank and Gaza, Venezuela or Af ghanistan, and nearly half are children.

“One interesting message is that atti tudes towards refugees improved since last year... this is true of emerging Eu rope,” Javorcik told AFP.

In the same EBRD-focused region, she believed inflation had not yet peaked.

‘No green shoots’

“High energy prices are likely to per sist into 2024,” the economist predicted.

She said the EBRD was sticking to its forecast in September that the bank’s investment zone was set for growth of three percent next year.

“In our previous outlook we... (also) had a pessimistic scenario with access to Russian gas completely cut off for Europe and I think we are getting closer” to that.

“At the moment, we don’t see any green shoots,” Javorcik added ahead of the bank’s next set of official growth forecasts in February.

In the report, Javorcik said that amid “constant crisis mode” for governments and businesses, leaders “need to think and plan strategically and focus on lay ing the foundations of long-term eco nomic growth.”

Fears persist of a global recession next year, with inflation still sitting at the highest levels in decades for many countries on soaring energy and food bills—consequences of the pandemic and Ukraine war.

“Climate-related risks to global sup ply chains are rising, with serious impli cations for the production, manufacture, and distribution of goods around the world,” the report said.

“Environmental considerations need to become a central part of firms’ risk management.”

The EBRD said policymakers could look at introducing stress tests for sup ply chains in critical sectors, similar to those carried out on banks following the 2008 global financial crisis. AFP

“It is well known, and no secret, that OPEC+ does not discuss any de cisions ahead of its meetings,” SPA quoted Prince Abdulaziz as saying.

The next OPEC+ meeting is scheduled for Dec. 4.

An increase in production would partially reverse the cut of two mil lion barrels per day announced by the bloc in October.

That move heightened tensions between Riyadh and Washington, its longtime ally, which derided it as akin to “aligning with Russia” in the Ukraine war.

More oil output would also come when prices are already falling.

World oil prices plunged more than five percent on Monday, reach ing the lowest levels since January, on forecasts of a hit to Chinese de mand.

Saudi officials have vigorously de fended the recent production cut in the face of criticism from Washing ton, saying it was driven purely by market conditions and could change as the market changed.

Prince Abdulaziz reiterated that position on Monday.

“The current cut of 2 million bar rels per day by OPEC+ continues until the end of 2023, and if there is a need to take further measures

sup

on Monday launched a drive to hire 20,000 employees as the German airline giant recovers strongly from the coronavirus pandemic and seeks to tackle staffing shortages.

by reducing production to balance

ply and demand, we always remain ready to intervene,” he said. AFP

Photo shows EBRD London headquarters. (Courtesy of EBRD’s website)

UK CONFERENCE. Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delivers a speech at the Confederation of Business Industry annual conference at the Vox Conference Centre in Birmingham on Nov. 21, 2022. The UK’s recent austerity budget may avert a deeper recession, but the government must focus more on growth to improve the country’s long-term prospects, the CBI will say. AFP

CAB reported 409% growth in nine-month air passengers

By Darwin G. Amojelar

THE Civil Aeronautics Board said Tuesday domestic air passenger traffic increased 408.9 percent in the first nine months from a year ago amid the easing of travel restrictions.

Data from CAB showed that domestic passen ger volume reached 15.93 million from January to September.

This was more than four times higher than 3.13 million local pas sengers monitored in the same period last year when mobility restrictions were still in place.

PSE approves P3.2-b IPO of Villar family’s power REIT

By Jenniffer B. Austria

THE Philippine Stock Exchange said Tuesday it approved the P3.2-billion initial public offering of Premiere Island Power REIT Corp., a company led by the Villar family.

The PSE said in a statement PRE IT planned to sell 1.4 billion shares, with additional 210 million shares in case of overallotment, at a maxi mum of P2 apiece.

It said the selling shareholders are Siquijor Island Power Corp. and Camotes Island Power Generation Corp., which are controlled by the Villar Group.

“REITs have become a popular as set class among investor in the last two and a half years. We welcome more listings in this space to expand

the REIT options available to inves tors,” said PSE president and chief executive Ramon Monzon.

The local bourse said PREIT would conduct a book-building ex ercise to determine the final offer price for the maiden share offering.

PREIT scheduled the offering from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5. The shares will be listed on the main board of the PSE on Dec. 15.

The company engaged China Bank Capital Corp. as sole issue manager, underwriter and bookrun ner and RCBC Capital Corp. as a participating underwriter.

PREIT is the power and infra structure platform of Prime Asset Ventures Inc., the holding company of Manuel Paolo Villar, the eldest son of real estate tycoon Manuel Villar.

The company’s initial property portfolio consists of land and power plant assets utilized in the power generation projects of SIPCOR and CAMPCOR in Cebu and Siquijor,

which have a combined installed ca pacity of 21.2 megawatts.

The selling shareholders will re ceive the full amount of the pro ceeds, which they plan to reinvest, pursuant to the revised implement ing rules and regulations of Repub lic Act No. 9856 or the Real Estate Investment Trust Act of 2009.

PREIT sad in a prospectus it was expecting a “base case” divided payout of 6.9 percent in 2022 and 7.2 percent in 2023.

PREIT will be the second energyrelated REIT in the country, next to Citicore Energy REIT Corp. of busi nessman Edgar Saavedra.

It will also be the Villar family’s second REIT unit to list in the local bourse, following VistaREIT Inc.’s debut on June 15, 2022.

The Villar family’s other listed firms are Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc., AllHome Corp., AllDay Marts Inc., Golden MV Holdings, Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. and Vista malls Inc.

6,429.65

F oreign

Japan Yen 0.0070360.4033 UKPound1.18260067.7795 Hong KongDollar0.1281547.3450 SwitzerlandFranc1.04275359.7643 CanadaDollar0.74366042.6221 SingaporeDollar0.72374641.4808 AustraliaDollar0.66050037.8559 BahrainDinar2.653224152.0669 Saudi Arabia Rial 0.26609915.2512 BruneiDollar0.72113741.3312 IndonesiaRupiah0.0000640.0037 Thailand Baht 0.0275671.5800 UAE Dirham0.27227915.6054 EuroEuro 1.02450058.7182 Korea Won 0.0007360.0422 ChinaYuan0.1395287.9969 IndiaRupee0.0122400.7015 MalaysiaRinggit0.21857912.5276 New Zealand Dollar 0.60960034.9386 TaiwanDollar0.0320161.8350 Source: BSP

Gov’t asked to ensure stable mining policies

THE Chamber of Mines of the Philippines asked the government to ensure stable policies to continue attracting investors in the mining industry.

“We want to attract the large, responsible multinational mining companies with a lot of resources and know-how, but to be able to do that, we need to have policies that are consistent and don’t change,” CoMP vice chairman Gerard Brimo said during the Pilipinas Conference 2022.

Brimo said the mining industry was under performing because of the 12-year moratorium on new mining permits. He said while this was lifted, the industry was essentially “in limbo in terms of growth.”

“So, what we need here is to see stability in policies,” said Brimo, who also mentioned the issues involving mining taxes.

Brimo said a multinational company came to the Philippines looking for opportunities af ter the lifting of the moratorium on new mining permits and the open pit ban. “But here comes in the news that our mining taxes will go up… They looked at that and said what the heck is this. The Philippines again is going to change the policies again,” he said. Alena Mae S. Flores

The Philippines lifted most travel restrictions in the first quarter this year to help in the economic recovery from the pandemic.

