The Standard - 2015 June 04 - Thursday

VOL. XXIX  NO. 106  3 Sections 32 Pages P18  THURSDAY : JUNE 4, 2015  www.manilastandardtoday.com  editorial@thestandard.com.ph

MOST PINOYS REJECT K-12

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HOUSE SETS BBL PAYOLA PROBE Next page

Clearing the air. House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., seen in this file photo, has called for the start an investigation into allegations of payoffs made by a suspected Chinese crime lord to ease the passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law. LINO SANTOS

Grace Poe says she’s eligible, denies rumors about parents

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I’m qualified to run in 2016, Poe insists

By Macon R. Araneta and Rey E. Requejo

ROMUALDEZ

ZAMORA

GONZALES

Belmonte orders BBL payola probe

By Christine F. Herrera

HOUSE Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. is spearheading the probe on allegations that lawmakers were bribed into supporting the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) with funds from a suspected Chinese crime lord, Wang Bo, who was ordered released by immigration officials.

Belmonte authored and filed House Resolution 2151, with House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II and House Minority Leader Ronaldo Zamora as coauthors.

Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, leader of the independent minority bloc in the House, is being eyed to head the special probe team that will dig deeper into the case.

“I myself filed a resolution to investigate the Bureau of Immigration on the allegations, Belmonte said. “We want to get to the bottom of it.”

But Belmonte said the Wang Bo incident had “absolutely nothing to do with the House of Representatives” as he denied that any money was offered to win votes for the BBL. The probe was prompted by reports in The Standard that Immigration officials had cut a deal with Wang in exchange for electoral campaign funds of the Liberals and for the swift passage of the BBL. Belmonte noted that Commissioner Siegfred Mison and Deputy Commissioners Gilberto Repizo and Abdullah Mangotara were already pointing fingers, instead of issuing a common denial.

The decision to pursue the probe was arrived at during a lunch meeting between Belmonte and Zamora with some minority members at Zamora’s office Wednesday.

Shortly after the meeting, the resolution was filed.

The resolution orders the House committee on good government and public accountability to conduct an inquiry into the alleged “bribery and corruption activities involving Chinese national Wang Bo.” “The Manila Standard Today published a series of articles alleging that officials of the Bureau of Immigration reversed a deportation order issued against Wang Bo, a Chinese national wanted by both Interpol and the Chinese government,” the House leaders’ resolution said.

“Wang Bo was apprehended by the Bureau of Immigration for arriving in the country with a cancelled passport,

and for being in the Bureau of Immigration blacklist order,” the leaders said.

“Despite the request for deportation by the Chinese government due to an outstanding arrest warrant against Wang Bo for suspected illegal gambling activities, the Bureau of Immigration subsequently issued an order releasing Wang Bo from Bureau of Immigration custody,” the resolution said.

“While the release of Wang Bo was aborted after a strong statement from the Embassy of China in the Philippines that he is an undesirable and undocumented alien who poses a risk to the national interest, the articles likewise alleged that the order to release Wang Bo was due to the intervention of certain Bureau of Immigration Commissioners, allegedly in exchange for funds to be used for the approval of the pending Bangsamoro Basic Law; “The articles alleged that the funds raised from Wang Bo was delivered to the Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and used by the Liberal Party to influence the outcome of the Committee hearings on the Bangsamoro Basic Law; “These unproven and baseless allegations have raised serious questions on the integrity of the immigration and deportation processes and procedures in the country and have cast doubt on the integrity of the House of Representatives as an institution; “It is imperative that the House of Representatives investigate these allegations in order to protect its honor and integrity as a law-making body,” the resolution concluded.

Leaders of the ruling Liberal Party prominently figured in the controversy.

Mindoro Gov. Alfonso Umali, treasurer of the ruling Liberal Party and a close ally of President Benigno Aquino III, took up the cudgels for Repizo and Mangotara, who were accused of cutting a deal with Wang to raise funds for the party and the BBL. Repizo and Mangotara are both members of the Liberal Party.

Umali admitted the two officials are close to him and that it was he who recommended Repizo to be appointed to his post.

Umali said Repizo and Mangotara were innocent, and that it was Mison instead who made a deal with Wang, and tried to pin it on his two deputy commissioners when it was discovered.

Mison told The Standard he was willing to face any investigation.

“I will reveal the truth that it was the Chinese Embassy officials who officially relayed to me that Deputy Commissioner Repizo and other Immigration officials, met with a representative of Wang and after that meeting, they pushed for the issuance of a release order,” Mison

said.

But Umali insisted it was Mison who made the deal.

Umali said he had already submitted a 10-page report to the President to expose Mison’s illegal activities and the truth behind the BBL payola deal.

Mison also submitted a confidential report to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, proving it was Repizo who pushed for the reversal of the March 5 deportation order against Wang.

Based on a transcript of the May 26 meeting of the board of commissioners, Repizo refused to agree with Mison to reverse the May 21 release order.

“The decision of the Board of Commissioners, if I may add, is not purely legal. It also borders on political…,” Repizo said in the meeting.

“On a larger context, although this has no bearing to the issue at hand, they (China) even conveniently ignored countless provisions or issues on our border in the South China Sea,” Repizo said.

“All I’m asking is a little respect for our processes,” Repizo said, insisting that the Chinese Embassy was late in submitting authenticated papers on Wang ,such as the warrant of arrest and the criminal charges slapped on him.

Repizo, who wrote the May 21 release order, also dared those who would questioned his position to raise the issue to De Lima and even up to the Office of the President for reversal.

“This is also something that involves our discretion. If they have questions on that discretion on whatever would be the collective vote today, they can raise this to the Secretary of Justice or they can raise it to the Office of the President, and let the rationalization be scrutinized and studied and if warranted by higher authorities, be reversed,” Repizo said.

“We welcome any reversal from a higher authority, but on this particular situation, Mr. Chair, I am the ponente of this proposal to which earlier we both agreed. I am the one who put my thoughts on how the Chinese authorities have over-extended their authorities,” Repizo said.

Repizo stood by his position that Wang was not a fugitive, that he was not an undocumented alien and that he was a legitimate businessman operating Skybet, a casino in Manila.

Mison said Repizo misled the board by saying that Wang’s operation was based in Manila and so he should be prosecuted in Manila.

Mison said Wang was also wanted for money laundering because the proceeds of his crime in China were being brought to Manila for similar operations.

Romualdez said the reputations of lawmakers would be questioned if they didn’t look into the Wang case immediately. – With Maricel V. Cruz

SENATOR Grace Poe insisted Wednesday that she is qualified to run for president or vice president in 2016, and said questions raised by the opposition about her residency made her even more determined to run.

Poe was reacting to an assertion by United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) acting president Toby Tiangco that she is not qualified to run next year because she does not meet the 10-year residency requirement, based on the certificate of candidacy that she filed in 2013 when she ran for senator, where she stated she was a resident of the Philippines for six years and six months by Election Day, May 13, 2013.

But Poe said she had misinterpreted the Commission on Election’s question on residency, and said the certificate stated “residence in the Philippines before May 2013,” and not “by May 13.”

She also said she was physically present in the Philippines as early as 2005, but only sold her house in the United States in April 2006.

She bristled at the UNA questioning her honesty.

“I am not a lawyer but I’m honest and truthful,” she said in Filipino. She added that if her physical presence in the Philippines was the gauge, she would more than meet the 10-year residency requirement by next year.

She said the opposition attack on her honesty was pushing her closer to being “100 percent” sure of running.

She said that when she filled out her certificate of candidacy in 2013, she used the lower figure to “err on the side of prudence.”

Poe refused to admit that she had committed a mistake, saying the Comelec should clarify what the question on residency meant.

Poe said she saw the latest attack on her as an act of vengeance because she signed the Blue Ribbon subcommittee report that recommended the filing of plunder charges against Vice President Jejomar Binay, UNA’s presidential candidate in 2016.

“You know, I pity them for focusing on me on this issue.

This was the same thing done by those who were losing hope when FPJ ran,” said Poe while referring to her late father, Fernando Poe Jr., who ran for president but lost in 2004.

Senator Nancy Binay, the Vice President’s daughter, said she did not know that the UNA would question Poe’s residency qualification.

“Actually, I was surprised when it came out, I guess like everybody else,” she said.

She said she had not talked to Tiangco about the issue.

Senate President Franklin Drilon and Senator Francis Escudero both said Poe was qualified to run.

“As far as I know, she lived here earlier. I know she was here already in 2005,” said

Escudero, who might run for higher office with Poe. Escudero, a lawyer, said the Supreme Court had already declared that it was a person’s actual residence, not a statement made in the certificate of candidacy, that will qualify him or her as a candidate.

He added that Tiangco should know better, because his aunt, Leyte Rep. Imelda Marcos, declared a sevenmonth residency when she ran in 1995 when the requirement was one year.

Like Poe, Escudero said the question on the certificate of candidacy was ambiguous.

“Duration or length of residency in the PH before May 2013. What does that mean? Some interpreted it as counting from May 2013. The problem is it does not say....

That’s what happened to Imelda. She said it was an honest mistake. I didn’t understand it,” Escudero said.

“So the court said an honest mistake will not disqualify you because it’s the fact of residence (that counts)…

Tiangco should remember, that we’re not talking here of Grace ’s COC for president or vice president, which he is using against Poe, an undeclared candidate―we’re just talking of her COC when she ran for senator,” he added.

Drilon said if Poe can prove her intention to return to the Philippines while she was in the United States, her stay in the US could still be counted toward the 10-year residency requirement.

Ranhilio Aquino, dean of San Beda Graduate School of Law, said when one leaves his domicile with the intention to return, no matter how long the absence, domicile will not be lost.

“Intentions are tricky business, but there are verifiable facts consistent with an intention to remain, as well as facts evincing a lack of such an intention,” he said.

“The Supreme Court has resolved the meaning of ‘resident’ for purposes of complying with the constitutional requirement. A resident is a domiciliary; and therefore, for purposes of complying with the requirements of the Constitution, one must be domiciled in the Philippines for the period that the Constitution requires.”

“Domicile has a fixed meaning: habitual residence coupled with the intention to remain -- what is technically called animus manendi. In Conflict of Laws, also known as Private International Law, domicile requires physical presence and the intention to remain (for good).”

Tony La Vina, dean of the Ateneo School of Government, said intent to return is established by a person’s links to a place.

“As long as those links are real and subsisting -- birthplaces, parents who are alive, friendships and relations -all of these taken together are evidence of intent to return,” he said.

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Grace denies parentage rumors, may be ‘adopted by entire PH’

By Macon Ramos-Araneta SENATOR Grace Poe may be adopted by the whole nation if her detractors will continue to claim she is not qualified to run for President in the 2016 elections, a Liberal Party stalwart said Wednesday.

“If they pursue that line of inquisition against Grace, she might end up being adopted by the whole nation,” Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said.

The question on Poe’s biological parents again emerged following the indications she could be a “force to reckon” with in the coming elections as a result of her good showing in all the presidential surveys.

Asked if she was an illegitimate child of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, the father of incumbent Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Poe said that was not true even though it had been going on for decades.

It is claimed that the former strongman had an “illicit affair” with Sampaguita Pictures actress Rosemarie Sonora and impregnated her, and the resulting child was Grace Poe. Sonora is a younger sister of retired actress Susan Roces, who became the wife of action star Fernando Poe Jr. According to the rumors, Marcos asked Poe Jr. and Roces to adopt his child with So-

nora because they were childless. And since Roces and Poe were friends of Marcos, they agreed.

But Grace Poe says her adoptive mother had told her there was no truth to the rumors that have been going on for decades.

She says her adoptive mother had told her she was a newborn child when she found her abandoned in front of a church in Jaro, Iloilo.

The Poes were then vacationing in Jaro, and the baby was presented to them for adoption by.

Poe’s godmother would bring her to the events attended by the late movie actor and Roces.

“Now if there are people in showbiz who can prove it, it’s up to them, but I believe my mother and it’s not really true,” Grace Poe said.

Asked if Poe was his half sister, Marcos Jr. said that was an “urban legend” or a story without any basis.

Poe says there were times when she and Marcos spoke about the matter in jest.

She recalled that during the Mamasapano hearing, she told Marcos she could not give her special consideration that he would prolong his time in asking questions because they might believe that their being siblings was true.

I’m eligible. Senator Grace Poe answers questions from media during an ambush interview Wednesday. EY ACASIO

Most Pinoys want K-12 junked

By Adelle Chua

ONLY a third of Filipinos agree that the country needs the two additional years in high school under the K to 12 program, and a majority would prefer to defer it or scrap it altogether especially if it would mean displacing school personnel.

These are according to The Standard Poll conducted between May 8 and May 18 by this newspaper’s resident pollster Junie Laylo.

Northern and Central Luzon residents disagree the most strongly, with 73 percent of respondents disagreeing with the statement “We really need the additional two years in high school.”

In Mindanao however, K to 12 supporters outnumber those opposing it, with 49 percent saying they agree the additional years are needed, 48 percent disagreeing,and 3 percent not knowing enough to have an opinion on the issue.

The K to 12 program was enacted into law in May 2013 through Republic Act 10533, or “An Act Enhancing the Philippine Basic Education System by Strengthening Its Curriculum and Increasing the Number of Years for Basic Education, Appropriating Funds Therefor and for Other Purposes.”

The program, which covers 13 years of basic education, is being implemented by the Department of Education because it says that the Philippines is the last in Asia and only one of three countries worldwide with just a ten-year pre-university cycle, the other two being Angola and Djibouti.

“A 12-year program is found to be the best period for learning under basic education. It is also the recognized standard for students and professionals globally,”the Deped adds in a primer found on its Web site, www.deped. gov.ph.

But while the Department says it is now preparing for the implementation of the Sen-

THE STANDARD POLL

ior High School -- Grades 11 and 12 – next year, and has made preparations in terms of classrooms, teachers (for core and specialized subjects), textbooks, and curriculum, Filipinos are not convinced that “the government is very ready to implement in full the K to 12 program next year.”

Only 32 percent nationwide believe the government is ready for the program -- the same percentage of respondents in the National Capital Region.

Southern Luzon/ Bicol, Northern and Central Luzon and the Visayas are even less convinced, with 61 percent, 74 percent and 73 percent disagreeing with the survey state-

ment, respectively.

Mindanao, for its part, is consistent with its support for the program, with 49 percent convinced of the government’s preparedness.

Only 48 percent of respondents from Mindanao disagree with the statement.

Given these positions, only a quarter of respondents nationwide believe it is better that the implementation of the program be continued, with the balance split between deferring it, scrapping it, or those not knowing enough to form an opinion.

The opposition is strongest in Metro Manila, with only 18 percent saying the K to 12 program must be continued, 30 percent say-

ing it must be deferred and 45 percent believing it must be scrapped.

Mindanao for its part continues to be more supportive of the program than the rest of the country is, with 34 percent believing implementation must proceed. Even then, more than half of Mindanao respondents believe the program must be deferred (18 percent) or scrapped (35 percent).

When shown reports that the implementation may displace personnel, respondents became even less supportive of the program, with those believing it should be continued dropping from 25 percent to 17 percent nationwide.

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Another fisheries incident off Basco

By Vito Barcelo THE Philippines and Taiwan may resume fisheries talks as early as next week after two incidents involving Taiwanese fishing boats in the overlapping economic zones of the two countries, officials said Wednesday.

The Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the date of the meeting is still being finalized but it may be held next week in Taipei.

Elliott Charng, director-general of the Taiwanese foreign office’s Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs announced the possible date after the Philippine Coast Guard confirmed that it had a four-hour standoff with the Taiwanese Coast Guard last May 25.

“A standoff between the PCG and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources operatives patrolling Batanes area with the Taiwan Coast Guard,” Commander Armand Balilo, PCG spokesperson, said.

Balilo said the standoff happened after the PCG caught the Taiwanese fishing boat Min Jiang Tsai 6 poaching in Philippine waters, but when it tried to tow the vessel to Basco the Taiwanese Coast Guard appeared blocked the PCG and demanded the release of the Min Jiang Tsai 6.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that the incident highlights the need for an early conclusion of the fisheries agreement that would formalize how to resolve fishing disputes, including procedures on the detention and release of any fishing vessels or fishermen.

Royal welcome. President Benigno Aquino III is welcomed by Emperor Akihito of Japan and his wife Empress Michiko during his courtesy call at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo for a five-day state visit. MALACAÑANG PHOTO

PNoy hits ‘Nazi’ China anew

By Sandy Araneta TOKYO—President Benigno Aquino III again likened China to Nazi Germany on Wednesday during a speech in Japan, claiming Beijing’s maritime claims in the South China Sea may cause another world war.

“If there was a vacuum, if the United States, which is the superpower, says ‘we are not interested’, perhaps there is no brake to

ambitions of other countries,” Aquino said in a speech before business leaders during a state visit to Japan.

“I’m an amateur student of history and I’m reminded of... how Germany was testing the waters and what the response was by various other European powers,” he said, referring to the Nazis’ territorial conquests in the months before the outbreak of World War II. “They tested the waters and they were ready to back down if, for instance, in that aspect, France said (to back down).

“But unfortunately, up to the annexation of the Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia, the annexation of the entire country of Czechoslovakia, nobody said stop.

“If somebody said stop to (Adolf) Hitler

at that point in time, or to Germany at that time, would we have avoided World War II?” The comments sparked anger in Beijing, where foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she was “deeply shocked and dissatisfied with the groundless remarks”.

Hua reiterated the Chinese position that the Philippines has “illegally” occupied Chinese islands, adding “the Philippines keeps colluding with countries outside the region to stir up trouble and sling mud at China.”

Aquino, who is in Japan on a four-day visit, has previously made similar comments comparing China’s actions with those of the Third Reich.

“At what point do you say, ‘Enough is enough’? Well, the world has to say it —re-

member that the Sudetenland was given in an attempt to appease Hitler to prevent World War II,” he told the New York Times last year, provoking fury in Beijing.

Aquino also said the Philippines is cautiously studying whether to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, being put up by China.

“The Philippines, like any other country, has tremendous infrastructure needs,” said Aquino during an interview with reporters of Nikkei Inc. at the Nikkei 21st Conference on the Future of Asia held at the Hotel Okura.

Aquino said, particularly, the Philippines needs an improved mass transportation system in the capital region.

Red leader faces kidnap raps

By Florante S. Solmerin

Child-like persuasion. A young child, an offspring of one of the members of the Airport Transport Concessionaires Association, holds up a shirt saying “Rod Duterte for change” in an apparent bid to persuade the coy Dutere to run for president in 2016. ERIC APOLONIO

COMMUNIST leader Luis Jalandoni is facing charges of kidnapping, serious illegal detention and violations of international humanitarian law over the capture of four policemen in Surigao del Norte in July last year.

The National Democratic Front said Jalandoni, who lives in Utrecht, received a subpoena issued last January 28 by Surigao del Norte assistant provincial prosecutor Irwin Ariel D. Miel.

The subpoena was in connection with the capture of four policemen during an NPA raid against the police station in Alegria, Surigao del Norte on July 10, 2014 and captured Police Officer 3 Vic Calubag, PO1s Rey O’Niel Morales, Edito Roquino Jr. and Joen Zabala.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group later filed a criminal complaint based on the investigation report submitted by Chief Inspector Napoleon Pablo Duquez, commander of Special Investigation Task Group Alegria.

Also included in the subpoena were Jorge Madlos, Mindanao spokesman of the NDF and 32 others, several identified only through aliases and 15 others only as “John Doe”.

But Jalandoni’s camp contested the propriety of the service of the subpoena it was not sent via registered mail and was not even in an envelope.

Jalandoni claimed the subpoena was delivered by an unknown courier who just dropped it in

the mailbox in the front of the home of the rebel leader’s relative in Bel-Air, Makati City.

In a statement, CPP founder and NDF chief political consultant Jose Ma. Sison slammed the subpoena as a form of “harassment” and further violation by the government against the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG).

“The Aquino regime should respect the JASIG and allow the safe passage of Jalandoni to his negotiating post and office in The Netherlands,” Sison said.

Both Sison and Jalandoni, who is a naturalized Dutch citizen, live in exile in the Utrecht.

Peace talks between the NDF and the Aquino administration bogged down in February 2011 after the communists withdrew from the negotiating table in protest to the intensifying arrest of their “political consultants” who were supposed to be covered by the JASIG. “The Aquino regime is the most malicious of all regimes by using its representatives (like DILG Secretary Mar Roxas and Nani Braganza) to seek the release of the aforesaid policemen with the help of Jalandoni on humanitarian grounds and now hurling against him false charges of common crimes as aforementioned,” Sison said.

He also claimed that Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles were with Roxas during the release of the four policemen.

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Ultimatum on Cha-cha set June 11

By Maricel V. Cruz Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said on Wednesday that his proposed economic Charter Change has to be approved by the House on or before June 11, otherwise it has no chance of passing at all in the next administration.

“If we can’t pass it now I don’t see how we can pass it in the future so we’ll try our best to get it pass on final reading before the Congress sine die adjournment on June 12,” said Belmonte, the principal author of resolution of Both Houses No. 1 or the proposed amendments to certain economic provisions.

Belmonte said the rBH No. 1 must at least pass on third and final reading at the House before Congress adjourns sine die on June 11.

He said Congress would be tied up to several other important measures when it resumes session by July.

By tradition, Belmonte said, the House gets busy on annual budget deliberations by august, while the remaining months are for the campaign period for 2016 national elections.

Belmonte maintained his “best effort” is still needed to get the needed quorum and to pass his economic Chacha in the House of representatives.

“I [personally] texted them [members of the lower chamber] to attend our remaining session days [and vote for Chacha],” Belmonte said.

“We have to give it a try. and you will notice I would like to point out while everybody was silent here in the House on Chacha many sectors have been supportive of it including some senators,” Belmonte added.

The House has approved on second reading the rBH No. 1 which seeks to provide amendments to economic provisions on the 60-40 rule that limits foreign ownership of certain activities in the philippines.

The resolution will include the phrase “unless provided by law” in the foreignownership provision of the Constitution, particularly land ownership, public utilities, natural resources, media and advertising industries.

Under article XII of the Constitution, which ratified during the term of the president’s mother, then-president Corazon aquino, foreign investors are prohibited to own more than 40 percent of real properties and businesses, while they are totally restricted to exploit natural resources and own any company in the media industry.

Garcia’s wealth. US Ambassador Philip Goldberg hands a facsimile check for $1,384,940.28 to Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales during the turnover ceremony at the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City. The check is part of the proceeds of the forfeiture case against former military comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia. LINO SANTOS

Ex-general’s $1.3-m loot returned to Ombudsman

By Rio N. Araja THE United States government on Wednesday turned over the second tranche of $1.28 million in proceeds of the forfeited assets of former military comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia, to the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City.

US ambassador to the philippines philip Goldberg led the delegation of US officials during the turnover of the US Treasury check for $1,384,940.28 to the philippine government represented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales.

The $1.3M check represented the net proceeds from the sale of Garcia’s condominium unit at The Trump Tower along park avenue in Manhattan, New York and the funds from

two accounts maintained in Citibank, New York, assets that were traced by investigators of the US Department of Homeland Security to be part of his laundered properties.

“Battling public corruption is a challenge that all countries face, including the US. Meeting that challenge is vitally important to ensure public confidence in the honesty and integrity of public servants,” Goldberg said during the turnover ceremony.

“Since retiring from the Supreme Court to serve as the Ombudsman, Justice Morales has been tireless in the investigation and prosecution of public corruption cases. The United States is very pleased to be able to assist Ombudsman Morales and her office whenever possible.”

Morales, for her part, thanked the US government for helping the aquino administration recover the assets of Garcia.

“This milestone in asset recovery sends the message across that raiders of public coffers can no longer hide their unexplained wealth, they cannot hide their dummy bank accounts, wherever located, and they cannot hide from the long arm of the law,” she noted.

The philippine military expressed gratitude to the US for the recovery of Garcia’s illgotten wealth. “The aFp is thankful for this new development. Corruption has no place in the aFp,” said Brig. Gen. Joselito kakilala, military spokesman.

In January 2012, the US government through then ambassador Harry Thomas Jr. initially turned over to the Ombudsman $100,000 or p430,000 representing the cash seized by the US Customs authorities from Garcia’s two sons upon their entry in California in December 2003.

The confiscation sparked a series of probe of transactions entered into by Garcia.

In april 2005, Garcia was charged with cases of perjury, money laundering and plunder before the Sandiganbayan for allegedly amassing ill-gotten wealth while he was then the aFp comptroller.

The anti-graft court had already convicted Garcia of perjury.

On the money laundering and plunder suits, Garcia pleaded to the lesser offenses of indirect bribery and facilitating money laundering. With F. Solmerin

UN warns Manila on prisons overcrowding

By Vito Barcelo

New survey vessel. Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon J. P. Paje (right) takes cue from Lieutenant Commander Apolonio Lagonsin on the basic navigational and sonar operation of the 23-meter BRP Hydrographer Cayetano Palma (inset), one of two survey vessels newly acquired by the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority, during its commissioning on Monday at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone in Olongapo City. There are four survey vessels outfitted with modern underwater mapping equipment used by NAMRIA to establish the country fs maritime boundaries especially in the extended continental shelf in the Benham Rise Region.

