The Standard - 2015 April 26 - Sunday

VOL. XXIX  NO. 70  3 Sections  24 Pages  P18  SUNDAY, APRIL 26, 2015  www.manilastandardtoday.com  editorial@thestandard.com.ph

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Welcome to planet Earth

Nepal quake: Hundreds killed

CUSTOMS OFFICIALS MAY QUIT EN MASSE Next page

Fiesta time. Student dance troupes from different regions compete in a street dance contest during the Aliwan Festival in Manila on Saturday. DANNY PATA

GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN

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JASMINE CURTIS-SMITH SPREADS HER WINGS

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s u n d ay : a p r i l 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

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news

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

BINAY OPEN TO PH-CHINA JOINT DEALS

By Vito Barcelo and Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

Big brother in charge. A boy pushes a wooden cart bearing his siblings at a market in Manila. The Philippines is among the fastest growing economies in Asia despite public criticism that growth is not trickling down to the poor. AFP

customs promotion triggers quit threat

By Joel E. Zurbano and Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

Several Customs officials threaten to resign if the Palace will insist on promoting the agency’s anti-piracy chief as head of the enforcement and Security Group, one of the bureau’s law enforcement and operations units against smuggling.

The group of officials, led by Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence Group Jessie Dellosa, said they will resign if lawyer Teddy Raval, head of the bureau’s Intellectual Property Rights Division, is appointed as ESS director as purportedly planned.

Resigned Customs commissioner John Philip Sevilla cited Raval’s appointment as one of the reasons why he stepped down.

“There is no other reason given for the appointment of Attorney Raval. The push is strong for him to be promoted to a high position at Customs,” he said.

“When things like that happen, something like that is pushed, I begin to doubt their motivations,” Sevilla added.

Sources at the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) told the Standard that the appointment of Raval to ESS was approved by Malacanang officials in November last year, supposedly because of lobbying from an influential religious group.

“But Depcom Dellosa and other officials are opposing this move, saying Raval belongs to the old group and that will ditch all reforms initiated by the new group. Later, Commissioner Sevilla joined the cause and also expressed his intention to resign,”

the source said.

Raval’s present post is under the CIIS leadership, which is also being supervised by Dellosa’s office.

Another source said Raval was a law fraternity brother of two of the six deputy commissioners in the bureau.

“Ravals’ appointment papers were already signed by Malacanang as early as November but it could not be implemented because of the objections of Commissioner Sevilla and Depcom [Dellosa]. Even then, they already threatened to resign if they force the appointment,” he said.

In resigning, Sevilla also said he didn’t want the agency he headed to be used as a “milking cow” for politicians in the coming May 2016 elections.

Sevilla had claimed they had done a lot to reform the graftridden agency. “Whether it is an election year or not, politician or not, corruption is wrong. Period.

We should fight it.”

Sevilla said he resigned because he is not a political person and he is sad he could not finish what they have started.

In a television interview on Saturday, former commisioner Rozzano Rufino Biazon admitted that politicians recommending personnel for promotion or

to work in Customs is a “normal thing” in the bureau.

“I sympathize with him because I really know the post of Customs commissioner. It is really a tough job... a hostile environment,” said Biazon in an interview with CNN Philippines.

“Lobbying for appointments to position has been practiced for some time. During my incumbency, I received a lot of letters, recommendations from political personalities [for] applicants to be accepted in the bureau but I can honestly say that I never accommodated recommendations just like that,” he said.

The former Muntinlupa City representative also wrote an article, saying “destabilization of a sitting commissioner, especially one who is pursuing reform, is a given especially because there are many sectors who want to preserve the status quo or the “way things are run.”

“Some will move heaven and hell [sic] or spend a fortune just to remove a sitting commissioner for various reasons. Some for business interests, some for political reasons or some simply want the job for themselves,” he said in his blog “The Way It Is.” Some commissioners tried to get rid of the illegal practice but failed.

Last year, the bureau recruited a new batch of district collectors to replace those who were transferred to the Customs Policy Research Office (CPRO), dubbed as a “freezer” at the Department of Finance.

The move, according to Sevilla, was part of the agency’s reform program.

In October 2013, the bureau

issued a series of Customs Personnel Order (CPO) and memoranda initiated by the Office of the President and the Finance department.

At first, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima recommended the designation of six new Customs deputy commissioners, which was approved by President Benigno Aquino III. The six deputy commissioners are Jessie Dellosa for Intelligence Group, Ariel Nepomuceno for Enforcement group; Agaton Uvero for the Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group; Myrna Chua for the Internal Administration Group; Ma. Edita Tan for Revenue Collection Monitoring Group, and Primo Aguas for Management Information Systems and Technology Group.

The appointment of deputy commissioners was followed by the transfer of 27 collectors to the CPRO. However, 15 of the 27 Customs collectors, with position title of Collectors V and VI, were able to get a temporary restraining order from a Manila court judge preventing their transfer. The court later reversed its decision.

Later, the bureau issued another Personnel Order, this time transferring division heads and directors, including the heads of the CIIS and ESS, to the CPRO. This was followed by a CPO detailing personnel from different agencies and other governmentowned and controlled banks and corporations to various Customs offices, like in the Philippine Economic Zome Authorities, Export Processing Zone Authority and to the offices of at least two deputy commissioners.

IF Vice President Jejomar C. Binay were elected president, he said he would try to improve strained relations with China by pushing joint ventures in the exploitation of resources in disputed areas of the West Philippine Sea. “What’s wrong with that?” Binay asked in a radio interview “There’s a property. We are in need of capitalization, we need a lot of investors, we hope to continue and attract investors. One of our biggest problems is how to attract investors, to have a better economy.”

“In other words, let me say that the issue of ownership must not be a problem to have good trade relations,” said Binay, who had just returned from the Asia-Africa Conference in Bandung, Indonesia.

During the Bandung Conference, Binay announced foreign policy thrusts he said he wants to pursue if he would be elected president in 2016, including an appeal for rich Asian and African nations to protect their smaller and weaker neighbors instead of being sources of insecurity and fear.

The call was described as a response to China’s continuing reclamation work in the West Philippine Sea amid the arbitration case the Philippines filed against Beijing before a United Nationsbacked arbitral tribunal.

But Malacañang quickly tried to douse Binay’s foreign-policy pronouncements and said the proposal for a joint exploration with China in the contested West Philippine Sea is not the official position of the Philippine government.

In a radio interview, Presidential Communication Secretary Herminio Coloma said the Philippines will pursue diplomatic track through a peaceful mean in resolving the ongoing dispute with China over territories in the West Philippine Sea. “If that is his position, it is only a personal statement and it is not the official position of our government,” Coloma said in a radio interview over state-run Radyo ng Bayan.

“Nothing has changed on the Philippine government’s position, and that [the arbitration] is what we have been pursuing.

Whatever Vice President discussed is his personal position),” Coloma said.

While in Bandung, Binay said that he would welcome a joint venture with China to explore for oil and gas in the disputed maritime areas.

“Personally, my feeling is we will continue to insist (on) our sovereignty over those properties but at the same time we hope we can create a situation where we can improve bilateral relations with China,” Binay told reporters in Jakarta.

“China has all the capital and we have the property so why don’t we try and develop that property as a joint venture?” he added when asked about a joint partnership with China in oil and gas exploration.

S u n d ay : a p r i l 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

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NEWS

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

SOLONS HIT MILF ‘SABOTAGE’

By Maricel V. cruz and Dexter a. See

LAWMAKERS have accused the Moro Islamic Liberation Front leadership of sabotaging the peace talks by refusing to surrender its fighters who were supposedly involved in the massacre of 44 police commandos in Mamasapano, Maguindanao last January 25.

House Independent Bloc Leader and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said the refusal of MILF vice chairman Gadzali Jaafar to surrender their men will diminish the already-eroding support for the Bangsamoro Basic Law. Senate President Franklin M. Drilon also expressed concern at the diminishing support for the bill nd said at a graduation ceremony of the Benguet State University that the bill may not be passed by the target date of June 11 because of lawmakers’ concerns.

“I hope the MILF will surrender its men to show confidence building measure after lawmakers’ support for the BBL eroded because of the Mamasapano incident,” Romualdez, a lawyer and president of the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa), added.

While the intention of the BBL is good which is for lasting peace in Mindanao, Romualdez said the people perceived that the deaths of policemen from SAF was deliberately carried out by the MILF. “The voluntary surrender of its men involved in the clash must be observed and the complete return of government firearms and personal belongings of killed policemen seized by rebels should be made without conditions,” Romualdez said.

Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, chair of the 75-man ad hoc panel tasked scrutinize the BBL, echoed Romualdez’s position that Jaafar’s statement would not help the passage of the BBL. “I still believe that we can pass the BBL. But I hope they will surrender their fighters to show confidence building measure and help restore the trust of our colleagues into passing the law,” Rodriguez, said.

“The government will ensure their (MILF fighters allegedly involved in the clash) right to due process, right to counsel and presumption of innocence,” Rodriguez added.

Drilon, for his part, admitted that the draft BBLhas numerous provisions that are inconsistent with the 1987 Constitution that is why amendments will be appropriately introduced during the plenary debates to prevent legal questions in the future.

“We have to fix the language of the BBL in order to conform with the provisions of our Constitution. The BBL will not be approved as submitted because it will just open the floodgates for the filing of legal suits that would derail the gains of the administration on peace and order,” Drilon said.

He agreed to earlier contentions that the BBL judiciary should be under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, matters on elections should fall under the Commission on Elections, programs and projects related to civil service must be lodged with the Civil Service Commission and auditing rules and regulations must be under the sole control of the Commission on Audit.

Be Not afraiD. Members of the family of convicted Filipino Mary Jane Veloso appear calm as they visit with the Mary Jane who is now awaiting execution in Java, Indonesia. afP

VELOSO TOLD OF APRIL 28 EXECUTION By ronald o. reyes FILIPINO domestic helper Mary Jane Veloso, who was convicted of drug trafficking in Indonesia, remained calm even after she was officially informed on Saturday that she would be executed on Tuesday, April 28, along with nine others in Nusakambangan maximum security prison island in Java.

Lawyer Minnie Lopez of the National Union of People’s Lawyers said Veloso was informed of her execution date on Saturday morning.

Despite the sad news, Veloso was calm and spent

two hours with her parents, siblings and two sons, said NUPL secretary-general Edre Olalia, who accompanied the Veloso family to the prison.

“Mary Jane (is) incredibly strong, calm and composed. She [told] family not to feel sad and is buoying their spirits. Little boys (are) playful with their mom. Father and Mom (were) initially broken but regained composure. Sisters showed intense affinity with each other,” Olalia said in a text message.

According to Olalia’s message as of 2:40 p.m. Saturday (Philippine Time), Mary Jane “maintains ab-

solute innocence.”

“She may die, but she firmly maintains she was a victim. Sends out four handwritten letters,” Olalia said.

According to Olalia, Mary Jane discussed details of her case with Olalia and other Filipino lawyers, who “[noticed] wide gaps in chain of custody of subject luggage from Malaysia to Indonesia that were all opportunities for placing or planting of heroin without her knowledge.”

Veloso was arrested in 2010 at the Yogyakarta Airport after authorities found 2.6 kilograms of heroin in her luggage. The Philippine government and her

private lawyers have appealed that the Indonesian authorities review her case, but the plea was denied.

“She is happy that a second judicial review was filed and that all efforts are being made to save her,” Olalia said.

“Prison guards and officials (are) very nice to Mary Jane and vouch for her amiable, thoughtfulness and bubbly personality,” Olalia said, adding that another rounds of visits are being prepared on Sunday and Monday “for longer time till 4 p.m.”

“Today’s visit (is) short because she is still in semi-isolation.”

ALBAY HAS 77,137 SCHOLARS New facility.

Workers put the final touches on the new National Coast Watch Center inside the Philippine Coast Guard headquarters in Manila. DaNNy Pata

LEGAZPI CITY—The Albay Higher Education Contribution Scheme, a novel studynow-pay-later scholarship program, has now benefited 77,137 beneficiaries.

Started in 2007, AHECS initially aimed to produce a college graduate for every Albay family. Due to its successes the goal now includes at least one technical-vocational and one entrepreneur graduate.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, who pioneered AHECS as among the platforms of his administration, said many AHECS graduates are already employed locally or abroad, and many are now entrepreneurs.

AHECS initially had

an enrollment of 34,000 students. In the last six years the number has already reached 77,137 with the beneficiaries given the “free hand to choose their fields of study, and do away with the usual financial woes that hamstrung parents and students who desire to pursue college education”.

AHECS has partnered with some 53 colleges and universities across Albay.

At the Mariners’ Polytechnic Institute, the most popular school for seafarers in Southern Luzon, its beneficiary graduates from 2009 to 2015 now number 3,247. The total scholarship investments for them stand

at P16,235,000.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Southern Luzon Technological College Foundation Inc. (SLTCFI), Salceda said he was surprised to find out that almost 80 percent of the graduating class were AHECS scholars and he was deluged by parents who wanted to thank him.

Salceda thanked the students, parents and school administration for supporting Albay’s education program, and added that aside from one college graduate, the province now also aims to produce one technical-vocational and one entrepreneur graduate in every family.

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OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

CHASING HAPPY ADELLE CHUA

SUPPLY AND DEMAND

[ EDI TORI A L ]

OUT OF OUR HANDS THE Indonesian government on Friday issued the order for execution of 10 of its prisoners on death row. One of the convicts is 30-year-old Filipino domestic Mary Jane Veloso, found guilty of drug smuggling.

Veloso has been transferred from Wirogunan Prison in East Java to Nusakambangan, more popularly known as execution island. Death, by firing squad, is imminent.

In recent days, the Indonesian government has been flooded with appeals, official or otherwise, in last-minute efforts to save the life of the migrant worker who claims she was duped into carrying the drugs by no less than her godsister.

This is her story: In 2010, the godsister told Veloso about a job opportunity in Malaysia. In need of a bigger income to support her two children, she agreed. When she arrived in Malaysia, she was told that the job was in Indonesia, after all. Some 2.6 kg of heroin was put in her suitcase without her knowledge, and she was arrested at the Yogyakarta airport for possessing the drugs.

She was sentenced to death last year. The Indonesian Supreme Court rejected her appeal, which she made by alleging that her translator during the trial did not accurately convey what she said.

The Philippine government filed another appeal Friday. Earlier, Vice President Jejomar Binay, who is also Presidential Assistant for OFW Concerns, met with his Indonesian counterpart to beg for Veloso’s life on humanitarian considerations.

If we go by Indonesia’s record in clamping down on drug convicts, however, the prospects appear bleak. In January, six drug convicts—five of them foreigners—were executed despite appeals from their respective governments. Indonesian leaders say they are serious about fighting the drug menace.

We commisserate with Veloso’s plight, especially if she is indeed a hapless, unsuspecting victim who only wanted to earn a living. We hope we will no longer hear about similar heartbreaking stories—and that hinges on how well and how effectively our labor officials warn our outbound migrants that they should be doubly careful whom they trust once they leave our shores.

Then again, even governments cannot guarantee the conduct of their citizens abroad, even those who become desperate enough and take great risks, perhaps believing that law enforcement abroad is as erratic and inconsistent as what we have here.

