Manila Standard - 2023 February 3 - Friday

China: Avoid troubled waters

CHINA has hit the United States for its "zero-sum game mentality" and warned the Philippines against allowing itself to be "dragged into trouble waters."

The Chinese embassy in Manila issued the statement Thursday hours after visiting US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III said reaffirming commitment to the 1951 PH-US Mutual Defense Treaty was important as, “China continues to advance their illegitimate claims in the

West Philippines Sea.”

“The United States, out of its self interests and zero-sum game mentality, continues to step up military posture in this region. Its actions escalate regional tension and undermine regional peace and stability,” the embassy said.

“It is hoped that the Philippine side stays vigilant and resists from being taken advantage of and dragged into trouble waters,” it added.

US expands access to PH bases

Adds 4 unnamed military sites as highlight of Defense Sec. Austin's visit

By Rey Requejo, Vito Barcelo and Vince Lopez

THE Philippines on Thursday said it has agreed to let the United States expand its military presence here, giving American troops access to four new sites in the country against the backdrop of saggressive Chinese actions in the West Philippine Sea.

In a joint statement issued during the visit of US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III, both sides announced plans to accelerate the full implementation of the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), including designating four new locations in strategic areas of the country and the substantial completion of projects in the existing five locations.

EDCA enables US forces to have access to designated Philippine military camps, where they can be indefinitely stationed on a rotational basis. In October, the US sought access for a larger number of its troops and weapons.

“The EDCA is a key pillar of the US-Philippines alliance, which supports combined training, exercises, and interoperability between our forces,” said the statement released by the US and

DA told to eliminate middlemen in food chain

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Agriculture (DA) to directly connect food producers to consumers and institutional buyers, and remove the middle men in the system.

In compliance with the President’s directive, the DA enhanced its initia-

tive to help farmers cooperatives and associations (FCAs) across the country.

Under the initiative, spearheaded by the department’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS), about P2.589 million worth of onions have been sold by the FCAs to institutional buyers from Septem-

ber 2022 to Jan. 24, 2023, composed of 3,478 kilos of red onions worth P755,455 and 5,106.38 kilos of white onions worth P1.833 million. The DA-awarded Kadiwa trucks and vans also helped the FCAs with their hauling and delivery to markets and big buyers.

DSWD eyes food stamp revival to address hunger

SOCIAL Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said he is looking at reviving the food stamps program to address the hunger problem among poor Filipinos.

“It doesn’t seem [like] we’re denting [hunger],” Gatchalian said in a television interview in response to a recent survey showing that an estimated three million Filipino families or 11.8% experienced involuntary hunger at least once in the past three months.

The SWS survey showed the number

of families facing hunger from October to December 2022 was highest in Mindanao at 12.7 percent, followed by the Visayas at 12 percent, Metro Manila at 11.7 percent, and Balance Luzon — or Luzon outside Metro Manila — at 11.3 percent. “Poverty is intergenerational – you cannot solve that overnight. But apoor family's immediate need is to have something to eat. I want to bring back the food coupons or food stamps,” he added.

Grab commits to invest in local transport with 500k job potential

By Vince Lopez

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has secured an investment commitment from ride-hailing service Grab, which could create 500,000 new jobs.

The President met with officials of Grab Holdings Inc. on Feb. 2, Thursday,

BASIC COMMODITIES AT AFFORDABLE PRICES. Residents of San Andres Street in Malate, Manila and employees of Bureau of Plant Industry located in the area avail themselves of eggs and other basic agricultural products from Nueva Vizcaya offered at affordable prices by the local Kadiwa store every Thursday and Friday. Danny Pata

Gov’t

By

construction of cancer center

in Manila on Thursday, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Garafil said in a statement.

billion cancer center at the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital in Manila—the first publicprivate partnership (PPP) project under the Marcos administration.

This developed as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. presided over the 3rd NEDA Board Meeting at Malacañan Palace

Medalla assures MIF won’t dent BSP finances

"The NEDA Board gave its nod for the construction of a P6-billion, 300-bed capacity hospital, the administration’s first PPP project," Garafil said. The project, Garafil said, will provide a full range of cancer treatments, including radio oncology (radiotherapy), imaging, medical oncology and support for the UPPGH’s teaching and research activities.

By Julito G. Rada and

Macon

Ramos-Araneta

BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)

Governor Felipe Medalla assured senators Thursday that the regulator’s financial strength would not be affected even if it extends 100 percent of its dividends to

in Malacañang Palace to discuss Grab’s recommendations on possible ways to modernize transportation in the Philippines.

During the meeting, Anthony Tan, Grab CEO and co-founder, promised to create jobs in the country, assuring the President that his company will deliver.

FEAST OF CANDELARIA. Devotees attended a mass at the Jaro Cathedral, the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Candles (Santuario Nacional de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria) in Iloilo City. Arnold Almacen

okays

Vince Lopez

THE National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board has approved the construction of a P6-

STEADFAST ALLIANCE. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. welcomes visiting United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III during a courtesy call in Malacañan Palace on Thursday, February 2, 2023. Rey Baniquet

‘Vulnerable to get bivalent vax first’

By Willie Casas, Maricel Cruz and Macon Ramos-Araneta

THE Department of Health said Thursday the government will administer the first batch of bivalent COVID-19 vaccines to vulnerable groups.

Those who will be prioritized include healthcare workers, senior citizens and individuals with comorbidities, the DOH said. This is in line with the conditions set by COVAX facility, the United Nationsbacked international vaccine-sharing scheme, it added.

"Once additional doses are secured and

US...

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Philippine Defense departments. “Expansion of the EDCA will make our alliance stronger and more resilient, and will accelerate modernization of our combined military capabilities.”

“The addition of these new EDCA locations will allow more rapid support for humanitarian and climate-related disasters in the Philippines, and respond to other shared challenges,” it said.

The statement did not identify the four new locations or refer to China specifically.

The announcement came shortly after the arrival of Austin at the Defense department building in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, for a meeting with Defense

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr.

“The United States has allocated over $82 million towardinfrastructure investments at the existing five sites under the EDCA, and is proud that these investments are supporting economic growth and job creation in local Philippine communities," the US embassy said in a statement.

Manila and Washington DC have committed to moving quickly in agreeing to the necessary plans and investments for the new and existing EDCA locations.

"The Philippine-US alliance has stood the test of time and remains ironclad. We look forward to the opportunities these new sites will create to expand our cooperation together," the Department of National Defense (DND) said.

Finalized after eight rounds of talks in

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Gatchalian said the DSWD may tap the private sector for the program.

“I may not be able to pull people out of poverty immediately, but I can solve their immediate need of trying to put food on the table,” he added.

He also vowed to prioritize fixing the agency’s list of beneficiaries under the 4Ps program.

“We just have to make sure that the list is good. So that is our first priority, we have to make sure that the list is correct,” he said in a separate interview.

On Tuesday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged the DSWD to continue calibrating the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) as well as developing the other government's social protection initiatives.

"Continue calibrating the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and

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“Well, that is what we need. At the very start of all of this, we had always stressed that what we have to do is create jobs right now.

Because so many businesses closed, so many people really have no place to go, even the OFW's. So… we need to find jobs,” President Marcos said in response to Tan.

“So we’ve been able to do that but it's still continuing… because ourunemployment rate is not bad, but

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the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF).

At a hearing before the Senate committee on banks, financial institutions and currencies, Medalla said the BSP supports the objectives of Senate Bill No. 1670 or the "Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) Act" filed by Senator Mark Villar.

The measure, whose counterpart in the House has already been approved, proposes to establish an MIF, an independent sovereign wealth fund that adheres to the principles of good governance, transparency and accountability, and promotes economic development and other objectives to develop the economy.

He said he supported in particular provisions that explicitly mention the BSP and how its dividends could be used to fund the MIF.

Medalla acknowledged that this would postpone the buildup of the BSP’s capitalization, but said their balance sheet was strong and could easily absorb this

available, prioritization may be expanded to other priority groups," the DOH said in a statement.

The DOH said it was finalizing the guidelines on the use of the bivalent vaccines -- modified jabs that target the Omicron variant and the original form of the virus.

"Rest assured that the guidelines shall

August 2013, the EDCA signed in 2014 allows US troops access to designated Philippine military facilities, the right to build facilities, and position equipment, aircraft, and vessels, but rules out permanent basing.

Under the EDCA, the Philippine government is working with the US to build the future facilities in Cesar Basa Air Base in Floridablanca, Pampanga; Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation in Nueva Ecija; Lumbia Airfield in Cagayan de Oro City; Antonio Bautista Air Base in Puerto Princesa, Palawan; and Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu.

Austin said Thursday the two countries also reaffirmed their commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).

“Today, Secretary Carlito Galvez and I also reaffirmed our Mutual Defense Treaty commitments. We note that the MDT applies to armed attacks on either of our armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft anywhere in the South China Sea or the West Philippines Sea,” Austin said at a press conference in Camp Aguinaldo.

“We discussed actions to address these destabilizing activities in the water surrounding the Philippines including the West Philippine Sea and we remain committed to strengthening our mutual capacities to resist armed attacks,” he added.

Austin said these actions are important as “China continues to advance their illegitimate claims in the West Philippines Sea.”

In 2013, the Philippines challenged China’s vast claims in the South China Sea before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands. Ma-

strengthening the government’s social protection initiatives, especially since one of the measures we undertake to address poverty is through the grants that we provide for the health needs of every household and education of our children," Marcos said in his speech during the DSWD's anniversary program.

Then DSWD officer-in-charge Edu Punay told Manila Standard that at least 500,000 beneficiaries will “graduate” within the first semester to pave the way for the inclusion of new and more needy beneficiaries.

Punay said with at least 200,000 beneficiaries removed from the 4Ps list last year, a total of 700,000 slots will be opened this year.

The President also called on the DSWD to continue the enforcement of the Unconditional Cash Transfer program in order to provide cash grants to poor households and individuals as well as to enhance the Social Pension Program for Indigent Senior Citizens.

we’d like to keep bringing it down,” Marcos said.

The President said the government has created close to 2 million jobs since he came into office, resulting in a drop in the country’s unemployment rate.

“That’s why I’m in a hurry. If we can roll this out as quickly as possible. And I know the way Grab moves, they move very, very quickly. Because you’ve done it so many times before. In the scale, you don’t have to scale it. You’ve scaled it already,” President Marcos said.

Grab’s motorcycle taxis do 4 million

postponement.

Under the proposal, BSP will pay 100 percent of its dividends to the MIF while state-run financial institutions Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines will contribute P50 billion and P25 billion, respectively.

Medalla also said he supports the provisions that say BSP might extend regulatory relief to DBP and LandBank of the Philippines.

“Some critics may say that it gives undue advantage to Landbank and DBP relative to private banks, but one must be aware too that Landbank and DBP are also quite restricted by their mandates [as government financial institutions] and don’t really directly compete very much with the private banks. So we do not see that as [posing] a major competition problem,” Medalla said.

Medalla said this measure requires a whole-of-government approach, great focus, and proper implementation to achieve its objectives.

The BSP is authorized—under the amended 2019 BSP Law—to recapitalize to P200 billion, which is significantly higher than the previous P50 billion.

be issued in time for the implementation of the roll-out of the vaccines in the country," the DOH said.

The Philippines has secured an initial donation of around 1 million doses of Pfizer's bivalent vaccines from the COVAX facility. The shots are expected to arrive in the country before the end of March.

Since the Philippines started its inoculation program in March 2021, more than 73.8 million or 94.54 percent of eligible population in the country have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Of the figure, over 21.3 million have received their first boosters while 3.8 million have gotten their second boosters.

nila won the case in a landmark award in 2016 after the tribunal invalidated Beijing’s assertions, but China has refused to recognize the ruling.

Following Austin’s courtesy call at the Palace, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the future of the Philippines will always involve the United States, saying he recognized its help in protecting the country’s interests in the South China Sea.

The South China Sea is the subject of conflicting territorial claims among six countries, namely China, Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, and Taiwan.

In the meeting, the President acknowledged that the US has been the Philippines' longest partner and ally.

Mr. Marcos described the rising geopolitical tensions in the Asia Pacific region as “terribly complicated.”

“It is something that we can only navigate properly with the help of our partners and our allies in the international sphere,” he said.

"I would be stating the obvious to say that our longest partner and ally has been the United States and as we traverse these rather troubled waters, geopolitical waters, economic waters that we are facing, I again put great importance on that partnership, specifically with the United States and all partnerships and alliances that we are able to make with our friends around the world," Mr. Marcos said.

"I have always said that it seems to me that the future of the Philippines and for that matter the Asia Pacific, will always have to involve the United States simply because our partnership was so strong," the President said.

He said the partnership is advanta-

DA...

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"Logistics have a big help really. Kadiwa also helped with the logistics," Elvin Jerome Laceda of RiceUp and Sakahon farmers’ enterprises said. The DA had awarded a four-wheel truck worth P1.3 million to RiceUp Farmers, Inc. in Pampanga in 2022.

RiceUp also received P1 million in financial grant through the DA’s “Enhanced Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita” program, which enabled it to facilitate the trading of farm produce directly from the farmers to the market.

Farmers are also provided with assistance and training in farm clustering and consolidation, where market-driven production and focuson supplying institutional buyers are applied to help farmers earn better with higher volume.

Through 'Sakahon', which is an agri-

to 5 million rides a day, Tan told the President, adding it’s just a matter of unshackling things so the company could soar further.

The ride-hailing service company needs to find a way to create jobs, not only in Manila but also in Davao, Cebu, and Iloilo, Tan said.

Congress has to enact a law to create the rule for motorcycle taxis or for the twowheel side after the country adopted a law for four-wheel transport, transport officials said.

Various bills were proposed to regulate and legalize the operation of motorcycle

But based on Republic Act 11211 or the New Central Bank Act, its increased capitalization will only be funded solely from its declared dividends.

House Bill No. 6608, or the Maharlika Investment Fund Act, was approved on third and final reading by the House of Representatives on Dec. 15, 2022. Senate Bill No. 1670 was filed on Jan. 12, 2023, which serves as the counterpart bill for the measure approved by the House.

Earlier, the Department of Finance welcomed the release of the timely report from the Milken Institute’s Financial Innovations Labs on the “Best Practices of Sovereign Wealth Funds: The Case for the Philippines” as Senate deliberations on the proposed MIF started. The report highlighted the three major principles behind successful sovereign wealth funds. These are clear funding sources, objectives, and strategies; robust governance structure and effective operational and management systems; and appropriate investment and performance metrics, consistent with the objectives and the mandates of the MIF. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

As this developed, lawmakers have welcomed the decision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. not to extend anymore the COVID state of calamity Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda said the President's decision was "well-founded on the best global and local health information available."

