Manila Standard - 2023 December 2 - Saturday

twitter.com/ MlaStandard

facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH

instagram.com/ manilastandard

Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation

manilastandard.net Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net

For advertisement: email: advertise@manilastandard.net • 85646229

NTC, broadcasters see potential SMNI violations with Speaker jab

By Rio N. Araja THE National Telecommunications Commission and the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas identified potential violations by Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) after one

of its anchors claimed Speaker Martin Romualdez spent P1.8 billion on travel in a year, an allegation debunked by officials of the House of Representatives based on their official records.

The allegation made by SMNI host Next page

VOL. XXXVII • NO. 290 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023 •

‘Exec action enough for ICC’ De Lima asserts only Marcos can reverse ‘unilateral’ withdrawal

By Rey E. Requejo and Macon Ramos-Araneta

ORMER senator Leila de Lima said Friday an executive action would be enough for the Philippines to rejoin the International Criminal Court since its withdrawal did not benefit the country but only served the interest of one man: former President Rodrigo Duterte.

F

“An executive action would suffice, because, in the first place, the withdrawal [from the ICC] was unilateral,” De Lima said in an interview on ANC Friday.

She offered this assessment in response to Senator Ronald dela Rosa’s statement that even if current President Marcos decided to rejoin the ICC, this would need the concurrence of the Senate.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and former Senate president Franklin Drilon had disputed Dela Rosa’s statement, saying this was the President’s decision alone since the Senate resolution that expressed its concurrence with the Rome Statute had never been repealed.

“Why would it be so difficult to rejoin ICC when the withdrawal there Next page

Fighting resumes in Gaza; 30 OFWs back from Israel ISRAEL'S military said Friday it had resumed fighting in Gaza, with airstrikes and artillery fire reported in Gaza City, as a truce expired with no agreement to extend it.

"Hamas violated the operational pause, and in addition, fired toward Israeli territory," the Israeli military said.

"The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) has resumed combat against the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip."

The announcement came shortly after the military said it had intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza, the first from the territory since a missile launched minutes into the first day of the truce.

Inside Gaza, an Agence FrancePresse (AFP) journalist said Israeli warplanes carried out a series of strikes and reported artillery fire in Gaza City.

Drones could also be heard in the air over the south of the territory for Next page

‘BE WARY OF CHINA’. National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano (center) answers questions from the media – saying that China was ‘creating divisions’ among Filipinos —on Pag-Asa Island, where the Philippine Coast Guard opened its newest building (inset) to help monitor activities in the West Philippine Sea. AFP

Coast Guard station on Pag-Asa Is. to monitor China vessels real-time THE Philippines said Friday it was establishing a coast guard station on the largest island it holds in the disputed South China Sea to improve monitoring of Chinese vessels asserting Beijing's claims in the waters.

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año made the announcement during avisit to Pag-asa Island, which is part of the hotly contested Spratly Islands.

The coast guard station would be equipped with "advanced Next page

Inflation in Nov. seen dropping to low of 4 percent

By Julito G. Rada

SORRY, PINOYS IN UAE. In a video message, President Marcos apologizes to the Filipino community that gathered in Dubai,

United Arab Emirates to welcome the PH delegation to the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) on Thursday. Mr. Marcos canceled his trip to Dubai to oversee the negotiations of 17 Filipino seamen held hostage by Yemeni rebels on a ship in the Red Sea (see story on A2). PCO Photo

CPP-NDF to gov’t: Free consultants, political prisoners before peace talks

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

NEW TOURISM ENVOY. Miss Universe Philippines 2023 Michelle Marquez Dee (left) waves as the Department of Tourism named her as Tourism Ambassador during her courtesy call to Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco in Makati City on Friday.

Norman Cruz

HUMAN rights groups pushed for the release of peace consultants and political prisoners as peace talks between the government and the Communist Party of the PhilippinesNational Democratic Front are set to resume after being stalled for the past six years.

“There’s really a need to do that and I think it is a must for the BBM (Marcos) administration especially since they need people to talk to at the negotiating table,” Karapatan secretary-general

Cristina Palabay said in a press briefing yesterday.

“If there are no consultants, how can the technical working groups and committees work in order to discuss the rules?” she added.

Palabay said the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees should likewise be revived.

Karapatan counted 795 political prisoners as of Nov. 30, 2023, of which 17 are from the NDF, including Edilberto Silva, Vic Ladlad, Rey Casambre, and Loida Magpatoc.

Next page

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said inflation in November likely eased further to as low as 4 percent from 4.9 percent a month ago on the back of lower prices of food and fuel products as well as the stronger peso.

In a statement, BSP projected the November 2023 inflation to settle within the range of 4.0 to 4.8 percent.

"Higher prices of most agricultural commodities like rice, fruit, fish, and meat items and adjustments in electricity, LPG, and toll rates are the primary sources of upward price pressures in November," BSP said.

"Meanwhile, lower prices of vegetables and petroleum products along with the peso appreciation could contribute to downward price pressures," it said.

Inflation in October slowed to a three-month low of 4.9 percent from Next page

PBBM TAPS TEAM FOR HOSTAGE TALKS NEWS / A2

MIXED MOVEMENT FOR OIL PRICES SEEN NEWS / A2

NEWS

A2

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

PBBM taps team for hostage talks In a video message, the President said the government is exhausting all possibilities to secure the release of the Filipinos.

“That's why we are forming a delegation to talk to those who are holding them

so they can go home. I'm sure you would understand that we put that first because we have to ensure the security of our countrymen,” the President said in Filipino.

The President was set to participate in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, but he canceled his trip to attend to the situation of the captive seafarers personally.

“You know some things need immediate attention. One of those is our fellow Filipinos who are being held hostage.

There are 17 of them being held hostage and we are doing everything we can to bring them home,” he said.

He said he hoped the Filipino community in Dubai would understand his deci-

‘Exec...

to submit a legal position to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“But as a member of the cabinet, VP Sara has no business submitting such legal opinion in her capacity as DepEd Secretary. The ICC matter has nothing to do with the DepEd,” De Lima said.

“Second, if she is submitting her legal opinion in her capacity as VP, then she is accomplishing precisely the very opposite of her admonition that we should respect the President's position, bypreempting the finality of said position even when she has no authority to do so,” she added.

“In her capacity as VP, she is not a member of the Cabinet, and therefore has no role whatsoever in shaping foreign policy at the Cabinet level.”

Meanwhile, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra on Friday said it would be up to the DOJ and the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to allow prosecutors from the ICC into the country to investigate former President Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.

Guevarra said he saw no reason to prevent ICC officials from entering the country, but said the BI must decide, with guidance from the DOJ,whether to authorize that entry.

Philippine immigration laws, he added, have “a wide latitude of discretion on the part of our immigration authorities to admit or not to admit certain persons whom they think may be considered as undesirable.”

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said the government would

consider it a crime if members of the ICC came into the country to investigate the drug war.

But that was before President Marcos softened his own stand on the ICC last month, raising the possibility of rejoining the international agency that his predecessor, Duterte, had quit.

Early in his term, President Marcos maintained the government would not cooperate with the ICC, saying there were no legal grounds to do so, especially after the country’s withdrawal from membership took effect in 2019.

But Guevarra this week said “cooperating despite the absence of a legal duty is a political decision that only the President can make.”

He also said the Commission on Human Rights would not be prevented from cooperating with ICC officials since it is an independent body.

A DOJ official said Friday that President Marcos and Remulla have yet to discuss rejoining the ICC. "I don't believe that the secretary and the President have spoken yet," Justice Assistant Secretary Mico Clavano said in a press briefing. “[The ICC question is] something that is way above my pay level so I believe it's something that has to be discussed between the secretary and the President," Clavano added.

On Thursday, the House committees on justice and on human rights adopted resolutions calling on the government to cooperate with the ICC probe of the thousands of deaths associated with

Duterte’s war on drugs.

A similar resolution was filed by Senator Risa Hontiveros.

Asked if there was any official communication between Marcos and the DOJ regarding the ICC, Clavano said no.

Marcos initially said the Philippines was done talking with the ICC, and that the international court has no jurisdiction over the Philippines as the country has already withdrawn from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC. But the President recently softened his stance, saying the prospect of rejoining the ICC was under study.

Following this statement, Remulla said he would meet with Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin to clarify the government’s position on its membership in the ICC. Duterte allies such as Dela Rosa— who led the bloody war on drugs as police chief—have spoken vehemently against rejoining the ICC. Senator Christopher Go, a longtime aide to the former President, on Friday said rejoining the ICC would be an affront to the Philippine justice system, which he said is working.

Echoing Duterte, he said Filipinos should be judged only by fellow Filipinos before Philippine courts operating under Philippine laws.

The former president’s daughter, VP Sara Duterte, has also been vocal in opposing the moves to cooperate with and rejoin the ICC.

KBP Vice President for Legal and Regulatory Compliance Group Rudolph Jularbal said a possible violation by SMNI is for allowing unaccredited announcers, such as Celiz and co-host Lorraine Badoy, to go on air.

Jularbal said Celiz and Badoy were not accredited as anchors, contravening KBP rules.

He said KBP member-networks mandate lectures on the code of ethics for anchors and reporters, along with an accreditation exam.

In response to the possibility of a KBP investigation, Jularbal said: "Considering the information gathered during this hearing, I will report to the standards authority of KBP." “In the context of what has been presented and of which I am informed of this hearing, the network is lacking in obser-

vance of the Code of Conduct,” he added.

Jularbal said the KBP is also investigating complaints against SMNI related to fake news and red-tagging.

Celiz told lawmakers that his source was a male Senate employee, buthe declined to identify his source, citing a law that safeguards journalists from being compelled to disclose their news sources.

“Why did the source come from the Senate? That is a big question mark to me and I think of my colleagues" said House Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio Gonzales Jr. in response to Celiz's revelation.

Quezon Rep. David Suarez added: "Due to the revelations of Ka Eric, I think we are treading on very dangerous waters when it comes to interparliamentary relationship with the Senate."

House Secretary General Reginald

Velasco and Deputy Secretary General for Finance Dante Roberto Maling presented the financial report on foreign travel expenses for the entire chamber.

The report showed that from January to October this year, the total expenditure was only P39.6 million, which included P4.3 million for the Office of the Speaker—way below the P1.8 billion travel expenses claimed by Celiz.

Paranaque City 2nd District Rep. Gus Tambunting, head of the House franchise panel, highlighted the importance of fair and accurate news reporting, referencing the Broadcaster’s Code of the Philippines as guide for media practitioners.

He said while free speech and press freedom are constitutional rights, the allocation of TV and radio frequencies is subject to the authority of Congress over legislative franchises.

lands close to the shores of its neighbours, and has ignored an international tribunal decision that its assertion has no legal basis.

It deploys vessels to patrol the waters, and has built artificial islands and military installations to reinforce its stance.

The Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam have also stakedclaims to various islands and reefs in the sea that is believed to have rich petroleum reserves deep beneath its waters.

Relations between Manila and Beijing have frayed in recent months over a series of incidents in the waters, including two collisions between Philippine and Chinese boats, with the countries trading blame.

Año accused Chinese coast guard and other vessels of engaging in "illegal" and "aggressive" behavior towards Filipino fishermen and patrol boats.

Rio Araja and Vince Lopez

Inflation...

rate, import prices, and overall inflation.

The next policy meeting by the Monetary Board is on Dec. 14. “[A] pause on local policy rates [is] also a possibility, especially if the peso exchange rate is relatively stable, global crude oil prices continue the easing trend, and headline inflation eases further towards the BSP’s inflation target of 2 percent to 4 percent,” Ricafort said.

On Nov. 16, the BSP kept the overnight borrowing rate steady at 6.5 percent amid the slowdown in inflation in October and the stronger gross domestic product expansion in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, the third-quarter GDP growth of 5.9 percent from 4.3 percent a quarter ago supported the view that the country's medium-term growth prospects remained largely intact, even as pent-up demand continued to diminish in the near term.

By Charles Dantes and Rio N. Araja

P

RESIDENT Marcos on Friday ordered the formation of a delegation to negotiate with the captors of the 17 Filipino seafarers held hostage by Yemeni rebels in a ship in the Red Sea.

From A1

from was highly suspect, serving only the interest of one man who obviously just wanted to evade accountability?” De Lima, jailed under the Duterte administration for more than six years, said.

De Lima said the Philippines acknowledged the wisdom behind the Rome Statute that established the ICC when the Senate ratified the international treaty in 2011.

“So why perpetuate Duterte's selfserving and shameless act of withdrawal?” De Lima asked.

“Those who oppose rejoining the ICC are only serving the interest ofDuterte and others who are responsible for the murder of thousands of our countrymen,” she added.

De Lima also criticized the statement of Vice President Sara Duterte, the former president’s daughter, on the administration’s possible cooperation with the ICC on her father’s bloody drug war.

“All told, the Dutertes of Davao are not the best resource persons for the administration in deciding whether or not to cooperate in the ICCinvestigation, considering that they are the ones being investigated for their role in the operation of a death squad in Davao City during the period within the scope of said investigation,” she said.

VP Duterte, she continued, is actually undermining the presidential prerogative to rejoin the ICC by saying she intends

NTC,...

From A1

Jeffrey "Ka Eric" Celiz in the SMNI program "Laban Kasama Ang Bayan" was discussed during Thursday's House committee on legislative franchises hearing.

“There appears to be infractions on certain provisions of the franchise, particularly the reference provision on Section 4 on the responsibility of the franchisee not to use the station or its facilities for the dissemination of willful or false information,” NTC Deputy Commissioner Alvin Blanco said.

Blanco was referring to the provision in Republic Act No. 11422, which granted a 25-year franchise renewal in 2019 to SMNI, legally operating as Swara Sug Media Corp. of the Philippines.

Coast...

From A1

systems," including radar, satellite communication, coastal cameras and vessel traffic management, Año said.

The station has been built and is expected to be operational early next year.

"These systems will greatly enhance the Philippine Coast Guard's ability to monitor the movements of the Chinese maritime forces, other countries that might be coming here, and also as well as our own public vessels and aircraft," he said.