THe United Nations’ torture prevention body has called on the philippine government to address the overcrowding and inhumane situation at detention facilities in the country and enact a law that will safeguard the rights of prisoners.

The call came at the end of the first visit to the philippines by the Sub-Committee on the prevention of Torture (SpT), when the six member delegation presented its confidential preliminary observations to the Filipino authorities “We hope, and expect, that the Government of the philippines will use our report to improve the conditions of people deprived of their lib-

erty, in particular by dealing with the chronic problem of overcrowding in places of detention. We encourage the Government to find solutions to overcrowding as a priority,” Suzanne Jabbour, who headed the SpT delegation, said in a statement. among their recommendations are “to deal urgently with prison overcrowding and improve independent monitoring of places of detention to protect people deprived of their liberty against torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.”

“We encourage the government to find solutions to overcrowding as a priority,” Jabbour said.

To meet its international treaty obligations, the SpT asked the philippines to enact

“as soon as possible” a law that will establish an effective national independent monitoring body for people in detention, known as a National preventive Mechanism (NpM).

Manila should already have an NpM in place as early as april 2013, it said. “an effective, independent and well-resourced National preventive Mechanism will be crucial to prevent torture and ill-treatment and to improve conditions of detention through a system of regular visits,” Jabbour said. among the places the experts visited during their 10 days in the philippines were police stations, pre-trial facilities, prisons, a juvenile rehabilitation centre, correctional institute for women and a psychiatric hospital.

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A6 Calls mount for MRT-LRT fare freeze

By Sara D. Fabunan THE Palace on Wednesday reiterated its apology to train commuters for the limited number of trains operating since last month even as labor and militant groups demanded the suspension of the fare hike imposed

by MRT and the Light Rail Transit managements.

Presidential deputy spokesperson Abigail Valte asked for the commuters’ understanding, saying that the national government would want to ensure that all MRT trains are safe before passengers can use them.

“If you notice that day to day, the number of coaches that are servicing the commuters does vary and that is because on a daily basis each train has to be determined if safe to carry all the passengers from point A to point B, and we would like really to maintain the safety,” Valte said.

Valte also said that the new MRT coaches will soon be operating and that the Palace appeal to the commuters for more patience.

The Department of Transportation and Communication said earlier that it already purchased 48 new MRT coaches and take delivery in August.

It is up to the DOTC to study the proposal to regulate the number of passengers to prevent the frequent breakdown of the trains, Valte said.

According to reports, only nine out of the 20 trains servicing the Metro Rail Transit were operating as of 7 a.m. on Tuesday, with passenger queues stretching as far as a kilometer.

MRT General Manager Roman Buenafe said other trains were not used due to problems with the air conditioning.

This prompted the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to deploy MMDA shuttle buses to offer free rides to affected commuters.

With Joel Zurbano and Vito Barcelo

NEWS

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Marcos fears bloodshed with infirmed Moro law

By Macon Araneta

AFTER the conduct of 14 public hearings among stakeholders, Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Wednesday rejected the Malacanang-drafted Bangsamoro Basic Law, saying its infirmities and flaws would only lead to more bloodshed instead of achieving its goal of bringing lasting peace in Mindanao.

“Mr. President, I repeat: I am for peace. I share our people’s thirst for peace. But there are many bad provisions enshrined in the BBL and if we are to remove each one of them, any move to fix it would not result to the return of the former BBL image,” said Marcos said.

While Senate Bill No. 2408 was filed and subse-

quently referred last September to the committee on local government which he chaired, Marcos said they endeavored to scrutinize the proposal by conducting several hearings on the BBL. “We sought the opinions, sentiments, concerns and propositions of the different sectors of society. Dis-

cussions of the measure of the grassroots level triggered passionate debates and scholarly discourses between national and local officials, members of the academe, concerned sectors and other stakeholders. We also sought the opinions of legal experts who shared their scholarly analyses on the constitutionality of several provisions of the bill,” said Marcos.

The BBL is supposed to be an instrument of peace, and Marcos said he shares its objective, but for peace to be achieved, BBL must be inclusive. All the stakeholders must be consulted, their views heard, their concerns addressed.

“More importantly, it must conform to the letter

and spirit of the law of the land. No ifs, ands, or buts,” he said.

Unfortunately, he said the BBL in its present form and substance will not bring us any closer to peace. Instead, he said it will lead us to perdition and armed conflict will ensure.

He warned that blood will be shed and when blood is shed, it will not distinguish between right and wrong, between young and old, neither betwene men and women, nor soldiers or rebels, combatants and civilians, rich, poor, Muslims, Christians.

After a series of meetings with the stakeholders, Marcos said it became obvious to me that no substantive consultations had been held

On BBL. Senator Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr., chairman of the Senate committee on local government and peace, presides over the hearing on the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law while Senator JV Ejercito listens intently.

with them prior to or during the negotiations.

He criticized the Office of the Presidential Assistant on peace Process (OPAPP) for totally ignoring major stakeholders the Sultanate of Sulu, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the Lumads, the Indigenous People, the Christians, the local government units and businesses were abandoned, removed from the negotiating process.

Speaking on the constitutionality of the BBL, Marcos noted what it aspires to create is not within the Framework of the Constitution because the powers enjoyed by the Bangsamoro government are violative of several provisions of the 1987 Constitution.

“The granting of these exclusive powers to the Bangsamoro government implies that the central government recognizes another, and more supreme, authority within the State an anomaly which is not authorized by the Constitution,” he said.

“The BBL seeks to establish limitations to the powers of Congress. Congress will be entitled to reserved powers, but the Bangsamoro would be excluded from the laws passed by Congress with respect to autonomous regons. The Bangsamoro Parliament would become not surbordinate, but equal to, our Congress,” he emphasized.

Furthermore, he said BBL has no power to create the Bangsamoro territory which proceeds from the view that although Bangsamoro is under Philippine jurisdiction, it can be molded into a separate territory of the Philippines.

Marcos had earlier vowed to resist any effort to railroad the approval of BBL as he also bucked the June 11 deadline the Palace set for its passage.

Kentex probe results up for review

By Rey E. Requejo

To the rescue. Firemen train their hoses on a row of houses at Zuzuaregui St. Brgy. Old Balara in Quezon City. LINO SANTOS

JUSTICE Secretary Leila de Lima on Wednesday formed a special panel of prosecutors whose job is to review the findings of an inter-agency task force that investigated the Kentex factory fire in Valenzuela City that killed 72 people last May 13.

In Department Order No. 402, De Lima designated six prosecutors who will assess and evaluate the recommendations and evidence gathered in the report of Inter-Agency AntiArson Task Force (IATF) composed of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation.

The members of the panel

include Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Roberto Lao, Assistant State Prosecutors Olivia Torrevillas and Ma. Cristina Barot, and State Counsels Margarette Robles, Consuelo Corazon Pazziuagan and Dioxenos Sulit.

The DOJ special panel is mandated to review the IATF report and “determine the possible criminal and administrative offenses committed in said incident under the Revised Penal Code, the Revised Fire Code (Republic Act 9514), the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (R.A. 3019), the Revised Administrative Code, the Civil Service Law, the Local Government Code, and other relevant laws.”

De Lima has ordered the panel to build the cases and “assess and evaluate the available documentary, testimonial,

and object evidence so far gathered in the investigation and provided by the investigating agencies, and determine the sufficiency of the same in the filing of the appropriate criminal and administrative cases.”

“After all the necessary and available evidence is completed and reviewed, the panel shall identify the specific criminal and administrative offenses to be charged and the specific private individuals and public officials who shall be charged therewith, with an enumeration of the evidence to be used for each case against each individual, and whether the same shall be filed with the appropriate public prosecutor of the NPS or the Office of the Ombudsman or any other appropriate body,” De Lima said, in her order.

t h u r s d ay : j u n e 4 , 2 0 1 5

A7

news

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

King of the world.

A man stands on a rock formation in Biri, Northern Samar. MEL CASPE

Trader slaps SBMA officials with criminal, admin charge SUBIC BAY FReePORT—Three senior officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), 12 security officers and a private contractor are facing criminal and administrative charges before the Office of the Ombudsman after allegedly conspiring to commit crimes against a locator here over ownership of scrap materials located in an old power plant building.

In a complaint affidavit dated May 6 filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, Fahrenheit Co., Ltd., represented by its President and Chief executive Officer Isagani Cabrera, charged SBMA Chairman and Administrator Roberto Garcia, SBMA Law enforcement Department Manager (Ret.) Gen. Orlando Maddela and SBMA Legal Department Manager Von Rodriguez.

Charged also were 12 SBMA Security officers and Filipino businessman Bonifacio Aporo, owner of Bonapor Metal Contractor Services and General Merchandise, based in Caloocan City.

The respondents are charged with violating Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019), Code of Conduct and ethical Standards for Public Officials and employees (RA 6713), Anti-Carnapping Act of 1972, arbitrary detention, grave coercion and libel.

The respondents also were facing administrative cases, such as gross misconduct, grave abuse of authority and oppression.

Based on the affidavit, on November 2012, SBMA sold to Bonapor the machineries, equipment and all recyclable materials in the former SBMA Power Plant or Building 1800 in the amount of P36.5 million.

Bonapor proceeded to dismantle, disassemble, and withdraw at least 38 truckloads of machineries, furniture, equipment and other recyclable materials from the said building.

Renovations push state university start to July

By Johanne Margarette R. Macob

LINGAYEN—Classes in all campuses of the Pangasinan State University will begin in July due to ongoing renovations. School has traditionally started in June here.

“We would like to ready our facilities…to provide better rooms, better facilities, better PSU,” said university president Dexter Buted.

Renovation works include classroom and library improvements and provision of new educational equipment.

Buted had earlier said that 95 percent of university classrooms need rehabilitation.

The PSU main campus in Lin-

gayen has been allocated P30 million for the construction and renovation of classrooms, P18 million for the Science and Technology Department, P7.7 million for the infirmary or medicaldental clinic, and P5 million to put up Hospitality Management laboratory.

Meanwhile, P50 million has been allotted for the development of PSU Urdaneta campus,

P7 million for the San Carlos City campus, and a 4.5 million covered court for Binmaley and Asingan campuses.

All other campuses have P2 million each for their respective structural development projects.

Further, nine million books are due for distribution in the different PSU campuses.

“All these developments are part of the new university vision to make PSU an Asean premier state university by 2020,” he said, also noting that the July opening is a gradual transition to August calendar shift of the university.

Meanwhile, he said the developments were further made possible

by the additional P33 million given to the university, in addition to the P87 million regular budget.

Despite the ongoing improvements of the PSU, the university president vowed that they didn’t apply for any tuition increase, except for the implementation of the 2010 resolution allowing for minimal increase for the night shifts.

PSU still offers a P250 per unit or less than P6,000 per semester tertiary education.

PSU campuses are in Lingayen, Binmaley, San Carlos City, Bayambang, Urdaneta City, Asingan, Sta. Maria, Infanta and Alaminos City.

GSIS offers loan to members in drought-stricken Mindanao THe Government Service Insurance System is granting emergency loans to active members residing or working in the drought-stricken municipalities of Malungon and Malapatan in Saranggani Province and Siocon in Zamboanga del Norte. Old age pensioners residing in said areas may also avail of the loan. The deadline for filing of application is on June 23.

Members who are not on leave of absence without pay, have no arrears in paying their premium contributions, and have no loans in default may apply.

A total of 1,073 members who wish to renew their existing loans may borrow P40,000 while 1,277 members with no current emergency loans may avail of P20,000.

A total of 195 old-age pensioners are entitled to a P20,000 loan. In case an oldage pensioner is also an active member, the applicant may borrow only once.

GSIS has earmarked P72.4 million in funds for the loan’s implementation.

The GSIS emergency loan bears a

6-percent interest per annum and is payable in 36 monthly installments.

The first loan amortization is deducted from the borrower’s salary or pension three months after the loan is granted.

The pension emergency loan is covered by a loan redemption insurance that waives the payment of the outstanding loan balance in case of the pensioner’s demise.

Members may apply through the GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System kiosks located in GSIS offices, provincial capitols, city halls, selected municipal offices, large government agencies such as the Department of education, and selected Robinsons Malls. Pensioners must apply over the counter.

Loan proceeds are electronically credited to the borrower’s GSIS eCard or unified multipurpose identification (UMID) card.

For inquiries, interested appli- No fear of heights. Linemen from local electric company change cants may call the GSIS Contact the transmission line along the Diversion Road in San Fernando City, La Center at 847-4747.

Union. CHRISTINE JUNIO

T h u R S D AY : J u N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

A8

opinion

ADELLE chuA eDitoR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

opinion

view fRom mAlcom Atty. hARRy Roque jR.

QuesTions for poe

[ EDI TORI A L ]

A convenient tool FiLiPinOS continue to be satisfied with the administration of President Benigno Aquino iii because of the government’s conditional cash transfer program, according to The Standard Poll conducted by this newspaper’s resident pollster.

More than half, or 52 percent of those interviewed, said they were satisfied with the performance of Mr. Aquino with 24 percent being dissatisfied, for a net satisfaction rating of +28 percent. notably, the highest satisfaction – 61 percent – was noted in Mindanao.

One third of the respondents said they themselves were beneficiaries.

The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, which has thus far benefited more than 4 million households, is the main reason people believe the Philippines is going in the right direction. The bulk of respondents said they are most aware of this social protection program of the government than other programs. to be sure, the conditional cash transfer program must have its merits. These merits must be why despite the Aquino administration’s avowed revulsion towards its immediate predecessor, it continued this initiative albeit giving it another name. Other countries have also experimented with this program and they have had varying levels of success in improving the lot of the poorest of the poor.

The operative word being “conditional,” the idea is that families will receive cash assistance from the government so long as they send their children to school.

Unfortunately, these intentions are lost in the actual implementation of the program.

There have been reports that the billions of pesos released by the department of Social Welfare and development do not go to the most destitute among Filipinos, that they are used by the recipients to indulge in vices, and that a sizeable portion of the budget goes to consultants of the department with their exorbitant rates.

The cash also doubles as a handy tool to win the support of the people for the administration that doles it out. The extraordinary numbers from Mindanao, for instance, may be a window into the minds of Filipinos down south. The government machinery may be deliberately trained towards that direction in order to gather support, not just for personalities allied with Mr. Aquino, but for the Bangsamoro Basic Law. Among the many criticisms of the dole program is that it breeds mendicancy among the poor. They are not given any motivation to look for jobs that will sustain their families’ needs in the long run because the cash is there for the taking, anyway, with just a little effort to send the kids to school. They are led to believe that the government will always be there to look after them.

This is exactly the wrong notion of government, which is ideally a provider of opportunities, not a provider of needs.

And now, the controversial program is being used for something else – to foster a sense of gratitude among the recipients to the administration that provides it. it is a convenient carrot, and this is why this might just be the legacy of the President: to give and give yet again, occasion gratitude and breed loyalty, however misplaced, among the program beneficiaries.

This is not really teaching the people to fish; it is, instead, teaching them to extend their hands more, month after month.

ThaT palace meeTing lowDown jojo A. Robles PreSident noynoy Aquino is torn between his “presumptive” anointed successor and Liberal Party colleague Mar roxas and Senator Grace Poe. And to make matters worse, Aquino also doesn’t know what to do with Poe’s best friend, Senator Francis “Chiz” escudero, whom the neophyte senator will not abandon, not even for a chance to be the President’s chosen presidential or vice presidential

candidate in the May 2016 elections.

Some people have gotten it into their heads that Senator Grace Poe has already been persuaded by President noynoy Aquino to run for President as his chosen successor, which is why she is now engaged in a bitter and very public exchange of thinly-disguised barbs with Vice President Jejomar Binay.

The truth of the matter is, Aquino has given no commitment to support Poe – and it’s not because the President isn’t seriously considering her as Malacanang’s anointed. early last month, Aquino

called for the one-on-one meeting with Senator Grace Poe at Malacanang Palace. Poe didn’t know why she was summoned at the time she accepted the invitation, but the real purpose for the meeting became clear before it finally ended, according to very reliable sources who knew the details of the palace visit.

As private meetings with the President go, it was pretty much par for the course, these sources said. Aquino beat around the bush before getting to the point, and then came up with a bizarre idea all by himself at the very end, leaving the people he was talking to scratching their heads.

A9

Aquino beat around the bush and then came up with a bizarre idea all by himself at the very end.

At first, Poe wondered what the meeting was all about because Aquino couldn’t seem to get to the point early in the conversation. The President, it seemed, was willing to talk to her about anything except substantial matters, as if he was afraid to broach a very difficult subject.

Finally, Poe decided to take the bull by the horns, the sources said, mainly because she was getting impatient. She assumed that she had been called by the President to discuss the scathing final report on the Mamasapano massacre, which she authored as head of the Senate committee on public order.

After Poe had raised the subject, Aquino opened his desk and took out his own copy of the

Senate report. it had many handwritten notes on it, as if Aquino had taken it upon himself to personally edit Poe’s controversial report.

Aquino then started a discussion with Poe about the wording of the report, similar to the objections raised by Senate President Franklin drilon. Aquino wanted to make the strong language condemning the Aquino administration’s failings in the incident more neutral.

Poe politely refused to accede to Aquino’s requests to re-word the report.

Aquino put his copy back in his desk.

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-

And then he finally opened up on the real reason for calling Poe to a meeting: he wanted to know if she was willing to be his standard-bearer. *** While they were talking politics, roxas suddenly entered the room, the sources said. But Aquino waved him away, telling him to return to the room in a few minutes.

What follows has already been reported in the media. Aquino could not give a real commitment and Poe, while flattered at being considered, could not

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

commit to joining Aquino, as well. there was also the matter, Poe told the President, of escudero, whom the senator said had been a great help to her during the 2013 senatorial campaign, advising her on where and how to campaign and even providing her with the aircraft she needed to get around; Poe told the President that she would not do anything without escudero, who is widely believed to be eyeing the vice presidential slot with Poe if she runs for President.

Continued on A11

MST Management, Inc. Philip G. Romualdez Arnold C. Liong Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Jocelyn F. Domingo Ron Ryan S. Buguis

Chairman President & Chief Executive Officer Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Director of Operations Finance Officer

Ma. Editha D. Angeles Advertising Manager Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

i Like Grace Poe. She is a refreshing face in Philippine politics. She was not here when Marichu Maceda and i went around town explaining how her father, Fernando Poe Jr., was cheated in the 2004 elections. i hope she heard about it and i suppose, she would have been grateful. She did not know about my involvement in her father’s cause because she was not in the country at that time. She was then in the United States as a citizen and a resident there. i do know that she came back when her father died. She invited me once to her house located near mine, but i could not go.

My colleagues in the Concerned Citizens Movement, such as Pong Querubin and Betina Legarda, went. We are not friends, but we are cordial to each other. One time i bumped into her in the premises of ABSCBn. i was then uncommitted to anyone as President. i asked her to be the alternative candidate for President. She said “no” and said “kay Jojo Binay tayo”. i took her words into consideration when i decided to back VP Binay for the Presidency. My last time to see her was in the wake of the SAF 44. Again, i asked if she was running.

She said “maybe not”. Later, she was to publicly say that she would rather be good at her current post in the Senate. But even before our last meeting, i did text Anthony taberna’s afternoon program on dZMM to say that in my opinion, a “Binay na Poe” tandem for 2016 would be unbeatable. now it appears that with or without Pnoy’s blessings, she would run for President -but still refuses to declare her intentions. i have told her political advisers, Gary Jimenez and another of her staff lawyer, Camille Sevilla, both of whom are lawyers, that she should let her intentions be known. Otherwise, people, like me cannot consider her as a contender for the top post of the land. this is the context that i now write about my own questions about her residency and her citizenship, both of which are required by the Constitution for all candidates seeking the post of the Presidency, to wit: residence of 10 years and the status of a natural born Filipino. in other words, i genuinely seek answers to these questions because like millions of other voters, i want to consider her still as a candidate for president if and when she does declare to run for the office. truth to tell, i thought the controversy that would hound her would be that of her citizenship. While the Philippine Supreme Court affirmed that her father was a natural-born Filipino, her problem is that she is an alleged foundling. The status of a natural-born Filipino is acquired by one who is born of a Filipino parent. in the Fernando Poe case, the Court construed this as being the offspring of a Filipino father or Filipino mother.

Continued on A11 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

T h u R S D AY : J u N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

A8

opinion

ADELLE chuA eDitoR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

opinion

view fRom mAlcom Atty. hARRy Roque jR.

QuesTions for poe

[ EDI TORI A L ]

A convenient tool FiLiPinOS continue to be satisfied with the administration of President Benigno Aquino iii because of the government’s conditional cash transfer program, according to The Standard Poll conducted by this newspaper’s resident pollster.

More than half, or 52 percent of those interviewed, said they were satisfied with the performance of Mr. Aquino with 24 percent being dissatisfied, for a net satisfaction rating of +28 percent. notably, the highest satisfaction – 61 percent – was noted in Mindanao.

One third of the respondents said they themselves were beneficiaries.

The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, which has thus far benefited more than 4 million households, is the main reason people believe the Philippines is going in the right direction. The bulk of respondents said they are most aware of this social protection program of the government than other programs. to be sure, the conditional cash transfer program must have its merits. These merits must be why despite the Aquino administration’s avowed revulsion towards its immediate predecessor, it continued this initiative albeit giving it another name. Other countries have also experimented with this program and they have had varying levels of success in improving the lot of the poorest of the poor.

The operative word being “conditional,” the idea is that families will receive cash assistance from the government so long as they send their children to school.

Unfortunately, these intentions are lost in the actual implementation of the program.

There have been reports that the billions of pesos released by the department of Social Welfare and development do not go to the most destitute among Filipinos, that they are used by the recipients to indulge in vices, and that a sizeable portion of the budget goes to consultants of the department with their exorbitant rates.

The cash also doubles as a handy tool to win the support of the people for the administration that doles it out. The extraordinary numbers from Mindanao, for instance, may be a window into the minds of Filipinos down south. The government machinery may be deliberately trained towards that direction in order to gather support, not just for personalities allied with Mr. Aquino, but for the Bangsamoro Basic Law. Among the many criticisms of the dole program is that it breeds mendicancy among the poor. They are not given any motivation to look for jobs that will sustain their families’ needs in the long run because the cash is there for the taking, anyway, with just a little effort to send the kids to school. They are led to believe that the government will always be there to look after them.

This is exactly the wrong notion of government, which is ideally a provider of opportunities, not a provider of needs.

And now, the controversial program is being used for something else – to foster a sense of gratitude among the recipients to the administration that provides it. it is a convenient carrot, and this is why this might just be the legacy of the President: to give and give yet again, occasion gratitude and breed loyalty, however misplaced, among the program beneficiaries.

This is not really teaching the people to fish; it is, instead, teaching them to extend their hands more, month after month.

ThaT palace meeTing lowDown jojo A. Robles PreSident noynoy Aquino is torn between his “presumptive” anointed successor and Liberal Party colleague Mar roxas and Senator Grace Poe. And to make matters worse, Aquino also doesn’t know what to do with Poe’s best friend, Senator Francis “Chiz” escudero, whom the neophyte senator will not abandon, not even for a chance to be the President’s chosen presidential or vice presidential

candidate in the May 2016 elections.

Some people have gotten it into their heads that Senator Grace Poe has already been persuaded by President noynoy Aquino to run for President as his chosen successor, which is why she is now engaged in a bitter and very public exchange of thinly-disguised barbs with Vice President Jejomar Binay.

The truth of the matter is, Aquino has given no commitment to support Poe – and it’s not because the President isn’t seriously considering her as Malacanang’s anointed. early last month, Aquino

called for the one-on-one meeting with Senator Grace Poe at Malacanang Palace. Poe didn’t know why she was summoned at the time she accepted the invitation, but the real purpose for the meeting became clear before it finally ended, according to very reliable sources who knew the details of the palace visit.

As private meetings with the President go, it was pretty much par for the course, these sources said. Aquino beat around the bush before getting to the point, and then came up with a bizarre idea all by himself at the very end, leaving the people he was talking to scratching their heads.

A9

Aquino beat around the bush and then came up with a bizarre idea all by himself at the very end.

At first, Poe wondered what the meeting was all about because Aquino couldn’t seem to get to the point early in the conversation. The President, it seemed, was willing to talk to her about anything except substantial matters, as if he was afraid to broach a very difficult subject.

Finally, Poe decided to take the bull by the horns, the sources said, mainly because she was getting impatient. She assumed that she had been called by the President to discuss the scathing final report on the Mamasapano massacre, which she authored as head of the Senate committee on public order.

After Poe had raised the subject, Aquino opened his desk and took out his own copy of the

Senate report. it had many handwritten notes on it, as if Aquino had taken it upon himself to personally edit Poe’s controversial report.

Aquino then started a discussion with Poe about the wording of the report, similar to the objections raised by Senate President Franklin drilon. Aquino wanted to make the strong language condemning the Aquino administration’s failings in the incident more neutral.

Poe politely refused to accede to Aquino’s requests to re-word the report.

Aquino put his copy back in his desk.