"The President’s decision is consistent with the declaration of the World Health Organization that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a global health emergency," said Salceda, chair of the House committee on ways and means.

"We have long shifted to the endemic stage. PBBM’s decision makes it official," Salceda added.

geous for both countries.

Austin acknowledged the strong relations between Manila and Washington, noting that the US will continue to work with the Philippines to "modernize the capability and increase interoperability" of its armed forces.

"We do have a strong relationship and my goal, and certainly PresidentBiden’s goal, is to strengthen that relationship in every way possible,” Austin said.

Also on Thursday, Austin vowed that the US would provide humanitarian assistance to the victims of the earthquake in Davao de Oro town on Wednesday evening.

Austin made the commitment after a magnitude six tectonic earthquake struck New Bataan in Davao de Oro at 6:44 p.m. on Wednesday.

“We are very sorry to learn yesterday that there was an earthquake down in Mindanao,” Austin told Mr. Marcos.

“I’m relieved to hear from my team that the damage was not significant, at least, that’s what we understand thus far, and of course, we have not heard of significant injuries being reported as well, but we know how these things develop,” he added.

According to the senior US official, they already have personnel in the affected area.

“We stand ready to help in any way that we can. I think our AID (Agency for International Development) personnel are in the area, andthey stand ready to help to provide humanitarian assistance when and where possible,” Austin said.

“So please don’t hesitate to reach out if there’s a need,” he added.

tech solutions company, Laceda and his team aim to create a system in which farmers already know what the market needs even before they plant and harvest.

In addition to serving big buyers, RiceUp and Sakahon farmer partners regularly bring their produce to the DA Kadiwa outlet in Quezon City.

Laceda and Bayambang farmers brought 1.5 tons of onions priced at P240/kilogram for big sizes, and P140/ kilogram for small sizes at the DA Kadiwa and the Senate in the last week of January 2023.

Last year, President Marcos announced he is determined to transform the Kadiwa project into a national program, in collaboration with the local government units (LGUs), to provide the public access to more affordable and high-quality merchandise and, at the same time, provide a market to local farmers, fishermen and small business enterprises. Vince Lopez

taxis as public utility vehicles to ensure the safety and protection of the stakeholders. Grab, which started operations in the Philippines in July 2013, is proposing the legalization of motorcycle taxis, noting that the pilot testing has been operational for four years.

The law prohibits the use of motorcycles to transport passengers or freight but requests to review the policy and allow motorcycles as a form of public transportation prompted theTransportation department to pilot test the operation of motorcycle taxis within Metro Manila and Metro Cebu in 2019.

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Garafil said the proposed cancer center, with a lot area of 3,000 square meters, will be located within the UP-PGH campus in Manila.

She added that the entire building will have a capacity of 300 beds (150 charity beds for the UP-PGH Area and 150 private beds for the Private Area), 15 to 20 floors, 350 parking spaces, 1,000-square-meter commercial space, and an area for three linear accelerators (LINAC) bunkers.

"The UP-PGH’s private partner will design, engineer, construct, and commission the entire new hospital building, procure,

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The embassy said Austin “smeared” China on the WPS issue "to advance the anti-China political agenda of the US.”

“Such moves contradict the common aspiration of regional countries to seek

Phivolcs warns of aftershocks from magnitude 6 earthquake

AN OFFICIAL of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has reminded those residing near the epicenter of the magnitude 6 earthquake that jolted Davao de Oro Wednesday to be cautious of structures and tension cracks.

In the Laging Handa briefing Thursday, Phivolcs director Teresito Bacolcol said aftershocks from the earthquake that struck 9 kilometers southeast of the municipality of Compostela may last for days or even weeks.

Bacolcol said Phivolcs is expecting small to moderate aftershocks to occur near the epicenter.

"The public is advised to be cautious of the structures that (were) visibly weakened as a result of the earthquake last night. If your house has cracks, refrain from entering it for the meantime. Consult your municipal or city engineering office for advice," he said.

Bacolcol said people around the mountainous areas near the earthquake's epicenter should check the slopes for tension cracks.

These cracks may cause landslides so people should be prepared, he said.

As of 2 p.m. Thursday, Phivolcs logged 383 aftershocks from the magnitude 6 earthquake. At least 59 of these were plotted or located, and one was felt.

Aftershocks ranged in magnitude from 1.3 to 3.6.

Bacolcol said there is no tsunami threat due to the earthquake.

"There is fake news spreading, causing fears among the public, saying the earthquake would generate a tsunami. Don't believe that," he said.

Meanwhile, no damage was reported in airports after the earthquake, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said.

BIR chief files P3.57b tax raps vs. 53 taxpayers

BUREAU of Internal Revenue Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. on Thursday led the filing of criminal complaints against 53 individual and corporate taxpayers for tax evasion totaling P3.57 billion before the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Without publicly disclosing their identities, the erring taxpayers were separately charged with willful failure to pay taxes; willful attempt to evade or defeat the payment of taxes due; willful failure to pay/remit its income tax liabilities; and include those who filed their tax returns without corresponding payment.

The BIR said the charges were filed under the agency's Run After Tax Evader Program ahead of the deadline for the filing of tax returns.

“As tax filing season is approaching, let this serve as a warning to taxpayers who intend to fraudulently evade payment of taxes that they better file and pay the correct taxes,” Lumagui said.

“We would like to remind tax evaders that the BIR is serious in pursuing its enforcement activities on a national scale. We are also sharing this to the public because we want to assure you that the BIR is committed to ensure that everyone is paying their fair share of taxes,” he added.

Lumagui was accompanied by Deputy Commissioner for Legal Group Marissa O. Cabreros, Assistant Commissioner James H. Roldan of the Enforcement Advocacy Service, as well as officials from the Prosecution Division, Large Taxpayer (LT) Collection Enforcement Division, and revenue officials from the participating Revenue Regions.

maintain, and provide for the periodic replacement of medical and non-medical equipment," she said.

"It will also maintain all non-clinical services for the entire hospital building, operate relevant commercial activities, provide clinical services to private-paying patients in the private area and assume all associated costs of clinical manpower, drugs and consumables," Garafil added.

Garafil said the UP-PGH will provide the site at no cost; transfer the existing equipment to the Cancer Institute; offer clinical services to non-paying charity patients in the UP-PGH area; assume all associated costs of clinical manpower, drugs, and consumables; and undertake clinical teaching and research.

peace, cooperation and development, and run counter to the common aspiration of the Filipino people to pursue sound economic recovery and a better life in cooperation with China,” the embassy said.

It added that defense cooperation must “not target against any third party, even less to harm the interests of a third party.

Baguio expects 500k visitors for Panagbenga fest

BAGUIO City has geared up for the influx of local and foreign during this month’s observance of the famous Panagbenga Festival which is expected to draw 400,000 to 500,000 visitors to the highland “Summer Capital of the Philippines.”

“We’re expecting that this February, we will have 400,000 to 500,000 tourists because many people will go to Baguio City now,” Mayor Benjamin Magalong said in a GMA interview.

To secure the festivities, Magalong said they increased the deployment of police, reserve commands, and public safety office personnel in strategic areas.

The mayor also said they have identified “buffer zones” meant to prevent overcrowding.

The Panagbenga Festival kicked off on Wednesday, with the biggest activities such as the grand parade set on February 25 and 26.

The month-long festival will close on March 5.

The street dance and float parade will be back in the celebration, Magalong said.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some Panagbenga activities have been canceled since 2020.

The mayor clarified however, that all the highlights of the pre-pandemic Panagbenga would be restored in this year’s celebration. “It would be a reset button. There will be no holds barred.”

MIAA retools rescue unit for emergencies

By Joel E. Zurbano

THE Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has placed its rescue team under re-training to further improve readiness during emergency situations, notably when a plane catches fire.

MIAA general manager Cesar Chiong said aside from the actual live-fire exercises, elements of the Rescue and Firefighting Division were also tested on different aircraft accident scenarios to check their competency and capability to react on emergency situations at the country’s premier airport.

“Training such as this is regularly conducted as prescribed under the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines - Manual of Standards for Aerodromes, and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards,” said Chiong.

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) management said its rescue and firefighting capability was rated as Category 10 compliant or equipped to handle large passenger aircraft such as the Boeing 777 or the Airbus A380.

“Complemented with competent fire and rescue personnel, ten most modern firefighting vehicles, two sets of pneumatic aircraft lifting system, and other rescue equipment, the MIAA Rescue and Firefighting Division is well equipped to handle NAIA’s requirements and at par with its regional counterparts,” Chiong said.

NAIA complied with and acquired a complete sets of tools and machines to remove disabled aircraft.

But during a Senate hearing in 2018, Transportation department officials admitted that the MIAA “does not have a highly-telescopic crane” which was used in the case of a disabled Xiamen Air plane that overshot the main runway and paralyzed airport and airlines operations.

DOJ set to deport 2 Japanese fugitives

By Rey E. Requejo

JUSTICE Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Thursday said two of the four Japanese nationals wanted by the law in Japan and currently under the custody of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) will be deported soon to stand trial in their own country.

Meanwhile, the Justice chief warned that no Immigration official would be spared from liability in allowing detained foreigners’ access to cellular phones.

Remulla said Japan has requested the Philippine government to send back the four individuals reportedly involved in crimes of theft, fraud and robbery in their country.

One of the four is believed to be “Luffy,” held at the BI detention facility in Bicutan, Taguig City, but still managed to orchestrate the operations of his crime ring in Japan.

“Maybe two of them will be deported ahead of the others,” Remulla said in an interview with reporters.

Remulla said one of the group has been cleared for deportation following dismissal of the pending cases against him, while another would follow suit by Friday.

The remaining two, one of which is Yuki Watanabe, alias “Luffy,” will have to stay in the BI detention center a bit longer as the Pasay City court has yet to resolve a case against him for alleged violation of Republic Act 9262 or the Violence Against Women and Children

(VAWC) Act.

During Thursday’s hearing, the prosecution presented evidence against Watanabe who attended the court hearing via video conferencing.

His lawyer, Eljun Rico, said they will not oppose if the prosecutors would file a motion to dismiss the case.

“If that would favor my client, why would I oppose it,” Rico told reporters after the hearing at the Pasay City Regional Trial Court.

The hearing on Watanabe’s case and the other Japanese suspect is set again on February 7 with the prosecution expected to present two witnesses.

“We will not spare anybody who was complicit in allowing fugitives from justice to have access to means of communication especially if their business is fraudulent. That is not acceptable to me or to any of us,” Re -

Ousted Albay gov seeks SC status quo ante order

UNSEATED Albay Gov. Noel Rosal has reiterated his appeal to the Supreme Court (SC) to issue a status quo ante order (SQAO) to allow him to reassume or be reinstated to his erstwhile post as the elected governor of Albay pending resolution of his petition assailing the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) disqualification order against him.

In a 24-page “extremely urgent motion,” Rosal, through his lawyers, Romulo Macalintal and Antonio Carlos Bautista, asked the High Tribunal to “respect the manifest will of the electorate of Albay” that gave him an overwhelming 469,481 votes against his closest rival’s 238,746, indicating a margin of 230,735 votes despite a pend-

NHA gives away homes to 216 poor families in Orion, Bataan

By Rio N. Araja

THE National Housing Authority (NHA) on Thursday awarded homes to 216 families whose houses were destroyed by fire and those living along the waterways of Orion, Bataan.

“I hope this will be the way for you to improve the lives of your families for a better future,” NHA general manager Joeben Tai said during the awarding rites.

The housing project, located in 1-Bataan Village, Phase 1 project, Barangay Daan Pare, Orion, Bataan, comprises six three-story low-rise buildings composed of 36 units per building, measuring 27 square meters

ing disqualification case against him during the election.

Rosal asked the SC to “apply the very recent decision of the court in the disqualification case of the mayor of Agoo, La Union where the court resolved all doubts in favor of the manifest will of the people electing the latter as their mayor despite a pending disqualification case.”

mulla told reporters.

He said he was informed by the BI that numerous mobile phones were confiscated from its detention facility, including one Japanese national who was found in possession of six iPhones.

The foreigner is one of four fugitive Japanese nationals in the custody of the BI and whose deportation have been sought by the Japanese government.

The four Japanese are suspected members of a robbery ring operating in Japan led by a certain “Luffy” who is believed among those under BI detention.

“I have an idea who these people are. I will work them out after the deportation is done. I want the deportation done first before we do our own accounting within the department, but we will make people account for everything after the deportation,” Remulla said referring to BI officials involved.

DOH: Oriental Mindoro now malaria-free

By Willie Casas

ORIENTAL Mindoro is now a malaria-free province, the Department of Health (DOH) announced on Thursday.

“We wish to congratulate all of you for this milestone, but our work does not end here, as the gains achieved by the province must be maintained to prevent re-establishment of transmission through several strategies,” DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a statement.

The DOH said Oriental Mindoro has completed the requirements stated in Department Circular No. 20210249, which provides for the guidelines for declaring certain areas as malaria-free.

The declaration on Oriental Mindoro was also recommended by the National Malaria Elimination and Control Technical Working Group, it added.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), malaria is a lifethreatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.

In 2021, there were an estimated 247 million cases of malaria worldwide, the WHO revealed. The report also showed there were around 619,000 malaria-related deaths during the same year.

per unit.

The event was part of the national government’s initiative to address the six million housing backlog of the country through the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Tai said the NHA was committed to provide 1.3 million housing units for the informal settlers and impoverished families within his six-year tenure to help address the increasing demand for housing.

Tai’s special assistant Rovin Andrew Feliciano represented him in the turnover and acceptance ceremony, along with NHA region III manager Minerva Calantuan.

DFA turns over ATN functions to fledgling DMW

THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has transferred to the newly created Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) the task of providing assistance to nationals (ATN), along with the legal assistance funds appropriated for the purpose.

The two agencies forged Joint Circular No. 1, signed by DFA Secretary Enrique Manalo and DMW Secretary Susan Ople, calling for the creation of a technical working group (TWG) to formulate the guidelines for the seamless transfer of the ATN system.

The handover of the ATN to the DMW was in consonance Republic Act 11641 enacted by then President Rodrigo Duterte in December 2021, creating and mandating the DMW to oversee all policies protecting the welfare of Filipi-

nos working abroad.

The TWG was to be co-chaired by the DMW Undersecretary for Foreign Employment and Welfare Services and the DFA Undersecretary of Migrant Workers Affairs, with three designated officials each from the DMW and the DFA as members.

Aside from formulating policies, the TWG is also tasked to ensure the smooth and efficient transition in managing services and assistance to OFWs in all Foreign Service Posts (FSPs) which is currently under the DFA.

The joint circular provides that during the transition period, the DFA shall continue to manage the provision of the ATN and other services to OFWs in embassies and consulates abroad until March 31,

2023, when the full turnover is expected to have been completed.