The collection of real-time data would have "an impact on the behavior" of rival claimants, especially the Chinese, Año said, hailing it as a "game changer".

Beijing claims most of the South China Sea, including waters and is-

Fighting...

From A1

the first time since the truce, an AFP reporter in the area said.

The resumption of fighting dashed hopes for an extension of a seven-day truce that had seen dozens of hostages freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoner releases by Israel.

The truce also allowed more aid into the ravaged Gaza Strip.

More Filipinos return A 10th batch of Filipinos repatriated from Israel, composed of 30 caregivers and hotel staff workers, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration offered the returning workers a repatriation assistance package of P50,000 each to address the needs of their families

and help them transition smoothly back to their daily lives.

Meanwhile, Gelienor Jimmy Pacheco and Noralyn Babadilla — the two hostages recently released from Hamas captivity remain in Israel and have been visited by Philippine embassy officials.

On Thursday, US top diplomat Antony Blinken, meeting Israeli and Palestinian officials, called for the pause in hostilities to be extended and warned that any resumption of combat must protect Palestinian civilians.

The truce had paused fighting that began on Oct. 7 when Hamas terrorists broke through Gaza's militarized border into Israel.

The surprise attack killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and militants kidnapped about 240, according to Israeli authorities.

From A1

6.1 percent a month ago, pulled down by slower increases in the prices of food and nonalcoholic beverages.

The BSP continues to monitor developments affecting the outlook for inflation and growth in line with its data dependent approach to monetary policy formulation.

Earlier, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the BSP might consider pausing again during its last policy meeting for the year, especially if inflation decelerates further and the peso remains stable.

Ricafort said the BSP could also match the next Federal Reserve rate decision on Dec. 13, 2023 to maintain healthy interest rate differentials to help support/stabilize the peso exchange

CPP-NDF...

From A1

Bayan Muna chairman Neri Colmenares and executive vicepresident Carlos Zarate welcomed the decision to revive the peace talks "with guarded optimism."

"We hope that this resumption of the peace talks would continue until the causes of the armed conflict would finally be addressed to attain just and lasting peace for the country," said Zarate.

"With the myriad of challenges being encountered by Filipinos today from the climate crisis, low wages, runaway inflation, education crisis, China's incursion in our territory, the

sion and apologized for not seeing them.

“It’s really sad because I was looking forward to being with you,” he said in his video message, noting that meeting overseas Filipinos were the “happiest” engagements he has had during his previous foreign trips.

He also said the government is addressing the situation of Filipinos affected by the war between Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas.

Many, he said, have already returned to the Philippines safely, with the assistance of various government agencies.

equally dangerous US militarist and interventionist policy, among others, we trust that this agreement of jumpstarting the stalled talks would eventually lead to its logical end – that is a political settlement for the betterment of our country," he added.

Colmenares appealed to both the military and the police to support the peace process.

"The Filipino people want a just and lasting peace by addressing the roots of the conflict. Let’s give peace a chance.

The Filipino people want a just and lasting peace, the Filipino people need a just and lasting peace," he added.

For his part, Senator Jinggoy Estrada said the consensus to resume the suspended peace talks is a major stride toward progress. With AFP

De Lima vs. ex-DOJ chiefs now up to Ombudsman

By Charles Dantes and Rey Requejo THE Department of Justice said it is up to the Office of the Ombudsman to resolve the criminal and administrative complaints filed by former senator Leila de Lima against two former justice secretaries.

DOJ Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic Clavano IV said De Lima is free to do what she wants as long as these are within her rights.

"She has her rights. She’s at liberty to do what she wants. The justice system worked for her, and I believe it will work again.

That’s always been our stance. We have a working justice system. So ifshe does things that are well within her rights, who are we to stop her?” he said.

“There are always two sides to the same coin. De Lima may have her claims, but on the other side, the former justice secretaries have also had their stance on the issue,” he added.

Clavano said the DOJ will “just have to leave it to the proper forum.”

The Court of Appeals had reversed for lack of due process the ruling of the Ombudsman which dismissed in 2019 the criminal and administrative complaints filed by De Lima against then Justice Secretaries Vitaliano Aguirre II and Menardo Guevarra, now Solicitor General.

Mixed movement for fuel prices next week—DOE

By Alena Mae S. Flores OIL consumers face mixed price movements next week as gasoline products are expected to increase, while diesel products are seen going down.

Industry sources said gasoline would go up by P0.25 to P0.45 per liter while diesel may go down by P0.20 to P0.40 per liter.

Kerosene prices may not move or may increase only by P0.10 per liter, the source told the Standard.

“There will be mixed movements in the prices of petroleum products next week,” Department of Energy (DOE) director for the Oil Industry Management Bureau Rodela Romero said.

She said the latest price hike can be attributed to speculations the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies will deepen supply cuts based on their proposed output policy.

Romero said the rise is compounded by a storm-related drop in Kazakhstan oil output and the softer US dollar and decline in US inventories.

On Nov. 28, local oil companies rolled back prices for diesel and kerosene by P0.30 and P0.65 per liter, respectively.

Gasoline prices did not move.

IN BRIEF Plane with 2 aboard missing in Isabela A PIPER PA-32-300 aircraft with two persons on board went missing in Isabela after departing from Cauayan Airport on Thursday.

The aircraft, with registry number RP-C1234, left Cauayan around 9:39 a.m. on Nov. 30 and was supposed to arrive at Palanan Airport at 10:23 a.m.

An incident command system (ICS) has been activated by Search and Rescue (SAR) units for the missing plane owned by Fliteline Airways and operated by Cyclone Airways, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines spokesman Eric Apolonio said police officers and personnel from the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, and Bureau of Fire Protection will join the emergency activation of the ICS for the SAR operations.

Apolonio said a team of 32 police personnel is currently investigating in Barangay Casala, San Mariano, Isabela, and is on the way to locate the plane.

“The last communication with Cauayan Tower was around 9:50 am Thursday morning,” said Apolonio, as reports showed that the plane’s last known position was the “last blip captured by Flight Radar 24.” Joel E. Zurbano

‘No need for DBP to remit earnings’ THE Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) will no longer remit to the government a mandated percentage of its 2022 earnings after President Marcos slashed the state-run lender’s dividend rate to zero percent.

The move was meant to strengthen the bank’s capital position and comply with the central bank’s regulations, the Palace said Friday.

In a news release, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said Marcos, through Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, issued Executive Order No. 48 on November 28, 2023 containing the new policy.

The EO adjusted the percentage of net earnings to be declared and remitted by DBP for Calendar Year 2022 from 50% to 0%.

Under Republic Act (RA) No. 7656, all government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs) are required to declare and remit 50% of their annual net earnings as cash, stock, or property dividends to the national government.

NEWS

A3

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

PH to get P10m grant for disease prepareness THE Philippines is among the five Asian nations set to receive $10 million (approximately P554 million) in Japanese grant earmarked to strengthen country’s preparedness against COVID-19 and other “emerging diseases.’’

The funds will be coursed through the Asia-Europe Foundation’s (ASEF) Stockpile Project for Strengthening Preparedness and Response to COVID-19 and Other Emerging Diseases, the Japanese Embassy in Manila said Thursday.

The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) will implement the project in other member-countries of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM); namely, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Pakistan.

“Japan’s support through this grant reflects its dedication to international collaboration and solidarity, especially in addressing critical health issues that affect communities across Asia and Europe,” the Japanese Embassy said.

“The ASEF Stockpile Project serves as a testament to the on-going partnership between Japan and the ASEF in promoting global health security and resilience,” it added.

The grant was meant to facilitate the procurement and distribution of essential medical equipment and supplies such as pulse-oximeters, oxygen concentrators, cold-chain equipment for vaccines and other medical devices, COVID rapid testing kits, personal protective equipment, and medicines, among others.

UNITY VS. AIDS.

The Quezon City government under Mayor Joy Belmonte launches “Strength in Solidarity, Together for QC Zero in 2030.

Bahagi ka ng Solusyon!” drive geared at totally combatting AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) in conjunction with the observance of World AIDS Day. The campaign calls for the composition of the Quezon City AIDS Council, formulation of an action plan, creation of a technical working group to monitor and ensuring that the action plan is implemented and funded, and strengthening the Service Delivery Network for People Living with HIV (PLHIV) and their families. Manny Palmero

Gov’t sets rules on construction of telecoms, internet facilities T

HE government has set the rules on the construction of telecommunication and internet facilities in a bid to bolster state control and regulation over the industry.

The Technical Working Group (TWG) on Telecommunications and Internet Infrastructure issued a memorandum circular (MC) setting the rules and regulations of Executive Order (EO) 32, which sought to streamline the processes for the construction of telecommunications and Internet infrastructures.

The task force consisted of five line government agencies. Signatories to the MC were secretaries Ivan John Uy of theDepartment of Information and

Communications Technology, Manuel Bonoan of the Department of Public Works and Highways, and Benjamin Abalos Jr. of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Commissioner Ella Blanca Lopez of the National Telecommunications Commission; and Director General Ernesto Perez of the Anti-Red Tape Authority.

“These Implementing Rules and Regulations are hereby promulgated and issued as Joint Memorandum Circular No. 2023-01

(LGUs) involved in the issuance of permits, licenses, clearances, certifications, and authorizations.

EO 32 also created the TWG on Telecommunications and Internet Infrastructure that formulated the IRR. Under the IRR, a unified application form will be adopted, in which, preformatted form building permit applications shall be prescribed in all cities and municipalities in the country.

Those applying for a building permit shall be required to submit property documents, technical documents, height clearance permits, and homeowners’ association clearance, together with the unified application form.

JOINT SERVICE STAFF.

21k tons of onions to offset holiday shortage—bureau

From left: Air Vice-Marshal Michael Kitcher, Deputy Chief Joint Operations of the Australian Defense Forces; Maj. General Nobutaka Minamikawa, Defense Plans and Policy Department of the Japan Self-Defense Force; Brig.

Gen. Rommel Cordova, Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans of the Armed Forces of the Philippines; and Maj. Gen. Jay Bargeron, Director for Strategic Planning and Policy Directorate of the US Indo-Pacific Command.

The first PhilippinesUnited States-JapanAustralia Joint Service Staff meeting was held in Tokyo, Japan from November 28 to December 1 to further deepen discussion on upholding a rules-based international order. (See related story on A1). AFP

Senator reaffirms support to LGBTQ amid criticisms

By Macon Ramos-Araneta SENATOR Joel Villanueva has reaffirmed his commitment to advancing a comprehensive and inclusive antidiscrimination measure that goes beyond the scope of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) Equality bill.

Villanueva underscored the need for an extensive strategy, asserting that “to achieve genuine equality and justice, we must tackle discrimination on all fronts.”

“While the SOGIE Equality bill is important, it’s imperative that we extend our efforts to combat bias based on various factors, fostering the creation of a truly inclusive society,” the Senate Majority Leader said.

He issued the statement amid renewed calls for the passage of the SOGIE Equality bill, with some supporters of the measure have taken to antagonizing him.

In a Senate budget deliberation on November 21, senators reprimanded the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) after one of its officials sought a petition ostensibly directed to Villanueva, urging for the swift passage of the SOGIE Equality bill.

to guide all concerned departments, offices, agencies, and stakeholders, in the implementation of EO No. 32,” the MC stated.

The President issued EO 32 last July 4 to institutionalize a set of streamlined guidelines for the issuance of permits, licenses, and certificates for the construction of telecommunications and Internet infrastructure.

The EO covered the streamlining of the processes for the construction, installation, repair, operation, and maintenance of such infrastructures.

It also covered all national government agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, as well as local government units

Bill addresses challenges in education sector SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian is eyeing amendments to the 57-year old Magna Carta for Public School Teachers (Republic Act No. 4670) to address challenges confronting the education sector.

Gatchalian has filed Senate Fill No. 2493, entitled “Revised Magna Carta for Public School Teachers” that introduces substantial changes meant to ensure that the rights and

welfare of public school teachers are “protected, respected, and realized.”

These amendments include the grant of calamity leave, educational benefits and longevity pay; the circumstances and conditions on the grant of special hardship allowance; enrichment of the criteria for salaries, and the protection of teachers from out-of-pocket expenses, among others.

The bill also proposes that salaries,

benefits, and work conditions of probationary teachers shall be the same or not less favorable as those of an entrylevel teacher.

To improve the working conditions of public school teachers, Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, said his bill seeks to reduce the time of classroom teaching from six hours to four hours. Macon Ramos-Araneta

By Othel V. Campos THE Philippines will be sourcing 21,000 metric tons (MT) of imported onions from China, India and the Netherlands to offset a looming shortage of the bulbs due to increased demand following the start of the Christmas holiday season.

The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) started issuing sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSIC) to traders and importers willing to bring the commodity in.

Approved for importation is 17,000 MT red onions and 4,000 MT white onions.

The importation volumes were based on per capita consumption and will serve as buffer to stabilize prices in the market prior to peak harvest of local produce on March to April 2024, the bureau said.

All imported fresh onions are required to arrive in the country on or before Dec. 31, 2023 to guarantee local producers that it will not coincide with the upcoming harvest.

But the BPI said an extension of the arrival date is possible, depending on the availability of stocks and prices in the market.

The bureau said the importation is part of the interventions the government is making to guarantee ample supply amid increased demand this holiday season.

Solon lauds national ‘Bike-to-Work Day’ order

By Rio N. Araja A PARTY-LIST lawmaker hailed a proclamation by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declaring the last working day of November every year as “National Bike-to-Work Day. “We welcome the President’s Proclamation No. 409. The promo-

tion of non-motorized transportation has three-pronged benefits - it will decongest traffic, promote environment protection and advance physical health consciousness, “CIBAC partylist Rep. Eddie Villanueva said.

“Further, it will promote an efficient yet low-cost alternative transportation to commuters who are not able or do

not intend to use motorized vehicles,” he added.

Villanueva, chairman of the House Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, viewed the presidential proclamation as “excellent and pivotal move in putting sustainable development goals in the national consciousness.”

