PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday assured Filipinos that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and other concerned agencies were working hard to respond to the needs of the poor, vulnerable, and disadvantaged during and beyond the holidays.
17 local government units (LGUs) of Metro Manila.
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday issued a proclamation declaring Dec. 26, 2022, as an additional special non-working day throughout the country.
Mr. Marcos issued the statement during a gift-giving activity where he distributed Christmas gifts to at least 400 children and 574 individuals and families, including several members of indigenous people (IP) groups and street children adopted by communities from all
Proclamation No. 115 was issued to “give the people the full opportunity to celebrate the holiday with their families and loved ones.”
Child beneficiaries received food packs and gift packs containing toys and books while adult beneficiaries each received six kilograms of rice, grocery items, hygiene kits, and cash assistance amounting to P10,000 from the DSWD's Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program.
In his speech, Mr. Marcos lauded the DSWD for assisting Filipinos, especially during disasters.
“In the past six months, these people have been busy. A lot of disasters struck the Philippines, typhoons, an earthquake in Abra--that’s why perhaps we can say it’s
THE government has ordered the military to beef up its presence in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) following Chinese activities monitored near Pagasa Island.
In a statement Thursday, the Department of National Defense (DND) said any encroachment or reclamation on the features in the WPS is a threatto the security of Pag-asa Island, which is part of the country's sovereign territory. The DND said such actions also
endanger the marine environment and undermine the stability of the region.
"We strongly urge China to uphold the prevailing rules-based international order and refrain from acts that will exacerbate tensions in the WPS and the larger South China Sea,” the statement read.
THE head of the state-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) is pushing for the swift passage into law of the Maharlika Investment Fund Bill, which was
THE order of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to expedite the importation of over 64,000 metric tons of sugar is untimely since local millers are in full swing, which means there is enough supply, a group of sugar producers said Thursday.
Importation should be done by March or April when the estimates of production yield are known, Butch Lozande, Secretary General of the Philippine National Federation of Sugar Workers, said.
“Our position is no importation this year, if there's a need, let's determine next year by March or April, when we know the approximate yield of the year 20222023," he said in Filipino.
recently approved on third and final reading in the House of Representatives.
DBP president and chief executive Emmanuel Herbosa said Thursday that he fully supports the establishment of the pioneering sovereign wealth fund (SWF),
Bank
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Earlier, DND officer-in-charge Undersecretary
not give up any part of the country's
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged various local government units (LGUs) to create common areas for the community fireworks display for the New Year.
"I will enjoin the LGU's instead of allowing our people to have their own firecrackers, better to make a beautiful fireworks display for your constituents."
President Marcos said in an interview after leading a gift distribution activity.
President Marcos warned Filipinos about the dangers of firecracker use.
"Let us not use firecrackers as of now because we know sometimes it is very hazardous especially now that there are firecrackers which were illegally manufactured," the President said.
The
"Now that the restrictions are
these OFWs and families are planning to go to Boracay and it is being manifested
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Formilleza
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DETAINED activist Reina Mae Nasino, who lost her baby River while under detention, was released Thursday on orders of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 47 after she and a fellow activist posted bail.
Nasino and her fellow activists Alma Moran and Ram Carlo Bautista gained their release orders after they posted bail, over three years since they were arrested in Tondo, Manila in November 2019 for alleged illegal possession of firearms and a grenade.
While under detention, Nasino gave birth to River and was separated from her newborn baby at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her lawyers had tried to keep them together, but Baby River, only 5.5 pounds
MERMAID SANTA. A diver wearing a Christmas mermaid costume performs for visitors at the oceanarium of Ocean Park in Manila on Dec. 22, 2022. AFP BORACAY, Cebu, and Palawan are the country’s top domestic destinations for balikbayans and their families this holiday season, a group of travel agencies said Thursday. Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) said many overseas Filipino workers are choosing to travel to these destinations after two years of coronavirus restrictions. lifted, in the record of the travel agencies," JB Bernal Formilleza, PTAA executive vice-president, said. have added more flights to Boracay this week and next week due to a large number of travelers, he added. said many travelers prefer Boracay since from there, it is easy to travel by land to other destinations such as Iloilo and Aklan. a separate interview, Bureau of Immigration spokesperson DanaFrom A1
territory and will continue regular maritime and air patrols.
Another incident that took place Nov. 20 involved the Chinese Coast Guard reportedly interfering with efforts of Western Command personnel to recover an unidentified floating object—said to be rocket debris--spotted near Pag-asa Island.
The order to beef up the military presence in the WPS came two days after media reported that Beijing has begun reclaiming more land in the contested Spratly Islands, a major archipelago in the South China Sea that hosts military installations by a number of countries.
Beijing claims almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in trade passes annually. Rival claimants are the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
China has ignored a 2016 ruling from a UN-backed tribunal that nullified its extensive claims on the South China Sea.
In recent years it has built artificial islands on reefs while constructing military facilities and airstrips.
Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing satellite images from US officials, that new land formations have emerged in the Spratlys, on Eldad Reef, Whitsun Reef,
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at birth, passed away before she could be reunited with Nasino.
The Manila RTC found that the two witnesses the prosecution presented — a barangay chairperson and a policeman tasked to photograph the operation — “failed to identify the accused and which firearm was recovered from each of them.”
“The general testimony of witnesses [village chairperson Jocelyn] Corpuz and [PCpl. Christopher] Jacinto will not suffice to establish that indeed the evidence against the accused were strong,” the court said.
But the court made clear it wasn’t going to delve into the validity of the search warrants, which is pending before the Court of Appeals.
The appellate court, in September, voided the search warrants used in the operation against the activists due to conflicting addresses, but the case is still pending because the Office of the
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The President earlier directed the Department of Agriculture (DA), which he concurrently leads, to act immediately to stabilize the country’s sugar prices after a 38-percent increase in prices of the commodity last month.
Mr. Marcos was quoted in Memorandum Order No. 77 as saying that the price increase in sugar, confectionery, and desserts was “very high.”
The President, who is also the country’s agriculture secretary, wants to hasten the entry of imported refined sugar to stabilize its selling prices, a move widely opposed by sugar producers as the Philippines still has sufficient local supply.
There have been two batches of imports earlier this year, on top of the almost 3.8 million metric tons of local produce, the sugar workers group added. This should be enough to cater to over two million metric tons of estimated consumption for the year, it added.
The DA argued that the imports would lower the prices of refined sugar, but Lozande said there could be price
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Lankiam Cay and Sandy Cay.
China's foreign ministry called the report "completely groundless.”
Sandy Cay lies seven kilometers west of Thitu, where the Philippines runs an airstrip along with military and coast guard detachments. A small civilian community also lives there.
Lankiam Cay is about 45 kilometers southeast of Thitu, while the two other reefs are farther away.
The Philippines has repeatedly accused Chinese coast guard and maritime militias of harassing and attacking fishing boats and other vessels in the region.
Manila filed a diplomatic protest last week after a Chinese coast guard vessel in November "forcefully" took control of debris from a Chinese rocket retrieved by a Philippine navy vessel off Thitu.
China denied using force, with its embassy in Manila saying the debris was handed over after "friendly consultation.”
China on Thursday reaffirmed its commitment to not occupy nor reclaim the uninhabited islands and reefs of the Spratly Islands and maintained that it “always abides” by a declaration it agreed on with Southeast Asian countries.
In a press conference in Beijing, Mao Ning, spokesperson of China’s Foreign Ministry, said that “refraining from action” on the features of the Spratly
Solicitor General asked the CA 12th Division to reconsider its ruling.
Progressive and human rights groups have alleged that Nasino’s arrest was part of a government crackdown against persons perceived to be leftist or left-leaning.
In September, the Court of Appeals nullified the search warrants issued by a Quezon City Regional Trial Court judge that led to the arrest and filing of illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, and explosives against Nasino and two others.
The appellate court made the move even as it reminded trial courts of its duty to protect the people’s right against illegal searches and seizure.
In a 26-page decision penned by Associate Justice Emily San Gaspar-Gito, the CA’s Twelfth Division also held that all the evidence seized during the implementation of the search warrants cannot be used to prosecute Casino and her companions.
“Search warrants No. 5944 (19) and 5945 (19) are declared void for failure to meet the standards of a valid search war-
manipulation at play.
“We suspect there's manipulation in supply and pricing since the price had already gone down then it went up again in November, entering December,” he said.
"Which, for us, is when it should be going down since we are in full swing in terms of milling. In terms of supply, there's nothing to worry about because all millers nationwide are operational," he added.
Inflation, which hit 8 percent in November, can be mitigated by temporarily removing the value-added tax on basic goods such as sugar and putting a price cap instead of ramping up imports, he said.
"This is the direct, simple solution that the government can do to protect consumers," Lozande said.
The DA previously issued an order directing the agency’s Minimum Access Volume (MAV) Secretariat officer in charge and Executive Director Jocelyn Salvador to “immediately convene” the MAV Advisory Council.
Likewise, Mr. Marcos instructed the council to “expedite the importation of 64,050 metric tons of refined sugar through the MAV mechanism.”
MAV refers to the volume of a
sharing the sentiments of business leaders and leading economists on the need to boost investments in high-growth sectors to sustain the country’s growth momentum.
This developed as Quezon Rep. David Suarez lauded the House leadership under Speaker Martin G. Romualdez for its unwavering push for the approval of the proposed MIF.
In lauding Romualdez’s leadership, Suarez also said the proposal to put up a sovereign wealth fund is expected to further speed up the economic train that the Marcos administration has started running.
Last week, the chamber approved on the third and final reading House Bill (HB) 6608 creating the MIF with an overwhelming vote of 279 lawmakers in favor of the measure, and only six voting against it and no abstentions.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. certified the measure as urgent.
Herbosa said it is imperative to broaden investments in critical areas such as food, water, green energy, agro-industrial ventures, telecommunications, public infrastructure, and road network tollways, which can offer better rates of return and greater socio-economic impact.
“From my personal standpoint, the creation of a
(Nansha) Islands ”is a serious common understanding reached by China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).”
”And China always strictly abides by it,” she said.
The Chinese official made the statement after Bloomberg released a report that cited Western officials as saying that China is building up several unoccupied land features in the South China Sea, with new land formations having appeared above water over the past year at Eldad Reef in the northern Spratlys.
Located on the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in West Philippine Sea, Spratly Islands are an archipelago also being claimed by China.
Despite recent incidents and protests filed by Manila, Mao said the relationship between the Philippines and China “currently enjoys sound momentum.”
”And the two sides will continue to properly handle maritime issues through friendly consultations,” she added.
Also on Thursday, opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros said she expects President Marcos to firmly assert the Philippines’ sovereign and legal rights in the West Philippine Sea during his state visit to China in January.
She said everything to be discussed
rant, and all evidence procured by virtue thereof are deemed inadmissible,” the CA ruled.
While in detention and at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nasino gave birth to a baby girl on July 1, 2020, who was turned over to her mother for care after a month.
The three petitioners denied the charges against them and claimed that they were arrested without a warrant. They said the firearms, ammunition, and explosives did not belong to them and were just planted by the raiding team.
Because of this, the petitioners filed the petition before the CA seeking the reversal of the orders issued by Manila RTC Judge Marivic T. Balisi-Umali on July 1, 2020, which denied Bautista’s motion to suppress illegally seized evidence and to quash warrant, and petitioner Moran and Nasino’s joint omnibus motion to quash search warrants and suppress evidence.
They also assailed the trial court’s order issued on July 22, 2020 denying their petition for joint omnibus motion
specific agricultural product that can be imported with a lower tariff. This is the minimum volume committed by the Philippines to the World Trade Organization.
The agency issued this directive as the President expressed concern over the “high inflation rate” of sugar.
Citing government data, the DA noted that the annual inflation increment for sugars, confectionery and desserts reached 38 percent in November.
The United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines (Unifed) is not opposing any plans to import sugar, but the group appealed to the President to halt any attempts at importation while sugar milling “is at its peak.”
“We are at the peak of the harvest, and we have abundant stocks of raw and refined sugar, as such we see no need to import sugar at this time,” said Unifed president Manuel Lamata in a statement.
“We are appealing to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to halt this importation of refined sugar through the minimum access volume mechanism until the results of a post-assessment of sugar stocks after the end of the milling season can be conducted,” added Lamata.
SWF is a superb opportunity to address the dearth in sources of long-term capital which is integral to support these capital-intensive investments,” he said.
“As head of a government bank, the SWF is closely aligned with our operating principle of bolstering economic additionality through timely and meaningful support of critical industries and sectors,” he said.
The establishment of a sovereign wealth fund through the enactment of a law creating the MIF garnered the solid support of 90 percent of congressmen. It has undergone several refinements and has hurdled grueling and extensive interpellations by the opposition block in the lower house, Suarez added.
Herbosa said the introduction of additional safeguards in the proposed measure such as heavy scrutiny by the Commission on Audit apart from regular examinations by both an internal and external auditor has assuaged concerns of various sectors.
It also ensures that the fund will be adequately shielded from fraud, abuse, and undue political interference, he said.
Herbosa said the provision of sovereign guarantees for specific contributions adds another layer of confidence in the sustainability, reliability, and integrity of the SWF, especially in funding projects with long gestation periods.
It would also attract the private sector and even foreign funders that would ensure transparency and
should be in the context of China’s incessant incursions into Philippine territories.
Due to this, she said every prospective deal or engagement should be premised upon China’s recognition of the Philippine’s rightful ownership of the WPS.
In his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, she said President Marcos should make it clear to the Chinese leader his commitmentduring his State of the Nation Address not to give up a square inch of Philippine territory.
"Even during the previous administration, I always reminded the Chief Executive to stand up to China, to push back against the gradual degradation of our sovereignty, to resist the tactics that threaten peace and stability in the region," Hontiveros said.
"I am pleased that finally, under this administration, all senators have recently unanimously supported a resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that condemns the continued intimidation, threats, and harassment of Chinese vessels toward Philippine boats and personnel," she said.
Before any talk of joint exploration for oil, China should first recognize and respect the 2016 arbitral ruling, Hontiveros said.
"Only then could both parties start to truthfully and faithfully discuss a joint exploration,” she said. With AFP
for reconsideration of the July 1 order, for ocular inspection of the searched premises, and for issuance of subpoena of records of the application for search warrants.
The petitioners said Judge Umali committed grave abuse of discretion in issuing the orders.
In its ruling, the appellate court agreed with the petitioners, declaring that “such grave abuse of discretion is present in the assailed act,” noting that there were irregularities in the application and implementation of the search warrants.