Cebu Pacific remained the coun try’s leading domestic airline with a total of 2.54 million passengers flown in the nine-month period.

It was followed by PAL Express with 2.54 million passengers, Philippines AirAsia with 2.44 million and Philippine Airlines with 1.54 million passengers.

Cebgo, a unit of Cebu Pacific, car ried total domestic passengers of 930,096, while AirSwift Transport Inc. flew 135,066 passengers.

International passenger volume reached 6.3 million in the first nine months, led by PAL, which carried 2.15 million passengers in the ninemonth period.

Cebu Pacific followed with 251,632 passengers flown, Philippines AirA sia with 73,577 passengers, Royal Charter Service with 837 passengers and Astro Air International with 119 passengers.

Maynilad spending P22b to construct seven water treatment plants

By Alena Mae S. Flores

WEST zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. plans to construct seven water treatment plants costing P22 billion over the next five years, a top executive said Tuesday.

The project will add more than 545 million liters per day of water supply for distribution to customers and help reduce service interruptions.

The new water treatment plants― which will rise in Muntinlupa, Pasay, Parañaque, Cavite and Rizal―will

get raw water from various sources, including Laguna Lake, Kaliwa Dam, some rivers in Cavite province and the treated used water discharged by the company’s water reclamation facilities.

“By increasing our water production, we can better close the gap between avail able supply and the grow ing demand. This, along with sustained upgrades of our water infrastructure,

More Japanese firms interested in investing in PH manufacturing and renewable energy

THE Philippine Economic Zone Authority said Tuesday more Japanese firms expressed interest to invest in the country’s manufacturing and renewable energy sectors.

PEZA concluded an outbound invest ment mission in Japan on Nov. 18 to position the Philippines as the best in vestment destination in Southeast Asia.

PEZA officer-in-charge directorgeneral Tereso Panga cited investment opportunities for Japanese stakeholders and locators in the Philippines.

“Although they [Japanese] are al ready the number one ranking investor in economic zones under PEZA, we are still encouraging them to invest more in the Philippines,” Panga said.

He said PEZA draws guidance from the priority strategy of President Ferdi nand Marcos Jr., specifically on agricul ture and renewable energy.

“We are also guided by DTI’s science technology innovation-driven industri alization strategy,” Panga said.

PEZA pitched the Philippines for investments, especially for export pro duction in ecozones.

The Department of Trade and Indus try, Board of Investments, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of En ergy and Philippine Trade and Invest ment Center-Tokyo also joined the in vestment mission.

“As of September, PEZA has a total of 898 Japanese enterprises located in our economic zones with cumulative investments of P739.599 billion,” Pan ga said.

“Meanwhile, from January to Sep tember 2022, P11.262 billion of invest ments were made from Japanese in vestors, with $13.258 billion of export income generated and 351,335 direct jobs created,” Panga said.

Board of Investments managing head Ceferino Rodolfo said the Japanese in vestors are pioneers and leaders in key areas in renewable energy and digitali zation.

PEZA signed two strategic partner ships recently. It signed a memorandum of understanding with Junca Global Partner Inc. and a registration agree ment with Kurabe Industrial Philip pines Inc. Alena Mae S. Flores

will allow us to increase pres sure in the pipe network and ultimately reduce service disruptions,” said Mayni lad chief operating officer Randolph Estrellado.

The construction of new water treatment plants is part of Maynilad’s fiveyear service enhancement program, which includes the laying of new pipelines, construction of additional pumping stations and reservoirs, replacement

and repair of old pipes, construction of new sewage treatment plants and rehabilitation of water and wastewater facilities.

These form part of Maynilad’s P219.8-billion total spending plan for 2023 to 2027.

Maynilad operates four water treatment plants―two in La Mesa Compound, Quezon City and another two at Putatan, Muntinlupa.

These plants produce 2.7 billion liters per day of potable water for the compa ny’s more than 9.5 million customers.

Globe’s corporate data revenues up 21% to P2.5b

GLOBE Telecom Inc. said Tuesday corporate data revenues rose 21 percent to P2.5 billion as of the third quarter, boosted by its information and communications technology services.

“Our solid growth was a result of helping businesses embrace change through digital so lutions. Together with our customers we face every challenge with passion and resolve. It is our goal to be the preferred partner of en terprises, whether big or small, in their digital journey,” said Globe Group president and chief executive Ernest Cu.

“Hence, we will continue to explore optimal solutions for every business need to help our customers weather the economic storm. In turn, they can focus on profitability and service quality,” he said.

Corporate data is handled by Globe Busi ness, which provides end-to-end premiumgrade access solutions designed to address specific business connectivity requirements, whether local or international.

It provides internet plans bundled with busi ness solutions that fit enterprise needs to give them a digital advantage. Darwin G. Amojelar

Forbes names SMIC among best employers

FORBES and market research company Statis ta named SM Investments Corp. among the world’s best employers.

Forbes and Statista selected the World’s Best Employers 2022 based on independent surveys of roughly 150,000 employees in more than 55 countries around the world. Partici pants were asked to rate employers according to various topics such as image, trust, gender equality, corporate social responsibility, culture and benefits.

“We thank Forbes for this citation. This re flects our commitment to make SM the best work place for our dedicated and hard-working people. We also give recognition to our em ployees in helping us achieve our mission and vision and sharing the strong values that make us SM,” said SM president and chief executive Frederic DyBuncio.

To make sure that SM employees and their families were safe during the pandemic, SM embarked on a full vaccination campaign, while monitoring for surges of new variants and acting swiftly to provide flexible work ar rangements for its teams.

SM kept its workplaces safe with contin ued testing, regular disinfection and following strict health protocols.

Alternergy, Shell team up to explore more offshore wind sites in PH

ALTERNERGY Holdings Corp.’s whol ly-owned subsidiary Pililla AVC Corp. and Shell Overseas Investment B.V. said Tuesday they formed a partnership to ex plore the vast offshore wind potential in the Philippines.

The Alternergy and Shell venture ob

tained a wind energy service contract from the Department of Energy to assess the feasibility of an offshore wind proj ect in the windswept Calavite Passage near Mindoro.

The Calavite area has a potential of 5 gigawatts of wind power. Alternergy and

INFLUENTIAL

Shell’s service contract has a potential capacity of 1 gigawatt.

The development of offshore wind requires investments of about $5 mil lion per megawatt, based on the DOE estimates.

“This is a partnership of combined competencies and experiences towards the goal of boosting the Philippines’ renewable energy target,” Alternergy chairman and former Energy Secretary Vince Pérez said.

He said the Philippines’ offshore wind industry is promising and still at its nascent stage.

The World Bank estimates that robust development of offshore wind could add 20 GW of installed capacity by 2040, accounting for 14 percent of the Philip pines electricity needs and some $14 bil lion of value added to the economy.