Finally, we can only wish our government were as serious about fighting the drug menace in this country as Indonesia is. Alas, drugs are freely bought and sold even in the most unlikely places, such as prisons. Convicted dealers get away with plying their trade from behind bars, and most often with the help of those who are supposed to fight it.

Mary Jane’s fate may be out of our hands now; the drug scenario in our country isn’t.

BOOKS THAT DUMB DOWN READERS ARE WE THERE YET? BONG C. AUSTERO “YOU must write a book!”

When I was younger, this was the suggestion often made at social occasions to someone who has had a string of achievements, or had a colorful life, or went through a major learning experience.

The suggestion was indicative

of how people used to equate being a book author with a certain threshold of wisdom, or at least quality experiences – the idea being that one writes a book so that people can learn vicariously from the author.

For example, I recently picked up Armida, the book on Armida Siguion-Reyna because I knew it would yield a veritable trove of insights. Siquion-Reyna has been a strong force in the lo-

cal culture scene, thanks to her feisty disposition and the many causes and battles that she immersed herself in, from propagating the kundiman, to producing and acting in movies that dared to explore new themes, to abolishing censorship, etc. This is the same reason I picked up and read similar books in the past about titans of industry, national artists, and other distinguished personalities.

Although I buy and read all

A5

But surely everyone realizes that by lowering the standards of published materials, particularly books, we’re contributing to the already massive efforts by movies and television, among others - to dumb down Filipinos?

kinds of books, I do have a particular bias for Filipiniana books, or at least what is being passed off as such. I try - and the operative term here is “try”to read as many Filipino authors as I can. I must admit that I am not always successful in the attempt; many Filipino authors are just “difficult” to read and not just in the literary sense.

Publishing a book seems to be the “in” thing for local celebrities and as a result there’s been a cottage indus-

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 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558 (connecting all departments), (Editorial), 832-5546, (Advertising), 832-

try of books authored by radio and television show hosts, local stylists, models, and yes, actors and actresses.

I am told the two best-selling books of Morning Rush disc jockeys Chico Garcia, Delamar Arias, and Gino Quillamor started the trend.

The books were compilations of the funniest entries to their morning show’s daily Top Ten segment. The books were a hit because the entries were admittedly funny, and because

5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www. manilastandardtoday.com E-mail: contact@thestandard.com.ph

MST ONLINE

can be accessed at: www.manilastandardtoday.com

MEMBER

PPI

Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

the show has been on the air for decades they happened to have a wealth of material waiting to be compiled and published. The problem was that everybody else followed suit.

Others also put together the stuff that they dish out regularly in their radio shows and packaged them into what they are passing off as, well, books. The results are embarrassing because the published products are Continued on A6

HERE’S an interesting weekend activity.

Try using the footbridges on the major intersections along EDSA. Start with the ones near North Avenue. As you look down onto the thoroughfare—and the pollution— below, and as you pass through the peddlers of various other goods, handkerchiefs, belts, socks, pants, hair accessories...mamon, peanuts, suman, sweet corn or its paler variety, you might notice men or young boys leaning against the railing.

These men, or boys, would have on their hands five or six smartphones stacked against each other.

They also have a bag slung across their torso, the bag presumably containing more of the same.

“Miss, miss,” they would try to be discreet but would call your attention if they so much as see you looking their way. They would then present to you the various models of iPhone or Samsung, at significantly marked-down prices.

They do not care if your real intention is to size them up or perhaps engage them in conversation, in a bid to find out where exactly they got their, ugh, supply.

They cannot tell—and do not care—whether you’re really buying or just posing as one.

Sure you can haggle, but you’re never going to get far. The both of you know that you are not going to get the same deal at a regular shop, even if you’ve been a loyal customer there for years. This is way, way cheaper, way beyond your dreams.

In the end, you can decide to walk away from an attractive deal because nothing suits your fancy. Or you can call it what it is: Bentahan ng nakaw.

(Marketplace of stolen goods.)

You then wonder, as you look at the man with the stacked-up smartphones in his hands, was he the one who fished them out of somebody’s pocket, too? Or did he have an accomplice, a faster-moving buddy whose job it is to snatch phones from distracted persons and to run as far as he could?

Continued on A6

Rolando G. Estabillo Jojo A. Robles Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Francis Lagniton Joyce Pangco Pañares Adelle Chua Romel J. Mendez Roberto Cabrera

Publisher Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor City Editor Senior Deskman Art Director Chief Photographer

S U N D AY, A P R I L 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

A4

OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

CHASING HAPPY ADELLE CHUA

SUPPLY AND DEMAND

[ EDI TORI A L ]

OUT OF OUR HANDS THE Indonesian government on Friday issued the order for execution of 10 of its prisoners on death row. One of the convicts is 30-year-old Filipino domestic Mary Jane Veloso, found guilty of drug smuggling.

Veloso has been transferred from Wirogunan Prison in East Java to Nusakambangan, more popularly known as execution island. Death, by firing squad, is imminent.

In recent days, the Indonesian government has been flooded with appeals, official or otherwise, in last-minute efforts to save the life of the migrant worker who claims she was duped into carrying the drugs by no less than her godsister.

This is her story: In 2010, the godsister told Veloso about a job opportunity in Malaysia. In need of a bigger income to support her two children, she agreed. When she arrived in Malaysia, she was told that the job was in Indonesia, after all. Some 2.6 kg of heroin was put in her suitcase without her knowledge, and she was arrested at the Yogyakarta airport for possessing the drugs.

She was sentenced to death last year. The Indonesian Supreme Court rejected her appeal, which she made by alleging that her translator during the trial did not accurately convey what she said.

The Philippine government filed another appeal Friday. Earlier, Vice President Jejomar Binay, who is also Presidential Assistant for OFW Concerns, met with his Indonesian counterpart to beg for Veloso’s life on humanitarian considerations.

If we go by Indonesia’s record in clamping down on drug convicts, however, the prospects appear bleak. In January, six drug convicts—five of them foreigners—were executed despite appeals from their respective governments. Indonesian leaders say they are serious about fighting the drug menace.

We commisserate with Veloso’s plight, especially if she is indeed a hapless, unsuspecting victim who only wanted to earn a living. We hope we will no longer hear about similar heartbreaking stories—and that hinges on how well and how effectively our labor officials warn our outbound migrants that they should be doubly careful whom they trust once they leave our shores.

Then again, even governments cannot guarantee the conduct of their citizens abroad, even those who become desperate enough and take great risks, perhaps believing that law enforcement abroad is as erratic and inconsistent as what we have here.

Finally, we can only wish our government were as serious about fighting the drug menace in this country as Indonesia is. Alas, drugs are freely bought and sold even in the most unlikely places, such as prisons. Convicted dealers get away with plying their trade from behind bars, and most often with the help of those who are supposed to fight it.

Mary Jane’s fate may be out of our hands now; the drug scenario in our country isn’t.

BOOKS THAT DUMB DOWN READERS ARE WE THERE YET? BONG C. AUSTERO “YOU must write a book!”

When I was younger, this was the suggestion often made at social occasions to someone who has had a string of achievements, or had a colorful life, or went through a major learning experience.

The suggestion was indicative

of how people used to equate being a book author with a certain threshold of wisdom, or at least quality experiences – the idea being that one writes a book so that people can learn vicariously from the author.

For example, I recently picked up Armida, the book on Armida Siguion-Reyna because I knew it would yield a veritable trove of insights. Siquion-Reyna has been a strong force in the lo-

cal culture scene, thanks to her feisty disposition and the many causes and battles that she immersed herself in, from propagating the kundiman, to producing and acting in movies that dared to explore new themes, to abolishing censorship, etc. This is the same reason I picked up and read similar books in the past about titans of industry, national artists, and other distinguished personalities.

Although I buy and read all

A5

But surely everyone realizes that by lowering the standards of published materials, particularly books, we’re contributing to the already massive efforts by movies and television, among others - to dumb down Filipinos?

kinds of books, I do have a particular bias for Filipiniana books, or at least what is being passed off as such. I try - and the operative term here is “try”to read as many Filipino authors as I can. I must admit that I am not always successful in the attempt; many Filipino authors are just “difficult” to read and not just in the literary sense.

Publishing a book seems to be the “in” thing for local celebrities and as a result there’s been a cottage indus-

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 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558 (connecting all departments), (Editorial), 832-5546, (Advertising), 832-

try of books authored by radio and television show hosts, local stylists, models, and yes, actors and actresses.

I am told the two best-selling books of Morning Rush disc jockeys Chico Garcia, Delamar Arias, and Gino Quillamor started the trend.

The books were compilations of the funniest entries to their morning show’s daily Top Ten segment. The books were a hit because the entries were admittedly funny, and because

5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www. manilastandardtoday.com E-mail: contact@thestandard.com.ph

MST ONLINE

can be accessed at: www.manilastandardtoday.com

MEMBER

PPI

Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

the show has been on the air for decades they happened to have a wealth of material waiting to be compiled and published. The problem was that everybody else followed suit.

Others also put together the stuff that they dish out regularly in their radio shows and packaged them into what they are passing off as, well, books. The results are embarrassing because the published products are Continued on A6

HERE’S an interesting weekend activity.

Try using the footbridges on the major intersections along EDSA. Start with the ones near North Avenue. As you look down onto the thoroughfare—and the pollution— below, and as you pass through the peddlers of various other goods, handkerchiefs, belts, socks, pants, hair accessories...mamon, peanuts, suman, sweet corn or its paler variety, you might notice men or young boys leaning against the railing.

These men, or boys, would have on their hands five or six smartphones stacked against each other.

They also have a bag slung across their torso, the bag presumably containing more of the same.

“Miss, miss,” they would try to be discreet but would call your attention if they so much as see you looking their way. They would then present to you the various models of iPhone or Samsung, at significantly marked-down prices.

They do not care if your real intention is to size them up or perhaps engage them in conversation, in a bid to find out where exactly they got their, ugh, supply.

They cannot tell—and do not care—whether you’re really buying or just posing as one.

Sure you can haggle, but you’re never going to get far. The both of you know that you are not going to get the same deal at a regular shop, even if you’ve been a loyal customer there for years. This is way, way cheaper, way beyond your dreams.

In the end, you can decide to walk away from an attractive deal because nothing suits your fancy. Or you can call it what it is: Bentahan ng nakaw.

(Marketplace of stolen goods.)

You then wonder, as you look at the man with the stacked-up smartphones in his hands, was he the one who fished them out of somebody’s pocket, too? Or did he have an accomplice, a faster-moving buddy whose job it is to snatch phones from distracted persons and to run as far as he could?

Continued on A6

Rolando G. Estabillo Jojo A. Robles Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Francis Lagniton Joyce Pangco Pañares Adelle Chua Romel J. Mendez Roberto Cabrera

Publisher Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor City Editor Senior Deskman Art Director Chief Photographer

S U N D AY, A P R I L 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

A6

OPINION

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

When Women Thrive, So Will The World

By Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe WHEn I took office in 2012, I was determined to promote a society in which all women had a chance to shine. Indeed, Japan cannot truly thrive in the 21st century unless all our citizens reach their fullest potential.

The distance we have to travel to meet that goal is captured in one statistic: Although the percentage of Japanese women completing higher education exceeds that of most other developed countries, their rate of participation in the labor force is low. For those women who joined the workforce, too many had to leave once they got married or had children. What a terrible loss of talent. However, this also means Japan has enormous growth potential, still to be tapped.

I am determined to make Japan a country where opportunities for women abound, and glass ceilings are a thing of the past. Already, the number of working women has grown by more than 800,000 over the past two years, exceeding 27 million as of January. What’s more, the number of female executive officers at listed companies has increased by 30 percent since 2012, and now exceeds 800. The question is no longer whether to pursue the advancement of women but what positions and roles they should take on, and how soon.

Clearly, we must do more. For this reason, I set a target to increase the number of women in leadership positions to 30 percent by 2020. I also submitted to the Diet in February a bill that will require companies to devise plans for employing more women and appointing them to management and executive positions.

The benefits will be widespread. Having an economy or society run under women’s distinctive ways of thinking will bring us a richness that we were unable to experience before. One quick example: At one of our leading automotive companies, a team of designers, made up mainly of women, developed

Books... From A5 pitifully threadbare, both in terms of quantity and quality of material. The books basically confirm what many have suspected all along - there’s really not much to go by in terms of substance once we’ve taken away the fluff, the hysterics, and the antics from these people and their shows.

Other celebrities have also jumped into the bandwagon.

I was surprised to discover that a young television star has

a car with doors that open wide, making it easier for people holding children to get in and out. This car was the topselling vehicle in Japan for five months in a row.

To keep more Japanese women in the workforce, we need to provide them more support outside the workplace. This is why I expanded the number of openings at child-care facilities by 200,000 since 2013 and increased assistance for families raising children. Last year, a new parental leave system went into effect, making it easier for both mothers and fathers to take time with their families.

At the same time, companies and local governments have undertaken their own efforts to expand opportunities for women. In this way, women’s engagement in Japanese society is now expanding at a robust clip.

This expansion is vital if Japan is to meet a challenge that will face many developed nations in years to come: the aging of its population amid a drastic decline in birth rates. If we can succeed in spurring a deeper involvement of Japanese women in their workplaces and communities -- something that is essential to Japan’s sustained growth -- our efforts could also provide a model for other countries facing similar challenges.

The contributions and dynamic engagement of Japanese women around the world provide ample proof of this concept. In Cambodia, the midwifery skills taught by Japanese women have helped to halve the country’s infant mortality rate. In Panama, Japanese women have worked with Panamanian women to build a thriving business that turns waste oil into soap. In Bangladesh and nepal, we have helped to establish light manufacturing industries, which in turn have provided workers with pensions and health care. On a recent trip to India, I was delighted to learn that a Japanese woman was leading local workers as the chief quality supervisor for the construction of a new subway in Delhi. I am very proud of them.

Japan will continue to support such ef-

come up with a book, which basically gives advice on how to survive break-ups. I still am not sure what exactly has made her an expert on breakups. Two of the country’s top female models have also cowritten a book on what it is like to be them. These are in addition to the growing stack of books written by other local celebrities on basically the same topic – themselves. Even the supposed bestseller book on how to make one’s mother

forts. At the 2013 United nations General Assembly, I pledged $3 billion in development assistance focusing on the advancement of women. In September 2014, my government convened the World Assembly for Women to bring together wisdom from around the globe on expanding women’s active engagement. Participants came from 24 countries and six international organizations. We will hold another such conference this year, and hope to keep holding them for years to come.

A Japanese woman, Yoko Hayashi, who leads the Un Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, is another example of Japan’s contribution.

These efforts reflect long-held convictions. Like First Lady Michelle Obama, my wife Akie and I believe that it’s essential for any women’s project to involve the education of girls, particularly in developing countries. We have been engaged for decades in assistance to establish educational institutions, mainly in Asia. Children must not be deprived of the chance for an education because of their parents’ poverty. Seeing to it that girls are educated is critical to arresting poverty; breaking the chain of poverty will in turn reduce the source of conflict.

We must not forget that women’s human rights are apt to be jeopardized, particularly in the face of war and poverty.

In the 20th century, women’s honor and dignity suffered profound harm in various places when conflicts broke out. This is still the case around the world. We must not avert our eyes from this reality, and Japan intends to do all it can to address the plight of women endangered by conflict.