The CA cited the documents forming part of the record of the application for the search warrants revealed three different addresses in Sampaloc and Tondo in Manila.
“These apparent irregularities in the application and implementation of the subject search warrants are more than enough to debunk the presumption of regularity of performance of official duties,” the appellate court said.
Rey E. Requejo
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Sandoval said the Philippines is now recording 35,000 to 38,000 passenger arrivals per day while departures are at 25,000 to 28,000 a day.
She said immigration counters worldwide are experiencing long queues due to a large number of travelers.
Americans comprise the largest number of foreign arrivals in the country, Sandoval said.
Filipinos choosing to travel overseas, meanwhile, have South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan as their preferred holiday destinations because they want to enjoy the colder weather, Formilleza said.
The large number of bookings has been encouraging to tour operators, hotels, and tour guides, which have been battered by lockdowns since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Online travel agencies have also helped increase the number of bookings, the PTAA official said.
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He has previously served as a three-term representative of what was then the lone
greater accountability in managing the fund, the DBP chief said.
“At this juncture it’s best that we allow the bill to take its proper course in the legislative mill as I believe this would lead to a solid and watertight law in view of the purification and purging process that it underwent,” Herbosa said.
Earlier, Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan also batted for the early approval into law of the MIF bill because it will complement the strategies and hasten the attainment of goals set in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028.
During the #AskNEDA year-end media briefing, Balisacan said the Maharlika would be another source of funds that will support the government’s investment priorities.
“So we see the Maharlika as another vehicle for sources of funds for investments… just like PPP [Public-Private Partnership]. ODA [Official Development Assistance], and GA [General Appropriations]. So the more vehicles we have, the better…. so that we can ramp up not only the infrastructure projects and even other priorities of the government,” Balisacan said.
When asked if the non-approval or delayed approval of the bill would not affect the PDP 20232028, Balisacan said “the earlier the better… Because just like I said, what it does is it complements, it enhances the available vehicles that we
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one of the agencies that has been working 24/7,” the President said in Filipino at the Open Amphitheater at the Rizal Park in Manila.
“Typhoons don’t sleep, earthquakes don’t go on vacation, and floods don’t recognize holidays, but still they’re always there. Thank you for not just hosting this event, but for everything you’ve done because you have helped a lot of people,” he added.
Marcos noted that the DSWD will continue doing its part to help alleviate hunger and poverty among Filipinos beyond the holiday season.
“This assistance won’t just be during Christmas. You can expect that you will always be in our thoughts. DSWD has been thinking 24/7 about how we can help you… even after Christmas, the new year, we will stillcontinue to help you,” Marcos said.
Meanwhile, Marcos enjoined the public anew to enter the Malacañang Palace grounds to view the Malacañang Christmas Tree and lanterns and to attend the Simbang Gabi.
He said everyone is welcome to visit the Palace because it is their “home.”
“You are all welcome. The Palace is open. It’s not my home, it’s your home that’s why I opened it for you,” he added.
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“A longer weekend will encourage families to get together and strengthen their relationship towards a more productive environment, and will promote tourism.”
The chief executive ordered the Department of Labor and Employment to issue the appropriate circular to implement the proclamation for the private sector.
Christmas Day, which falls on a Sunday, is observed as a regular holiday.
Malacañang earlier updated the list of regular holidays and special non-working days for 2023, allowing “long weekends.”
Proclamation 90, released Nov. 11, amended Proclamation 42, declaring the regular holidays and special non-working days.
Under Proclamation 90, Jan. 2, 2023, which falls on a Monday, will be an additional special non-working day “in consideration of the Filipino tradition of visiting relatives and spending time with their families for this occasion.”
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The Department of Health (DOH) earlier noted a downward trend in firecracker-related injuries in the country, citing figures in recent years.
The Philippine National Police, for its part, ramped up efforts to confiscate and destroy banned firecrackers and pyrotechnics to protect the public.
The move aims to ensure that firecracker and pyrotechnic dealers, sellers and manufacturers comply with the implementing rules and guidelines stated under Republic Act (RA) 7183 and Executive Order (EO) 28.
Under RA 7183, any person caught manufacturing, selling, distributing or using illegal firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices will face a fine of P20,000 to P30,000, imprisonment of six months to one year, cancellation of license and business permit and confiscation of inventory stocks.
On the other hand, EO 28 issued in 2017 promulgates stricter rules and regulations on the use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic devices to prevent injuries and casualties recorded every year.
district of Taguig-Pateros. Tiñga obtained his law degree at the University of the East, where he eventually served as dean of the College of Law twice. He earned his Master of Laws degree from the University of California.
already have…So that is the whole idea.”
Suarez said the proposed measure has gone through exhaustive review and rigorous plenary discussions and “fortified with safeguards and safety nets to ensure that fund managers will not be able to dip their hands into the fund’s investments.”
“The approval of the bill went through congressional surgery. We made sure that not only is it compliant to local laws but congruent to international standards as well,” he said.
"I am pleased that even members of the House of Representatives who were initially opposing the bill are now co-authors of the final version that was approved by the lower house. That is proof that the measure was well-thought of and sufficiently deliberated upon," the Quezon solon said.
The public should not be misled into believing that the proposed MIF will be disadvantageous to the public and would benefit only the administration and its allies, Suarez said.
"Our people need more information about the MIF so that they can see that the benefits outweigh the unwarranted fear. This is why I am appealing to all Filipinos to support the measure. There are 79 sovereign investment funds from other countries, of which 78 were successful. It is an issue of management and with so many brilliant minds in the Philippines, the Maharlika fund will be successful," he said.
THE Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) can never be too cautious in handling its prisoners, also called persons deprived of liberty (PDLs), even on Christmas Day.
Meanwhile, BuCor officer-in-charge Gregorio Catapang Jr. expressed optimism that more than 3,000 elderly prisoners would soon be granted executive clemency pursuant to the government’s
aggressive program to decongest jails nationwide.
To ward off a looming riot, Catapang said he has allowed the inmates to talk with visiting relatives and friends on Christmas Day, using gadgets like phones and laptops, but the conversations would be recorded.
In an ANC interview, Catapang said he secured permission from Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla for the gadgets to be brought into the New Bilibib Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa City to be used by the PDL.
“It will be a controlled cellphone. It’s monitored, there’s timer, it’s documented, the talks or the conversation will be
on Thursday
gave assurance it is working closely with airport authorities to ensure a smooth and easy travel experience during the holiday season.
The airline issued the guarantee as the Manila International Airport Authority decided to remove the initial security screening equipment or X-ray machines at the entrances of Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminals 3 and 4 on Dec. 20.
“This is a welcome initiative that Cebu Pacific fully supports as MIAA aims to reduce passenger queues at the airport. Security personnel are still present to check passengers’ travel documents. Non-passengers have a different entrance
where their belongings will still be subject to screening,” the CEB said in a statement.
CEB officials reiterated their reminder to passengers to be at the airport early to avoid any inconveniences.
“Guests must also update contact details on their bookings so they will be notified of pre-flight reminders and flight changes.
Passengers travelling domestically, who have checked-in online and do not have bags to check-in, may proceed straight to the boarding gate,” they said.
All check-in counters would close one hour before the scheduled time of departure to ensure there is ample time for all necessary pre-flight procedures. “We encourage passengers to immediately proceed to their respective boarding gates.
Boarding commences 45 minutes before the scheduled departure,” the CEB said.
recorded, if they allow it. I told them, no more illegal cellphones, only allowed cellphones,” Catapang said.
“You know, you cannot avoid the putting up of the cellphones because the prisoner would go into riot. They will riot because that’s the only relief that they can have to de-stress themselves so that they will be happy for the day. They need to talk to their friends, relatives, and their loved ones.”
Catapang admitted however, that the mechanics for monitoring the conversations have not been finalized.
“It’s not a cellphone, it’s a laptop computer. Parang it’s like what you use
in the school during the pandemic. But we will look into this if there is an illegal thing,” he said.
“These are the things we’ll have to iron out because if you don’t allow them to talk with their relatives, friends, or loved ones, they will go on a riot and that would be a bigger problem,” he added.
Catapang said that since he assumed office at the BuCor last week, some 500 cellphones from the PDLs have been seized under its Oplan Paglilinis.
Catapang also said they have listed 3,086 PDLs aged 65 to 96 confined in their facilities to be recommended for executive clemency or parole.
THE trial of a drug case against Juanito Remulla III, son of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, has been completed and a decision is expected to be handed down early next month.
Remulla’s lawyer, Christopher Belmonte, said the court will issue its ruling by the first week of January.
The Las Piñas Regional Trial Court Branch 197 which tried the case has wrapped up the hearings.
Remulla pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Remulla also faced complaints for importation of dangerous drugs and violation of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act before the Pasay City Prosecutor’s Office.
He was arrested during a controlled delivery operation by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group in Barangay Talon Dos, Las Piñas last October 11.
Authorities had seized a package containing suspected kush or highgrade marijuana worth P1.3 million during the operation.
The younger Remulla was charged with possession of illegal drugs before the Las Piñas Regional Trial Court. The case was assigned to RTC Branch 197 under Judge Ricardo Moldez II.
Sec. Remulla earlier said he would not intervene in his son’s case.
THE Philippine Columbian Association celebrated its 115th Founding Anniversary on December 12, 2022.
It was a time to reminisce its contributions to Philippine society that have spanned for more than 100 years and its role “in transforming our citizens into well-rounded [and] competitive individuals who… cast their lot in nation building” (President Benigno S. Aquino, Message to PCA on the 32nd Annual PCA Open, November 9, 2013, Official Gazette).
PCA was organized in 1907 by Filipinos who studied in the United States, otherwise known as “pensionados.”
The Pensionado Act or Act 854 of the Philippine Commission was passed to provide scholarship programs to the “best and brightest Filipino youth” for them to be able to study in the United States, and thereby give a favorable impression of the Philippines.
The prominent pensionados who became Presidents of PCA are Antonio de las Alas, Gen. Carlos P. Romulo, Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos, former pre-war University of the Philippines President Jorge Bocobo, and First Filipino Veterinarian, Victor Buencamino, among others.
These pensionados together with other PCA members played a vital role in the quest for Philippine independence and national sovereignty. The construction of the first PCA clubhouse in Pasay was made from the P5,000 donation of philanthropist Don Teodoro Yangco.
It was used to fund the original clubhouse in 1907, which was made of sawali materials and woven bamboo strips.
In 1923, PCA constructed the 2nd PCA Clubhouse in a 3,000 square meter lot in Taft Avenue, Manila under the leadership of Don Antonio de las Alas.
While PCA is proud of its glorious past, it is mindful of the challenges of the present, and hopeful of its future
Don Antonio was then Speaker of the House of Representatives and concurrently the President of PCA.
The acquisition of the property was done with the assistance of Jorge Vargas who was then the Director of the Bureau of Lands. Mr. Vargas would later become the club President and Mayor of Manila during the Japanese Occupation in 1941.
During the Battle of Manila in 1945, PCA’s second clubhouse was completely destroyed. In 1953, the clubhouse was rebuilt under the leadership of Ramon C. Ordoveza. In 1979, PCA inaugurated its new Complex in Plaza Dilao, Paco, Manila, through the initiatives of Ponciano Marquez and his team, which remains to be the club’s location today.
PCA’s role in shaping the democratic values of Filipinos was recognized by Philippine Presidents. President Ramon Magsaysay, speaking before PCA said “I welcome this opportunity because this club, the Philippine-Columbian, has always been renowned as a gathering place for those who believe in the principles of liberty and justice that typify our nation” (President Ramon Magsaysay, July 4, 1955, Official Gazette).
He further said “… I believe that this is a most fitting place—among the nationalists of this association—and certainly a most fitting time—the ninth anniversary of our glorious independence— for me to review a few basic principles for which I stand.” It is in PCA where he reiterated “[F]or this—the Philippines first—has always been and always will be the guiding principle of my administration.”
President Carlos P. Garcia during the 50th Anniversary of the PCA said “we find the Philippine Columbian Association… vigorous as ever, constructively active and progressive, and most important of all, keenly conscious of the challenge of change… [T]hat is why I feel highly honored to be a member of the Philippine Columbian Association, especially since my membership is linked with our Club’s Golden Jubilee” (President Carlos P. Garcia, January 29, 1958, Official Gazette).
“Tonight, with your permission, I would like to address you as a humble member, to consult with you in the same manner that President Quezon in his time utilized the Club as a sounding board
for some of his ideas. I would like to discuss with you the challenge of our time, to seek counsel and strength in your company, and to draw inspiration from the great traditions of this great institution.”
Understanding the regional diversity of our country even at that time, President Garcia said that “the feeling of regionalism was rather prevalent and this [has] undermined the cohesion of our population. But [e]spousing the cause of equality among Filipinos in social, business and government circles, our Club greatly assisted in effecting the changes necessary to our oneness as a people.”
During the inauguration of PCA’s new complex in Plaza Dilao, Paco in 1979, President Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr. had this to say in jest, “[Y]ou know, there is a rule of protocol as to the appointments of Presidents, especially with regard to the present administration, and that is, never to accept invitations to inaugurations of sports or athletic clubs” (President Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr., December 14, 1979, Official Gazette).
He said that he, however, was reminded “that the Columbian Association was not just a sports club or an athletic organization, but that it was the spawning ground of nationalism and of the ideals of political independence which gave birth, first, to the Commonwealth and then to the Republic of the Philippines.”
President Marcos’s affinity to PCA was made evident when he said that “[T]he forum that is offered by the Philippine Columbian is certainly a most serious one, for I remember a cartoon, that is deeply embedded in my memory as a young man, of my father riding the Ilocos Express supposedly, with the Columbian Club in the background, and declaring, ‘I would rather sink to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean than see the Philippines subdivided among the American entrepreneurs...’”
During the 100th Anniversary of Philippine Columbian in December 2007, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) said “… the members of Philippine Columbian are leaders and prime movers of various sectors of Philippine society. And therefore, we can say that for 100 years now the members of Philippine Columbian have demonstrated [their] commitment to the nation’s peace, growth and pride in the Filipino” (President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, December 11, 2007, Official Gazette).
President GMA also said “I still remember when I was young, you had an old clubhouse. And I do remember when the new clubhouse was built and this complex has a marker that aptly conveys the legacy of Philippine Columbian as measured by Mr. Beltran, President Beltran [of PCA] as the ‘sanctuary of Filipino nationalism’.”