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-

And then he finally opened up on the real reason for calling Poe to a meeting: he wanted to know if she was willing to be his standard-bearer. *** While they were talking politics, roxas suddenly entered the room, the sources said. But Aquino waved him away, telling him to return to the room in a few minutes.

What follows has already been reported in the media. Aquino could not give a real commitment and Poe, while flattered at being considered, could not

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

commit to joining Aquino, as well. there was also the matter, Poe told the President, of escudero, whom the senator said had been a great help to her during the 2013 senatorial campaign, advising her on where and how to campaign and even providing her with the aircraft she needed to get around; Poe told the President that she would not do anything without escudero, who is widely believed to be eyeing the vice presidential slot with Poe if she runs for President.

Continued on A11

MST Management, Inc. Philip G. Romualdez Arnold C. Liong Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Jocelyn F. Domingo Ron Ryan S. Buguis

Chairman President & Chief Executive Officer Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Director of Operations Finance Officer

Ma. Editha D. Angeles Advertising Manager Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

i Like Grace Poe. She is a refreshing face in Philippine politics. She was not here when Marichu Maceda and i went around town explaining how her father, Fernando Poe Jr., was cheated in the 2004 elections. i hope she heard about it and i suppose, she would have been grateful. She did not know about my involvement in her father’s cause because she was not in the country at that time. She was then in the United States as a citizen and a resident there. i do know that she came back when her father died. She invited me once to her house located near mine, but i could not go.

My colleagues in the Concerned Citizens Movement, such as Pong Querubin and Betina Legarda, went. We are not friends, but we are cordial to each other. One time i bumped into her in the premises of ABSCBn. i was then uncommitted to anyone as President. i asked her to be the alternative candidate for President. She said “no” and said “kay Jojo Binay tayo”. i took her words into consideration when i decided to back VP Binay for the Presidency. My last time to see her was in the wake of the SAF 44. Again, i asked if she was running.

She said “maybe not”. Later, she was to publicly say that she would rather be good at her current post in the Senate. But even before our last meeting, i did text Anthony taberna’s afternoon program on dZMM to say that in my opinion, a “Binay na Poe” tandem for 2016 would be unbeatable. now it appears that with or without Pnoy’s blessings, she would run for President -but still refuses to declare her intentions. i have told her political advisers, Gary Jimenez and another of her staff lawyer, Camille Sevilla, both of whom are lawyers, that she should let her intentions be known. Otherwise, people, like me cannot consider her as a contender for the top post of the land. this is the context that i now write about my own questions about her residency and her citizenship, both of which are required by the Constitution for all candidates seeking the post of the Presidency, to wit: residence of 10 years and the status of a natural born Filipino. in other words, i genuinely seek answers to these questions because like millions of other voters, i want to consider her still as a candidate for president if and when she does declare to run for the office. truth to tell, i thought the controversy that would hound her would be that of her citizenship. While the Philippine Supreme Court affirmed that her father was a natural-born Filipino, her problem is that she is an alleged foundling. The status of a natural-born Filipino is acquired by one who is born of a Filipino parent. in the Fernando Poe case, the Court construed this as being the offspring of a Filipino father or Filipino mother.

Continued on A11 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

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

A10

OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

Not-sohoNest Poe THE next president of this country must hit the ground runemil p. ning soon after bejurado ing elected, given the many problems the next President must confront.

We should have a leader who already knows the intricacies of the position and not rely on advisers who may have a different agenda.

Senator Grace Poe believes differently, saying that honesty is foremost in the presidency. Observers say that this is a swipe against the Vice President who is being accused of corruption.

But now it’s on record that Senator Grace is not yet qualified to be president or vice president, being six months short of the residency requirement.

In her certificate of candidacy when she ran for the Senate in 2013, she indicated that her period of residency in the Philippines had been for six years and six months. And counting her three-year term at the Senate, it means that she is still short of the mandated period of 10 years for a natural-born citizen (granting her parents were natural-born) a registered voter, able to read and write, at least 40 years of age, and a resident of the Philippines for at least 10 years immediately preceding such election.

Now, Santa Banana, I would like to ask Grace if she is being honest with the people, and even to herself.

When confronted with the lack of residency, she said the people will decide. My gulay, if people aspiring to be president or vice president cannot even comply with the Constitution, we may as well throw the fundamental law of the land in the trash can.

Grace, honest? What baloney! *** A member of the government peace panel, former Agriculture Secretary Senen Bacani (who has a plantation in Maguindanao) now says that the passage of the controversial and constitutionally-flawed Bangsamoro Basic Law is no guarantee for final peace in Mindanao.

This is contrary to all the statements from President Aquino and his conscripted peace panel head Miriam Coronel Ferrer and peace adviser Teresita Deles. They have been telling us that with the peace process in place, there would no longer be “body bags” to consider. There would be peace. This also goes against what the President’s peace council, headed by former Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide, has been saying that with the enactment of the BBL, there will be peace, finally, in Mindanao.

Bacani’s reaction was the answer to Senator Ralph Recto’s question on whether a new group could possibly emerge to spoil the peace process. After all, the government has only been talking to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and not to all stakeholders.

Bacani’s statement goes along with what I have been saying that the passage of the BBL is no guarantee for peace in Mindanao. My doubts are based on what I know of Moro culture and history of tribal origins, where guns and power hold sway.

That’s also the reason that I concur with former Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno’s suggestion for a Constitutional Convention to draft a law on the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region. This may take some time, but my gulay, why are we rushing a peace process which has an impact on sovereignty and national interest?

Final peace in Mindanao, my foot! *** The Standard Poll survey shows that most Filipinos do not trust China. That’s to be expected since China has for quite some time now been bullying the country with its massive reclamations in the West Philippine Sea.

to the point

For love oF couNtry? a confrontation which was taped and EVER since I can remember, the Comduty played on TV, our reform-minded missioner of Customs has always been calls Customs chief told Pinawin to concena much sought position. Every time a new administration comes in or the florencio trate on finding out which of the airport toilets are dirty and to have these commissioner is replaced, a lot of infianza toilets cleaned. He believes that that tense lobbying takes place in order to part of the job of an intelligence chief get appointed to what many believe is a very lucrative position. Stories abound about janitors is to check the cleanliness of toilets. This is preposterin the Customs bureau owning nice houses and cars. ous and is the height of pettiness on his part. It does If this is the case with janitors, how much more if one show his kind of personality.

As it turns out, one of his companies doing busigoes up the ladder? The perks must indeed be huge. I know of someone who was appointed in the enforce- ness at the airport has been sanctioned for not followment division; in no time, this individual had a stable ing procedures. Bert Lina of course denies any conof racing horses. For those familiar with horse racing, nection between his tirades against Pinawin and his owning a race horse let alone a stable of horses is a behavior. Pinawin according to reports is now due for reassignment. Barely two weeks after his assumption very expensive hobby.

The current commissioner of Customs is Bert Lina to office, he cancelled a P650-million contract signed who replaced John Philip Sevilla who was reported to by the bureau and two companies to improve the Elechave resigned under pressure. It seems that Sevilla was tronic Customs Processing System. This was done affinding difficulty complying with the wishes of his po- ter a seven-month public bidding process. His reason litical patrons to use the bureau to raise funds for the was that it is in the best interest of the country which 2016 elections. He wanted to talk but was prevailed is hardly an explanation at all. Whatever the real reaupon to just keep quiet which deprived the public of sons, the public can only speculate.

This kind of practice is nothing new. Every conthe real reasons behind his resignation.

As for Bert Lina, it is his second term as commis- tract by a previous administration is either cancelled sioner. He is one of the so-called Hyatt 10 who re- or renegotiated by a new administration. In the case signed during the administration of President Arroyo. of President Aquino, one of the first things he did His appointment has not been popular and his initial when he took office was to cancel a multi-billion peso actions sparked a lot of controversy. Why would the contract with a Belgian company for the dredging of administration appoint someone whose business in- Laguna Lake to prevent flooding. This was done withterests are intimately linked to customs operations? out any study or review of the soundness of the projBert Lina by all accounts is a successful businessman, ect and legality of the contract. Needless to say, the owning several companies. It stands to reason that government is now facing a lawsuit from the Belgian he makes a lot of money. Certainly more than he can company.

When pressed further, Lina said that there are make in any government position. Yet, he gave that up to serve as a bureau director. He is like some poli- cheaper and better ways to improve the ECPS. One ticians who are willing to spend P30 million to P40 report has suggested however, that one of the compamillion to get elected to a position that only pays P3.7 nies that lost in the bidding has Bert Lina as its largest shareholder. Is there a connection? Your guess is as million in three years.

There must be something in the Bureau that entices good as mine. He also said in a TV interview that the successful businessmen like Bert Lina to take a third who are criticizing him are those whose companies tier-government position that does not pay much, not have been targeted in his effort to clean the custom’s to mention the headaches. Maybe he has already made bureau. A motherhood statement, to be sure. This does so much money that he is making a sacrifice for love have a hollow sound because we have heard this thing of country. He has reportedly divested himself from so many times before. When we hear this, we often see all his companies doing business with the Customs this as some sort of warning. It is just like announcing bureau to avoid any conflict of interest. This however, that there is a new sheriff in town so watch out.

People view Bert Lina’s appointment suspiciously should be scrutinized deeper to find out if there was partly because of the belief that there are other reasons in fact real divestment or simply a ploy.

One of the first things he said when he assumed for his designation other than his ability to reform and office was his desire to initiate reforms. We often increase the revenue collection of the Bureau. It may hear this from people assuming a new position. But have something to do with the 2016 elections. Bert one of the first things that he did was to tangle with Lina however, is entitled to the benefit of the doubt.

Joel Pinawin, the Ninoy Aquino International Air- Still, as the saying goes, you can’t teach old an dog new port Custom Intelligence Chief and a subordinate. In tricks.

The question now is: will the distrust have any impact on China’s militarization of the China Sea? The answer is a big NO. So, the tension between China and the Philippines, likewise with other claimants, continues, aggravated by the entry of the United States that it would defend the Philippines and the international waters of South China Sea. I don’t know how far will this “poker play” of the US and China will go, but I can only say that when elephants fight, it is the ants that are trampled upon.

Sure, China may just be flexing its economic and military might as a super-power in this part of the world.

But, considering the fact that the South China Sea is a vital maritime area where most of the oil from the Middle East passes through to the United States and Japan, will the US just sit idly by and do nothing? That’s the big problem.

*** Santa Banana, it has been almost five years since the Supreme Court ruled that some 900 Customs personnel (over half of them have since retired) manning the arrivals and departures of domestic and foreign airlines beyond the mandated eighthour work hours by government personnel should be paid their overtime, transport and meal allowances.

Up to this date, it has been promises and more promises, but no pay.

What makes it worse is that there has been a “rigodon” of four Customs commissioners, and yet the Board of Airline Representatives continues to refuse paying.

The problem is that Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima and Customs commissioners have not lifted a finger to follow what the High Court has mandated.

Are the Finance Department and the Bureau of Customs are now in the payroll of the airlines?

What baloney!

T h u R S d aY : J u N e 4 , 2 0 1 5

OPINION

adelle chua EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

mInORITy REpORT DanIlO suaREz

Questions.. From A9

Jumping to conclusions

Just recently the Office of the Ombudsman’s special Panel of Investigators filed charges of graft, malversation, and violations of the Government Procurement Reform Act against Vice President Jejomar Binay, Makati Mayor Junjun Binay, together with 22 other Makati City government officials in connection with the allegedly overpriced infrastructure in Makati.

In earlier senate hearings, the VP’s accusers have also alleged that he received kickbacks from anomalous overpriced infrastructure projects while he was mayor of Makati City. The VP has repeatedly said that he and his family are ready to face the “politically motivated” charges against them and has added that these are all just part of the demolition job to weaken his mass support for the 2016 presidential elections. The VP has consistently topped surveys for presidential candidates in the upcoming elections even with all the allegations and the consequent media-fantastic revelations of his accusers, particularly in the more than 20 or so senate hearings investigating the VP and his family.

The scenario is reminiscent of the allegations raised against a certain senator who

was charged in the Office of the Ombudsman for plunder in connection with an allegedly overpriced Convention Center financed with pork barrel funds from Congress and Malacañang. His accuser stated that the project was a “high-level” conspiracy engineered by the senator “to build an avenue for corruption”.

Like VP Binay, the good senator dismissed as “ridiculous” the charges, the only difference from the VP’s case is that there were no drawn out and sensationalized hearings and President Aquino, who is an ally of the senator, even accompanied him and Public Works secretary Rogelio singson to personally inspect the center at its location. Due to its fine design and use of materials, the President said he was impressed with the facility and even likened it to the renowned sydney Opera House.

Given this, we see that for most people without a background in business or even public service, any deviation from the “norm” with regard to public infrastructure will always easily be considered as graft, especially when it is presented as such by a biased media. For those with enough knowledge, there is a big difference between expensive

and anomalous pricing. Consider that you can build a classroom for “only” P780 thousand. Now consider that other classrooms are built for P1 million or more. This does not automatically mean that the more expensive classrooms are anomalously priced. The P780 thousand might be the standard price but it does not mean it would fall under quality structure, as this would barely scratch the concept of a barebones structure enough to pass as a classroom. Now consider that Makati is blessed with huge surplus funds.

The fact that it has more expensive schools does not automatically mean that the price difference between their modern infra and a regular school building is because of bribes.

It just means that they opted to provide their students with better than average amenities.

Who could fault their local leaders of trying to level the playing field for their students in comparison with high –level private educational institutions like the Ateneo and De Lasalle? seen in this light, the political undercurrents riding the plunder complaints against the VP to pull down his ratings and paint him character wise as ineligible to run the country becomes highly evident.

pcso shares 2014, 1st sem 2015 accomplishments pOp gOEs ThE wORlD jEnny ORTuOsTE sPeAkING at the charity agency’s Good Governance seminar on June 3, Philippine Charity sweepstakes Office Vice Chairman and General Manager Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II reported that the total sales in 2014 from Lotto and other number games reached P32.32 million, a 2.2 percent increase from the previous year’s figure of P31.62 percent.

The agency has 10 regular games: variants of Lotto and digit games, as well as the Lotto express (keno) that grew in popularity over the past couple of years, and the traditional sweepstakes with paper tickets, which is held to raise funds for a particular charitable institutions under the PCsO’s “Partner tayo” program. to grow sales for the Charity Fund, the agency works with entrepreneurs who set up Lotto outlets all over the country: as of end-2014, there were 9,072 retailers and outlets selling Lotto tickets and other PCsO products. under PCsO’s charter, a strict allocation of the agency’s sales is observed: 55 percent goes to the Prize Fund for winnings, prizes taxes, sellers’ prizes and sweepstakes sellers’ commissions or shares, which

That palace.. From A9 sometime during this discussion, Roxas once again entered the room. The President did not wave him away this time and he stayed for the rest of the meeting.

There was not much left

A11

in 2014 reached P13.56 billion.

Fifteen percent is set aside for agency operations (as a government-owned and –controlled corporation, PCsO does not receive any funds from the National treasury).

The allocation to the Charity Fund in 2014 was P9.83 billion, with P3.23 billion of that remitted to the Bureau of Internal Revenue as documentary stamp taxes. The shares of local government units from Lotto and other game sales accounted for P631.39 million, while the flagship medical assistance service program was allocated P5.17 billion (this is the program that provides subsidies for hospitalizations, dialysis, chemotherapy, and other medical- and healthrelated concerns).

Rojas added that in 2014, the agency’s 42nd branch office was opened in Marinduque in November, from an initial 25 provincial district offices when the present Board of Directors took office in 2010.

Also in 2014, the agency marked its 80th anniversary with the groundbreaking and timecapsule laying of the PCsO’s permanent headquarters at its property in san Marcelino, Manila, where its security printing department is still located.

Another “agency first” notched last year was its first hosting of the World Lottery Association and Asia-Pacific Lottery Association Business semi-

nar in Manila. It was one of the most well-attended seminars conducted by the two groups of lottery operators, of which PCsO is a member.

The agency’s operational constraints were primarily related to legal cases filed against PCsO by its equipment lease providers and paper suppliers, which resulted in delays in setting up terminals and in the shortage of ticket supplies.

Other factors beyond PCsO’s control that resulted in service delivery lags were related to the strict requirements of government procurement laws, specifically Republic Act No. 9184, resulting in delays in delivering capability building packages for clinics and health centers and ambulance units under the agency’s Ambulance Donation Program.

Other concerns that the agency faces this year include “rampant illegal gambling in the Visayas and daily rotational brownouts in Mindanao,” as cited in an agency report.

This year is better for the agency, with the target of 700 additional lotto outlets already exceeded in the first semester of the year with 750 new outlets opened. two more branch offices were opened this year, in Northern samar and Ilocos sur, bringing to 44 the total number of branches. the goal is to eventually open a branch in each of

the country’s 81 provinces; the target this year is to open seven.

On June 22, a branch in Ozamis City will be established, with four more to be opened in the second half of the year. the PCsO AsAP (At source Ang Processing) Program was also launched this year through an agreement signed with st.

Luke’s Hospital in Global City and Quezon City, where help desks manned by PCsO-trained personnel at those hospitals process patients’ applications for requests for medical assistance. this will reduce, if not eliminate, the need for these patients or their representatives to queue at the PCsO Charity Assistance Department.

As of yesterday, 29 ambulances have been distributed this year to municipalities in the provinces under the agency’s Ambulance Donation Program, with more to be given away.

This year, PCsO is celebrating yet another anniversary – two decades of computerized Lotto operations in the country. since 1995, Lotto games have raised P300.1 billion for charity.

As they look forward to the future and the challenges and opportunities it brings, the 1,115 officials and employees of PCsO remain dedicated in their service to the Filipino people.

to discuss. The only thing noteworthy taken up before it broke up was a statement made

by Aquino to Roxas.

“Mar, you should take both Grace and Chiz with you when you go around the country,” the President said.

And that was how the

meeting ended, according to the sources. Both Poe and Roxas were astounded by Aquino’s compromise, even if they did not openly protest.

After all, the meeting was called only to discuss Poe’s plans for the top two positions being contested next year. They did not

understand why Aquino would want all three of them to go around campaigning.

Aquino still hasn’t made his mind up, to this day.

Perhaps sometime soon, he will realize that he only needs one presidential candidate and one vice presidential candidate.

Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Blog: http://jennyo.net

A foundling, though, does not enjoy a presumption of being a natural-born citizen. The Convention on statelessness does guarantee a foundling the citizenship of the foundlings parents. This is not the same as the natural-born Filipino citizenship required of all candidates for President, Vice-President and Congress. Filipinos who are not natural-born can run for local posts but not for Congress and the Presidency. so, I would like an answer to the difficult issue of whether a foundling legally adopted by Filipino parents enjoys the status of a naturalborn Filipino. I am not aware of any jurisprudence in this regard. I will continue my search for one.

A second truth to tell is that VP Binay mentioned to me this controversy about Poe’s residency. I had no idea what the VP was saying. I thought he was alluding to her citizenship. Neither VP Binay nor I pursued the subject matter. This is proof that, as Rep. toby tiangco has said, the VP has not put much attention on this issue. I heard again the issue of her residency on the radio as I was on my way back from an out-of-town lecture only the other night. unfortunately, I did not hear the newscast that evening and failed to catch the information that Rep. tiangco was referring to Poe’s own declaration that she had six months and six years of residency at the time of the elections in 2013. ergo, Rep. tiangco did his mathematics and came up with the conclusion that Poe would be six months short of the prescribed 10 years residency required by the Constitution. Rep toby reckoned that she would only have a residency of nine years and six months by May of 2016. senate President Franklin Drilon, senator Francis escudero and Dean tony La Vina all defended Poe by saying that she had “animus revertendi,” or the intent to return which is determinative on the issue of domicile. true, such a principle exists.

But it has only been applied where the candidate himself does not create the controversy by declaring a period of residency short of what the Constitution provides. For instance, it has been applied to one who has a green card and renounced the same before filing a certificate of candidacy for an elective post. It has also been applied to a Filipino who has become a naturalized American, acquired a dual citizenship, and renounced the foreign citizenship before filing a certificate of candidacy for a congressional post. This was the case of Rep. Gina Reyes of Marinduque, whom I represent. In Poe’s case, what is determinative is when she renounced her dual citizenship. This is because the rule on “animus revertendi” on residency cannot be applied to a foreign citizen. At most, it can be applied to a Filipino national with permanent residency abroad, or to one who has renounced a foreign citizenship reckoned from date of renunciation. so for Poe, the crucial question is this: When did she renounce her dual citizenship? This is an issue of fact. I have heard her say that she renounced it when she assumed the post of MtRCB chair. If so, the point of reckoning should be 2010. Assuming she did so in 2010, she would have only 6 years of residency by 2016. Apparently, this is worse than what she declared in her certificate of candidacy for the post of senator.

Any which way, the supreme Court can now rule on whether estoppel can be applied to the issue of residency. If so, Poe will be disqualified.

I hope otherwise because I believe the Filipino electorate is entitled to as many choices possible for the position of Chief executive.

Good luck, senator!

T HURS DAY : J UN E 4 , 2 0 1 5

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

FIFA president Blatter quits ZURICH—FIFA president Sepp Blatter has resigned in a stunning capitulation to exultant critics as a US investigation reportedly draws closer to ensnaring the most powerful man in world sport.

The Swiss official, who has ruled football’s governing body for 17 years, said Tuesday he would remain in charge until a special congress can choose a new leader and vowed to pursue strong reforms in that time.

Blatter noted that he had just won re-election from FIFA members on Friday, but said: “I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football.”

Some of Blatter’s opponents rejoiced at his announcement while commercial sponsors urged FIFA to clean up its act and regain public trust.

“Why didn’t he step down last week? Clearly there’s a smoking gun of some sort,” English Football Association chief Greg Dyke said.

“He’s not been honourable in years. Now he’s gone -- let’s celebrate.”

UEFA head Michel Platini, a former ally who last week told Blatter to his face that he should leave, said:

“It was a difficult decision, a brave decision, and the right decision.”

Brazilian legend Pele called for “honest people” to clean up the game, while New Zealand Football made it clear that Blatter was not welcome at the Under-20 World Cup currently being held there.

“These allegations are hotting up, they’re getting closer and closer to him,” NZF chief executive Andy Martin said.

The New York Times, which broke news of the corruption investigation, reported the 79-year-old was also the focus of an FBI probe, citing law enforcement officials and other sources.

- ‘Profound overhaul’ ABC News also said Blatter was the subject of an investigation, which it said was part of the larger probe that led to the arrest of seven FIFA officials in a luxury Swiss hotel.

That unleashed a global storm which Blatter tried

FIFA President Sepp Blatter leaves the stage during the 65th FIFA Congress in Zurich. Blatter on June 2, 2015 resigned as president of FIFA as a mounting corruption scandal engulfed world football’s governing body. The 79-year-old Swiss official, FIFA president for 17 years and only reelected on May 29, said a special congress would be called as soon as possible to elect a successor. AFP

to weather by defiantly ploughing on when he secured a fifth term with backing from Asia and Africa.

But speaking impassively at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Blatter said it was clear not everyone

was on his side in the footballing fraternity including “the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA”.

“I felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing

for the organisation,” Blatter told a news conference.

“That election is over but FIFA’s challenges are not.

FIFA needs a profound overhaul,” he said, vowing “far-reaching, fundamental reforms” in his remaining time in office.

A special congress to choose Blatter’s replacement cannot be held until between December 2015 and March 2016, according to Domenico Scala, chairman of FIFA’s independent audit and compliance committee. AFP

Villanueva to fight for vacant IBF crown Local football chief bats for strong leader By Ronnie Nathanielsz THE president of the Philippine Football Federation, Mariano “Nonong” Araneta, has batted for the election of “a strong guy with administrative experience and loved and respected by all in football” to replace Sepp Blatter, who has announced his resignation as president of the world governing body for football, FIFA. “We need to elect a new president committed to transparency. While there are a lot of good candidates, we need to choose the right person,” said Araneta in a conversation with The Standard/Viva Sports.

At the same time, Araneta said that whatever may have happened in FIFA, Blatter was “not only good for the smaller nations in Asia and Africa, he has helped them a lot,” citing various projects such as the building of football fields and opening training centers that have helped grow the game in Asia and Africa in particular. Ronnie Nathanielsz

THE Philippines’ No. 3-ranked “King Arthur” Villanueva will fight No.1-ranked McJoe Arroyo of Puerto Rico for the International Boxing Federation world super flyweight title in the United States, possibly on July 16.

The title was relinquished by South Africa’s Zolani Tete, who refused to accept the terms for a title defense against Arroyo following a purse bid won by Golden Boy Promotions and decided to vacate the title, giving Villanueva a chance for a title shot against the talented Arroyo.

Peter Rivera, vice president of PR Best Boxing Promotions, revealed that he had already opened negotiations with ALA Promotions’ president Michael Aldeguer, who was in Mexico last weekend when Milan Melindo

dropped a controversial sixth-round technical decision against IBF light flyweight champion Javier Mendoza.

“I have already worked before (with Aldeguer) and there should be no problem for the fight to take place,” Rivera noted. “We have a tentative date, July 18 in the United States, which is what we are working on.”