During the period, the DFA will retain and disburse ATN and legal assistance funds to assist OFWs, until such time that the concerned Migrant Workers Office (MWO) has been fully equipped with the operational and financial requirements to provide such services to the OFWs.”

Meanwhile, the DFA will also provide training and mentoring to DMWMWO personnel to enhance their competence in managing and handling ATN concerns relating to OFWs during the transition period.

All ATN cases will also be turned over by the DFA to the DMW, complete with data and inventory of such cases for easier facilitation.

SHABU HAUL. Some 17.6 kilos of suspected shabu, valued at more than P120 million and concealed inside the luggage of a South African national, was intercepted by authorities at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) Wednesday evening. Alan Tangcawan

CCP UNDERGOES RENOVATION. The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) building on a reclaimed land along Roxas Blvd. in Pasay City undergoes “retrofitting and refurbishment” works meant to transform the 50-year-old structure into a P900-million “state-of-the-art center for artistic excellence.” Danny Pata

HEALTH AND BEAUTY CARAVAN. Philippine National Red Cross secretary-general Dr. Gwendolyn Pang, joined by Tiffany Gatchalian and Judy Chua, turns over to Ricky Reyes, president of the Philippine Hairdressers Association, various medical kits during the rollout of the Nationwide Health and Beauty Caravan 2023 in a ceremony held at the SM Mall in Mandaluyong City. Norman Cruz

DOJ: 2 more complaints vs. Bantag

By Rey E. Requejo

THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has assigned prosecutors to conduct preliminary investigations on two more separate criminal complaints filed against suspended Bureau of Corrections Director General Bantag.

Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Richard Anthony Fadullon said the complaints for alleged torture and serious physical injuries filed by two persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City against Bantag were assigned to Assistant State Prosecutor Michael Humarang.

Solon: Gov’t needs more SIM reg centers

By Maricel V. Cruz

CAMARINES Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte on Thursday proposed an inter-agency panel tasked to accelerate the listing of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards to consider establishing more offsite registration sites in as many geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDA) as possible.

The lawmaker said this is a way to meet the April 26 sign-up deadline under the SIM enrolment law.

Villafuerte, one of the authors of the SIM registration law, made this proposal as Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Ivan John Uy claimed the registration process was “progressing very, very fast,” even as Uy revealed that at the current rate, about 60 million or 80 million SIM card owners will have registered by April.

Such projected registrants by April comprise just half of the number of SIM cards in the country, which Uy said could number 140 million to 150 million, Villafuerte said. But “some” of these numbers are believed by Uy to be already inactive, he added.

The second complaint for alleged torture, grave threats, oral defamation, and obstruction of justice filed by jail guards of the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm (IPPF) in Palawan was assigned to Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Roldan Parrocha and Prosecution Attorney Victor Dalanao, Fadullon added.

The DOJ official said the preliminary investigation on the two separate complaints against Bantag will start immediately.

Bantag has been charged with two counts of murder as “principal by inducement” for the deaths of radio commentator Percival “Percy Lapid” C. Mabasa and PDL Cristito Villamor Palana who was named by self-confessed gunman Joel S. Escorial as his “middleman” in the killing of the broadcaster on Oct. 3, 2022, in Las Pinas City.

The preliminary investigation of the two murder complaints was stalled when Bantag sought the inhibition of the panel of prosecutors. His motion was denied and the denial had been upheld.

The panel has reset the probe to Feb. 8 for the submission of the counter-affidavits of those named respondents. The complaints of the two PDLs, Ronald Usman and Jonathan Escopete, were filed before the DOJ last Jan. 13.

In their complaints, Usman and Escopete alleged that “on or about Feb. 1, 2022 at 11:30 a.m., we, together with other prison commanders at the Maximum Security Compound of the NBP, were summoned by Bantag to his Office at the Administration Building and thereat, Bantag who was then under the influence of liquor and for no apparent reasons, tortured us and inflicted serious physical injuries upon our persons.”

Bill on mental health likely to be approved

By Maricel V. Cruz

THE leadership of the House of Representatives has expressed confidence that the Senate will prioritize the passage of a bill that seeks to create a Mental Health and Well-being Office under the Department of Education (DepEd) in every school division throughout the country.

The lower house led by Speaker Martin G. Romualdez approved on Tuesday House Bill (HB) 6574 intending to support the emotional, psychological, and mental health needs of learners and teachers.

The bill mandates the hiring and deployment of mental health professionals to public elementary and secondary schools, vocational institutions, and offices in the central, regional, and school division governance levels of the DepEd within five years.

The bill was approved with an overwhelming 272 votes.

One of the bill’s authors, House Majority Leader and Zamboanga City Rep. Manuel Jose Dalipe, said the proposed law will help students in the classroom and learning preparedness, especially learners identified as children in conflict with the law, students at risk of dropping out, learner-victims of violence against women and children, and learner-victims of other related forms of child abuse and criminal acts.

BI chief warns public on online immigration scam

By Vito Barcelo

BUREAU of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco warned the public of scammers offering immigration services on social media.

Tansingco issued the warning after Movement for Restoration of Peace and Order (MRPO) Chairperson Ka Kuen Chua testified during a Senate Public

Order and Dangerous Drugs Committee hearing that there are offers on social media that charge P1 million to P5 million to lift immigration blacklists.

“We have observed that this scam proliferates not only on Facebook, but also in other messaging platforms such as WeChat,” Tansingco said, adding that “there are even some accounts that pretend to be immigration lawyers and legal officers. They cre-

ate profiles using photos of our employees, their badges, or even the logo of the bureau.”

A similar warning was issued by the BI in September last year when reports of fake employees offering illegal services surfaced on social media. “This is a recurring scam that pops up every now and then. We warn the public not to engage with these scammers. Remain keen to avoid being victimized,” he stated.

‘Social costs outweigh benefits in allowing POGOs to operate’

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

SENATOR Win Gatchalian stressed that the social costs of allowing Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) in the country outweigh the economic benefits, citing a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) conducted on the industry.

He said based on the CBA, the social and economic costs and ills attributed to POGOs such as crimes, tax evasion, corruption, foregone foreign direct investments, (FDIs) and tourism estimated at P143.30 billion outweigh economic benefits of P134.86 billion which implies a net cost to the country of P 8.44 billion in 2021.

“While the monetary values of social costs are difficult to compute, there is no financial amount that can be easily assigned to the life and dignity of direct

Villafuerte files bill aiming to impose fuel tax cuts

By Maricel V. Cruz

CAMARINES Sur Rep. Luis Ray-

mund Villafuerte has filed a bill aiming to reduce the impact of the increasing costs of living on ordinary Filipinos via an automatic fuel tax cut. Villafuerte pressed for the passage of House Bill (HB) 5176 which amends Section 148 of the National

Internal Revenue Code to provide for “the automatic suspension of the excise tax on regular gasoline, unleaded premium gasoline, and diesel fuel oil whenever the Dubai crude oil price based on MOPS averages $80 or more per barrel over the three months before the proposed suspension of the tax collection.”

“This tax suspension aims to bring

down the cost of fuel to provide instant relief to the Filipino people and to shield them from further adversities that may be caused by unforeseen economic downturns,” Villafuerte said. He appealed to the House committee on ways and means chaired by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda to consider HB 5176. The bill was referred to the committee last year.

SB aims to declare Mulanay as protected area

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

(PA).

In filing Senate Bill No. 1691 Villar,

chairperson of the Senate committee on environment and natural resources cited the richness of the MWFR’s biological resources, both flora and fauna.

Villar added that the MWFR should be a PA due to its rich and lush forest vegetation that serves as habitat of vari-

ous wildlife, including threatened flora and fauna species. The MWFR has a total area of 29.6 hectares. Its rich biodiversity of flora and fauna include those in the updated national lists of threatened Philippine plants and animals and their respective categories.

victims of human trafficking, prostitution, and kidnapping,” Gatchalian said.

In addition, based on a position paper submitted by the Department of Finance (DOF), social costs include investor perceptions, which can lead to negative consequences such as loss of current and potential investments, jobs, and revenues, Gatchalian said.

Citing the same position paper, Gatchalian said that the best estimate of the economic cost of social problems coming from challenges attributed to the POGO industry would be the amount of additional resources needed by law enforcement agencies to completely prevent and eliminate the social costs brought about by POGO-related crimes without forgoing or compromising their other functions.

To ensure the efficient implementation of the proposed legislation, the bill requires the creation of sufficient Guidance Counselors and Guidance Services Specialist positions according to minimum standards to be determined by the DepEd and the Department of Health (DOH), in coordination with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Department of Budget and Management.

Jail sentence for NPA rebel for illegal guns

By Rey E. Requejo

A TAGUIG City regional trial court (RTC) has found an alleged member of the New People’s Army guilty of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. In a decision promulgated on December 15, 2022, the Taguig City RTC Branch 266 sentenced Cesar Balmaceda to two years and four months to up to seven years and four months in jail. Balmaceda was also ordered to pay a fine of P30,000 following his conviction for violation of Section 1 of Presidential Decree 1866, as amended by Republic Act 8294.

In the statement, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said Balmaceda was arrested by state forces in 2000 in Barangay Lumutan in Atimonan, Quezon, after they received information that there was an armed person in the area.

The DOJ said after seeing a group of six people in the area, authorities questioned them, but they immediately fled. One of the men pulled out a gun and pointed it at the law enforcers as they pursued them, but he did not fire.

SEN. Cynthia A. Villar filed a bill seeking to declare the Mulanay Watershed Forest Reserve (MWFR) as a “Protected Area”

PROTEST ACTIONS. Members of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan hold protest actions at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City to oppose the visit of US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The visit coincides with plans to implement the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) in the Philippines. Manny Palmero

THE SPEAKER AND THE NEW DSWD CHIEF. Newly-appointed Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Sec. Rex Gatchalian pays a courtesy call on Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez at the Speaker’s Office in the House of Representatives Wednesday afternoon. Ver Noveno

MAYOR’S PORTRAIT. A portrait of Maria Sheilah Honrado Lacuna-Pangan by renowned visual artist and Philippine Navy Reservist CMO2 Kristine Lim PN (Res). The mayor’s portrait was unveiled during the launch of the 1st Clock Tower Museum in the Philippines. Norman Cruz

FOLLOWING calls for President Marcos Jr. to ban totally and completely the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs), BBM said there must be very good reason to ban them considering the billions the government is getting from them in the form of taxes, fees and the employment of some 23,000 Filipinos.

There had been continued calls for the outright banning of POGOs following the entry of criminal syndicates from mainland China committing kidnapping for ransom and victimizing, Santa Banana, their fellow Chinese employed by the POGOs.

In other words, the social costs of the existence of POGOs far outweigh all the money they are giving to the government because of taxes and other fees.

The President must consider the peace and order of the country has a lasting impression among investors and tourism.

POGOs were welcomed by the former administration, ironically where the bettors were from mainland China where gambling is illegal and where it is outlawed.

If President Marcos Jr. wants a good reason to ban POGOs, well, here’s another one. It has been uncovered that Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) had contracted a third party external auditor for P6 billion for 10 years to show the POGOs are paying the correct income taxes and fees.

Decongesting the DepEd curriculum

brutal and deadly war on illegal drugs by Duterte would infringe upon the sovereignty of the country, since our judicial processes are working.

This is where the impasse occurs -- to allow or not allow the ICC to come to the country and investigate the brutal and bloody war on illegal drugs by Duterte with the PNP headed by Bato dela Rosa.

From my own point of view as a lawyer, the main issue here is sovereignty.

I believe, as the Department of Justice believes, since our judicial processes are working to make those members of the PNP accountable for all the EJKs, the judicial processes must be continued to hold accountable whoever committed those EJKs.

In a recent column of retired Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban in another newspaper, he posed the question regarding long-detained former Senator Leila de Lima, whether she should now be released like Lucila “Gigi” Reyes, the former chief of staff of then Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.

The Supreme Court found Reyes to be the victim of “vexatious, capricious and oppressive to her constitutional right,” having been detained for almost nine years for the crime of plunder in connection with the “pork barrel scam,”,masterminded by Janet Lim Napoles, who has been in detention as long as Reyes.

Panganiban asked: “Will Leila like Gigi be freed via habeas corpus or via bail?

AFTER 10 years of implementation of the K-12 basic education program, the Department of Education has conceded its curriculum is “congested.”

As in, for instance, EDSA traffic tied up in Gordian knots and unmoving for hours on end?

Or maybe learnings are piled up on top of one another, leaving poor students unable to decipher what is going on or overloaded with too much information that they have little time to digest.

Whatever it is, it’s a problem that deserves urgent solutions.

In her presentation of the Basic Education Report 2023, Vice President and concurrent Education Secretary Sara Duterte said DepEd’s ongoing review of the K-12 program revealed that some prerequisites of “identified learning competencies are missing or misplaced.”

Then there’s the problem that a “significant number of learning competencies catered to high cognitive demands.”

What all that technocratese seems to be saying is that, on one hand, students are not getting the skills and knowledge they need, and that, on the other, their teachers expected too much from them.

To deal with this, the revision of the curriculum aims to produce more job-

The third-party auditor, however, is not only lacking capitalization and is supported by a bank which is not recognized in the Philippines, but also has no office and no business permit to operate.

Santa Banana, this does not only need to make the Pagcor officials held accountable and jailed.

Mister President, do you need proof of the need to ban the POGOs?

My gulay, why then is the Philippines allowing POGOs to exist?

I cannot, for the love of me, see any justification for their existence.

The Pulse Asia survey also showed more than ½ (or 56 percent) of the population is against the existence of the POGOs.

Yes, some of them are operating legally and are paying the government the right taxes and fees.

But, as a general rule, POGOs have become a big social cost to the country. They must go, Mister President. *** *** ***

The resumption of the investigation by the International Criminal Court of the thousands killed during the brutal and bloody war on illegal drugs of then President Duterte during the six years of his administration has generated a conundrum among supporters of the former president on one hand, and, on the other, among families whose relatives have been victimized by extra-judicial killings and politicians and lawyers on both sides of the political fence who want a truly honest-to-goodness investigation, which the government does not seem to truly conduct.

There are two implications of the ICC investigation because the Philippines had withdrawn from membership of the Rome Statute, which created the ICC.

And it appears that BBM does not want to resume membership.

If the Marcos government will allow the prosecution arm of the ICC to enter the country, most likely former President Duterte and Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa will be indicted for “crimes against humanity” for the killing of some 6,000 or more, according to the PNP.

But unofficial sources claim many of those killed were through “EJKs” or extrajudicial killings.

The same unofficial sources also claim some 28,000 or 29,000 have been killed, which include illegal drug users and addicts.