“Shell, as our strategic partner with 50 years of deep water offshore and over 20 years of offshore wind de velopment experience, will bring in its global track record, supply chain access, and technical expertise in de veloping large scale bottom-fixed and floating offshore wind projects,” Perez said.Alena Mae S. Flores

UNISTAR-CLOUD4C

DEAL. Unistar Credit and Finance Corp., a financial solutions company, teams up with Cloud4C, a multi-cloud, application focused managed cloud services leader in the adoption of digital technology to improve efficiency and innovation in its operations. Unistar is undergoing digital transformation in preparation for the expansion of products and services. Leading the signing of the memorandum of agreement are (from left) Cloud4C Associate vice president Maruti Shah, Cloud4C senior vice president Hitesh Bharadwaj, Cloud4C president and chief executive Edler Panlilio, Unistar chief information officer JC Principe, Cloud4C country strategic advisor Nilo Cruz and Unistar IT head Allen Mico Parocha.

BUSINESSWOMAN. New York-based International Women’s Entrepreneurial Challenge Foundation recognizes Phoenix Publishing House Inc. president Maria Pilar ‘Penny’ Sibal (center) as one of this year’s ‘world’s most influential businesswomen’, the only Filipina among 41 awardees from Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, representing multiple industries in a grand ceremony in Madrid, Spain. Sibal joins the elite group of women business leaders worldwide who were recognized for developing opportunities brought by the COVID 19 pandemic into values.

Sibal received the award from IWEC president Ibuncun Aworsika (right) and IWEC chairperson Amb. Ruth Davis.

Maynilad COO Randolph Estrellado

Blazers tame Red Lions to grab lead, secure twice-to-beat edge

By Peter Atencio

MARK Sangco punctured the hoops with a careerhigh 19 points to go with 12 rebounds as he led the College of St. Benilde Blazers to a 82-73 thumping of the San Beda Red Lions on Tuesday in the 98th National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament at the FilOil-EcoOil Arena in San Juan.

Sangco drilled in back-to-back baskets in the last 9:11, touching off a pivotal scoring run which gave the Blazers enough room to eke out their 14th triumph in 18 games at the end of the two-round eliminations.

With their fourth straight win, the Blazers moved to the top of the standings and formally earned a twice-to-beat incentive in the Final Four.

The defending champion Letran Knights (13-4), who are at no. 2 spot, can

Olivarez Golf raises P3M for children with special needs

THE First Mayor Eric L. Olivarez Golf Cup, held November 18 at the Tagaytay Midlands Golf Club, successfully raised at least P3 million that will benefit clients of the Parañaque City Therapy Center for Children with Special Needs, organizers said.

The annual charity event, last held in 2019 because of the pandemic, grossed around P5 million in ticket sales, sponsorships and participation fees, according to officials of the Rotary Club of Parañaque-Saint Andrew which organized the event.

Mayor Olivarez said the funds raised during the golf cup will go a long way towards ensuring the viability and sustainability of the Therapy Center for Children with Special Needs, one of only two currently in operation in the Philippines.

“We are really grateful to all our players, participants, sponsors and the Rotary Club of Parañaque-Saint Andrew for this very successful event, which broke many records set in the past Mayor’s Cups during the term of Mayor Edwin L. Olivarez,” he said.

“This means a lot to our children with special needs in Parañaque who depend on the free services and facilities provided by the Therapy Center that would otherwise be very expensive and unaffordable especially to poor families,” he added.

Cissette Ricardo, president of the Rotary Club of Parañaque-Saint Andrew, said many of their members share the vision of Mayor Eric Olivarez to fully support children with special needs.

Aileen Olivarez, the mayor’s wife, also expressed her gratitude to all those who supported the golf cup and the Therapy Center during the event’s closing program.

still claim the top seeding if they beat the Jose Rizal University Heavy Bombers in their 3 p.m. game Wednesday.

“We worked hard to be in this position. It’s a good feeling,” said Blazers’ coach Charles Tiu.

Miguel Corteza and Will Gozum shot 15 points apiece for the Blazers, who were slightly ahead, 63-60, at the start of their decisive breakaway. They were comfortably in front by 11, 71-60, in the

8:12 mark off Corteza’s layup.

The Blazers, with James Pasturan adding 13 points, are in for a clash against the Lyceum Pirates in the Final Four.

James Kwekuteye and JB Bahio showed the way with the 18 points for Red Lions, who fell to the no. 4 position with a 12-6 card in a tie with the Pirates. They will most likely meet the Knights in the semis.

Meanwhile, the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals displayed composure at endgame and toppled the Arellano University Chiefs in overtime, 63-62.

The Chiefs bungled two chances to win the contest on a turnover and two missed baskets from Axel Doromal in the final minute.

With JP Maguliano shooting 18 points, the Generals went on to finish their campaign with a 3-15 win-loss record.

As Maguliano finalized the count with his two charities with 1:29 to go, the Chiefs could not cash in on their winning chances,

with Doromal missing easy shots in the 46-second and three-second marks.

Adrian Balowa’s triple in the last 4.1 seconds forced the overtime, 54-all.

“Very proud of the boys. Kung nakuha namin iyung character na ito (composure) from the start, nagtuluy-tuloy sana kami. Sana, sa last game na ito ay madala nila ang mga natutunan nila for next season, like how to handle pressure and stay composed,” said EAC coach Oliver Bunyi.

The Scores: First Game

EAC (63—Maguliano 18, Cosejo 14, Balowa 12, Bajon 12, Tolentino 3, Dominguez 2, Bacud 1, Luciano 1, Cosa 0, An. Doria 0, Umpad 0, Quinal 0, Angeles 0.

Arellano (62—Doromal 25, Flores 12, Talampas 12, Tolentino 5, Oliva 4, Mantua 2, Mallari 2, Oftana 0, Sunga 0, Abastillas 0.

Quarterscores: 13-15, 20-27, 35-41, 5454, 63-62

POC-supervised dragonboat open race slated in Talisay

THE Philippine Canoe Kayak Dragonboat Federation will hold its National Dragonboat Open starting this Saturday (November 25) up to Sunday on Taal Lake off the Club Balai Isabel in Talisay, Batangas.

The National Open is supervised by the Philippine Olympic Committee under its president Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino and will select members of the national pool for the Cambodia

32nd Southeast Asian Games set in May 2023.

PCKDF president Teresita Uy thanked Tolentino for supervising the National Open as well as Talisay Mayor Nestor Natanauan and Club Balai Isabel CEO and pesident Nelson Terrible.

Competitions will be in the under-23 500-meter (3 crew) , mixed U23 250m, 500m and 800m (12 crew), men open (12 crew) in 250m, 500m and 800m, U23 (12

crew) in 250m, 500m and 800m and U23 (5 crew) 250m, 500m and 800m.

The team practices are set on Friday while the competition proper will be on Saturday and Sunday. There is no entry fee.

Details could be obtained from Duch Co or email duck.pckdf@gmail.com, call or text 0917 328 4081 or Borgs Pelias at arthurpelias@gmail.com or 0917 532 4334.

a 3rd time

REGHIS “RG” Romero V of Club 200 continued his ascent to racing stardom as he claimed a third Philippine Super Bikes Championship, this time in the Intermediate Class recently following a calculated ride at the Clark International Speedway.

The 29-year-old Romero needed to place fifth or higher to secure his third superbikes’ championship, following his coronation as PSBK Rookie of the year in 2019 and Novice Class overall titlist last year.