Trainer Edito “Ala” Villamor welcomed the news of the title shot when The Standard/boxingmirror.com informed him while in Los Angeles en route back home.

“That’s a good fight. We have to prepare Villanueva the best ever because Arroyo is a tough fighter,” Villamor said. “Villanueva is always training and we are confident there will be no problem. Arthur will give his best.”

The 26-year-old Villanueva is undefeated with a record of 27-0, with 14 knockouts but has had somewhat

of an inconsistent showing in the ring. He scored a 10-round unanimous decision over former world flyweight champion Julio Cesar Pingo Miranda last Feb. 7, but had a hard time against Henry Maldonado of Nicaragua before winning a 12-round split decision in a battle for the vacant IBF International title on Sept. 5, 2014.

McJoe Arroyo is the identical twin brother of McWilliams Arroyo,who earned a shot at the IBF flyweight title with a stunning second-round TKO over previously unbeaten Filipino Froilan “Sniper” Saludar on June 19, 2014 in a title eliminator, but subsequently lost by a 12-round split decision against Thailand’s world champion Amnat Ruenroeng, who is scheduled to face former IBF junior flyweight champion Johnreil Casimero in Bangkok on June 27.

De Guzman, Jarata win 2 titles Bais hosts final summer net leg JOSHUA de Guzman and youthful Marc Andrei Jarata captured two titles each in the 14th leg of Globe 17th HEAD Graphene XT Junior Tennis Satellite Circuit recently at the Urdaneta City Tennis Club in Urdaneta City, Pangasinan.

De Guzman bagged the boys’ 18-under and 16-under singles titles in the junior tennis satellite age-group competition organized by Dynamic Sports and sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association.

He whipped Christian

Xavier Sinen, 7-5, 7-5, for the boys’ 18-under crown and then defeated Daniel Casipit, 6-3, 6-1, to cop his second title the boys’ 16-under trophy. Jarata, for his part, won the boys’ 12-under singles’ crown and the Unisex 10-under trophy.

Jarata outlasted Exiquiel Jucutan, 4-0, 5-3, for the 12-under trophy and then outplayed Rey Pascua, 4-2, 4-2, for the unisex diadem.

Joshua Molina beat Eric Charles Bajet, 5-7, 6-1, 7-5, for the boys’ 14-under crown.

The competition was

sponsored by Globe Te l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s , Chris Sports, Head ATP Tennis Balls, Graphene XT, Toalson, Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Tennis Association, along with Sports Radio 918AM, Home Radio 97.9FM Natural, Boracay Informer, Todo 88.5FM Aklan, Radyo Inquirer 990AM, Power Wheels Magazine, Motorcycle Magazine, Balikbayan The Asian Journal Magazine, Wazzup Pilipinas, Reach Magazine, Oishi and AMAX Inn Makati.

BAIS City hosted the final summer leg of the 2015 Cebuana Lhuillier Age-Group Tennis Championships, which take a break for the rainy season and resume in September in Siquijor.

The grassroots tennis program of sportsman and Philippine Tennis Association Chairman Jean Henri Lhuillier has already completed 23 legs, with nine tournaments remaining for the year.

Backed by Dunlop Sport as official ball, the netfest saw 154 entries joining the Group 2 tournament, with promising Carlyn Bless Guarde from Sultan Kudarat making

it three in a row as a double winner in the girls’ 14- and 16-under age groups.

Guarde beat La Carlota City bet Tracy Llamas, 6-3, 7-6, in the 14-under group and Angela Cabaral from the Edna Diago Lhuillier Tennis Center, 6-1, 10-3, in the 16-under finals.

Cabaral saved local pride as she ruled the 18-under, winning, 6-0, 6-0, over Kristin Renee Salimbangon from Cebu City.

The other female winner was Dianafe Perez, another local bet from the Edna Diago Lhuillier Tennis Center, as she defeated Casey Padilla from Misamis Oriental, 6-2 , 6-0.

Veteran campaigner Auden Aaron Paduganan ruled the boys’ 18-under, beating Boholano Rucel Cero, 7-5, 6-3.

Cebu City’s Marc Nicole Suson had mixed fortunes as he beat Fahd Banico, 6-4, 6-3, in the 16-under finals, but lost a three setter, 2-6, 6-4, 8-10, to Sultan Kudarat entry Vince EJ Tugade.

Oroquieta City’s Nash Agustines shared the sam1experience as he dominated the 10-under, whipping John Sonsona from Lanao del Norte, 4-2, 4-2, but found Cesar Salimbangon from Cebu a tough nut to crack in the 12-under championship match, where he lost, 4-6, 2-6.

T HURS DAY : J UN E 4 , 2 0 1 5

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Formula BMW eyes top karter SEAOIL Philippines marks a milestone in Philippine motorsports by sending multi-titled and currently the country’s no.

1 karter Gabriel Tayao Cabrera to Formula BMW at the F1 Sepang Circuit in Malaysia.

Tayao Cabrera accepted the invite from Meritus GP president Peter Thompson.

Known as the “Godfather of Motorsports” in Asia, Thompson is also the organizer of the Asia Cup, the region’s best transition series for those upgrading to Formula cars from karting.

AC graduates under Thompson’s Meritus GP team, are also known to dominate the prestigious Formula Masters China Series. Meritus GP is the only Asian Formula team who hold their own race series apart from competing in FMC. A winner of 38 various Asian motorsports titles, Meritus GP has been a past winner in FMC and is again leading the series this year.

Fil-Swiss Marlon Stockinger-then 17 years old in 2008, was the first-ever Filipino to drive

single-seaters in Sepang followed by 16-year-old Fil-Brit James Atter, who blazed the same track competing as a Formula rookie last year. Tayao Cabrera---who just turned 15 years old a few months ago, currently holds the distinction of being the youngest Filipino to drive a Formula car at the famed F1 circuit.

Tayao Cabrera breezed through the initial orientation and blazed the track just barely an hour later. He was able to clock the fastest time in testing immediately on the first session.

“We actually have been eyeing Gabe since last year when he debuted as a junior in the Asia Max Challenge karting series here in Malaysia. It took a year to get him to test our cars and I’m glad he finally did,” said Thompson.

The highly competitive AMC series--a melting pot of national champions from all around Asia, is also known to be a hotspot for scouts in search of talented Asian drivers who deserve to be given a crack at Formula cars.

Gabriel Tayao Cabrera takes his Formula BMW machine on a spin inside the Sepang Circuit.

Stan shows Roger the door PARIS—Stan Wawrinka knocked Roger Federer out of the French Open quarter-finals on Tuesday to set up a last-four clash with home hope Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Wawrinka, the eighth seed, beat his more illustrious Swiss compatriot Federer in three sets 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).

Fourteenth seed Tsonga, meanwhile, was taken to five sets by Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori before prevailing 6-1, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3.

Federer, the second seed and 2009 champion at Roland Garros, had only ever lost twice in 18 previous meetings with Wawrinka but was well beaten on a windy Court Suzanne Lenglen.

The 17-time Grand Slam champion proved incapable

of breaking his opponent’s serve at all over the course of a match that lasted two hours and nine minutes.

Remarkably, it was just the third time in his career he had failed to break an opponent’s serve in a Grand Slam match —the last came against Max Mirnyi at the 2002 US Open when he was just 21 and had not yet won a major.

It is a further sign of the decline of the 33-year-old, who was also beaten in the third round of the Australian Open earlier this year by Italy’s Andreas Seppi.

WAWRINKA

Federer’s last Grand Slam title was almost three years ago when he captured his seventh Wimbledon crown in 2012.

Wawrinka broke decisively in the first set and then twice more in the second. There were no breaks in a tighter third set, but Wawrinka won it on his second match

point in the tiebreak.

“We know Stan can do this and it’s nice for him and important for him to string it together and do well. I thought he played really great tennis today,” said a diplomatic Federer, who admitted his opponent handled the blustery conditions far better.

“It was tough so it’s all the more impressive the way Stan was able to play.”

Wawrinka was the junior champion at Roland Garros in 2003 but is now through to the semi-finals of the main draw for the first time.

“Today was my best match on clay and it’s an incredible moment for me.

The conditions were difficult with a lot of wind but

I believed in my game and it was a really incredible match from me,” he said.

The 2014 Australian Open champion’s run in Paris comes after he beat Rafael Nadal in Rome recently before losing to Federer in the semifinals.

“I’m playing good tennis and I’m really pleased to be in the Paris semi-finals for the first time,” he added.

- Falling debris causes delay The quarter-final between Nishikori and Tsonga on the main Court Philippe Chatrier lasted three and three quarter hours as Tsonga raced into a two-set lead before pegged back and forced all the way to a decider.

AFP

Smart bets finish strong

Five employees of Smart endured the challenging course of the triathlon event, one of the highlights of the Sarangani Bay Festival 2015.

GUMASA, Glan—Triathlons are not for the faint-hearted.

A good example would be the recently-concluded 2nd SarBay Swim-Bike-Run for the Environment triathlon which involved a total of 51.5 kilometers—a 1.5-km swim, 40-km bike ride, and a 10-km run across the waters and coastline of Sarangani Bay. The five employees of Smart who joined this year’s triathlon proved they had what it takes to conquer the challenging terrain in what is becoming to be one of Mindanao’s biggest sports events.

Mark Alfred “Pompo” Arroyo, supervisor, E2E Wireless Optimization, who finished first among the group in just three hours, found this to be one of the most challenging courses by far.

“I have participated in 20 triathlon events in the past. What sets the SarBay triathlon apart is the course for both the 40-km bike and the 10km run, which involved hilly areas and steep inclines, unlike in other events when running is done on flat ground. During the 30-minute swim from the middle of the bay back to the shore, one would see lots of corals and that makes the entire experience very unique,” said Arroyo.

Arroyo was joined by fellow Smart triathletes Mark Gil Sanchez (engineer, Technical Operations Center in Malolos, Bulacan); Ruben Silva, Jr. (supervisor, Smart e-Money), and Edward Vincent Maximo (business analyst, Smart and Subsidiaries Product Development) in battling it out in the Olympic category.

Men’s volley finally gets big serving PLDT Home Ultera might have earned the bragging rights as the first champion of the Spikers’ Turf. But it was men’s volleyball which emerged the biggest winner from the inaugural staging of the league.

“We’re honored to become the first champion of a tournament this strong,” said PLDT coach Odjie Mamon moments after his team beat Cagayan Valley, 25-15, 25-11, 23-25, 30-28, to complete a two-game title sweep of the Open Conference at The Arena in San Juan City Tuesday.

“But if you will look deeply, it’s a triumph for men’s volleyball in our country as a whole because players and coaches like us are being given this chance,” he added.

For Sports Vision president Ricky Palou, whose group organizes the country’s first-ever men’s volleyball, it also gives younger players something to aspire for after school.

“The Spikers’ Turf was formed so that we would not only give men’s volley players an avenue to showcase their talents. We also want the younger ones something to strive for,” said Palou.

Palou said Spikers’ Turf is patterned after Shakey’s V-League, which pioneered women’s volleyball 12 years ago and has been enjoying tremendous popularity the last few years.

A14

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Hapee backs women’s polo team THE Philippine women’s water polo team is now ready and raring to plunge into action in the Singapore Southeast Asian Games starting next week.

With the help of Lamoiyan Corporation, makers of Hapee Toothpaste, the Nationals can now compete with dignity after weeks of uncertainty due to lack of funds to buy their own suits for training and Lamoiyan Corp. President and CEO Dr. Cecilio Pedro (center) poses with the members of the SEA Games-bound national women’s polo team. competition.

Unknown to many, the women’s team will be seeing action in the biennial tournament for the first time, and because it does not have any record to back its claim that it can compete against the best in the region, it has to shoulder all the team’s expenses.

Long noted for his nationalistic fervor, Lamoiyan President and CEO waxed hot from downDr. Cecilio Pedro came to By Jeric Lopez Games Friday town, hitting a total of 14 the team’s rescue by allow(Smart Araneta Coliseum) triples to torch the helpless 4:15 p.m. • Alaska vs. Kia ing the polo team to use BADLY in need of a victory, Rain or Shine finally played like the 7 p.m. • San Miguel vs. NLEX Elite. the company’s swimming Blackwater was led by facility in Parañaque and finalist that it was last conference. ly pummeled Blackwater, Marcus Douthit, who providing them their trainThe Elasto Painters stant offense, each had with the Star Hotshots, 31-13, in the second canto scored a team-high 14 ing suits. hardly worked up a sweat in game-highs of 15 points, NLEX and Barangay Gine- to grab a commanding points.

“It’s our own way of annihilating hapless Black- while Paul Lee broke the bra for the No. 8 to No. 11 26-point bubble, 61-35, at The scores: helping our national athintermission. water by 38 points, 123-85, game wide open right in spots, while the still ailing RAIN OR SHINE 123 letes, we have been helping Led by Lee, Rain or —McKines 15, Cruz Jervy our national athletes, but in a dominant blowout win the first two quarters, scor- Elite remained at the botShine already had 11 play- 15, Lee 13, Chan 12, Tang this is our first time to help for its best performance ing all his 13 points in the tom with a woeful 1-6 card. ers breaking into the scor- 11, Belga 10, Cruz Jericho thus far in the 2015 Philfirst half as the three led ‘’We’re just struggling, the polo team. Kawawa ing column just after the 9, Teng 8, Almazan 8, Norippine Basketball Associathe Elasto Painters. but we’re not giving up yet. naman sila,” said Pedro, a first 24 minutes of play. tion Governors’ Cup at the Jeff Chan, TY Tang and A win like this gives our wood 7, Ibanes 5, Quinaswimming enthusiast since The heavy pounding han 5, Tiu 3, Arana 2, UyMall of Asia Arena in PaBeau Belga were the other confidence a boost,’’ said his college days at Ateneo. continued in the second loan 0. three Painters in twin-dig- Guiao, “They will compete using say City yesterday. half as Rain or Shine even Using all its weapons to its, scoring 12, 11 and 10 After building a 30-22 BLACKWATER 85 their own money so that increased its lead to a —Douthit 14, Reyes 13, the fullest, Rain or Shine markers, respectively. cushion at the end of one, shows their determination had an easy time dispatchThe victory put the the Elasto Painters, who 40-point distance twice in Faundo 10, Celiz 10, Cerand character.” ing the Elite as it fired on Painters back in the thick obviously played with a lot the last three minutes of vantes 8, Acuna 7, Heruela “I just hope other comall cylinders from start of things in the middle of of urgency, turned on the play.

6, Laure 6, Ballesteros 4, panies will come out and From the 15 players Salvacion 3, Timberlake 2, to finish, with six players the pack, back in a position heat further in the second help the polo team,” added to compete for a Top 8 slot. quarter to break the game fielded in by Guiao, only Golla 2, Erram 0, Bulawan Pedro, who is maintaining scoring in double-digits.

Wendell McKines and Rain or Shine improved wide open and completely Jonathan Uyloan failed to 0, Gamalinda 0. a basketball team in the score.

Jervy Cruz, who came off to 2-4 in the standings in shatter the Elite.

Quarters: 30-22, 61-35, Philippine Basketball AsThe Elasto Painters also 87-56, 123-85 the bench to provide ina four-team logjam, along Rain or Shine mercilesssociation D-League.

Bernard Yang, Pedro’s special assistant and team manager of Hapee Toothpaste, believes the team can pull off a surprise sinabihan niya ako na pumunta na “Wala kasi ako coach noon kasi despite their limited re- By Dennis Principe lang sa hotel niya,” said Santos. nag-part ways na kami ni coach Lesources.

Santos and her then-coach Lerma rma kay medyo nag-struggle ako sa “They may not have the IF long jumper Katherine Khay SanBulauitan, who herself was a cham- performance,” said Santos. experience of other teams, tos makes it big as an international pion long jumper, proceeded to PacThis time, however, Santos said she but they have big fighting athlete, Filipinos should thank one quiao’s suite at the posh Cooyeesan has been equipped not only to win a hearts so I salute them for iconic boxer, who never hesitated in Hotel and had a short chat with the medal in the upcoming Singapore that. I wish them well in lending support to this charming boxing champion. games, but also to have a good shot their drive to gain recogni- Baguio City native jumper.

While she had the potentials in “Hindi na siya talaga nag-hesitate of tallying 6.70 meters, the qualifying tion,” said Yang. na tulungan kami kaya sobrang saya mark for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Ireneo Bautista, a member competing in the 2011 Southeast ko noon. I’m really thankful sa sup“Three months ako nag-training of the coaching staff, said Asian Games in Indonesia, Santos port niya because it gave me also a sa US under Fil-Am coach Jerry the members of the team led was told by Athletics officials they chance to prove my worth,” said Cablayan and through him marami

by Kunti Dasi Tibby, Danyca simply had no budget to include her Santos. akong natutunan na technique that Evangelista, Lia Co and Lyl- in their trip.

But instead of feeling sorry about Santos proved that Pacquiao’s help helped me improve my skills,” said lian Grace Banzon, are all was all worth it as the then 19-year- Santos. grateful for the time and not getting an all-expense-paid SEA old athlete copped the bronze medal The 23-year-old Santos showed help provided by the Hapee Games campaign, Santos requested officials to still make her part of the Katherine Khay Santos with a jump of 6.25 meters. Compa- progress after her US training, family. triot Marestella Torres took home which again was shouldered by her, The other members of the contingent and that she will be the trip to Indonesia. the gold with a record-setting jump when she recorded 6.40 meters durteam are Sachi Dasi Tibby, one to take care of her trip.

“He was training in Baguio back of 6.71 meters.

Being familiar with the generosity ing the Singapore Open last month.

Christine Hipol, Daniella Santos though bombed out of “Think positive lang and focus sa Evangelista, Bea Garrido, of multi-division champion Manny then preparing for a fight. Naglakas Krystal Rae dela Cruz, Carla Pacquiao, Santos tried her luck in loob na lang talaga ako kasi kasabay the 2013 SEA Games edition in event. As they say, just give your best Grabador, Trixia Caguitla, convincing the boxing icon to help ko siya noon sa training. Ipinakita ko Myanmar after she failed to bring and God will take care of the rest,” said Santos.

Dara Evangelista and Jobe- her defray the cost of her planned ‘yung credentials ko and in an instant home a medal. lyn Ocampo.

Painters bludgeon Elite by 38 points, 128 to 85

This long-jumper once got the help of Pacquiao

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

A15

SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Torres, Reyes banner PH team to SEA Games SINGAPORE—Former world billiards champions Efren “Bata” Rayas and Rubilen Amit and ex-Asian long jump queen Marestella Torres banner the main batch of the Philippine contingent that is scheduled to arrive here on Wednesday and Thursday for the 28th Southeast Asian Games.

The multi-titled Reyes, Amit and Torres were among the 232 athletes and officials, who were set to touch down here yesterday before they swing into action on Saturday following the opening ceremonies on Friday.

Aside from athletics and billiards and snooker, also arriving yesterday were the teams from boxing, judo, petanque, rugby

sevens, sepak takraw, shooting, softball, lawn tennis, triathlon and wushu.

Another 58 athletes and officials will arrive tomorrow together with gymnastics’ chief and deputy chief of mission Cynthia Carrion.

They include the remaining members of the shooting team, triathlon and the popular

women’s volleyball squad led by Alyssa Valdez, who will be the country’s standard-bearer during what promises to be colorful inaugural rites of the 28th edition of the regional sportsfest.

“We want to make a statement that Philippine volleyball is back in the SEA Games,” noted Philippine Olympic Committee first vice president and Larong Volleyball ng Pilipinas, Inc. president Joey Romasanta, who batted for Valdez as the flag-bearer.

Meanwhile, veteran national player Richard Gonzales moved closer to the semifinals after a grueling five-set victory over Ficky Supit Santoso of Indonesia in the table tennis tournament

at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Tuesday.

Playing against an opponent two decades younger than him, Gonzales, 44, outlasted Santoso, 6-11, 11-7, 11-8, 6-11, 12-10, in 42 minutes to register his second straight victory in Pool C. A bronze medalist in the 2013 World Sandpaper Championships held in London, England, the grizzled campaigner will try to remain unscathed when he battles Vietnam’s Tran Tuan Quynh tomorrow in the fiveman pool.

Gonzales’ best performance in the SEA Games was a silver medal in the men’s singles when the country last hosted the sportsfest in 2005.

LOTTO RESULTS

6/55 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M+ 6/45 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M 4 DIGITS 0-0-0-0 3 DIGITS 0-0-0 2 EZ2 0-0

50th Asia Pacific Bridge Federation Championship SYLVIA LOPEZ ALEJANDRO

OPEN TEAMS Japan Singapore China Indonesia

CONGRATULATIONS to the winning teams of:

348.19 335.37 334.92 289.34

LADIES TEAMS China Chinese Taipei Japan -oOo-

Gian Franco Rodriguez (left) of thePhilippines competes against Indonesia’s Muhammad Haerullah in their men’s individual epee Roundof-16 fencing match during the 28th Southeast Asian Games in Singapore. AFP

Fil-Aussie joins Azkals’ practice sessions

By Peter Atencio FIL-AUSTRALIAN Iain Ramsay is looking forward to his stint with the Philippine Azkals national football team, which opens its World Cup qualifying campaign against Bahrain on June 11.

“I’m getting the fatigue off my legs, hoping to do a lot better,” said the 27-year-old Ramsay after his first practice session with the Azkals late Tuesday afternoon at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.

Coach Thomas Dooley spent some time teaching the newcomers in the team, including Ramsay, the system of play of the Azkals.

“It was a good session. The level is pretty good,” said Ramsay, a left midfielder, who last played for Melbourne City in the A-League.

He previously made appear-

ances for Sydney FC, Sydney Olympic and Adelaide United in his last five years as pro.

Last month, Ramsay finally had time to accept an invite to join the Azkals when his contract with Melbourne City expired.

He is among five new players included in the roster, aside from Kevin Ingreso, Luke Woodland, and Stephen Palla.

The Azkals also practiced with Stephan Schrock and Javier Patino returning to the fold, along with Fil-British goalie Neil Etheridge.

Dooley said that the presence of the new player is expected to raise the team’s level of play.

“We expect bigger competition in training and bigger competition in the game,” said Dooley.

Also in the roster are Manilabased mainstays, led by Phil Younghusband, Patrick Reichelt and Misagh Bahadoran.

VERSACE-LAURIA BID THE SLAM I feature this hand because the commentary is very apt: bidding and making are plenty after 1♥-1NT start. China just made 1NT Dbl. I think Versace did not think about seven.

To even talk about a grand slam being biddable means that we are looking at the favorable position in the red suits. They did well to bid the small slam considering the first round of bidding.

Closed Room Board 4 North Zawslak ♠QJ432 ♥K96 ♦Q72 ♣93 East South Versace Lauria ♠AK1098 ♠76 ♥QJ83 ♥A1072 ♦AKA5 ♦KJ10964 ♣AK ♣ West Pazur ♠54 ♥83 ♦QJ1087642 ♣83 West Versace 1♠ Dbl 5♣ 6♥

North Zawslak Pass Pass Pass

East Lauria 1NT 4♣ 6♦*

South Pazur 3♣ Pass Pass

Winning pairs of the Alejandro Duplicate Game on May 26, 2016 1) Chris Tweddell-Ching Holley 2) Hector Tarrazona-Winston Arpon 3) Justo Manlongat-Joli Kansil Winning pairs of the Manila Peninsula on May 27, 2015 1) JopetMaliwat-Salma Lall 2) Abla Assad-Isabel Maloles 3) Cris Tweddell-Ellie Esteban

The bulk of the Philippine delegation to the 28th South East Asian Games in Singapore left Wednesday on board Singapore Airlines, the team’s airline partner. “Singapore Airlines has continuously set the benchmark in premium world-class airline services, and we believe that the SEA Games athletes deserve no less. They all have worked tirelessly to earn the right to represent the Philippines, and we are honored that the Philippine Team has chosen to fly with us on this regional sporting event.” said Carol Ong, SIA General Manager Philippines. ERIC APOLONIO

Winning pairs of the Cambridge Club on May 28, 2015 North/South Ranks 1) Viksi Egan & Pocholo Lozano 2) Sylvia Alejandro & Abla Assad East/West Ranks 1) Lars Manneteg & Chuchay Tuason 2) Nalin & Hiranthi Samarasingha Comments yahoo.com

to:

sylvia.alejandro@

A16

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

RIERA U. MALL ARI EDITOR

REUEL VIDAL A S S I S TA N T E D I T O R

sports@thestandard.com.ph

SPORTS

‘

WE HAVE EVERYTHING WE NEED TO WIN

‘

LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers attends practice days before the first game of the 2015 NBA Finals at The Cleveland Clinic Courts on in Independence, Ohio. AFP

OAKLAND—When LeBron James left behind the Miami Heat last July after four consecutive NBA Finals trips to rejoin the Cleveland Cavaliers, he never dreamed to be so close to a title so soon.

But when the NBA Finals open Thursday, James will be there for the fifth year in a row as his revamped Cavaliers face the Golden State Warriors in the best-of-seven championship series.

“Could I foresee this? At the beginning of the season I couldn’t,” James said. “But I knew I had to lead these guys and if they followed my leadership, I knew I could get them to a place where they hadn’t been before.”