BOC destroys P325-m seized cigarettes in Zambo

By Vito Barcelo

MULTIVITAMINS FOR MUNTINLUPA INMATES. Bureau of Corrections Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. (second from left) receives 150 boxes of multivitamins for distribution to persons deprived of liberty at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa donated by Rock Ed Philippines and Spark for Life. With the BuCor chief are (from left) Supt.

Ma. Cecille V. Villanueva of Certification Program for Leadership and Management, Mike Alvir of Rock Ed Philippines, and Bucor Insp. Marjorie Ann Santidad. Joseph Muego

THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) has destroyed 5,624 cases and 1,171 reams of seized smuggled cigarettes worth more than P325 million in a rented warehouse in Brgy. Tetuan, Zamboanga City.

The smuggled cigarettes were seized during separate maritime patrol operations and Customs checkpoints in the Zamboanga peninsula, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, from May to November this year.

Arthur Sevilla Jr.,BOC acting district collector of the Port of Zamboanga, led

the condemnation activity, witnessed by partner agencies in the Bureau’s antismuggling campaign. Among those present were the representatives of the local government unit, law enforcement agencies, the Commission on Audit, and other concerned stakeholders.

NEWS

A4

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Nat’l jail decongestion summit slated Dec. 6-7

By Charles Dantes and Rey E. Requejo

T

HE government is holding a National Jail Decongestion Summit on Dec. 6 and 7 in Manila to address the ongoing challenges the country’s penal system is currently facing.

SAN JOSE’S CHRISTMAS TREE. San Jose Del Monte City Mayor Arthur Robes and his wife, lone district Rep.

Florida Robes, join city officials in lighting the city’s 59-foot tall Christmas tree on Thursday night outside City Hall of the Bulacan metropolis with the theme ‘Kapit Kamay Ngayong Christmas’. Manny Palmero

In a Palace briefing, Department of Justice Assistant Secretary Mico Clavano shared that President Marcos is expected to attend the event alongside Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Speaker Martin Romualdez.

“We hope we are able to reach the mission of the jail decongestion summit with the help of course of the UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) as well as GOJUST (Governanace in Justice) who will be funding the event, two-day event where we will have stakeholders, experts, and several government agencies represented,” Clavano said.

He said the facilities of both the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) have an average congestion rate of almost 400 percent.

The Justice Sector Coordinating Council will also ask President Marcos to certify priority legislations in Congress to improve the country’s prison system.

“These we will ask the President and Congress to make the proposed legislations as priority bills,” Clavano said.

Among these proposed legislations are on diversion of adult offenders, unified penology act, creation of the Department of Corrections and Penology, the law on re-integration and psychosocial rehabilitation, and amendment to the Recognizance Act of 2012.

Clavano said the summit will outline three proposed activities and strategies such as reducing prison admissions, increasing inmate releases upon completing their sentences, and expanding jail facility capacity.

“So, we will have short-term goals as well as long-term goals which we hope to discuss and thoroughly analyze in the jail decongestion summit,” he added.

According to a December 2021 survey, there were 199,079 inmates or persons deprived of liberty (PDLs), with approximately 179 PDLs per 100,000 people in the population.

Of these, 13,704 are females, constituting 11 percent of the total BJMP jail population.

Clavano said 70% of BJMP detention facilities are overcrowded, with an average congestion rate of 386%.

Makati gains highest Gawad Kalasag rating for second year in a row

By Joel E. Zurbano THE City of Makati has received the highest rating in the Gawad Kalasag (Kalamidad at Sakuna Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan) for the second consecutive year, marking

its commitment to disaster risk reduction and management.

Makati Mayor Abigail Binay said the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recognized the city government’s efforts in building resilience and keeping stake-

holders safe.

“We are thankful to the NDRRMC for recognizing the extensive efforts of the city government to build Makati’s resilience and keep all stakeholders safe and secure at all times. This two-peat achievement inspires us to pursue more

Transport group sues LTO chief at Ombudsman A TRANSPORT group has filed before the Office of the Ombudsman a complaint against Land Transportation Office (LTO) Chief Assistant Secretary Vigor Mendoza, accusing him of corruption through the agency’s digitalization of its processes.

Mendoza denied the accusation and described it as “baseless and absurd,” CNN Philippines said in a report.

The Federated Land Transport Organizations of the Philippines (FELTOP), in its complaint, said that since 2017, its drivers and operators would register vehicles and renew driver’s licenses through the LTO-IT system run by Stradcom Corp.

The IT company would charge a “computer fee” in exchange for collecting, keeping, and uploading data to their database. The transport group said the LTO passed the computer fee to motorists.

In 2020, the LTO launched the government-run Land Transportation Management System (LTMS), which does not charge a computer fee for motorists’ transactions.

In January this year, former LTO Chief Jose Arturo Tugade issued memorandum circular 2023-2373 fully implementing the LTMS for vehicle registration and subsequently phasing out the LTO-IT system.

With Rio Araja

innovations in DRRM alongside our efforts towards a carbon-neutral future,” she said.

Binay attributed the progress made towards a carbon-neutral future to the strong synergy and collaboration between the city government and key stakeholders.

GIFT BOXES SET. Manila

Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan (left) and Vice Mayor Yul Servo inspect the contents of 695,000 Christmas boxes at the San Andres Complex in Manila on Thursday that were distributed to the residents of Manila starting Friday.

Norman Cruz

450 foreigners on BI blacklist for working illegally MORE than 450 foreign nationals will be blacklisted and banned from reentering the country who were petitioned by fake companies and worked illegally in the country, the Bureau of Immigration said Friday.

BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the move is part of the agency’s campaign to deport illegal aliens, particularly those who use fake documents

to be able to obtain visas.

The BI chief said three consecutive audit reports from their verification and compliance division (VCD) revealed that 459 aliens have been using fake companies in their applications.

“These foreign nationals’ applications were processed using the services of accredited entities, authorized to apply on behalf of the foreign nation-

als. However, through our audits, we discovered that the companies that petitioned them are spurious,” he added.

Tansingco said at least 79 accredited liaison officers face investigations by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for the fake modus.

Four BI lawyers are also under investigation in relation to the modus, he revealed. Vito Barcelo

UN panel on torture prevention visits PH for 2nd time Dec. 3 to 14 THE United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) will make its second visit to the Philippines from Dec. 3 to 14 to advise and assist the government in fulfilling its international commitments to prevent torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.

“Our main objective is to assess how the authorities have implemented the recommendations of our previous visit in 2015,” said Victor Zaharia, head of the delegation, in a statement Friday.

The Philippines ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture in 2012.

“We will also assess the treatment of people deprived of their liberty, including detainees in prisons, police stations and other detention facilities, as well as patients in psychiatric hospitals, and examine the existing protection measures against torture and ill-treatment,” Zaharia added.

“The Philippines is one of the States parties who are significantly overdue in establishing a national mechanism for torture prevention under the Optional Protocol, and we consider our visit as an opportunity to help the authorities set up the country’s independent monitory body,” he said.

NETS FOR NAVOTAS. The City Government of Navotas distributes various fishing nets to registered boat owners through its Handog Lambat Program, with Mayor John Rey Tiangco (center, in white shirt). Some 649 Navoteño fishers received 200-meter mesh nets in eight different sizes, which can be used to catch various kinds of fish, shrimps, and crabs. Andrew Rabulan

Smartmatic ban a bold Comelec move, says Imee

By Macon Ramos-Araneta DISQUALIFYING Smartmatic from participating in the procurement of the 2025 automated election system (AES) is “a bold move” for the Commission on Elections, said Senator Imee Marcos.

Marcos said this shows the commission’s commitment to hold credible electoral processes.

“I think Comelec deserves support for the reforms that it is trying to undertake, provided these have solid legal basis,” said Marcos.

Earlier, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III said the Comelec should give its reasons for disallowing Smartmatic to join in the bidding of automated machines for the next presidential polls.

Comelec chairperson George Garcia had said it the agency would not exclude Smartmatic from the process unless for a valid reason, then barred the technology firm from participating in all Comelec procurement activities “to maintain the integrity of our electoral process, for the country and for the people.”

Workers to get more aid for 90th DOLE anniversary VARIOUS government assistance awaits thousands of workers this December in celebration of the 90th founding anniversary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), including 40,000 job opportunities from around 500 companies.

Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said the assistance forms part of DOLE’s assistance programs and affirms its continuous commitment to providing timely and appropriate programs and services to needy workers.

“These activities include the payout of assistance/salaries to beneficiaries of the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/ Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program and Government Internship Program (GIP); livelihood assistance to vulnerable and marginalized workers under the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program; setting up of KADIWA ng Pangulo and livelihood fairs; and mounting of nationwide jobs fair,” the DOLE chief said in a statement. Vito Barcelo

B1

OPINION

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

mst.daydesk@gmail.com HONOR BLANCO CABIE, Editor

Backbencher Rod P. Kapunan

EDITORIAL

Tackling the climate crisis

Japan favors China over Israel-Palestine conflict THE Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, surprisingly voted to favor China’s resolution for urging Israel to immediately stop the genocidal bombing of Palestine as a policy of collectively punishing the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli bombing began on Oct. 7, when Hamas guerrilla fighters stormed the gates of the small piece of territory called the Gaza Strip.

Immediately, the corrupt and murderous Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the action taken by Hamas was a declaration of war against Israel.

Israel then proceeded to apply the policy to relentlessly bomb the whole of the Palestinian territory in a policy of imposing a collective punishment against the people of Palestine with the ultimate objective of erasing the two-state formula adopted in a UN Security Council Resolution but has been consistently rejected

by Israel since 1967.

—“—

The Jewish state that was originally created by the British and Americans did not expect a surge of sympathy for the Palestinian people

(Editor’s Note: Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel is ‘at war’ after Gaza militants launched a surprise attack on Oct. 7, firing thousands of rockets and entering Israel by land, sea and air using paragliders. At least 1,200 people, mainly civilians, died and thousands of others wounded in Israel, officials said. The Palestinian armed group then took around 240 hostages back to Gaza, the enclave under its control.)

Since the Israeli bombing started, the erstwhile Jewish state that was slowly gaining international recognition suddenly found itself isolated from the rest of the members of the Islamic and Arab world.

Even Islamic countries waned to mend ties with Israel for economic gains and some had to break up its ties suspecting that the government of Netanyahu is the reincarnation of the government of Hitler adopting an apartheid and racist government.

Netanyahu always wanted a quick solution to the conflict and cheaper to resolve.

That was the strategy he had in mind, not knowing the Palestinians are conditioned to fighting a long-drawn and bloody war with Israel.

The Jewish state originally created by the British and Americans did not expect a surge of sympathy for the Palestinian people.

The attempt by the barbaric Netanyahu government to erase Palestine in the Mid-

dle East was surprisingly met with stiff resistance.

Countries like Bolivia, Venezuela, Cuba, Turkey, Russia, China, Mali, Burkina Daso, Nigeria, Denmark and even Canada voted to condemn Israel.

Surprisingly, Japan and South Korea followed suit.

Many were startled because these countries were traditional allies of the US. As one would ask, maybe their vote was a signal the US was losing its grip and support in their support for the US and Israel?

The continued support for Israel by Japan and South Korea for just propping up the US could lose much of their economic credibility in Asia which they know is heavily influenced by China.

The US economy is already suffering from acute devaluation and it could fall to an uncontrollable inflation.

The Hamas-Israeli conflict only served to exacerbate the hate fanned by the Netanyahu administration.

His racist and often barbaric approach thought as the only approach to handle the situation has backfired to divide deeper the Western alliance against Israel.

Belgium, Canada, Great Britain and, later, Asian countries like Japan and South Korea, were soon affected by the crisis.

The racist Jewish state did not realize the blood-thirsty brutality will have its own limitation.

Nobody expected that untrammeled brutality equivalent to barbarism will elicit sympathy even from the enemies of the Jews.

Belgium, Turkey, Canada and even Great Britain had for the first time held a massive rally in support of Palestine viz. against the Israeli bombing of hospitals which was purposely done to kill Palestinian civilians and children.

This brutality exhibited by the Jews surpassed the atrocities committed by the Nazi Germans in World War II. Israeli jets relentlessly pummeled civilian population even ordering the cutting off of power supply to hospitals, knowing that many of the patients badly needing oxygen would die should air and power supply is cut.

The unprecedented inhumanity exhibited by the Jews touched most civilized nations.

Even Japan which was accused of brutality during World War voted to condemn Israel.

Japan consistently voted in support of Israel, a staunch ally of the US. Likewise, South Korea, a known lackey of the US, departed from its usual vote of supporting Israel. All this sent a signal in the attitude of US allies toward the state of Israel.

It is not only American allies in Asia that could feel the brunt of sustaining the imperialist war waged by the US. The crack is visible that it could be seen and felt in Europe. The artificiality in creating the state of Israel is about to come to an end. rpkapunan@gmail.com

EVERYMAN

ANGAT, Ipo, Kaliwa, La Mesa, Laguna Lake, Umiray and Upper Marikina are seven critical watersheds that benefit from the Annual Million Trees Challenge, a project institutionalized by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System.

It was the brainchild of then MWSS Administrator retired Gen. Reynaldo V. Velasco.

AMTC aimed to rehabilitate through reforestation the seven watersheds essential to the water supply in Metro Manila and nearby provinces under MWSS coverage.

Since its launch in 2017, AMTC has surpassed its target of one million trees planted annually. To ensure its sustainability, the Million Trees Foundation, Inc. was established.

A partnership between MWSS and MTFI was forged where the latter became the non-government partner organization in the implementation of the AMTC. About 6.8 million trees have been planted so far and the goal is 10 million more trees planted in identified watersheds by 2030.

Reforestation of watersheds stabilizes catchments, prevents erosion, and improves downstream water quality ensuring sustainability.

Reforestation is also among the solutions to slow down the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

The endeavor to rehabilitate the watersheds gained support not only from national government agencies like the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Climate Change Commission.

The private sector and different stakeholders also rallied behind the noble cause.

San Miguel Corporation, with subsidiary Luzon Clean Water Development Corporation, Maynilad, Manila Water/Manila Water Foundation and Santa Clara International are among MTFI’s institutional partners.