Romero, who is backed by Army Navy, Aprilia Philippines, Club 200, Motul Infinit serve, Kyt Philippines, Alpine Stars Philippines, Jyp Racing Entertainment, Rosario Bikes Racing Team, Zero2podium Riding School, Orion Exhaust, Black Flag Designs PH, Caballero Gear, R-II Builders, Prime Homes, Latched, Iclick and Pugad Photography, finished fifth comfortably to accomplish his goal.

He snared the Intermediate Class crown by seven points against the powerful Ducati Factory Team.

“I knew there was no need to push for victory as my mind was set for the championship,” said Romero, who was also a former Rookie of the Year Golden Wheel awardee.

What makes the feat more impressive is the fact that Romero went up against riders with more powerful racing machines.

“This season is the toughest that I’ve had in my six-year racing career, with the level of competition getting higher every year. I am using An aprilia RSV4 1100 factory, going up against competitors with machines that have been riding for the past five years. It is a big change for me switching manufacturers, but I am happy to say that I have proved that it is definitely not the bike, but the rider,” Romero reasoned out.

“I am now a three-time PSBK (Philippine Superbike) champion,” proudly declared Romero.

Now that Romero is slowly but surely carving a niche for himself in superbikes racing, slowing down is the last thing on his mind.

“Next year I will be joining the Expert Class with the top riders in the country. The 2023 season starts in March next year, but for now, I would like to focus on my work, family and my three kids,” he said.

Romero began racing in 2008 in karting, saying it was his dream to win the sport’s Rookie of the Year award, which however, eluded him. Eleven years later in 2019, the Club 200 standout finally fulfilled his dream of bagging the Golden Wheel top rookie title, this time as a superbikes racer. Two years later in 2021, Romero showed that his victory in the PSBK was no fluke as he ran away with the Novice title and the 2021 Ducati Cup in a dominant show that fortified his status as two-wheel racing’s brightest rising star.

He levelled up this season and raced in the higher Intermediate Class this season and again proved his dominance.

Frayna tries to defend 3 titles in PH Women’s Chess Championship

ALL eyes will be on Janelle Frayna as she defends three of her titles in the coming Philippine Women’s Chess Championship grand finals starting on Nov. 29 at the Philippine Academy for Chess Excellence.

Frayna, the country’s first women’s Grandmaster, is the threetime reigning champion in standard chess, blitz, and rapid and is favored to top the week-long tournament as part of the national team’s preparation for next year’s Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, and the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) in Thailand.

But the charming 25-yearold from Albay is wary about a possible upset considering a heavy field of 12 elite players capable of beating her in all three categories.

“If you will relax, hindi mo mamamalayan mapapalitan ka na next year. So you should always be at your best,” said Frayna in Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the ground

floor of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

“Feeling ko naman right now I’m still at my peak. So I’m looking forward to my fourth crown sa Women’s Chess Championship.”

Frayna was with National Chess Federation of the Philippines Executive Officer Grandmaster Jayson Gonzales and NOVA Wellness store president Vincent Travis Chua in the session presented by San Miguel Corporation, MILO, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

Seven young players who survived a series of eliminations made it to the grand finale and will compete against Frayna, Women’s International Master Jan Jodilyn Fronda, WIM Beverly Mendoza, WIM Bernadette Galas, and WIM Marie Antoinette San Diego.

One promising player who caught the eye of Frayna and Gonzales is 15-year-old Womens National Master April Joy Claros.

“May gift itong bata na ito,” Frayna said of Claros’ bright future. “Itong batang ito nakikita ko may talento na siya, may hard work pa siya. So who knows, only time will tell.”

The tournament will be a single round robin, according to Gonzales, who this early is already looking at two out of the seven young players who qualified as potential future member of the national team.

“May nakikita akong dalawa na talagang mukhang papalit sa members ng ating national team looking forward to the 2024 (Chess) Olympiad in Hungary,” said the Filipino grandmaster.

Chua, meanwhile, is looking forward at partnering with the NCFP with its various programs and projects beginning with the Women’s Chess Championship grand finals through NOVA Wellness.

“Chess has been in the background for a long time but it’s a sport where I think we can really excel in,” said Chua, who previously played chess for the Ateneo team in the UAAP.

Reghis”RG” Romero V scoots home with the Intermediate Class title in the bag. Inset shows Romero with his Club 200 team, family and supporters.

Bale to the rescue as Wales draws with US, 1-1

AL-RAYYAN,

Welsh skipper Bale lashed home an 82nd-minute spot kick to break American hearts moments after earning the penalty when defender Walker Zimmerman crashed into the former Real Madrid star.

The penalty drama cancelled out Tim Weah’s superb first-half goal for the Americans which had threatened to ruin the celebratory mood surrounding Wales’ long-awaited first World Cup appearance since the 1958 finals in Sweden.

Bale’s equaliser triggered roars from a large and raucous contingent of Wales fans in a crowd of 43,418 fans at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium on the outskirts of Doha.

Bale said afterwards a rousing halftime team talk by manager Rob Page had helped inspire Wales after a lacklustre first-half performance.

“Obviously a difficult game. First

half was not how we wanted to play,” said Bale.

“The US played well and we played poorly. We played really well in the second half.

“Good point, but we would have loved to have had three.”

Page paid tribute to the 33-year-old Bale’s nous in winning the penalty.

“He’s very good at finding those spaces,” Page said. “He’s intelligent, he’s got a wise head to get in those positions and he used all his wisdom there.”

Until the late penalty it looked as if Wales were heading for a defeat, struggling to break down a skillful and energetic US squad that is the second youngest at the tournament.

Coach Gregg Berhalter admitted his team had been left dejected by failure to hang on for victory as they now contemplate a daunting Group B game with England on Friday.

“Taking a point in the first game is not the end of the world,” Berhalter said.

“Walking into the locker room after the game you could see the disappointment in the group. The guys worked hard.

“In the end we fell a little bit short of the victory.”

Menace

Wales were outplayed for long periods of the first half, with manager Page’s decision not to start towering centre-forward Kieffer Moore depriving them of a crucial attacking outlet.

Instead it was the US who made all the early running, with Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic a constant darting menace.

The positive early play almost resulted in a goal when Weah’s whipped-in cross almost forced Joe Rodon to head into his own net.

The US exuberance led to a flurry of cards for the Americans early on, with Sergino Dest and Weston McKennie both booked for wild tackles on Neco Williams.

The relentless US pressing game meant Wales were unable to construct anything in midfield, where Aaron

Ramsey and Ethan Ampadu were rarely afforded time or space.

The breakthrough came on 36 minutes. Good hold-up play by Josh Sargent near halfway sent Pulisic accelerating towards goal before picking out Weah, who had darted in behind goal.

The son of African football icon George Weah showed terrific composure, dinking a cool finish with the outside of his right foot over Wayne Hennessey for a goal that was no less than the US deserved.

Wales were in disciplinary soon afterwards, Bale earning a yellow card for clattering into Yunus Musah on 40 minutes.

Chris Mepham joined the Welsh captain in the book after hauling Pulisic down near half-time.

Page brought on Moore at half-time for Daniel James and the substitution immediately started to have an effect.

Tottenham’s Ben Davies almost headed Wales level on 64 minutes but was denied by goalkeeper Matt Turner with an acrobatic parry over the bar.