The issue of sovereignty has come up with government people claiming to allow the ICC to resume its investigations on the

“If via habeas corpus, will her lawyers be able to show that the custody, though legal at the beginning, had become” vexatious, capricious and oppressive?”

Much still has to be done by them.

If via bail, will they be able to demonstrate that the prosecution evidence is “not strong”?

And, more vitally, will they go for broke and prove the delay had become so excessively long without her fault that would entitle her not just to temporary liberty but to outright dismissal of the charges? “

To answer Panganiban’s questions, I believe as a lawyer myself that the detention was all brought about by Duterte because when Leila was head of the Human Rights Commission, she exposed the so-called “Davao Death Squad” of then Mayor Duterte.

With the recantation of the detained vital witnesses against her for allegedly getting involved in the illegal drugs trade at the New Bilibid Prison by the high profile witnesses, the illegal drug trade charges against her collapsed.

It is for this reason why her lawyers are now seeking bail for her since the evidence against her is no longer strong.

Santa Banana, as to the question whether Leila is the victim of “vexatious, capricious and oppressive” detention for almost six years, the answer is political.

My gulay, Gigi’s case was based on observance of her constitutional rights to liberty for almost nine years.

If the lawyers of Leila will choose habeas corpus, I believe she would also be given her liberty since we all know why she was charged for alleged involvement in illegal drugs when she was justice secretary *** *** ***

A recent Executive Order by President Marcos Jr. gave tourists coming to the Philippines a refund of the 12 percent Value Added Tax or VAT, which is imposed on products and services given to the public.

BBM obviously wants to grant this as an incentive for foreign tourists coming to the Philippines.

But, I believe this incentive discriminates against us Filipinos who still pay VAT as required by law.

When foreign tourists come to the Philippines, their exemption may appear as an incentive, but when tourists go abroad, like myself and my wife, we are ready to spend.

It’s not the cost of the things we buy that attracts us to a country, but the fact that we love seeing the place.

evidence for the accused fails to prove the existence of [the] justifying circumstances”

(The R.P.C., Reyes, 2021 citing Velasquez v. People).

ready and responsible graduates, DepEd says, and make the curriculum relevant to produce competent, job-ready, active, and responsible citizens.

And more: “We will revise the K to 12 curriculum to make them more responsive to our aspirations as a nation, to develop lifelong learners who are imbued with 21stcentury skills, discipline, and patriotism.”

Among the revisions DepEd will

undertake is to reduce the number of learning areas in kindergarten to third grade from seven areas to five.

These learning areas will focus on foundational skills in literacy and numeracy in the early grades, particularly among disadvantaged students.

DepEd will also strengthen its literacy and numeracy program and revitalize reading, science and technology, and math programs.

The re-engineered K-12 curriculum also aims to improve English language proficiency “within the context of a multilingual nation.”

“We will review the implementation of the mother tongue-based multilingual education policy, guided by the basic principle that, among others, learners learn when taught in a language that they understand,” according to the agency.

DepEd’s main agenda in the years to come will focus on: taking steps to accelerate the delivery of basic education facilities and services; taking good care of learners by promoting learner well-being, inclusive education, and a positive learning environment; and

(3) giving support to teachers to teach better.

All in all, a multi-pronged approach to better basic education for the Filipino youth that we think should be pursued with vigor and dedication by the DepEd in the years ahead.

No significant decline in corruption levels

THE Berlin-based Transparency International conducts an annual Corruption Perception Index (CPI) that monitors the level of corruption in various countries.

It ranks countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, with 0 being “highly corrupt” and 100 being “very clean.”

What’s the verdict for the past year?

The Philippines ranks 116th out of 180 countries in the global corruption index.

Transparency International included the Philippines again in the list of countries identified as “significant decliners” in AsiaPacific, with its score dropping five points from 38—the country’s highest—in 2014, when it ranked 85th out of 175.

What that means is that our country is among the most corrupt in the world, not that we have posted a significant decline in corrupt activities in our bureaucracy.

This also means that the current administration should be on the look-out for those intent on dipping their grubby hands in the proverbial cookie jar when no one is looking.

Since 2014, our ranking slipped to 95th in 2015 (with a score of 35), 101st in 2016 (35) and 111th in 2017 (34). It improved to 99th in 2018 (36) then dropped again to 113th in 2019 (34), 115th (34) in 2020 and 117th in 2021 (33).

The TI report lamented that in recent years, democracy has been on the decline in some of the most densely populated countries in Asia, such as India (40), Philippines (33) and Bangladesh (25).

“Regimes are consolidating power by curtailing space for dissent with more draconian laws that restrict free speech or criticisms of the government – and face no accountability for jailing those who allegedly defy them,” it added.

Transparency International noted that even some of the countries in the top 10 least corrupt countries have reported declines in their scores.

“Global peace has been deteriorating for 15 years. Corruption has been both a key cause and result of this. Corruption undermines governments’ ability to protect people and erodes public trust, provoking more and harder to control security threats. On the other hand, conflict creates opportunities for corruption and subverts governments’ efforts

to stop it,” the group said.

Transparency International emphasizes the need for governments to open up space to include the public – from activists and business owners to marginalized communities and young people – in decisionmaking to root out corruption.

Negros Oriental, the volunteers will undergo two months of language, technical and cultural training.

More volunteers will arrive in the Philippines in May, August, and September, said the US Embassy.

The US Peace Corps pulled out its volunteers after suspending its global operations in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Peace Corps is an international organization formed in 1960 by then US President John F. Kennedy. Its members carry out its mission of service by living and working in the developing world.

Prior to their withdrawal in 2020, the Peace Corps had established the largest foreign volunteer presence in the Philippines.

“JUSTIFYING circumstances are those where the act of the person is said to be in accordance with law, so that such person is deemed not to have transgressed the law…” (The Revised Penal Code [R.P.C.], Reyes, 1981).

“There being no crime committed, the persons defending themselves incur no criminal liability” (Article 11, Revised Penal Code).

“An accused who pleads a justifying circumstance… admits to the commission of acts which would otherwise engender criminal liability… [I]n the process of proving justifying circumstance, the accused risks admitting the imputed acts…[c]onviction follows if the

“Self-defense includes not only the defense of the persons or body of the one assaulted but also that of his rights… which is protected by law. ‘Aside from the right to life on which rests the legitimate defense of our person, we have the right to property…, and the right to honor which is not the least prized of man’s patrimony.’” (The R.P.C., Reyes, 1981 and 2021 citing 1 Viada, 172, 173, 5th Ed.).

Self-defense is lawful “[b]ecause it would be quite impossible for the State in all cases to prevent aggression upon its citizens (and even foreigners, of course) and offer protection to the person unjustly attacked.

“On the other hand, it cannot be conceived that a person should succumb to an unlawful aggression without offering any resistance”

(The R.P.C., Reyes, 2021 citing Guevarra). “Generally, the burden lies upon the prosecution to prove the guilt of the accused

No stopping US Peace Corps volunteers from coming back Don’t look now, but people in rural areas throughout the country will soon see the presence of American Peace Corps volunteers doing community development work in their midst.

A total 37 volunteers of the 279th US Peace Corps arrived in the Philippines for community development work and assistance across Luzon and Visayas, according to the United States Embassy in Manila.

The Peace Corps volunteers will be engaged in various activities at the community level, such as co-teaching the English language in public elementary and secondary schools, serving as youth development facilitators in the Department of Social Welfare and Development-accredited organizations, and supporting local governments in establishing marine protected areas and implementing coastal resource management plans.

But before they are deployed in mostly rural communities in Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Zambales, La Union, Laguna, Benguet, Ilocos Sur, Camarines Sur, Bohol, Cebu, Capiz, and

beyond reasonable doubt… [W]hen the accused, however, admits killing the victim, it is incumbent upon him to prove any claimed justifying circumstance by clear and convincing evidence” (People v. Samson, G.R. 214883, September 02, 2015).

“To invoke self-defense… it is incumbent upon the accused to prove by clear and convincing evidence… the following requisites under the second paragraph of Article 11 of the RPC, viz: (1) unlawful aggression; (2) reasonable necessity of the means employed to prevent or repel it; and (3) lack of sufficient provocation on the part of the person defending himself” (People v. Samson, G.R. 214883, September 02, 2015).

Unlawful aggression

There can be no self-defense, complete or incomplete, unless the victim has committed unlawful aggression against the person defending himself. Full column at www.manilastandard.net

Volunteers who take part in Peace Corps’ regular programs—like teaching or helping build service infrastructure such as water pumps in remote villages—normally serve for two years.

But there are also specialists among them who serve for six months to a maximum of one year.

More than 8,000 American Peace Corps volunteers have served in the Philippines since 1961, working side-by-side with Filipinos to promote friendship and help build better lives for their communities.

Many Peace Corps volunteers in the Philippines have been recognized for having a long-term impact on their host communities through the development projects they initiated.

The Peace Corps wants the incoming volunteers to form small clusters and be assigned in remote areas near health facilities.

Because of the health crisis and the country’s vulnerability to calamities, the organization will “focus on supporting economic livelihood and recovery from the pandemic.”

(Email: ernhil@yahoo.com)

Many Catholics make sweeping, unfounded conclusions

Lolong Lazaro

can be no self-defense, complete or incomplete, unless the victim has committed unlawful aggression against the person defending himself

These learning areas will focus on foundational skills in literacy and numeracy in the early grades, particularly among disadvantaged students

More than 8,000 American Peace Corps volunteers have served in the Philippines since 1961, working side-byside with Filipinos to promote friendship and help build better lives for their communities

Pakistan mosque bomber was in ‘police uniform’

THE suicide bomber who killed 101 people inside a mosque at a police headquarters in Pakistan was wearing a police uniform and helmet when he staged the attack, a police chief said Thursday.

“Those on duty didn’t check him because he was in a police uniform...

It was a security lapse,” Moazzam Jah Ansari, the head of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province police force, told a news conference.

Police have a “fair idea” about who the bomber was after matching his head found at the scene with CCTV images.

“There’s an entire network behind him,” Ansari said, explaining that the bomber had not planned Monday’s assault in northwest Peshawar alone.

Hundreds of police were attending afternoon prayers in the police headquarters’ mosque when the blast erupted, causing a wall to collapse and crush officers.

Authorities are investigating how a major security breach could happen in one of the most tightly controlled areas of the city, housing intelligence and counter-terrorism bureaus, and next door to the regional secretariat. AFP

Russia strikes Ukraine building, killing 3 people

RESCUERS searched for survivors in the rubble of an apartment building in eastern Ukraine on Thursday after a Russian strike destroyed it, as Kyiv said it expected a major offensive on the first anniversary of Moscow’s invasion.

At least three people were killed Wednesday and 20 wounded when a Russian rocket struck a residential building in the centre of Kramatorsk, located in Ukraine’s eastern industrial region of Donetsk.

Rescuers wearing torches on their heads worked to pull survivors from the debris, their faces covered in dust as they tried to find any signs of life under the cover of night.

After discovering the body of a resident who was crushed under the rubble, rescuers carried the victim away on a stretcher, as firefighters worked their way through the mangled building structure.

Donetsk regional police said paramedics, search-and-rescue dogs, and explosive experts were combing the area as they believed that more people could be trapped.

“I first heard a whistle and then everything started to fly around,” said Petro, 71, whose apartment was damaged. AFP

US, S. Korea hold air drills as North warns of ‘showdown’

SOUTH

The exercises, the first by the security allies this year, came a day after US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his South Korean counterpart vowed to boost security cooperation to counter an increasingly belligerent nucleararmed North Korea.

The drills on Wednesday showed

“the US’s will and capabilities to provide strong and credible extended deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats,” the South Korean defense ministry said.

They involved American B-1B longrange heavy bombers and stealth fighters – US Air Force F-22s and South Ko-

rean F-35s – flying over the Yellow Sea, the ministry added.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman warned the exercises could “ignite an all-out showdown,” the state news agency KCNA reported.

Seoul and Washington’s moves to ramp up joint drills crossed “an extreme red-line.”

South Korea is eager to convince its increasingly nervous public of America’s robust defence commitment, after a year in which North Korea declared itself an “irreversible” nuclear power and conducted a weapons test almost every

month in defiance of international sanctions.

Austin and South Korean Defence Minister Lee Jong-sup agreed this week to “expand and bolster the level and scale” of joint military exercises in light of “continued provocations” from Pyongyang, including a recent drone incursion into the South.

Bolstering US-South Korean military drills and deploying strategic weapons to the region was akin to “talking about the use of nuclear weapons against the DPRK,” the North Korean statement on KCNA said, AFP

HK offers free flights after COVID isolation IN BRIEF

HONG KONG is ready to welcome the world back, its leader said Thursday, as he pitched free flights and positive publicity to resurrect the once-vibrant global hub after three years of COVIDenforced isolation.

The government’s rebranding campaign, “Hello, Hong Kong,” bills itselfas an effort to tell “good stories” about the southern Chinese city, where years of political repression, coupled with pandemic curbs, have tarnished its business-friendly reputation.

Promising “no isolation, no quarantine and no restrictions” during a speech to business and tourism heavyweights, Chief Executive John Lee announced 500,000 free air tickets for visitors to experience the city’s “hustle and bustle.”

The giveaway will open in March, with another 80,000 tickets up for grabs to residents in the summer.

“This, ladies and gentlemen,

is probably the world’s biggest welcome ever,” Lee said.

Adherence to Beijing’s zero-COVID doctrine of quarantine, closed borders and face masks kept Hong Kong largely virus-free until a deadly Omicron outbreak at the start of 2022. But it also contributed to an economic recession and the exodus of more than 2.5 percent of the population.

Even as business leaders warned Hong Kong would need a full Covid exit plan before any meaningful reboot, officials insisted on gradually rolling back restrictions long after the rest of the world opted to live with the virus.

The controls closed off what was previously one of Asia’s most connected cities.

Hong Kong welcomed just 600,000 visitors in 2022, less than one percent of 2018’s figure.

More than 130 international companies have shuttered their Hong Kong

offices over the past three years, while a recent survey of 253 Japanese companies showed securing quality workers was their top concern.

According to official figures, more than 140,000 people left Hong Kong’s labor force last year, when the economy contracted by 3.5 percent.

Lee, a former security chief currently under US sanctions over his role in snuffing out democracy protests in 2019, promised to correct the poor publicity he and other government officials have blamed for the metropolis’s malaise.

“I will personally carry the promotional messages of our prowess as the world’s freest economy and China’s international financial center,” he said.

Speaking to AFP at the campaign launch, Peter Burnett, the former chair of the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said “the proof will be in the pudding” for the reboot. AFP

Late Cardinal Pell’s funeral sparks Sydney protests

PROTESTERS confronted mourners with chants of “shame” outside the funeral of controversial top Vatican cardinal George Pell in Sydney on Thursday.