“I’m sure that those who will listen to my speech, will therefore be gratified to remember that the club became the center for the campaign for Philippine independence during the leadership of President Quezon.
“And that it served as the headquarters of Congress for the Philippine independence in 1934. And although World War II forced the club to hibernate… The club rebounded to become — robust, progressive and still committed to its advocacies.”
The testimonials of these Philippine Presidents about PCA is an affirmation of the National Historical Commission’s conferment in 1960 of a Historical Marker in PCA.
It is a fitting reminder of PCA’s role in cultivating among Filipinos the need to focus on our national identity, heritage, and culture for the advancement of Philippine sovereignty.
But PCA is not only a breeding ground of nationalists, it is also a haven of Filipino swimming and tennis champions.
Olympians Raymond Anthony Papa (1992 Barcelona and 1996 Atlanta), Raphael Matthew Chua (2004 Athens), and Ryan Paolo Arabejo (2008 Beijing) were all members of the PCA Stingrays.
Tennis stars Manny Tolentino, Joseph Lizardo, and Johnny Arcilla all trained in PCA and won the coveted PCA Open Tennis Championship.
In 1995, the Philippine Davis Cup Team led by Joseph Lizardo together with other PCA Open Tennis Champions Camoy Palahang and Robert Angelo bested the Japanese Team led by Japan’s No. 1 tennis player Shuzo Matsuoka.
While PCA is proud of its glorious past, it is mindful of the challenges of the present, and hopeful of its future. PCA is not only for its members but for every freedom loving Filipino who wants to participate in nation building. Levity aside, allow me to say, “I am a Columbiano and I am proud of it.”
If the irregular insertions are discovered by a very careful or discerning restaurant patron, the waiter gets the bill back and undertakes to bring it to the cashier for a second look.
Thereafter, the waiter returns with the “corrected” bill, apologizes for the “error,” and blames the mistake on the cashier or some other restaurant employee.
DURING the yuletide season, restaurants and similar commercial establishments generate a very large volume of business.
That is good news for the economy, employment, and the government that badly needs revenues in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately, there are many restaurants and similar commercial establishments, mostly in the National Capital Region, that violate the laws with impunity.
Overcharging is common in high-end restaurants patronized by wealthy diners.
Often, the racket is imposed on any large group of diners
Expensive dishes and multiple beverages which were not actually ordered or consumed by the group are stealthily inserted in the bill.
Frequently, the host simply pays the amount of the bill, without bothering to verify if the same is accurate or correct. This is especially true for hosts who pay using their credit cards.
Multiply the inaccurate bill paid by the number of victims in each luncheon or dinner daily, and then multiply the product by the number of such exploitative restaurants, one will be shocked by the total amount of money cheated from restaurant customers.
Many high-end restaurants in Binondo and Ermita in Manila, Greenhills in San Juan, and in Makati and Quezon City, are engaged in this nefarious practice.
A number of restaurants offer half and whole orders in their menus. Customers who don’t check their bills often end up paying whole order prices for half orders.
Other restaurants shortchange their customers, that is, the change they give to their customers is far less than what the correct change is.
In many instances, the customers do not bother to count their change and just assume that the amount given to them is correct.
Another anomaly involves senior citizen discounts. The anomaly is often committed in two
WHEN
News reports that the Chinese Coast Guard recently challenged personnel of the Western Command (Wescom) of the Armed Forces of the Philippines who were about to conduct a resupply mission and were bringing Christmas packages to troops assigned at the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal indicate that Beijing is actively engaged in gunboat diplomacy in the South China Sea.
This is unacceptable behavior on the part of China, with whom we have a “strategic partnership,” no less, encompassing economic cooperation in the areas of trade and investments and Official Development Assistance as well as close cultural and peopleto-people exchanges.
Our Department of Foreign Affairs is therefore on the right track in filing diplomatic protests one after another against such intrusions in the South China Sea that’s part of our Exclusive Economic Zone according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
China is one of the signatories to UNCLOS, but claims ownership of practically the whole of the vital sealane on the basis of an unfounded “historical right.”
The troops, presumably on board a Navy vessel, were not only subjected to radio challenges from the Chinese Coast Guard but were also shadowed by several other Chinese militia vessels as they were heading for Ayungin Shoal on December 17.
Beijing’s gunboat diplomacy in our EEZ is not only unacceptable but threatens to undermine the ‘strategic partnership’ between our two nations
The Chinese also warned Philippine troops not to bring construction materials, saying doing so “will be dealt with,” the report said.
The Chinese Coast Guard said it was “allowing” the supplies to be delivered but also issued radio challenges claiming
that the Philippines’ resupply vessel was inside the “jurisdiction of the People’s Republic of China.”
Let us be firm in our stand that Ayungin Shoal is part of the Kalayaan Group of Islands, which is part of Palawan province.
The atoll in the Spratlys Island, some 239 kilometers from Palawan, is being claimed by China as part of its territory. China first warned the Wescom resupply mission team against bringing construction materials to Ayungin in April this year.
Later, Chinese militia vessels and rubber boats deployed in the area blocked the passage to the entrance of Ayungin Shoal with nets and ropes.
The nets and ropes were removed last May but the Chinese Coast Guard, militia vessels and rubber boats remained in the area, which the AFP considers “an encroachment on our territorial waters and a violation of our sovereign rights.”
What the Wescom did was right, because the resupply mission team did not have to and “never requested permission to conduct resupply and other maritime operations in our territory and EEZ.”
Beijing’s gunboat diplomacy in our EEZ is not only unacceptable but threatens to undermine the ‘strategic partnership’ between our two nations.
A FORMER top executive of an electric cooperative appears headed to ultimate victory in his lonely, private legal battles over the past five years or so even as Mindoreños are fighting their own war against persistent brownouts.
The Supreme Court, no less, upheld Patrocinio Panagsagan’s right to sit as general manager of the Oriental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (Ormeco) and presumably settlement of damages and back wages that have piled up since his ouster in 2017.
The High Tribunal’s Second Division, in a minute resolution dated Sept. 28, 2022, upheld an earlier ruling by the Court of Appeals and denied for lack of merit a motion by the Ormeco board contesting the ruling by the appellate court.
The SC cited petitioner Ormeco’s “failure to show any substantial, special or important reason to warrant the exercise of this Court’s discretionary power to review the challenged decision and resolution.”
It appears that Panagsagan, an engineer by profession, has turned the tables against his erstwhile employer.
This is poetic justice because Ormeco had been giving Panagsagan a hard time fighting for his personal reputation and constitutional rights against a relentless assault by the powers-that-be in his province.
While sitting as Ormeco general manager, Panagsagan’s enemies threw everything at him, including the proverbial kitchen sink.
They sued him for alleged illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, and filed a drug case against him, among other baseless accusations. Panagsagan was eventually cleared of all charges.
But the one thing that remained as a pain in the neck was his ouster as general manager for no good reason. So he decided to fight it out all the way to the SC at great financial and psychological costs.
In a manner of speaking, he was doing a giant slayer act.
He was up against a humongous triumvirate of brothers, two of whom occupied power – political and judicial positions in Or. Mindoro – while the third was Panagsagan’s archrival for the Ormeco post.
After the courts invariably junked the criminal charges against Panagsagan, the National Electrification Administration stepped into the picture, and upon its apparent behest, the Ormeco board passed a resolution ousting Panagsagan as general manager.
Panagsagan was subsequently unseated in October 2018.
Somehow, he showed that he was no pushover.
Thus, he filed a case questioning the validity of the board resolutions while at the same time asking for settlement of damages, including back wages.
He had to face a wall of resistance at every turn, apparently courtesy of the brothers who seemed to have the whole province all sewed up.
Prior to his ouster, Panagsagan filed a complaint against the Ormeco Board and NEA.
No trial court in Calapan City was willing to accommodate his complaint.
Subsequently, he filed the case in Pinamalayan Regional Trial Court, and the case was raffled to the
In effect, Panagsagan has won his legal battles, but his foes still refuse to restore him as general manager of Ormeco
sala of Judge Harry Jaminola of the Regional Trial Court Branch 41 in Pinamalayan, Or. Mindoro.
This is getting curiouser and curiouser, so to speak.
Apparently aware that Jaminola is a level-headed magistrate, the respondents in Panagsagan’s suit, notably the Ormeco board, filed an omnibus motion seeking to inhibit Jaminola on the ground that the case involved an intra-corporate matter and therefore, outside of his jurisdiction.
The respondents argued that being an intracorporate controversy, the case was “cognizable” only by the RTC Branch 39 in Calapan as a Special Commercial Court.
But then again, no court in Calapan wanted to entertain Panagsagan’s case. Hence, there’s nowhere to go for the hapless litigant.
Meanwhile, Jaminola upheld his arguments, and issued on Oct. 30, 2017 a TRO and later, a Preliminary Injunction and Status Quo Ante Order enjoining the Ormeco board to refrain from implementing its resolution ousting Panagsagan, meaning Panagsagan had to be reinstated as general manager.
The anomaly is magnified by the fact that other restaurants are able to honor the senior citizen discount on the basis of government-issued identification cards other than the senior citizen card issued by local government units.
If these restaurants do not need to see a local government-issued senior citizen identification card to be able to honor the discount, why can’t other restaurants do so?
A popular Chinese buffet restaurant in the South Triangle Area in Quezon City, a patronized Chinese restaurant along Ongpin Street in Binondo, Manila, and a famous Chinese deli operating several stalls in Metro Manila, among many other establishments, are engaged in this anomaly.
But such victory for him did not come cheap. He had to post a bond of P500,000 to defray possible damages.
Jaminola also junked the respondents’ motion, saying the case did not involve intra-corporate affairs.
On March 14, 2018, Jaminola issued an order that “all foregoing incidents” were submitted for resolution.
Then a bizarre twist of fate happened. Before the scheduled pre-trial, Jaminola issued a resolution inhibiting himself from further hearing the cases, leaving the unfinished business to RTC Branch 42 manned by Judge Edwin Y. Dimayacyac.
On Oct. 1, 2018, Dimayacyac handed down a decision summarily countermanding Jaminola’s order and referring the case to the RTC Branch 39 in Calapan, the so-called Special Commercial Court, for “proper disposition.”
Panagsagan tried to contest Dimayacyac’s ruling and filed a motion for reconsideration. Dimayacyac needed to face an administrative case before the Office of Court Administrator for his irregular ruling.
Panagsagan then elevated the issue before the Court of Appeals, and won.
With the CA decision, Panagsagan moved for the restoration of the earlier Preliminary Injunction and Status Quo Ante Order, but Judge Josephine Caranzo would hear none of it, saying there already existed an MR from Ormeco. The CA also rejected Ormeco’s MR.
With the denial of Ormeco’s MR, Panagsagan went back to RTC Branch 39.
But Caranzo again told him “No,” citing another Petition for Review filed by the Ormeco before the Supreme Court.
Recently, Panagsagan received a copy of the High Tribunal’s minute resolution denying Ormeco’s MR.
In effect, Panagsagan has won his legal battles, but his foes still refuse to restore him as general manager of Ormeco.
Bayan, kayo ngayon ang humatol.
(Email: ernhil@yahoo.com)
ways.
Under the law governing senior citizenship discounts, a senior citizen who wishes to avail himself of the discount is required to exhibit proof of his age through any government issued identification card indicating his or her photograph and birthdate.
Thus, a driver’s license issued by the Land Transportation Office, or a passport issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs, should suffice. The law on senior citizen discounts mandates no specific government-issued identification card.
Unfortunately, many restaurants require the senior citizen to present a senior citizen card issued by the local government unit where they reside.
These restaurants illegally insist that they need to log down the serial number indicated in the local government-issued card.
It looks like the Offices of Senior Citizen Affairs of Quezon City and Manila are not attending to their responsibilities to senior citizens in their localities.
The other anomaly involving senior citizen discounts takes the form of inaccurate discounts.
There are restaurants which, although they honor any government-issued identification card to establish one’s status as a senior citizen, the discount they give to senior citizens are inaccurate, or below what the law mandates.
Some restaurants only remove the value-added tax, without giving an actual discount on the items purchased.
I know someone who twice dined at the same restaurant, and ordered the same food items and beverages. While he was given a senior citizen discount on both occasions, the discounts varied.
One not so popular food chain is also noted for varying discounts given to senior citizens for the
(www.manilastandard.net)
Joma’s death is good, bad for the country
same food items ordered.
Someone I know ordered exactly the same food items, without drinks, on two separate trips to one and the same drive-in outlet.
In one trip, he was billed P101.00, while in the other trip, his bill was P89.00. Yes, two different discounts were given for exactly the same food order without drinks on two separate occasions.
Customers who have been victimized in any way similar to the instances mentioned above should report these anomalies to the Office of Senior Citizen Affairs of their local governments, or to the Department of Trade Industry.
is it all going to stop?
PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief, Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr., has renewed his call for the remaining New People’s Army (NPA) rebels to surrender and avail of the benefits being offered by the government through the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).
“To those of our remaining brothers and sisters in the mountains who are still hesitant to surrender, our government and the police are only here to welcome you back to our government. And our desire, in the days to come, is to be with them so that they too can experience living in peace and without fear,” Azurin said in a statement Wednesday night.
This came after 10 former rebels and members of the communist front organizations withdrew their support from the Communist Party of the Philippines - New People’s Army (CPP)NPA in Central Luzon last Dec. 17 and 18 and pledged allegiance to the national government.
Citing the report of Police Regional Office (PRO) 3 director, Brig. Gen. Cesar Pasiwen, Azurin confirmed the surrender of one NPA member, five members of Anakpawis, and one each from the Kilusang Larangang Guerilla-Tarlac-Zambales, Milisyang Bayan, Gabriela, and underground mass organization in the provinces of Bulacan, Bataan, Tarlac, and Zambales.
Azurin said the former rebels likewise turned over to the authorities their firearms and ammunition.
Pasiwen, meanwhile, said the continuous joint efforts of the Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC) and its persistent campaign against terrorism resulted in the voluntary withdrawal of support from the communist groups.
THE Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said it is supporting the findings of UN Special Rapporteur (UNSR) Mama Fatima Singhateh on the sexual exploitation of children in the Philippines.
In a statement, the CHR particularly mentioned Singhateh’s recommendation for the country to have separate policies for addressing child trafficking and for addressing sale of children for sexual exploitation, GMA News reported.
The CHR statement also said, “while the Philippines made notable progress in combating trafficking, it is crucial to distinguish child trafficking and sale of children for sexual exploitation as recommended by UNSR Singhateh.”