Coincidentally, as the nation celebrated Climate Change Consciousness Week a few days ago, MTFI forged a Memorandum of Agreement with its new institutional partner, Nestle Philippines, Inc. for the next three years.

ManilaStandard

Published Monday to Sunday by Philippine Manila Standard Publishing Inc. at 6/F Universal Re Building, 106 Paseo de Roxas, corner Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati City.

Telephone numbers 8-5646225 and 8-5646229 (connecting all departments), (Editorial) 832-5554, (Advertising) 832-5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www.manilastandard.net

ONLINE

can be accessed at: manilastandard.net

MEMBER

PPI

Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

—“—

So far developing countries have fallen well short, both in terms of accelerating decarbonization, known as mitigation, and building resilience to climate impacts, known as adaptation

Experts have raised some issues to watch for in the 13-day summit which ends on Dec. 12.

One of these is the energy transition, with eyes on the language leaders will adopt regarding the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy — crucial to limiting long-term warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius as envisaged under the Paris Agreement.

At COP26 in Glasgow, in 2021, countries agreed to a “phasedown” of “unabated coal power.”

Since then, momentum has been building among governments and activists to extend similar ideas to oil and gas, though the exact phrasing will have to be hammered out.

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, COP28 president, said Day 1 on Thursday reached more than double its target for the Loss and Damage Fund. The threshold set to establish and operationalize the Fund was $200 million, he said.

Another issue being tackled is making ‘loss and damage’ a reality. A major breakthrough at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, was an agreement in principle to compensate climatevulnerable countries that are least responsible for greenhouse gas emissions and facing multiplying severe

Tony La Viña

ADVENT, the first season of the Christian church year, leading up to Christmas and including the four preceding Sundays, is marked by the first Sunday which we celebrate tomorrow.

This day holds immense importance for Christians globally, signaling the outset of the preparatory phase and eager anticipation for the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas.

Usually falling nearest to Nov. 30, it heralds a period of introspection, devout prayer, and expectancy as believers ready themselves to rejoice in Christ’s arrival.

Traditionally, this occasion frequently includes the lighting of the initial candle on the Advent wreath, symbolizing either hope or prophecy, varying in significance across diverse denominational practices.

Advent is a season of anticipation and preparedness for his eventual return at the culmination of time.

In this time of great expectation surrounding Jesus’ birth, the Son of God brings a profound sense of hope and tranquility that transcends worldly offerings.

For many, the season quickly morphs into a hurried flurry, overshadowed by distractions and the pursuit of temporary material possessions.

The world today is full of reasons for disquietude.

With many flashpoints of conflicts and sources of unease and anxiety scattered everywhere, one cannot but wonder whether

The area at the La Mesa Watershed allocated for use by MTFI has undergone development funded largely by the three MWSS concessionaires Signatories of the MOA were Nestlé Philippines, Inc. Senior Vice President Head of Corporate Affair, Mr. Jose Uy III and MTFI Chairman Emeritus Gen Velasco.

With the MOA signed, Nestle becomes the latest institutional partner of MTFI. Under the agreement, MTFI shall be engaged by Nestle Philippines, Inc. to facilitate the execution of its Project Kasambuhay Forest, a tree-planting initiative.

MTFI shall provide the saplings; facilitate the preparation of the location of the tree-planting, and to perform other activities in direct connection with the treeplanting initiative.

At the MOA signing and launch of Project

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Anita F. Grefal Baldwin R. Felipe Edgar M. Valmorida

weather impacts.

Then there is the climate financing gap.

Here expert groups believe the world needs in excess of $3 trillion in annual climate-related flows by the year 2030 to keep climate goals alive — but so far developing countries have fallen well short, both in terms of accelerating decarbonization, known as mitigation, and building resilience to climate impacts, known as adaptation.

In 2009, richer countries promised to reach $100 billion annually in funding for these priorities by 2020 — a goal finally met last year, according to an OECD report earlier this month.

COP28 is expected to lay the groundwork for a new financing goal to succeed the old $100 billion target, though parties are not required to reach a decision this year.

We are watching the summit, aware that countries should unite and be committed to mitigating climate change and its effects.

As Dr. Al Jaber said: “Our main focus is going to continue to be on translating visions and aspirations, and declarations and decisions and to real practical actions that will make a difference.”

It is time the global community exerted best efforts to honor their commitments on climate change.

Season of hope

Eagle Eyes

—“—

Nurturing watersheds

By Melandrew Velasco

M

“We reached more than $420 million in the first half. And I know that over the next couple of days, many more pledges and many more commitments are going to be made by these different heads of states and different heads of governments.”

ORE than 160 world leaders have shifted gear in the Conference of Parties 28 in Dubai for the latest summit on climate change.

there is something to look forward to during Advent, whether there is reason to anticipate and expect for better things to come.

Yet, amid this chaos, God’s message calls us to shift our focus toward the enduring and most precious gift available during this season of joy – nurturing a vibrant, living relationship with God’s unique Son, Jesus, who renews our connection with God, offering authentic companionship.

—“—

Advent is a precious gift, inviting us to marvel at the wonders of this expectant time of the year It is important to remember that hope must be more than a nice theory — it must be reality for us.

The good news is that hope is alive. We need to be able to say as David did, “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

Advent serves as a time of spiritual preparedness, where Christians ready themselves for the imminent birth of Jesus Christ Kasambuhay Forest, Velasco emphasized the importance of partnerships and collaboration among organizations to achieve a common goal.

“Reforestation requires huge investments not only financial, but manpower, and technical know-how as well. While we already have institutional partners, a new partner is always welcome,” Velasco said.

“What the Million Trees Foundation has achieved so far is a testament to the power of partnership. When organizations come together for a common cause, a synergy is created that helps transform lives including those of local communities—in this case, those residing near watersheds.”

The importance of partnerships in protecting the environment was echoed by Engr. Henry Pacis of DENR NCR who represented Regional Executive Director Jacqueline Caancan.

He said caring for the environment is “something that will always transcend all of us. It will go to the next generation maybe a bigger battle for the next generation.

“But with more partnerships coming from the national government agencies from the private sector, from civil society and individually, is so much that we can do.”

The launch of Nestle Philippines, Inc. Project Kasambuhay gained significance with the planting of 5,260 saplings at the La

Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Treasury Manager Head—Ad Solutions Circulation Manager

at Christmas.

Observing Advent typically involves a phase of prayer, self-restraint, and introspection, leading to anticipation, hope, and happiness.

Christians not only express gratitude to God for Christ’s initial arrival as a baby but also acknowledge his continuous presence among us through the Holy Spirit.

Advent is a period of spiritual preparation in which many Christians make themselves ready for the coming, or birth of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Celebrating Advent typically involves a season of praywer, fasting and repentance, followed by anticipation, hope and joy.

The term “advent” originates from the Latin word “adventus,” signifying “arrival” or “coming,” especially denoting the arrival of something of immense significance.

Consequently, the season represents both a time of joyful anticipation celebrating the arrival of Jesus Christ and a preparatory period involving repentance.

Advent is a precious gift, inviting us to marvel at the wonders of this expectant time of the year.

By embracing the themes of hope, joy, and readiness, we gain a clearer understanding of God’s message of love and redemption in the birth of His son.

It urges us to celebrate and cherish the hope and wonder that each day of life presents.

Mesa Watershed by Nestle personnel, volunteers and talents from Sparkle GMA Artist Center.

In his remarks, Uy underscored the need to take care of La Mesa Watershed, the “last standing rainforest of its size in Metro Manila.”

The Sparkle Stars who participated in the tree-growing activity were Nikki Co, Angela Alarcon, Nikki Van, John Clifford, Sandro Muhlach, Seb Pajarillo, Zyren Dela Cruz and Shuvee Etrata, who was grateful for the opportunity given to them to help protect the environment.

“We are really not just the inheritors of the earth but we are its stewards,” she said.

The area at the La Mesa Watershed allocated for use by MTFI has undergone development funded largely by the three MWSS concessionaires.

In place is the Million Trees Nursery and Eco Learning Center. From the initial five hectares allocated by MWSS and DENR, the area has been augmented by 20 hectares more for tree-planting enhancements and to accommodate future projects of MTFI. (The author is president and executive director of the Million Trees Foundation Inc., a non-profit group advocating tree planting and watershed protection. He is also a book writer and publisher of biographical and coffee table books.)

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Chin Wong Joyce Pangco Pañares Jimbo Owen Gulle

Associate Editor Managing Editor News Editor

Emil P. Jurado

Honor Blanco Cabie Opinion Editor Lino M. Santos Chief Photographer

Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

B2

WORLD

Manila

Standard

TODAY

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

South Korea set to launch 1st spy satellite with SpaceX SEOUL -- South Korea will launch its first military spy satellite early Saturday on a SpaceX rocket, Seoul’s defence ministry said, intensifying a space race on the peninsula after Pyongyang launched its first military eye in the sky last month.

Seoul’s reconnaissance satellite, carried by one of Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets, will lift off from the Vandenberg US Space Force Base in California at 0319 Seoul time (GMT 1819), a defence ministry official told reporters on Friday.

SpaceX released a photo of its Falcon 9 rocket erected vertically on the launch pad

with the letters “KOREA” emblazoned across it.

If it is successfully put into orbit, South Korea will have acquired its first domestically-built spy satellite to monitor nucleararmed North Korea.

Seoul plans to launch four additional spy satellites by the end of 2025 to bolster its reconnaissance capacity over the North.

Set to orbit between 400 and 600 kilometres above the earth, Seoul’s satellite is capable of detecting an object as small as “30 centimetres” (11.8 inches), according to the Yonhap news agency.

“Considering resolution and its Regional Trial Court capacity for Earth observation... our National Capital Judicial Region satellite technology ranks in the top Quezon City, Branch 220 Emial Add: rtc1qzn220@judiciary.gov.ph five globally,” the defence ministry Tel. & Mobile Nos.: (02) 8681-5661 & 09616034816 official said, as quoted by Yonhap.

The launch comes less than two LEONG HUP (PHILIPPINES), weeks after Pyongyang had successINCORPORATED represented by RACQUEL C. RIVERA, fully put its own spy satellite into Plaintiff, orbit.

-versus CIVIL CASE NO. R-QZN-22-08610-CV “Until now, South Korea has reFor: Sum of money w/ Damages lied heavily on US-run spy satellites” RYAN BAUTISTA doing business when it comes to monitoring the Under the name TNBT AGRI North, Choi Gi-il, professor of miliTRADING, Defendants. tary studies at Sangji University told x---------------------------------------------------x AFP. AFP SUMMONS

TO:

RYAN BAUTISTA doing business Under the name TNBT AGRI TRADING Block 11 Lot 19, Leviton Subdivision, Marawoy, Lipa City, Batangas.

GREETINGS: You are hereby required, within THIRTY (30) DAYS after service of this summons upon you, to file with this Court and served on the plaintiff your answer to the complaint, copy of which is attached with the annexes.

You are reminded of the provision in the Section 12 Rule 15 of the 2019 Amended Rules of Court to observe restraint in filing a motion to dismiss and instead allege the grounds thereof as defense in the answer. If you fail to answer within the applied for in the complaint.

WITNESS my hand under the seal of the Court, this 23rd day of September 2022.

(Sgd.) AL DINO N. MACAVINTA Clerk of Court V (MStandard - Nov. 18, 25 & Dec. 2, 2023)

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION FOR THE ALLOWANCE OF THE WILL OF MARIA NIEVES M. PANGANIBAN-PATACSIL, CASE NO. R-QZN-20-08291-SP NILO C. MERCADO, Petitioner, x----------------------------------------------x

NOTICE TO CREDITORS Letters Testamentary having issued in the above-entitled case in favor of NILO C. MERCADO, FE M. CABRERA and MA. MODESTA MERCADO, it is hereby ordered that notice be, and the same is hereby given, to all persons having claims for money against the decedent, MARIA NIEVES M. PANGANIBANPATACSIL, arising from contracts, express or implied, whether the same be due, not due, or contingent; for funeral expenses or expenses for the last sickness of said decedent; and judgment for money against him, requiring them to file their claims with this Court sitting at Room 707, 7th Floor, Hall of Justice Annex Building, Quezon City Hall Compound, Quezon City, within a period of six (6) months after the 1st publication of this NOTICE. SO ORDERED. (Sgd.) MARIA GILDA T. LOJA-PANGILINAN Presiding Judge Copy furnished: Atty. Francisco J. Rivera NISCE MAMURIC GUINTO RIVERA & ALCANTARA LAW OFFICES Counsel for the Petitioner 8th Floor, 139 Corporate Center 139 Valero Street, Salcedo Village, Makati City Nilo C. Mercado Petitioner 14 Violet Road, Pilar Village, Las Piñas City Maria Nieves M. Panganiban-Patacsil (deceased) No. 19 11th Jamboree St., Brgy. Sacred Heart, Quezon City Marina M. Arita / Vicenta C. Mercado 14 Violet Road, Pilar Village, Las Piñas City Jose Maria Ilagan/Michelle Hernandez/Elizabeth L. Quinto/ Ricaredo Banea No. 19 11th Jamboree St., Brgy. Sacred Heart, Quezon City Fe M. Cabrera 1031 Craig Street, 1015 Sampaloc, Manila Maria Modesta M. Mercado/Ma. Teresa M. Mercado 82 Road 1, Proj. 6, 1105 Quezon City Nuncia Rivera 15265 Sherbrooke St., San Diego, California 92139 Eriberto Mercado 8928 Arborale Lane West, University Place, Washington 98466 Belen M. Medina 8811 Littlestone Drive, San Gabriel, California 91776 Josefina C. Mercado 67 CC Santos BF Homes, 1720 Parañaque City Luz C. Sagala 20 Cleveland St., Royale Tagaytay Estate, Alfonso, 4123 Cavite Roberto M. Caraos Brgy. Zone 6, Taal, 4208 Batangas Maria Antonia M. Sadler PO Box 1233 Perry Florida, USA 32348 Cecilia M. Mijares 1904 Redwood Road, Hercules California 94572

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION FOR THE ALLOWANCE OF THE WILL OF MARIA NIEVES M. PANGANIBAN-PATACSIL, CASE NO. R-QZN-20-08291-SP NILO C. MERCADO, Petitioner, x----------------------------------------------x

ORDER On 14 September 2023, executors Nilo C. Mercado, Ma. Modesta M. Mercado and Fe. M. Cabrera took their oath and Letters Testamentary was issued in their favor.