Pell died in Rome last month aged 81 and was buried in the crypt of St Mary’s Cathedral amid angry protests and a heavy police presence.

Dogged by scandal in his later years, Pell was the highest-ranking Catholic to be imprisoned for child sexual abuse, before his convictions were overturned in 2020.

He continues to divide opinion – supporters have dubbed him a “saint for our times,” but campaigners accuse him of protecting pedophile priests while a senior Church official.

As he was laid to rest, riot police lined barricades to keep protesters away from the thousands of mourners queuing to get into the funeral.

The protesters cried “shame” while waving banners declaring “Pell Burn in Hell”.

Economist William Coleman, 63, lined up to pay his respects to Pell, who he said was a “good man” that was unfairly persecuted.

“I think it’s disgraceful to attempt to disrupt a funeral,” he told AFP.

Retired lawyer Eric Ziehlke said Pell was a “wonderful churchman”.

“I think he was completely innocent of the crime for which he was accused,” he told AFP.

Sexual abuse survivor Dianne Jacobus was among a small group tying ribbons to the cathedral gates in a symbolic show of support for Church victims. AFP

Peru Congress again rejects snap elections

PERU’S congress on Wednesday voted down another bid to advance elections from April 2024 to this year, a move sought by President Dina Boluarte to calm unrest that has left dozens dead in seven weeks of anti-government protests.

After five hours of debate, lawmakers rejected a bill that would have advanced elections to December by 68 votes to 54, with two abstentions.

The president’s office said on Twitter it regretted the vote and vowed it will soon present another bill to hold general elections this year.

Peru has been embroiled in a political crisis with near-daily demonstrations since December 7, when thenpresident Pedro Castillo was arrested after attempting to dissolve Congress and rule by decree.AFP

US hits Myanmar emergency extension

THE United States on Wednesday denounced the Myanmar junta’s extension of a state of emergency, saying it prolonged suffering two years after a coup toppled an elected government.

“The United States strongly opposes the Burma military regime’s decision to extend the state of emergency, prolonging the military’s illegitimate rule and the suffering it inflicts upon the country,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said, using Myanmar’s former name.

The junta on the coup anniversary said it was extending the emergency by six months, pushing back the date for elections under the constitution.

Price said the United States was determined to work with other countries to “deny the regime international credibility.” AFP

Israel warplanes

strike Gaza after rocket fire

ISRAELI warplanes struck Gaza early Thursday, drawing retaliatory rocket fire from Palestinian militants, as violence flared despite US calls for “urgent steps” to restore calm.

Israel said the pre-dawn strikes were in response to an earlier rocket launch and targeted military training camps used by Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas.

A statement from the Israeli military said fighter jets had “struck a production site for raw chemical material production, preservation and storage along with a weapon manufacturing site” belonging to Hamas.

The strikes came “in response to the rocket launch from the Gaza Strip into Israel earlier” Wednesday. AFP

Korea said Thursday it had staged joint air drills with the United States featuring strategic bombers and stealth fighters, prompting Pyongyang to warn that such exercises could “ignite an all-out showdown.”

HIGH ALTITUDE JOB. Workers paint the structure of the Supertree Grove at Garden by the Bay in Singapore on February 2, 2023. AFP

POLARIZING. A coffin containing the remains of late Australian Catholic Cardinal George Pell is carried out of St. Mary’s Cathedral during his funeral in Sydney on February 2, 2023. Protesters denounced late Australian cardinal George Pell for his ‘bigoted’ views on Thursday, as the Catholic Church remembered his ‘remarkable legacy’ with a grand funeral mass in Sydney. AFP

TOP GAINERS

Stock market falls; Peso breaches 53-a-dollar mark

By Julito G. Rada

STOCKS fell but the Philippine peso advanced Thursday after the US Federal Reserve unveiled its latest quarter-point increase in borrowing costs.

The PSE index, the 30-company bellwether of the Philippine Stock Exchange, lost 49 points, or 0.70 percent, to close at 6,986.19, as two of the six subsectors declined. The broader all-share index went down 3 points, or 0.09 percent, to settle at 3,683.78, on a value turnover of P8.93 billion. Gainers outnumbered losers, 114 to 67, while 56 issues were unchanged.

Four of the 10 most active stocks ended in the green, led by Robinsons Land Corp. which climbed 3.71 percent to P16.20 and Universal Robina Corp. which gained 3.04 percent to P148.90.

Asian markets were mixed Thursday,

HIGHER INTEREST.

MOST ACTIVE

US Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference at the Federal Reserve in Washington DC on Feb. 1, 2023. The Fed slowed its pace of interest rate hikes Wednesday, tempering its aggressive campaign to rein in costs as inflation cools, while signaling the battle is not yet over. The US central bank announced a quarter-point hike to the benchmark lending rate at the end of its two-day policy meeting, taking the rate to a target range of 4.50 percent to 4.75 percent. AFP

with investors unable to maintain an early rally despite a strong lead from Wall Street fueled by hopes the Federal Reserve’s campaign of interest rate hikes could be close to an end.

The decision to lift rates by the smallest amount in almost a year came after a series of data points suggested the world’s top economy was slowing down, with inflation at its lowest since October 2021.

Meanwhile, the peso breached the 53-a-dollar level for the first time since June 2022 even after the Fed raised its benchmark policy rate by 25 basis points. The peso gained P0.63, or 1.16 percent, to close at 53.845 a dollar Thursday from 54.475 on Wednesday. It was the local currency’s strongest level since it finished at 53.75 on June 17, 2022.

Michael Ricafort, chief economist of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.,

HK economy shrank 3.5% on exports plunge, COVID impact

said the peso strengthened after the announcement on the upcoming retail treasury bond offering on Feb. 7 that could attract some of the excess liquidity from the financial system.

“Market sentiment [was] also supported recently by more dovish signals by the Fed and local monetary authorities that led to some downward correction in various government and BSP securities auction yields recently,” Ricafort said.

Robert Dan Roces, chief economist at Security Bank Corp., told Manila Standard the peso’s strength could be attributed to the “markets taking dovishly Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s comments regarding the Fed making progress in their fight against inflation.”

Roces said in the days ahead, “there could be some corrections on the back of bargain hunting. So likely 53 to 53.80 [peso per US dollar].” With AFP

HONG KONG, China—Hong Kong’s economy shrank by 3.5 percent in 2022, with exports plunging and the city’s worst-ever coronavirus outbreak battering businesses, the government announced Wednesday, while saying it hoped China’s reopening would spur a recovery.

Vast swathes of Hong Kong’s economy were shut down at the start of the year when the territory recorded one of the world’s highest Covid per capita death rates as it dealt with a wave of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

In September, the government began easing the harsh pandemic restrictions that had left Hong Kong internationally isolated and had damaged its status as a financial hub.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) dropped all four quarters in 2022, with the final quarter seeing it fall 4.2 percent year-on-year, according to the preliminary figures released Wednesday.

“Domestic demand slackened, dragged initially by the (Omicronfueled Covid wave) and subsequently by tightened financial conditions,” a government spokesperson said in a statement.

“Total exports of goods plunged amid the sharp deterioration in the external environment and disruptions to cross-boundary truck movements.”

Hong Kong was in a deepening recession in 2019 and 2020 after the former British colony was roiled by pro-democracy protests and the start of the pandemic.

The city found brief respite in 2021, as its strict pandemic controls largely kept it virus-free, with the economy rebounding by 6.4 percent —gains later wiped out by the outbreak at the start of 2022. AFP

Australia bares plan to remove British monarch from banknotes

By David Williams

SYDNEY—Australia will remove the British monarch from its banknotes, replacing the late Queen Elizabeth II’s image on its $5 note with a design honoring Indigenous culture, the central bank said Thursday.

The decision to leave her successor King Charles III off the $5 note means no monarch would remain on Australia’s paper currency.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) said it would consult Indigenous people on a new design that “honors the culture and history of the First Australians”.

Queen Elizabeth’s death on September 8 last year was marked by public mourning in Australia, but some Indigenous groups also protested against the destructive impact of colonial Britain, calling for the abolition of the monarchy.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy, a democracy with King Charles III as its head of state. A referendum proposing a switch to a republic was narrowly defeated in 1999.

The central bank said its decision was supported by the center-left Labor government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who favors an eventual move to an Australian republic.

The new banknote would take “a number of years” to be designed and printed, it said, with the existing $5 note remaining legal tender even after the new design is in people’s hands.

‘No longer justifiable’

The RBA’s move was hailed by the nation’s republican movement, which noted that Indigenous people predated British settlement by 65,000 years.

“Australia believes in meritocracy so the idea that someone should be on our currency by birthright is irreconcilable, as is the notion that they should be our

head of state by birthright,” said Australian Republic Movement chair Craig Foster.

“To think that an unelected king should be on our currency in place of First Nations leaders and elders and eminent Australians is no longer justifiable at a time of truth-telling, reconciliation and ultimately formal, cultural and intellectual independence.”

The Australian Monarchist League said the decision was “virtually neo-communism in action”.

“Before a referendum is held on whether the people want to retain the King as sovereign or opt for a President, this government has arbitrarily moved to discard the King’s head from Australia’s five dollar note,” it said in a statement.

“It is certainly not Australian democracy.”

A British monarch has featured on Australian

banknotes since 1923 and was on all paper bills until 1953, the year of Elizabeth II’s coronation.

The queen’s face adorned the 1-pound banknote and then the new $1 note from 1966.

‘Rock paintings’

That first $1 banknote also included imagery of Aboriginal rock paintings and carvings based on a bark painting by Indigenous artist David Malangi Daymirringu.

The queen’s face has peered up at Australians from the polymer $5 note since 1992.

But the central bank’s governor Philip Lowe announced three months ago that it had begun talking with the government about whether to forego replacing the queen’s image with a portrait of King Charles III.

Australian coins, which are issued by the Royal Australian Mint, currently feature an image of the queen. AFP

SAN FRANCISCO—Facebook and Instagram owner Meta on Wednesday reported its first annual sales drop since the company went public in 2012, but the fall was less brutal than expected, sending its share price soaring.

The social media giant said sales dropped 1 percent to $116.6 billion in 2022, while it also announced that the number of daily users on Facebook hit two billion for the first time.

CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg pointed to the success of improved algorithms on Meta’s video Reels service, that was delivering short clips more efficiently

to users on Facebook and Instagram.

Meta competes fiercely with TikTok, the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform that has proved a formidable rival in attracting young users away from once-dominant Instagram.

“The number of people daily using Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp is the highest it’s ever been,” Zuckerberg said in an earnings call.

Zuckerberg also lauded improved artificial intelligence (AI) to better distribute ads after changes on the iPhone decided by Apple seriously hampered Meta’s ability to target users.

‘Year of Efficiency’ The 2022 results ended a bad year for Meta, which in November announced it would lay off 11,000 employees or 13 percent of staff in the largest worker reduction in the company’s history.

Zuckerberg said his company’s “management theme for 2023 is the ‘Year of Efficiency’ and we’re focused on becoming a stronger and more nimble organization.”

Zuckerberg said Meta is working on eliminating layers of middle management as well as deploying AI tools to help engineers be more productive. AFP

Meta reports first annual sales fall, but beats expectations

This photo illustration taken in Hong Kong on Feb. 2, 2023 shows the Australian $5 banknote. Australia’s central bank announced it would replace the late Queen Elizabeth II’s image on its $5 note with a design honoring indigenous culture. AFP

By Darwin G. Amojelar

THE Department of Transportation said Thursday it signed three transaction advisory service agreements with the Asian Development Bank to expedite the privatization of the operations and maintenance of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and development of two major railway projects.

Transportation Secretary Jaime

Bautista said the three agreements with ADB would allow the agency to fast track the completion of ongoing bigticket rail projects and the much-needed improvement in the main gateway.

“By extending ADB’s advisory

services on Metro Manila Subway Project and the North South Commuter Railway, we can fine-tune the selection process for the most qualified and experienced private sector operators for these rail projects once completed,” Bautista said.

He said the government was looking forward to ADB’s advice on how best to proceed in modernizing and expanding NAIA whose operations and maintenance the government wanted to privatize.

Bautista said the transport infrastructure projects are critical in accelerating the country’s economic rebound. “As President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier said, our impressive economic performance clearly elevates us among the upper middle-income countries,” he said.

“It is our job at the Department of Transportation to provide impetus to that economic momentum. Our confidence of succeeding is partly knowing we have a reliable partner in ADB,” Bautista said.

The NAIA rehabilitation and development project aims to alleviate the worsening air traffic congestion at the main gateway and resolve capacity constraints by reconfiguring and renovating facilities and enhancing operation and maintenance.

The rehabilitation project aims to broaden NAIA’s role as a key economic and tourism driver for Metro Manila and the whole Philippines, deliver capital infrastructure investment to improve the airport’s efficiency and increase its capacity to meet the growing passenger demand from the Philippines and the Asia Pacific region.

The P488.5-billion MMSP, meanwhile, is a 33-kilometer subway, dubbed as the “project of the century”. It would run from Valenzuela City to NAIA Terminal 3 and FTI in Paranaque City.

EUROPEAN

of Commerce of the Philippines

officials and diplomats

executive-director

than 250

the recently held networking event at the Dusit

Gottein, German Embassy economic counselor Dr. David Klebs, Austrian Embassy commercial counselor Christina Stieber, Department of Interior and Local Government Undersecretary for public safety Serafin Barretto and Foreign Investors Advisory Group chair Alfred Reiterer.

PSE INDEX CLOSING

Thursday,

BSP expected to increase rate by 25 bps to match Fed action

By Julito G. Rada

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas may be compelled to match the latest 25-basis-point hike in interest rate by the US Federal Reserve to support the peso and rein in the elevated inflation rate, an economist said Thursday.

The Fed raised its benchmark interest rate Wednesday by a quarter percentage point and hinted at possible increases going forward. This brought the US interest rate to a target range of 4.5 percent to 4.75 percent, the highest since October 2007.

“The BSP would likely match the latest +0.25 Fed rate hike on Feb. 1, 2023 on the next BSP rate-setting meeting on Feb. 16, 2023 to maintain a comfortable interest differentials as part of the measures to help stabilize the peso and overall inflation,” Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort told Manila Standard.

He said the Philippine peso’s “recent appreciation against the US dollar to the strongest in more than seven months would also be a consideration.”

The Fed raised interest rates by 75 basis points four times before opting for a smaller 0.5 percentage point hike in December.

The Monetary Board, the policy-making body of the Bangko Sentral, raised the benchmark interest rate on Dec. 15, 2022 by 50 basis points to a more than 14-year high of 5.5 percent to prevent the second-round effects of inflation and defend the peso against the greenback. It was the highest since December 2008 during the global financial crisis.