“The sale of children for sexual exploitation is a specific offense that necessitates unique measures as opposed to child trafficking as an encompassing crime,” the statement said.
The distinction, according to the CHR, will help ensure the establishment of specific mechanisms and methods that will best address the problem.
Reports said Singhateh made the findings following her visit to the country from November 28 to December 8, 2022.
Her visit included CHR’s participation in the series of national agencies cluster meetings and other the dialogue-meetings with three CHR regional offices.
The CHR also said it agrees with Singhateh when it comes to the need for separate centers for children who are victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation “so they may be provided with individualized and thorough intervention.”
ALEE Rendering Facility and SLSJ Trucking Services hand out Christmas gifts consisting of cash, groceries, and rice through Solomon “Ka Sol” Jover, together with Emmanuel Guma Felix, Annie Villano and Edna Bernardo in a yearly tradition of gift-giving held in Sta Maria Bulacan.
BANGSAMORO Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) officials approved the proposed P85.3-billion budget for the BARMM for 2023.
The 2023 BARMM budget, with 44 affirmative votes, zero negative votes, and zero abstentions, was approved on third and final reading, GMA News reported.
“The Committee of Finance, Budget and Management (CFBM) truly underwent marathon hearings and scrutinized the proposed budgets of all ministries and offices to ensure that the budget is for the Bangsamoro people,” CFBM chair MP Eduard Guerra, quoted by the GMA News report, said. The official added that “following this approval, we
will move forward with the implementation of all projects and programs in the provinces of the region, including the Special Geographic Area.”
The 2023 budget is P5.5 billion more than the BARMM’s P79.8-billion budget in 2022.
The Bangsamoro government said it allocated P70.1 billion for all of the ministries, agencies, and offices, while P15.2 billion is allotted for special purpose funds.
The BARMM said the allocations include: Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education - P27.2 billion; Ministry
of Public Works - P16.4 billion; Office of the Chief Minister - P5.9 billion Ministry of Health - P5.8 billion; Bangsamoro Transition Authority - P3.9 billion; Ministry of Social Services - P3.07 billion; Ministry of Interior and Local Government - P2.04 billion; Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform - P1.5 billion; Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources, and Energy - P666 million; and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications - P539 million
For the education sector, the proposed budget aims to improve access to quality and holistic education by strengthening the education system.
BARMM officials also said in terms of infrastructure, the funds will be used to support its operations in road network
and other public infrastructure facilities programs, such as road network development, bridge construction, flood management, water supply, port rehabilitation, and other infrastructure programs.
The funds will also improve equitable access to high-quality, low-cost healthcare services, protect against health-related financial risks, and improve disease preparedness, prevention, and management strategies.
Officials added that it will also provide a balanced and responsive approach to social welfare in which the rights, needs, and interests of all citizens within its jurisdiction are protected and addressed at all times, whether natural or human-induced, that affect their well-being and participation in community affairs.
DEPARTMENT of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has expressed support to Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Officer-in-Charge Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr. for the filing of a plunder complaint against suspended BuCor Director General Gerald Q. Bantag.
“He (Catapang) is a very responsible person. He knows what he’s doing,” Remulla said, even as he has yet to know the details of the plunder charge. “He will advise me properly on that matter,” Remulla added.
On Monday, Catapang said he is preparing a plunder case against Bantag and the complaint will hopefully be filed after Christmas.
“I am finalizing the filing of the plunder case because there is someone who is willing to become state witness,” he said on Wednesday.
GOVERNMENT agents have seized two container vans loaded with P20 million worth of smuggled onions from China.
The Bureau of Customs examined and impounded the shipments at the Mindanao Container Terminal (MCT) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental on Wednesday.
The bureau initiated the operation with the help of the Department of Agriculture, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Customs Region 10 office, Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS), Enforcement Security Services, and Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc. after it received information that the shipments contained
onions instead of the declared bread and pastries.
The 50,000 kilograms of onions consigned to Asterzenmed Inc. arrived in Cagayan de Oro on December 6. Customs Commissioner Yogi Filemon Ruiz assured the public that they remain committed to the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“Onions are being sold at higher prices in our local markets. This should not have been a predicament for an agricultural country like us. The more empowered these people feel about smuggling these products, the more our economy will suffer. So, we cannot let that happen because the people will be the most affected,” he said.
CIIS director Jeoffrey Tacio shared that they received intelligence information about the containers that will pass through MCT port while carrying smuggled onions.
“As we’re nearing the end of 2022, I’m glad to see that our agents are still hard at work in stopping these smuggled goods from passing through our borders. Now more than ever, it is so critical to protect our economy from the adverse impact of smuggled agricultural products,” he said.
Upon receiving the joint request by CIIS and ESS on Dec. 9, CDO District Collector Alexandra Lumontad immediately issued a Pre-Lodgement Control Order (PLCO) against the shipment on the same day.
By Maricel V. Cruz
Sur Rep. Luis Raymund
CAMARINES
Villafuerte is supporting the goal of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to legalize the operations of small-scale miners to enable the government to provide them with social protection plus skills training and even financial incentives for their operations.
“Environment Secretary Toni (Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga) must act with dispatch on the President’s recent directive for the DENR to strengthen the regulatory framework for smallscale mining with the end view of le-
galizing the preponderantly unsupervised and perilous activities of these small miners while better protecting the environment,” Villafuerte said.
“The legalization of more small-scale mining activities, as sought by President Marcos, would let the DENR and its Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) effectively track the extractive activities of these small-scale miners, and promote their safety, provide financial incentives for these now largely unsupervised type of extractive activities, generate higher revenue from the mining sector, and do a better job of protecting the environment,” he added.
But Catapang did not reveal the name of the supposed state witness.
Under Republic Act No. 7080, the crime of plunder “is the accumulation of iII-gotten wealth through a combination or series of overt criminal acts in the aggregate amount of P75 million by a public official.” The crime is punishable by life imprisonment.
Earlier, Catapang revealed that P1 billion has been allotted for building more prison cells, but he found out that the project was only 60 percent completed.
Aside from the plunder complaint, Bantag would be facing a series of criminal complaints, Catapang said.
Bantag has been charged in two complaints for murder for the deaths of radio commentator Percival “Percy Lapid” C. Mabasa and inmate Cristito Villamor Palana, the alleged middleman of self confessed gunman Joel S. Escorial in the killing of the broadcaster last Oct. 3 in Las Piñas City.
SENATOR Win Gatchalian said there is a pressing need to strengthen sex education to sustain the gains of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 or RH Law.
He noted that this would include a drop in teenage pregnancies.
In a forum organized by the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM), Department of Health (DOH) officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire reported that the adolescent birth rate in the country is now at 25 per 1,000 women, which is already beyond the 2022 target of 37 per 1,000 women.
The DOH official pointed out, however, that the number of teenage pregnancies remains high.
The UNFPA has flagged that adolescents that began childbearing before the age of 18 are less likely to complete their education.
For Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, this adds urgency for the government to assess if it is effectively implementing sexuality education in K to 12 schools.
THE alleged boss of Asia’s biggest crime syndicate and one of the world’s most wanted men has been extradited to Australia and arrested on drug trafficking charges, police said Thursday.
Chinese-born Canadian Tse Chi Lop, 59, is suspected of being the leader of an Asian mega-cartel known as Sam Gor, a major global producer and supplier of methamphetamines.
He is expected to appear in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court Thursday to answer a charge of “conspiracy to traffic commercial quantities of controlled drugs” after being extradited from the Netherlands.
Tse, dubbed Asia’s “El Chapo” in reference to Mexican drug lord Joaquin Guzman’s nickname, faces life imprisonment if convicted.
Australian police hailed it as “one of the most high-profile arrests in the history” of the country.
The Sam Gor organization—or “The Company”—is believed to launder billions in drug money through casinos, hotels and real estate in Southeast Asia’s Mekong region.
Tse was detained at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport in January 2021 after a decade-long hunt.
He had been the subject of an Interpol Red Notice.
Australian Federal Police assistant commissioner Krissy Barrett said the arrest came after a “very complex investigation.”
“We allege this male is the head of a large transnational organized crime syndicate,” she said.
“By their very nature, these very senior figures within the syndicates obviously deliberately stay hands-off in terms of the business dealings.”
“That’s why it’s such a significant arrest and why it has taken a fair amount of time.”
Australian police said that the charges relate to a specific 2012-2013 operation transferring drugs from Melbourne to Sydney. AFP
enjoyed a hero’s welcome on a lightning trip to Washington where President Joe Biden committed nearly $1.8 billion in military supplies including, for the first time, the Patriot missile defense system.
Zelensky—whose media savvy and rugged demeanor have helped rally world opinion—wore his trademark green military fatigues as he held talks at the White House and addressed Congress, where he handed over an Ukrainian flag fresh from the battlefield.
and said that the new year would mark the “turning point” in the fight against Russia.
“Against all odds and doom-andgloom scenarios,” Zelensky said in a speech that drew standing ovations, “Ukraine is alive and kicking.”
“Your money is not charity. It’s an investment in the global security and democracy that we handle in the most responsible way,” Zelensky said.
1941 days after the Pearl Harbor attack—and the Ukrainian leader was unafraid to encourage the parallels.
Comparing Ukrainian forces to Americans on the frontlines in World War II and the Revolutionary War, Zelensky said that Russians “burn and destroy everything” in a way “similar to the other tyranny” of Hitler.
“Ukraine holds its lines and will never surrender,” Zelensky said to applause.
Three hundred days after Russian
As Congress finalizes a new package of $45 billion, Zelensky voiced gratitude
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who welcomed Zelensky in one of her last acts before Republicans take control, likened the address to Winston Churchill’s Christmas-time visit in
A SIGNED transcript of a parliamentary exchange in which New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called a political rival an “arrogant prick” raised more than $63,000 for charity when bidding closed Thursday in an online auction.
“Can’t say I expected this,” Ardern posted on social media after what she described as her “faux pas with the old mic in parliament” raised the sum for New Zealand’s Prostate Cancer Foundation.
A microphone picked up New Zealand’s premier muttering the insult, aimed at political opponent David Seymour, following a heated exchange between the pair during a parliamentary session last week.
An exasperated Ardern was overheard saying “he’s such an arrogant prick” as she retook her seat after answering a barbed question from Seymour, leader of the right-liberalist party ACT.
Seymour petitioned the speaker of New Zealand’s
parliament to get an apology from Ardern, which meant her comment was entered into the official record, known as the Hansard.
Seymour came up with the idea of joining forces for a good cause and they both signed a copy of the transcript which was framed before being auctioned.
“The interest was greater than anyone dreamed,” Seymour said in a statement, after having told AFP he had only expected the transcript to reach a fraction of the winning bid of NZ$100,100 ($63,200).
Ardern also “thanked everyone who placed a bid” and praised Seymour for being “a good sport,” a compliment the ACT leader reciprocated.
“When I suggested this to her, she immediately agreed,” Seymour said.
“I have been blown away by the kindness of bidders who are helping pricks everywhere with their generosity,” he added. AFP
FIJI’S
Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who has led Fiji since coming to power in a 2006 military putsch, cited unsubstantiated reports of post-vote ethnic violence as the reason for the deployment.
“So long as it is our responsibility to serve in government, we will fulfil our duty to every Fijian’s safety,” he said in his first public comments since the December 14 election.
That vote looks set to end Bainimarama’s long rule, with an opposition coalition cobbled together by another former coup leader, Sitiveni Rabuka, securing enough seats for a parliamentary majority.
However, Bainimarama has refused to concede defeat and his allies have delayed the parliament sitting to nominate Rabuka as the next prime minister.
Fiji has been rocked by four coups and a military mutiny in the past 35 years. There are growing concerns that Bainimarama is preparing for the military to step into the political process again.
His ally, police commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho, claimed earlier to have unspecified “intelligence” about “planned civil unrest”, as he sought to justify the military deployment.AFP
Ukraine enjoys wide support in the United States but several hard-right Republicans have been critical, considering the aid a giveaway of taxpayer money. AFP
A REGIONAL envoy tasked with solving the Myanmar crisis will attend an informal meeting in Thailand on Thursday, Cambodia said, with a Thai government source indicating the junta’s foreign minister would attend.
The Thailand meeting comes shortly after the United Nations Security Council adopted its first resolution on Myanmar, demanding “an immediate end to all forms of violence.”
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has so far led diplomatic efforts to resolve the turmoil that has gripped Myanmar since the military seized power last year.
However, there has been little progress on a “five-point consensus” agreed with the junta in April 2021, with the regional bloc struggling to come up with ways to enforce it.
Cambodia’s foreign ministry said Prak Sokhonn, its top diplomat and special envoy, would participate in a meeting in Bangkok at the request of his Thai counterpart, Don Pramudwinai.
“During the informal consultation, the participants are expected to have a frank and candid deliberation on how to accelerate the progress in the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) on Myanmar,” the ministry said in a statement.
A Thai government source told AFP the junta’s foreign minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, would attend the meeting.
It would be his first known trip abroad since visiting China in March. The Thai foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment. AFP
Posing as a gem trader, he would befriend his victims, many of them West-
“He
“He considered himself a criminal hero.”
Suave and sophisticated, he was implicated in his first murder, that of a young American woman whose body was found on a beach wearing a bikini, in 1975. AFP
UKRAINIAN
President Volodymyr Zelensky directly appealed for long-term US support on his first foreign trip since Russia’s invasion, saying aid was not “charity” and had helped keep his country “alive and kicking.”
leader Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine with hopes of swift conquest, ZelenskyFRENCH serial killer Charles Sobhraj, who committed a string of murders across Asia in the 1970s and was portrayed in the Netflix series “The Serpent,” was expected to walk free from prison in Nepal on Thursday. Nepal’s top court ruled Wednesday that Sobhraj, 78, who has been in jail in the Himalayan republic since 2003 for two killings in the 1970s, should be released early on health grounds. Prison officials told AFP that after receiving the relevant court papers, they would hand Sobhraj over to immigration authorities. The court ordered that he be deported within 15 days. Sobhraj needed open heart surgery in 2017 and his release was in keeping with the law allowing the compassionate discharge of bedridden prisoners who had already served three-quarters of their sentence, the verdict added. A French citizen of Vietnamese and Indian parentage, Sobhraj began travelling the world in the early 1970s and wound up in the Thai capital Bangkok. ern backpackers on the 1970s hippie trail, before drugging, robbing and murdering them. despised backpackers, he saw them as poor young drug addicts,” Australian journalist Julie Clarke, who interviewed Sobhraj, told AFP in 2021. long-time prime minister said on Thursday the military had been deployed to maintain “law and order,” as the former coup leader refused to concede defeat after a close election.