So how does James like Cleveland’s chances now?

“We have heart. We have determination. We have everything we need to win,” James said.

Cleveland has suffered the longest major sport title drought of any US city, having last tasted a crown when the 1964 Cleveland Browns won the NFL throne.

“To be at this point, it’s very emotional,” James said. “We all know how long it has been. You can try and not focus on it. You can try to say, OK, it’s not about that.

But we all know it. The one thing we can guarantee... is that we will give it our best shot.”

This was James’ dream last July when he wrote an essay in Sports Illustrated announcing his decision.

“What’s most important for me is to bring one trophy back to Northeast Ohio,” James wrote.

“I’m not promising a championship. I know how hard that is to deliver. We’re not ready right now.

No way. Of course, I want to win next year, but I’m realistic. It will be a long process, much longer than it was in 2010 (with Miami).”

Together with Australian-born

guard Kyrie Irving and big man Kevin Love, Cleveland’s new “Big Three” could only muster a 19-20 start before James took a two-week rest break. The Cavaliers swung trade deals for J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert, who proved to be key role players that help bind talent into teamwork, and Russian center Timofey Mozgov, a replacement for Brazilian big man Anderson Varejao after he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in December.

James missed Cleveland’s first game of the season against Golden State, a 112-94 road loss, but in February scored 42 points to give the Cavaliers a 110-99 home victory in the rematch.

With a revamped roster and James adapting his game as injuries hampered the lineup, the Cavaliers closed the season 34-9 and went 12-2 in the Eastern Conference playoffs, matching the 2003 New Jersey Nets and 2013 San Antonio Spurs for the best runs to the finals under the current format.

James has the Cavaliers on

FIFA chief Blatter resigns TURN TO A12

the brink as he did in 2007 when Cleveland was swept by San Antonio in the finals.

But this time, James has the success of his Miami days to draw upon. He’s a four-time NBA Most Valuable Player. Twice he brought the Heat NBA crowns. Twice more he lost in the final.

The only players before James to play in five consecutive NBA Finals were on the Boston Celtics dynasty roster of the 1950s and 1960s.

- Miami stay aided James James broke Cleveland hearts in 2010, his jerseys burned and his name reviled. Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert even ripped James on the team website in a scathing critique that was not taken down until days before James returned.

In the four years that James was reaching the NBA Finals with Miami, the Cavaliers were struggling and rebuilding and missing the playoffs. They slowly but steadily improved, going from 19 wins in 2010-11 to win 21, 24 and 33 games last season. AFP

Bulls get new coach

CHICAGO—The Chicago Bulls introduced Fred Hoiberg as their new head coach Tuesday, just days after they fired Tom Thibodeau, who had guided them to the playoffs in each of his five seasons.

The US media reported that Hoiberg agreed to a five-year deal worth about $25 million. Hoiberg spent five seasons as head coach at Iowa State University.

The 42-year-old Hoiberg played for the Bulls from 19992003 as part of a 10-year NBA career that also included stints with Indiana and Minnesota.

The Bulls moved quickly to find a replacement for Thibodeau, who was fired last week amid friction with the front office. AFP

Formula BMW wants PH karter TURN TO A13

THURSDAY: JUNE 4, 2015

RAY S. EÑANO EDITOR

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ ASSISTANT EDITOR

business@thestandardtoday.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

PSe c omPoSite

BUSINESS

index

Closing June 3, 2015

8500 8000 7500 7000 6500 6000

B1

7,561.67 9.71

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing JUNE 3, 2015 46

P44.740

45

CLOSE

44 43 42

HIGH P44.590 LOW P44.740 AVERAGE P44.657 VOLUME 601.400M

P500.00-P650.00 LPG/11-kg tank P41.85-P47.20 Unleaded Gasoline P29.35-P32.70 Diesel

o

il P PriceS today

P34.55-P39.15 Kerosene P23.70-P24.40 Auto LPG Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Wednesday, June 3, 2015

F o r e i g n e x c h a n g e r at e Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

44.6570

Japan

Yen

0.008059

0.3599

UK

Pound

1.534500

68.5262

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128936

5.7579

Switzerland

Franc

1.071811

47.8639

Canada

Dollar

0.806062

35.9963

Singapore

Dollar

0.741565

Australia

Dollar

0.774114

34.5696

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652379

118.4473

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266652

33.1161

11.9079

Brunei

Dollar

0.738825

32.9937

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000076

0.0034

Thailand

Baht

0.029595

1.3216

UAE

Dirham

0.272257

12.1582

Euro

Euro

1.114900

Korea

Won

0.000901

0.0402

China

Yuan

0.161332

7.2046

India

Rupee

0.015701

0.7012

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.270490

12.0793

New Zealand

Dollar

0.714898

Taiwan

Dollar

0.032436

49.7881

31.9252 1.4485 Source: PDS Bridge

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad answers question from the press during the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines-ING Bank forum held at the Makati Shangri-La, Manila hotel in Makati City. GABRIELLE H. BINADAY

PH vows to accelerate spending

By Gabrielle Marie H. Binaday

THE Budget Department said Tuesday the government will accelerate spending in the second and third quarters of the year to boost economic growth after an anemic expansion in the gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2015.

Abad said about P468 billion of state funds not utilized since 2013 were carried over this year and increased the total budget spending to P900 billion.

He said the government would use the funds to fund on-going Yolanda rehabilitation and publicprivate-partnership projects.

Abad cited Administrative Order 46 signed on March 30 directing all government agencies to implement measures to facilitate the budget execution for 2015.

“If you look at the figures there’s actually an improvement [on spending] and I think those will be felt in the latter part of the second quarter and certainly in the next semester,” Abad said.

He conceded that the government focused a lot on corruption issues and overlooked vital matters

B3

that caused the GDP to grow at a disappointing 5.2 percent in the first three months of 2015.

“It’s not really late [reforms], because initially what we thought we had to deal with were issues of leakages, and corruption... We realized late that there are other fundamental things that are dragging spending and these have to do with the technical deficits, but because of continuing reforms of promoting transparency and inducing more resiliency, necessarily some of these projects will slow down.,” he said.

The sluggish state spending has also affected the construction of school buildings by the Education Department.

“When I checked with {Education Secretary] Armin Luistro, he said that the problem was he had to review all

LRT 1 takeover set October

the problem of classrooms, they had to make sure that they are typhoonproof,” Abad said.

“I don’t think the institutional weakness should be an excuse to slow the economy down, I think we should allow, and I think the name of the game for us is to really catch up much faster than what we have been doing in the first quarter,” he said.

The first-quarter growth was the slowest since the 3.7-percent expansion recorded in the fourth quarter of 2011.

It was also slower than the 5.6-percent growth a year ago and the revised 6.6-percent expansion in the fourth quarter of 2014 and fell below the government’s target of 7 percent to 8 percent for 2015.

“The 5.2-percent GDP growth in the first quarter of 2015 is lower than what the government and the market expected for the period. While growth in the private sector remains robust, the slowerthan-programmed pace of public spending, particularly the decline in public construction, has slowed down the overall growth of the economy,” National Economic and Development Authority directorgeneral and Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said earlier. (See related story on B5)

B6

Robinsons Land sees P9.4-b profit

Amdocs bullish, to hire more in PH

By Roderick T. dela Cruz SINGAPORE—A US company that employs 500 people in the Philippines in delivering solutions to telecommunication companies expects to increase its headcount, after winning new projects in the Asia-Pacific region.

Jim Lim, client business executive of telecom solutions provider Amdocs, said the company employed around 500 people at its regional operations hub in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.

“We occupy three levels at Net Cube Center in Fort Bonifacio,” he said during an interview at The Westin Singapore.

Telecom executives from around the world convened in Singapore for a conference organized by Amdocs to discuss new solutions to deliver the best customer experience for subscribers and the rise of Big Data.

Amdocs provides customer care, billing and order management systems for telecommunications carriers around the world, including Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Globe Telecom.

“Amdocs has won a few projects in the region,” said Lim, adding the new projects would translate into new jobs in the Philippines, where its center handles back-end and several IT operations.

Lim said Amdocs had made a “big investment” in the Philippines for its operation hub, without disclosing the actual figure.

Raghu Ramanadhan, sales director of Amdocs for AsiaPacific, said the company planned to have a larger presence in the Philippines, as the telecom industry entered a new era.

“My interest is looking at where the telecom market in Manila is heading to. Within telecom, there are different areas for growth such as digital services,” Ramanadhan said.

The next five years will be crucial for the telecommunication sector, as it enters a new era of competition with the rise of Internet content providers, Amdocs executives said.

“CEOs need to change their leadership styles going to 2020,” said Abhay Kumar, regional vice president for Asia Pacific of telecom solutions provider Amdocs, citing the results of a global survey. (Continued on B4)

THURSDAY: JUNE 4, 2015

B2

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

MST BuSineSS Daily STockS Review Wednesday, June 3, 2015

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

7.88 75.3 124.4 104 63 2.49 4.2 18.48 31.6 9.5 0.92 2.95 890 1.01 99.4 30.5 75 94.95 137 361.2 59 174.8 1700 127.9 3.26

2.5 66 84.6 84.5 45.8 1.97 2.03 12.02 23.55 6.3 0.74 1.75 625 0.225 78 18.02 58 76.5 95 276 45 107.6 1200 66 2.65

AG Finance Asia United Bank Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Bank of PI China Bank BDO Leasing & Fin. INc. Bright Kindle Resources COL Financial Eastwest Bank Filipino Fund Inc. First Abacus I-Remit Inc. Manulife Fin. Corp.

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank PB Bank Phil Bank of Comm Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank PSE Inc. RCBC `A’ Security Bank Sun Life Financial Union Bank Vantage Equities

7 73 108.10 100.00 46.1 2.46 1.79 16 21 7.00 0.7 1.66 785.00 0.410 90.85 18.26 29.50 68.75 94 311 41 155 1400.00 64.80 3.18

35.6 1.6 1.04 1.41 7.92 14.6 20.2 10.08 29.15

1.04 10.72 8.44 9.79 5.43 9.54 1.06 8.61 18.06 67.9 14 13.24 3.12 0.395 168 8.65 34.1 2.3 16 24.4 16.2 7.62 250.2 3.87 9 3.7 9.94 3.03 2.22 1 4.72 1.65 201.6 4.1 1.67 0.122 1.02 2.01 143.4 4.28 0.670 9.01 1.39

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Asiabest Group Century Food Conc. Aggr. ‘A’ Cirtek Holdings (Chips) Concepcion Crown Asia Da Vinci Capital Del Monte DNL Industries Inc. Emperador Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) EEI Euro-Med Lab Federal Res. Inv. Group First Gen Corp.

First Holdings ‘A’ Ginebra San Miguel Inc. Holcim Philippines Inc. Integ. Micro-Electronics Ionics Inc Jollibee Foods Corp.

Lafarge Rep Liberty Flour LMG Chemicals Macay Holdings Manila Water Co. Inc. Maxs Group Megawide Mla. Elect. Co `A’ Pepsi-Cola Products Phil.

Petron Corporation Phil H2O Phinma Corporation Phoenix Petroleum Phils.

Phoenix Semiconductor Pryce Corp. `A’ RFM Corporation Roxas and Co. San Miguel’Pure Foods `B’ SPC Power Corp.

Splash Corporation Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Trans-Asia Oil Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

43 1.59 1.05 2 10.58 18.88 68 27.5 55.55 2.02 1.69 12.5 19.400 10.02 7.65 9.44 1.7 11.64 26.4 87.65 14.00 14.68 5.85 0.520 198.30 10.14 30.00 2.37 52.85 24.3 24.55 6.5 280.00 4.32 9.80 4 11.44 3.80 2.18 2.1 4.37 2 183.2 4.56 1.68 0.154 1.13 2.25 191.9 4.3 0.77 23.50 1.34

0.7 59.2 31.85 2.16 7.39 3.4 800 11.06 84 5.14 0.66 1380 6.68 72.6 8.9 6.66 9.25 0.9 18.9 0.73 5.53 6.55 0.0670 0.84 2.99 87 934 2.2 1.39 156 0.710 0.435 0.510

0.45 48.1 20.85 1.6 6.62 1.4 600 7.390 14.18 4.25 0.144 818 5.3 46.6 4.96 3.52 4.43 0.59 12 0.580 4.22 4.5 0.036 0.450 2.26 66.7 709.5 1.13 0.93 85.2 0.200 0.173 0.310

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anglo Holdings A Anscor `A’ ATN Holdings A Ayala Corp `A’ Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings Filinvest Dev. Corp.

Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Jolliville Holdings Keppel Holdings `B’ Lopez Holdings Corp.

Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

LT Group Mabuhay Holdings `A’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

Minerales Industrias Corp.

Pacifica `A’ Prime Orion Republic Glass ‘A’ San Miguel Corp `A’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. South China Res. Inc. Top Frontier Unioil Res. & Hldgs Wellex Industries Zeus Holdings

0.465 57.05 22.50 1.32 6.85 0.265 780 7.57 13.14 4.50 0.226 1360 6.43 67.60 4.19 5.1 7.47 0.7 13.84 0.62 4.21 5 0.0350 1.000 2.6 65.00 880.00 1.25 0.73 82.550 0.3500 0.2140 0.300

10.5 1.99 2.07 0.375

6.01 0.91 1.29 0.192

8990 HLDG A. Brown Co., Inc. Araneta Prop `A’ Arthaland Corp.

7.860 0.73 1.260 0.250

47 5 1.66 2.36 15.3 20.6 85 32 65.8 4.57 23.35 21.6 12.98 9.13 12.34 2.89 17 31.8 109 20.75 15.3 9.4 0.98 241 12.5 79 3.95 45.45 33.9 90 13.98 292.4 5.25 13.04 6.8 14.5 7.03 3.4 4.5 6.68 7.86 253 5.5 3.28 0.315 2.5 2.68 226.6 5.5 1.3 26 2.17

Close

High

Low

FINANCIAL 7.01 7 73.85 71.8 108.00 106.00 101.40 98.55 46.15 46 2.34 2.34 1.76 1.68 16 16 21.45 20.95 6.15 6.12 0.7 0.7 1.66 1.66 800.00 800.00 0.435 0.400 90.85 89.5 18.26 17.98 28.50 28.00 70.80 68.75 92.1 92 310.2 307.2 43.8 41.1 154 158.6 1395.00 1385.00 65.00 64.50 3.23 3.21 INDUSTRIAL 43.35 42.4 1.45 1.44 1.05 1.03 2.01 1.97 10.8 10.5 19.1 18.74 48.1 48.1 27.5 25.5 58 55.55 2.23 2 1.74 1.66 12.46 12.34 19.400 19.02 10.04 9.98 7.61 7.40 9.75 9.45 1.71 1.7 12.48 11.32 26.4 25.8 88.1 87.05 14.00 14.00 14.32 14.42 5.87 5.75 0.530 0.530 202.00 197.00 10.36 10.1 30.00 30.00 2.2 2.2 52.80 52.80 24.65 24.25 25.75 24.75 6.5 5.88 280.20 276.00 4.39 4.29 9.82 9.50 4 4 11.58 11.40 3.90 3.78 2.19 2.15 2.35 2.11 4.56 4.39 2.1 1.98 183.3 182 4.45 4.4 1.67 1.61 0.153 0.150 1.25 1.24 2.24 2.23 195 192 4.42 4.3 0.84 0.77 23.00 22.50 1.36 1.30 HOLDING FIRMS 0.465 0.460 57.00 56.00 22.80 22.50 1.32 1.26 6.85 6.80 0.270 0.260 780 773 7.64 7.53 13.20 13.00 4.50 4.50 0.228 0.226 1376 1330 6.43 6.35 67.35 66.05 4.19 3.9 5.1 5.1 7.66 7.4 0.72 0.69 13.88 13.74 0.64 0.64 4.4 4.21 5 5 0.0370 0.0350 1.000 0.980 2.59 2.59 65.00 62.55 889.00 866.00 1.25 1.20 0.73 0.73 83.400 82.500 0.3550 0.3500 0.2150 0.2140 0.315 0.315 PROPERTY 7.800 7.600 0.75 0.72 1.260 1.260 0.230 0.230

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

7.01 73 108.00 101.40 46.1 2.34 1.73 16 21 6.12 0.7 1.66 800.00 0.435 89.85 18.26 28.50 70.20 92 307.2 41.9 155 1385.00 65.00 3.21

0.14 0.00 -0.09 1.40 0.00 -4.88 -3.35 0.00 0.00 -12.57 0.00 0.00 1.91 6.10 -1.10 0.00 -3.39 2.11 -2.13 -1.22 2.20 0.00 -1.07 0.31 0.94

59,000 17,050 2,223,780 1,260,790 15,100 4,000 260,000 1,200 675,500 5,000 300,000 5,000 10 1,340,000 3,258,210 5,100 10,000 278,490 1,900 6,380 65,900 678,700 425 9,870 7,000

43 1.45 1.05 1.98 10.5 18.78 48.1 27 56.5 2 1.7 12.34 19.100 10.00 7.54 9.75 1.71 11.92 26 87.15 14.00 14.42 5.85 0.530 202.00 10.3 30.00 2.2 52.80 24.5 25.3 6.38 279.80 4.35 9.69 4 11.58 3.89 2.18 2.2 4.53 2.08 182 4.4 1.62 0.150 1.25 2.24 193.5 4.41 0.77 22.55 1.30

0.00 -8.81 0.00 -1.00 -0.76 -0.53 -29.26 -1.82 1.71 -0.99 0.59 -1.28 -1.55 -0.20 -1.44 3.28 0.59 2.41 -1.52 -0.57 0.00 -1.77 0.00 1.92 1.87 1.58 0.00 -7.17 -0.09 0.82 3.05 -1.85 -0.07 0.69 -1.12 0.00 1.22 2.37 0.00 4.76 3.66 4.00 -0.66 -3.51 -3.57 -2.60 10.62 -0.44 0.83 2.56 0.00 -4.04 -2.99

2,204,100 164,000 503,000 3,220,000 24,300 339,900 30 122,100 521,720 57,295,000 17,000 10,800 2,496,900 26,422,300 31,332,700 186,200 11,000 84,500 4,160,200 187,180 113,600 21,300 94,500 14,000 600,240 827,100 1,600 1,000 50 1,556,400 570,400 552,500 233,190 209,000 503,100 2,000 9,000 67,000 476,000 675,000 1,494,000 120,000 6,430 6,000 273,000 3,220,000 17,000 1,273,000 1,653,590 37,000 21,487,000 1,300 72,000

0.465 56.50 22.55 1.32 6.81 0.265 776 7.6 13.20 4.50 0.228 1330 6.35 67.00 3.9 5.1 7.6 0.7 13.78 0.64 4.37 5 0.0350 1.000 2.59 62.55 889.00 1.20 0.73 83.000 0.3550 0.2150 0.315

0.00 -0.96 0.22 0.00 -0.58 0.00 -0.51 0.40 0.46 0.00 0.88 -2.21 -1.24 -0.89 -6.92 0.00 1.74 0.00 -0.43 3.23 3.80 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.38 -3.77 1.02 -4.00 0.00 0.55 1.43 0.47 5.00

50,000 7,142,700 4,947,500 2,000 81,700 1,460,000 446,780 3,435,000 5,464,100 5,000 60,000 254,790 295,000 1,783,210 2,000 100 550,400 1,810,000 972,900 2,000 29,660,000 95,000 600,000 73,000 8,000 406,850 198,440 88,000 30,000 2,030 1,290,000 50,000 510,000

7.620 0.73 1.260 0.230

-3.05 0.00 0.00 -8.00

412,000 832,000 26,000 190,000

-238,000.00 286,559.50 -57,169,273.00 -62,643,151.00

-7,293,485.00 -7,347 -210,000

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

Close

High

Low

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

40 6.15 5.4 5.6 7.1 1.54 1.97 1.48 0.201 0.98 0.305 2.25 1.87 1.8 6.34 5.73 0.180 0.470 27 8.54 31.8 2.29 3.6 20.6 1.02 7.56 1.96 8.59

29.1 4.1 4.96 2.8 4.6 0.89 1.1 0.97 0.083 0.445 0.188 1.4 1.42 1.19 2.8 4.13 0.090 0.325 23 2.57 21.35 1.64 3.08 15.08 0.69 3.38 1 5.69

Ayala Land `B’ 39.50 Belle Corp. `A’ 3.36 Cebu Holdings 5.26 Cebu Prop. `A’ 6.4 Cebu Prop. `B’ 6 Century Property 0.82 City & Land Dev. 1.25 Cityland Dev. `A’ 1.05 Crown Equities Inc. 0.143 Cyber Bay Corp.

0.450 Ever Gotesco 0.180 Global-Estate 1.26 Filinvest Land,Inc. 1.86 Interport `A’ 1.36 Keppel Properties 5.45 Megaworld 4.58 MRC Allied Ind. 0.120 Phil. Estates Corp.

0.3200 Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry 24.45 Primex Corp.

7.2 Robinson’s Land `B’ 28.85 Rockwell 1.73 Shang Properties Inc. 3.26 SM Prime Holdings 19.26 Sta. Lucia Land Inc. 0.73 Starmalls 7.21 Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. 0.890 Vista Land & Lifescapes 7.180

39.50 39.00 39.35 3.5 3.36 3.42 5.26 5.15 5.24 5.88 5.88 5.88 6 6 6 0.83 0.79 0.81 1.21 1.21 1.21 1.05 1.05 1.05 0.146 0.141 0.145 0.430 0.430 0.430 0.185 0.178 0.180 1.28 1.24 1.25 1.89 1.82 1.82 1.36 1.35 1.36 5.10 5.00 5.01 4.72 4.58 4.67 0.116 0.114 0.114 0.3200 0.3100 0.3200 26.40 24.45 26.40 7.2 7.18 7.18 29.60 28.35 28.75 1.68 1.71 1.71 3.25 3.22 3.22 19.40 18.84 19.40 0.72 0.69 0.72 7.23 7.21 7.23 0.900 0.890 0.900 7.180 7.050 7.170 SERVICES 6.4 6.5 6.3 6.45 60.55 61.4 59.9 60.5 1.11 1.21 1.1 1.14 0.670 0.680 0.660 0.660 13.5 13.7 13.7 13.7 9.40 9.42 9.27 9.38 0.0990 0.0980 0.0960 0.0960 4.11 4.28 4.04 4.26 86 86.05 83 83.9 9.99 9.99 9.7 9.99 1.77 1.7 1.7 1.7 6.90 6.80 6.30 6.40 2604 2692 2556 2642 6.30 6.34 6.10 6.20 1.29 1.38 1.30 1.30 109 110 109 110 0.223 0.223 0.220 0.221 1.2400 1.2500 1.2400 1.2500 9.62 9.63 9.46 9.47 2.88 3.05 2.88 3.00 1.36 1.3 1.22 1.3 2.02 2.02 2.01 2.01 55.00 57.00 50.00 50.00 0.670 0.670 0.660 0.660 2 2 19.5 2 7.88 7.91 7.09 7.23 0.350 0.350 0.350 0.350 18.08 18.08 18.02 18.02 4.51 4.50 4.50 4.50 125.00 125.00 124.90 125.00 20.50 20.55 20.20 20.50 2782.00 2800.00 2760.00 2800.00 0.670 0.680 0.670 0.680 1.420 1.430 1.370 1.400 38.65 38.60 37.10 37.25 73.05 74.40 73.05 73.85 9.71 9.71 9.48 9.52 0.66 0.67 0.67 0.67 5.9 5.9 5.75 5.81 0.330 0.330 0.320 0.330 MINING & OIL 0.0048 0.0049 0.0047 0.0048 6.58 6.65 6.56 6.61 11.50 12.50 12.38 12.50 0.245 0.244 0.243 0.243 8.3000 7.4000 7.4000 7.4000 1 1.02 0.99 0.99 0.81 0.81 0.8 0.8 7.39 7.50 7.30 7.30 1.55 1.59 1.50 1.53 0.330 0.335 0.320 0.330 0.235 0.237 0.235 0.236 0.240 0.241 0.241 0.241 0.0150 0.0150 0.0140 0.0140 3.41 3.6 3.41 3.47 24.6 25.65 24.4 25.3 3.77 3.79 3.69 3.77 0.6800 0.7100 0.6800 0.6800 2.050 2.1000 2.0500 2.1000 0.0130 0.0130 0.0130 0.0130 4.38 4.40 4.39 4.40 6.24 6.35 6.15 6.22 1.99 1.98 2.02 1.95 0.015 0.015 0.014 0.015 152.00 151.00 145.00 149.00 12.22 12.4 12 12.1 0.0100 0.0100 0.0100 0.0100 PREFERRED 60.5 61.6 60.2 61.2 526 527 256 526 120 121 121 121 525 520 520 520 6.08 6.01 6 6 1.12 1.12 1.09 1.12 111.5 114.7 111 111 1124 1080 1080 1080 1040 1050 1040 1050 76 76 75.75 76 82.5 84 84 84 86.5 87 86.5 86.5 WARRANTS & BONDS 3.940 3.980 3.700 3.830 SME 9.4 9.49 9.3 9.45 6 6.1 6.1 6.1 73 71.95 63.05 71.95 9.65 9.66 9.55 9.65 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 123.1 123.1 122.4 123

-0.38 1.79 -0.38 -8.13 0.00 -1.22 -3.20 0.00 1.40 -4.44 0.00 -0.79 -2.15 0.00 -8.07 1.97 -5.00 0.00 7.98 -0.28 -0.35 -1.16 -1.23 0.73 -1.37 0.28 1.12 -0.14

5,317,300 3,376,000 610,600 1,000 11,000 9,030,000 2,000 1,000 2,990,000 660,000 3,820,000 1,274,000 16,470,000 14,000 13,300 37,862,000 1,810,000 50,000 2,300 121,600 2,729,200 101,000 22,000 27,141,000 339,000 1,700 31,000 4,547,100

-86,744,055.00 513,580.00 -600,486.00

10.5 66 1.44 1.09 12.46 15.82 0.1460 4.61 99.1 12.3 2.6 9 2090 8.41 1.97 119.5 0.8200 2.2800 12.28 2.85 2.2 3.2 5.9 1.97 2.46 15.2 0.62 22.8 6.41 110.2 14 3486 0.710 2.28 48.5 90.1 11.6 0.87 10.2 0.490

1.97 32.5 1 0.6 10 9.61 0.0770 2.95 46.55 10.14 1.6 5.88 1600 5.95 1.36 105 0.036 1.200 6.5 1.69 1.1 2 1.05 0.490 1.8 8.7 0.34 14.54 3 79 4.39 2726 0.380 0.32 31.45 60.55 7.59 0.63 6.45 0.305

2GO Group’ ABS-CBN Acesite Hotel APC Group, Inc. Asian Terminals Inc. Bloomberry Boulevard Holdings Calata Corp.