Last year at the Un General Assembly, I pledged that Japan would lead the international community in eliminating sexual violence during conflicts. We will join with Un agencies and the international community to renounce all forms of violence against women and to create a zero-tolerance culture. Working with the U.S. and other world leaders, our goal is to make the 21st century world one that is free of human-rights violations against women.

Bloomberg

proud, which is being shamelessly hawked by someone with supposedly unquestionable integrity, has turned out to be quite a dud - it’s basically a compilation of snippets of commentaries and testimonials of some famous people, and definitely nothing that has not been said more eloquently in other books or magazines.

Of course I am aware that everyone has the right to express themselves and publish as many books as they want.

They are not pointing guns at people to coerce them into buying the books after all. But surely everyone realizes that by lowering the standards of published materials, particularly books, we’re contributing to the already massive efforts - by movies and television, among others - to dumb down Filipinos?

Heaven truly help us if these books authored by celebrities become the new standard of what a book is supposed to be.

Supply... From A5 *** Of course, we only make that assumption. We do not know for a fact that these phones were swiped from some clueless person’s hands or taken from somebody’s bag. But how else are these vendors-on-the-bridge able to source their goods?

And how else are they able to stay in business except for the fact that they do generate some trade standing there and looking at you like you had some sort of little secret?

You then wonder if some people’s desire to acquire a branded smartphone, or at least to be seen with one, is so great as to cloud their better judgment. Talk about brand consciousness’ dark side.

One cannot help imagining the various owners of that stack of phones on the man’s hand.

Chances are, they are just like you -- working hard to earn a living and to reward themselves with occasional treats.

Was the phone given as a present? Did they scrimp for months to be be able to afford that unit? What many things did they have to sacrifice just to give themselves something so valuable?

Actually, even if they were not like you, even if the owners are really wealthy, that is still their possession and they are entitled to enjoy its use for however long they want.

When have we gone so low as people that we would source our phone from the black market, just for the satisfaction of having something so trendy and so, ugh again, validating and confidence-boosting?

Were we not taught to live within our means, use only what we can afford, and act on our desire for something better by working hard for it?

In the end, looking at the various clusters of these peddlers on the bridge, we can only offer answers as to why they have been there for a long time.

Perhaps the authorities who can act on the matter are so high up and so out of touch that they don’t use the foot bridges or even know somebody who does. Hence, they do not even know that this market exists.

Perhaps the people that should enforce the law are acting as protectors, or worse, the first customers.

Or perhaps, and this is the saddest, most fundamental answer, they continue to sell, because people continue to buy.

It’s basic economics, after all. adellechua@gmail.com

S U N D AY : A p r i l 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

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NEWS editorial@thestandard.com.ph

bAckRIDERS bAN GETS ThREE-yEAR ExTENSION

Backriders, Beware. mandaluyong mayor benhur Abalos leads a motorcade around the city to promote the “motorcycle Riding-in-Tandem Ordinance” which sets the rules on backriders. MaNNY PaLMerO

PALACE VOWS: YOLANDA REHAB WORK CONTINUES By sara susanne d. Fabunan

The National economic and Development Authority will carry out the rehabilitation of areas devastated by Typhoon Yolanda, a job once handled by former senator Panfilo Lacson of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery.

Presidential Communication Secretary Herminio Coloma assured that there are no disruptions on the progress of the rehabilitation program of the government, despite changes.

NEDA through the leadership of secretary Arsenio Balisacan will take over the OPARR functions, Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said on Saturday.

Coloma said NEDA will maintain the existing structure which is composed of five clusters.

The infrastructure cluster, for instance, is handled by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

The resettlement cluster is under the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and the social services cluster is overseen by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The Department of Trade and Industry will handle the livelihood cluster, while the Department of Budget and Management and NEDA will oversee

the support cluster.

In October last year, President Benigno S. Aquino III approved the P167.9-billion Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan to rebuild areas in Eastern Visayas devastated by Typhoon Yolanda.

The plan envisions to bring about the recovery of 171 affected cities and municipalities in 14 provinces and six regions, known as the “Yolanda corridor,” based on the “build-back-better” principle.

It focuses on long-term and sustainable efforts to reduce vulnerabilities and strengthen the capacities of communities in coping with future hazard events.

The rebuilding efforts require a total amount of P167.9 billion aimed at restoring infrastructure, settlements and basic community facilities, livelihood, and the resilience of vulnerable communities, the government said.

Meanwhile, despite efforts of

the government to provide livelihood and houses to the survivors of Typhoon Yolanda and Ruby, a priest in Eastern Samar expressed dismay over the “dependency” of people in his province.

In a statement, Borongan Bishop Crispoin Varquez said that many survivors may have fallen into gambling and drinking instead of working hard in rebuilding their lives from the devastation. “let us look into unhappy realities we have created. For instance, out of the millions or even billions of money that have come into survivors’ hands through different interventions of various institutions or persons, it is observed that only very few families and individuals have properly utilized such financial assistance.

In fact, many families and individuals have used such financial assistance for other deplorable purposes,” Varquez lamented.

‘ISLANDING’ RESTORES POWER TO mINDANAO By alena Mae Flores THE National Grid Corporation of the Philippines said its islanding operations allowed Mindanao grid to immediately come onstream after the blackout last April 5.

“Portions of the Mindanao grid normalized after a grid-wide power interruption occurred last April 5. NGCP implemented islanding operations as part of its blackout restoration procedures in the Mindanao grid within minutes after the blackout started at 1:01A.M,” the company said in a statement.

Findings reveal that a technical issue at the Agus Switchyard of the Agus hydro power plants resulted

in multiple line outages, which eventually affected the entire Mindanao Grid.

National Grid immediately implemented blackout restoration procedures at 1:04 A.M. by going on “islanding operation,” which is the isolated operation of certain portions of the grid when there is a grid disturbance.

National Grid’s Area Control Centers in Mindanao immediately performed islanding operations, and restored power transmission services to their respective areas.

National Grid was able to Isolate the Zamboanga ACC by 1:37 am. allowing restoration of power to the franchise area of Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative.

HigH-vaLue crOP. Farmers in balaoan,La Union harvest tobacco leaves. La Union and the Ilocos region are a major tobacco-producing area. david cHaN

THE local government of Mandaluyong City has extended for three years its “riding-in-tandem” ordinance which provides that only spouses, parents and siblings will be allowed to ride with motorcycle drivers.

“The records show zero (crimes) when it was implemented. Unlike before, when hardly a week passes without a crime involving ridingin-tandem,” Mandaluyong Mayor Benjamin Abalos said.

The re-launch of the ordinance, was pilot tested for six months until March 10, took effect yesterday.

“All data and reports by the Philippine National Police and barangays yielded to the tremendous decrease of motorcycle ridingin-tandem crimes in the last six months,” Abalos said.

“By regulating the use of single motorcycles within Mandaluyong City, these incidents committed by motorcycle-riding criminals will be prevented or minimized. Our people can once again go out of the streets without fear of lawless elements who will endanger their lives and properties,” he added.

Under the ordinance, riders must bring their proof of relationship, such as marriage certificates and identification cards.

First-time offenders will be slapped with a P1,000-fine. Higher penalties are imposed for subsequent offenses, while a three-month jail term awaits four-time offenders.

Abalos said the city adapted the ordinance from a law in Colombia, where crimes committed by criminals riding in tandem are rampant. Joyce Liok

LETRAN WINS IN ALbERIONE AWARDS COlEGIO de San Juan de letran aims high as The Institute of Communication (iCOMM) received recognition in the Alberione Media Awards, adding to the long list of trophies that it has acquired this school year.

“Tahan Na” was deemed Best Short Film, with “lunas” and “Thy Will Be Done” ending up as first and second runners-up, respectively. “lunas” also won the People’s Choice Award and the Grand Prix Juror’s Choice Award. “Stand Ground” was awarded first runnerup for the Best Music Video. Special recognitions were also given to “Padayon” and “Preno”.

“This is a first win for us,” said Asst. Prof. Norberto Bana III, the director of iCOMM. He explained that winning in Alberione was new since last year, IiCOMM was only able to make it as finalists, with the entries, “Tungkod sa Rehas”, “Wishbone”, and “Kawala”.

Clarence Sampang of “Thy Will Be Done” and “lunas” explained how the entries they submitted were just part of the batch’s curriculum requirements. “We didn’t specifically prepare for Alberione but iCOMM always encourages students to pass outputs to award-giving bodies, so we did,” he said. “It’s one of ICOMM’s goals to maintain its image as ‘the most awarded communication school’ under letran’s name and I’m proud to say that we are a part of it,” he added.

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SUNDAY: APRIL 26, 2015

editorial@the standard.com.ph

VETERAnS’ gROUp SETS THE RECORd STRAigHT Leaders of the Veterans Federation of the Philippines headed by its president emmanuel de Ocampo convened on Tuesday after receiving information that 18 key officials are facing plunder and malversation charges before the Office of the Ombudsman. after accurate and exhaustive scrutiny, VFP staff and executive vice president, retired colonel Boni de Gracia, produced sufficient data that the same complaints were also filed and dismissed by the courts twice in years 2008 and 2011 respectively.

“If the truth must be served, let it be known that most of the respondents listed in this new complaint only took office in 2011. This is just a remake of the previous cases that the court already discarded,” de gracia said. although moot and academic, public records show that the resurgent case filed before the Ombudsman is similar in nature to the previous cases wherein the accusations were just rehashed. de Gracia added “The truth of the matter is that the VFP does not handle any pension and finances of World War II, and the armed Forces of the Philippines for Post World War II veterans. so, there is no such thing as mismanaging of finances here. “as history would have it, the complainants rafael evangelista and Marlon dantes are neither World War II nor Post World War II veterans. They are mere civilians. at the same time, all of the 10 complainants are inactive members of VFP. That being said, they are not in a position to know anything about the administrative and operational activities of the VFP.” The other complainants, whose names were published in various broadsheets and online news sources, allegedly claim that an amount of P559 million in funds of the organization has disappeared. record showed there was satisfactory data that the VFP as public corporation created under ra 2640, has been complying with the government’s implementation and management audit.

“These accusations are bare and conjectural in nature. We at the VFP are optimist that the Ombudsman will dismiss this case that is just born out of pure harassment,” de Gracia concluded. JUN daVId

Anti-riot. policemen hold their ground against militants who press for the pullout of American troops who are taking part in the annual USpH Balikatan defense exercises during a rally in front of the US Embassy along Roxas boulevard, Manila on Saturday April 25, 2015. DAnnY PAtA

JOHN HAY LOCATORS MAY SUE BASES BODY By rey requejo

Locators and lessees in camp John Hay may file a case against the Bases conversion and Development authority if they are forcibly evicted from the property by the government agency.

The locators are protected under law as they have made their investments in good faith, Camp John Hay development Corp. executive vice president alfredo Yñiguez III said on saturday.

“It is possible for these investors to sue the BCda if they are evicted since they are protected under the law and governed by the law of contracts and obligations,” Yñiguez said.

The property developer said the writ of execution and the notice to vacate issued by Baguio regional trial court Judge Cecilia archog

specifically stated that BCda must first pay P1.42 billion it owes CJHdevCo. Yñiguez said the payments made by the third party locators and lessees were in fact credited in the Final award as BCda’s payment for the interest it owed.

“These locators are considered vested rights holders and were buyers in good faith,” he said.

CJHdevCo lawyer Gilbert reyes stressed that it was actually BCda that benefited from the payments made by the various investors in Camp John Hay. “BCda used the investors’ hard-earned investments to discharge its obligation to pay interest to CJHdevCo. It, therefore, does not require too much imagination to see why it is plainly wrong for the BCda to accept the benefit of using the investment of third parties to pay for its debt and in the same vein deny these investors the right to enjoy their investment,” he said.

“That would be unashamed, unjust enrichment by the BCda who not insists non having its cake and eating it too. Thus, if the BCda

insists on evicting the 1,600 plus investors in Camp John Hay, each and every investor may sue to enjoin their illegal eviction by the BCda,” reyes added.

Yñiguez said CJHdevCo has set up help desks for the locators who are being threatened by BCda. “We have a customer information lounge in Camp John Hay and also another in our office in Pasig City,” he added.

Judge archog has made it clear in her order that the writ of execution must be implemented simultaneously, meaning that the Final award rendered in the arbitration between CJHdevCo and BCda is “reciprocal in nature.”

“The judgment obligations are essentially, as termed in the vernacular, ‘kaliwaan.’ CJHdevCo vacates as and when it is paid by the BCda in full,” Yñiguez said.

The court order also said that in the event that developer fulfills its part but BCda fails on its end, CJHdevCo may levy on properties of BCda to satisfy the arbitral award.

HOUSE LUKEWARM TO TAX CUT

By Maricel V. Cruz

THe proposed measure lowering individual income tax rate is not a priority in the House of representatives.

“We will not pass the bill seeking to lower the individual income tax rates without approving first the TIMTa, fiscal incentives rationalization bill and excise tax on oil,” Marikina rep. Miro Quimbo, the chair of the House committee on ways and means, said.

Quimbo was referring to other revenue-generating measures such as bills raising excise tax on oil, the fiscal incentives rationalization bill and the proposed Tax Incentives Manage-

ment act (TIMTa).

The fiscal incentives rationalization bill and the TIMTa have met strong opposition from other government promotion agencies and the private sector, saying the measures will “hurt” the country’s competitiveness.

“But we will pass it [bill lowering income tax] in late 2015,” Quimbo said.

The committee’s technical working group is now consolidating the 13 bills seeking to lower income tax rates.

House Bill 4829, authored

by Quimbo, is also among the 13 pending bills, which seek to restructure the income taxes imposed on individuals.

The bill proposes the revi-

sion of income taxes for compensation income earners, self-employed and professionals, and corporations through simplification of tiers and rates, and indexation to inflation. sources said the Finance department is blocking the passage of the measure in the light of the passage of the new law raising to P82,000 from P30,000 the tax cap for bonuses.

The Finance department had earlier warned that raising the tax exemption cap on bonuses would result in revenue loss to the government of an estimated P30 billion per year. Other tax experts on the contrary pegged the expected revenue losses at only P3 billion.

FeeDing tiMe. A woman feeds the penguins inside a park to celebrate the World penguin day on Saturday, April 25, 2015. DAnnY PAtA

SUNDAY: APRIL 26, 2015

Roderick T. dela Cruz EDITOR business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

BUSINESS

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Dr. Rosa Maria Nancho and Dr. Benjamin Co listen as Health Secretary Janette Garin speaks about the government’s immunization program.

FILIPINO DOCTORS DEBUNK MYTHS ABOUT VACCINES “WE ARE humans. We are more intelligent than bacteria and viruses,” says Health Secretary Janette Garin in a candid reminder to parents about the need to have their children vaccinated against deadly viruses.

Garin, and two other top doctors, led a forum organized by pharmaceutical company Merck Sharpe and Dohme or MSD at Museum Café in Makati City on April 21, which debunked various myths about vaccines. Among such myths are that the measles, mumps and rubella or MMR vaccine causes autism, HPV vaccine leads to infertility and vaccines are no longer necessary.

“Better be safe than sorry,” says Garin.

Garin in the same forum bared the government’s plan to have 300,000 Grade 4 female students receive vaccines against sexually transmitted human papillomavirus or

HPV. It is a strong statement from a government agency that tries to remove any stigma associated with sexual activity.