1 LSC 0.59 0.14 31.11%
2 LFM 19.94 3.18 18.97%
3 PRC 5.5 0.7 14.58%
4 NRCP 0.62 0.06 10.71%
5 NOW 1.91 0.18 10.40%
6 CAT 9.77 0.85 9.53%
7 CEI 0.08 0.005 6.67%
8 IDC 0.8 0.05 6.67%
9 REG 3.09 0.19 6.55%
10 LPC 0.15 0.009 6.38%
LAST % PRICE CHANGE CHANGE
1 MBC 5.92 -0.87 -12.81%
2 MJC 1.3 -0.15 -10.34%
3 V 0.73 -0.08 -9.88%
4 APO 0.62 -0.06 -8.82%
5 MG 0.111 -0.01 -8.26%
6 PGOLD 33 -2.5 -7.04%
7 RLT 0.191 -0.014 -6.83%
8 MAHB 0.7 -0.05 -6.67%
9 WLCON 30.2 -1.95 -6.07%
10 ALI 29.6 -1.9 -6.03%
VOLUME VALUE (PHP)
1 AGI 104,809,300 1,250,163,114
2 TEL 651,510 814,214,310
3 SM 326,750 301,146,070
4 BDO 2,693,050 293,482,231
5 ACEN 28,096,000 211,179,584
6 ICT 943,720 186,695,584
7 URC 1,249,880 171,524,226
8 GTCAP 361,370 154,752,650
9 ALI 5,030,600 150,635,865
10 BPI 1,443,430 144,188,488
STOCKS rose for a third day following overnight gains on Wall Street as forecast-busting US earnings and consumer confidence data tempered worries about a deep recession.
The PSE index, the 30-company benchmark of the Philippine Stock Exchange, picked up 56 points, or 0.86 percent, to close at 6,576.94, as four of the six subsectors advanced, led by holding firms.
The broader all-share index also went up 22 points, or 0.66 percent, to settle at 3,444.26 on a value turnover of P6.47 billion. Gainers outnumbered losers, 97 to 77, while 53 issues were unchanged.
Six of the 10 most active stocks ended in the green, led by Alliance Global Group Inc. which climbed 4.21 percent to P11.88 and GT Capital Holdings Inc. which added 3.61 percent to finish at P430.00.
PLDT Inc. lost 1 point, or 0.08 percent, to close at P1,249.00 a day after it
held a special briefing for investors and analysts to clarify issues on the P48-billion capital expenditure overrun in the past four years.
Meanwhile, the peso slightly rose to close at 55.09 against the US dollar Thursday on strong seasonal flows of remittances from Filipinos working overseas. The local currency was still down 8 percent against the greenback since the start of the year.
Most Asian markets also rose Thursday. With dust settling after the Bank of Japan’s surprise shift from ultra-loose monetary policy, investors embarked on a mini Santa rally ahead of the Christmas break, while the yen stabilized following its biggest jump in 24 years.
The global gains came after hefty
selling since the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank last week signaled they would likely lift interest rates higher than expected to fight decadeshigh inflation.
Investors, looking for some good news, pounced on a survey showing consumer confidence in the US economy jumped in December more than estimated—to the highest since April—as inflation showed signs of easing and energy prices cooled.
That came along with better-than-expected earnings from Nike and delivery giant FedEx.
Nike, which has been hit by supplychain snarls, also provided a shot in the arm for the future by saying the most difficult supply excesses were “behind us” and that inventories were at their lowest levels in four quarters.
All three main indexes on Wall Street ended more than one percent higher, while European equities also barreled along. With AFP
PARIS—France’s privacy watchdog said Thursday it had fined US tech giant Microsoft 60 million euros ($64 million) for foisting advertising cookies on users.
In the largest fine imposed in 2022, the National Commission for Technology and Freedoms said Microsoft’s search engine Bing had not set up a system allowing users to refuse cookies as simple as accepting them.
The French regulator said that after investigations, it found that “when users visited this site, cookies were deposited on their terminal without their consent, while these cookies were used, among others, for advertising purposes.”
It also “observed that there was no button allowing to refuse the deposit of cookies as easily as accepting it.”
The CNIL said the fine was justified in part because of the profits the company made from advertising profits indirectly generated from the data collected via cookies—tiny data files that track online browsing.
Bing offered a button for the user to immediately accept all cookies, but two clicks were needed to refuse them, it said. The company has been given three months to rectify the issue, with a potential further penalty of 60,000 euros per day overdue.
The fine was issued to Microsoft Ireland, where the company has its European base.
In a statement, Microsoft said that it had “introduced key changes to our cookie practices even before this investigation started.”
“We continue to respectfully be concerned with the CNIL’s position on advertising fraud,” it said, adding that it believes the French watchdog’s “position will harm French individuals and businesses.”
Cookies are installed on a user’s computer when they visit a website, allowing web browsers to save information about their session.
They are hugely valuable for tech platforms as ways to personalize advertising—the primary source of revenue for the likes of Facebook and Google. AFP
TOKYO—Japan is facing its most severe energy crisis in decades and wants to speed up the revival of its nuclear energy industry to reduce its dependence on imported fossil fuels. But restarting more nuclear reactors remains controversial, more than a decade after the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
All the country’s reactors were shut down for safety checks after the Fukushima meltdown, and there are currently 33 considered operable.
By mid-December, nine were generating electricity, meeting a target set by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida this summer to help counter energy shortages and cover around 10 percent of Japan’s winter power consumption.
The national nuclear safety watchdog has approved the restart of seven other reactors in principle, but such moves often face fierce opposition from local communities.
In August, Kishida called for these seven reactors to come online by the summer of 2023 and said Japan should also consider building next-generation nuclear reactors.
He also said authorities would discuss extending the service life of existing reactors beyond the current 60-year limit if safety can be guaranteed.
Before the Fukushima disaster, nearly a third of Japan’s power generation came from nuclear energy, but in the fiscal year to March 2022, the figure stood at around seven percent.
The government is aiming for nuclear power to account for 20 to 22 percent of electricity production by 2030, part of efforts to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.
What are the obstacles?
The success of these nuclear power ambitions lies with Japan’s independent Nuclear
Regulation Authority (NRA), which must give a green light to the plans before they go ahead.
“It will be a challenge” to get existing reactors going again, because some have been “stalled for quite a long time”, Tom O’Sullivan, a Tokyo-based energy consultant at Mathyos Advisory, told AFP.
Bringing nuclear plants online could also be complicated by “nervousness about antiterrorism issues”, he added, pointing to concerns around plants caught in Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“Given what’s happening with the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, I think the NRA is probably more sensitive nowadays to potential terrorist attacks.”
Surveys show that reticence among the Japanese public towards a nuclear power revival has eased since the war in Ukraine triggered a steep rise in energy prices this year.
But opposition from people living near the plants will remain a sticking point, while reports of security breaches at one large plant in recent years have added to public unease, said analyst Hiroe Yamamoto of Moody’s Japan.
How quickly the government’s nuclear power revival hopes can become reality depends on local authorities but also Kishida’s popularity next year, said Nobuo Tanaka, chair of the Innovation for Cool Earth Forum steering committee.
The prime minister is currently “in trouble”, with his approval ratings dragged down this year by scandals, Tanaka said at a recent press conference.
So “just saying we need (more reactors online) because of high energy prices -- this kind of argument may not be sustainable,” and the government must also address issues such as waste disposal, he said. AFP
This photo taken on Sept. 19, 2022 shows people holding up anti-nuclear placards as they gather to take part in a protest against the government’s funding for the state funeral of late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. AFP
6,576.94
United
METRO Pacific Investments Corp. said Thursday wholly-owned unit Metro Pacific Agro Ventures Inc. teamed up with LR Group of Israel to build a new dairy manufacturing facility in Bay, Laguna.
MPIC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the plant would have an annual production capacity of at least 6 million liters of milk.
The construction of the facility will start in 2023, and operations are expected to commence by late 2025 to early 2026.
MPIC said the transaction presents a significant growth opportunity for the group and the Philippines, as the country imports 99 percent of its annual dairy requirements.
“We share the same values with MPIC and MPAV in terms of maximizing what their country has to offer primarily in land, natural resources and skills, and in turn, helping their local communities thrive,” said LR Group co-founder and chief executive Ami Lustig.
Founded in 1985, the LR Group operates worldwide in financing, managing, developing, producing and maintaining medium and largescale national projects in high-growth economies all over the world.
The partnership is the second agribusiness venture of MPIC.
MPIC early this year forayed into the dairy industry by teaming up with the Carmen’s Best Group to further develop and expand the operations of its dairy farm and manufacturing facilities.
“Our investment in agriculture is synonymous to food security and substantial independence but will ultimately become a means of alleviating hunger in our country—a pressing issue that we have taken as a challenge to address,” said MPIC chairman, president and chief executive Manuel Pangilinan.
“Our goal is and always will be to feed our people first,” said Pangilinan.
MPIC said it planned to ramp up investments in the agricultural sector to reduce the country’s dependence on food imports amid ongoing global supply chain disruption and high inflation.
DEMAND for electronics and semiconductor parts boosted Philippine exports in October, the Department of Trade and Industry said Thursday.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed merchandise exports grew 20 percent in October from a year ago and outpaced the 7.5-percent expansion of imports Electronics remained the country’s top export at $5.1 billion, accounting for 66.3 percent of the total. These included components/devices, electronic data processing, office equipment, consumer electronics and telecommunication. Electronic exports jumped 39.6 percent to $5.1 billion in October.
The PSA said export sales in October reached $7.7 billion, up from $6.4 billion in the same month last year. Total exports in the first 10 months also went up by 6.3 percent to $66.0 billion from $62.1 billion a year ago.
The DTI said the latest export performance was driven by growth in outbound shipments of semiconductor components/devices worth $4.3 billion, up by 62.7 percent from $2.6 billion in 2021.
Shipments of control and instrumentation, which were rather stable throughout the pandemic, went up 38.5 percent in October, hitting sales of $705.5 million in the first 10 months, or twice more than exports of $325.8 million in 2019.
Exports of consumer electronics and medical/industrial instrumentation posted double-digit growth rates of 20.7 percent to $774 million and 15 percent to $171.2 million respectively in the 10-month period.
About 21 of the 48 Philippine export commodity groups drove the resurgence of the export sector, registering consistent increases in export sales, led by electronics, other mineral products, other manufactures, coconut oil and pineapple and pineapple products.
PLDT Inc.’s sizable budget overrun on capital expenditure could stretch its balance sheet and weigh on its credit profile, while governance risks arising from the excess expenses might add to the stress, a major credit rating agency said Thursday.
“PLDT can only tolerate a small amount of additional cash outflow from the budget overrun before it erodes all leverage headroom at the current rating [BBB+/stable/--]. That’s because the Philippines-based telecom company’s balance sheet has already been worn thin from capex and working capital cash drain in the past two years,” S&P Global Ratings said in a report.
“We estimate the company can withstand no more than an incremental P10-
billion excess spending over our base case cash capex of P75 billion to P80 billion in 2023. After this, its debt-to-EBITDA ratio could deteriorate to beyond the downgrade trigger of 2.5x,” it said.
“Based on the company’s worstcase scenario, we estimate the debt-toEBITDA ratio could reach 2.8x to 2.9x in 2023. That is if the full P48-billion overrun from 2019 to 2022 represents an extra cash outflow, resulting in incremental debt to fund it,” S&P said.
S&P said the capex budget overrun also suggested management and governance shortcomings. “The ability of PLDT’s management to arrest higherthan-budgeted capex on a timely basis, and the ability of the company’s board to provide sufficient oversight have come into question. This is given that the overrun stems from capex dating as far back as 2019. Investigation so far by the company has not uncovered any fraudulent transactions or procurement anomalies,” it said.
S&P said PLDT had some levers that could mitigate the hit to its credit standing. The company was contemplating on
another tower sale in 2023, for a portfolio of up to 1,350 towers. This would be on top of the recently announced sale of 650 towers.
The 2022 sale and leaseback of close to 6,000 towers brought in about P77 billion in proceeds and rendered some financial flexibility to the company.
PLDT is also undergoing a management reorganization to address weaknesses that had allowed such budget overruns to occur, according to S&P.
Meanwhile, PLDT said Thursday it would maintain dividend payout this year to appease shareholders and investors. The company said it expected to be able to pay the balance of the regular dividend for 2022 at P45 per share and the remaining special dividend of P42 per share.
This would bring total dividends for 2022 to P134 per share or 88 percent of 2022 expected earnings.
PLDT said its overall business remained “healthy and robust” even as it continued to address its elevated budget spending and underwent a comprehensive review.
1.00000055.1710
Japan Yen 0.0075490.4165 UKPound1.20860066.6797 Hong KongDollar0.1282567.0760 SwitzerlandFranc1.07921459.5413 CanadaDollar0.73480840.5401 SingaporeDollar0.74019240.8371 AustraliaDollar0.67060036.9977 BahrainDinar2.652801146.3577 Saudi Arabia Rial 0.26595714.6731 BruneiDollar0.73746340.6866 IndonesiaRupiah0.0000640.0035 Thailand Baht 0.0288481.5916
UAE Dirham0.27228715.0223
EuroEuro 1.06070058.5199 Korea Won 0.0007820.0431
ChinaYuan0.1432467.9030 IndiaRupee0.0120660.6657 MalaysiaRinggit0.22553012.4427 New Zealand Dollar 0.62920034.7136 TaiwanDollar0.0326041.7988
Source: BSP
A FASTER economic expansion will be a factor that will narrow the budget deficit and reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio, an economist said Thursday.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said in a report the government’s push to further reopen the economy towards greater normalcy fundamentally boosted tax revenue collections on a year-on-year basis in November.
“Faster economic growth would also fundamentally further add to tax and other government revenue collections and also help reduce the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio,” Ricafort said.
Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said Wednesday the government’s budget deficit in the first 11 months declined by 7.2 percent to P1.236 trillion from P1.332 trillion a year ago as the double-digit expansion in revenues outpaced the single-digit growth in expenditures.