Cebu Air Inc. (5J) Centro Esc. Univ.

Discovery World DFNN Inc. Globe Telecom GMA Network Inc. Harbor Star I.C.T.S.I. Island Info ISM Communications Leisure & Resorts Liberty Telecom Lorenzo Shipping Macroasia Corp.

Manila Broadcasting Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Melco Crown MG Holdings Pacific Online Sys. Corp.

PAL Holdings Inc. Phil. Seven Corp.

Philweb.Com Inc. PLDT Common PremiereHorizon Premium Leisure Puregold Robinsons RTL SSI Group STI Holdings Travellers Waterfront Phils.

0.78 -0.08 2.70 -1.49 1.48 -0.21 -3.03 3.65 -2.44 0.00 -3.95 -7.25 1.46 -1.59 0.78 0.92 -0.90 0.81 -1.56 4.17 -4.41 -0.50 -9.09 -1.49 0.00 -8.25 0.00 -0.33 -0.22 0.00 0.00 0.65 1.49 -1.41 -3.62 1.10 -1.96 1.52 -1.53 0.00

86,700 22,350 362,000 1,252,000 600 7,378,300 4,120,000 1,935,000 601,780 5,200 1,000 105,300 162,390 475,200 16,000 794,110 2,120,000 78,000 6,146,900 400,000 6,000 4,000 2,880 404,000 59,000 20,066,500 10,000 113,000 23,000 880 351,000 76,735 7,520,000 14,331,000 3,263,000 1,158,620 5,366,400 10,000 302,900 70,000

0.0098 17.24 25 0.330 12.7 1.2 1.73 10.98 4.2 0.48 0.455 0.475 0.023 8.2 49.2 4.27 1.030 3.06 0.021 7.67 12.88 10.42 0.040 420 9 0.016

0.0043 8.65 9.43 0.236 6.5 0.61 0.78 5.99 1.08 0.330 0.2130 0.2160 0.014 3.660 20.2 2.11 0.365 1.54 0.013 5.4 7.26 2.27 0.015 115.9 3.67 0.0100

Abra Mining Atlas Cons. `A’ Atok-Big Wedge `A’ Basic Energy Corp.

Benguet Corp `A’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto `A’ Lepanto `B’ Manila Mining `A’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Omico Oriental Peninsula Res. Oriental Pet. `B’ Petroenergy Res. Corp.

Philex `A’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. `A’ Semirara Corp.

TA Petroleum United Paragon

0.00 0.46 8.70 -0.82 -10.84 -1.00 -1.23 -1.22 -1.29 0.00 0.43 0.42 -6.67 1.76 2.85 0.00 0.00 2.44 0.00 0.46 -0.32 0.51 0.00 -1.97 -0.98 0.00

139,000,000 96,000.00 615,700 -3,059,743.00 3,200 12,000 6,900 11,661,000 329,000 40,000.00 500 9,941,000 -12,350.00 1,340,000 -33,000.00 10,410,000 100,000 2,000,000 451,000 -328,930.00 3,621,500 -29,793,655.00 808,000 -120,490.00 110,000 10,000 2,100,000 -26,000.00 28,000 239,400 17,977.00 1,567,000 13,800.00 22,700,000 -15,000.00 503,450 -51,770,200.00 909,200 287,184.00 5,000,000

70 525 120 515 8.21 12.28 111 1060 1047 76.9 78.95 84.8

33 500 101.5 480 5.88 6.5 101 997 1011 74.2 74.5 75

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ First Gen G GLOBE PREF P GMA Holdings Inc. Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred A PF Pref 2 SMC Preferred A SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C

1.16 0.00 0.83 -0.95 -1.32 0.00 -0.45 -3.91 0.96 0.00 1.82 0.00

524,210 1,640 50 160 378,600 369,000 54,970 1,020 6,725 35,670 2,000 34,460

6.98

0.8900 LR Warrant

-2.79

175,000

10.96 15 88 12.88

2.4 3.5 13.5 5.95

0.53 1.67 -1.44 0.00

392,400 900 70 880,300

130.7

105.6 First Metro ETF

-0.08

8,130

-66,000.00 -4,612,470.00 -1,440.00 -507,240.00 -525,240.00 2,348,720.00 -13,510.00

MST

Trading Summary FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL HOLDING FIRMS PROPERTY SERVICES MINING & OIL GRAND TOTAL

SHARES 10,488,674 166,498,807 62,009,646 129,778,671 80,921,060 213,622,679 664,601,436

31,757,376.00

10,574,623.50

1,957,644.00 -1,609,185.00 6,711,668.00 138,750.00 614,133.00

-19,035,770.00 43,500.00 -1,050.00

8,400.00 -2,251,604.00

-11,210,135.00 1,125,730.00

128,336.00 2,761,858.00 2,507,980.00 -30,025,419.00 590,918.00

-21,993,350.00 1,484,273.50 8,400.00 36,000.00 12,958,634.00

-8,683,265.00

181,395.00 -27,765,002.00 386,920.00 -813,116.00 0.00 114,540.00 -37,290.00 2,229,890.00 434,184.00

102,530.00

-28,733,764.00 73,100.00 -68,100.00 220,500.00

-39,023,114.50 14,017,945.00 -192,531.00

-166,247,540.00 1,094,844.00 -13,725,962.00

-97,555,305.00 1,600,700.00 -62,320,610.50 153,361.00

954,796.00

36,688,740.00

20,720.00 -14,426,385.00 -14,604,310.00 25,410.00 -41,500.00

-2,097,092.00 32,760.00

Double Dragon Makati Fin. Corp.

IRipple E-Business Intl Xurpas

T op g ainerS VALUE 806,671,013.45 1,585,616,486.14 1,948,785,619.27 1,145,215,328.16 1,399,660,094.20 221,590,340.237 7,120,707,428.66

STOCKS

FINANCIAL 1,740.72 (up) 4.01 INDUSTRIAL 11,649.73 (up) 24.94 HOLDING FIRMS 6,675.52 (down) 5.10 PROPERTY 3,084.92 (down) 2.13 SERVICES 2,097.13 (up) 3.75 MINING & OIL 14,247.22 (down) 36.29 PSEI 7,561.67 (up) 9.71 All Shares Index 4,346.36 (down) 1.50 Gainers: 74 Losers: 102; Unchanged: 51; Total: 227

-67,503,310.00

-20,027,275.00 -10,180.00 -72,792,934.00

-27,726,710.00

17,649,220.00

-8,899,248.00

1,942,210.00 10,584,439.00 13,380.00 58,115,174.00

-33,532,171.00

17,500.00 -697,955.00 -96,060,500.00 -613,000.00 -9,885,620.00 -58,901,480.00 -12,190,511.50 -23,346,987.00 843,035.00

3,534,220.50

-351,800.00

502,594.00 7,171,198.00

T op L oSerS Close (P)

Change (%)

STOCKS

Close (P)

Change (%)

TKC Steel Corp.

1.25

10.62

Conc. Aggr. 'A'

48.1

Atok-Big Wedge `A'

12.50

8.70

Filipino Fund Inc.

6.12

-29.26 -12.57

Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry

26.40

7.98

Benguet Corp `A'

7.4000

-10.84

MEDCO Holdings

0.435

6.10

Manila Broadcasting

50.00

-9.09

Zeus Holdings

0.315

5.00

Agrinurture Inc.

1.45

-8.81

Pryce Corp. `A'

2.2

4.76

Melco Crown

7.23

-8.25

Liberty Telecom

3.00

4.17

Cebu Prop. `A'

5.88

-8.13

Roxas and Co.

2.08

4.00

Keppel Properties

5.01

-8.07

Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

4.37

3.80

Arthaland Corp.

0.230

-8.00

RFM Corporation

4.53

3.66

DFNN Inc.

6.40

-7.25

THURSDAY: JUNE 4, 2015

B3

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

LRT 1 takeover set October

By Darwin G. Amojelar

LIGHT Rail Manila Consortium, led by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Ayala Corp., expects to take over the operations and maintenance of the LRT Line 1 before October.

“We are hoping to take over the LRT Line 1 before the one-year period lapses or before October 2,” LRMC president and chief executive Jesus Francisco said.

LRMC earlier won the bidding for the P64.9-billion LRT1 Cavite Extension, one of the public-private partnership projects of the government.

MPIC, through Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp., owns 55 percent of LRMC, while AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp. holds a 35-percent stake. Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Inc owns the remaining 10 percent.

Francisco said the company was working on the handover protocol of the project with the Transportation Department and Light Rail Transit Authority.

“There’s a lot of technical and legal matters before the takeover.

The preparation is quite extensive,” he said.

“We are also trying to assess the condition of the present LRVs [light rail vehicles]. We want as many of them to fix before we actually take over,” Francisco added.

Under the concession, LRMC will assume the O&M of the existing 20-kilometer LRT 1, and construct the 11.7-kilometer extension of the rail line southward from the Baclaran station all the way to Bacoor, Cavite.

This entails the construction of eight new stations, of which 3 will have intermodal facilities. The eight new stations after Baclaran will include Aseana, MIA, Asia World, Ninoy Aquino, Dr. Santos, Las Piñas, Zapote, and Niyog. The intermodal facilities will be located at Dr. Santos, Zapote and Niyog.

The project will increase the span of LRT 1 from 20.7 kilometers to 32.4 km, and provide commuters from Cavite and other parts of Parañaque and Las Piñas access to central Manila.

Aviation investment.

Philippine Academy for Aviation Training general manager Arvi Perez (left) shakes hands with Asian Aviation Center for Excellence chief executive Dato Fareh Mazputra to formalize AACE’s investment in PAAT. AACE, an aviation training center jointly owned by aviation corporate giants namely CAE Inc. of Canada and AirAsia, is based in Kuala Lumpur with a subsidiary in Singapore and provides training for pilots, cabin crew, maintenance engineers, technicians and grounds service personnel.

PAL outlook better as fleet expansion slows THE Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation said the outlook for Philippine Airlines has improved after the deferral of aircraft delivery and lower fuel prices.

“The return to profitability in 2014 and first quarter of 2015 are mainly a reflection of lower fuel prices and improved market conditions, driven by consolidation and a new more disciplined approach to capacity in the Philippine airline sector,” CAPA said in a report.

PAL posted a comprehensive income of $85 million in the January-March period this year, a reversal of the $20.7-million net loss booked in the same period last year.

PAL said revenues grew 30 percent in the first quarter to $627 million from $482.4 million a year ago, supported by an increase in passenger traffic.

PAL Group also has made strategic and capacity adjustments since Lucio Tan took back control of Philippine Airlines and sister regional carrier PAL Express in late October last year.

The Lucio Tan Group bought back the 49 percent stake in flag carrier it sold to San Miguel Equity Investments Ins. at a cost of $1 billion.

“Lucio Tan has slowed PAL’s fleet and network expansion.

Five of the 10 A320 deliveries which were initially slated for

2015 have been deferred, enabling PAL to avert a potential return of overcapacity in the domestic and regional international markets in the second half of 2015, CAPA said.

PAL earlier said it bought two new Airbus jets, as a part of a plan to increase its outstanding orders for single-aisle aircraft to 40 over a 10-year period or from 2015 to 2024.

CAPA also said all Philippine carriers had benefited from consolidation in the domestic market, driven by the capacity reductions at the PAL Group, the Philippines AirAsia-Zest partnership (which should eventually result in the two carriers merging) and

Cebu Pacific’s acquisition of Tigerair Philippines, which was recently rebranded as Cebgo.

“The consolidation has resulted in only three players competing on domestic trunk routes compared to as many as six in 2012,” it added.

CAPA said domestic yields and load factors improved significantly across all Philippine carriers in 2014, boosting profitability of the Philippine airline sector.

As CAPA previously highlighted, the Philippines was the only market in Southeast Asia which saw an improvement in profitability in 2014.

Darwin G. Amojear

Stock market gains slightly; Globe Telecom, Metro Pacific up THE stock market rose slightly Wednesday on mixed trading, as investors picked up bargain issues and welcomed upbeat eurozone inflation data.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index added 9.71 points, or 0.1 percent, to 7,561.67 on a value turnover of P7.1 billion. Losers, however, beat gainers, 102 to 74, with 51 issues unchanged.

Globe Telecom Inc., the second-biggest telecommunications firm, climbed 1.5 percent to P2,642, while Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which is into toll road, water and electricity dis-

tribution and hospital operations, surged 3.8 percent to P4.37.

Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corp., a unit of Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd., sank 8.2 percent to P7.23, while GT Capital Holdings Inc. of tycoon George Ty fell 2.2 percent to P1,330.

Asian markets, meanwhile, mostly fell Wednesday, while the euro edged higher following upbeat eurozone inflation data as traders track Greece’s debt reform talks before a repayment deadline.

Tokyo slipped 0.34 percent, or 69.68 points, to 20,473.51 owing

to a stronger yen. Shanghai closed marginally lower, giving up 0.55 points to 4,909.98.

Sydney shed 0.93 percent, or 52.40 points, to 5,583.60 and Seoul lost 0.74 percent, or 15.48 points, to 2,063.16.

Hong Kong, however, rose 0.69 percent, or 190.75 points to close at 27,657.47.

Dealers moved out of Japanese equities for a second day after the Nikkei Monday had recorded a 12th straight day of rises--its longest rally since 1988 at the height of the country’s stock market bubble.

Selling Wednesday was fueled by a pick-up in the yen, which Tuesday had hit its weakest level against the dollar in more than 12 years.

The greenback fell Wednesday on concerns about the lack of progress in Greece’s talks with creditors on overhauling its bailout terms.

The Dow lost 0.16 percent Tuesday, the S&P 500 dipped 0.10 percent and the Nasdaq shed 0.13 percent.

On currency markets the dollar was at 124.13 yen Wednesday against 124.09 in New York, but well down from the 12-year high

of 125.05 yen briefly touched in Asia Tuesday.

The euro bought $1.1159 and 138.52 yen from $1.1152 and 138.39 yen in US trade.

With a deadline for Greece to repay some of its debt on Friday, the country’s leaders and its creditors have exchanged reform proposals, although there are still fears an agreement may not be reached.

Investors were spooked Tuesday when Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the head of the Eurogroup of finance ministers, said he was unimpressed with progress. With AFP

B4

BUSINESS

Official telco partner. Smart Communications Inc. is the exclusive telecommunications partner of Travel Innovators Inc. in organizing the 4th Travel Madness Expo on July 3 to 5, 2015 at the SMX Convention Center. Tens of thousands are expected to flock to the three-day event, where at least 5,000 local and international travel industry players are set to offer incredible discounted travel and accommodation deals. Shown are (from left): Travel Innovators vice president Pat Alberto and president Raymond Michael Tee; Smart International Services head Tina Mariano; and Smart International Services brand manager Abby Bauca.

ERC findings not conclusive EDC raising P5b for Bacman rehab

BACMAN Geothermal Inc., a unit of Energy Development Corp., will raise P5 billion next month to refinance the rehabilitation cost of the Bacman geothermal plants, an official said.

“EDC parent paid for the purchase price and rehab of Bacman in the past. When BGI raises the money now, it will repay the parent.

The parent will then use the money to expand Bacman steamfield among others,” EDC vice president for corporate finance Erwin Avante said.

The company is currently in talks with three banks for the P5-billion financing that is expected to be closed by July, officials said.

The Bacman 3 power project is located at Bacon, Sorsogon proovince and Manito, Albay. The other Bacman plants include the 120MW Bacman 1 and 20-MW Bacman 2.

Avante earlier said P5 billion will be used fund the steam field exploration of Bacman and the Mindanao 3 geothermal power projects under EDC. “We plan to raise financing for the P5 billion within two to three months. The P5 billion is around 70 percent of the project cost,” Avante said earlier.

He added once the steam field exploration showed positive results, EDC might have to put up a power plant.

“If we proceed with a power plant for Bacman 3, we’re looking a separate facility for that,” Avante said, adding the EDC might have to raise $150 million for the construction of a 30-MW geothermal plant under Bacman 3.

“We also continue to explore and develop expansion areas in our existing geothermal sites,” EDC president Richard Tantoco said.

Alena Mae Flores

Amdocs... From B1 About 78 percent of the respondents believe change is necessary as rapid innovation by traditional and new players continued to revolutionize the telecom industry, results of the survey showed.

Kumar said over-the-top content providers and instant messaging applications such as Whatsapp and Viber had already affected the revenue streams of telecom companies.

OTT providers deliver audio, video and other media over the

“They (ERC IU) are the ones that are investigating so they should have the ability to recommend. So the ERC… they will have to hear it again and see if there’s anti-competitive behavior,” Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla told reporters in a forum.

Petilla said collusion was difficult to prove and “you have to see if there’s any logic in their behavior. Intention of the action is what you have to look at.”

“I was hoping that the IU would actually add additional conclusion or additional decision on this entire scenario but it appears that it really did not say anything other than there were violators,” Petilla said.

He said the ERC focused on the violation of the must-offer rule similar to the findings of Philippine Electricity Market Corp.

“And this must-offer rules vio-

lation have been dealt with, which is still being contested by at least one company. So it is ongoing,” Petilla said.

“It’s up to ERC now. Not a matter of collusion, it is really a question of is there really an anti-competitive behavior. The release of the commission is to put an end to the conclusion whether there is an anti-competitive or not,” the energy chief said.

He said the Commission en banc must decide if there was anti-competitive behavior.

Petilla said the IU report was data-oriented and that “numbers are not going to lie.” “As far as technicalities are concerned, it is credible” Petilla said.

The Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 prohibits anti-competitive behavior, including cross-subsidization, price or

market manipulation, “or other unfair trade practices detrimental to the encouragement and protection of contestable markets.”

Meralco, in a statement, said it had acted strictly in accordance with the decision of the ERC approving the power supply agreement... which took into account Meralco’s least cost obligation to its consumers.”

“The records will bear that Meralco complied with applicable market rules and did not engage in any anti-competitive behavior in its supply contract with TMO,” said Meralco legal counsel William Pamintuan.

“Respondents’ violations stem mainly from their acts that amounted to physical or economic withholding, which is considered as anti-competitive or a form of market abuse,” ERC spokesperson Francis Saturnino Juan said.

“The range of imposable fines under EPIRA... is from P50,000 to P50 million. Cases will be filed with the ERC. Respondents will be accorded with due process after which, ERC will decide on the imposition of penalties, if warranted, and grant of other reliefs,” he said.

Internet.

He said Amdocs could help telecom chief executives innovate and respond to the challenges posed by OTT providers.

Amdocs recently released Amdocs CES 9.3, with new solutions for online commerce,

interactive bills, big data marketing, care and network analytics, as well as cross-portfolio enhancements to improve system performance.

Amdocs CES 9.3 enables service providers to respond to the multi-dimensional market de-

mands that are driving “The New World of Customer Experience,” an era where service providers are expected to offer innovative and personalized services, delivered consistently across channels and with a seamless network service experience.

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Energy Department on Wednesday said the report of the Energy Regulatory Commission’s Investigating Unit failed to come up with a conclusion on allegations of collusion in the power sector.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

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

B5

Govt keeps 8% growth target

By Julito G. Rada

THE government is sticking to the economic growth target of 7 percent to 8 percent this year despite the 5.2-percent expansion in the first quarter, the slowest in three years, a Cabinet official said Wednesday.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said at the sidelines of the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines-ING Forum held in Makati City the target remained achievable as acceleration in government spending could be

expected in the coming months.

“We are still aiming for that [7 to 8 percent growth],” Abad said, adding the slowdown in GDP growth in the first quarter would “not be a cause for alarms.”

The growth of the Philippine

economy slowed to a more than three-year low of 5.2 percent in the first quarter this year due mainly to the government’s low fiscal expenditures. This was slower than the 5.6 percent a year ago and the revised 6.6-percent expansion in the fourth quarter of 2014.

National Economic and Development Authority and Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan earlier said that while growth in the private sector remained robust, the slowerthan-programmed pace of public spending, particularly the decline in public construction, slowed

down the overall growth of the economy.

The government aimed for a 7 to 8 percent GDP growth this year, significantly higher than the actual expansion of 6.1 percent in 2014.

“We still see a rapid growth for the Philippines… So we call on government agencies to spend generously their budgets,” Abad said.

Abad said institutional weaknesses caused the underspending in the first quarter this year.

The Finance Department earlier reported that disbursements of the national government in the first quarter totaled P504 billion,

4 percent or P21.5 billion higher compared to the same period last year but 13 percent below the target for the period.

Despite this lower-than-expected growth, Balisacan said it was reasonable to believe that the economy will grow at a faster rate in the remaining quarters.

The main driver of GDP growth in the first quarter was the services sector, which grew by 5.6 percent from 6.8 percent. Industry, on the other hand, accelerated to 5.5 percent from 5.4 percent posted last year. Similarly, the agriculture sector accelerated to 1.6 percent from 0.6 percent.

Palay output target stays

By Anna Leah E. Gonzales THE Agriculture Department said Wednesday it is maintaining its production target of 20.08 million metric tons of palay (unmilled rice) this year despite the damage caused

by El Niño.

“We are sticking to the target.

Historically, the biggest production losses in the rice sector caused by El Niño was 600,000 metric tons in 2009 to 2010,” said Agriculture Assistant Secretary for field operations and national rice program coordinator Edilberto de Luna.

De Luna made the statement after a source said the food security committee of the National Economic and Development Authority asked the national rice program to lower the target to 19.5 million metric tons due to the El Niño.

“We do not just revise the target.

We are working on it. If there are compelling reasons why we should revise it, they should give that to us.

But we are not revising the target,” de Luna said.

Data from DA showed El Niño already affected 25,086 hectares of rice, with 14,298 hectares having no chance of recovery. Production loss reached 72,109 metric tons valued at P 1.21 billion.

“We will do what we can to reach that target. We have high-yield technology program every wet season,” de Luna said.

Palay production in the first quarter of the year reached 4.37 million metric tons, up 1.41 percent from 4.30 million metric tons last year.

De Luna conceded although there might be a slight delay in planting during the second quarter due to the lack of water supply, the DA already had a catch-up plan.

“We have a catch-up plan. Whatever is not planted, whatever is the deficit in so far as area planted is concerned, we will have recovery in the third and fourth quarter,” de Luna said.

Quality rice. Trade Undersecretary Ponciano Manalo Jr.(second from left) inspects a rice variety with high grain quality at the Manila Gusto Gallery of the 10th International Food Exhibition (IFEX) Philippines on May 21, 2015 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. With him are (from left) Agriculture Assistant Secretary Divinio Catbagan, Senator Cynthia Villar, Agriculture Undersecretary Emerson Palad, Asean-Korea Center Secretary General Kim Young-sun and Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions Inc. executive director Rosario Virginia Gaetos.

No immediate plan to sell shares—Metro Pacific

By Jenniffer B. Austria CONGLOMERATE Metro Pacific Investments Corp. said it has no immediate plans to sell shares in order to raise funds even after it secured shareholders’ approval to issue shares out of the increase in the authorized capital stock to P40.05 billion.

Metro Pacific chief finance officer David Nicol in an interview the increase in the company’s capital base sought to provide the company with flexibility in case there was a need to raise capital in the future.

“This is more of a question of good housing keeping. To make sure we can do things in normal process. Nothing is fi-

nal,” Nicol said.

Shareholders of Metro Pacific in the annual stockholders’ meeting Friday approved an increase in the company’s authorized capital stock to P40.05 billion from P30.05 billion.

Shareholders also allowed the board of directors to issue shares out of the increase in the authorized capital stock or unissued capital stock of Metro Pacific to an investor the board may identify.