Pursuant to Rule 86 of the Rules of Court, issued a Notice to Creditors to be published once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks successively in a newspaper of general circulation and be posted for the same period by the branch Deputy Sheriff of this Court in four (4) public places in Quezon City, including the lobby of the Quezon City Hall and at the bulletin board near the entrance of this Sala, and in two (2) public places in the barangay where the decedent last resided.

Within ten (10) days after the last publication and posting of the Notice to Creditors, the executors are hereby directed to file in Court a printed copy of the notice accompanied with an affidavit setting forth the dates of the first and last publication thereof and the name of the newspaper in which the same is printed.

Set this case for compliance/monitoring hearing on 14 May 2024 at 1:30 in the afternoon, before this Court, sitting at 7th Floor, Room 707, Hall of Justice Annex Building, Diliman, Quezon City, and all persons filing their claims against the estate are hereby required to appear on said date.

SO ORDERED. Quezon City, Metro Manila, 18 September 2023.

(Sgd.) HON. MARIA GUILDA LOJA-PANGILINAN Presiding Judge (MStandard - Nov. 18, 25 & Dec. 2, 2023)

LEGAL NOTICE Notice is hereby given for the settlement of the Estate of Carlos Fernandez Muñoz (“Decedent”) who died on January 20, 2022, without any will or testament and without any debts. The Decedent left one (1) share of stock of Next Wave Maritime Management, Inc. The mentioned property is subject to an Extra-Judicial Settlement of the Estate executed by the exclusive heirs and acknowledged by Atty.

Michaela B. Prades, Notary Public for and in the City of Makati on November 13, 2023, with Doc No. 147, Page No. 31, Book No. I, Series of 2023.

(MS-DEC. 2/9/16, 2023)

MOVEMENT BANNED. A statue of Themis, an ancient Greek Goddess of Justice, and a Russian national state emblem are seen at the entrance of Russia’s Supreme Court in Moscow on Thursday. Russia’s supreme court banned the ‘international LGBT movement’ claiming the organization was an extremist group, without stating whether specific individuals or organizations in Russia would be impacted by the ruling. AFP

Climate, Gaza share spotlight at COP28 D

UBAI, United Arab Emirates -- World leaders descended on Dubai for UN climate talks on Friday, under pressure to step up efforts to limit global warming as the Israel-Hamas conflict casts a shadow over the summit.

UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan greeted Britain’s King Charles III, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, French President Emanuel Macron and other leaders at the sprawling Expo City Dubai complex in the sun-soaked Gulf metropolis.

The COP28 conference kicked off on Thursday with an early victory as nations agreed to launch a “loss and damage” fund for vulnerable countries devastated by natural disasters.

But delegates face two weeks of tough negotiations on an array of issues that have long bedevilled climate talks, starting with the future of oil, gas and coal.

A first draft of the agreement being negotiated by nearly 200 countries includes language on a “phasedown/out” of fossil fuels, which account for the bulk of greenhouse gas emissions.

The sense of urgency was heightened by a UN warning that 2023 is on track to become the hottest year on record, raising fears the world will not meet

the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“Now the real work only begins,” the oil-rich UAE’s COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber said on Thursday.

“I will be rolling up my sleeves, engaging and helping address this challenge and delivering real, actionable results,” Jaber said, though he claimed there was “positivity” and an “optimistic” vibe following the loss and damage announcement.

Jaber, who heads the UAE’s national oil firm ADNOC, said the “role of fossil fuels” must be included at the UN’s climate talks.

The draft text sets up a fight between those calling for a “phaseout” and those in favour of a less drastic “phasedown” of fossil fuels. But observers said the inclusion of such language was significant.

“It is more ambitious than anything ever tabled at COP27 (talks in Egypt last year), so even having it among the options is a big step up,” said Lola Vallejo, an expert from French climate think tank IDDRI. AFP

MORAL COMPASS.

In this file photo, a monument made of 50 steel columns and titled ‘Release’

by South African artist Marco Ciafanelli, representing the 27 years behind bars of the first black and former South African president Nelson Mandela, is seen at the Nelson Mandela Capture Site in Howick, some 90 kilometres outside of Durban, during a commemoration held in 2018 marking 56-years to the day of his capture. Anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela has been seen as a moral compass in his home South Africa, but 10 years after his death his legacy is vigorously debated, with some questioning the quality of the country’s democracy. AFP

10 years on, South Africa debates whether it’s time to let go of icon ‘Mandela-mania’ JOHANESBURG, South Africa -- Ten years after the death of Nelson Mandela, the fabled destroyer of apartheid remains a global icon, but in South Africa some say it is time to end Mandela-mania.

A nine-metre tall (30-foot) statue of Mandela, his arms outstretched, watches over Pretoria from the Union Buildings government headquarters.

There are at least 50 other major statues, busts and murals devoted to him in South Africa and around the world, from London to the occupied West Bank, according to the Mandela Foundation.

Mandela, who died on De-

cember 5, 2013, is featured on national banknotes and his “Long Walk To Freedom” autobiography remains one of the best-selling books worldwide of all time.

Robben Island, Mandela’s jail for 27 years, is among South Africa’s top tourist attractions.

The standing of the political giant, widely known by his clan name of “Madiba”, is so great that many people watching the sorry state of South Africa’s economy and politics ask “what would ‘Madiba’ think if he were still here.”

Would events have been different?

Spurring South Africans to move on, the foundation on Friday opened an anniversary exhibition called simply and soberly “Mandela is Dead.”

Any country with such a strong figure suffers for many years after the personality is gone from the “deep nostalgia and this hanging on to that symbol,” said Verne Harris, the late president’s archivist and acting president of the Mandela Foundation.

“What we are saying in this exhibition, is that maybe that becomes a destructive energy.

Maybe we need to let him go.

And look for new role models.” AFP

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

BUSINESS

B3 SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market rose on first day of December trading

By Jenniffer B. Austria

P

HILIPPINE stocks started December trading on a positive note amid the drop in oil prices.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index rose 21.45 points, or 0.34 percent, to close at 6,245.18 Friday, while the broader allshares index inched up by 4.39 points, or 0.13 percent, to settle at 3,332.22.

Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales Luis Limlingan said oil prices declined despite the latest extension of production cuts by OPEC+ producers in an attempt to boost the market.

“Oil declined Thursday, erasing early gains as traders grew more convinced

that OPEC+, a group composed of OPEC plus oil producing allies, will not deliver on promised output cuts,” Limlingan said.

Meanwhile, Asian markets diverged Friday following a mixed day on Wall Street, with data showing a continued fall in US inflation unable to relight the buying that characterized much of November.

There was little desire to jump back in the ring at the start of a new month after

a tough week in the region saw some of the gains enjoyed over the previous three erased.

The losses come even as expectations grow that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in the first half of 2024 thanks to a string of data suggesting its tightening cycle is finally getting prices under control.

And the good news on that front continued Thursday, with figures showing the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index—the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation—slowed further in October.

Other data pointed to a softening in consumer spending and the labor market.

The readings suggest that the Fed appears to be achieving the tough job of reining in inflation and slowing the economy

without tipping it into a painful recession.

Adding to the positive outlook globally, data showed inflation in the eurozone came in lower than forecast, giving the European Central Bank room to pause on rates and consider cutting next year.

Traders are now awaiting a planned speech by Fed chief Jerome Powell later in the day, hoping for some guidance on the bank’s plans.

While officials have welcomed the recent run of data, they have been reluctant to call an end to more than a year of rate hikes just yet, warning that prices could flare up again.

“It is still too early to eliminate the tightening bias in the Fed’s forward guidance,” said Brian Rose, at UBS Global Wealth Management.

Hot money posts $715-m net outflows

CRIRSCO MEMBER. The Philippines, through the Philippine Mineral Reporting Code Committee (PMRCC), gains international recognition from the Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO), after being accepted as its 15th member.

The country’s acceptance to CRIRSCO enhances the transparency and credibility of the Philippine mining sector. Attending the event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil are (from left) PMRC Committee Representative and Vice President at Nickel Asia Corp., Engr. Rolando Cruz; PMRC Committee representative Ciceron Angeles Jr., CRIRSCO president Edson Ribiero and Australia’s CRIRSCO representative Peter Stoker.

By Julito G. Rada FOREIGN portfolio investments or “hot money” posted net outflows of $715 million in the first 10 months of 2023, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Friday.

This was a reversal of the $305-million net inflows registered in the same period last year, data showed.

The BSP recorded net outflows of $328 million in October, following net outflows of $698 million in September.

About 60.5 percent of registered investments in October were in Philippine Stocks Exchange-listed securities, most of which were investments made in banks, property, holding firms, casinos and gaming and food, beverage and tobacco, while about 39.5 percent went to peso government securities and the remaining investments (less than one percent) were in other instruments.

Investments in October mostly came from the United Kingdom, United States, Luxembourg, Singapore and Hong Kong with a combined share to total of 88.0 percent.

Registration of inward foreign investments delegated to authorized agent banks by the BSP is optional under the rules on foreign exchange (FX) transactions.

Portfolio investments are also called hot money because of the ease they are invested in and taken out of the financial markets.

Filinvest Land raises P11.43b from bond issuance PROPERTY developer Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI) said Friday it raised P11.43 billion in fresh capital from the issuance of fixed-rate bonds.

FLI president Tristaneil Las Marias said during the listing ceremony in the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. the company would use the net proceeds from the 3.5-year peso fixed-rate retail bonds to finance its capital expenditure program and repay existing due debts.

He said FLI would continue with its expansion plans in the affordable and middle-income residential projects and new projects in the industrial and retail segments to sustain its growth momentum.

“Our capex [capital expenditure] program includes launching new and exciting residential and retail developments, expanding into areas with a strong foothold, and venturing into new and

emerging markets offering significant business opportunities,” Las Marinas said.

He said the company was on track with its full-year revenue and net income forecasts as its strategy to speed up the monetization of developed inventories and improve cash collections proved successful “With the growth in our sales and revenues and the introduction of new residential inventories, we aim to sustain our growth trajectory and expedite our healthy return to pre-pandemic levels,” Las Marinas said.

Las Marinas expects FLI to complete several housing projects in Antipolo City, Taytay, Angono, Calamba City, Tanauan City, Trece Martires City, Bacoor City, Dumaguete City and Samal Island by end-2023.

It is also accelerating the development of its townships in East Town in Cainta, Rizal; Timberland Heights in San Mateo, Rizal; Ciudad de Calamba in Calamba City, Laguna; The Wood Manila Estates in Trece Martires City, Cavite; Standard and Palm Estates inTODAY Bacolod City, Negros Occidental.

These FLI townships will include residential, commercial, transportation and school components to create a selfsufficient environment.

FLI is also constructing Marina Town in Dumaguete City and new malls in Filinvest Mimosa+ Leisure City and Activa Cubao. These will expand FLI’s retail portfolio by about 55,000 square meters (sq. m.) in gross leasable area (GLA), bringing FLI’s nationwide retail GLA to about 300,000 sq. m.

Jenniffer B. Austria

BAI prepares to implement P850-m livestock dispersal program THE Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) plans to implenent a five-year P850-million livestock dispersal program before end-2023 to augment the coconut farmers’ income through a partnership with the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA).

BAI director Rene Santiago said during the recent Animal Health Congress the budget for the livestock program is about P166 million per year for five years.

“It is now under process with the procurement. There is already a supplier for chicken, native pigs and goats,” he said.

The five-year program will make a significant difference in the lives of coconut farmers who own or tend not more than five hectares of coconut farms.

“We, in DA’s Livestock Group and with the leadership of Secretary [Francisco] Tiu Laurel, all follow the same mission to help raise income of farmers among whom coconut farmers are the poorest.

Teaching them how to raise animals will make so much difference in their ability to earn income for their families,” said Agriculture Undersecretary Deogracias Victor Savellano.

The PCA is in the process of identifying beneficiaries that may include leaseholders or tenants farming not more five hectares and farm laborers, whether occasional or itinerant, who are harvesting coconuts or work with copra processors.

The government expects a successful adoption of animal raising technology among coconut farmers.

“We expect (Powell) to be careful to avoid sounding too dovish.”

While Wall Street had a mixed night, November was a strong month, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 both up around 10 percent.

London, Paris and Frankfurt rose at the open.

However, Asia was not as strong, and the region started December in tepid fashion.

Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Seoul and Jakarta were all down while Singapore, Shanghai, Mumbai, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok and Wellington rose.

The ongoing weakness in China’s economy remains a problem, even as authorities move to put in place measures to kickstart growth. With AFP

“We are already integrating training of coconut farmers on how to raise animals.

Farmers need to sign a form, and they need to declare that they have undergone trainings and seminars in order to start an

animal raising business,” Santiago said.

The Veterinarians League of the Philippines (VLP) said previous livestock dispersal programs failed in the absence of support systems to help crop farmers

run livestock and poultry businesses.

To avoid repeating the same mistakes, the plan is to involve provincial veterinarians who can educate farmers before the program rolls out.

MAP AWARDEE. Jollibee Foods Corp. president and chief executive Ernestor Tanmantiong (center) receives the ‘MAP Management Person of the Year 2023’ award on Nov. 28, 2023 from the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP).

Tanmantiong was recognized for accelerating Jollibee’s globalization and transforming it into one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing restaurant companies.

Pueblo De Oro spending P18b in property sector

By Othel V. Campos PUEBLO de Oro Development Corp. is spending P18 billion to expand its housing projects in Cagayan de Oro City, Batangas province and Cebu City amid the resurgence of the real estate market.

The company said it expects a surge in demand for both residential and commercial properties in the coming year.