Diokno said the 11-month budget deficit represented 75 percent of the P1.7 trillion program for the whole year. “Year to date, revenues climbed to P3.3 trillion, P503.1 billion or 18.1 percent above last year’s number and representing 99 percent of the P3.3 trillion goal for 2022,” Diokno said. Julito G. Rada
PETROWind Energy Inc. of the Yuchengo Group and global wind turbine manufacturer Vestas announced Thursday the signing of the supply, operations and maintenance contract for the 13.2-megawatt Nabas2 wind power project in Aklan province.
PWEI parent firm PetroEnergy Resources Corp. said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Vestas would supply six units of 2.2MW wind turbine generators. Vestas will also handle the operations and maintenance of the wind farm through a 10-year O&M agreement.
“We welcome this new partnership with Vestas. Being one of the leading energy solution providers worldwide, we are confident that Vestas will bring the latest advancements in wind farm technology and best practices in O&M for Nabas-2,” said PWEI assistant vice president for power plant operations Paul Elmer Morala. The Nabas-2, located in the same service contract block as the existing 36-MW Nabas-1 project of PWEI, will add 13.2MW capacity to the project.
Alena Mae S. FloresMANILA Electric Co. said Thursday it asked the Court of Appeals to deny the temporary restraining order and writ of preliminary injunction sought by San Miguel Energy Corp. on the power supply agreement they signed in 2019.
The Energy Regulatory Commission, through the Office of the Solicitor General, also filed with the CA an opposition to the issuance of the TRO in favor of SMEC. This followed Meralco’s Dec. 19 motion to lift the TRO issued by the CA in favor of South Premiere Power Corp. and to deny the generation company’s application for WPI. SMEC and SPPC are both subsidiaries of SMC Global
Power Holdings Corp.
SMEC supplies 330 megawatts of Meralco’s baseload power requirement under a supply deal executed following a competitive selection process.
“With due respect, the possible grant of the TRO or writ of preliminary injunction will lead to petitioner SME’s cessation in supplying electricity to Meralco, which it is obligated to do under the terms and conditions of the PSA,” Meralco said.
Meralco said in a motion dated Dec. 21 the issuance of an injunction would lead to the termination of the PSA with SMEC, disrupt the supply of electricity and expose customers to potentially higher power rates.
THE Bistro Group said Thursday it will continue its network expansion in 2023, after opening almost 40 stores in 2022 to end with 136 branches nationwide.
“After meeting the extraordinary challenges of the past two years, we aim to seize opportunities to thrive in the changing world of business,” Bistro Group president Jean Paul Manuud said in a statement.
The company said it lined-up expansion plans involving the opening of more branches of existing concepts and the introduction of new brands, both local and international. It said the company’s most aggressive growth yet was in 2022.
“2023 is primed for growth. In January alone, there will be multiple openings of Randy’s, Bulgogi Brothers, Olive Garden and Texas Roadhouse,” the company said.
It said Fogo de Chão, the internationally renowned experiential restaurant from Brazil known for the culinary art
of churrasco with whom Bistro signed a development agreement last year, would be launched next year.
“We are also currently in talks with well-known international restaurant concepts in the fine and casual dining space that have expressed their interest in partnering with us to launch their brands in the country,” Manuud said.
“The F & B industry has displayed an admirable resilience, picking up where they left off pre-pandemic and forging ahead with expansion and thriving. That bodes well for us. What does it take to win? From surviving to thriving to winning… This is what businesses around the world aim to achieve in post-pandemic phase. The Bistro Group is no different,” he said.
“The key now is to avoid inertia, to continue to build on what we have done in the past, to move forward, using the learnings we gained from the chaos that disrupted the industry over the last two years,” Manuud said.
The power retailer said the court should deny SMEC’s application and “direct the parties to continuously implement the PSA that would serve and protect the public from the unnecessary burden of increased electricity costs.”
It cited Republic Act No. 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 which expressly states that the supply sector, where SMEC belongs, is a business affected by public interest.
Meralco said allowing the property rights of a generation company to take precedence over public welfare “would be travesty of the policies enshrined under EPIRA and a disservice to the public.”
EMPERADOR Inc. said Wednesday sales of Emperador Brandy in North America increased 28 percent in 2022 from a year ago, amid enhanced distribution and visibility of its products across the United States and Canada
“Emperador brandy products have increasingly become ubiquitous in these parts of North America. This is in line with our relentless efforts of globalization while making Emperador Brandy a household name in other parts of the world,” Emperador International chief executive Glenn Manlapaz said in a disclosure to the stock exchange. Manlapaz said brandy sales in North America were expected to post a stronger growth in 2023.
Emperador Brandy products are available at various off-premise establishments across the United States and Canada.
Emperador Light is available in 229 outlets of Albertsons, an American grocery company founded and headquartered in Boise, Idaho. It is the second largest supermarket chain in North America with over 2,200 stores. Jenniffer B. Austria
Meralco asks CA to deny supply deal TRO filed by San Miguel
DTI:
surged 39.6% in October
TOKYO—Last year’s pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics cost 20 percent more than the final figure reported by the organizing committee, according to an analysis by Japan’s audit board.
A report issued late Wednesday found the Games cost 1.7 trillion yen ($12.9 billion), up from the 1.42 trillion yen reported by Tokyo 2020 earlier this year.
The audit board said organizers had incorrectly failed to include some Olympic-linked government spending on items including anti-doping measures, athlete training, Japanese food at the athletes village and the Olympic stadium.
And its report urged the government in the future to “reveal the total costs in a timely manner when it is substantially
HONG KONG—East Asia Super League has announced securing funding from the lead investor in its Series C round, Crest Sports and Entertainment. This new investment is an important milestone in EASL’s fund raising history, showing confidence from a variety of strategic, value-added investors, including Raine Venture Partners, and current and former NBA players, including Baron Davis, Metta World Peace, Shane Battier and Jalen Green.
On December 7, EASL unveiled EASL Champions Week, its five-day, 10-game regional championship, featuring the best teams from the Japan B.LEAGUE, Korea KBL, Philippine PBA, Chinese Taipei P.LEAGUE+ and the EASL-seeded Bay Area Dragons, coached by Australian coaching legend and Olympic medalist Brian Goorjian, which is a diverse face of Chinese basketball, featuring top players from Mainland China, Hong Kong and the Chinese diaspora.
EASL Champions Week is EASL’s first major event following the COVID-19 pandemic and has garnered massive media attention and fan anticipation recently.
“East Asia Super League is honored to receive financial backing for its growth from an experienced strategic investor such as Crest Sports and Entertainment on our journey to become one of the top three basketball leagues in the world by 2025 in terms of fan base and commercial revenue,” East Asia Super League CEO Matt Beyer said.
Crest Sports and Entertainment’s investment in EASL additionally brings Asian sports industry excellence and expertise as the owners of one of Australia’s top National Basketball League, the Illawarra Hawks.
The fund’s Series C lead investment tips off a total $40 million funding round EASL is aiming to close by March 2023 to back expansion of its home-and-away competition format beginning October 2023.
involved in a major event.”
The 2013 bid for the Tokyo Games estimated the event would cost just 734 billion yen, but costs gradually ballooned, with a pandemic postponement adding to the bill.
Asked about the costs Thursday, government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters “the government takes the points raised seriously and will respond appropriately”, without offering details.
The Games were held a year later than planned because of the pandemic -- the first Olympics postponed in peacetime
-- and spectators were banned from nearly all events, which were held under strict Covid-19 countermeasures.
Japanese prosecutors are currently investigating a string of bid-rigging allegations associated with sponsorship deals at the Tokyo Games.
On Thursday, a former executive of a major clothing company appeared in court on allegations of bribing a Tokyo 2020 official and admitted offering money to secure sponsorship rights for his firm, national broadcaster NHK said.
The corruption scandal has cast a shadow over the northern city of Sapporo’s bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics.
Officials there this week announced they would stop holding promotional events for the bid and now hold a nationwide poll to gauge support.
“In light of the case related to Tokyo, it has been determined that we must design a clean Games,” Akifumi Kudo, a local official working on the municipal bid, told AFP.
Sapporo had been seen as the frontrunner to host the Winter Games for a second time, ahead of rivals Salt Lake City and Vancouver, but the corruption scandal has soured the bid.
Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto said Tuesday the city needed time to draft strong anti-corruption measures to win public support, given the cloud over last year’s event.
“Rather than just running to the goal and closing our eyes to our surroundings, we have concluded that our priority should be to clear away any concerns or doubts the public has,” he told reporters. AFP
DUBAI—Nick Kyrgios believes Novak Djokovic “needs to be playing at all costs” and is happy the Serb will be allowed back into Australia to compete in the opening Grand Slam of the season in Melbourne next month.
Djokovic was banned from returning to Australia as a consequence of being deported earlier this year over his refusal to be vaccinated.
However, that decision has been reversed and the 21-time major champion will get the opportunity to vie for a record-extending 10th Australian Open crown in a few weeks’ time.
Kyrgios was one of the most outspoken players advocating for Djokovic during his deportation debacle last January and the Australian world number 22 feels the 35-year-old’s presence is essential at every event.
“I think Novak needs to be playing at all costs,” Kyrgios told AFP at the World Tennis League in Dubai on Wednesday.
“He’s one of the greatest of all time and as long as he’s going to be playing and hanging around, we need him at these tournaments.”
Djokovic’s absence from two of the four majors in 2022 due to his vaccination status has made way for young talent to emerge.
Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz claimed a maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open and as a result became the youngest world number one in ATP history.
“I think, as a competitor, I want to see him there,” Kyrgios said of Djokovic. AFP
By Peter Atencio
SEOUL SK could possibly sign University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons’ cager Terrence Fortea in its ongoing season in the Korean Basketball League.
SK coach Jeon Hee-cheol hinted of bringing in a young player from the Philippines after they p ulled off a 78-73 win over Korea Gas Corp.-Daegu, which has former Ateneo cager Sam Josef Belangel in the roster.
“If Choi Won-hyuk goes beyond the game against Samsung (25th), he will have to reconsider his player rotation. It is my
ability to not use the resources I have. He is definitely needed. When Filipino players meet us, they do very well,” said Jeon in a statement to Korean sports media.
Choi is one of SK’s key players in Jeon’s rotation.
Fortea, who played meaningful minutes for the Fighting Maroons in the recent finals of the 85th University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball finals, is drawing interest because of his performance.
A shifty guard, Fortea averaged 8.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.47 assists.
Seoul SK is currently in fifth place with its 12-12 win-loss slate.
The 22-year-old Ildefonso is being valued by Korean club teams for his versatility on the floor, between being a shooting guard and a sm all forward
They find Ildefonso’s averages of 12.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists in UAAP Season 85 very enticing.
Korean scouts even hardly minded his measly 5.0 points and 6.7 rebounds in Game 3 of their best-of-three finals with the Maroons.
THE year 2022 was a big one for Philippine sports as it witnessed the comeback of face-to-face events as pandemic restrictions continued to ease and people embraced the new normal. PLDT Inc., Smart Communications, Inc. and the MVP Sports Foundation have reiterated their commitment to promote and develop sports and Filipino athletes by supporting the industry through various ways.
In the first quarter of the year, MVPSF established two training grounds to help cultivate the skills of Filipino athletes hoping to represent the country in global sporting events. The MVPSF Center for Sports Excellence in Antipolo, Rizal will support the training of badminton players and boxers, while the MVPSF Gymnastics Center in Intramuros, Manila will provide a space for the training of the country’s gymnasts.
PLDT and Smart also reiterated their support to Olympians Caloy Yulo, who won silver and bronze in the Gymnastics World Championships; Hidilyn Diaz who bagged gold in the Weightlifting World Championships, and pole vaulter EJ Obiena who landed multiple gold medals in the European Circuit; as well as boxers Nesthy Petecio and Hergie Bacyadan who garnered bronze in the ASBC Boxing Championships, the Philippine Women’s National Football Team who emerged at the top of the AFF Women’s Champion-
ship for the first time, and Smart Omega Call of Duty Mobile team who qualified for the World Championships. The Group has long been supporting 17 national sports agencies through the MVPSF, along with notable national teams like Gilas Pilipinas, Philippine men’s and women’s national volleyball teams, Smash Pilipinas, and sponsorships for Smart Omega Esports, PLDT High Speed Hitters, among others.
“The pride that our athletes give the Philippines when they represent our country is priceless. PLDT and Smart have always believed that sports plays a key role in shaping individuals and communities to build a better nation,” said Jude Turcuato, Head of Sports at PLDT and Smart, and Executive Director at MVPSF. “Our mission is to be the driving force in the development of world-class Filipino sports champions. We want to foster a culture of winning using the grassroots programs and partnerships that we’ve established in various sporting events,” he added.
To bring events like the 2022 Southeast Asian Games, FIBA World Cup and FIBA Asia Cup, Premiere Volleyball League, University Athletics Association of the Philippines, FIVB Volleyball Nations League, Philippine Basketball Association and others closer to sports-loving Filipinos, Smart has boosted its streaming platform Smart Livestream App.
Through Smart Livestream App, fans
As
talents of the Filipino youth in esports in the global arena.
Smart also launched the first all-in-one esports platform for Filipino mobile gamers, GIGA Arena, to empower Filipinos with the best mobile gaming experience powered by the fastest mobile network.
“Speed and coverage have never been more crucial in our increasingly digital world, particularly, in sports. Whether Filipinos are playing in competitive esports, watching a do-or-die finals game, or supporting your favorite team as they compete overseas, our curated products and services are here to empower sports-loving Smart customers to live more through our superior network,” said Francis E. Flores, Head of Consumer Business Group—Individual at Smart.
Supporting mental health awareness advocacy Under their digital wellness advocacy, PLDT and Smart collaborated with likeminded organizations and individuals to generate collective impact for its advocacy on mental health. Together with MVPSF and Smart Sports, inspiring Filipino athletes participated in the Better Today conversations for sports and mental resilience. They have also partnered with Football for Humanity to launch the Better Today for Kids Playground, where 50 children joined the football workshop to channeling sports and play for rehabilitation.
DUBAI—World number five Aryna Sabalenka is hoping Wimbledon organizers will be “a bit more open” to the idea of allowing Belarusians and Russians play in the 2023 edition.
The Belarusian, a semi-finalist in the tournament in 2021, was one of several high-ranked players blocked from Wimbledon earlier this year after the All England Club implemented a ban on Russian and Belarusian players in re sponse to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“I think I have zero control on this situation. I’m just sitting and waiting for the decision. And whatever happens, happens,” Sabalenka told AFP at the World Tennis League in Dubai.
“If they’re going to ban us for another year, okay, whatever, I’m going to have fun at home in Miami, I’m going to spend some time with my family and do another pre-season.