Moore powered a header just over from the ensuing corner. AFP

Iglupas, Ballado score twinkill in PCA Juniors

MIGUEL Iglupas pulled off a pair of shockers in the boys’ top two divisions while Jayden Ballado matched that twotitle feat in the girls’ side of the PCA (Philippine Columbian Association) Juniors National Tennis Championships at the PCA outdoor courts in Plaza Dilao, Manila last Monday.

Both unranked in their respective categories, Iglupas, 16, toppled three seeded rivals to reign in his age category, capped by an abbreviated 1-0 win in the finals as No. 7 Kenzo Brodeth retired due to back injury.

But against a healthy Mateo Rivas, the rising star from the tennis-playing clan from Iligan City dominated his top seeded rival, coming away with a 6-1, 6-4 victory to claim the 18-and-under diadem in the Group I event presented by Dunlop.

Ballado, from Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, also stirred up play in her side of the battle, wearing down second ranked Joy Ansay, 6-1, 2-6, 10-2, in the 14-U finals then ripping Chloe Mercado, 6-0, 6-2, to clinch the 16-U trophy in

in the Brookside Juniors Championships starting tomorrow (Thursday) at the Brookside Tennis Club in Cainta, Rizal.

The Brookside Open, on the other hand, will be held Nov. 27-Dec. 3 featuring the men’s singles and doubles.

For details, contact event organizer Bobby Mangunay at 09154046464.

On their way to sharing the MVP honors, Iglupas eased past No. 5 Tristan Licayan, 4-1, 4-2, in the second round of 16-U play, bundled out No. 4 Cyril Paster, 4-1, 4-0, in the next then overwhelmed top seed Frank Dilao, 6-3, 6-0, in the semis.

He stunned second seed Manila right in the 18-U second round, then repeated over Paster, 6-1, 6-1, in the semis, while Ballado edged top seed Sandra Bautista, 6-7, 6-2, 10-5, in the 14-U semis then outlasted No. 3 AJ Acabo, 1-4, 4-2, 10-6, in the 16-U quarters.

Other winners were Quezon City’s Zachary Morales and Maristella Torrecampo from Los Baños (12-U), Imus, Cavite’s Reign Maravilla (boys’ 14-U), and La Carlota’s Alexa Milliam.

Home Credit brings home the power of gaming in Iloilo at UNICON 2022

HOME Credit Philippines, the country’s leading consumer finance company, partnered with ILO Esports, the only government-backed esports organization in the Philippines, for the United Iloilo Convention (UNICON 2022) – a gathering of e-games, toys, and cosplay enthusiasts in Western Visayas from October 29 to 30, 2022 at the SM City Iloilo Cyberzone.

UNICON 2022 featured a wide range of activities, including a toy convention, cosplay showcase, and e-games competition. Home Credit also set up an immersive and experiential where Ilonggos got to test topof-the-line gadgets, played e-games with a live feed of the games on a massive LED screen, and tried out an augmented reality filter on Instagram.

Anchored on its #PlayLikeAPro campaign, Home Credit was able to showcase the best gaming smartphones, computers, and laptops, which can be purchased through its partner merchants in Iloilo City, such as Gadget Headz and Concept Computer Store.

“We at Home Credit wanted to bring home the power to Ilonggos for UNICON 2022 as part of our thrust to grow and nurture our communities across the Philippines. Esports has become a big community, and a big chunk of our customers get their smartphones and laptops through Home Credit, not only for online schooling or work but likewise for gaming,” shared Home Credit Philippines’ PR Manager, Russel Patina.

The UNICON 2022 was a weekend-long event that brought together the esports fever, with activities such as art and magic exhibits and video game duels like Tekken. A Yu-Gi-Oh! event, a cosplay parade, and a tournament took place during the second day of the event.

“I would like to thank Home Credit for helping us organize this year’s UNICON. We wish and we aim that through this event, we’re able to unite the Ilonggos through games, cosplay, and collections,” shared ILO Esports’ Found and CEO, Jamar Montehermoso.

With its growing popularity, esports has become one of the most talked-about topics in the country. What was once a niche hobby has now evolved into a major sporting event, with pro teams being organized and sent out to represent the country in international competitions.

Angel Danica Lozada, aka Angelailaila, a League of Legends: Wild Rift player and former SEA Games representative, expressed her appreciation to Home Credit for holding the event and paving the way for gaming athletes and enthusiasts, as well as for promoting esports to the Ilonggo community.

“Through Home Credit and ILO Esports, I hope that more and more Filipino youth and Ilonggos will be encouraged to play and build an empowering esports community with us here in the Philippines. Like Home Credit, let’s bring the power and play like a pro,” shared Lozada.

Shakey’s Super League to hold National Invitationals

THE Shakey’s Super League will ride the momentum generated by the highly successful Collegiate Pre-Season Championship when it stages the National Invitationals in July.

“Our next tournament is truly a national championship,” said Philip Ella Juico, chairman of the Athletic Events and Sports Management Inc. (ACES), which oversees the conduct of the SSL.

Juico announced during Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex that 12 teams from all over the country will vie in the next SSL offering.

“These are teams from Luzon, including the UAAP and NCAA, and those the Visayas and Mindanao. It’s a short tournament, a one-week tournament,” added the former chairman of the Philippine Sports Commission.

Also gracing the forum were ACES president Dr. Ian Laurel and National University key players Alyssa Solomon and Michaela Belen and coach Karl Dimaculangan barely two days after they swept the Collegiate PreSeason Championship.

Laurel stressed that the SSL will continue its vision of developing new talents and giving those from other parts of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao, players who work as hard as the others, the chance to showcase their talent.

“We want to give the teams from the Visayas and Mindanao the chance to face the players whom they idolize and provide them a high level of competition,” said Laurel in the forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, MILO, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

Laurel said for the National Invitationals, the top three teams from both the UAAP and NCAA will face two teams each from Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

“We want to showcase the best,” said Laurel.

The Lady Bulldogs are the hottest collegiate team in women’s volleyball, having scored a 16-game sweep of the last UAAP season then an 8-0 sweep of the Pre-Season Championship, both at the expense of La Salle.

This early, they are looking forward to the next UAAP wars in February and the SSL National Invitational Championship in July.

“Very excited ako sa plan,” said Solomon, who was crowned MVP in the SSL pre-season tournament that drew 18 teams.

NU, Benilde face off for V-League title

NATIONAL University and St. Benilde face off in a key duel of collegiate champions with no less the first finals berth at stake in the V-League Men’s Collegiate Challenge Final Four at the Paco Arena in Manila Wednesday.

The UAAP champs Bulldogs, seeking a second pre-tournament championship after topping the Spikers’ Turf last month, and the NCAA titlists Altas square off at 3 p.m.

Ateneo and UST, on the other hand, dispute the other championship slot in another explosive matchup at 5 p.m.

Meanwhile, San Beda U and Arellano U kick off the busy fourgame bill at 10 a.m. while La Salle and Far Eastern U tangle at 1 p.m. in a pair of matches in the classification round.

Qatar—Gareth Bale scored a late penalty to snatch a 1-1 draw with the United States in Wales’ fi rst World Cup game in 64 years on Monday.