Pueblo de Oro, a unit of the ICCP Group, revealed earlier this year plans to spend about P13.5 billion in new projects in Cagayan de Oro, specifically on the Masterson Mile Towers, the city’s premier high-rise condominium project.

Gensler and Associates from Singapore and Casas+Architects will design the 22 to 27-story project.

Pueblo de Oro also bared plans to break ground on the expansive 31-hectare Southridge development, designed to emulate the innovation and vitality of Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Pueblo de Oro is expanding its footprint in Batangas, with two new projects in Lipa City and Batangas City, with estimated project costs of P1.8 billion and P1.7 billion, respectively.

Both Pueblo de Oro Courtyards Lipa and Pueblo de Oro Westwoods Heights Batangas City target the middle-income market by offering single-detached and single-attached houses.

The company recently inaugurated the Pueblo de Oro Townscapes Malvar township.

ERRATUM On November 28-29, 2023, GEOGRACE RESOURCES PHILIPPINES, INC. (the “Corporation”) published its Notice of Annual Stockholders’ Meeting to be held on 14 December 2023 at 2:00 P.M. through remote communication via Zoom.

The Letter of Intent and Queries/ Comments should be sent to the Corporation’s new email address,

g.geograce@yahoo.com.ph (MS-DEC. 1 & 2, 2023)

BUSINESS

B4

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

extrastory2000@gmail.com RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ, Editor ALENA MAE S. FLORES, Asst. Editor

NCR office occupancy rate hits 80%

BEST MINING FOREST.

Philex Mining Corp. receives the Best Mining Forest 2023 Award, Exploration Category, during the awards night and testimonial dinner of the 69th Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference of the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association (PMSEA) at the CAP-John Hay Trade and Cultural Center in Baguio City. Philex vice-president for Padcal operations and resident manager Ricardo Dolipas II (second from left) receives the award on behalf of the company from (left to right) Department of Environment and Natural Resources Undersecretary Juan Miguel Cuna, PMSEA director Annie Dee and Mines and Geosciences Bureau mine safety, environment and social development division chief Marcial Mateo. This is the fourth time Philex received the award in the said category.

By Othel V. Campos

Meralco unit pays P7b to acquire stake in solar power firm SPNEC

By Jenniffer B. Austria

ANILA Electric Co. through its unit MGen Renewable Energy Inc. (Mgreen) made an initial payment of P7 billion as part of its plan to acquire a majority stake in solar energy producer SP New Energy Corp.

M

SPNEC said in a statement Friday it received the P7-billion initial payment from MGreen, with the balance of P8.9 billion to be paid by the closing date.

MGreen signed an agreement with SPNEC and parent firm Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings Inc. (SPH) in October to subscribe to 15.7 billion common shares and 19.4 billion redeemable preferred voting shares in SPNEC.

The transaction will result in Meralco owning 31.4 percent of SPNEC’s common shares based on the latter’s 34.37 billion existing common shares and having a 50.5-percent voting interest, including the redeemable preferred shares.

MGreen and SPH also agreed to use SPNEC as the primary vehicle to develop 3,500 megawatts of solar and

4000 MWh of battery storage in Luzon.

“This will be one of the largest solar projects not just in Asia, but in the world,” said Meralco chairman and chief executive Manuel Pangilinan.

“The Department of Energy’s vision is to have about 35 percent of the country’s energy come from renewable energy, and this is one of Meralco’s major contributions to this goal,” Pangilinan said.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday lifted the trading suspension on SPNEC after it complied with the 20-percent minimum public ownership.

SPNEC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange its public float is now at 20.02 percent after its parent firm donated over 2 billion shares to Asia Pacific Institute for Green Develop-

ment Inc. “Based on the foregoing representations and information provided by SPNEC, the exchange has determined that the company has complied with the required minimum public ownership requirement,” the PSE said.

The trading of SPNEC has been suspended since June 1, 2023 after its public float fell below 20 percent and the Securities and Exchange Commission approved its proposed increase in authorized capital stock, which resulted in the issuance of 24.37 billion shares to SPH. SPNEC said that it and SPH were planning several measures to increase the public ownership of its shares, including a follow-on offering and private placements.

DOE readies circular on 3% biodiesel blend

BRIGHT CHRISTMAS. After three Christmas seasons, Manila Electric Company (Meralco) reopens its iconic Liwanag Park to bring holiday cheers in Metro Manila as Filipinos usher in the yuletide season in the new normal. With the theme ‘Pasko City’, the Liwanang Park features a 60-feet parol, a giant traditional Belen and Christmas Tree and an array of lights in a multitude of colors to illuminate the Ortigas skyline.

Located in the Meralco Operating Center in Ortigas, Pasig City, the Liwanag Park is open to the public until Jan. 6, 2024.

By Alena Mae S. Flores THE Department of Energy (DOE) will issue a circular to implement a 1-percent increase in biodiesel blend next year as part of the government’s mitigating measure to high fuel prices, an official said Friday.

“DOE plans to issue the circular

by Jan. 1, 2024, but the effectivity is July 1, 2024 to give six months [of] transition period,” Department of Energy (DOE) director for the oil industry management bureau Rodela Romero said.

The planned transition period will give oil companies and the coco-methyl ester (CME) producers time to increase the blend to 3 percent from 2 percent.

Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla announced in October that he received a directive from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to increase the CME blend which can be accommodated by the supply of feedstock.

Lotilla said national coconut production is 15 billion nuts, with the additional 1-percent blend requiring only 2.6 billion nuts.

“The increase in the blend can also drive down the cost of cocomethyl ester because there will be a bigger market for CME. Right now, we expect at least pure diesel landed price to be at parity with cocomethyl ester per liter,” he said.

Chemrez Technologies Inc., the country’s biggest CME producer, welcomed the plan and assured feedstock availability.

“The feedstock is available and the capacities for making CME are ready to support the increase in mandate,” Chemrez president Dean Lao Jr. said.

Lao said consumers could expect many benefits with the B3 mandate such as mileage improvement, lower pollution, import substitution and value adding of coconut oil.

METRO Manila’s office occupancy rate improved to 80 percent in the third quarter of 2023 from 75 percent in the fourth quarter of 2022, property advisor Santos Knight Frank said Friday.

Bonifacio Global City and Makati continued to show the highest occupancy rates in Metro Manila at 89 percent and 80 percent, respectively.

“The office market has continued its road to recovery post-COVID. The increased demand from conventional office tenants and flexible office operators has significantly contributed to the upswing in commercial leasing requirements. We are expecting this momentum to continue in 2024,” said Santos Knight Frank chairman and chief executive Rick Santos.

Manila also led the price growth at 21.2 percent in the luxury residential sector—the fastest across the world, according to Knight Frank’s Prime Global Cities Index.

Santos said the strong investor confidence in the Philippines buoyed the real estate market despite rising interest rates.

“The luxury residential space is one of several sectors where we’re seeing encouraging market activity. Pent-up demand for prime properties, the return of the residential leasing market, and the tight supply of developments have contributed to significant price appreciation especially in central business districts,” Santos said.

The improving economy also boosted growth of key sectors. The Asian Development Bank and the World Bank expects the Philippines’ gross domestic product to grow by 6 percent and 5.6 percent, respectively.

Post-pandemic, the choice between in-office work and a flexible remote model has been shaping the office market, Santos Knight Frank said.

There are signs that companies now are making long-term plans about their workplace setups, it said.

Bataan-Cavite link to start construction in 2024, says DPWH

By Darwin G. Amojelar

Newport City plans to cut residual waste by 90% in 2024 NEWPORT City, property developer Megaworld Corp.’s 25-hectare township in Pasay City, plans to significantly reduce the total volume of its waste hauled to landfills by up to 90 percent next year as it teams up with the Pasay City for its latest sustainability initiative.

Dubbed “Goal Zero Waste Management Program,” the initiative forms part of Megaworld’s MEGreen Sustainability Program and centers on promoting proper waste segregation at source, particularly residual wastes generated Executives of Megaworld Corp. and New Port City, along with officials of Pasay City, launch MEGreen Sustainability Program to promote proper waste segregation at source, particularly residual wastes generated across the entire Newport City.

across the entire Newport City.

“Aiming for zero waste in Newport City is a very important achievement that we are eyeing to fulfill in the future.

We thank the city of Pasay, led of course

by Hon. Mayor Imelda Calixto-Rubiano for their continuing support for this sustainability initiative. We hope that we all continue to strive to help create a healthier and more sustainable future for more Filipinos, something that we at Megaworld eyes to achieve through our MEGreen program,” said Don Earl Caagbay, head of estate management

group at Megaworld.

Data showed that Newport City generates the biggest volume of waste among all of Megaworld’s existing townships in the country. This is mainly because of the composition and occupancy of the township as Newport City is made up of residential condominium developments, the biggest local and international hotels, office buildings and commercial developments from Newport World Resorts, and it is situation just across Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said it expects to start the construction of the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge (BCIB) project by 2024.

The agency said the BCIB Project would be divided into seven contract packages, with the construction to begin first in the two on-land packages. Package 1 refers to the 5-kilometer Bataan land approach and package 2 is the 1.35-km.

Cavite land approach.

Packages 3 and 4 are marine viaducts in the north and south with a total length of 20.65 kilometers, while packages 5 and 6 are the north channel and south channel bridges with a length of 2.15 and 3.15 km., respectively.

The 7th package involves a project-wide ancillary works.

The 32.15-kilometer four-lane BCIB project by far is the biggest flagship project with a 30.87 percent economic internal rate of return as it will significantly cut down travel time between the provinces of Bataan to Cavite and vice versa from five hours to 45 minutes.

This would ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila, Southern Luzon and Northern Luzon gateways.

The bridge alignment in Bataan is situated between the Roman Highway, which traverses the barren land area in Barangay Alas-Asin, and then skirts to the shoreline of Barangay Mountain View in Mariveles.

C1

SPORTS

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

RIERA U. MALLARI, Editor RANDY M. CALUAG, Asst. Editor

US player Teegan Van Gunst dives to keep the ball in play against the Philippine duo of Jen Eslapor and Floremel Rodriguez in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Challenge main draw Friday at the world-class Nuvali Sand Courts in Santa Rosa City.

PH tandem finds tall US foes tough nuts to crack

PH champion assails Russian federation for gender protest

By Randy Caluag

W

ORLD champion Hergie Bacyadan of the Philippines assailed the Russian national squad for questioning her gender and filing a protest to nullify her goldmedal victory in the just-concluded World Vovinam Championship in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.

“I, Hergie Tao-Wag Bacyadan, stand against the protest of the Russian National Team about my sexual reproduction and identity. I strongly condemn their accusation about me being a “MAN” when I’m (was) born FEMALE,” said Bacyadan in a long social media post.

“The strength and skills I have were purely acquired through my hard work, perseverance and commitment to my country. Additionally, I may be born FEMALE, but my sexual orientation is I’m attracted to women which I believe shouldn’t discriminate my qualification to become an athlete.”

Bacyadan, a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, hacked out a 10-0 shutout win over Mariana Abdeenko of Russia in the final tournament for the gold medal in this

Hergie Bacyadan

Vietnamese combat sport that combines the techniques in judo, boxing, and taekwondo.

On Friday, the Russian vovinam team submitted a written protest to the 7th World Vovinam Championships organizing committee claiming that Bacyadan is a “man”, even as it is also requesting to “cancel the result of the final match which the Philippines won fairly in the match. And to add more, they are requesting the WVVF to ban our athletes from any competitions for life.”

The Vovinam Pilipinas Federation has asked the organizing committee to “not entertain Russia’s baseless and non-factual accusations.”

“The Philippines strongly condemns these accusations by Russia. We will not stop until this issue is cleared. This is discrimination to (against) the LGBTQ community in the world, where in sports, we should treat every athlete fairly. In respect, this is a very big disrespect to the Republic of the Philippines as a country where everybody is treated equally.”

Bacyadan, who has previously represented wushu and sanda in international competitions for the last 10 years in the women’s division said: “Never in my entire career have I taken or injected male hormones nor undergone surgical just to have a masculine physique for I am completely aware that this will possibly disqualify me in international games.”

JEN ESLAPOR and Floremel Rodriguez faced a taller and world-ranked US duo of Teegan Van Gunst and Kimberly Hildreth and absorbed a 21-15, 21-14 in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Challenge main draw Friday at the world-class Nuvali Sand Courts in Santa Rosa City.

Buoyed by a rousing home crowd, Eslapor and Rodriguez fought toe-to-toe in the early goings of each set but eventually ran out of steam against the fancied American duo ranked No. 80 in the world.

Rodriguez fired 11 points while Eslapor had eight on two aces as the Filipina tandem committed costly errors in the late stretch for a 0-1 record in Pool F of the women’s main draw, composed of six pools, with two games left in their schedule.

Van Gunst stamped her class in firing 22 big points with teammate Hildreth quarterbacking their offense and anchoring their sand defense with 12 digs plus nine points.

USA barged from the 32-team qualifiers on Thursday, finishing in the Top 8 to qualify in the 24-team main draw of biggest beach volleyball event ever hosted by the country behind the leadership of Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) president Ramon “Tats” Suzara.

Up next for USA is the powerhouse Swiss pair of Anouk Verge-Depre and Joana Mader for the Pool F leadership.

Verge-Depre and Mader, world No. 17, pulled off a close 21-17, 15-21, 15-8 win over world No. 37 Meimei Lin and Jinjin Zeng from China.

Eslapor and Rodriguez, for their part, are to spike for a bounce back win against Lin and Zeng later Friday to stay in contention for an outright Round of 16 berth.

Also on deck to debut is the duo of Ran Abdilla and Jaron Requinton against world No. 53 Samuel Cattet and Oliver Barthelemy of France in Pool of the men’s division.

Only the Top 2 teams from each Pool will gain automatic tickets to the next round with the two best third-placed teams also qualifying.

Tolentino: IOC certifies Kayla Sanchez as Filipino KAYLA Sanchez is now eligible to compete as a Filipino in the Paris 2024 Olympics, Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino announced on Friday.