“Whatever they decide, it’s their decision. I don’t care about Wimbledon.”
Asked if she was optimistic the All England Club would reverse its decision, the 24-year-old said: “I really hope that they will be a little bit more open for us.
“But as last year showed, they are not really happy Belarusians and Russians at their event.”
Last Saturday in Abu Dhabi, British number one Cameron Norrie said he would like to see Russians and Belarusians welcomed back at the Championships.
“For me, I want the best players in the world to be playing,” said the 14th-ranked Norrie, a semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2022.
“I felt last year was tough for those guys, especially for Daniil (Medvedev) and for Andrey (Rublev), who have a chance of winning Wimbledon; especially as I know how much those guys sacrificed with their careers and their goals are obviously very high to be winning Slams.
“So I really did feel bad for those guys.”
According to British media, a decision from the All England Club regarding the issue is expected to be made by April, with the competition starting on July 3. AFP
PARIS—Lionel Messi will celebrate his World Cup triumph by agreeing to stay at Paris Saint-Germain, local media claimed Wednesday, as he attempts to steer the French side to an elusive Champions League title.
The 35-year-old, who led Argentina to victory in the World Cup final against France in Qatar last weekend, will pen a one-season extension to his current deal in the French capital which expires in the summer.
Le Parisian and RMC Sport reported that Messi will sit down with PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and other top
club officials when he returns after his World Cup break.
Messi joined PSG in 2021 on a twoseason deal with an option for another year after having spent his entire professional career with Barcelona.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner collected four Champions League titles in 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2015 in Spain as well as 10 La Liga crowns.
On Sunday, he inspired Argentina to a penalty shootout win over France in the World Cup final after the epic match had finished 3-3 in extra-time.
Messi, named player of the tournament, scored twice in the game with PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe grabbing a hattrick for France.
Meanwhile, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola on Wednesday paid tribute to Julian Alvarez and Messi following Argentina’s World Cup triumph.
City striker Alvarez was a central figure as Argentina won the World Cup for the first time since 1986, with Sunday’s dramatic penalty shoot-out win over France in an outstanding final in Qatar representing the summit of a brilliant career for Messi, who enjoyed club success under Guardiola at Barcelona.
Former City defender Nicolas Otamendi was also a member of Argentina’s victorious team, with Guardiola saying Wednesday: “For Julian, we are delighted. He played a lot and his contribution was amazing for the team, for the way they played. We have a world champion in our team.
“We are incredibly happy for him. Congratulations to him, for Nico Otamendi and, of course, personally for Leo Messi, for Argentina as a country, well deserved champions.” AFP
OVERPOWERED by
in the early going, Johnny Arcilla used his veteran smarts to repel his younger rival in the last two sets, hacking out a 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 decision to claim the Naga Open National Tennis Championship crown at the City of Naga tennis courts in Cebu Wednesday.
Arcilla changed tactics after yielding the opening set which Seno dominated with his power and baseline game, coming through with superb drop and lob shots and backspins that baffled the latter and helped fuel his come-from-behind victory that extended his domination of the circuit presented by Dunlop.
It was the 10-time PCA Open champion’s third straight win coming off romps in the Brookside Open in Cainta and Zentro Open in Pampanga the last three weeks, and five overall, counting his victories in the Puerto Princesa Open last October and the Pintaf-
lores Festival Open last month.
That further underscored the 42-year-old tremendous form and staying power, who dropped his first two cracks at serve in the first set to fall 0-4 as Seno took the better of Arcilla in long baseline rallies. After trading serves in the next three, he finally broke Seno in the eighth but the latter broke back to clinch the set.
But Arcilla, who also needed an extra set to repulse Charles Kinaadman in the semis, quickly recovered and imposed his will in the next, shutting out Seno, who swept Eric Tangub in the Final Four, with his vast repertoire of shots. He then broke his rival in the first and fifth games of the deciding set to go 5-1 up before breaking him again in the seventh to wrap up the crown.
Unlike in Brookside and Zentro Open, however, Arcilla failed to complete a twinkill as Kinaadman and Eric Jed Olivarez carved out a thrilling 6-7 6-2, 10-7 victory over him
and how to put down our own national team, all you have to do is check the comments section.
Sharing the spotlight in the tournament held as part of the Dagitab Festival celebrations were Legends winners, including Boy Longakit and Jonathan Largo, who beat Aldrin Geluz and Rocky Paglalunan, 8-5, in 40s class; Roy Tabotabo and Marlon Mariscal, who trounced Geluz and Enrico Abadia, 8-2; Rollie Anasta, who held off Chat Conta, 8-5, for the men’s singles 35 title; Geluz, who edged Tabotabo, 8-7(3), in singles 45 finals.
Other doubles winners in the event, supported by ProtekTODO, PalawanPay, the Unified Tennis Philippines and UTR (Universal Tennis Rating), were Max Tallido and Biboy Narvasa (Classified C), Raffy Canares and Alvin Cinco (Classified C+), Manolet Cortes and Danny Sajonia (Classified B-), and Noel Salupado and Rollie Anasta (Classified B+).
for and the free wi-fi of your neighbors. I don’t care as long as you show up and be the 12th man in the game against Brunei and Indonesia on the second day of the new year. It will be more than enough for all my troubles. May sukli pa kayo.
THE Philippine Azkals will face Brunei Darussalam at 6 p.m. today (Saturday) at the Rizal Memorial Stadium, with nothing less than a win to keep their hopes alive just two games into the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022.
The squad fell to Cambodia, 3-2, in its opening game in Phnom Penh Tuesday night. Two goals in the first 20 minutes of the match plus another one in the 59th minute were enough to wither a comeback by the team. Keshiro Daniels scored a brace to lead the Philippines back into the match. But again, a loss is a loss.
And judging from the comments by fans in almost all football chat forums in the country, the loss is enough to call for the firing of Azkals’ team manager Dan Palami, among other things. In fact, if you want to see classic examples of crab mentality
But I will not spoil your Friday with negativity or use this platform to call out those, who have nothing good or encouraging to say about our Azkals, with just two more days before Christmas and the team playing a crucial game tonight. Darating tayo d’yan when the real “singilan” comes.
But for the meantime, win or lose, the Azkals will always be my team. And yours, too.
While the loss against a much-improved Cambodian side was hard to swallow, the team can bounce back to contention with a win against Brunei tonight.
This is why I’m calling all those who heaped insults and bashed the team to no end to be at the Rizal Memorial Stadium tonight and to the next home game. Even those who made the life of The Designated Kit Man miserable just because of a screenshot without posting the link of the whole column just to fit the narrative they want.
Bash me more – go ahead and enjoy the democracy that our forefathers fought hard
Let’s reserve the negativity just for the rest of the tournament. We can always bash the team after the Mitsubishi Electric Cup is over. Heck, we can call for Palami’s head and especially those manning the Philippine Football Federation, for all I care. But please, not until the Azkals have played the last minute of the ongoing AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup.
Now that our local-based players are given the opportunity to play in the tournament, the least we could do is cheer for them. Let’s put a moratorium on magnifying every mistake they made in the first game. For sure, they have heard enough already from the coaching staff. It would be better to give them encouragement and add to their confidence. A prayer or two will greatly help, too.
The Azkals are a young team. Most of them are inexperienced. Many of them are playing internationally for the flag and country for the first time. And hearing some stories on how the team struggled just to be able compete in the tournament is testament already to its resiliency in
battling the odds. Even before the Azkals reach the pitch.
Most of the veteran Azkals and the big names, who are always relied upon by the management and coaching are not present simply because the tournament is not under FIFA dates. Clubs are not obligated to release their players for their national teams. Please try to remember this before you ask the coaching staff and the Azkals management why Gerrit Holtmann, Neil Etheridge and other foreign-based Azkals are not in the squad.
Let’s support the team and show that we are not only good at criticizing them but we can also be there, physically, when they need us most.
Pamasko na natin sa kanila ‘to.
Speaking of rising through adversity, our paddle pusher Aljay Villena grabbed his second gold medal in the ongoing 2022 US Open Table Tennis Championship in Ontario, California. The 17-yearold ping pong wunderkind just won the Sandpaper Men’s Open title of the event yesterday.
Aljay bagged the gold medal in the hard bat juniors’ event before settling for the runner’s up spot in the hard bat open category the other day to raise his medal haul to three.
Thank you for your sacrifices and
SAO PAOLO—Brazilian football great Pele will spend Christmas in hospital, his medical team and family said Wednesday, as he receives treatment for worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems.
The 82-year-old “requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions,” said the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo.
It also reported a “progression” of his cancer, but said Pele was not in intensive care.
Considered by many to be the greatest footballer of all time, Pele was hospitalized in Sao Paulo on November 29 for what his medical team called a reevaluation of his chemotherapy treatments, which he has been receiving since having surgery to remove a colon tumor in September 2021.
Doctors have also diagnosed Pele— whose real name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento—with a respiratory infection.
Earlier this month, Pele’s daughters Kely Nascimento and Flavia Arantes sought to reassure fans about his health, denying reports that Pele had been placed in end-of-life care as supporters held a vigil outside the hospital.
They said Wednesday on Instagram that they would be spending Christmas with their father at the hospital.
“Our Christmas at home has been suspended,” they wrote.
“We decided with the doctors that, for various reasons, it would be better for us to stay here with all the care that this new family at Einstein gives us!!”
Accompanied by a picture of them smiling, the sisters thanked Pele’s fans for their support and wished them a happy festive season.
“We are going to turn this room into a Sambodrome (just kidding), we will even make caipirinhas (not kidding!!),” they joked, referencing Brazil’s famous cocktail.
The siblings promised an update next week.
‘The King’
Pele dazzled from an early age and took the 1958 World Cup by storm when he was 17 years old, netting a hat trick in the semifinals and two more goals in the final, catapulting his own career and launching the soccer dynasty of the Brazilian national team. AFP
strong determination to bring honor and fame to our country, Aljay! Good job, too, to Ryan Gabriel for moving heaven and earth just for Aljay to realize his dream and potential.
On a side note, The Designated Kit Man is now one year old! This milestone will not be possible if not for the support of my editor, the ever cool Riera Mallari, our uber patient news editor Joyce Pañares, Opinion editor Honor Blanco Cabie, Sir Rollie Estabillo and the whole Manila Standard team.
It has been a very interesting journey so far and a continuing learning process for me. Especially on how to write better and the ever-present struggle to give that extra inch of patience. My gratitude also to my readers and supporters who never fail to make me feel that I’m onto something good and worthy of their time and indulgence. Writing this column is much better than therapy. And cheaper, too!
Here is to more interesting musings in 2023.
Merry Christmas! Stay safe. Stay happy peeps!
For comments or questions, you can reach The Designated Kit Man at erel_cabatbat@yahoo.com or follow his account at Twitter: @erelcabatbat
AS THE holidays approach in the Philippines, so does the annual tradition of spending time with loved ones in the cinema and watching films made by local filmmakers. The 2022 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) will see eight original Pinoy films showcased for the viewing pleasure of the Filipino public.
With the theme of “Balik Saya sa MMFF 2022,” this year’s festival aims to highlight the joy and excitement of celebrating Christmas in the Philippines by going to the cinema with loved ones and supporting local filmmakers.
Here are some things to expect from the eight official entries at the 48th edition of the annual Metro Manila Film Festival.
The film follows Lyra, a content moderator who works with a group of employees known as “deleters” to filter disturbing content from reaching social media platforms. Yet, her co-workers don’t know that Lyra, who seems to be unfazed by the graphic content she encounters every day, is hiding a deep trauma and is attempting to erase and forget her past, causing her to become detached from the horrific world she lives.
Mikhail Red is at the helm of the movie, which stars Nadine Lustre Louise delos Reyes, McCoy de Leon, and Jeffrey Hidalgo ‘Family
Directed by Nuel C. Naval Family Matters follows the story of siblings navigating through life with dotage parents.
The trailer also shows the siblings quarreling non-stop over who will care for their sick father. It reached 113,000 views on YouTube as of Saturday, December 17.
The movie stars Nonie Buencamino, James Blanco, Ketchup Eusebio, JC Santos, Mylene Dizon, Nikkie Valdez, Agot Isidro Rozanna Guinoo Ian Pangilinan, and Ina Feleo ‘Labyu with an Accent’ Coco Martin dons the directorial cap
Michelle Madrigal
Finding love in the digital age only takes a smartphone, the Internet, and a few clicks. Several couples found their happily ever afters through dating apps, and Michelle is again joining the bandwagon. Before her new beau, Kyle Michelle dated and married Troy Woolfolk, who she also met on a dating app. Those dating apps served Michelle well. Whatever luck she has in finding love online, we want some of it in 2023.
Watching films is a favorite past-time among Filipinos. It’s also an ideal way for families to bond. With the return of the Metro Manila Film Festival, moviegoers are looking forward to watching the titles available on Christmas. The event has a range of genres, from comedy to drama to
and stars his wife, Toni Gonzaga, along with Joey de Leon Ronnie Alonte Loisa Andalio, and Kakai Bautista
My Teacher follows a high school teacher who returns to her hometown and learns a valuable life lesson after encountering a 70-year-old student.
‘Nanahimik ang Gabi’
This cautionary tale follows the story of a gorgeous young woman and her lover, an older man, who, as the story unfolds, are ensconced in a secluded mansion, eager to savor the delights given to their forbidden tryst.
What should have been another romantic and steamy night turns into a terrifying moment with the unexpected appearance of a stranger.
The film’s director is Shugo Praico. It stars Heaven Peralejo, Ian Veneracion, and Mon Confiado
This festival entry marks Vice Ganda’s comeback to the festival since the 2019 edition, where he starred in the MMFF entry, The Mall, The Merrier, with Anne Curtis. Directed by Cathy Garcia-Molina, the film will see Vice with Ivana Alawi in a story about two exes reuniting, only to be involved in a crime.
for this film (credited under his real name Rodel Nacianceno) and starring himself along with Jodi Sta. Maria Labyu with an Accent is a romcom that tells the story of Trisha, who, after spending two decades in the United States, comes back home to the Philippines in an attempt to move on from a failed relationship and meets Gabe, who has taken multiple jobs to get a livelihood.
In a media gathering, Coco said that he based the film’s story on his and Jodi’s experiences working abroad, with him having worked as an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) in Canada. He and Jodi also want to use the film to express their gratitude to the fans of their respective Kapamilya teleseryes, FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano and The Broken Marriage Vow, both of which ended this year.
horror and more. Hopefully, the festival’s return will mark its annual occurrence after people have regained their freedom in the new normal.