Bakuna forum Dr. Benjamin Co, a clinical pharmacologist and associate member of the Pediatric Infectious Disease of the Philippines and Dr. Rosa Maria Nancho, adviser of the Society of Adolescent Medicine of the Philippines, also shared their insights during the “Usapang Bakuna” forum, as a nod to the World Immunization Week which runs from April 24 to 30.

Vaccines contain agents that resemble diseasecausing microorganisms that

stimulate the body’s immune system by developing antibodies to destroy future similar microorganisms.

Vaccines have helped eradicate or reduce incidence of diseases such as smallpox, polio, measles, tetanus, hepatitis, chickenpox, influenza and pneumonia.

We are humans.

We are more intelligent than bacteria and viruses.

Data from the 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey show that 62 percent or only six of ten Filipino children were fully immunized. This means they received the seven basic

vaccines before their first birthday.

More than 90 percent of the children received first doses each of vaccines DPT (diphtheria-pertussistetnaus), polio and Hepa B. However, the same children would not complete the succeeding second and third doses required for the full protection and only 78 percent would finish the measles vaccination at nine months old, according to the Health Department.

Speculations Doctors say aside from problems on resources and reach, the challenge of completion of such programs is being prevented by myths and speculations surrounding immunization.

“The emerging adversary of vaccination is not effectiveness—it is speculation,” says Co. “Misguided concerns, which are not grounded on

science and research, distract the general public from pressing preventable health threats. This is proving to be a major obstacle in creating a healthier nation.”

“But vaccines have an excellent safety record. As a matter of fact, you could argue that they are as safe, if not or safer than therapeutic medicines.”

Link to autism Co says a now-retracted study linking MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine) to autism led by Andrew Wakefield has been discouraging the vaccine’s uptake. The British Medical Journal later described the 1998 study as an ‘elaborate fraud’ that altered the medical histories of all 12 patients that formed its basis.

“Wakefield’s study has done long-lasting damage to health. But we need to remain focused on why vaccines were CONTINUED ON B3

SUNDAY: APRIL 26, 2015

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BUSINESS business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

PACQUIAO WINS BANK’S RESPECT

Manny is a hero who embodies the excellent qualities of the Filipino.

EMMANUEL ‘Manny’ Dapidran Pacquiao

is already a proven winner.

With 10 world titles under his belt, the boxer from Sarangani has won the highest accolades from the sporting world. His rags-to-riches story has captured the imagination of every man and made them believe that dreams can indeed come true.

Manny ran away from his home in General Santos to spare his mother the burden of another mouth to feed.

He stowed away on a boat bound for Manila. It was in its rough neighborhoods that he discovered and mastered the sweet science, as boxing is also known.

Manny steadily bulked up to take on the best fighters from higher weight classes to win eight weight division championships and became the first to win the lineal championship in four different weight divisions. Along the way, he earned the moniker “The Mexicutioner” as he defeated the then-reigning South American champions.

In a recent fight promotion, Manny made it known that he is thankful for his rise “from nothing into something.”

Millions adore him not just as a fearless boxing icon but also because of the discipline and determination he exemplified

with his hard work.

Manny’s ascent has been legendary precisely because he is no stranger to poverty and hunger. He began fighting for a paltry $2-a-bout and his match with Floyd Mayweather next month will earn him a reported $80 million (from pay-perview receipts alone).

From peddling peanuts and donuts in Manila’s mean streets, Manny has become a bankable endorser and the face of many signature global brands.

EastWest Bank is Manny’s newest endorsement. The two share the same values: an extraordinary spirit, focus, the will to win, and the passion to fight for one’s dreams.

These values made Manny the champion that he is now and it is these same values that turned EastWest into the country’s fastest-growing universal bank. And both EastWest and the People’s Champ have a never ending quest to pursue opportunities for growth and give their best in what they do.

Just like Manny, EastWest also started in the 1990s.

It was the first to receive a commercial banking license when the industry was liberalized and opened up to foreign competition. EastWest

first opened its doors to the public on August 1, 1994 in Makati City.

EastWest steadily expanded its products and services.

With strategic planning and professional management, its delivery channels and branches grew.

EastWest did not rely solely on organic growth. When good opportunities presented themselves, EastWest took advantage. In 2003, EastWest Bank bought Ecology Savings Bank Inc. In 2009, it bought AIG PhilAm Savings Bank grabbing a significant share in the consumer banking market. It bought a majority stake in Green Bank of Caraga Inc. in 2011. The following year, it bought majority interest in Finman Rural Bank Inc. In 2011, the Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas granted EastWest its universal banking license, allowing it to go into bancassurance and investment banking. EastWest listed its shares in the Philippine Stock Exchange in 2012 to become a full fledged universal bank, vowing to increase its branch network to 350 by 2014.

At the end of 2014, its branch stores have totaled 405, exceeding the target it set for itself and making it the fastest growing universal bank in the country today.

“We are one of the fastest

growing banks in the country,” said chairman Jonathan Gotianun recently. “And, we are the only bank in this country to have expanded organically by more than 100 stores in a single year.”

The fast trajectory of EastWest’s growth is reflected in its core businesses, with its in loans and deposits steadily rising and its credit cards, auto, mortgage, and personal loans expanding by double-digits.

Even as EastWest continues to strengthen its dominance in the consumer loans business, the bank is looking to expand in other business lines such as trust, investment banking, and leasing. It is also exploring possibilities in bancassurance to get its foot in in the insurance business.

“We have a dream, actually not a dream, but more of a plan. And that is to be among the biggest and most relevant banks in the country,” said Gotianun.

Just like Manny, who is clear on his goal for his every undertaking, EastWest’s growth also stems from its single minded focus on customer satisfaction. While EastWest fiercely battles other banks for a bigger share of the market, it does not lose sight of its vision.

Just like the eight-division world champion, EastWest too believes in its ability to become the best and win.

While it seems like a bold and unorthodox move, EastWest president Antonio Moncupa Jr. said it was actually a logical decision because Pacquiao embodies some of the best qualities of a Filipino—courage and passion.

“We could not have chosen a better endorser than the worldrenowned boxing champ,” Mr. Moncupa said. “Manny is a hero who embodies the excellent qualities of the Filipino spirit. Starting as an underdog, he has fought with bigger opponents and emerged as one of the greatest boxing champions the world has ever had.”

EastWest’s choice of Pacquiao is probably the first time that a bank has chosen a boxer as an endorser.

The endorsement deal is also a first for Pacquiao who has represented a number of products but never a bank until EastWest came along.

“It is an honor for me to be chosen as EastWest’s newest endorser. It is a bank that has worked hard to be where it is now in the same way that I worked hard to be where I am now. I admire the passion in their work and the focus they have in making their customers’ dreams a reality. I also value the role that banks play in helping me and other Filipinos reach financial success,” said Pacquiao.

SUNDAY: APRIL 26, 2015

BUSINESS business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

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FILIPINO DOCTORS DEBUNK MYTHS ABOUT VACCINES FROM B1

discovered and balance the benefits and risks of the disease, especially among children and the vulnerable community. As stated by the Measles Rubella Initiative, measles is a leading cause of death among children around the world, with 400 dying every day,” says Co. The World Health Organization also says there is no scientific evidence to support claims that measles vaccination may be a risk factor for autism.

HPV vaccine Meanwhile, Nancho says as HPV is a sexually transmitted disease, some parents do not consider vaccination as a necessity for their kids. “But these vaccinations are recommended at a certain age [9 years old] because that is when they’re most effective,” she says.

HP, a family of viruses, has two strains that are linked to 80 percent of cervical cancer cases. While there are two HPV vaccines (bivalent and quadrivalent) available in the market, their uptake is affected by existing stigma, says Nancho.

“Pre-exposure vaccination, which means vaccination before the child is exposed, is a cornerstone of successful immunization programs against the world’s cluster of preventable diseases,” says Nancho, a former president of the Society of Adolescent Medicine of the Philippines Inc. Mercury content Garin says while mercury content has also been raised as a safety concern in vaccines, as some of them are formulated with mercury-containing preservative thiomersal, there is no evidence to suggest that the amount of thiomersal used in vaccines poses any health risks.

She says it is also a mistake to assume that vaccines are no longer necessary, as vaccinable diseases have disappeared in recent decades. Garin says the spike of measles cases in the country quickly refutes this claim.

“The biggest problem here is that decisions on health are being made based on perceived risks, not supported by evidence. We have a responsibility to rid ourselves of all these misconceptions, especially when we are making decisions for our children,” she says.

Top killer Cervical cancer is a top killer in the Philippines. About 12 Filipino women die daily because of cervical cancer, according to the Health Department.

Globally, cervical cancer, which is known to be caused by HPV in most cases, is also the second most common cancer among women.

In the Philippines, studies show that cervical cancer is the third leading cause of mortality among females.

The Filipino Cancer Registry 2005 annual report shows that in 2005, there were 7,277 new cases of cervical cancer with 3,807 reported deaths.

This translated into a mortality rate at 1 per 10,000 women.

“We really need to improve our

communication. HPV vaccine is presented as optional. Now, we are trying to teach our doctors. They should not say there are other options.

It cannot be like that. They have to be very firm,” says Nancho.

Firm statement “When the doctor is not so sure, or not firm enough to really say your child needs HPV, then you get some doubt about it. But if your doctor is really firm about it, then you will know,” she says.

Nancho says parents, doctors and healthcare providers should help save the lives of children. “When parents express reluctance, [healthcare] providers are also hesitant. Sometimes, it is the parents themselves, and also the doctors. Doctors sometimes want to please their clients. It should not be the case. Doctors have really to be firm,” she says.

She cites the young adult fertility survey showing that a third of the Philippine young population is already sexually active. “Even as young as 12 or 13 years old,” she says. “Are we going to wait for that time they are already exposed? No.” “Vaccines work best when they are not exposed to the virus. We have to emphasize that it is very important to give it before they are exposed to the virus. Even when your child waits until marriage to have sex, they are not sure of their partners. The partners may transmit it to them. We need high-impact statements like HPV vaccines are devastating to men and women.”

Immunization program Garin says the government will support the introduction of new vaccines such as HPV vaccine, despite the fears associated with it. “Every time a new vaccine is introduced, there is speculation. We waste a lot of money, we waste a lot of resources,

simply because speculation and distrust serve as barriers. Science is evolving. The world is evolving. Many vaccines are discovered, but many diseases are also emerging,” she says.

Garin says the Health Department will provide HPV vaccines to Grade 4 female students in the 20 poorest provinces this year, and only the lack of government funds is the reason why it is not done nationwide.

“It will not be implemented on a nationwide basis because our funds are limited as of the moment. This will cover the 20 poorest provinces.

We are correlating HPV vaccination

If our kids get sick, others may be compromised

with the socio-economic strata of the province simply because cervical cancer is one of those that have created a huge reduction in terms of upliftment from poverty,” Garin says.

“Once the mother in the family gets cervical cancer, the family will sell properties and belongings for her hospitalization. The children will stop going to school. Patients with cervical cancer are mostly in their mid 40s or early 50s, still a productive age,” she says.

To address the situation, Garin says: “We will be giving free HPV vaccination to all Grade 4 female students in public schools in 20 poorest provinces. We intend to increase that in the coming years, phase by phase. Why Grade 4, because this is the age that is presumed to have

had no sexual contact.”

“I have seen many patients with cervical cancer. The psychological impact is quite huge and the smell of the patient with cervical cancer is really bad. The patient has to be psychologically capacitated to bear the discriminatory acts of others who will be sensing the foul odor,” she says.

Wider coverage Garin says that is why the Health Department promotes HPV vaccination. “It is up for the government to make the initiative and the private sector to continue the program. We have to improve vaccine coverage.”

She says from the initial target of 300,000 students, the HPV vaccination cover will be expanded to another 300,000 in other provinces.

The agency will administer two doses of the HPV vaccine within six months on female students, with the consent of their parents.

Aside from HPV vaccines, the agency would also administer anti-tetanus and anti-diphtheria booster vaccines to 2.4 million Grade 1 students in public schools across the country under the national immunization program. The program is supported by proceeds from excise taxes collected from alcoholic products and cigarettes, according to Garin.

Concern for others Co says parents who believe in myths and refuse to have their children vaccinated help spread viruses to other people.

“In the US, they require parents to show immunization when they enroll in schools. You have to make sure other kids in schools don’t get sick. Sometimes, we only think about our own kids. We don’t take into consideration other people’s children.

If our kids get sick, others may be compromised,” he says.

Roderick T. dela Cruz

B4

world

ABE DRONE ATTACKER NABBED TOKYO—A Japanese man was arrested Saturday for allegedly flying a small drone with traces of radioactivity onto the roof of the Japanese prime minister’s office, police said.

HOLLANDE WARNS JAKARTA: DON’T KILL FRENCHMAN BAKU—French President Francois Hollande warned Saturday that Indonesia faced diplomatic “consequences” if it pushes ahead with the planned execution of Frenchman Serge Atlaoui over drug trafficking offenses.

“If he is executed, there will be consequences with France and Europe because we cannot accept this type of execution,” he told reporters during a visit to Baku in Azerbaijan, adding that the repercussions would essentially be of a “diplomatic” nature.

“At the very least, we will recall our ambassador” from Jakarta, the President said, adding that he would also not visit Indonesia “for some time.”

In addition, discussions over possible cooperation that had been mooted between Hollande and his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo during the November G20 summit could also be suspended.

“We will take action along with concerned countries—Australia and Brazil... to ensure that there is no execution,” Hollande said, adding that he is meeting Australian PM Tony Abbott on Monday.

“We understand that Indonesia wants to fight against drug trafficking but, in this case, Serge Atlaoui was working in a laboratory and he did not imagine that he could make this product,” said Hollande.

Atlaoui also did not have any prior criminal records, added the French president. AFP

summit Preview. Malaysian dancers clad in traditional ethnic attire arrive for a rehearsal ahead of the 26th Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur. AFP

VIETNAM pROTESTS CANADA ‘bOAT pEOpLE’ COMMEMORATION

FLAGs OF Our FAtHers. An Indonesian military honour guard leads the parade with various flags of participating countries during ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of the Asian-African Conference in bandung on western Java island on April 24, 2015. AFP

HANOI—Hanoi has issued a stern rebuke to Ottawa after the Canadian senate passed a bill commemorating the arrival of tens of thousands of “boat people” who fled after Saigon fell to the communists 40 years ago.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry said it had summoned the Canadian ambassador Friday to lodge a formal complaint about the move, which dubs April 30 “Journey to Freedom Day.” Communist forces captured Saigon, then the capital of the USbacked South Vietnam regime, on April 30, 1975, marking the end of decades of conflict and triggering a mass exodus of refugees.

Hundreds of thousands of people linked to the South Vietnamese regime fled the country in rickety boats, many drowning along the way.

Western countries including the US, France, Australia and Canada

collectively accepted some one million South Vietnamese refugees.

In communist Vietnam, April 30 is celebrated as “reunification day” and the country is preparing for an elaborate event this Thursday to mark four decades since the end of the war.

The Canadian senate’s move was “completely wrong” said foreign ministry spokesman Le Hai Binh according to a statement posted on its official website.