“This is good news for Philippine swimming as Kayla and we won’t have to wait two more years for her to be able to represent our country in the Olympics,” said Tolentino from Canada where he visited the Canadian Olympic Team headquarters in Toronto.

Tolentino wrote the International Olympic Committee last November 8 requesting the IOC to waive the three-year residency rule that covers athletes who switch nationalities.

Sanchez—a full-blooded Filipino whose father was originally from Mabalacat (Pampanga) and mother from Baguio City—was part of Canada’s silver medal-

clinching women’s 4x100 meters women’s relay team in Tokyo 2020.

Considered one of Canada’s top swimmers, she switched citizenship in June last year and was able to swim for the Philippines at the Hangzhou Asian Games last September.

“The IOC Executive Board decided to consent to your request for exemption from the three-year waiting period and thus confirm the eligibility [from a nationality perspective] of Ms. Kayla Sanchez to represent the Philippines at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, subject to qualification,” the IOC informed Tolentino in a letter dated Wednesday (November 29) and signed by Director of NOC Relations and Olympic Solidarity James MacLeod.

Kayla Sanchez

Ataydes give hope to underprivileged young athletes YOUNG aspiring athletes have been the centerpiece of the country’s grassroots system for the past few decades, leading to the growth of many successful stories of various great Filipino sports personalities that overcome poverty by excelling globally through sports.

Quezon City first district Congressman Juan Carlos “Arjo” Atayde, a member of the Youth and Sports Development Committee in the House of Representatives, and his uncle Mike Atayde are known for their passion in developing the youth through sports to achieve their dreams.

For their noble efforts, they will receive a special citation from the POC-PSC Media Group for nurturing underprivileged kids to achieve their full potential on December 4 during the 3rd Siklab Youth Sports Awards at the Market!

Market! Activity Center Ayala Malls, BGC in Taguig City.

The young Atayde is very supportive to the initiative of his father’s brother Mike as one of the creators of the Youth Football League to keep the youth football clubs relevant to the kids and the football club Davao Aguilas.

The YFL has discovered a lot of under-18 talents like Lien Dale Manuel from Tondo who is a scholar of Treston in BGC and Lhei Ycong was another Tondo footballer,

who joined the all-girls’ team with Forza FC and now a scholar of Wood Rose in Ayala Alabang.

Sharing the limelight during the awards night backed by MVP Sports Foundation, Smart/PLDT, CEL Logistics, NLEX, Pacquiao 3-in-1 Coffee and JC are Blue Hydra Rising Stars awardees Zhaoyu Capilitan of chess, rowing’s Ayona Huerto, skateboarding’s Mazel Alegado, fencer Jodie Danielle Tan, jiu-jitsu’s Aielle Aguilar and Yanna Marte.

There are hundreds of kids that become scholars through the YFL since 2017 that give hope to less fortunate kids to play the sport and achieve their dreams.

The actor-lawmaker, on the other hand, is also supportive not only to football but also on other sports especially in his district in Quezon City, as he recently organized a high quality D1 basketball league, and other projects to benefit the youth.

Leading the awardees are Alex Eala of tennis, World Combat Games gold medalist Alyssa Kylie Mallari of muay thai, weightlifting world youth champion Prince Keil Delos Santos and 20 other athletes from different sports named as Go For Gold Siklab Young Heroes during the gala for the finest Filipino athletes.

Congressman Juan Carlos “Arjo” Atayde

Manila Southwoods-2 members Danny Samaniego, Monet Garcia, Joseph Tambunting, Raul Magpantay, Thirdy Escaño and Edmund Yee are shown after winning the Am-Championship division of the 73rd Januarius FilAm Golf Invitational.

John Hay teams sweep Fil, Am A golf divisions

BAGUIO—Camp John Hay Golf Club completed a double victory in both FIL and AM A divisions of the 73rd Januarius Fil-Am Golf Invitational.

CJHGC-1 ruled the Fil division after scoring 92 points at the Baguio Country Club and a closing 410 total, while CJHGC-2 stamped its class in Am with 118 at Camp John Hay for 385.

In Fil-B, competition was so tight that four teams contended for the crown.

MGC-Mimosa (73-356) prevailed over Baguio Country Club-1 (76-353), Robros JV Golf Team-1 (74-352) and Hotel Bahia (78-349).

Seattle Fil-Am (106-352) took home the plum in Am-B. Winners in the other senior divisions were Fil-Am Japan 67-322 (Fil-C), Baguio Country Club-2 92-320 (Am-C), Eaglemasters-1 56-289 (Fil-D), Team Na Koa-2 82-277 (Am-D), Pinewoods Kumpadres 54-301 (Fil-E) and FOTC Barakos Am 70-267.

City of Pines (82-296) won in regular Fil F and Palm Grove (94-303) ruled the Am F.

PROPERTY

C2

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

extrastory2000@gmail.com JOEL D. LACSAMANA, Editor

Walking the talk

G

REEN developer Arthaland, and Swedish home furnishing brand IKEA, have made significant strides to promote a sustainable future.

Arthaland is the first real estate developer in the Philippines with a residential and commercial portfolio, 100 percent certified as sustainable by local and global organizations.

IKEA focuses on affordable, sustainably made products and home solutions that help people live a more sustainable life at home. In celebration of the second

anniversary of IKEA Pasay City, IKEA is giving away a fully furnished sustainable home from Una Apartments.

IKEA Family members who will spend a minimum of Php 10,000 both in- store and online are entitled to a raffle entry, which allows them a chance to win the grand prize of a studio unit at Una Apartments at

Sevina Park, Binan Laguna.

The unit (Shown in photo) is worth over Php 7,000,000 and furnished with IKEA home solutions. Minor prizes of home makeover packages worth up to Php 100,000 will also be given away.

The raffle will run from November 20, 2023, to January 31, 2024. For more information about Arthaland and Una Apartments, visit the Studio and One-bedroom model units located at Sevina Park, Biñan, Laguna, or visit www.arthaland.com. For details on the IKEA raffle, visit www.IKEA. ph/anniversaryraffle.

Marine protection in Batangas SHORE It Up (SIU), a corporate social responsibility project of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC), recently partnered with the municipality of Mabini, Batangas to conserve and protect the coastal and marine environment.

Metro Pacific Investments Foundation (MPIF), pledged P1.5 million over a span of three years.

These funds will cover a range of critical aspects, including training, allowances, uniforms, equipment, and logistical support, all of which are essential for the successful implementation of the MPIC Guardians program in Mabini.

SIU inaugurated the Coastal Resource Management Office (CRMO) in Mabini. The facility will serve as a

Christmas lights at Parqal, Asean City focal point for community engagement and awareness. During the inauguration, volunteers of Shore It Up! installed Mooring Buoys off the coast of Mabini.

The move not only promotes responsible boating, but also reduces potential damage to fragile coral reefs

and marine life caused by traditional anchoring methods. Present were Dr.Ramir Beloso; PCapt. Benzar Ali; Jake Calangi; MPIF President Melody del Rosario; Bokal Arlin Magboo; Congressman Richard Dieza, VM Leonido Bantugon; and Romy Trono.

Century Properties goes into first home business CENTURY Properties Group (CPG) recently acquired PHirst, its first-home residential venture, marking a milestone five years after entering a joint venture with Mitsubishi Corporation.

The CPG’s board of directors approved the company’s acquisition of a 40% ownership stake previously held by Mitsubishi Corporation in two entities, PHirst Park Homes, Inc. (PPHI) and Tanza Properties, Inc. (TPI) via a share purchase agreement. The acquisition has been aproved by the Philippine Competition Commission in August and creditors.

Fast-growing business CPG’s Executive Chairman and Ambassador, Jose E.B. Antonio, emphasized the strategic importance of this acquisition. “This pivotal move allows us to offer greater value to our stakeholders now that CPG is the 100% owner of a fast growing and high margin business,” he said.

PPHI has successfully completed the launch of 15 projects it committed to deliver during its formation in 2017. In 2022, CPG established a wholly-owned

subsidiary, Century PHirst Corporation (CPC), to expand its market presence by entering the socialized and economic housing, as well as mid-income residential markets.

The expanded market brought about offerings under new brands: PHirst Sights Bay for socialized and economic segments, PHirst Editions Batulao catering to the mid-income market, and PHirst Centrale Hermosa—a mixeduse township encompassing residential (Impressions), commercial (Fairgrounds), and retail (Boroughs) establishments. This expansion widened PHirst’s price point

offerings, ranging from P580,000 to P8 Million.

Affordable homes in the forefront PHirst continues to thrive in its core affordable product line (P1.5 to P3.5 million) as it launched its first community in Nueva Ecija with PHirst Park Homes Gapan (Shown in photo), followed by the opening of PHirst Impressions Batulao in Nasugbu, Batangas in the first and second quarter of 2023, respectively.

Early this November, PHirst broke ground on its inaugural venture in the Visayas Region via PHirst Park Homes Bacolod, marking a step forward to achieving nationwide presence.

“We are committed to addressing the housing needs of first-time homebuyers as well as to explore further expansion opportunities,” said CPG President and Chief Executive Officer Marco Antonio said. “Now as the sole owner of PHirst, which caters to our core price point, and with our expansion into new brands broadening our product and price offerings, we now have a platform to address the entire spectrum of the country’s housing backlog.”

ASEANA City, the premier business and lifestyle district in the Manila Bay area, recently held its first Christmas Lighting Ceremony at Parqal.

The celebration illuminated the entire Aseana City estate with charming Filipino-themed Christmas decorations, ushering in the season of joy and camaraderie. The event unfolded with a serenade from the students and teachers at Nord Anglia International School, one of Aseana City’s international schools.

The ceremony was further elevated by the captivating voices of Himig Rizalia, a chorale group hailing from the Rizal Technological

University.

Enhancing the ambiance was the breathtaking light show of the Parqal Canopy, painting the night sky with a symphony of music and colors.

Leading the festive ceremony were (from left to right): Edwin Michael Wenceslao, VP Treasury of DMWAI; Edwin Olivarez, 1st District Representative of Parañaque City; Eric Olivarez, Parañaque City Mayor; Sylvia Wenceslao, chairperson of DMWAI; Delfin “Buds” Wenceslao, chief executive officer and president of DMWAI. The Parqal Canopy light show can be enjoyed every night from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Construction, real estate titan named Entrepreneur of the Year

APPLEONE Group President and CEO Ray Manigsaca recently received the Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Grand Chamber Awards (GCA) Night hosted by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI).

The GCA Night is held to acknowledge exemplary entrepreneurs who have demonstrated outstanding performance in their respective business fields while upholding ethical practices reflective of the quintessential Cebuano entrepreneur.

Manigsaca is a professional engineer and visionary who transformed AGI into a powerhouse within the construction and real estate development industry. Under his guidance, AGI has crafted multiple award-winning properties, such as the Sheraton Cebu Mactan Resort and Residences, and AppleOne’s mixed-use development, the Mahi Center, reflecting innovation and sustainability.

C3

AGRICULTURE

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

agriculture.manilastandard@gmail.com PATRICIA TACULAO, Editor

Promoting urban, peri-urban agriculture for food security D

By Patricia Taculao

URING the COVID-19 pandemic, when restrictions were prevalent, people saw a decline in available food resources and became distressed. Fortunately, urban and peri-urban agriculture also became increasingly popular among city folk, showing them the significance of growing their food.

Although not an entirely new practice, it gave the public something to do and a reliable food source.

Seeing the positive turnout from metro residents, the local government, with private and public institutions, continues to promote achieving food security in the Philippines by 2050.

The Department of Agriculture promotes it through the National Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Program (NUPAP), a policy direction of the DA to increase food production and lessen the logistic costs to soften the impact of global concerns like food security, climate change, and the rising costs of fuel

and other inputs.

It shall also provide material, technical, and funding support to urban and peri-urban agriculture programs and activities.

DA-Bureau of Plant Industry (DA-BPI) Director Gerald Glenn F. Panganiban said during a recent Pandesal Forum at the Kamuning Bakery Cafe that the NUPAP is “a sustainable way of living” as it helps produce food for a city or community.

DA-BPI Gerald Glenn F. Panganiban (center) discussing the benefits of urban and peri-urban agriculture and why it must be sustained

The primary goal now is to sustain efforts in promoting the program, which is why Panganiban shared that BPI continuously partners with other institutions to make the NUPAP sustainable.

“We want to really upscale and to engage the private sector, with the technology provided, so we can realize kung ano ba talaga ‘tong mga technology na pwedeng makabenefit sa ating mas maraming citizens (We want to really upscale and to engage the private sector, with the technology provided, so we can realize what these technologies really are that can benefit more of our citizens),” Panganiban said.

Also present during the recent Pandesal Forum last November 27 were former DA Secretary William Dar, the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. (FFCCCII) President Cecilio K. Pedro, Professor of Biosystems Engineering and Director of the Global Initiative for Strategic Agriculture in Dry Lands (GISAD) at The University of Arizona Joel Cuello, and realty entrepreneur Wilson Lee Flores as the moderator.

The Philippines is the world’s second-largest coconut producer, next only to Indonesia

From left: University of Arizona Professor Joel Cuello, FFCCCII President Cecilio K. Pedro, DA-BPI Director Gerald Glenn Panganiban, former DA Secretary William Dar, and Wilson Lee Flores at Kamuning Bakery Cafe

Celebrating 92 years of service through sustainable agri innovations Guest speaker DA-BPI Director technology. The second is to THE Bureau of Plant Industry Los Baños National Crop Research, Gerald Glenn F. Panganiban continue to promote and maintain Development, And Production cheerfully greeted and congratulated collaborations with international Support Center (BPI-LBNCRDP- everyone at the event. He also and local partners. Highlighting the enormity of the SC) celebrated its challenge at hand 92nd anniversary and the significance with the theme “92 of the nation to come Years of Serving together to help solve the Nation through food security in the S u s t a i n a b l e country. The third is A g r i c u l t u r e to build a culture of Innovations.”

The BPIsupporting each other.