USA’s defender Walker Zimmerman and Wales’ forward Gareth Bale fall during the Qatar 2022 World Cup Group B football match between USA and Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al-Rayyan, west of Doha. AFP

Miguel Iglupas and Jayden Ballado display their awards as champions of the PCA (Philippine Columbian Association) Juniors National Tennis Championships. the upset-marred tournament which served as part of the PPS-PEPP junior circuit put up by Palawan Pawnshop

president/CEO Bobby Castro. Meanwhile, action in the country’s longest-running talent-search heats up

Philip Ella Juico

SEA Games athlete and digital content creator, Angel Danica Lozada, joined the fun in UNICON and hoped to fuel esports amongst the Ilonggo youth.

Mel Tiangco reflects on Magpakailanman’s 20 years on air

By Patricia Taculao

AFTER nearly two decades of hosting the Philippine television show Magpakailanman , GMA News Pillar Mel Tiangco gained vari ous experiences, knowledge, and memories from the stories of the people she interviewed. Some of these stories left a significant mark on the news anchor because of their intensity, while others touched her because she found a way to empower people with her words and kind gestures.

Sa dinami-daming genre na tinatampok na min sa Magpakailanman, gusto ko ‘yung genre na nakakatulong sa kapwa. Gusto ko ‘yung hindi lang na- entertain, hindi ka lang nasiya han sa storya, pero nakapaghandog kami sa iyo ng realization [or] maybe a sense of in spiration,” Mel said during an intimate media conference at Harolds Evotel last November 18, Friday.

Indeed, Magpakailanman has produced sev eral episodes that leave an impression on its viewers, allowing them to look back at the story and learn from it.

Even though Mel claims she no longer has her memory from 20 years ago, the stories she hears and the people she meets still impact her.

Tiangco recalls one incident during one of their recent episodes, which they taped last Monday, where she felt sympathy for her sub ject, which she said had nothing to do with their story.

Upon sitting, Mel received a request from the subject, asking her to speak louder because he has hearing problems. The Magpakailan man host thought nothing of it and eagerly agreed, even saying she’ll talk louder to en sure better communication.

“He was a 30-year-old boy, good-looking at mabait. Very decent. Umiyak! Sabi ko, ‘Ba’t ako nagpaiyak?! I couldn’t help it. I went to him and comforted him, not knowing why he was crying,” Mel said.

She asked the subject if she hurt his feel ings and said something offensive, only to learn of his embarrassment toward his con dition. At that point, Mel knew she had to say something about her subject’s mind set. She emphasized that hearing problems don’t define a person’s worth, and their ruin comes from harming others. Immediately, she asked her office to provide her with a letter recommending her subject for a medi cal consultation.

“ May mga ganong bagay na nagbibigay

Disney+ captivates netizens with ‘A Night of Wonder’

FILMED against the backdrop of iconic landmarks in the Philippines, A Night of Wonder with Disney+ features a star-studded event celebrating the availability of Disney+ in the Philippines. Showcasing the breadth of general entertainment content available on the service, the special also features performances by popular Filipino singers. The special is available to stream on Disney+ until today.

Hosted by Catriona Gray and Robi Do mingo A Night of Wonder with Disney+ opens with a medley of Disney favorites including “When You Wish Upon a Star” (Pinocchio) performed by Zephanie, “How Far I’ll Go” (Moana) performed by Janella Salvador, “Circle of Life” (The Lion King) performed by Stell of SB19 and “Into the Unknown” (Frozen 2) performed by all three singers. Zack Tabudlo also performs a rendition of American rock band, The Score’s, “Unstoppable”.

The concert show also includes video greetings from some of the biggest names in the movie and entertainment industry including Olivia Rodrigo, Chris Evans, Ewan McGregor, and BLACKPINK’s

A

natural scenery.

Throughout the show, scenes from some of the incredible content from The Walt Disney Company are projected onto Ma nila’s landmarks. The show concludes with fireworks and a drone display over Manila Bay.

Available from today, consumers in the Philippines can access the Disney+ stream ing service with a new range of subscrip

tion plans which includes a monthly Mobile Plan for P159, or annual Mobile Plan for P1,150. The Premium Plan is available for P369 monthly, or P2,950 annually.

In addition, Alipay+ and Globe are offering a range of special packages for consumers to subscribe to Disney+. Con sumers can go to gcash.com/promos/dis neyplus to learn how they can use their GCash e-wallets via Alipay+ to subscribe. New and existing Globe customers can find out how they can get Disney+ by go ing to http://globe.com.ph/DisneyPlus.

Disney+ is accessible on a wide selec tion of compatible mobile and televisions subject to users’ chosen subscription plans, including smartphones and tab lets (Android or iOS), smart TVs such as Samsung and LG and connected TV devices including Google TV and other Android TV OS, Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD, and Chromecast.

For more information, please visit www.DisneyPlus.com.

sa akin ng fulfillment. Hindi lang sa tele viewers, kung ‘di maging sa aming sub ject. Parang nafi -feel ko na ‘if I do this, I will change this boy’s life for the better. Hindi niya ako makakalimutan, hindi niya makakalimutan ang Magpakailanman ,” Mel said.

Between the short air time of Magpakailan man , Mel finds a treasure trove of experiences that stay with her and empower her to change the lives of others.

The television show first aired on Decem ber 2, 2002. This year, Magpakailanman cel ebrates a month-long anniversary this Novem ber with special episodes headlined by Sanya Lopez and Herlene Budol. The first episode, “The Financier,” starring Herlene, talks about the viral story of Rose Vega, who appeared in 90 Day Fiancé and kept viewers abuzz about her intentions. It aired last November 19, Sat urday.

The second episode, “Listen To My Heart,” stars Sanya as Maegan Aguilar Freddie Aguilar ’s daughter. It will be a two-part epi sode that aptly tells the musician’s colorful life story.

Magpakailanman airs every Saturday, 8:15 p.m., on GMA.

2022 Aliwan Fiesta Digital Queen crowned

IT WAS a “solid north” vote in the realm of beauty as the winners of Ma nila Broadcasting Company’s search for 2022 Aliwan Fiesta Digital Queen (AFDQ) were awarded in a virtual pro gram broadcast nationwide over the network’s social media platforms.

Marikit Manaois of Baguio, a 25-year-old human resource develop ment graduate of St Louis University, who now works for a solid waste man agement company, clinched the crown by a narrow margin over Maica Marti nez of Nueva Ecija and Sophia Noreen Guillermo of Ilocos Norte, who were named first and second runners-up re spectively.

Manaois was also named Miss Charm and likewise won the Palmo live Gandang Natural Award, while Martinez, a broadcast communica tion graduate of the University of the Philippines, romped off with awards for Netizens’ Choice, Best in Talent, Miss White Rose Papaya, Best Digi tal Video Production and the Pride of Place citation for having showcased the plight of rice farmers in her home province.

Twelve lovely young ladies from vari

which featured weekly competition legs among the ladies, who all batted for their respected advocacies, proving they could be effective spokespersons among tomorrow’s leaders and social exemplars by harnessing the power of digital media. Jackelaine Fleming of Cebu was named Best in Evening Gown, while Nikki Shannen Ortega of Davao took home the award for Miss Unique Smile.

Comprising this year’s jury were Deo Macalma of DZRH, Tristan Har vey Francisco of The Philippine Pag eantry, 2021 Miss Aura International Alexandra Faith Garcia, film/televi sion/theatre actress Ana Abad Santos, Allen Yotoko of ACS Me dia Agency, and Ed zel Ty of Tanduay.