The bill “distorts the history of national liberation and unification of the Vietnamese people,” he said in a statement, adding that Vietnam “resolutely opposes” the move.

“This is a backward step in the relationship between the two countries, adversely affecting the growing ties between Vietnam and Canada and hurting the feelings of Vietnamese people as well as a great part of the Vietnamese community in Canada,” Binh said. AFP

Yasuo Yamamoto, 40, turned himself in to local police in Fukui prefecture, some 350 kilometres (220 miles) west of Tokyo, late Friday night with an apparent drone controller, saying he did it to express his anti-nuclear power stance, according to local media.

The unemployed man blogged that the drone had carried sand from Fukushima—where nuclear reactors went into meltdown after the 2011 tsunami—and a card voicing his opposition to atomic energy, reports said.

Yamamoto faces a charge of “forcible obstruction of business” by having officials deal with the drone, said a spokesman at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police.

The man was being transported to Tokyo for questioning, he added.

“The suspect planned to disrupt operations at the prime minister’s official residence,” the spokesman said.

The drone was sent with a bottle with a radiation marking sometime between March 22 and April 22, when it was found, he said, without elaborating further.

Staff at the official residence— known as “the Kantei”—discovered the 50-centimetre (20-inch) craft on top of the five-storey structure in central Tokyo Wednesday morning.

Traces of radiation were detected but were reportedly too low to be a risk to human health.

In a blog, identified by local media as Yamomoto’s, the writer said he put contaminated sand from Fukushima into the bottle and claims to have sent the drone to the Prime Minister’s office at around 3:30 a.m. on April 9.

The blogger chronicles how he planned to land the drone in front of the premier’s office, but lost control of the machine and returning home not knowing its fate.

A later post complained that it took two weeks for officials to find the drone on the roof while also voicing a nervous feeling: “This is how a criminal must feel when seeing media reports about your own crime...”

No one had been on the roof since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe used the helipad on March 22, reports said.

There are currently no legal restrictions on the use of drones— which is becoming more common in Japan, particularly for aerial surveying, photography and video shoots.

Following the incident, the government has said it will consider regulating drone flights.

It has also instructed that the monitoring of airspace above important facilities, including nuclear power plants and airports, be beefed up, reports said. AFP

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WORLD editorial@thestandard.com.ph

death and destrUctiOn. nepalese rescue members gather at the collapsed darahara tower in kathmandu on april 25, 2015. a 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck nepal, causing massive damage in the capital kathmandu with strong tremors felt across neighbouring

nepal quake: 449 dead 27 killed as firefight rages in s. yemen

By Paavan Mathema

The death toll from a 7.9 magnitude earthquake which devastated large parts of Nepal on Saturday has risen to 449, according to police.

At least three people were known to have died in northern India while buildings in the capital New Delhi had to be evacuated.

The United States Geological Survey and India’s meteorogical service said the shallow quake struck 81 kilometres (50 miles) northwest of Kathmandu at 0611 GMt, with walls crumbling and families racing outside their homes.

“The walls of houses have collapsed around me onto the road.

All the families are outside in their yards huddled together,” an AFP reporter said in Kathmandu.

Another resident recounted scenes of panic and mayhem.

“Everything started shaking.

Everything fell down. The walls around the main road have collapsed. The national stadium’s gates have collapsed,” Anupa Shrestha said.

Police confirmed that the damage had been extensive.

“Our focus is on rescue in the core areas of Kathmandu where the population is concentrated,” said metropolitan police spokes-

At LEASt 27 people were killed in Yemen on Saturday as fighting raged in southern towns between rebels and loyalists of exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, local officials said.

At least four pro-Hadi fighters and six Huthi Shiite rebels were killed in dawn clashes in the town of Daleh, north of the main southern city of Aden, an official said.

Eight more rebels were killed in an ambush.

Farther east, in Loder, loyalist militiamen killed nine rebels in a rocket-propelled grenade attack, a government official in the town said.

There were also heavy clashes in Aden itself, as Saudi-led warplanes kept up strikes on rebel positions despite the coalition’s announcement on tuesday that it was halting the bombing campaign. AFP

“The death toll based on information received on our network across the country has reached 449,” national police spokesman Kamal Singh Bam told AFP. “Deaths have been reported from all regions except the far west. All our security personnel have been deployed to rescue and assist those in need.”

Casualties were also reported in neighbouring India and Bangladesh.

There were also reports of an avalanche at Mount Everest’s base camp in Nepal where scores of mountaineers have gathered at the start of the annual climbing season.

“In Kathmandu 71 have been reported dead so far,” home ministry spokesman Laxmi Prasad Dhakal told AFP as the scale of the disaster began to emerge. An-

Un chief sets mOscOW triP

Obama rallies intelligence staff after bOtched strike

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is to attend Moscow’s World War II victory celebrations despite snubs from Western leaders, Russia’s tASS state news agency reported Saturday, citing a UN source.

“His flight out to Moscow is planned for May 8. The secretarygeneral will take part in the celebration events and return on May 11,” the source at the UN headquarters said. tASS quoted UN spokesman Farhan Haq as saying he could not comment on the report and that the secretary-general’s trips were usually announced closer to the date. AFP

By Andrew Beatty A DAY after revealing that the United States killed two Western hostages in a botched operation against AlQaeda, a mournful President Barack Obama assembled intelligence staff to pay tribute to their work and patriotism.

“There may be those outside who question or challenge what we do,” a resolute Obama told officials at the

other 43 had been reported dead in the nearby Bhaktapur district, he added.

At least a dozen bodies were taken away from the ruins of Kathmandu’s landmark Dharahara tower, according to an AFP photographer who saw similar scenes of multiple casualties in other parts of the city.

While contact with Nepal was sporadic, a senior Nepalese diplomat warned that the final toll could run into many hundreds.

“We have received reports that there is a big loss of property and life in Nepal,” Krishna Prasad Dhakal, the deputy chief of mission at Nepal’s Embassy in New Delhi, told AFP. “Possibly hundreds of people have died in various parts of the country, particularly in Kathmandu and Pokhara.” AFP

Office of the Director of National Intelligence as he addressed the deaths of 73-year-old American Warren Weinstein and 39-year-old Italian Giovanni Lo Porto.

“But I know what you do,” he said. “We are more secure because of your service. We are more secure because of your patriotism and your professionalism.”

Obama has appeared publicly to take “full responsibility” for the

two men’s deaths, which officials suggested was a result of a drone strike on an Al-Qaeda compound in Pakistan in January.

“It’s hard,” Obama admitted.

“We all bleed when we lose an American life. We all grieve when any innocent life is taken.

“We don’t take this work lightly. And I know that each and every one of you understand the magnitude of what we do and the stakes involved. AFP

man Dinesh Acharya.

“Many houses and buildings have collapsed,” he told AFP. The quake tore through the middle of highways in the capital and also caused damage to the country’s only international airport, in a potential blow to relief efforts.

The airport’s general manager, Birendra Prasad Shrestha, said it would remain closed “for safety reasons” at least until later in the afternoon.

Kari Cuelenaere, an official at the Dutch embassy, said that the impact had swept the water out of a swimming pool at a Kathmandu hotel where Dutch national was being celebrated.

“It was horrible, all of a sudden all the water came up out of the pool and drenched everyone, the children started screaming,” Cuelenaere told AFP. “Some parts of the city fell down, there was dust rising...

There were many (rescue) helicopters.

“I can still see many high-rise buildings standing, I think we were lucky,” added Cuelenaere. AFP

A CENTURY LATER. members of the armenianamerican community and activists rally near the turkish consulate to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the mass killings of armenians under the Ottoman empire in 1915 on april 24, 2015 in los angeles, california. AFP

B6

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SPORTS

RIERA MALL ARI EDITOR

sports@thestandard.com.ph

VOLCANOES

TO STRUT THEIR STUFF BEFORE HOME CROWD

Members of the PH Volcanoes are shown here at the Philippine Sports Stadium.

By Randy Caluag

I

F THERE is one team sport that has the potential to put the Philippines into the world’s elite, it should be Rugby Football.

Rugby is the fastest-growing team sport in the world. The game is played like the American football, sans the bulging protective pads and heavy, oversized helmets.

Its rising popularity in Europe and Australia could rival that of basketball and cricket.

It’s good to note, though, that here in Asia, the Philippines is among the first countries to take on the sport. Thanks to the Filipino expatriates abroad, their children of mixed race have brought the sport here and are making their country proud.

Meet the national rugby team, also known as the Philippine Volcanoes.

Just like the Philippine Azkals in soccer, the Volcanoes are composed mostly of Fil-foreign talents. Such program is somewhat justified as the players were culled from various international semipro leagues from around the world and were brought here to give instant success to the Philippines’ campaign.

“We have an edge in skills, because the players have an access to high-level training of our respective pro teams. We brought those trainings together and that worked tremendously to our advantage,” said Japan-based player Justin Villazo Coveney, whose mother hails from Bataan.

As in the case of the Volcanoes, they are now consistently hovering in the top five in Asia with, among others, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore.

The Volcanoes are one-time

gold and silver medalists in the Southeast Asian Games and are looking to top the region again in the coming Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.

The last five years proved to be successful for the Volcanoes as they attained their highest achievement yet by piercing the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Moscow in 2013.

“The Volcanoes are recognized in the world stage. The Filipinos are in good standing in this sport and that we should develop more athletes to continue our success and achieve more,” said Matt Cullen, director for Rugby of the Philippine Rugby Football Union.

The Volcanoes are now very excited to show their mettle in front of their countrymen as they compete in the Division 1 of the Asian Rugby Championship on May 6 and 9 at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan.

Seven of the 30 members of the team arrived early for the fourteam tournament and visited the 20,000-seater, world-class venue owned by the religious group Iglesia Ni Cristo.

Aside from Coveney, those who came ahead of their teammates are Matthew Orag Belleme, Benjamin Priagola Medie, Jake Robrigado Letis, Steve Pagtalunan Howorth, Chris Ammayao Tlettel and Ashely Matias Heward.

“The INC community is very excited to see our Volcanoes in action. This is our first time to host an international sporting event and our kababayans will surely come in full force to sup-

The PH Volcanoes during one of their training sessions port our team,” said lawyer Bong Teodoro of the Maligaya Development Corporation, the construction outfit that manages the 70-hectare Ciudad de Victoria that houses the Stadium.

The world-class facility is also home to the 20,000 seater Philippine basketball arena and the soon-to-rise Philippine Sports Center, where there will be an Olympic-sized swimming pool and a multi-purpose gymnasium.

Engr. Bessie Fetalvero, also of Maligaya Development, said a shopping mall, promenade park, residential houses and a big transport terminal will be erected to

complete the three-year master development plan for the project.

Cullen, who joined the Volcanoes in inspecting the venue, said: ‘It’s just amazing. I’ve been to different places and it’s great to know that the Philippine Stadium is comparable with the bests in the world.”

In the coming Asian tournament, the Volcanoes get to test Singapore in the afternoon of May 6, following the tussle between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan.

On the second day of the tourney on May 9, the loser of match 1 and match 2 meet for third place, while the winners take on each

other for the championship.

Formerly known as the Asian 5 Nations tournament, the 15-aside event was restructured into what is now, bringing the Elite division from the top five countries down to three. Perennial powerhouse teams Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea are tops in the Elite Division while No. 4 and 5 teams Philippines and Sri Lanka are in the Division 1.

While the Division I champion will not be promoted to the Elite Division just yet, it earns the right to challenge the bottomplaced Elite Division team at the conclusion of the ARC.

S U n D aY : a p r i l 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

SPORTS

arman armero EDITOR

sports@thestandard.com.ph

B7

Janelle Mae Frayna

CHESS PRINCESS

By Arman D. Armero

C

hess, a game once played by members of the royalty, has found a new princess in Woman International Master (WIM) Janelle Mae Frayna.

Only 18 years old (she’s turning 19 on May 19), Janelle has firmly established herself as the country’s finest female chess player, with a brilliant mind to match her pretty face.

A native of Legazpi City, Janelle migrated to the Big City at age 14 and slowly worked her way to becoming the country’s undisputed princess of the board.

Proof that she had come a long way from one of hundreds of aspiring young female chess players was her latest achievement, a strong performance in the Bangkok Open held early this month in Thailand, where she scored 5.5 points out of a possible eight (she defaulted her first round), that earned for her a second Woman Grandmaster norm.

Her performance in Bangkok was even more impressive because she won four of her matches and drew thrice – all against male chess players.

“Mayroon namang mga babaeng players, pero wala akong nakapairing sa kanila, kaya puro lalake talaga ang nakalaban ko,” says Janelle matter-of-factly.

Janelle, however, is no stranger to playing—and beating—strong male

players. In the 2014 Battle of Grandmasters, the then 17-year old Janelle claimed the scalp of no less than IM Joel Pimentel and Grandmasters Richard Bitoon and Rogelio “Joey” Antonio to secure a spot in the World Chess Olympiad in Tromso, Norway.

Recently named as Ath-

Frayna ponders her next move

Frayna is all smiles after receiving her award as chess MVP in the recent UAAP awards

lete of the Year for Chess in the UAAP, her second in a row, Janelle said she arrived a round late in Bangkok because she had to be present to receive her UAAP award.

“Akala ko talaga di na ako makakahabol sa Bangkok kasi nga na-default na ako ng first round. Kaya naisip ko enjoy na lang.

Pero under a new Fide rule, pwede pa pala , so nagfocus na talaga ako,” Janelle said.

In June, Janelle, along with several other agegroup champions, will compete in Singapore where she hopes to gain his third—and last GM norm, to become the country’s first-ever Woman GM. Even National Chess

Federation of the Philippines president Prospero Pichay had expressed confidence that Janelle will earn the final GM norm for the distinct honor.

“Janelle will earn her last GM norm and will be the country’s first WGM. Kaya niya ‘yan,” said Pichay, during the awarding ceremony in the recent National Age

Group Chess Championships held at the PSC Dining Area.

Pichay has virtually compared Janelle to Hungarian woman GM Judit Polgar, one of three chessplaying Polgar sisters, by saying that he would like Janelle to challenge Judith in a match.

Janelle, a protégé of NCFP executive director GM Jayson Gonzales and board 1 player of FEU, had said that Judit is her idol in chess, and the comparisons between the two cannot be sidestepped since both are pretty and deadly as chess players, even against highly-rated male opponents.

But Janelle’s brilliance isn’t only in full display over the chess board, but also as a Psychology student at FEU. In fact, Janelle is gunning for cum laude honors, with an average grade of 1.7, or only a shade lower than the 1.6 grade for cum laudes.

“Medyo bumaba kasi nag-stop ako for one sem last year to concentrate on the Olympiad. Pero tingin ko kaya pa naman. Konting tiyaga at puyat pa,” she said.

The phrase “beauty and brains” has become a cliché for writers and marketing gurus, but in Janelle’s case, there’s no arguing that she both possesses these qualities.

And anyone who objects, especially know-itall-types guys, should try beating her in a game of chess.

Guess which way our bet goes?