L B N C R D C , Where everyone actively contributes previously known to one another’s wellas the Los Baños being, growth, and Economic Garden, success. was established on KOPIA Center November 20, 1931, under Passage Act The BPI-LBNCRDC contributes to and aids the government’s goal of achieving Philippines, Director Kyu Seong Lee, No. 3910 of the food security and sustainability public/private pre-independence Philippine Legislature.

The presented three challenges to BPI partners, stakeholders, employees, center contributes to and aids the Los Baños Center. The first is and key officials from BPI Manila government’s goal of achieving to produce, implement, utilize, and BPI-LBNCRDPSC were also and maximize readily available present at the event’s opening. food security and sustainability.

DA to boost coconut industry productivity to benefit farmers THE Department of Agriculture (DA) is looking at massive coconut planting and replanting to boost production of a sector that accounts for more than a third of the country’s agricultural exports and livelihood source for millions of Filipinos.

“The Philippines needs to embark on increasing productivity through the cultivation of quality planting materials like [coconut] hybrids and varieties with superior traits,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. told the inaugural International Scientific Conference on Research and Development held Monday at the University of the Philippines’ campus in Los Banos, Laguna.

The Philippines is the world’s second-largest coconut producer, next only to Indonesia, but is the world’s top exporter, shipping around 70 percent of its output overseas.

Top coconut exports include crude and refined coconut oil, desiccated coconut, copra meal, and coconut water. Nearly 3.5 million Filipino farmers nurture coconut plantations that cover about 3.6 million hectares

across the country.

Despite stable export growth, the coconut industry continues to suffer from declining farm yield that started in 2010 due to infestation and major typhoons, low investments, limited research and development, and poor infrastructure—all keeping many coconut farmers poor.

Of the Philippines’ 82 provinces, 68 are coconut producers, with Davao Oriental as the biggest producer. The Philippine Coconut Authority said the coconut industry increased its export value in 2022 to $3.2 billion.

“The novel initiative of [conference] organizers linking science and business to Genetic Resources Conservation, Germplasm Exchange, and Use can only be achieved by harmonizing the minds and efforts of researchers, policymakers, and the private sector,” Laurel said.

Laurel said the DA will support “unified, responsive, and marketdriven initiatives” to bolster coconut production and consequently improve the lives of millions of coconut farmers.

National Tilapia Congress gathers fishery leaders for stronger tilapia industry THE National Tilapia Congress returns for its sixth edition this year with the theme, “Rising Strong and Growing for a New Beginning.”

The two-day Congress ran from November 20 to 21 in Clark, Pampanga, and gathered key stakeholders to assess the current situation and challenges of the tilapia industry and formulate appropriate, responsive, and sustainable solutions.

A popular source of protein and livelihood to hundreds of thousands of Filipinos, Tilapia is considered one of the most commercially significant Philippine fish species and one of the fastest-growing aquaculture commodities globally. In 2021, the Philippines ranked as the 6th major producer of farmed tilapia globally, contributing 4.80 percent of world production.

Despite this, the tilapia industry continues to face many challenges, including escalating farm input costs, the growing impact of climate change, lack of supply of Esteemed guests during the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the 6th National Tilapia Congress

quality fry and fingerlings, and economic volatility on both national and regional levels, leading to the observed decline in production by 10.62 percent in 2022.

The 6th National Tilapia Congress seeks to address these issues by providing key stakeholders with an opportunity for the exchange of knowledge, best practices, and policy frameworks through plenary sessions and exhibits, and ultimately, fortify partnerships between the private sector and the government, with a call for the formation of associations and cooperatives to strengthen and support the tilapia industry.

“A crucial aspect in ‘Rising Strong and Growing for a New Beginning’ is fostering collaboration among farmers, government agencies, and industry stakeholders, especially in these volatile times. By working together can we only address formidable challenges such as farm sustainability, rising inputs, and market unpredictability,” said PhilTilapia President Florendo G. Juico, Jr.

TECH

C4

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2023

rumallari@thestandard.com.ph rieramallari@yahoo.com RIERA U. MALLARI, Editor

Experience Easy with GCash for Business: Customer-centric solutions for enterprises GCash for Business holds the ‘Experience Easy’ Business Summit to provide Philippine companies of all sizes with muchneeded solutions to an increasingly demanding local market.

Bayad President/CEO Lawrence Y. Ferrer

Bayad makes mark at 2023 Singapore Fintech Festival BAYAD, the biggest and widest multi-channel payment platform in the Philippines, showcased its commitment to advancing financial technology and expanding its global presence at the 2023 Singapore Fintech Festival.

The highlight of Bayad’s participation was the thought-provoking presentation by President and CEO Lawrence Y. Ferrer, where he shared valuable insights on the pivotal role of bill payments in catalyzing digital economic growth.

In his presentation titled “Fueling Progress: Bill Payments as the Catalyst for Digital Economic Growth,” Ferrer emphasized the importance of bill payments in the Philippines and its significant contribution to the country’s economy.

The Move Toward Digital Currently, the Philippines ranks as the largest recipient of money remittances in Southeast Asia, 3rd in Asia, and 4th globally, with the World Bank predicting continued growth in remittances.

Payment behavior in the Philippines is shifting towards digital transactions, with a projected increase to at least 50% in 2023, aligning with the Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

The digital economy clearly continues to grow, as “Every day, more and more people are choosing to make digital transactions, as seen in the 9.4% share of the digital economy to the GDP of the Philippines in 2022.

With the growing Philippine market globally and the increasing preference for digital payment platforms, we want to answer to the demand of Filipinos for a secure and convenient way of managing their bills, wherever they may be, by creating solutions anchored in their bill payment needs,” said Ferrer.

Bayad’s Role in the Bill Payment Industry Given this, Bayad, formerly known as Bayad Center, has continued to be a trusted brand in the industry for 26 years, initially serving MERALCO customers with alternative bill payment outlets.

Now with a massive ecosystem, Bayad has evolved into the premier bill payments aggregator, serving over 3,000 biller brands from both public and private sectors, covering a wide range of services, including electric and water utilities, telecommunications, government contributions, airline booking payments, loans, e-loading, e-wallet top-ups, toll RFID loading, insurance, memorial and more.

T

HE numbers are in and it’s undeniable —customer experience is everything.

Studies reveal the irreplaceable value of good customer experience to the success and growth of any company in any industry.

A study from PwC revealed that customers are willing to pay up to a 16% price premium for top-flight service, while 32% of all customers are willing to walk away even from a brand they love after only one bad experience. Customer loyalty also grants businesses much more flexibility based on a study from the Temkin Group. Loyal customers are five times as likely to repurchase a product and forgive a mistake, seven times as likely to try new products, and four times as likely to refer the brand or company to others.

In its goal to empower local businesses to achieve commercial success, GCash for Business held the “Experience Easy” Business Summit to provide Philippine companies of all sizes with

much-needed solutions to an increasingly demanding local market.

“Customers have their own point of view of what they expect from brands they interact with, and they’re not shy about letting everyone know. This forces businesses to face two realities: they can learn directly from their customers what they need, but they can also be immediately called out for unfavorable service,” said Kate Cruz, Head of B2B Marketing. “As a finance super app with millions of users, GCash is uniquely positioned to know exactly what Filipinos want to help businesses create enjoyable and relevant experiences for their customers at every touchpoint.” ● Experience Easy with GCash for Business With mobile usage accounting for about 70% of internet traffic and with a projection to increase in the coming years, businesses have ample opportunities to offer meaningful experiences to their customers. However, with countless channels to choose from, creating such experiences can become overwhelming and expensive.

With a multitude of financial products and services available for every Filipino, GCash for Business makes it easy for companies to effectively engage multiple customer touch points

and address critical challenges to achieve specific goals. ● Experience Easy and Preferred Payments The Philippines is already considered as one of the largest and quickly expanding eCommerce markets in the world, and the fight for market share in this space will only get tougher. As a consumption-driven market, Filipinos are also motivated to purchase more when there are less barriers to deal with.

With GCash for Business, companies can give their customers a seamless experience with every transaction for an already captured market of over millions of users. Merchant transactions can be conveniently and quickly done online via Webpay, or in-store via Scan-to-Pay, allowing customers to pay however and whenever they want.

To also avoid long queues, Scan to Order was also recently introduced wherein customers can now order directly on the GCash app. They can easily skip the queue, order and pay directly on the app and go straight to the store for pick up - improving the overall shopping experience. ● Experience Easy and Relevant Advertisements With customer loyalty becoming more elusive than ever, personalization

has become a key strategy for all businesses. Customers have high expectations from businesses to know their interests by offering relevant recommendations and targeted promotions.

With GCash for Business Ad Solutions, companies can easily create tailor-fit and timely messaging based on customer behavior. They also have easy access to promo solutions that include affinity targeting, geo-targeted ads, and hyper-AI ads to reach exactly who they want to reach when they need to be reached. ● Experience Easy and Flexible Installment Options Every transaction and every sale is valuable in a highly competitive environment, and it’s up to each merchant to help customers on a tighter budget make the purchase. When customers deal with less financial burden every time they buy, businesses can convert more visits to sales while giving customers freedom to manage their transactions in the easiest way possible.

For eligible GCash users, businesses can offer different flexible payment plans and options via GGives, the easyto-pay installment plan, or GCredit, an extended credit line. Whether online or in-store, merchants can take advantage of lending solutions fit for their business model and their customers.

TCL to launch C755 ‘Ultra Game Master’ MiniLED Gaming TV TCL Electronics, a leading brand in consumer electronics and TV manufacturing and the World’s Top 2 TV brand, is finally revealing the next generation gaming TV dubbed as the “Ultra Game Master”. It is set to break barriers in QD Mini LED technology.

The new TCL C755 gives superior light control and precise dimming zones in all corners of the TV screen. With its incomparable picture quality, more defined color perfection and exceptional gaming features, you’ll be amazed by this ultra revolutionary product.

“The long wait is over! We are very happy to announce the coming of the new TCL C755 that will give every gamer’s fantasy in terms of giving them the ultimate gaming experience. This one is truly going to level up your expectations in a gaming TV,” says Loyal Cheng, TCL Philippines Chief Executive Officer.

A Visual Masterpiece Speaking of exceptional eye feast, the TCL QD-Mini LED is a superb visual masterpiece that presents astonishingly vivid visuals with lifelike colors and an ultra-high contrast ratio. It is highlighted with higher peak brightness, a wider

TCL C755 presents outstanding brightness and darkness in every corner of the frame.

color gamut, a larger screen size, and a longer lifespan, making it a leading-edge display technology.

In terms of its dimming capability, the entire screen is finely divided into over 1344 zones. The full array local dimming precisely corrects and balances the backlight and image by calculating the brightness intensity for each zone based on image signals, ensuring that each frame can show more light and shadow details

in ultra contrast ratio.

The TCL C755 also utilizes the Quantum Dot technology where it unveils over 1,000,000,000 hues of vibrant and precise colors, providing a wider color volume of up to 96% according to the DCI-P3 standard. Immerse yourself in a kaleidoscope of colors, where every shade comes to life with unmatched brilliance and depth. The HDR 1600 nits peak brightness capability provides

a remarkable vivid visual for variable lighting conditions, even in broad daylight. Enjoy the details hidden in the sunny or shadowy scene.

This newest model also boasts of AI picture quality processor through the AiPQ Processor 3.0 that perceives and thinks like a clever mind to capture every detail in the real world into its rich database and to perform simulation and optimization based on human recognition. It finally reproduces visual outputs based on vibrant color, excellent contrast, and crystal clarity as you see in the natural world.

Exceptional Gaming Experience next-level gaming with the best elevating technology in action dubbed as the Game Master 2.0. Unlock advanced display and audio experience by trying smoother streaming with the TCL Game Master.

The TCL C755 also puts an end to choppy gameplay and broken frames with fluid, artifact-free performance at virtually any frame with its AMD FreeSync Premium Pro technology.

For a better gaming performance, the HDMI2.1*4 allows for higher resolutions, higher frame rates and a lot more bandwidth.

BIDA Fiber offers top-tier connectivity for employees working from home

A committed call center agent, Mitzi Grafia is dedicated to supporting customers with their inquiries and concerns. Through the fast and reliable connection of BIDA Fiber, she can seamlessly extend them assistance, ensuring their complete satisfaction.

THE province of Cebu has been known as one of the most attractive expansion hubs for outsourcing firms in the country. With the availability of a quality workforce, necessary infrastructure, and an investment-friendly environment, it has been a preferred destination for companies looking to expand their operations.

Thus, for call center agents in Cebu like Mitzi Grafia, a resident of Lapu-Lapu City, a robust internet connection is a requirement, serving as her bread and butter as an employee seeking opportunities in the BPO industry.

With the industry’s pivot to the hybrid working environment, she needed a connectivity solution that would provide unmatched reliability for a price that is best suited for her budget as someone earning a modest income.

At the perfect moment, Converge unveiled its newest postpaid plan BIDA Fiber, which offers

a budget-friendly and quality connection that would cater to the needs of budget-conscious customers like her.

“By God’s grace, we can get by. I am grateful that we have a livelihood, at the same time, for the excellent connectivity we enjoy through BIDA Fiber powered by Converge,” she shared.

Priced at P888 per month, BIDA Fiber extends fast and reliable connectivity at 35 Mbps, connecting a maximum of six devices. From an unstable and expensive monthly internet plan, Grafia is now subscribed to BIDA Fiber which allows her to connect to customers effortlessly.

It provides her unlimited connection that she can depend on throughout the day regardless of time and number of devices connected simultaneously.

“Since switching to BIDA Fiber, I have

not experienced any interruptions. I am completely satisfied with the service it delivers,” Grafia said.

Offering a more practical option for Filipino households, BIDA Fiber allows employees like Grafia to save more for their family’s essential needs.

“Before, I was paying nearly twice the amount, but now I’m only paying P888, which is very affordable and practical for us as ordinary people,” she said.

BIDA Fiber not only enhances Mitzi’s work efficiency but also enriches her family’s leisure time, enabling them to enjoy movies and a wide array of TV series.

“The internet is crucial for us. There are times when I prefer staying at home with my family while connected to the internet. I am already satisfied with that,” Grafia expressed.