Monde Nissin acquires 15% of Figaro Coffee

MONDE Nissin Corp. said Thursday it acquired a 15-percent stake in Figaro Coffee Group Inc. for P820.3 million.

Monde Nissin said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange it executed a subscription agreement with FCG for the subscription to 820,268,295 common shares of FCG at P1 per share or a total of P820.3 million. The transaction allows Monde to hold 15-percent shares in FCG.

Monde Nissin said it paid in full for the subscription price via transfer of immediately available funds.

“FCG shall apply for and secure the approval of the PSE for the listing of the subscription shares within 180 days from the subscription agreement’s signing, or such longer period as may mutually be determined by the parties,” Monde Nissin said.

Monde Nissin chief executive Henry Soesanto said the acquisition would provide the company exposure to the food service sector, which could be a potential avenue for further growth here and abroad. Darwin G. Amojelar

NTC exempts Starlink from radio licensing process

THE National Telecommunications Commission said Thursday it approved the request of Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. of US billionaire Elon Musk to exempt its equipment from radio station licensing to expedite the commercial rollout of its satellite internet services in the country. The NTC said in a statement it “deemed approved the request of Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. that its Starlink User Terminals be classified as customer premise equipment and not to subject the same to radio station licensing as it nears its commercial roll-out.” The NTC’s approval, however, requires Starlink to comply with filing of application for the modification of its type acceptance certificates with the NTC’s Equipment Standards Division.

NTC said Starlink should also go through the Commission’s Regulation Branch, National Capital Region regional office and Radio Spectrum Planning Division to obtain permits to import and comply with product registration and submission of an affidavit of undertaking.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Cybersecurity advocate lauds former DICT official FORMER Party-list Rep. and cybersecurity advocate Francisco Ashley Acedillo commended lawyer and former undersecretary for policy and legal affairs of the Department of Information and Communications Technology Jose Vicente Salazar, “for serving as an effective bridge between the government and the private sector, especially in the present discussions on e-governance, cybersecurity and the implementing rules and regulations of the SIM Card Registration Act.”

Acedillo is also the chief of staff of the chairman of the powerful Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.

“It saddens me, though, to see him leave government service as we will lose a very capable, knowledgeable and honest public servant in Atty. Salazar. But family comes first, and I admire his decision in any case,” said Acedillo, referring to the lawyer’s irrevocable resignation from the DICT because of the health condition of his wife. Acedillo, who heads the Philippine Institute of Cybersecurity Professionals Inc., said with the exit of Salazar from government, PICSPro “lost a valuable partner in our mission and advocacies for the country’s information and communications technology sector”.

“In his brief stint at the DICT, I saw his all-out commitment to the government’s ICT

By Alena Mae S. Flores

ACEN Corp. said Thursday subsidiary ACEN Renewables International completed its acquisition of UPC Renewables Asia Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd.’s and Anton Rohner’s investments in ACEN Australia for $173 million. Australia is ACEN’s biggest market outside the Philippines with over 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy projects under construction.

ACEN said in a disclosure to the stock exchange ACRI and UPCAPH signed an instrument for the transfer to ACRI of UPCAPH’s remaining 4,766 ordinary shares in UPC-AC Energy Australia (HK) Ltd. This completes the second and final tranche of ACRI’s acquisition of ACEN Australia.

ACRI paid $162,671,091 for the 11,916 ordinary shares and $10,418,552 for the 1,000,054 ordinary class B shares in UPC-AC Energy Australia (HK).

ACEN said the purchase price of $173 million is the result of negotiation between the parties, taking into account the valuation of UPC-AC Renewables Australia when the company’s parent company, AC Energy and Infrastructure Corp. infused its international assets into ACEN in exchange for additional ACEN common shares earlier this year.

The acquisition transforms the UPC\ AC Renewables Australia joint venture into ACEN Australia, the company’s first wholly-owned development and operating platform outside the Philippines.

INVESTORS. The European Chamber

welcomes more

guests from the private sector, government

during

Thani Makati. Shown are (from left) ECCP

Florian

Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista

Perkins’ timely baskets key Fuel Masters’ 1st triumph

By Peter Atencio

TIMELY baskets from Jason Perkins in the fourth period gave the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters enough gas to take out NorthPort Batang Pier, 108-97, for their first win Thursday night in the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.

The 6’4” power forward, who used to play for the La Salle Green Archers, buried nine of his 26-point output in the last period to spearhed the Fuel Masters’ win.

Perkins’ efforts with RJ Jazul in the final period helped push Phoenix to its first win in four matches. New coach Jamike Jarin said the team’s positive attitude helped pull them out of a three-game slump.

“You just give credit to the players for staying positive,” said Jarin.

Rare Superman comic books auctioned to support PH lifters

By Randy Caluag

POWERLIFTING

Association of the Philippines president

Eddie Torres is selling some of his rare Superman comics collection to help finance his wards’ education, training, and participation in competitions abroad.

Torres, once hailed as the Strongest Man in the Philippines, was a former powerlifting champion himself. He idolizes Superman so much that he started collecting Superman stuff, including rare editions of DC Comics’ Superman magazines.

For a collector, rare editions are priceless possessions, but for Torres, providing for the need of her promising, world-class

PH SEA Games silver medalist Ilustre eyes slot in Cambodia tilt

COLLEGIATE swimmer Maurice Sacho Ilustre hopes to be back in the Southeast Asian Games, this time in Cambodia.

After a four-year absence, the 23-year-old Ilustre is set to join an open qualifying competition that will determine the composition of the national aquatics’ team being formed for the biennial meet.

The qualifiers will be held on February 18 and 19 at the New Clark City Aquatics Center in Capas, Tarlac.

“I’m preparing for that to hopefully make it to the SEA Games again,” said Ilustre, who is in his third year as a student-athlete of De La Salle University.

Ilustre, who was recently named as one of the brand ambassadors of Milo, is getting back into serious training after a two-month layoff due to illness.

He did well in Season 85 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines aquatics meet, where he bagged a silver medal in the 100-meter freestyle and a bronze in the 200-meter butterfly.

The last time he competed in the SEA Games was in 2019.

Back then, Ilustre shared a silver with Luke Gebbie, Jean Pierre Khouzam and Jarod Hatch in the 4x100meter freestyle relays.

The Philippine Olympic Committee’s Stabilization Committee has listed a total of 20 events to be contested in swimming.

There are two events in water polo (men and women) and in the individual 3-meter springboard and platform for men and women in diving. Peter Atencio

athletes like Veronica Ompod, Jessa Mae Vivero Tabuan, and Jane Erasmo has become more of prime importance.

“I am throwing my support behind these three young world-class powerlifters to complete their college education and help secure their future. They have brought honor to our country with their

international wins/records and will continue to do even greater things for our country in future Asian & World championships,” Torres said in a long post on his Facebook page before the year ended. After sifting through some of his prized heap of Superman stuff, he found several copies of Superman DC Comics from 1947

to 1955 and put them in an auction on eBay.

Torres said he is donating all the proceeds to the housing expenses of her three athletes and other expenses in international competitions that are not covered by the support of the Philippine Sports Commission.

Ompod, who holds six Asian records, is preparing to compete in the World Championships this year.

“2023 will be her final year in the juniors, so I would like to give her all the chances to further increase her Asian records. She currently holds 6 Asian records. She has also broken world records twice,” Torres said.

In mint condition, the magazines are lot-priced at around $24,775 or roughly P1.3M. But since the books are not near mint (NM), Torres said the books can be won for a much lower price.

The auction is found on this link: https:// www.ebay.com/itm/325519725072 and ends at 11 PM (PH Time) on Feb. 8. Free FedEx shipping to anywhere in the world.

Import DuVaughn Maxwell banged in 26 points and 11 rebounds, but was held to just a point in the final period.

But Perkins picked up the cudgels as he led an 8-2 run in the last 4:21, with his floater and jumper widening an 92-85 lead to 14, 102-88.

This kept the Fuel Masters ahead, after the taking their biggest lead at 27, 84-57, off Jazul’s three-pointer in the last 3:26 in the third period.

Marcus Weathers shot 32 points for the Batang Pier, who went down with their fourth straight setback.

Jarin hopes that the team can pick up momentum as they shoot for another win when they meet the NLEX Road Warriors on Saturday.

The Scores:

PHOENIX 108 Perkins 26, Maxwell 26, Jazul 15, Manganti 13, Tio 8, Garcia 6, Serrano 6, Muyang 2, Lojera 2, Lalata 2, Soyud 1, Adamos 0, Alejandro 0, Camacho 0, Go 0

NORTHPORT 97 Weathers 28, Salado 15, Dela Cruz 12, Munzon 8, Chan 7, Tolentino 6, Sumang 5, Balagasay 5, Calma 2, Zamar 2, Taha 2, Caperal 2, Ayaay 0

QUARTERS: 23-25, 55-46, 86-71, 108-97

PFF chief Araneta gets fresh Asian football mandate

ANOTHER four-year term has been handed down Philippine Football Federation president Mariano Araneta, Jr., who was given a fresh mandate by the Asian Football community in the FIFA Council.

The 68-year-old Araneta was re-elected to the FIFA Council for the term 20232027 during the 33rd Asian Football Confederation Congress in Manama, Bahrain.

Araneta got a total of 34 votes, which was more than the simple majority of 23 votes required during the elections.

AFC President H.E. Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain was also re-elected as president for the term 20232027 by acclamation.

Araneta, during his previous term, was supportive of the increase of slots for

Asian countries in the FIFA World Cup from 4.5 slots to 8.5 beginning in 2026. Support also came from Araneta in FIFA’s bid to allocate $200 million for talent identification and development to help member associations develop and nurture competitive national teams.

“I would like to express heartfelt gratitude to the Asian Football Confederation family for their trust and and confidence in electing me to the FIFA Council for the term 2023-2027,” said Araneta, who was among the seven candidates for one of the five representative seats in the FIFA Council.

He joined Kohzo Tajima of Japan, Datuk Haji Hamidin bin Haji Mohd Amon of Malaysia, H.E. Sheikh Hamad Khalifa A. A. Al Thani of Qatar, and Yasser Al Mise-

hal of Saudi Arabia in the FIFA Council.

Kanya Keomany of Laos, was also elected as the Female Member in the FIFA Council after she got votes to become an AFC Executive Committee Female Member.

“Being in the FIFA Council is a position I do not take lightly and I am well aware of the responsibility given to me. I look forward to continuing our work in the FIFA Council to advance initiatives meant to develop, grow and promote The Beautiful Game,” added Araneta.

The Philippine delegation to the AFC Congress included PFF vice president Joselito Pinol, PFF board member Jay Adriatico and PFF general secretary Atty. Edwin Gastanes, who acted as the voting delegate from the Philippines. Peter Atencio

Mariano Araneta

MILO energizes kids nationwide with Active Pilipinas

FOR 59 years, leading breakfast drink kids love MILO® Philippines has been nourishing Filipino kids with energy-giving nutrients and the well-loved chocomaltee taste that help them live an active lifestyle.

Because with a sports-driven active lifestyle, kids not only reap physical benefits but take lifelong learnings and skills too. They take home new values such as perseverance, discipline, and grit which sets them up for success in all aspects of life.

However, as the country faced pandemic-related restrictions in the past few years, the opportunities for physical activity were also restricted or limited; leaving kids at home and glued to their couches. As steps turned into screen time and physical activity moved online, 84% of Filipino adolescents were shown to be insufficiently active—doing less than 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day.

Because MILO® believes in the power of sports and an active lifestyle, the brand challenged Filipino kids from couch to court with the launch of MILO® Active Pilipinas, inviting kids nationwide to live an active lifestyle whether at home or in school. All year long, kids will have access to MILO® sports programs that were designed to help them unlock the champion within MILO® Sports Clinics - Now in its 38th year, the annual MILO Sports Clinics will continue to teach

a nationwide school tour that teaches students the basics of sports without disrupting their classes, since parents also play a role as we teach them proper nutrition. This is one of the widespread efforts to help improve the physical literacy of kids because we believe that active kids are better learners.

MILO® Home Court—A digital portal launched in partnership with the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) during the pandemic, MILO Home Court will continue to help kids pursue sports even at home by providing video tutorials and online sports classes.

MILO® Barangay Liga—The much-awaited grassroots basketball tournament will launch in March this year, inviting more than future champions from barangays nationwide to work with their teams in showcasing their skills on the court. Participating moms from the 2022 Barangay Liga share how it helps their kids lessen screen time to make them more active and healthy while learning values such as discipline and social skills.

“Now, more than ever, we see the importance of energizing kids and bringing back active lifestyles through the variety of MILO sports programs that will be made available nationwide. Through these opportunities, we aim to build the champions of tomorrow and instill values learned through sports for future success in life,” said Carlo Sampan, Head of MILO Sports.

Phoenix’s Jason Perkins shoots a oater against NorthPort’s Paul Zamar in a PBA game won by the Fuel Masters, 108-97.

Some of DC Comics’ Superman rare issues are being auctioned to help young powerlifters like Veronica Ompod.

Carlo Sampan, head of MILO® Sports talks about the low physical activity of Filipino adolescents kids the basics of sports like basketball, taekwondo, swimming, and tennis, among others while instilling discipline, confidence, and teamwork.

MILO® Marathon—After 3 years on halt, the biggest running event in the country is set to return this March 2023. This national event brings together people to get back into sports and help build tomorrow’s champions.

MILO® Champ Camp—Co-created with the Department of Education (DepEd), the MILO Champ Camp is

Cool Smashers stay intact, 8 others rm up PVL rosters

Games Saturday 4 p.m. – Akari vs Choco Mucho

6 p.m. – Creamline vs Petro Gazz

WHILE its rivals tinkered with their respective rosters to reach competitive level, Creamline kept its side intact, ready to do bat tle and restart another crack at a record Premier Volleyball League feat.

The Cool Smashers, who won the Open Conference and the Invitationals last year, found no need to make roster changes despite missing out on a rare grand slam bid in a wild Reinforced Conference ruled by Petro Gazz and where they wound up third.

But Alyssa Valdez, who is still recovering from a right knee injury, along with Jia De Guzman, Tots Carlos, Jema Galanza, Ced Domingo and Kyla Atienza are all set not just to defend the crown in the season-opening tournament, now aptly billed as the All-Filipino Conference, but also go for a sweep of the three PVL jewels.

Hostilities fire off tomorrow (Saturday) with Akari facing Choco Mucho at 4 p.m. and Creamline and Petro Gazz renewing their rivals at 6:30 p.m.

But majority in the nine-team field have bolstered their rosters, including in the coaching side, in a bid to foil the Cool Smashers and fuel their respective title drive in league organized by Sports Vision.