VElAlO lEADS Ph WINNERS IN ASIAN TRIAThlON MEET

SBMA, Olongapo City— Brent Velalo led a 1-2-3 finish for young Filipino triathletes in the male 13-15 category even as their female counterparts grabbed two more medals as the young triathletes gave host Philippines a flying start in the 2015 ASTC Asian Triathlon Cup co-presented by SPEEDO and Philippine Sports Commission on Saturday at the Malawaan Park inside Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

Not to be outdone, Hong Kong triathletes also made their presence felt by sweeping the male and female Junior Elite crowns in the event organized by Triathlon Association of the Philippines (TRAP) in cooperation with Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and sanc-

tioned by the Asian Triathlon Confederation (ASTC) and International Triathlon Union (ITU).

The 14-year old Valelo negotiated the 400m swim, 12km swim and 3km minisprint distance in 46 minutes flat as he defeated compatriots Fredric Albert “Yuan” Chiongbian (46:12) and Bambam Manglicmot (47:10) for the gold medal.

A total of 20 triathletes saw action in the male division that included two Malaysian aces, and Valelo’s victory over Chiongbian ended a strings of defeats he suffered against the Cebuano triathlete.

Before his silver finish on Saturday, Chiongbian had won twice, topping the 2013 Subic Bay-Asian Triath-

lon Championship and last year’s Batang Pinoy Finals.

“I’m happy because I was really determined to get back at him. I did very well from start to finish although I really need to put more effort in the swim,” said Valelo who won despite finishing sixth in the swim leg.

Valelo made his move in the bike side as he and Chiongbian formed the lead pack heading into the run leg.

Velalo, however, had more gas on his tank as he slowly peeled away in the final kilometer for the solo finish.

Batang Pinoy champion Nicole Eijansantos (50:09) and Sam McInnes (51:39) settled for the silver and bronze medals in the girls division ruled by Bailee Brianna Brown of Hong Kong,

REGIONAL Peace and Order Council Chairman Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte presides

over security measures to be implemented for the 2015 Palarong Pambansa to be held in Tagum City , Davao del Norte. Duterte assured that the Games will have zero terror threat for the visiting delegates and athletes in the week-long sports spectacle in Mindanao. Also in photo with Duterte are (from left) Police Director Jaime Morente—DIPO EM, Davao del Norte Provincial Governor Rodolfo del Rosario and PC Supt Wendy Rosario. DANNY SIMON

who completed the race in48:52.

Brown, a first-timer here, said she enjoyed the race and hopes to come back next year to defend her title.

Yu Hang Kok meanwhile won his first gold medal after three tries in the country as he joined Camden Ritcher

who successfully retained her title in the Junior Elite in the event sponsored by New Balance, Standard Insurance, Gatorade, Century Tuna, Harbor Point, Ayala Malls, Asian Center for Insulation and Subic Traveler’s Hotel.

The race was set at the sprint distance (750m swim,

20k bike, 5k run) and Yu timed at 56:54 to edged compatriots Michael Lam (56:55) and Oscar Coggins (57:49).

Richter clocked at 1:05:38 to edge teammate Cheuk Yi Hung (1:06:55) and Yu Yan Huang of Chinese Taipei (1:07:27). Arman D. Armero

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Reuel Vidal EDITOR sports@thestandard.com.ph

SPORTS

GIRLS

JUST WANT TO HAVE

By Reuel Vidal

B

FUN

Former WNBA star Ruth Riley (left) watches the JrWNBA participants go through their paces during the 2015 JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska National Training Camp at the PICC Forum Tent last Friday, Apr. 23 even as an aspirant (center) for the 2015 JrWNBA coach of the year helps run the drills.

ASKETBALL crazy Filipinos used to have ownership of the sport. That’s just not the case anymore. Basketball crazy Filipinas have also staked their claim.

Witness the 2015 JrNBA/ JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by JrWNBA Presented by Alaska Alaska will name 10 boys and National Training Camp at the five girls as national all-stars. The PICC Forum Tent Apr. 23 and 24 lucky boys and girls will enjoy where girls are just as engaged as the the experience of a lifetime with boys in learning the sport adopted fellow all-stars from Southeast by a basketball crazy nation.

Asia and will travel abroad later The National Basketball in the year to watch an actual Association flew in no less than National Basketball Association women’s basketball legend Ruth game and meet NBA stars.

Riley to teach the children, The search for the 2015 especially the girls, not JrNBA and JrWNBA just basketball drills Coach of the Year but also important will also conclude at life lessons. the NTC and the Riley won winning coaches will championships in take part in the NBA the US NCAA in experience.

2001, in the 2004 Riley’s most Athens Olympics while important lesson is to Pia Dysangco representing the USA teach the girls the value of and in the Women’s National perseverance and hard work in Basketball Association (in 2003 order to succeed in life. and 2006). She also graduated “I was not the most athletic Summa Cum Laude from the player in my teams. I was not the University of Notre Dame with a most skilled. I just worked harder degree in Psychology. than everybody else. I want to More than anything else she teach the children the importance says she is most excited to see to of hard work.” be with the girls who as aspiring An interested participant in to join the JrWNBA national all the JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented star team.

by Alaska weekend was coach “I’m excited to be here to be Pia Dysangco who was chosen with the boys and especially the last year as the first JrWNBA girls,” said Riley. “It’s important Philippines Coach of Year. to place this emphasis on equal A former basketball star who opportunity for the girls and boys. played for the Under 19 Philippine For the girls to realize that they Team she is presently the head have equal chances.” coach of St. Stephen’s High School She met the 50 boys and 24 Girls Basketball Team. girls—selected after a nationwide She brought her girls to the search involving 100,000 children PICC to watch the weekend from all over the country —at the activities and participate in the NTC at the PICC Forum Tent. side program NBA Cares which Today, Sunday, April 25, the conducted basketball drills open

Participants in the 2015 JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska National Training Camp at the PICC Forum Tent last Friday, Apr. 23 prepare to do pushups. Girls prove that they can do whatever the boys can do, only better.

Ruth Riley and one of aspirants for the 2015 JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska give each other a high five during the dinner at the NBA Cafe after the National Training Camp at the PICC Forum Tent last Friday, Apr. 23.

to the public last Friday, Apr. 24.

Dysangco said she believes that students should be well-rounded which means participating not just in scholastic activities but in sports as well.

Dysangco is more than just a coach and teacher. She is practically a second mother to the athletes in

her team. She always instills the value of discipline in studies as well as in sports. She reminds her wards that it is equally important to study just as hard as they practice on the basketball court.

Her advise to children is similar to Riley’s own. “If you want to excel, practice hard. Get enough

Starstruck. One of the girl participants give WNBA legend Ruth Riley a look of utter adoration during the 2015 JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska National Training Camp at the PICC Forum Tent last Friday, Apr. 23.

rest and eat properly.”

The finalists of the JrNBA/ JrWNBA Presented by Alaska were selected from Regional Selection Camps, for children 10 to 14 years old, in Puerto Princesa, Biñan, Iloilo, Baguio, Bacolod, Davao and Manila. They include the best basketball players from the Alaska Basketball Power Camp headed by Philippine Basketball Association legend Jeff Cariaso.

The JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented

by Alaska promotes an active lifestyle among children through participation in basketball and teaches the importance of proper nutrition.

Playing basketball used to be practically a private endeavor for Filipinos. But that’s just not the case anymore as Filipinas, including the young girls, have shown that they could be just as basketball crazy as Filipinos.

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C1

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

g l w e e ke n d @ g m a i l . c o m

WELCOME TO PLANET EARTH THE INCONVENIENT TRUTH ABOUT EARTH DAY

BY TROY BERNARDO

I

n 1950, Hillman published a book called The Dying Earth, a collection of fantasy stories written by Jack Vance, and set in the future, when cities are rotting, civilization is in decay, and the sun is just about ready to fizzle out. Vance may have unknowingly predicted the present.

Today, in 2015, Mother Earth isn’t doing so well. She is, in fact, dying, and yet we, her children, continue to kill her.

As early as 2012, 22 scientists warned us that we had already passed a planetary tipping point. Some go even further:

we’ve passed several tipping points. With a population of about 7 billion, we’ve succeeded in acidifying, polluting and killing our rivers, lakes and oceans; poisoning our land, mangroves, jungles and the biodiversity they support; screwing up our ecosystems; driving our species extinction rates up to 1,000 times the usual rate – the same rate that wiped out the dinosaurs; occupying 40% of land masses and severely affecting another 40%; and, destroying, stressing, and depleting our natural resources, among others.

Continued on C2

IMAGE COURTESY OF SPENGLISH WWW.SPENGLISH.NET

SUNDAY : APRIL 26 : 2015

C2

LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE E D I TOR

glweekend @ gmail.com

WELCOME TO PLANET EARTH FROM C1

W

hether or not we’ve reached the tipping point doesn’t even matter; because, everything we’ve done to the earth is irreversible.

And, we’re seeing the effects.

The Carteret Islanders of Papua New Guinea, the world’s first entire community to be displaced by climate change, had left their homes for good; because, this year, their island will be completely submerged. The people of Newtok, Alaska are the first climate refugees in America, because they, too, have lost their land to the sea.

We may not be that far behind. According to Germanwatch, a climate and development organization, the Philippines ranked 10th among countries severely affected by climate change. We now go through up to 24 typhoons a year compared to only 18 15 years ago, according to Esteban Godilano of the Climate Change Congress of the Philippines.

A study released by the United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security and the German Alliance Development Works paints an even grimmer picture: in terms of climate change, the Philippines is the third most vulnerable country in the world.

Surprisingly, many don’t seem to care. People are hellbent on keeping their habits, more than anything else.

Developers are still building on the island of Boracay, for example, while the 50,000 visitors of the annual 4-day LaBoracay event continue to throw away over 200,000 water bottles; 263,000 cigarette butts; and, 736,000 straws. Oh, they also flush 5.2 million liters of water down the toilet every single day.

Speaking of water, it takes 2500 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef; up to 3,000 children die every year from drought; and, up to 1.2 billion people, or almost one-fifth of the world’s population, live in areas where water is scarce. According to a Human Development Report by the UNDP, not only are 500 million more people approaching this situation, but also, another 1.6 billion people, or almost one quarter of the world’s population, may be facing economic water shortage soon.

The fact is, Mr. Smith from the Matrix was right: humans are, indeed, a virus. We fester, breed, multiply, infect and kill our host.

A study by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said that at our present rate of unbridled consumption, we’d need two planets the size of the earth to sustain us. In 2050, there would be no fish in our oceans, forests gone, and fresh water, scarce.

What kind of world would that be?

As forecasted by the HSBC’s report on “The World in 2050,” the Philippine economy will become the 16th biggest in the world in 2050.

By then, maybe many of us would be dead. At a certain point, with a limited supply of food, energy and water, the population will—and has already begun to—decline. Then, it will fall. The phenomenon is called “demographic transition.” Once enough of us die off, only then can the earth begin to heal herself. Again.

The future is bleak; and, if there’s only one thing we could do for Earth Day 2015, it is for each of us to make a personal, inconvenient promise to clean up our lives.

Sadly, even that is highly unlikely.

But we can always try. At the very least, we can always try.

TEA & CEREMONY

Green tea’s antioxidant qualities are well-known, and The Body Shop’s newest range, Fuji Green Tea, contains green tea leaves of the purest quality, handpicked straight from the pristine region of Mount Fuji.

The first body range infused with real green tea leaves, it is designed to detox, moisturize and rejuvenate. Like all products from The Body Shop, the Fuji Green Tea range uses ingredients not tested on animals and are 100% vegetarian.

Available at selected The Body Shop stores nationwide.

GREEN EATS

Here’s a list of must-try vegetarian places to try out for a change. BY MAAN D’ASIS PAMARAN Who says it’s not easy eating green? With the vegetarian movement gaining ground in the country, there are now more restaurants catering to a meatless diet. Even if you are not considering giving up your burgers, steaks and cold cuts just yet, you might want to try out these establishments to mix it up a bit.

CORNER TREE CAFÉ

It was one of the pioneers in this segment of the food market. There were others before it set up shop in Makati, but Corner Tree Café has brought vegetarian food into the mainstream. The cozy interiors and innovative menu are enough to draw even the staunchest of meat-lovers into its doors. Chiqui Mabanta’s concept was one of the first to offer meatless dishes that stray far from the usual bowl of greens mixed with dressing, as the restaurant serves cuisine from Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas that please the eye and palate.

Chiqui asserts that one does not have to be a vegetarian, vegan or on a gluten-free diet to enjoy what the restaurant offers. “In fact, our customers are people who simply like good food, and many are actually carnivores!” Aside from dishes that include a lovely Dukka and Hummus starter plate and their popular spinach and Mushroom Lasagna, Corner Tree also offers great desserts (try their refreshing fresh fruit and poppy seed yoghurt). These can be enjoyed with coffee, tea, and smoothies, along with wine, beer and selected cocktail drinks.

Corner Tree Café is located at 150 Jupiter Street, Bel-Air, Makati. Call 897-0295, visit www.cornertreecafe.com

GREEN PASTURES

This is not strictly a vegetarian place. In fact, Chef Robby Goco’s successful take on local and organic food includes carnivore-friendly culinary treats as Steak Caprese and Chicken-Fried Bacon. His advocacy is more geared towards farm-to-fork eating, which means that he has personally sourced his ingredients from small farmers even way out in remote provinces. That said, since the Philippines

is rich in fresh produce, he creates his exceptional salads—the likes of which have helped propel his Cyma to be a very popular dining destination.

Green Pastures offers a beautiful salad bar, well-stocked with glistening greens and other local veggies, where one can choose what to put in a hefty bowl. He also offers his salad specials, which changes with whatever is in season. For those who are still taking their baby steps into a vegetarian lifestyle, the innovative chef offers guiltless dishes, like his popular KFC or Korean Fried Cauliflower. He reveals that this dish was borne from requests of his guests who miss crunching into something.

Green Pastures branches are located at the East Wing of EDSA Shangri-la Mall and Eastwood Mall. For the Shangri-la branch, call 654-3219/0922-6334687

THE ECHOCAFE

It all started out with ECHOstore, sociopreneur Chit Juan’s exposition of local and organic products that she has encountered while going out to the countryside. As the store started selling proudly Philippine-made items such as sundried tomatoes from Nueva Ecija, guava jelly from Negros Occidental, malunggay, arugula and romaine from ECHOfarms and the purest crab paste from Camarines Sur, customers started asking how they can use these in their cooking.

This was when foodie and co-founder Reena Francisco integrated the products into a short menu with pastas and sandwiches that go well with their fresh-ground organic coffees. Their menu is constantly evolving, as Chit says they are discovering a lot more fascinating artisanal products all over the country.

ECHOcafe serves many vegetarian choices as it also sells organic vegetables for salads, soup and side dishes as well as sandwiches made with its homemade mushroom burger, tofu chorizo and banana heart burger patty recipes. These patties can also be enjoyed at home as they are also available frozen and ready for pan-heating.

ECHOcafe branches are located at Serendra Bonifacio Global City; Salcedo Village, Makati; Centris Quezon City; Davao City; Cebu City; and soon at Terminal 2 NAIA. Visit the ECHOstore website at www.echostore.ph

SUNDAY : APRIL 26 : 2015

LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE E D I TOR

glweekend @ gmail.com

FAE Organic Beeswax Candle from Kultura.

Made of chemical-free products, with pure beeswax that produces a clean and smokeless flame, emitting negative ions which clean the air.