However, the shares to be issued should be common shares and not exceed 10 percent of the authorized capital stock.

“This limitation will apply until the next annual meeting of the stockholders or upon the expiration of the period within

which such annual meeting is government to officially required by law or under the award the CALAx project to company’s by-laws to be held, the company before finalizwhichever is earlier,” MPIC ing any deals.

Metro Pacific in February said.

After submitting the high- raised P8.9 billion through est bid for the Cavite Laguna a share sale and obtained Expressway project, Metro Pa- P25 billion in long term facific said it was looking at sev- cilities in April from three eral options to raise funds for banks, namely Bank of the Philippine Islands, Philipthe project.

They include raising as pine National Bank and BDO much as P30 billion in long Unibank Inc. term from local and foreign banks and getting a strategic partner for the project.

The conglomerate Mr. Eñano’s column said it would will resume next week. wait for the

B6

THURSDAY: JUNE 4, 2015

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

Gates funds research, but Alcala imports rice TWO recent news items, taken together, make for very sad and exceedingly frustrating reading.

The news items related to the industry that provides food, income and livelihood to a large percentage of the farmers of this country. I refer to the rice industry.

One of the news items was about the government’s rice supply management plan for 2015. Speaking for the Aquino administration, Secretary of Agriculture Proceso Alcala announced that the National Food Authority would be taking steps to import an additional 500,000 metric tons of rice during the rest of 2015.

The word ‘additional’ is indicative of the fact that authorizations have previously been given for imports intended to provide the nation with an adequate supply of rice, including an adequate buffer stock.

The 500,000 MT import authorization is the latest in a virtually unbroken line of rice imports stretching back to the 1950s.

The authorizations were given by rice industry regulatory bodies bearing the names National Marketing Corp., Rice and Corn Authority, National Grains Authority and the present National Food Authority. With the exception of a very brief period during the 1970s--mention must be made of the leadership of Secretary (later Minister) of Agriculture Arturo Tanco-rice imports have been virtually a part of the economic life of this country. Announcements of Department of Agriculture rice imports are expected as a matter of course, with import volumes as the only unknown factor in the equation.

Under certain conditions importing can make greater economic sense than producing domestically. But this is hardly the case in this country where rice is concerned. From virtually any standpoint--the percentage of the national population living in the rural areas, the levels of rural unemployment and underemployment, labor cost, land availability and fertility and the multiplier impact of domestic production on the rural sector--domestic production of rice is preferable to endlessly importing rice from Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan and other Asian countries. But, as every knowledgeable Filipino knows, “The fun(d) is in importing.”

Now for the companion news item that I spoke of earlier.

The world’s richest man, Bill Gates, came to this country recently with his wife Melinda and his children. It was a private, no-fuss visit by the chairman of Microsoft Corp.. The Gates group arrived in a private jet and stayed for about a week in the pricey, very private Amanpulo Resort in Northern Palawan.

Sun, sand and surf in Bill Gates’ mind. He had another, loftier purpose. He wanted to see for himself how things were going at the Gates Foundation-supported IRRI (International Rice Research Institute), which is the world’s premier rice research institution. Bill and Melinda Gates drove quietly to Los Banos and were given a grand tour of the facility by its executive director.

Bill Gates was shown and given a briefing on all the latest results of IRRI research, which, because of the abiding impact of climate change, is now focused on the effects of flooding, drought and soil erosion. The Microsoft chairman was reminded of how IRRI launched the Green Revolution with the IR-8 rice strain in the late 1960s. IR-8 was followed in due course by IR-24 and other ever-improving strains.

Apart from being exceedingly impressed, Bill and Melinda Gates must have left IRRI wondering why, with the famous research facility located in this country, the Philippines persists in being one of the top--in recent years the Number One--rice importers in the world.

Why, indeed, is this the case?

Whenever Proceso Alcala is asked to explain a fresh decision to import rice, the politician from Quezon invariably cites the vagaries of weather, pointing to typhoons, drought, flooding, etc. Yet the new rice strains that IRRI keeps producing are precisely intended to counteract and compensate for the vagaries of Nature and the deficiencies of the government.

Chief among these is the inadequacy of irrigation and farm-tomarket infrastructure.

And so I go back to the title of this column. Apparently Bill and Melinda Gates fund rice research so that Proceso Alcala can endlessly import rice.

How tragic.

E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com

QC economic update. Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista (extreme right) listens to discussions

in the recent Quezon City Business Summit, which had the theme ‘Quezon City Charging Ahead: Challenges and Opportunities.’ Bautista presented the city’s business and economic update, which included new and emerging avenues for growth in the city and multiple opportunities for public-private partnerships with the local government. With him (from left) are moderator Ateneo Graduate School of Business Dean Rodolfo Ang; Ateneo Law School professor Alberto Agra; Board of Investments director Angelica Cayas; Interior and Local Governmentdirector Ana Liza Bonagua; and ayala Land Inc. vice president Anna Margarita Dy Senior.

Robinsons Land sees P9.4-b profit

By Jenniffer B. Austria

ROBINSONS Land Corp., the property unit of the Gokongwei Group, aims to double net income to P9.4 billion by 2019 from P4.7 billion in 2014, as it expands its four core businesses, namely residential, shopping, hotels and office buildings.

Robinsons Land president Frederick Go said in an interview at the sidelines of the EJAP-ING Forum held at the Makati Shangri-la Hotel, Makati the company planned to build three to five malls annually.

“Our target is to double our net income from 2014 to 2019. That is our goal and we are all working towards that target,” Gokongwei said.

“We are expanding all our businesses, all our malls, all of office buildings, we are building more

hotels and residential projects. All the four businesses we have we are all growing,” Gokongwei added.

Other property companies like Ayala Land Inc., Megaworld Corp. and SM Prime Holdings Inc. earlier announced their respective five-year investment plans.

Ayala Land aims to increase net income to P40 billion by 2020, while SM Prime plans to double net profit and revenues over the next five years.

Meanwhile, Gokongwei said the company would remain fo-

cusing on buildings its recurring income businesses, especially shopping malls, hotels, and office developments.

About 50 percent to 80 percent of Robinsons Land’s net profit comes from the recurring income.

The company will also continue to launch residential projects, including the Westin Residences, a high-end residential project in the Ortigas business district, which is scheduled this year.

Robinsons Land in March announced it signed a contract with Starwood Group to open a hotel under the Westin brand in its Sonata complex property in Ortigas.

The hotel is expected to be operational by 2020.

Robinsons Land is currently the second largest mall operator in the country with 39 branches and a total gross leasable area of 1.08 million square meters.

Ahmed appointed PH country officer CITI has appointed Aftab Ahmed as country officer for the Philippines, effective July 15, 2015.

Ahmed replaces Batara Sianturi, who is moving to Citi Indonesia to serve as country head.

Ahmed will assume his new role upon regulatory approvals,and will be responsible for all Citi businesses across the franchise in the Philippines.

He will report to Michael Zink, head of Asean and Citi country officer for Singapore. This will be Ahmed’s third CCO and country head appointment in his nearly four-decade international career with Citi.

“The Philippines is an important market for Citi and we are pleased to welcome Aftab as the new country head. As a 39-year veteran Citibanker, he has vast experience in banking around the world and will play a critical role

AFTAB AHMED

in protecting and leading the Citi franchise in the Philippines. Aftab will also be a great addition to the Asean leadership team,” Zink said.

Ahmed is currently the CCO for Citi Hungary and concurrently region head for Hungary and the Balkan and Baltic Regions in Central and Eastern Europe. Prior to this, he was CCO for Citi Egypt.

He has worked for Citi in 10 countries across North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific. His broad breadth of experience covers multiple disciplines including business banking, corporate banking, correspondent banking, consumer banking, distribution, operation and technology and treasury.

Ahmed has held a number of senior roles at Citi on the country level, including consumer business manager for Pakistan, corporate bank head in New Zealand, and O&T head for Citibank in both Taiwan and Germany.

He has also held senior cluster and regional roles including director of retail branch expansion and operations for Citibank North America, consumer finance head for Asia Pacific, and consumer cluster head for Pakistan, Middle East and Egypt.

t H u r s D aY : J u n e 4 , 2 0 1 5

WORLD

cesar barrioquinto EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

B7

Battered Moscow diners return to Russian cuisine

Exchange of views. Australia’s Defence Minister Kevin Andrews reviews an honor guard during his visit to Japan’s Defense Ministry in Tokyo on June 3. Andrews is to exchange views with Japanese officials including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. AFP

Seoul tests missiles able to hit N. Korea SEOUL—South Korea on Wednesday test-fired two ballistic missiles capable of hitting any part of North Korea, in an apparent response to recent bellicose boasts from Pyongyang about its nuclear and missile capabilities.

In an unusual move, President Park Geun-Hye personally observed the test exercise, a defense ministry official said.

“The military tested two home-developed, long-range missiles that could hit any target in North Korea,” the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The test came almost a month after North Korea said it had successfully tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile—a

claim that many experts said was probably exaggerated.

A fully developed SLBM capability would take the North Korean nuclear threat to a new level, allowing deployment far beyond the Korean peninsula and giving it the potential to retaliate in the event of a nuclear attack.

As well as the SLBM test, Pyongyang recently boasted of its ability to miniaturize a nuclear warhead to fit on high-precision, long-range rockets.

Experts also questioned that claim, although there is a broad agreement that the North is moving ahead quickly with both its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

The type of South Korean missile tested Wednesday is capable of carrying a oneton payload up to 500 kilometers.

The missile was developed under an agreement reached in 2012 with the United States to almost triple the range of

the South’s ballistic missile systems.

A similar missile was previously tested in April 2014.

The United States stations 28,500 troops in South Korea and guarantees a nuclear “umbrella” in case of any atomic attack.

In return, Seoul accepts limits on its missile capabilities and had previously operated under a range and payload ceiling of 300 kilometers and 500 kilograms.

Given the ambitions of North Korea’s own missile program, the South had long argued for the limits to be extended.

The 2012 agreement, which was denounced as a provocation by Pyongyang, allows the South to deploy missiles with a maximum range of 800 kilometers.

While the maximum payload for that range remains 500 kilograms, the two parameters are inversely linked, so that for shorter ranges corresponding payload increases are allowed. AFP

ATTENTION: STOCKHOLDERS OF PHILIPPINE SEVEN CORPORATION (PSC)

Casualty. Rescue personnel wrap the body of a passenger who was

traveling on the capsized passenger ship Dongfangzhixing or “Eastern Star” in the Yangtze river at Jianli in China’s Hubei province on June 3. AFP

This is to inform everyone that the PSC’s 2nd Quarter Interim Unaudited Financial Statement with Management Discussion and Analysis (2nd Quarter Report) shall be available in the company website www.7-eleven.com.ph at least 5 calendar days before the Annual Stockholders’ Meeting scheduled on July 30, 2015. Upon request, a hard copy of the 2nd Quarter Report shall be provided free of charge as soon as available but not later than at least 5 days before July 30, 2015.

All request may be sent to: Mr. LAWRENCE M. DE LEON Head Finance & Accounting Services Philippine Seven Corporation 7th Floor, The Columbia Tower, Ortigas Avenue, Mandaluyong City,1550 Email Address: investor-relations@7-eleven.com.ph psc-corp@7-eleven.com.ph (TS-JUNE 4, 2015)

MOSC OW—Ginger pickles, soup with cabbage and porcini, and reindeer tartare: as economic troubles take a bite out of imported food, Russian restaurants are increasingly turning to local delicacies.

Gone is the era when Italian and French cuisine dominated Moscow’s high-class eateries. The economic crisis and import embargo keeps foie gras and Parmesan out of Russian kitchens, so new venues like Poyekhali (Let’s Go) are aiming to “tell their own story” through Russian food.

As casseroles sizzle in the kitchen of the restaurant, opened in October, manager Yelena Chekalova says the time has come to “use local products that are familiar to us, but to prepare them with techniques invented elsewhere.”

This fusion approach creates “Russian nouvelle cuisine,” the journalist-turned-restaurateur told AFP, and elevates ingredients often thought to be humdrum to new heights.

The culinary trend had a hesitant start a couple of years ago but is now burgeoning in the atmosphere of overt patriotism and the scarcity of many European foods due to the agricultural embargo Moscow imposed last year following Western sanctions over Ukraine.

It recently won official recognition when the prestigious list

“The World’s 50 Best Restaurants” gave 23rd place to the Moscow eatery of star chef Vladimir Mukhin, White Rabbit.

It praised him for “reimagining” Russian staples like beetroot soup, fried carp and buckwheat porridge, saying “chef Vladimir Mukhin claims to have borscht running in his veins”.

Many restaurants that relied on meat, cheese and fish imported from the West were forced to close while those that strived to source their ingredients from Russian regions are now more competitive despite the economic meltdown.

“We suffered less than others because the idea of our project was to work with produce that is 90 percent Russian,” Chekalova said. “But we’ve also suffered. Clearly when fewer products are supplied to the market, everything becomes more expensive.”

Poyekhali had to raise its prices by 10 percent, she said, and shed some popular dishes, such as the scallop risotto, which has become too expensive to prepare and was replaced by a dish of pearl barley with winkles.

As prices grew for both food and imported restaurant appliances following the crash of the ruble late last year, the sector has also suffered from the falling purchasing power of Russians who are opting to eat at home more often. AFP

NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC This is to inform the public that Geraldine I. Santillan is no longer connected with Cirrus Global, Inc. effective May 29, 2015.

All transactions entered into by abovementioned person for and on behalf of the Company after the said date shall no longer be honored by the Company. ( T S - J U N E 4 , 2 015 )

NOTICE This is to inform the public that the directors of InterAsia Outsource Inc. for year 2015 to 2016, are the following: 1.RAMON R. ATAYDE; 2.LOURDES Q. ROSALES; 3.DEOGRACIAS RAMON R. OLVINA, JR.; 4. RAFAEL J. COSME; and 5. LESLIE JOHN MAY. In accordance with law, the board of directors shall hold office for one (1) year until their successors are elected and qualified.

Leslie John May had been chosen as the 5th director of the Company, a position previously held by Raymond Ernest Crake .

Moreover, InterAsia Outsource Inc. wishes to inform the public that at its 2015 Organizational Board Meeting, the following appointments were made: 1. RAMON ATAYDE - Chairman of the Board 2. LOURDES ROSALES - President 3. ROSEMARIE MALATE NOBLEZA - Treasurer 4. MARICEL SISON - Corporate Secretary” ( T S - J U N E 4 , 2 015 )

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 5

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cESAR bARRioqUiNTo EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

world

Pot fans. Activists gather during a rally in support of marijuana legalization in central Tbilisi on June 2. AFP

World expansion forecast lowered PARIS—The OECD on Wednesday sharply lowered its global growth forecasts for 2015 and 2016, dragged down partly by a “transitory” shortfall in US performance and by businesses and governments skimping on investment.

“Global growth is projected to strengthen in the course of 2015 and 2016, but will remain modest relative to the pre-crisis period,” the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said.

It predicted the world economy would grow at a rate of 3.1 percent this year, down from the 4.0 percent increase it projected in March.

The growth forecast for next year has been revised downward half a percentage point, from 4.3 to 3.8 percent, with an expectation that the world economy “will strengthen gradually to approach its past (pre-crisis) average pace by late 2016.”

The OECD, a policy analysis body grouping 34 advanced economies, slashed its outlook for the

United States from 3.1 and 3.0 percent to 2.0 and 2.8 percent for this year and next.

The Paris-based think-tank said the stronger dollar and a brutal North American winter—which it said caused “transitory disruptions”—put a brake on growth in the first quarter of 2015, while predicting: “Activity should regain steam, with aggregate demand propelled by continued employment gains, wealth effects from rising asset prices, and the boost to purchasing power from lower oil prices.”

China, too, will grow more slowly than the OECD predicted in March, by two-tenths of a percentage point lower in both years, at 6.8 percent and 6.7 percent in 2015 and 2016.

“Consumption will remain robust” in China, where growth will also be spurred by stepped-up infrastructure investment, it said.

The OECD said that overall, “the economic recovery from the global financial and economic crisis that broke out in 2008 has been unusually weak.”

The knock-on effects have included continuing job insecurity, sluggish development in emerging economies and “rising inequality nearly everywhere”, the report said.

However, the OECD said it ex-

pected growth “to be shared more evenly across regions of the world” in the coming period.

Its outlook for the eurozone was unchanged for this year and slightly rosier for 2016, at 2.1 percent from 2.0 percent thanks to lower oil prices, the weak euro, better financial conditions and fresh stimulus spending.

But unemployment in the eurozone will remain stubborn, declining to a still painful 10.25 percent by the end of next year, the OECD said.

The report chided businesses and governments for what it called “tepid” investment.

“By and large, firms have been unwilling to spend on plant, equipment, technology and services as vigorously as they have done in previous cyclical recoveries,” it said.

“Moreover, many governments postponed infrastructure investments as part of fiscal consolidation,” it said, with negative effects on employment and wages and therefore consumption.

“On the supply side, sluggish investment has undermined the rate of growth of potential output – the capacity of economies to increase living standards, make good on future obligations to citizens, and repay debt,” the report said. AFP

Thai in trafficking case surrenders to police BANGKOK—A high-ranking Thai army officer wanted on human trafficking charges handed himself into police Wednesday, the first military figure in the junta-ruled kingdom to be arrested over the grim trade.

Lt. Gen. Manas Kongpan voluntarily attended police headquarters in Bangkok on Wednesday morning.

His detention raises awkward questions for junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha, who has repeatedly justified his coup last year as a muchneeded antidote to graft that he says had flourished under a series of elected civilian governments.

Manas, a long-serving army officer in Thailand’s south, arrived at police headquarters dressed in his military uniform and made no statement to a waiting press pack.

But the country’s top police officer said the 58-year-old denied the charges against him. “[He] contacted me to surrender and to fight the case,” national police chief Somyot Poompanmoung told reporters.

“He said he has no involvement in the case—in other words he denied the charges,” Somyot added.

Thai police have yet to detail what role Manas is alleged to have

played in the country’s once thriving people smuggling and human trafficking trade.

Rights groups have long accused Thai officials of turning a blind eye to—or even complicity in—the trade of migrants through its southern provinces and into Malaysia, but until now no military personnel have been implicated.

Thai police say they have issued 84 arrest warrants in connection with their people smuggling and human trafficking investigation, with 51 suspects detained so far, including some local officials.

Southern Thailand has long been known as a nexus for lucrative and largely unchecked smuggling networks through which persecuted Rohingya Muslims in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, and Bangladeshi economic migrants, amongst others, would pass on their way to Malaysia.

The extent of the trade—and the brutality of the gangmasters who ran it—was laid bare last month when a Thai crackdown led to the discovery of scores of jungle prison camps on both sides of the Thailand-Malaysia border that were run by smuggling gangs. AFP

Nestle noodles tested in growing lead scare NEW DELHI—India Wednesday tested packets nationwide of Nestle India’s instant noodles after high lead levels were found in batches in the country’s north amid a mounting food-safety scare, an official said.

Food and consumer affairs ministry official G. Gurucharan said test results so far showed higher than permissible lead levels in noodles on sale in New Delhi, warning of possible regulatory action against the company.

“Samples have been tested from all across the country. We are getting the results one by one,” Gurucharan, an additional secretary in the ministry, told AFP. “For example, tests in Delhi showed that 10 out of 13 samples contained lead beyond the permissible limits. Once we have all the results, Nestle India will be given an opportunity to explain.”

Stocks of Nestle India dropped more than 10 percent in early trade

Wednesday on the Bombay Stock Exchange before regaining some ground on the growing controversy.

The findings in Delhi come after inspectors in northern Uttar Pradesh state said last week they found high lead levels in two dozen Maggi noodle packets during routine testing.

The state’s food inspectors filed a criminal complaint against Nestle India, a subsidiary of Swiss-based giant Nestle, at the weekend, while a separate petition was filed against Bollywood stars who have advertised the noodles.

Instant noodles have long been hugely popular in India, with Nestle a market leader.

Nestle India this week rejected the test results in Uttar Pradesh, saying analysis conducted in its own laboratory of almost 1,000 batches and independent tests on a further 600 batches showed them safe to eat. AFP

Under a cloud. A woman walks past a billboard advertising the Banco Privada d’Andorra in Andorra la Vella on May 12, 2015. The US Treasury has accused Banca Privada d’Andorra of facilitating transactions on behalf of third–party money launderers. AFP

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 0 4 : 2 0 1 5

BING PAREL A S S O C I AT E E D I T O R

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

LIFE

LIFE WITH THE GENERAL Beth Day Romulo pens her memoir In what she says is the last book she will write, Beth Day Romulo shares her extraordinary story in a biography entitled “The Writer, the Lover and the Diplomat.”

Co-authored by award-winning broadcast journalist David F. Hyatt, the book gives a close and personal account of Romulo’s childhood years in Oklahoma, her successful writing career that spans almost six decades and her colorful life as the wife of General Carlos P. Romulo.

The book’s title also serves as a tribute to the quintessential Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier, author and journalist – a man of small physical stature but with accomplishments that can be described as larger than life – whose enduring romance with Beth until his death in 1985 at the age of 87 is well recorded.

“What strikes me most is her resilient journey from crushing

heartbreak at a very young age to a purposeful life full of international travel, romance and adventure,” Hyatt says, admitting that her story reads like a movie script.

In the book, one will find nuggets of wisdom as Beth recalls anecdotes that are sometimes witty, sometimes gloomy, but always heartwarming.

“Recently, after I had finished reading and checking this manuscript, I picked up several chapters at random, and read them again, and found myself laughing out loud. I hope my readers also find things to laugh about in this ‘tell it like it was’ memoir of my life,” the 91-year-old author discloses.

Published by Anvil Publishing, “The Writer, the Lover and the Diplomat” is now available in National Bookstore and Powerbooks, and online at www.anvilpublishing.com.

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THURSDAY : J UNE 04 : 2015

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LIFE glweekend @ gmail.com

C U LT U R E

CELEBRATING INDEPENDENCE Ode to the flag

THIS MONTH AT AYALA MUSEUM

National Artist for Visual Arts Benedicto “BenCab” Cabrera continues his celebration of his 50 years as an artist via his exhibition Ode to the Flag that runs until August 2 at the BenCab Museum in Baguio City.

Throughout history, flags, banners, pennants and insignia have identified armies, personalities and nations in times of war and peace. The Philippine flag has likewise evolved, from the establishment of the Katipunan, the revolutions against Spain and the United States that followed, and the years thereafter.

In Ode to the Flag, BenCab returns to the same revolution and flag – draped, wrapped and displayed with the likes of Andres Bonifacio, remembered for instigating the war of independence, as well as other personalities. In many of the works, the flag is draped on anonymous human forms, suggesting the countless, nameless Filipinos who fought for freedom.

After more than a century since the revolution against colonial powers, and almost 70 years since independence, BenCab’s Ode to the Flag suggests that the fight is not yet over and that our flag does not fly in skies that are truly free.

Also on view at BenCab Museum’s Print Gallery is World War II Soldiers in the Philippines that feature prints by Dan Dizon. On view until June 30, the 27 works are signed, limited edition prints of the original watercolors executed by the artist in the 1990s, from his childhood recollection of the war.

Dan Dizon was a precocious and observant child who experienced the ravages of war in his native Pampanga. Born in 1930, Dizon’s artistic talent was nurtured at a very young age by his father, art professor Vicente Alvarez Dizon. Through his young life, Dan was inspired by his father’s art and patriotism.

During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, some Japanese officers noticed Dan’s artistic talent and supplied him with art materials to encourage his artistic talent. The officers also posed for the young man in their crisp uniforms and shiny firearms. Dan discovered he could also draw detailed military equipment and vehicles from memory.

Dan Dizon is a graduate of the University of the Philippines’ College of Fine Arts, where he was a consistent university scholar. He lives and works in Angeles City, Pampanga.

BenCab Museum is on Km. 6 Asin Road, Tuba, Metro Baguio, and is open daily except Mondays, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day, from 9 am to 6 pm. For more details, call tel. (074) 4427165 or 0920-5301954; email bencabartfoundation@ gmail.com; or visit www.bencabmuseum.org.

BENILDE HOLDS ANIMATION FESTIVAL

TOYM IMAO

Last, Lost, Lust for Four Forgotten Episodes

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The Benilde Animation Festival (BAF) 2015 recognized twentyone of this year’s most outstanding thesis films by Benilde Animation students, with Manang (left) winning the Overall Champion, Best Animation and Best Story. Created

by Vince Serrano, Manang tells the story of a boy trying to escape from a manananggal. Bamboo (right) by partners Guenever Gomendoza and Angelica Duka, on the other hand, bagged the competition’s Best Design award. It narrates the challenges encountered by a panda to get a mystical bamboo tree.

yala Museum is going beyond the walls of its galleries to launch OpenSpace, the new outdoor exhibition area at the Museum Plaza. Ayala Museum senior curator Ditas Samson describes OpenSpace as “a public site for dialogue and interaction with contemporary art and artists.”