The search for 2022 Aliwan Fiesta Digital Queen was made possible with the support of Charm Fab ric Conditioner, Unique Tooth paste, White Rose Papaya, Dito Telecommu nity, Birch Tree Milk Powder, Tanduay, and Pal molive Naturals.

The

Dalloway” tie three women of different generations together, and its darkly mov ing operatic adaptation offers a new vision of the drama that probes themes including mental illness and the alienation from a tradition that haunts its protagonists.

The production began with a pitch from Renee Fleming, widely considered the leading American soprano of her gen eration, whose role as the show’s Clarissa Vaughan marks her return to the Met af ter bidding adieu to her trademark role in Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier” in 2017.

“It was perfect for opera because of the complexity of dealing with three pe riods,” Fleming said of The Hours, whose music was written by the Pulitzer Prizewinning composer Kevin Puts

“Music gives a kind of a river, on which we can all sort of float — together or separately,” Fleming said of the threepronged production.

Fleming’s Vaughan — a 1990s-era New Yorker who mirrors the character Clarissa Dalloway, and whose plotline centers on her party-planning for a friend, a renowned poet dying of AIDs — is joined onstage by the Broadway and op era star Kelli O’Hara, who performs as the depressed 1950s housewife Laura Brown

Grammy-winning mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato plays the struggling Woolf herself. AFP Read full story on manilastandard.net

Nickie Wang, Editor Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant

A POWERHOUSE trio of American songs will interpret the voice of Virginia Woolf in New York’s prestigious Metro politan Opera stage, as the highly antici pated run of The Hours makes its world premiere Tuesday.

Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and Oscar-nominated film explores how threads of English writer Woolf’s “Mrs.

ous parts of the country took part in the fi nals of the 2022 AFDQ search,

Renee Fleming (right) returns to the Met as Clarissa Vaughn

Manaois hails from Baguio and works at a solid waste management company

A fireworks display concludes the lively show

Robi Domingo (leftmost) and Catriona Gray (rightmost) posing with Minnie and Mickey

Marikit Manaois takes home the crown after clinching the victory from 12 other contestants

Mel Tiangco remains steadfast as the host of ‘Magpakailanman’ for two decades

The GMA News pillar finds fulfillment in helping others through her show

‘A Night of Wonder’ celebrity guests (from left) Zephanie, Janella Salvador, and Stell from SB19

Zack Tabudlo also performs a rendition of ‘Unstoppable’

Morissette (left) and Christian Bautista serenading the crowd

Jisoo. For the grand finale, viewers will see another medley including Morissette and Christian Bautista performing duets of “A New World” (Aladdin) and “Beauty and the Beast” before vocal powerhouse Morissette performs an original song entitled “Imagine More” which is now available on various streaming services.

Night of Wonder with Disney+ show cases content highlights from Disney+’s six iconic brands – Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and Star – and weaves them together with Filipino elements – from historic landmarks to iconic tourist sites and

Christopher Chris Wycoco is a Filipino Registered Nurse based in Dallas, Texas

Coffee table book on PH’s 500 years of Christianity launched

ANG Bagong Bayani Assembly (ABBA) of the Knights of Columbus presents 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines , a coffee table book that documents the birth of Christianity and how it influences the lives of the people and the entire nation. The milestone project aims to take readers on a wonderful journey that covers history, culture, and the unification of the entire archipelago through Christianity.

With an editorial team, headed by Atty. Matias V. Defensor former Quezon City Congressman and Knights of Columbus Faithful Navigator, the book outlines the development of civilization as the metamorphosis of nationhood.

The book opens with the discovery of the Philippines, followed by the early Catholic churches, the influential friars, the rise of Catholic universities, and an essay on the Blessed Virgin Mary entitled Mary: Mother of the Pearl of the Orient Seas, Marian Spirituality of the Faith of Filipino Catholics , by Rev. Fr. Alexander Balatbat. The book also includes the history of the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines, by Rene V. Sarmiento

“Our objective was to present the historical perspective and at the same time capture the rich contribution of Christianity and other European influences to our cultural development. Christianity made our history very colorful, diverse, and fascinating and that fueled the team to embark on a project that revisits the historical and spiritual milestone of our human development,”Atty. Defensor said.

“It is our desire that our dear readers will take pleasure in reading the book and learn about our history, culture, and the unification of our beloved nation, the Philippines, through Christianity,” he added.

Published by Ang Bagong Bayani Assembly (ABBA) of the Knights of Columbus, the book will be launched on Nov. 16 at Club Filipino Greenhills.

US-based Pinoy achiever feted at Manila’s Best Dressed Awards

CHRISTOPHER Chris

Wycoco, a Filipino Registered Nurse based in Dallas, Texas was one of the featured personalities at the recently concluded Manila’s Best Dressed Annual Gala Awards Night held on October 15 at the Centennial Hall of the iconic Manila Hotel in Rizal Park, Manila.

Wycoco was born in Manila but grew up in Nueva Ecija where he spent most of his life when he was still studying. He learned how to value the importance of time and money at a very tender age of 14.

Wycoco started to sell mobile phones and other small items to his peers and teachers to defray the daily expenses for the needs of his family as well

as to support the medication of his twin brother who is suffering from a mental disorder.

The young entrepreneur graduated at the Wesleyan University Philippines with distinctions. In 2010, he migrated to the United States for a greener pasture and career advancement. In spite of his initial success, he never forgets his roots and his humble beginnings. He continued to provide items mostly to his fellow Pinoys as a part time source of income and luckily met a Certified Public Accountant who became his business partner. They set up a tax company called Virtual Tax and Bookkeeping Company, Wycotax LCC established in 2015.

From then on Wycoco with his natural knowledge as a public speaker was able to be part of various

symposiums, seminars, and events of SBA and the different Chamber of Commerce in the US. His future plans include to provide employment for the Filipino Community and locals residing here in the Philippines through online jobs. He never lost hope when pandemic reached the shores in the US and the Philippines. His objective is not only to provide earnings to his team but as well as a quality time for them to spend with their loved ones.

Part of his recognition for his selfless contribution to his field is a citation as Filipino American Business Person of the Year Gawad America Award for 2022. Young Asia Award Nominee for Year 2022, Texas SBA Small Business Person (LRGV) for 2022 and the US Senate and Special Congressional

Play me a lullaby

Development Division, Himig Himbing reintroduces the Philippine indigenous lullabies to contemporary audiences and develop nurturers that are grounded in our Philippine songs and hele

AT THE height of the pandemic, I received a distress call from one of my closest friends. She just gave birth to a cute baby boy, we nicknamed Sinag (I call him Pisngi nowadays) a few days prior and needed help with her newborn because she needed to undergo some more tests.

And so, Tita Yayey came to the rescue, even though I have really no idea how to babysit days-old babies.

After some “kumustahan” and couple of “bilin” about feeding the baby, changing diapers and what have you, off the couple went to the hospital, leaving me with Sinag, his ate Thea and Tito Dex, our reliable friend-slashdriver-slash all-around guy.

Everything was going well until the baby started crying. We couldn’t feed him yet because the breastmilk was still frozen solid and we were just thawing it. We checked if it was because of the diaper. (It was not, thank God).

Before I knew it, I was singingdancing while carrying the baby. I tried a couple of songs until the baby seemed to settle down with the “Macarena.” I didn’t know why he liked my version of that popular dance song in the 1990s, but the baby stopped crying and soon after fell asleep.