SPROUT

While it is oft-mistaken for a purely vegetarian place, Erwan Heussaff ’s latest farm-to-fork project is a cool convenience-store type enterprise that emphasizes more on the freshness of food offerings. Here, one can find wrapped pulled pork sandwiches alongside packed salads, all properly marked with what goodness is held inside. Erwan himself assures that their products are made fresh every day, and that they have two nutritionist-dietitians on board to look into the calorie and macronutrient content of their items. “We just want to dispel the image that healthy needs to be bland,” he explains.

He says about 30% of their items with really hip names are currently vegetarian-friendly. Among the offerings that vegetarians-on-the go can enjoy to fuel their days at the office are guilt-free “pods”, such as the Let’s Chia Chia (water, coconut milk, chia seeds, honey, salt, raisins, cinnamon, and cardamom), pick-up bowls of Kale and Roasted Vegetables, along with energy bars and juices.

Sprout is located at Ground Floor Signa Designer Residences, Valero corner Rufino St., Makati.

Call/SMS 0917-5586593

\

AGICO VEGETARIAN CAFÉ

Vegetarian food takes an Asian turn at Agico Vegetarian Café, which serves Japanese-inspired healthy and guiltfree comfort food. Their menu is made of homegrown veggie recipes that are 100% meat-free, using only natural and premium ingredients. Since Fiipinos are no strangers to Japanese cuisine, it is easy even for meat-eaters to enjoy offerings such as their Crunchy Mushroom Salad, Crunchy Enoki Tempura, and vegetarian Okonomiyaki.

They also have a soup-craving solution via a satisfying veggie Wonton Ramen, and offer sweet-tooth satisfaction via benefit-packed pastries like their Apple Walnut and Goji Berry Cupcakes.

Agico Vegetarian Café is located at #83 Araullo Street, San Juan. Call 705-1997.

THE VEGETARIAN KITCHEN

It started out as a small neighborhood restaurant in 1990 and has since moved to the busier Mother Ignacia street in Quezon City. Founder and head kusinera Tita M. Soliongco, a practicing vegetarian since the 1980s has incorporated her family recipes among its offerings of local favorites and international fusion dishes such as Spinach and Cream Cheese Dumplings, Korean Bibimbap, and Rich Tomato and Malunggay Lasagna.

In March, Tita and her children Christian and Camille came up with an Indian-themed menu, with Savory Vegetable Kofta in Tomato Sauce, Chicken and Vegetable Tandoori with Bitter Melon Chips (Karela), and Tamarind chutney. Since going meatless doesn’t mean giving up on indulgence, the restaurant also offers eggless desserts such as Apple Pie Cheesecake and its best-selling Orange Cheesecake.

The Vegetarian Kitchen is located at 62B Mother Ignacia Avenue, Quezon City. Call 355-5622, 0915-8300511.

C3

Crafts for a Cause clutch bags made from recycled foil packs and macramé ropes from Kamay Krafts and Kaibigan Ermita.

NATIVE & NATURAL

Hand woven shoulder bags with recycled pull-tab can embellishments by the adopted families of Philippine Christian Foundation.

ECO-CONSCIOUSNESS MEETS CONTEMPORARY DESIGN Loudbasstard Natural Bamboo Sound Amplifier from Kultura. Frame is expertly crafted of woven bamboo and rattan. Hand made by Cebuano artisans from the Philippines.

These Clutch bags are handmade from repurposed upholstery fabric, as well as woven wonders from indigenous groups by the artisanproducers of Gifts & Graces Foundation.

Loudbasstard wooden cellphone case from Kultura.

KULTURA at SM Mall of Asia, SM Aura Premier, SM Megamall, SM Makati, SM City North Edsa and selected SM stores nationwide

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

TOWARDS A ‘WONDERFUL’ EARTH DAY AND BEYOND:

Globe makes environmental protection, sustainability top priority BEING a technologically-advanced and innovative organization, Globe Telecom has been a staunch advocate of environmental protection and sustainability while fulfilling its mission to establish a wonderful world for its individual customers, businesses, and the nation as a whole.

For years now, the telco has considered the quality of its service in light of its environmental impact of daily operations. As the Philippines and the rest of the world celebrate Earth Day on April 22, Globe strengthens its commitment to heighten the integration of best practices as it implements efforts to drive sustainability objectives.

According to Globe Director for Corporate Social Responsibility Fernando Esguerra, “as an organization with demanding resources to power our operations, we make certain that we consider the overall impact of Globe by looking after the environment, taking care of the communities we are in, and giving back to Mother Earth. Being a responsible corporate citizen, our goal at Globe is to look out for the environment with our own brand of ‘wonderful’ through wide-reaching sustainability programs.”

With particular focus on the environment, Globe aims to offset greenhouse gas emissions in the peripheries of its operating sites through energy optimization, waste management, and biodiversity protection.

These are all guided by the company’s Environmental Sustainability Policy to help bring about a positive environmental impact from its business operations. In fact, Globe invested in 2014 a total of P5.7 million for the entire gamut of its environmental programs, covering reforestation, corporate social responsibility, solid waste management and hazardous waste disposal and treatment - an 87% jump compared to the previous year.

The care of the environment being a major pillar of its sustainability philosophy, Globe seeks to constantly lower its greenhouse gas emissions using a three-pronged approach. First is through habitat conservation by establishing collaborations with environmental organizations overseeing the conservation of protected areas across the country, such as the Foundation for Philippine Environment, Philippine Eagle Foundation, Pusod, Philippine Seatizens, and the Cordillera Conservation Trust (CCT).

Energy optimization to protect the environment Since embarking on its massive network modernization program, Globe not only looked at vastly improving the performance of its nationwide infrastructure, but also considered how the operations of its cell sites will impact its surroundings. Its major endeavors include activating outdoor sites, installing solar power and deep cycle battery solutions as well as rolling out fuel cell systems in select cabinets to replace traditional diesel-powered generator sets. The latter uses methanol, a silent, green-powered solution with negligible emission versus diesel counterparts.

For sites without electricity, Globe also employs Direct Current Hybrid Power Units, combining gensets and deep-cycle

Globe Business will once again power the ‘Cordi 6’ to establish more seedling nurseries under the ‘Roots and Shoots’ program of the Cordillera Conservation Trust. batteries, which save 18 hours worth of fuel daily and almost 70% on fuel consumption as well as maintenance costs. 577 Globe cell sites also run on Free Cooling Systems which adjust the type and amount of cooling required based on ambient temperatures.

The business of conservation The enterprise ICT arm of the telco, Globe Business, takes a lead role in advocating the company’s environmental sustainability to its primary stakeholder - its customers. Working in close coordination with its corporate clientele, it hopes to increase scale and impact of its various environmental conservation efforts. The business segment also encourages the larger enterprise customers to reduce carbon footprint and take an active part in the Globe sustainability programs, effectively helping make their businesses better and “greener”.

Its world-class data centers, in particular, operate with recent global industry certifications, such as ISO 14001 for Environmental Management System, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems 18001:2007 in one facility, and an ISO 14001:2014 certification in another.

Other initiatives cover cost reduction in electricity consumption translating to more than P30 million in 2014.

The portfolio of Globe Business products and services also encourages tempering carbon dioxide in the environment. Its teleconferencing solution for instance reduces the need for road travel and flights, indirectly cutting down CO2 emissions. The innovative Canvas software also

Globe is big in biodiversity and habitat protection as a way of helping save Mother Earth, giving this Philippine eagle a better chance of survival.

‘Project 1 Phone’ is the biggest e-waste recycling program of the country, having collected more than 79,000 kilograms of e-waste from subscribers and companies in 2014. pushes for a paperless workplace, cutting down the need for printing documents to save trees as a result. By promoting the use of the Google suite of applications, especially Gmail, businesses can save up to 172.8 kW of energy as well as 101.6 kilograms of carbon per user yearly as they use a cloud service rather than those running on local servers.

In addition to these efforts, Globe Business will be heavily supporting the May 2nd 6th edition of the Cordillera Challenge, a “cyclosportiv-randonee” timed biking event that aims to raise funds for CCT’s reforestation efforts.

Through CCT’s “Roots and Shoots” program, the enterprise-servicing unit of Globe is able to promote conservation efforts by protecting the Cordilleras, a rich biodiversity storehouse of the country.

As in previous years, Globe Business and CCT will leverage on the Globe Cordillera Challenge 6 to create larger nurseries for the Roots and Shoots program. At least 200,000 seedlings in elementary schools within beneficiary municipalities covered by the project will replenish bald mountainsides, support the enhancement of community watersheds, and prevent landslides in critical areas toward reforestation of approximately 214 hectares of land in the area. In the three years of the program, it has established 107 nurseries in 10 municipalities.

Also in partnership with the DENR, the telco has reforestation programs in place to offset carbon emissions from operations and communities it is present at. By end 2014, the company

led the planting of almost 420,000 trees, equal to to 123 hectares of land in 30 areas nationwide.

Customers create value from waste As an entire company, Globe also takes significant steps in lowering solid waste, electronic waste (e-waste), and hazardous waste from products and operations to reduce impact on the environment. Globe spearheaded Project 1 Phone, the biggest e-waste recycling program in the country. Project 1 Phone was also instrumental in building schools in Aklan, which was badly hit by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. The company generated more than P6 million funds to rebuild classrooms in the said province.

The company also encouraged more than 1 million postpaid customers to enroll in paperless billing, receiving them instead online through various channels: a registered email address, the Globe myAccount web portal, through the GServices App, and the USSD interface by dialing *143#. This saved more than 4 million pieces of paper, equivalent to 5,000-plus uncut trees yearly.

With major initiatives in place as well as campaigns underscoring environmental sustainability, Globe will continue to be a responsible and conscientious corporate citizen. It endeavors to lead in creating a wonderful world through innovative telecommunications offerings while caring for the environment to let an entire nation celebrate more meaningful Earth Days in the future.

SUNDAY : APRIL 26 : 2015

LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE E D I TOR

glweekend @ gmail.com

C5

SOLAR POWER SAVERS FROM ACE HARDWARE

↑ This d. light Solar Home System is a modern power grid that comes with a portable lantern and operates up to eight hours. Weatherproof and water resistant, it also includes a solar panel, mobile-charging battery pack, two solar lights and two light switches.

← Illuminate summer nights with this portable and lightweight Akari Solar LED Bulb Rechargeable Flashlight with up to 15 hours operating time.

→ With a USB Port for your mobile devices, this d. light Solar-Powered LED Lantern can provide light for up to eight hours.

With a long hot summer ahead –as well as talks of energy saving - it’s the best time to follow the sun with ACE Hardware’s innovative solar power savers. Portable, lightweight and versatile, these modern, efficient energy solutions are not only great investments but also eco-friendly.

Indoors or outdoors, these solar lighting systems will provide bright light and ensure that you have a fully charged mobile pack whenever you need it. Just plug the solar panel into the mobile charging battery pack, charge it in the sun and plug in your mobile devices.

ACE Hardware also has solar lighting solutions that can be used as flashlights and lanterns with up to fifteen hours operating time. There are also solar power chargers for your cellphones and tablets to keep you connected, entertained, and enjoying your summer adventures safely and conveniently.

While shopping at ACE Hardware stores, also check out its Solar Power Savers promotion wherein you can avail of great savings and discounts on solar rechargeable flashlights and LED lanterns, as well as solar home lighting systems, solar rechargeable fans with solar panels and solar power banks until March 31, 2015. You can also earn rewards points with your SM Advantage, Prestige, and BDO Rewards Cards when you shop.

These solar-powered solutions from d. light, Hanns, Akari and Bosco are available at selected branches of ACE Hardware, ACE Express and ACE Builders stores nationwide. Visit our website at www.acehardware.ph or like us at www.facebook.com/acehardwarephilippines or follow us at twitter and instagram at acehardware_ph. ← Compact and lightweight, this Bosco Solar Power Bank with 10,000mAh charges your mobile phones, tablets, iPod and MP3 players. It also can be charged using wall AC adapters, and the USB port of your computer; and is safe with a highly secured protection against overheating, overcharging and short circuit. Available exclusively at ACE.

↑ With its comfortable handle strap, this portable Akari Solar Rechargeable LED Lantern allows solar light to be placed on a table, set on the floor, or hung from a wall or on a hook. Great for use indoors or outdoors, it also has a USB power output for mobile charging.

↑ This portable Akari Solar Rechargeable LED Flashlight and Lantern is great for your outdoor adventures. Available exclusively at ACE.

↑ This Hanns Solar Lighting System is a great camping mate with up to 14 hours operating time when fully charged. It also serves as an auxiliary power source for charging gadgets and other battery operated devices.

S U N D AY : A P R I L 2 6 : 2 0 1 5

C6

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

PEOPLE

...ARE TALKING ABOUT

DUBSMASH

Unless you’re living under a rock you wouldn’t know the latest fad that is taking social media by storm. The German-developed video-messaging app, which became popular in Europe first and then made even more popular by Hollywood stars, has now hit our shores. Everyone is now going gaga, acting out lines from movies, television shows and music videos. The most popular in the country are the clips that feature Kris Aquino and her signature laugh. This app spells fun. Try it out before it gets annoying.

DR. MARK AGAS

Mark Agas Ekstra, The Movie with Vilma Santos

...ARE NOT TALKING ABOUT

Alex Gonzaga

How to break the Internet? You don’t have to pull a Kim Kardashian stunt just to go viral online. In the case of the former Cosmo Bachelor hottie Mark Agas, you just have to look good and have an impressive background to complete the killer combination. Mark, who is an ophthalmologist by profession, is the latest talk of the town. The online world was abuzz when pictures of the eye doctor were shared by numerous individuals on social network. It all started when a video of him was posted on Facebook. Getting an idea?

Shirley Kuan dropped the model and TV host as one of her talents. But in a more appropriate way, Shirley actually resigned from managing Georgina’s career (it’s the talent that employs the manager). But why did it happen? Georgina’s unprofessionalism is said to be the main reason why Shirley went ballistic and cut their ties. In the scheme of things, Georgina is the one who needs to do the explaining but she keeps mum on the issue. Probably she can’t disprove what Shirley claims.

EKSTRA, THE BIT PLAYER

ANDI EIGENMANN

CROSSWORD PUZZLE 78

ACROSS 1 Musty 6 Can’t stomach 11 Kind of bank 16 “The baker, the candlestick — ...”

21 Refuge 22 Burro alternative 23 Home 24 Like gymnasts 25 Yet to come 26 Like fallen logs 27 Vice — 28 Built like a rock 29 Went to the gym (2 wds.)

31 Skyline feature 33 Ad — committee 35 Agree silently 36 Brown of renown 37 No rocket scientist 38 Sooner city 39 Nice and warm 41 Lime cooler 42 Chain dance

44 46 51 52 53 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 66 67 68 69 70 72 73 74 75 77

Wharf Furniture movers Stay on the line Seeger of folk music Online auction Busy places in June Raises one’s voice Type of explorer Yves’ pal More unusual Gourmet cook — Child Mop companions Lose it (2 wds.)

A funny Philips Of durable wood Nest builders “1984” author Tees and tubes By and by Swindler Burned with steam Down the hatch Like Kermit

She was getting nervous because of some obvious reasons. She was having a concert last Saturday and yet the ticket sales were not doing well. She was ubiquitous yet, the people thought she was becoming too ambitious? People doubted she could pull a surprise like Anne Curtis who staged a sold out arena? While she can carry a tune, Alex is known to be a comedian more than a singer, so it was hard to predict what would be the outcome of this joke. Rumor has it that she was giving out free tickets.