Petro Gazz tapped former Choco Mucho head coach Oliver Almadro to replace Rald Ricafort, who steered the team to the Reinforced Conference crown before moving to PLDT this season. The Angels likewise acquired Des Clemente and Dzi Gervacio from F2 Logistics, Heather Guino-o from PLDT, and Jellie Tempiatura, who last played for Perlas.

Ricafort, who also brought in lead deputy Arnold Laniog to the High Speed Hitters, firmed up his new team’s roster by tapping Ysa Jimenez from UST and the seasoned Michelle Morente.

The Cargo Movers, on the other hand, took in Myla Pablo from Petro Gazz while also handing the head coaching reins to Regine Diego, who became the first female head coach in the pro volley scene.

Brady: Incomparable NFL record breaker

LOS ANGELES— Tom Brady forged a reputation as the greatest quarterback in NFL history in a career spanning 23 seasons that produced a host of records that may never be beaten.

The 45-year-old NFL icon said Wednesday he was “retiring for good” this time after reversing his decision to leave the game a year ago and playing a final season for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Brady won seven Super Bowls, five Super Bowl Most Valuable Player awards and three NFL MVP awards.

He also heads the all-time passing rankings, with 89,214 yards, nearly 9,000 yards clear of his nearest rival, the now retired Drew Brees.

Brady’s celebrity surpassed the world of sports -- for 13 years he was married to Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen. The couple, who

have two children, announced in November they were divorcing. Brady has another child from a previous relationship. His longevity is all the more remarkable given the relatively short average career length of an NFL quarterback— around 4.4 years according to a 2019 study.

By the time he led the Bucs to an improbable victory in the Super Bowl two years ago, Brady had long since earned the right to be regarded as the greatest quarterback the NFL has seen.

His seventh Super Bowl win catapulted him into the pantheon of North American sporting greats, alongside the likes of Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Tiger Woods, Serena Williams and Wayne Gretzky.

The plot points of Brady’s career have become the stuff of NFL folklore. He entered the NFL to little fanfare,

Lineker believes he’s got Andrade figured out

JOHN “Hands of Stone” Lineker looked worse for wear after his initial meeting with Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade, but he’s confident that it won’t happen again.

Lineker and Andrade initially met last October, where “Wonder Boy” tagged his compatriot with an inadvertent knee to the groin, forcing the referee to stop the match. Due to that incident, and the fact that Lineker was stripped of his ONE Bantamweight World Title for missing weight the day before the fight, the belt is still vacant.

With the title up for grabs in their rematch at ONE Fight Night 7 on 25 February at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, Lineker believes things are bound to be different this time around.

“I watched my fight against him again. Inside the cage, it’s one thing. Watching it on TV you have another vision,” Lineker said.

“The fact is that I let him land a lot of jabs, which ended up hurting my face a lot. I wasn’t feeling his punches so much. I wasn’t afraid of his punches, so I took those jabs and ended up getting a pretty bruised face.”

chosen by the New England Patriots with the 199th pick in the sixth round of the 2000 draft.

Upon arrival in New England, he was ranked way down the Patriots’ quarterback pecking order, a gangly freshman with everything to prove.

Yet Brady soon showed the relentless work ethic and competitive spirit that would become the hallmarks of his career.

Coolness under pressure Patriots officials would get calls from puzzled security staff in the dead of night to inform them that Brady had arrived at the team’s training facility to work out alone.

When an injury to Drew Bledsoe in September 2001 saw Brady elevated into the starter’s jersey, he seized his chance. He kept his place for the remainder of the season and led the Patriots to a first ever Super Bowl in February 2002. AFP

Strong Group yields to Lebanon’s Dynamo, finishes second in groups

STRONG Group was held to just two points in the last three minutes and absorbed a stinging 89-83 defeat to Dynamo of Lebanon in the 32nd Dubai International Basketball Championship early Thursday at the Al Nasr Club Hall in Dubai, UAE.

The team of coach Charles Tiu led most part of the fourth period but just couldn’t hit the big shots in the end game as the Lebanese crew came away with the victory behind the timely

baskets from import Cleanthony Early.

“It was a tough loss, led 60 percent of the game but fell short in the last few minutes,” said Tiu who pointed to Dynamo’s rock-solid defense as the reason for the team’s first defeat in four games at the close of the elims.

“Their zone really stifled us and slowed us down,” lamented Tiu.

With the loss, Strong Group, owned by Frank and Jacob Lao and backed by Mighty Sports and Acrocity, will face

Of good mindset and better disposition

AS early as now, Sydney Sy’s work is already cut out for her for the whole year. Sy, regarded as the Sambo Queen of Asia and the face of the sport in the country, is set to compete in the 80+ kilograms division of several international competitions beginning in May until mid November.

Sy shared with The Designated Kit Man that her season will officially start with the Southeast Games set in Cambodia from May 5 to 17 before she flies to Bahrain to take part in the Asian Beach Sambo Championships from May 12-13 in Bahrain.

After the Bahrain competitions, Sydney will compete in the Asian Sambo Championships in Kazakhstan in June; Word Beach Games in Bali, Indonesia in August; Open Asian Sambo Championships in South Korea and the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China in September; World Combat Games in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in October; and the World Sambo Championship in Armenia in November 10 to 12. Sydney will call it a season after competing in her last, but most challenging tournament -- the Asian Indoor Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) in Thailand from November 17 to 26, which is probably the most difficult for her. More on this later.

“Excited po ako at the same time, kinaka-

Al Riyadi – the same team Mighty Sports beat for the title three years ago – on Friday morning.

Al Riyadi, who finished third in Group B with 2-1 card, is bannered by several national team players led by Wael Arakji, Amir Saoud, Hayk Gyokchan and import and former NBA second round draft pick AJ Majok.

Dynamo’s zone defense also denied high scoring import Shabazz

bahan, kasi po nasa last semester na po ako sa school. Gusto ko na rin makagraduate on time, kasabay po ng mga ka batch ko,” she said.

Aside from being the reigning Asian sambo champion, Sy is a full-time student of Fitness and Sports Management at the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics of the University of Santo Tomas. Despite this, Sy says she is not letting academic pressure affect her mindset for her coming tournaments.

“Pinaghirapan ko naman po talaga kung ano ang mga naging achievement ko the past few years,” she said.

She is wary, however, of her tough opponents in her weight division. She said she is preparing very hard against her rivals from Kazakhstan, Georgia and Russia–which are the favorites in Sambo competitions.

In between her training, Sy says she finds time to watch her favorite crime and law and order series to relax. She says she is very careful to balance her mental health, along with her daily regimen to further improve her skills and concentration.

She also needs all the help she can get in hurdling the biggest challenge she is facing right now.

“Kailangan ko kasi mag-lose ng 25 kilograms o kalahating sako ng bigas before competing in the AIMAG tournament in Bangkok this November. Kailangan ko pong makabalik sa fighting weight ko noong 2017 kasi sa minus 80 kilograms bracket po ako lalaban,” Sy explained.

But what exactly is sambo? According to my good friend and co-host of our radio program, 3PTS–Pambasang Tambayan ng

over

Muhammad his touches, that hastened the team’s downfall.

It was Early however who emerged as the biggest thorn to the side of the Filipinos, unleashing seven of his 29 points in the final three minutes where Dynamo uncorked an 11-2 finishing kick to steal the game away from the hands of Strong Group.

Renaldo Balkman, who was not feeling well, contributed 10 points and nine rebounds.

a martial art and combat sport that originated from the Soviet Red Army in the 1920s. It was developed to improve their hand-to-hand combat skills. The sport is like judo and jujitsu, but also incorporates wrestling and various selfdefense tactics and styles.

For Sy, she discovered sambo when she was barely in her teens. But like many athletes before her, she knows that she can’t stay forever in the sport. With this in mind, Sy is building up her connections and contacts in the sport with the plan to eventually be a part, or to represent the sport in the International Olympic Committee.

But for now, Sy is eyeing to bring more titles this year for the country. At just 22 years old and with the right mentality, Sy will definitely get better and stronger in the coming years.

Speaking of getting better, Azkals’ midfielder Sandro Reyes has finally found a club in Europe, in Germany to be specific. Reyes will now take his talents and football cleats to SpVgg Greuther Fürth, which competes in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of the German Football League system. Reyes is the first Filipino born in the Philippines to play in Germany. Congratulations, Sandro! Incidentally, the club was the former team of Reyes’ former captain in the national team and football icon Stephan Shrock. While we are on the subject of homegrown talents making waves abroad, a Pinoy footballer is slowly making a name for himself in Brunei. Lester Mesa, who is from Digos, Davao del Sur, has been playing for Ar Rawda FC in League 2 or the District League of the Brunei Super League in the last two years.

“May friend po ako na nag-imbita sa akin two years ago na mag tryout sa Kasuka FC, isang team po sa Brunei Super League. Tinanong kung ano position nilalaro tapos sabi nila sali ako sa tryout ng first team. So sumama po ako,

sinubukan ko po. Eventually, nag-decide po ang team A o ‘yung Kasuka FC na ilagay ako sa Ar Rawda FC, ang sister team po nila na nagkocompete sa League 2,” Mesa said.

To his credit, Mesa is the only Filipino currently playing professional football in Brunei. He started playing for Ar Rawda in May 2022 and was able to help his team reach the finals of the District League. Ar Rawda, however, lost 3-0 to Akse Bernatu in the title game. “‘Di kami pinalad,” he chuckled.

Mesa, who is a teacher at Essential Music in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei’s capital, is a left back but sometimes plays the left wing or attacking midfielder.

Surprisingly, the 34-year-old OFW has not played professional football in the Philippines. He played, however, for Solido FC, a football club in Davao in 2012.

“Nagsimula po talaga ako matututo maglaro ng football sa Mountain View College sa Valencia City, Bukidnon. Pangarap ko po talaga na makapaglaro dati pa sa United Football League (the former name of the Philippines domestic league) noon. Pero hindi po ako nagkaroon ng opportunity,” he explained.

He is just happy that his football career has been given its second wind, of all places, in Brunei.

“It means a lot to me to play here. Noong nandiyan kasi ako sa Pilipinas, pangarap ko talaga magkapaglaro sa mataas na level ng football pero hindi nga natupad. Tapos dito ako nagkaroon ng chance. Masasabi ko mataas ‘yung intensity ng training nila dito. Technically speaking, pati sa fitness and skills marami ako natutunan dito,” Mesa added.

He is hoping to eventually play in Brunei’s top league soon and he is optimistic too that more Filipinos will join him there.

“Kung gugustuhin talaga nila, puwede sila

While some thought Lineker found a way out with the illegal knee, “Hands of Stone” believes that things would’ve been different had they been allowed to fight until the end.

“Other than that, the only thing that hurt was the knee to the rib and then he landed the knee in my groin. If it wasn’t for that illegal move, he would have had to fight me for five rounds. And it would be a war until the end,” he said.

There’s a big difference between scouting from afar and feeling your opponent up close, and that’s exactly why Lineker now believes he has Andrade figured out.

“I noticed some gaps in [Andrade’s] game. I also noticed his strengths, so in some way, it will help. And I certainly won’t take as many hits as I did in the last fight,” he said.

“So, the fact that I’ve already fought him, I believe it can help with some aspects of the fight, like his movement and attacks.”

mag-apply o mag-tryout dito. May mga teams ang naghahanap ng mga player pero kailangan talaga itaas nila ang skills, ang performance at ‘yung determinasyon nila para mabigyan sila ng opportunity. Priority kasi rito mga local players pero kung magaling ka talaga, puwede ang Pinoy maglaro dito,” he said. Mesa’s feat only goes to show that given the opportunity, training and the right attitude, local football players can really compete not only in Thailand or Malaysia but in other parts of the Southeast Asian region as well.

On a personal note, congratulations to Philippine Football Federation President Mariano Araneta. Sir Nonong has secured another four-year term, from 2023 until 2027, as member of AFC and FIFA CouncilFIFA Council of Asia. Sir Nonong needed 23 votes from delegates in the 33rd Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress in Manama, Bahrain recently, but got seven more. After getting his second term, Sir Nonong was appointed as the Chair of the Organizing Committee of the AFC Asian Cup 2023.

If you have time, check Nature Joe’s Trading Inc. products at booth 600, F3 Hall, 2F of the SMX Convention Center, MOA in Pasay City and get your travel essential kits there.

Nature Joe’s is the official sanitizer of the 30th PTAA Travel Tour Expo 2023 which opens today, February 3 and until February 5 at the SMX Convention Center.

And lastly, please don’t forget to watch and tune in this Sunday, February 5, 2023 from 2 to 3 p.m. for another interesting episode of 3PTS–Pambansang Tambayan ng Sports at DZME 1530 KHZ. 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

CYCLE PH LAUNCHED. The Sun Life Cycle PH is all geared up for its grand return with a pre-event bike camp for kids on April 16 at the Quirino Grandstand and the main event on April 23 at the Vermosa Sports Hub in Cavite. Present during the event launch at the Imus City Hall are (from left) Sun Life Brand Strategy & Management head Don Aaron Peji, Sun Life Philippines Chief Client Experience and Marketing O der Carla Gonzalez-Chong, Princess Galura, president and general manager of the organizing The IRONMAN Group/Sunrise Events Inc., Imus City Mayor Alex Advincula, and Jay Teodoro, Estate head of Vermosa Sports Club.

Renaldo Balkman Courtesy of Herbert Iponla

Tom Brady AFP

Reinventing SB19’s Felip PEOPLE

THE night was young but the crowd at a bar in BGC was already hyped up with the presence of a gentleman in urban hip-hop attire ready to introduce his brand of music. His hair was newly dyed and his confidence was oozing— he was serving some bad boy swag.

A few minutes into his performance, the young man said that he was extremely nervous and the cheers and adoration he got from the crowd somehow helped him steady his nerves. His name was Felip, otherwise known as Ken Suson

But we know that Suson is no stranger to the limelight—after all, he is 1/5th of P-pop titans SB19, who recently conquered the world with their Where You At? Tour. There’s no denying their collective success, who are also handson with their personal endeavors.

Suson’s solo music project has been on everyone’s radar since its inception in 2021. His previous releases, “Palayo” and “Bulan,” are punchy and catchy tracks highlighting his straightforward lyricism, vocal range, and proud “Bisdak” heritage. This unique and passionate approach to music sealed a deal with major label Warner Music Philippines for his highlyanticipated EP launch.

Felip is ready to go harder against the grain this year with his single “Rocksta.” He lives up to the rockstar lifestyle for this short yet powerful track- a no-nonsense attitude to his artistry. The 1-minute, 47-second track takes inspiration from hip-hop and R&B music.

“Rocksta” is also a fitting teaser for his debut solo EP, entitled COM • PLEX, which drops today (February 3). Often used to describe something difficult to understand, a complex may also mean a facet of a person’s unconscious, influenced by their thoughts, emotions, and experiences.