Arjo Atayde
The actor-congressman has the public torn on their opinions of him. While some are happy with his performance in his career and his engagement with Maine Mendoza others feel wary of him because he is one of the principal authors of the Maharlika Wealth Fund. Nonetheless, Arjo maintains that he only wants the best for his constituents. Only time will tell Arjo’s true intentions, but here’s hoping he treats Maine and the public well.
Mommy Divine Geronimo
Filipinos know Mommy Divine as the protective mother of singeractress Sarah Geronimo
However, showbiz reporter Ogie Diaz recently aired a labor complaint against Mommy Divine on his vlog. The complainant is allegedly the former family driver who claims to have received his salary late. Mommy Divine has yet to clear her name, but may she do so promptly.
PHILIPPINE broadcast leader GMA
Network continues to showcase world-class programs in international markets. Shortly after participating in MIPCOM Cannes in France last October, GMA, through its content distribution arm GMA Worldwide, recently participated in the Asia TV Forum (ATF) 2022 in Singapore.
Widely regarded as Asia’s leading entertainment content market, this year’s event is the first in-person Asia TV Forum since 2019.
Representing GMA Network at ATF 2022 were Jose Mari R. Abacan, First Vice President for Program Management; Nessa S. Valdellon, First Vice President for Public Affairs; Reena G. Garingan, Consultant, Business Development and Strategic Content Partnerships; and Roxanne J. Barcelona, GMA Worldwide Division Vice President/ Consultant.
Showcased during the three-day event were Maria Clara at Ibarra and Luv Is: Caught in His Arms
The top-rating and trending historical portal fantasy series Maria Clara at Ibarra tackles
not only the rich history of the Philippines but also some of the most crucial issues in society. It follows the story of Klay, a Gen Z nursing student who time travels to the world of Noli Me Tangere. The series is bannered by Barbie Forteza as Klay, Julie Anne San Jose as Maria Clara, and Dennis Trillo as Ibarra.
LUV IS: Caught in His Arms, on the other hand, is the much-anticipated collaboration project between GMA Network and Wattpad Webtoon Studios. An adaptation of the hit Wattpad novel with the same title by Filipino author Ventrecanard, the series is top-billed by Sparkle artists Sofia Pablo and Allen Ansay
This historical action film by Lester Dimanaran is based on the 2015 Mamasapano clash where 44 members of the Special Action Force (SAF) of the Philippine National Police (PNP), known as the SAF 44, died while performing their mission of trying to capture Malaysian bomb maker, Zulkifli Abdhir, alias Marwan.
The film stars Edu Manzano, Aljur Abrenica Paolo Gumabao, and Claudine Barretto
‘My Father, Myself’
Directed by Joel Lamangan and starring Dimples Romana, Sean de Guzman, and Jake Cuenca, My Father, Myself follows Robert, a closeted gay human rights lawyer. He becomes sexually attracted to his adopted son, Matthew, the
biological
The film sparked recent controversy following the release of its trailer over concerns about the possible harmful impact on the LGBTQ+ community in the country.
In a grand media conference for the film, Direk Joel stood by the film, urging moviegoers to watch it first before judging it.
“See the movie first before you judge it. There was no intention to offend anyone in any way. We just wanted to tell a story. [It is] A different kind of love. A colorful life of a family,” Direk Joel said.
‘My
Directed by Presidential Adviser for
ABS-CBN Film Productions, the film’s producers, originally planned to submit a third installment of the late Wenn V. Deramas’ Praybeyt Benjamin film franchise to the festival directed by Direk Cathy. However, it did not push through, and Partners in Crime joined the festival instead.
With these eight entries, this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival will surely bring the joy of the holiday season and the joy of watching movies in the cinema and supporting the local film industry.
The 2022 Metro Manila Film Festival will begin on Christmas Day, December 25, and will run until Saturday, January 7. The traditional Parade of Stars happened along Quezon Avenue, from Welcome Rotonda to the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City, on December 21. Meanwhile, the annual Gabi ng Parangal (Awards Night) will be held at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City on Tuesday, December 27.
All eight entries will screen in cinemas across Metro Manila and throughout the Philippines.
FORMER actress Cristina GonzalesRomualdez, fondly called King Kring to the entertainment industry, is bound for Japan to compete in the 4th edition of Noble Queen of the Universe 2022, produced and presented by RESPECT: Noble Queen of the Universe Ltd. Inc. (NQULI), Coronation and Awarding Ceremony set at the Tokyo Prince Hotel on December 29.
Kring Kring, 52, and mother to two daughters with husband Tacloban City mayor Alfred Romualdez, was named Noble Queen Philippines-Visayas and will join Noble Queen PhilippinesLuzon Shirata Sheralene, Noble Queen Philippines Mindanao Leira Buan, and Noble Queen USA Marjorie Renner in the Tokyo pageant. A sendoff/Christmas party was held with members of the press led by NQULI Founder Eren Noche and NQULI International and National
Taytay, conducted a Medical and Dental mission recently to about 500 patientbeneficiaries and walk-ins in Taytay. GFT Foundation, a charitable organization that promotes diversity, is headed by CEO Enrico Sy, a recent awardee for Business Executive Leadership at the 2022 Annual Golden Globe Awards for Business. With its textile-based company in Taytay, which provides exceptional service to its valued clients with proven textiles, uniquely chosen with customers in mind, it also helps the province’s economy by producing high-quality garments made from their fabrics and accessories.
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Markki Stroem supports Hox World’s ‘World Without Boundaries’ Actor and model Markki Stroem graced Hox World’s D-Cal product launching event ‘World Without Boundaries,’ as host with a special guest performance by P-pop girl group G22, held at SM Aura Premier, in BGC recently. The launching event was jointly organized by New York-based Hox World and Singapore’s leading fintech company, FinX.
D-Cal is clinically proven to promote general well-being by reducing stress levels, as well as maintaining optimal mental and physical performance. Hox World’s products provide health benefits in oxidative stress reduction, illness prevention, chronic inflammation relief, and delaying degenerative diseases.
NOBEL laureate
The Japanese-born British novelist and movie buff, 68, began to imagine a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s heartbreaking masterpiece, still set in its original 1950s era, but transplanted to London.
“I’m one of these terrible people who come up to filmmakers and say ‘Look, here’s a great idea for a film, please go and make it, and let me know when you’ve done it,’” joked Ishiguro.
But when he pitched the idea of a remake “that married the material of the old Kurosawa movie to a certain study of Englishness and particular kind of English gentleman,” Hollywood producer Stephen Woolley quickly persuaded the author to pen the screenplay himself.
The result is a critically adored drama that has already earned Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards nominations for its star Bill Nighy, and is a frontrunner for the best-adapted screenplay Oscar.
The film plays on the “many parallels between Japanese and English culture,” particularly in the 1950s when both countries
were rebuilding from the ruins of World War II, Ishiguro, who won the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature, told AFP
Echoing Kurosawa’s original, Living follows the sudden realization of Nighy’s Mr. Williams character that he has achieved nothing in his decades of robotic, bureaucratic stasis.
Facing his own mortality, and unable to open up to his family, the London civil servant finally decides to help a group of housewives who have begged him for years to help construct a modest playground for their children. AFP
AT the LEGO Christmas exhibit ongoing at SM City North EDSA Annex Atrium, kids and kids at heart can rebuild the world one block at a time. In this partnership with Toy Kingdom and LEGO, SM City North EDSA invites mallgoers to step into a LEGO Christmas wonderland and have fun while they shop in the free play area filled with DUPLO and LEGO blocks, They can also take their fam-
feet Christmas tree and huge LEGO 3D Nutcracker statue. During the launch, special guests Joy Sotto and family and Nadine Samonte and kids had
MORE than 13.6 million followers on TikTok. Almost 600,000 on Instagram. Rosemarie Tan , more popularly known as Rosmar, is hard to miss on social media.
Before getting known for sharing snippets of married life and holding live videos engaging fans and explaining product benefits, Rosmar and her husband went viral in 2021 when the former’s parents gifted them with P1,000,000-cash during their wedding dance. Peso bills were seen formed into capes and pinned on the bride and groom in a video that now has 33.3 million views.
There is no doubt Rosmar has become a phenomenon. Her skincare line which has just been on the market for 10 months has turned her into a multimillionaire (we’re talking nine digits in less than a year!).
“Before I had my own, CEOs of other skincare brands tapped me to be an endorser. And I was able to boost their sales. So, I thought, why don’t I develop my own brand? That way, I will be promoting something I own, I can be the CEO and make my profit,” Rosmar said in vernacular during her intimate media conference.
Rosmar’s Philippine-made products are now selling like hotcakes. She offers a wide range of around 50 products —from lip and cheek stains, bleaching scrubs, lotions, serums, creams, and soaps to slimming coffee and health supplements. What makes her products stand out, aside from exciting flavors like condensada (condensed milk) and bubblegum, is her affordable price point.
“I really made them [Rosmar products] super affordable but of high quality. They are low-priced and even kids can afford them. Given my background, I learned and find it okay to have little markup as long as the goods are fast-selling,” Rosmar confidently talked about her business strategy. What she is even more confident about are the results.
“They are super effective,” she said with passion, “I don’t even need to tap endorsers or pay for billboard ads because satisfied consumers readily provide their positive reviews. I prefer real users for real feedback. My customers are the ones who can attest to my products’ effectiveness.”
so much fun at the Free Play and Activity Area, viewing of Exclusive Lego Exhibit and taking photos with Giant Lego Displays. SM Little Big Star Kids also joined in the fun and had the rare chance
of meeting their favorite LEGO Friends Mascots.
There are LEGO gifts with up to 29 percent off published rates and up to 35 percent off on Best LEGO gifts and check out bundle promotions until December 31
at The Annex of SM North EDSA.
Have a fun-filled LEGO day with LEGO Friends and LEGO Santa on December 21 with LEGO-building activities and win exciting prizes!
Want to meet your favorite LEGO friends? Watch out for our LEGO mascots meet and greet on December 24 and 25 with Stephanie and January 7 and 8 with Lego Ninjago Kai. Everyone will surely have a jolly good time with a LEGO Christmas at SM City North EDSA.
Lego Christmas: Rebuild The World is one of the many exciting seasonal events at SM City North Edsa Annex Atrium.
tent creators, met each other on TikTok. They got married twice as Nathan surprised Rosmar with a beach wedding on their fi rst anniversary. Asked what she thinks is her secret sauce to success, she explained, “When people downplay my success and tell me it’s because I have millions of followers, I tell them that I also started from zero. I looked like a fool many times. But I powered through the bashing to the point that I promoted my products with 40 videos a day. You can check my account. I did not miss a single day of promoting on TikTok” Rosmar wanted her followers to understand that she and her husband Nathan started from scratch. “Nathan and I used to sleep at the back of our pet shop. We used to wake up to the smell of dog poop and sometimes, there were rats in our sleeping area,” she recalled. They have come a long way since.
Rosmar takes pride in putting in the hard work relentlessly. She constantly sets the bar high and claims, “Consistency is the key.”
Aside from claims that Rosmar products are highly effective, shortform video hosting platform TikTok also played a role in marketing the line. Rosmar turned to the app at the height of the pandemic and jumped on dancing trends.
As a self-confessed non-dancing ex-
pert, she was on the receiving end of harsh words and insults. “What I did, I just continued to dance and people started to love me for who I am. Some say they find me cheerful and funny,” Rosmar shared.
Rosmar’s grit, drive, and positive outlook are inspiring. These days, even
time. First was the business and then her acting career. From being a background talent in a short fi lm in Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho , and hit teleserye Halik , the beauty tycoon is now set to star in a yet-to-be-announced international fi lm with her husband Nathan The couple, both entrepreneurial con-
DYLAN Patisserie knows exactly how to stimulate your appetite with its array of dazzling products. The European-style bakery offers a range of luscious artisanal cakes, French pastries, homemade chocolates, cookies, macaroons, and a host of other goodies. Its range of gourmet Christmas hampers will also fulfill all of your Christmas shopping needs this gifting season.
Dylan Patisserie has just launched its newest branch on President’s Avenue, Parañaque. A welcome delight for those residing in the south.
“We’re so excited to be expanding in the south as it is a wellknown destination for discerning dessert lovers and foodies. We look forward to serving the community and helping you celebrate life’s special moments with those that matter most to you,” says Dylan Silva. “We invite everyone to discover and enjoy Dylan Patisserie with our array of delicious offerings that we hope will strengthen the spirit of gifting this holiday season”
Dylan Patisserie has mastered the art of blending flavors together to achieve a harmonious balance using the finest ingredients. Whether you’re a chocolate lover or more driven by fruit flavors, Dylan Patisserie has something tempting on offer for you.
Cakes are Dylan Patisserie’s main draw and it’s best that diners found out why for themselves. To give a preview, some of their beloved cakes include their Four-in-one Signature Cheesecake featuring strawberry, blueberry, Nutella, and Biscoff flavors, Lychee Pandan Cake, De Hazelnut Praline, Tropical Vanilla, and Triple Chocolate Blossom, among many others.
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all the more personal.
A European-style bakery wouldn’t be complete without goodies that bring to mind charming Parisian cafes. Dylan Patisserie offers its very own chocolate bars, a 12-flavor macaron collection, and six distinct eclair recipes.
And just for the holidays, its eclairs take on different looks to showcase some of the season’s most recognizable emblems — reindeer antlers for chocolate eclairs, golden adornments for raspberry, and green and red drizzles for a strawberry to say the least! Cookies and roasted nuts
Tinned items make the cutest additions to any countertop filled with Christmas-themed food. Dylan Patisserie has cookies and roasted nuts to entice the serial snacker to try all varieties. To help diners figure out what to sample first, its best-selling items in this category are the Vanilla Snow White Cookies and Parmesan Cheese Cookies.
The art of gift-giving
Exciting holiday offerings also await dessert fans and their loved ones. Now available are Dylan Patisserie’s selection of gourmet Christmas hampers that make delightful gifts or centerpieces. Featuring a desirable curation of the patisserie’s signature snacks, original concoctions, and treats made for sharing, each hamper deserves a place in your Christmas spread.
Dylan Patisserie has seven gift sets and hampers to choose from, with affordable prices ranging from P1,150 to P7,890.
Best of all, Dylan Patisserie’s complete offerings can be enjoyed in their beautifully designed store locations as well as through popular food delivery and pickup services.