GEORGINA WILSON

Georgina Wilson

The Vilma Santos-starrer comedy-drama still hauls awards two years after its debut at the Cinemalaya Film Festival. In fact, at the recentlyconcluded the Worldfest Houston-St. Louis International Film Festival, the indie film won two awards namely Platinum Award in the comedy category and Best Foreign Feature Film. It helps that this kind of film is making waves in festivals abroad. It confirms that our mainstream or commercial movies are not of movie festival caliber.

ANSWER FOR PREVIOUS PUZZLE

ALEX GONZAGA

Dreaded home work 79 Surfaces 82 Fleeced 83 Lee of cakedom 84 Piece of linoleum 88 Bread units 89 Get in touch with 90 Very pale 91 — Gatos, Calif.

92 Farm measure 93 Pretense 94 Fluttered 95 “Luck of the Draw” singer 97 Goalie’s org.

98 Early stages 99 Bowling alleys 100 Argument 101 Pinch of salt 103 Fan noise 104 Route for Ben-Hur 105 Formal wear 106 Minute 108 Softens 110 Awful 111 Rushing sound 114 Drop-kick 115 Field mice 117 Sharp — — tack 120 Attorney’s forte 121 Plea at sea 123 Fidgety 125 Ecological disaters (2 wds.)

127 Departure 129 Shrink back 131 Mix up 133 Free 134 High-strung 135 Buzzing about 136 Hears the alarm 137 Leaf pore 138 Sidled past 139 Ponders or meditates in silence 140 Quick on the uptake

Andi Eigenmann

We are only a few days away from the nationwide premiere of the Wattpad series turned movie You’re Place or Mine. Hence, the single mom and the rest of her camp are trying out all sorts of publicity stunts to gain attention including using her intertwined love affair with a few men. But people don’t buy gossips and cheap bubblegum romance, they watch movies based on the stature of the star headlining the movie. This means Andi’s movie is in a big trouble.

SUNDAY, APRIL 26, 2015

141 Seismic uplift DOWN 1 Throw 2 Lake near Reno 3 Claims 4 Security breach 5 Broke off 6 Oblong nuts 7 Skirt go-with 8 What some marry in 9 Mantra chants 10 Flashlight output 11 Improving the road 12 Spain and Portugal 13 Hurt at Pamplona 14 Mdse.

15 —, right!

16 Team animal 17 Back when 18 Brick bakers 19 Poet T.S. — 20 “Angie Baby” singer 30 Really nice people 32 Hangs fire 34 Web-toed mammal 40 Skipper’s OK 42 Gen. Powell 43 Earthen jar 44 Congeals 45 Depot info 46 Insert mark 47 Texas tourist site 48 Leather for honing 49 — kwon do 50 Foul up 51 Hunt or Hayes 52 Gist 54 Spoke sheepishly 55 More than enough 56 Give forth 58 Sgt. Preston’s beat 59 Hymn of praise 62 Goodall and Fonda 63 Fluff feathers 64 Chemist’s amount

65 67 68 69 71 73 74 76 77 78 79 80

Young hooter Rockers Hall and — — it’s at Barracuda habitat Dish up the food Old hag Torn piece Epochs Specter Payroll deductions Spiral-horned antelope Gourmet coffee

81 82 83 85 86 87 89 90 93 94 95 96

Countesses’ husbands Leaps away Pack rat Wooden horse saga Gambling game — Park, Colo.

Overbearing Ebbs No-see-um Light bulb measure Tyrannosaurus — Mr. Vigoda

98 99 100 102 105 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114

Lawn products brand Cheerful tones Guys Movie channel Everest adjective Published Indiana city Keys in data Water heater Metamorphic rock Forded a stream Not yet paid Huffs and puffs

115 116 117 118 119 122 124 126 128 130 132

Russian export Winter nuisance Understudy Reads hastily What a theater goer takes (2 wds.)

Did the butterfly Fishtails Vanish — thin air WNW opposite Ames inst.

Reservoir boundary

S U N D AY : A P R I L 2 6 : 2 0 1 5

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

C7

BEST ELVIS PRESLEY ACT IN MANILA C

From C8

hris Connor, voted in 2014 as the first-eve World’s Best Elvis Performer, is in town and performing at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila.

Tonight is the last show of The Worlds Famous Elvis Show at the theater. Show begins promptly at 8 p.m., which is being presented by Royale Chimes Concerts and Events, Inc. for the thousands of Elvis Presley fans in the Philippines and the Far East.

Connor arrived in Manila on Wednesday and immediately met some members of the press. He said that before doing the Elvis Presley act, he was a construction worker in the United Kingdom. He learned about the king of rock ‘n’ roll via the records his father used to play at home.

He decided to be among the world’s Elvis Presley wannabes when he turned 27. “That age is rather old to start a career in singing as myself, but being Elvis gave me the opportunity to perform,” he said.

Connor burst on to the UK Elvis scene in early 2009 and within 12 months he was performing at venues such as the Manchester Apollo and the Harrogate International Centre in the World’s Greatest Elvis Tribute Concerts, backed by the Sweet Inspirations (Elvis Presley’s original backing singers).

Just recently in April 2013, he appeared with his West End band in front of a full audience at the London Palladium.

In the last five years, Chris has become recognised as the world’s fastest rising leading Elvis Performer making waves around the world. Nobody does Elvis Presley better than Chris Connor. His voice, his moves, his style, even his looks - Chris has made the great man his own. As one journalist put it “You’d swear you were watching the original”.

Chris Connor’s show features some of his best loved hits such as “Burning Love,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” and “Suspicious Minds.” He also does some of Elvis’ most famous ballads like “Love Me Tender,” “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” and “Are you Lonesome Tonight” apart from the lesser known songs like “Trouble/Guitar Man” and “Memories”, and not to leave out the most iconic Elvis songs “If I Can

Dream” and “American Trilogy.”

A writer who watched the Brit who is making a good living performing like Elvis says, “Chris Connor embodies Elvis’ assurance of craft and style and his resemblance is uncanny. Having made a career playing Elvis, Chris nails the phrasing, timing and tone with utter confidence every night”.

Catch his show tonight before he heads on to another destination where thousands of Elvis fans are waiting for him.

HHHHH A mini beauty pageant, which is a prelude to the search for Hannah’s Mr. & Ms. Ecotourism Ambassadors 2015, was held recently at Hannah’s Beach Resort and Convention Center in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. Twelve candidates from the Miss Philippines Earth competed and the winners were: Carla Angela Valderama (from Siniloan, Laguna), Miss Hannah’s Beach Resort 2015; Sofia Loren Deliu (from Baguio City), Miss Vertext 2015; and Paris Silva (from Lipa City), Miss Pagudpud 2015. Valderama also won two special awards: Best in Talent and Best inSwimsuit. Silva, on the other hand. also won Best in Evening Gown.

Col. Ricardo L.Nolasco, Jr., PAF (Ret.), owner of Hannah’s Beach Resort and Convention Center, was delighted with the result of the mini-pageant, taking pride in the fact that in the past, Miss Philippines Earth candidates who were crowned Miss Hannah’s Beach Resort and Miss Pagudpud also became big winners in the Miss Philippines Earth and in international beauty pageants.

Col. Nolasco added, “I’m very proud that Hannah’s is affiliated with Carousel Productions in promoting Miss Philippines Earth as a beauty pageant with the very noble cause of advocating care and preservation of Mother Earth.”

Hannah’s Beach Resort and Convention Center has received many awards and citations, the most recent of which was “2014 Most Outstanding Tourist Destination in the Philippines” from the US-based Gawad Amerika Foundation, but Col. Nolasco said, “More than the awards and accolades, I take pride on how my humble contributions have

Chris Connor, voted in 2014 as World’s Best Elvis Performer, performs at the New Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World

The winners at Ms. Hanna’s Ms. Earth pageant in Pagudpug, Ilocos Norte

transformed the local economy and the lives of the communities in Pagudpud and have raised the level of their awareness and involvement in caring for the Blue Lagoon and the other exciting points of interest in Ilocos Norte.”

The search for Hannah’s Mr. & Ms. Ecotourism Ambassadors 2015 will culminate on May 16 at Hannah’s Beach Resort and Convention Center.

WATCH PACQUIAO’S HISTORIC BOXING BATTLE, LIVE ON SKY PAY-PER-VIEW

O

n his historic and career-defining fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao will earn the chance to keep his WBO belt, win Mayweather Jr’s WBC and WBA (Super) titles, and perhaps even succeed in earning his fifth weight division crown. Currently, The People’s Champ already has the crowns for the flyweight, featherweight, junior lightweight, and junior welterweight divisions. Should Pacquiao defeat “The Money Man” Mayweather, he’ll become the first fighter in history to hold five crowns from five different weight divisions - as he’ll gain the welterweight crown upon winning. The battle of the century will take place in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and is set to be the most watched and most profitable fight in history where both fighters will receive nine-figure windfalls from all the proceeds. For Manny’s Filipino fans, they can watch the live and commercial-free telecast on May 3, Sunday, starting 8am - airing in both standard and high definition on SKY Pay-Per-View.

In Pacquiao’s camp, training this time has taken a more serious and more determined turn. Unlike in the preparations for previous match-ups, Pacquiao

now only spars in the presence of his most trusted team mates while politely asking others to leave the gym premises while practicing. “Manny’s always been very open and so forth. But this is such a big fight and getting the game plan right is so important. I felt it’s critical we fight the right fight and to tell you the truth, it’s been a lot better. Manny’s getting a lot of work in and I think it’s been his best camp in a while because of it”, said Freddie Roach when he was asked for comments regarding Pacquiao’s conditioning leading up to the fight.

Meanwhile in Floyd Mayweather Jr’s camp, “The Money Man,” and his father put on a show for his expectant gym crowd during practice. The only catch is that spectators are not allowed to film or photograph sparring matches, as they might be sent to Pacquiao’s camp for analysis. For Mayweather Sr., he “ain’t worried ‘bout nothing”, emphasizing that there are “no secrets here. Anybody can watch.” The confidence in the Mayweather camp is so high that Floyd’s father has proudly stated “There ain’t no threat in front my son. That’s why I’m not worried about nothing.”

The most important fight in boxing his-

tory must not be missed. Watch the worldclass championship action on SKYcable and Destiny Cable PAY-PER-VIEW. Experience the high-adrenaline brawl of two of the world’s most elite fighters in High or Standard Definition for only P2,500.

SKYcable subscribers can watch the match on the following channels: Ch. 195 (HD) and Ch. 99 (SD) for those in Metro Manila, CAMANAVA, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, and Bulacan (San Jose Del Monte); and Ch. 701 (HD) and Ch. 21 (SD) for those in Cebu, Baguio, Iloilo, Bacolod, Davao, Dumaguete, and General Santos. SKYcable subscribers in Tagum and Lipa can witness the action on Ch. 3, while those in Laoag can tune in to Ch. 2. Destiny Cable subscribers can watch through Ch. 195 (HD) and Ch. 99 (SD).

Subscribers who avail of this pay-perview can watch all these great additional features straight from their TV screens: a pre-fight documentary on Pacquiao’s training prior to the battle against Mayweather Jr.; the making of the movie Kid Kulafu; and Pacquiao the Movie (starring Jericho Rosales). And the premium bonuses don’t stop there, subscribers will also have the following channels added to their line-up for 15 days without any

extra charge - those with HD digiboxes will have access to Fox Action Movies HD, RTL-CBS Extreme HD, Crime & Investigation HD, DMAX, and FX; while those with standard definition digiboxes can watch Fox Action Movies SD, Crime & Investigation SD, DMAX, and FX. To subscribe and to know more about SKYcable, log on to www.mysky.com.ph, or call the 24-hour customer service hotlines at 02 381-0000 for Metro Manila, CAMANAVA, and Rizal; 046-484-4701 for Cavite; 049-534-2814 for Calamba and Binan and Sta. Rosa, Laguna; 02520-8560 for San Pedro, Laguna; 044693-5877 for Bulacan; 032-421-1818 for Cebu; 082-305-5456 for Davao; 074442-4841 for Baguio; 034-432-0051 for Bacolod; 033-300-1210 for Iloilo; 035225-1010 for Dumaguete; 083 301-3134 for Gen. Santos City; 077-772-1236 for Laoag; 043-757-0378 for Lipa, Batangas; and 084-655-6785 for Tagum.

Enjoy 93 channels in clear digital signal for only P550 per month with Destiny Cable. For inquiries about the services and promos of Destiny Cable call 418-0000. You may also contact Destiny Cable via their email address, weserve@ destinycable.com.ph.

C8

S U N D AY : A P R I L 2 6 : 2 0 1 5

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

Jasmne Curtis-Smith turned 21 on April 14 and showed the world that she can be as daring, pretty, and loveable like women her age

JASMINE CURTIS-SMITH SPREADS HER WINGS SIMPLY RED ISAH V. RED As the pretty young sister of popular TV/movie star Anne Curtis turned 21 on April 6, things start take shape differently from what her fans had seen in previous years.

Jasmine Curtis-Smith celebrated her birthday in a variety of ways, most she says were significant that would make her life different now and others as career moves that would make her fans see her in a different light.

On TV5 as host of the weekly dance show Move It: Clash of the

Streetdancers, Jasmine had a gift of sorts to her fans — a red-hot cover for the annual Girls of Summer supplement of fitness magazine Men’s Health Philippines.

Jasmine appears in an eye-catching red two-piece on the supplement cover, with actor-athlete Matteo Guidicelli on the main cover.

On a personal note, the young star pledged to seek sponsors for 21 children of World Vision of which she is one of the organization’s faithful supporters.

Jasmine, apart from the supplement cover of Men’s Health Philippines, appears as well on three other magazine covers, namely Uno, Rogue, and Trip. Each cover shows a different facet of the star – health

buff, mature young lady, adventurer, and sun-kissed beauty.

At a press conference held for her recently, World Vision announced her appointment as a World Vision ambassador. That is apart from the launch of the four magazine covers also held in the same event.

The young star, the reigning TV5 primetime princess, celebrated ahead of her birthday in Thailand during the Holy Week. ACtueally she was at Maya Bay on Phi Phi Ley Island exploring the beaches and in her downtown just read books while basking in the sun and thinking about what should she be as she passes through the stage of a grown adult.

And she shared her thoughts with her fans on her Instagram account,

posting, “I am so thankful and overwhelmed by all the love and greetings! Thank you everyone. You are all such diamonds. #Eagle21.”

The hashtag “Eagle 21 was created to maker posts on social media that are related to her 21st birthday. The eagle was chosen as Jasmine’s symbol for its strength amid trials and awesome flight – character traits that can be associated with the star now that’s she’s endured more than half a decade in show business.

“Nos that I am 21, I am more inspired. I vow to be more dedicated to my work and life,” Jasmine says.

And just like the flower she is named after, Jasmine will flourish and leave a sweet scent anywhere she goes.

Continued on C7

‘I am so thankful and overwhelmed by all the love and greetings!

Thank you everyone. You are all such diamonds. #Eagle21.’

– Jasmine CurtisSmith