“It talks about being confident. There are times that we feel down, but as artists, I hope that we don’t forget to still hold the microphone. As for me, it’s my passion and I don’t want to lose it,” Felip said of the song.

e young artist daringly taps into the complexities of his emotions for lyrical direction with his solo debut EP. The

…are talking about

Janine Gutierrez

IF there’s one thing Filipinos love to see on their small screens, it’s a compelling drama filled with revelations and explosive emotions. ABS-CBN and Dreamscapes Dirty Linen seem to bring that and more as viewers can’t help but tune in to the story’s progression. Janine has also been receiving praise from audiences on social media as they found her portrayal of the lead character moving and inspiring despite the dangers she faces. Safe to say, they can’t wait to see Lotlot’s daughter exact revenge on people who “killed” her mom in the series.

Dina Bonnevie

THE veteran actress finally told the truth about her encounter with Alex Gonzaga in an episode of Fast Talk with Boy Abunda

According to Dina, their costars, Gabby Concepcion , Iñigo Pascual, and Nadine Lustre elected her as spokesperson to call out a young Alex about her professionalism. Even though the issue was a decade ago, Dina still recalls it and made sure it was a teaching moment for Alex. She continues to call out any of the actress’s missteps on social media, though, because who can get past THE Dina Bonnevie?

…are not talking about

McCoy de Leon HIS split with Elisse Joson didn’t last long, as photos of them strolling around in public with their daughter surfaced on social media. Even McCoy’s social media only focuses on their family now. Nonetheless, netizens, who were once noisy about their separation, are mum about their reconciliation. Maybe they’re respecting the couple’s privacy as they work toward fixing their relationship and creating a stronger bond for their family.

Paolo Contis

six-track record is predominantly hiphop with touches of R&B and trap music and takes listeners on a journey beyond the blinding lights of the stage and into his psyche as an artist.

The EP also encourages listeners to be in tune with themselves, embrace their complexities, and know that they’re one-

of-a-kind. Even with the solo project, he remains active in SB19, and he’s happy to have the ever-loyal A’TIN’s support.

“I have so many people who support me in this musical journey. They help me make things possible even though they seem so impossible at first. It’s all because of them – my supporters

‘It’s Showtime’ Sexy Babe wins Miss Fit Philippines 2022

JACKELAINE Adarayan Fleming, a 22-year-old Psychology student, edged out 27 other candidates during Coronation Night of Miss Fit Philippines 2022, held at Palazzo Verde, Vista Alabang, in Las Piñas City on Tuesday.

Fleming, who works as a teacher aid at First United Methodist Preschool in Durango, Colorado, won It’s Showtime’s “Sexy Babe of the Day” in May 2022 and attended ABS-CBN’s Star Magic acting workshop. A native of Calbayog City, Samar, she was crowned by Miss Fit Philippines 2021 Yllana Marie Aduana

Aliya Clemena Rohilla of Albay and Juvyel Anne G. Saluta of Manila City finished 1st and 2nd runners-up, respectively. Also named as runners-up were Larsine Grace Jensen of Bohol and Arrieana Beron of San Pedro, Laguna.

Miss FIT Philippines 2022, presented by The Belle Salon and Promedia, is a beauty pageant for holistic fitness and advocates fitness of the soul and body headed by Paul Izon Reyes and Jam Aquino. The show was directed by Rodin Gilbert Flores * * * Candidates of Miss Supermodel Philippines 2023 named

Miss Supermodel Philippines 2023, dubbed the biggest modeling-beauty pageant search in the country, presented its fifteen official candidates during the final callback held at One

Shangri-La Place, in Mandaluyong City.

Miss Supermodel Philippines, headed by JJ Maghirang III, Chairman and franchise owner, and Mae Evelyn Maghirang, National Director, aims to empower women, elevate Philippine pageantry, and showcase ‘Beauty in Motion.’

The fifteen candidates are Clytemestra Juan, Aileen Santiago, Erika Ballon, Karla Majam, Ryzah Ortiz, Chloe Guatno, Mariah Nilo, Jireh Calacala, Alexia Villa, Marinella Catangay, Floriane Lajara, Joize Passion, Shyrla Nuñez, Imogene Belles, and Querubin Gonzales.

The winner of Supermodel Philippines 2023 will represent the country at the 4th Miss Supermodel Worldwide 2023, to be held in India in April. The Philippines’ Alexandra Rosales won Miss Supermodel Worldwide 2022, in Jaipur, India in October 2023.

and my friends. I wanted to share this music with them as a gift,” Felip shared adding that the EP was supposed to be released in January. COM • PLEX EP includes the tracks “Superiority,” “Mic Test,” “Drink Smoke,” “Criminal,” and “Stray Dogs.”

DonBelle serves up ‘kilig’ moments in new TVC

VALENTINE’S Day came early for ‘DonBelle’ fans as Smart Prepaid recently put together the ‘new generation phenomenal love team’ of Donny Pangilinan and Belle Mariano in a swoonworthy TVC filled with kilig moments.

DonBelle turns up the romance in the 30-second TVC showing simple moments that matter to them the most - like taking silly selfies, letting loose with a TikTok dance, and immersing in a movie - as they enjoy each other’s company.

Asked about the moments that matter most to them, DonBelle couldn’t help but agree with each other.

“My hope is that I am able to go through this year balancing work and staying connected with family and loved ones - not to mention all the extra things I still want to do on the side,” said Donny.

“I have to agree with Donny because nothing beats spending quality time with your loved ones. And it doesn’t always have to be grand - it can be as simple as having coffee, sharing funny memes, or a call to cap the day, it’s really the thought that makes every moment special,” said Belle.

MANY people consider financial support a father’s duty to his children. But not Paolo. He admitted he doesn’t give any money to his three children but promises he’s saving up for something they can use in the future. While that still falls under financial support, in the long run, his children may not fully appreciate his efforts if he remains estranged from them. If not through financial support, he could find other ways to be present.

In a recent interview for Star Magic’s Inside News, the love team eagerly shared their wishes for the year ahead.

Sana ngayong 2023 ay mas ma-strech pa ako in terms of learning my craft. [I also want to] spend more time with friends and family as well. ... and travel more,” Donny said.

“I hope 2023 is full of positivity and happiness not just for me but for everyone else,” Belle said.

Just like the ‘DonBelle’, you can also fully live in moments that matter most with Power All 99, which comes with 8 GB for all sites and apps, Unli TikTok, and Unli Texts to All Networks valid for 7 days for only P99.

With Power All 99, you have more data to easily access all your go-to websites and productivity apps so that you can spend more quality time with your loved ones. You can also use it to share updates on social media, make catch-up video calls, or send funny memes and messages to family and friends.

The promo also comes with Unli TikTok, so you can enjoy watching and sharing trending videos from your favorite content creators.

You can also register to Power All 149, which comes with a bigger allocation of 12 GB of data for all sites, Unli TikTok, and Unli Calls to All Networks.

To know more about Smart Prepaid’s Power All offers, visit smart.com.ph/Prepaid/PowerAll.

SB19’s Felip, aka Ken Suson

Felip has a unique and passionate approach to music which his fans love

His latest single, ‘Rocksta,’ talks about being con dent as an artist

The young artist explores the complexities of his emotions for lyrical direction with his solo debut EP

Felip hyping up the audience

The winners of Miss Fit Philippines

The ‘new generation phenomenal love team’ of Donny Pangilinan (left) and Belle Mariano

Nickie Wang Editor Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant E-mail: lifeandshow.manilastandard@gmail.com

Real talk with the real deal

WHEN it comes to matters of the heart, it takes a real friend (or a pushy one!) to knock some sense into us. With the rise of social media, there is no need to look further as popular content creator Darbie Kim Estrebilla or Darbs takes it upon himself to drop the sugarcoating and give us THE talk we deserve. Darbs’ passion to help gave birth to “Real Talk Darbs.”

Before being a go-to online figure for life and love advice, Kuya Darbs, as he is fondly called, tried to pursue a career in the Middle East. He worked as a key account sales executive in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In his early 30s, Darbs is successful in shifting gears and embracing an online platform well-received worldwide. Delving into real and serious con-

cerns, Darbs’ “Pagod Ka Na Bang Maging OFW?” (Are You Tired of Being an OFW?) became a hit. In the episode, he addressed our kababayans or overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and gave them a list of reasons why they should not give up easily.

“One changed soul is worth more than a billion views. I intend to just give value to my audience in every content and video I produce. To tell you the truth, I am not just after virality or huge online traffic,” Darbs said. “If you’re doing content creation just for the fame and money, you are setting yourself up for possible failure,” he added, mincing no words.

“Every video I upload is meant to save at least one soul. I guess that’s the reason why people follow me. They see and feel that intention,” the passionate host emphasized. True enough, a note from a viewer who almost attempted to end his life is proof of how Darbs was able to save someone from giving up. “Sincerity and intentionality, aside from consistency, are crucial,” he echoed.

If there’s anything consistent and impressive about Darbs, it is his passion for what he does. He loves his craft so much that he even thought of spreading the joy to others. He founded RTD Creator Academy and RTD Creatives where he shares his content-creating expertise with aspiring creators through his academy, live talks, and speaking engagements.

As if being a hit online figure and branding guru is not enough, Darbs is also a published book author (The Ultimate Guide of Moving On, Is it Worth It?, and Heartbreak to Breakthrough) and a love advice expert. He backs his

Conrad Manila appoints new GM

CONRAD Manila welcomes the New Year with well-curated touches of luxury, inspired stays, and culinary offers, led by General Manager Fabio Berto

Since September 2022, Berto has been overseeing the day-to-day operations of the 347-room luxury hotel strategically located in the heart of the bustling Mall of Asia Complex adjacent the Manila Bay.

“We are excited to welcome the New Year with Fabio Berto as General Manager and look forward to him building on the strong foundation we have at Conrad Manila. His valuable leadership adds to the property and upholds our commitment to providing our guests

with intuitive service and infinite connections in a world of style,” said Jamie Mead, Senior Director, Operations, Southeast Asia.

With more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Berto began his career as an F&B Commis de Rang in Switzerland which was soon followed by continued advancements in both hotel role and responsibility across several luxury properties in France and London. Berto soon joined Hilton London Metropole in 2003 as its Director of Sales before moving on to Hilton West London Cluster, Rome Cavalieri Waldorf Astoria, and Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund as a Commercial

Director. Prior to his latest appointment, Berto served as the General Manager of Hilton Niseko Village in Japan.

“I am delighted to welcome our guests this New Year and continue providing them with heartfelt hospitality, well-curated culinary adventures, and industry-leading innovations,” shared Berto.

Conrad Manila, the premier haven for smart luxury by Manila Bay, indulges guests with stunning interiors and décor, exceptional amenities, and panoramic views of the bay and its storied sunset. The hotel features three upscale dining outlets, an award-winning luxury spa, and an outdoor pool. It is also fitted with a pillar-less Grand Ballroom that can accommodate up to 1,000 guests, as well as five other multi-functional event spaces, all equipped with modern A/V technology, high-speed Internet access, and intelligent lighting.

Conrad Manila is part of Hilton Honors, the award-winning guest-loyalty program for Hilton’s 18 world-class brands. Members who book directly through Hilton’s direct channels have access to instant benefits, including a flexible payment slider that allows members to choose nearly any combination of Hilton Honors Points and cash to book a stay, free standard WiFi, and an exclusive member discount that is only available through this channel. Members also enjoy popular digital tools available exclusively through the industry-leading Hilton Honors mobile app where Hilton Honors members can check-in, choose their room, and access their room using a Digital Key.

For inquiries and reservations, please call +63 2 8833 9999, email conradmanila@conradhotels.com, or visit www. conradmanila.com

books up and online videos with individual and group heart-healing sessions. He is that kind of virtual big brother who gives you the bitter pill to swallow but also hands you a drink to wash it down.

Since it’s Valentine’s season, I asked Darbs what love advice a la Real Talk he would give to anyone if given a chance. He gave answers for two categories and said, “For those who are in a relationship, take the chance to love truly and deeply. Make the other person feel what he or she is supposed to feel. Show them the kind of love you can give because, in the end, there are only two things than can happen. First, you’ll end up together which makes it all worth it, or second, you’ll break up but also realize the other person is not worth pursuing.”

“For those who are single. Learn to celebrate this occasion,” Darbs shared. “Celebrate your strength, celebrate your vulnerability, celebrate you.”

Darbs also added, “Being single teaches you one thing, how to be happy alone first so that having a companion is just a notion. Remember that you are worthy to be loved, taken care of, and not treated like an option.” He finds value in hammering these into our heads as two of the top concerns from his viewers are having a third party in a relationship and the difficulty of moving on and getting back with a cheating ex.

“Until you learn the art of being hap -

py alone, you will never know if you are choosing someone out of love or out of loneliness,” Darbs added. Asked how he handles people questioning him for giving relationship advice when he is single, Darbs laughed it off and replied, “’Cause coaches don’t play!” This is real talk right here, the kind you need to hear this love month.

Put on your dancing shoes

SUNSHINE Place takes Line Dancing a notch higher as it introduces American Line Dancing (LDVALI) workshop that will be conducted in person on the 4th floor of the Sunshine Place building in Makati City. The four-session workshop will be held from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on February 9, 14, 16, and 21. The dance class is open for beginners, dance enthusiasts, or anyone who just wants to have fun.

Line Dancing is for everyone who enjoys dancing and exercising. It can be done with or without a partner. LDVALI uses a unique program and methodology that help students of various skill levels learn while having fun exercising via the low-impact approach.

In this special course, students will learn at least 12 dances, covering the basics of American line dancing, developing it, and applying it to various progressions of Latin dances such as Rumba and Foxtrot.

The special dance class will be han-

dled by V. Allen Isidro, a visiting dance instructor from California, who has been teaching his progressive series in the City of Millbrae Recreation Department. Isidro is part of a group that founded American Line Dancing (LDVALI) in 2009 in Napa, California. Since then, he has developed the low-impact exercise program into multiple progressive series and classes.

In 2014, he headed the pilot program for seniors & adults on wheelchairs with or without dementia, which was introduced in select private retirement facilities. By 2017, the program is named Music & Motion and has now evolved & reached the public senior centers in the US. He currently teaches the LDVALI progressive series as an in-house program through the City of Millbrae Recreation Department.

For inquiries and enrolment, please contact 0917 801-6440 or email hello@ sunshineplaceph.com

Sunshine Place introduces American Line Dancing (LDVALI) through a four-session workshop

Darbie Kim Estrebilla or Darbs is the go-to online figure for life and love advice

Darbs loves his craft so much that he even thought of spreading the joy to others

Single people should also learn to celebrate the occasion by focusing on themselves

Darbs advises those in relationships to make the other person feel loved

Couples must take the chance to love truly and deeply