In hindsight, while singing the foreign song worked, I would have actually liked it if I sang him Philippine lullabies. But unfortunately, my lullaby repertoire was composed of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," followed by other foreign songs and even a couple of Kpop songs. As far as I could remember, I’ve never sang him a Filipino lullaby.

And I think most parents and other nurturers have the same dilemma. While paghehele, or the act of singing lullabies, has always been part of the Filipino childcare culture, we tend to forget our own lullabies and folk songs. Quite unfortunate really, since we have a rich repertoire of lullabies. Each region in our country has their own lullabies.

Good thing that the Cultural Center of the Philippines launched Himig Himbing: Mga Heleng Atin, a project featuring eight music videos of lullabies from different regions of the country. jAudience

Based on the research of ethnomusicologist Sol Trinidad and arranged by musical director Krina Cayabyab, eight filmmakers create their film interpretation of the featured lullabies, including “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan,” “Katurog na, Nonoy,” “Wiyawi,” “Abaaba,” “Hele,” “Dungdungwen Kanto,” “Tingkatulog,” and “Ili, Ili, Tulog Anay.”

The filmmakers are Sigrid Bernardo, Mes De Guzman, Law Fajardo, Teng Mangansakan, Thop Nazareno, Carla Ocampo, Milo Tolentino, and Alvin Yapan

During the launch recently, the Main Theater stage turned into a huge cradle, with kulambo embracing the nurturers and their babies. I have to give credits to the production team, led by director Ariel Yonzon and production designer Ricardo “Eric” Cruz, for that beautiful set.

While lounging at the banig spread all over the stage, the Breastfeeding Pinays members bonded with their children while watching the new cinematic interpretations of the indigenous lullabies.

For Sa Ugoy ng Duyan filmmaker Sigrid Bernardo captures Filipino mothers and nurturers of all kinds across the world in this nostalgic documentary style black and white music video. Baihana sang the music track for the video. The Tagalog lullaby, composed by National Artist for Music Lucio San Pedro with lyrics by National Artist for Literature Levi Celerio, is often sung from the point of view of an adult feeling nostalgic about sleeping in the baby hammock with their mother.

Filmmaker Alvin Yapan creates a dreamy fairy tale-like music video for the Bicolano lullaby "Katurog na, Nonoy." He uses imagistic parallels between babies and bananas, inspired from a collection of riddles by the late Bicolana literary historian and researcher Lilia Realubit, while the fisherman comes from another Bicol folk song “Si Nanay, Si Tatay.” Often sung by one whom a little boy looks for to put him to sleep, this particular folk song melody was popularized as a choral piece; Phoebe Bitoon lends her voice to this lullaby.

Filmmaker Carla Ocampo takes on the traditional Kalinga lullaby “Wiyawi.” Often sung by caretakers (usually Cordilleran fathers), it describes the warm weather that makes the baby cry. Its music and text were collected by Dr. Felicidad Prudente during her fieldwork in Buaya, Kalinga and transcribed for publication in the book Antukin by Tahanan Books for Young Readers. Sung by Bullet Dumas, the music video opens with a montage of the traditional Cordilleran home. As the Kalinga father attempts to soothe his child, the viewers are transported in a dream where a higante, dressed like a king and carrying a sword, slowly reveals itself.

“Aba-aba” is a lullaby indigenous to

the

Music

Recognition. Another accolade of his being an entrepreneur was his one on one interview for the World Wrestling Entertainment with Linda McMahon Wycoco vision for WYCOTAX includes to provide efficient and accurate accounting services (payroll, bookkeeping, tax computations) and other accounting solutions.

Before the 2022 ends, Wycoco will be receiving the Filipino American Business Person Award in Hollywood, California and a nomination for the Young Leader of the Year in Manila Hotel.

“And with that I will continue to be of service to the business sector and enterprise here and in the US. It’s my mission to inspire others to be the best version of themselves,” Wycoco ended.

anchored

soothe a debilitating grief that threatens a once loving bond.

“Aba-aba” and “Hele” are both unpublished lullabies. The launch was the first time they would be released, apart from their field recordings.

Dungdungwen Kanto (trans lated as I Will Love You) is the first line of the Ilocano wedding song “Duayya ni Ayat (Lullaby of Love). While mostly associated with weddings, it is also often sung as a children’s lullaby. Sung by Abby Clutario and Joshua Cade lina, filmmaker Mes De Guzman’s animated music video features the quintessential rural Filipino household, where one can see a baby hammock flying over Ilocos’ iconic landscapes and landmarks. With JD Tena on vocals and Daniel Calingasan playing bandurria, filmmaker Thop Nazareno produces a loving story of two siblings trying to take care of each other in their mother’s absence in Tingkatulog (Sleeping Time), a folk lullaby from the area of Bohol. Playing the mother is actress Yayo Aguila with Marco Masa and Juharra Zhianne Asayo as the siblings.

A Visayan lullaby, “Ili, Ili, Tulog Anay” (Little One, Go to Sleep) is sung by a caretaker to a child and mentions a mother who is out buying bread. Its music and text transcription were published in the book Folk Songs: Songs of the Vi sayas by Priscilla Magdamo

Filmmaker Law Fajardo’s music video features the daily life and struggles of a family and shows a glimpse of the sugar cane workers’ routines in the barrio. It focuses on women who strive to raise their children in the absence of their partner. Coleen De Guzman and Nica Tupas perform the lullaby in Hiligaynon.

You can watch these music videos on the official CCPYouTube and facebook accounts “Abaaba” and “Dungdungwen Kanto” were already uploaded. Catch the release of the other lullabies: “Hele” on November 26; “Katurog Na, Nonoy” on November 27; “Tingkatulog” on December 3; “Wiyawi” on December 4; “Ili, Ili, Tulog Anay” on Dec. 10; and “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan” on December 11.

Please, do take time to watch these music videos. Or better yet, play them to your children and see the magic of our own lullabies unfold.

Southern Mindanao, particularly sung by the indigenous group Subanon Its field recording was taken and documented by National Artist for Music Ramon Santos and is now accessible through the archives of UP Center for Ethnomusicology. Filmmaker Teng Mangansakan envisions a Subanen mother being convinced by her two friends to seek greener pastures in

city. As they leave, the mother is revisited by the memory of the river goddess cementing her resolve to stay in the Subanen homeland for her baby.

track is performed by Rolinda Gibaliga, “Hele,” a lullaby from a 1986 field recording of Dr. Elena Mirano taken in San Mateo, Rizal, is a Tagalog song sung by a caretaker to a child, with lyrics alluding to an afternoon nap. In the music video, filmmaker Milo Tolentino created a visual narrative

on a tale of familial love and loss and reversal of role. The lullaby, sung by Nica Del Rosario, gives voice to a woman’s statement of love to her child and spouse – a nurturing anthem that bounces back to

‘Himig Himbing: Mga Heleng Atin’ is a project featuring eight music videos of lullabies from different regions of the country

Himig Himbing reintroduces the Philippine indigenous lullabies to contemporary audiences

The CCP Main Theater has become a comfortable venue to accommodate guardians and their kids

Lullabies are integral in an infant’s life and an ideal way to introduce babies to their culture