To launch OpenSpace, Ayala Museum invited celebrated artist and sculptor Toym Imao to display Last, Lost, Lust for Four Forgotten Episodes; a carroza-like art installation inspired by his childhood love for Japanese animation and memory of the Martial Law years, the artist having been born in 1968.

During the 1970s, few viewing options were available with only five broadcast channels to choose from. At the time, Toym and his siblings were avid fans of weekly Japanese cartoons, the super robot series Voltes V and Mazinger Z. However, with only four episodes left before the finale of Voltes V, the cartoons were banned from broadcast due to the alleged “excessive violence,” leaving its young fans devastated and distraught.

Now, almost four decades later, Toym used that initial sting of anger to create this installation work that was

born out of the artist’s childhood memory and experience, shaped and formed with academic training in architecture and fine arts, harnessed with the rigor of professional practice, and inspired by the heroes and ideals of history, and the character and gravitas of public art.

Toym Imao is a multi-media visual artist. He is a sculptor (brass, bronze and wood), painter, writer and filmmaker.

He first trained in the arts under Philippine National Artists for the Visual Arts Napoleon V. Abueva and Abdulmari Asia Imao (his father.) His formal training came from the University of the Philippines (Architecture) and Maryland Institute College of Art (Sculpture). He studied film under premier Philippine director Marilou Diaz-Abaya. He credits his mentor National Artist for Literature Alejandro R. Roces for his passion for Philippine history and culture.

Last, Lost, Lust for Four Forgotten Episodes is supported

by Ayala Corporation, Ayala Land, Inc., Ayala Foundation, Inc., Ayala Center Estate Association, and LG Electronics Philippines. The exhibit will run until June 15.

For inquiries, call 759-8288 or email hello@ayalamuseum.org.

THURSDAY : J UNE 04 : 2015

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EXHIBIT TALK

Yuchengco Museum presents Emilio Aguinaldo

NOMADIC ART MILF incites debate

A nomadic curatorial platform and art hub that has its roots in Dumaguete, Negros Oriental is inciting debates and lively discussion on different genres of contemporary art. Called the Moving Image Lab Filipinas (MILF) project, this independent art initiative aims to bridge the gap between the academic and cultural environments starting in Dumaguete where two art schools exist. However, the only available spaces where artists can showcase their work is on the wall of two restaurants in the coastal city.

MILF exists to provide another platform where art can be explored, free from the constraints of the academic atmosphere and without the constrictive elements of a restaurant setting. One of its goals is to create relationships with artists, curators, galleries, other art spaces and institutions nationally, within the Southeast region and also in the Spanish speaking countries.

As a curatorial platform, the idea is to experiment with different modes of engagement outside the white space of a gallery or museum space and create exhibits that challenge the public’s perception of “exhibition space.”

As an art initiative, MILF doesn’t function as a specific space, but a permeable idea that informally creates activities in different available spaces in Dumaguete. The MILF

team is composed of Filipino-Spanish artist Kristoffer Ardeña and a group of young people from different parts of the country with divergent educational backgrounds not only in art, but also in business, IT and other fields.

“In Dumaguete, we experiment with the idea of the artist not as a consecrated individual but as an intrinsic part of a creative process. Our first exhibit was with nationally known artist Gaston Damag where we constructed sculptures and installations without him knowing it. When he arrived, he did a show that was in fact a workshop and the public became collaborators with him. The idea is not to look for strategies but listen to the needs of the situation at hand,” MILF states.

MILF fits in the community because it collaborates with different kinds of people and does cannot impose a typical art system structure because it would alienate the community. This is what makes the moving lab permeable, seeping into different modes of engagement within the local level but maintaining a critical framework in which contemporary art can be experienced. Aside from exhibitions, the group also sets up art workshops and informal discussion groups.

Check out https://www.facebook.com/dotheMILF/timeline.

Former National Library director and National Historical Executive director Dr. Serafin Quiason will present a lecture on the country’s first president, General Emilio Aguinaldo, on June 6 from 10 am to 12 noon at the Yuchengco Museum in Makati.

Filipino leader Emilio Aguinaldo (1869 - 1964) led his country to achieve independence after fighting off both the Spanish and the Americans, and was elected the first president of the new republic under the Malolos Congress. The United States refused to recognize Aguinaldo’s authority, and so he declared the Philippine-American War on the US forces in the country.

A Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) Awardee for History, Quiason graduated cum laude with an undergraduate degree in History at the University of the Philippines, and has a masteral degree and doctorate degree in Far East History and History from the University of Pennsylvania.

Exhibit talks come free with admission. (P100 for adults, P50 for students, P25 for children and seniors.) Free for Philippine Map Collectors Society (PHIMCOS) members. The Yuchengco Museum is located at the RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Senator Gil Puyat Avenues, Makati City. For more information, check out https:// www.facebook.com/yuchengcomuseum.

A HILARIOUS HOMAGE TO THE ‘80S

BY ED BIADO Step aside, ‘90s nostalgia, because it’s time for the 1980s to shine.

With almost eight million YouTube views in just under three days, the Kickstarterfunded short film Kung Fury, uploaded May 28, might just be the biggest throwback hit of the season. Kung Fury is the brainchild of director and writer David Sandberg, who also stars as the movie’s titular protagonist.

Sandberg is identified as a Swedish filmmaker whose credits include TV commercials and music videos.

Described as an over-the-top ‘80s action comedy, the short is an homage to the decade, complete with characteristics typical of the era: boom boxes, arcade games, VHS and all the adorably tacky fashion. These are all wrapped up in an outrageously humorous and fantastical plot. Don’t be surprised to see kung fu Nazis, time travel, robots, Vikings and the Norse god Thor along the way.

A summary from the movie’s website reads, “Miami Police Department detective and martial artist Kung Fury time travels from the 1980s to World War II to kill Adolf Hitler, a.k.a. ‘Kung Führer,’ and revenge his friend’s death at the hands of the Nazi leader. An error in the time machine sends him further back to the Viking Age.” The Telegraph calls it “deranged” while Vulture hails it as “the best ‘80s action movie of 2015.”

Kung Fury would have been rewritten into a fulllength feature film if it was able to reach $1 million in

funding. On Kickstarter, the project received $630,019 from 17,713 backers, more than triple its $200,000 initial goal. The money went into producing the 30-minute short, which required a lot of post-production and special effects – and they’re quite good and really reminiscent of ‘80s action classics, if this writer may add.

The film’s theme, “True Survivor,” was performed by “‘80s icon” David Hasselhoff, who also voiced the Hoff

9000 talking car. The music video for the song has been viewed over 12 million times on YouTube.

Kung Fury premiered on May 22 at the Directors’ Fortnight, an independent section of the Cannes Film Festival. You can watch it online for free (legally) right here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P_LAqiVg. You can also buy your own copy of the movie for $5 from www.kungfury.com.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 0 4 : 2 0 1 5

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

NOW SHOWING

SCAN THE ICON TO CONNECT TO SURESEATS.COM AND CLICK THE CITY

A GUIDE TO WHAT’S ON AT THE CINEMAS THIS WEEK

DARK POSSESSION

SPY

A suspense thriller about 17-year-old Daniel Austin (Keir Gilchrist) who is put on house arrest for the summer because of his obsessive online stalking of his classmate and crush Mona Wilson (Grace Phipps).

Stuck and alone at home, Daniel figures out a way to go online and check in on his friends and Mona, who suddenly commits suicide with him watching.

R13 An American action comedy about Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy), a deskbound CIA analyst, who, when her partner Bradley Fine (Jude Law) falls of the grid and top agent Rick Ford (Jason Statham) is compromised, volunteers to go deep undercover to infiltrate the world of deadly arms dealer Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne).

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STARS VERSUS ME

Spy

DRAGON BALL Z: RESSURECTION F

PG Elena (Maris Racal), who grew up with a mother who is a devout believer in the power of the stars, lives her life according to the forecast for her horoscope. She then meets Sonny (Manolo Pedrosa), a happy-go-lucky guy whom she instantly likes, but a visit to a fortuneteller rocks their happy courtship when Elena discovers a deep, dark secret that changes her and Sonny’s lives.

PG The surviving army of Frieza (Ryusei Nakao), led by an alien named Sorbet (Shiro Saito), sets off to Earth to collect the Dragon Balls with and aim of reviving their master. Once resurrected, Frieza subsequently seeks revenge on Son Goku (Masako Nozawa) and his friends.

ESPESYAL KOPOL

SWORD OF VENGEANCE

R13 An indie comedy film about the adventures and misadventures of a gay (Pooh) and lesbian (K Brosas) who are pretending to be a married couple while trying to earn a living and have a normal life in the city.

Stars Versus Me

INSIDIOUS

PG This third installment in the Insidious film series follows the events before the haunting of the Lambert family. The prequel reveals how gifted psychic Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) uses her ability to contact the dead in order to help Quinn Brenner (Stefanie Scott) who has been targeted by a dangerous supernatural entity.

JURASSIC WORLD

PG Twenty-two years after the events of the first Jurassic Park film, Isla Nubar now features a fully functioning dinosaur theme park as envisioned by John Hammond. Ten years in operation, the Jurassic World sees a decline in visitor rates so the corporation requests the park’s geneticists to create a hybrid dinosaur to boost attendance. However, their plan backfires horribly when the hybrid, known as Indominus rex, escapes.

THE AGE OF ADALINE

Espesyal Kopol

Sword of Vengeance

Insidious 3

R16 A black comedy drama about the likeable and upbeat man Jerry Hickfang (Ryan Reynolds) who experiences severe hallucinations everyday. With the help of his court-appointed psychiatrist, Jerry pursues his office crush Fiona (Gemma Arterton), but when she stands him up for a date, the voices he hears in his head lead him into a murderous path.

Jurrasic World

R13 A fallen commander of an elite army, Raiden (Clive Owen) rises, after a year of drinking and neglecting his duties, against corrupt and sadistic ruler Geza Mott (Aksel Hennie) to avenge his dishonored master, Bartok (Morgan Freeman).

TOMORROWLAND

PG A Brad Bird science fiction mystery adventure that follows former boy-genius Frank Walker (George Clooney) and bright, optimistic teen Casey Newton (Britt Robertson) as they embark on a dangerous mission to unearth the secrets of a mysterious place somewhere in time and space known as “Tomorrowland.”

OUTCASTS

R16 An American-Chinese-Canadian action film about the heir to the Imperial throne and his sister who team up with war weary Crusader Jacob (Hayden Christensen) and legendary Crusaderturned-bandit Gallain (Nicolas Cage) to defeat their evil older brother (Andy On), who kills their father and seeks for their deaths, and return the younger prince to his rightful place on the throne.

In the aftermath of the devastating magnitude 9 earthquake in California, Los Angeles search and rescue helicopter pilot Chief Ray Gaines (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) and his ex-wife Emma (Carla Gugino) embark on a treacherous journey to San Francisco to find and rescue their estranged daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario).

PG After figuring in a car accident and being struck by lightning, Adaline Bowman (Blake Lively) suffers an inexplicable condition in which she remains 29 years old forever. Now at 107, Adaline lives a solitary existence away from anyone who might reveal her secret. Her plan to live on a farm in Oregon suddenly changes when she meets the charismatic philanthropist Ellis Jones (Michiel Huisman) who reignites her passion for life and romance, in the process reuniting her with William (Harrison Ford) her former lover who happens to be Ellis’ father.

THE VOICES

LAST KNIGHTS

SAN ANDREAS

R16 Norman prince Shadow Walker (Stanley Weber), who is freed from slavery, rallies a large band of exiled rebel farmers led by Anna (Annabelle Wallis) to exact vengeance on his ruthless uncle Earl Durant (Karl Roden) who is responsible for killing his father.

YOU’RE STILL THE ONE

Outcasts Tomorrowland

PG

San Andreas

You’re Still the Only One

PG A love story that spans 15 years, the film tells the romantic affair that always happens at the wrong time between Jojo (Dennis Trillo) and Elise (Maja Salvador), who starts as young lovers but eventually drifts apart. Years later and more wiser, the two meet when Elise is ready for a commitment only to find out Jojo is about to get married.

COMPILED BY BERNADETTE LUNAS

T HUR S DAY : J UNE 4 : 2015

SHOWBITZ isahred @ gmail.com

Hana Shampoo, Darling of the Press and Best in Resorts Wear.

Included in the Magic circle of 5 are Chanel Olive Thomas, Miss Philippines-Air; Catherine Joy Marin, Miss Philippines-Water; Carla Angela Valderrama, Miss Philippines-Fire; and Jona Sweett, Miss Phillippines-Eco Tourism. Thomas, former girlfriend of actor Jake Cuenca, also won the Best in Swimsuit and Miss Friendship awards. Marin won Miss SM Markets with Alyanna Mikaela Cagandahan the Miss Photogenic award, Maria Loraine Macay Grengia, Best in Eco-Video, and Paris Silva, Best in Cultural Attire, designed by Chico Estiva, which will be the national costume of Ong at the Miss Earth Robi Domingo, Karla Henry and Ginger Conejero hosted the pageant.

Members of the board of jurors were National Artist Brass sculptor Michael Cacnio, Diamond Hotel manager George Reynoso III, President of Spouses of Heads of Mission Agnes Ventura Roscigno, German Ambassador to the Philippines Thomas Ossowski; Peerless Products VP Jasper Tiu; SM Hypermarket Senior VP Arnold Daluz, Tacloban ‘First Lady’ Cristina Gonzales-Romualdez and Carousel Productions Executive VP and Miss Earth founder Lorraine Schuck.

TEXT AND PHOTOS

BY ETON B. CONCEPCION

EDITOR

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Jamie Herrell, Miss PhilippinesEarth 2014, places crown on Angelia Ong, winner of Miss Philippines- Earth 2015 while Miss Earth founder Lorraine Schuck hugs Miss Philippines-Air Chanel Olive Thomas

ANGELIA ONG IS MISS PHILIPPINES EARTH 2015 A nswering that she has nothing against same sex marriage, Angelia Gabrena Ong won over 37 other candidates from around the country the Miss Philippines Earth 2015 title on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. A graduating student in Marketing at College of St. Benilde, the 24-year-old was crowned by Jamie Herrell, Miss Earth 2014. Ong will compete in Miss Earth 2015 later this year.

Zsa Zsa Padilla asked her during the question-and answer portion of the pageant “if she believed in same sex marriage, why or why not?”

Ong answered, “I think, it really depends on the person if he or she believes in same sex marriage but for me, if the person feels that he or she needs to be married to show his or her love, then I don’t mind having same sex marriage. If you feel that that is love, then so be it,” Ong replied without batting an eyelash. Later she said she had no idea being asked the question and was expecting about the environment.

Ong isfrom Iloilo City and was third runner in Miss Manila 2014. She was also the ‘Face of Bb. Pilipinas’ or Miss Photogenic in 2011 at the time Shamcey Supsup won the Bb. Pilipinas-International title.

She was widely tipped to win the 15th edition of Miss Philippines Earth pageant and won several special awards including Miss

ISAH V. RED

I think, it really depends on the person if he or she believes in same sex marriage but for me, if the person feels that he or she needs to be married to show his or her love, then I don’t mind having same sex marriage. If you feel that that is love, then so be it, – Angelia Ong, Miss Philippines-Earth 2015

WORLD’S EXCITING CITIES ON FYI

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Courtney Poulos hosts My City's Just Not That Into Me

John Catucci in You Gotta Eat

ifestyle channel FYI is cooking up another prime TV viewing month with two new shows geared to take viewers on exciting journeys – from locales to find the best food and different cities in search of the best homes, this June.

Beginning June 11 at 8 p.m., join foodie comedian John Catucci in delicious adventures in Canada for the best comfort food in You Gotta Eat Here.

From neighborhood joints to renowned favorites, John goes on a cross-country hunt for the most drool-worthy dishes. Watch as he even takes part in cooking some of the culinary hits in half-hour episodes that will have you craving for Canada’s unique, delectable eats.

From Canada, to the United States, FYI’s latest offering will get you into the excitement of choosing a different city where you can fall in love with, and stretch your finances, giving you the lifestyle you’ve always

dreamed of. Leaving something you love because it’s not working out is always a tough decision – and that applies to real estate as much as it does in matters of the heart. Often overlooked, real estate is a big issue, just like finding the perfect partner!

See how home seekers deal with being priced out of their beloved cities in My City’s Just Not That Into Me, and eventually finding another perfect city match to call home.

Beginning June 24 at 9 p.m., follow LA-based real estate expert Courtney Poulos help home seekers find a new home as they choose from two different cities with varying real estate options that will fit their lifestyle and budget.

So cozy up and prep yourself as you explore different cities at the comfort of your homes with new shows coming this month, only on FYI. FYI™ is available on Cablelink Ch 44, Dream Satellite TV Ch 21, SKYCable SD Ch 79, and SKYCable HD Ch 200.

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SHOWBITZ isahred @ gmail.com

ROBI DOMINGO DENIES RUMORS GIRLFRIEND IS PREGNANT GLEN REGONDOLA Will TV host Robi Domingo be a father soon? There are rumors her girlfriend of two years, Ateneo volleyball player and TV host Gretchen Ho, is loaded.

At the birthday celebration of colleague on May 30, Robi was a guest. So, we asked him about the rumors and he vehemently denied it.

“I can tell you, that’s impossible!” he said. “Gretchen even said that only a Divine intervention can make that rumor real, ‘cause it’s really impossible. We respect the sanctity of marriage, and all the features that are involved in it. Gretchen is a devout Catholic, and remember, she’s Chinese.”

The 25-year-old TV host asserted, though, that he proposed to Gretchen.

“We were feeling the pressure already, “he said. “Honestly, we once talked about it.

I asked her, ‘Will you marry me?’ But, she said, ‘No, we’re not yet ready.’ So, I know we have yet a long way to go to even think of having a family. She has promising career, dreams to fulfill, and so do I.” Their relationship is stable, as he puts it, but there are times when his girlfriend is jealous of his workload, and some personal activities.

Robi has been very busy hosting events and shows.

He told us, “Yes, sometimes my work gets in the way of our relationship. She tells me, ‘Work ka na lang nang work, wala ka nang time sa akin.’ But, I explain to her that what I’m doing

now is for a stable future.

Then, she just keeps quiet and I know she understand what I’m trying to drive at.”

Robi hosted the Miss Philippines Earth and, again, will co-host with Toni Gonzaga in the upcoming reality show, Pinoy Big Brother.

HHHHH WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR THE GOLDEN VOICE AGAIN? Wait until Superstar Nora Aunor goes through surgery originally scheduled on July 17 and reset on Aug. 16 in the USA this year.

The multi-awarded actress is determined to go through the throat surgery.

“I really miss singing and I’m looking forward to be able to do it once more, “ she said in the vernacular.

During the contract signing for her new film, Kabi-

MUSIC AND MERRYMAKING INTENSIFY IN MAY

A performer working up the crowd at eh Music Evolution Manila performance

CROSSWORD PUZZLE 46 48 51 52 54 59 60 62 63 64 65 66 67 68

ANSWER FOR PREVIOUS PUZZLE ACROSS 1 Fainthearted 6 Part of CD 10 “Hawkeye” Pierce 14 Coach — Rockne 15 Hound’s trail 16 Mind 17 Two quartets 18 Stoic founder 19 1917 abdicator 20 Amber-colored wine 22 Tough-guy trait 24 — Wiedersehen

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Horned beasts Use again Turtle-to-be Like a good sentry Value Put money on Monsieur’s son Yields, as territory Kind of pool Edge a doily Lyrics Open-air lobbies Soulmate

Has in view Spa amenities Wrench target Relax, as a fist Mississippi port Type of food Lectern’s place King or queen Indulge, plus Jazzy Fitzgerald Ms. Verdugo Parroted Off. statements Lazy server?

DOWN 1 Bout enders 2 Rainfall measure 3 Speechless 4 Centurion’s highway 5 Speak badly of 6 Baker’s meas.

7 Footnote note 8 Whale finder 9 Makes an afghan 10 Drama class 11 Wild-horse stopper 12 Tots of whiskey 13 Space lead-in 21 “The King and I” king 23 Weather system 25 Not as many

THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 2015

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“Kon-Tiki” craft Film director — Kazan Stonehenge builder Time divs.

Funny-peculiar Pine product Capital near Zurich Writer — Bagnold Drinks with scones Sieve Onetime telecom giant Dwindle Gets dressed Tugged Essence Meddle Sudden Cut too short Egg-grading org.

Sword part Humdinger Fiesta cheers TV’s “Warrior Princess” Tehran’s locale Stockholm carrier

sera, at Victorino’s in Quezon City on May 30, Aunor revealed that she’d want to perform in a concert this year if and when the surgery would be successful and regain her singing voice.

She says, “I really want to sing. I miss it so much, and that’s what I really love to do. I got so serious with acting soon after I lost my voice. I had always been serious in the acting business.

Singing is my first love, and acting, is my second love. I tried singing even at home but nothing comes out of it. Aside from being monotone, it’s really out of tune, and I really wanted to cry.”

Meanwhile, Aunor has been hailed as “Grand Dame of Asian Cinema.” She is excited to be working with a young and uprising director like Florido Real who will

T

direct him in Kabisera.

Real is known for the Cinemalaya Filmfest entry, 1st Ko Si 3rd, which is doings the rounds of various international film festival.

“One thing about being excited to work with a young director, I am comfortable to tell him what I really want to do in a scene- the blocking in all, “ she reveals. “They listen and I’m more open to them. Unlike with a veteran with whom I still have this fear to express myself. I’m really amused how directors are getting younger and younger today, but this is a welcome change.”

Then she says “I don’t feel I’m getting old, I only feel much younger with this young generation of directors and producers.

They are easy to work and deal with. They have a dif-

he Tourism Promotions Board intensified its Visit the Philippines Year 2015 campaign this May with concerts and performances from the hottest local and international artists. The musical vibrancy and fun-loving spirit of the Filipinos gave tourists more reasons why it is definitely more fun in the Philippines.

The month began on a high note as international pop stars VIXX, Backstreet Boys, Katy Perry, Owl City, Peabo Bryson, Boyzone, and Michael Bolton performed at major concert venues in Metro Manila.

The main attraction of May was the biggest hip-hop event in the country.

The MTV Music Evolution Manila Hip Hop 2015 dropped an ‘eargasmic’ beat as thousands of hip-hop fans filled Quirino Grandstand to catch iconic international and local hip hop artists, including Grammy award-winning group Naughty

by Nature, Apl.de.ap, Gloc-9, Abra, YG and DJ Cash Money. Recorded live for global telecast in 160 countries, the con-

Nora Aunor raring to sing again

Robi Domingo and Gretchen Ho

ferent approach in storytelling, how the scenes will go about, and I think, they are brave and experimental.”

Kabisera is intended for the 2015 Metro Manila Film Festival under RJ Agustin’s Firestar Productions, the same outfit which produced the Nova Villa-Freddie Webb movie.

cert showcased the evolution of hip hop music through the years.

Reggae fans also jammed to the music of Bob Marley and other reggae artists in the Bob Marley Music Festival at Greenfield District, while those who love R&B, electronic and alternative music joined Robin Thicke, Tritonal and Pinoy local bands, such as Pupil and Rivermaya, in the Dream Fields Music Festival at the Vista Concert Grounds.

Clubbers and party people were treated to electrifying night parties as international DJs R3hab, Knife Party, Cedric Gervais, JUSTICE, and Swanky Tunes came to perform in Manila’s hottest bars and nightclubs.

With some of the top-selling artists performing across the country, May was undeniably the smokin’ month for party goers and music lovers from all over the globe to visit the Philippines.

For more exciting events that are happening in the country this year, head to www. visitph2015.com.

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SHOWBITZ isahred @ gmail.com

BARBIE FORTEZA HAPPY AND PROUD OF ‘THE HALF SISTERS’

Barbie Forteza says she's happy with The Half Sisters' success

From C8

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apuso teen star Barbie Forteza believes that the unique story of The Half Sisters is the secret behind the continued success of the program.

“Number one, yung story talaga. Since day one, naintriga ang mga tao. Talaga bang may ganitong rare case (hetero-paternal superfecundation)? Hanggang sa nakaka-relate na yung mga tao sa istorya ng pamilya, story ng teenagers na may puppy love, etc. Kaya pampamilya talaga yung show,” Barbie shares.

She plays Diana in the GMA Afternoon Prime series. She also considers the good working relationship of the whole team on and off cam as the winning formula that has made the series the no. 1 daytime show nationwide.

Barbie also says that she is very close with Thea Tolentino who plays Ashley, her conceited twin sister in the series, “Okay na okay kami. Gusto ko siya kasi totoo siyang tao. Hindi siya plastic at maarte. Sinasabi niya yung gusto niya, prangka siya pero hindi bastos. Click kami kasi gusto ko yung puede akong magsabi na alam kong hindi niya ako paplastikin.”

Apart from Barbie and Thea, The Half Sisters also stars Jomari Yllana, Jean Garcia, Eula Valdes, Andre Paras, Mel Martinez, Vaness del Moral, Wyn Marquez, and Ryan Eigenmann.

Barbie is nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category in the 38th Gawad Urian for her performance in Mariquina.

HHHHH BO SANCHEZ ‘S NEW BOOK Lay preacher and author of over 40 inspirational books, Bo Sanchez launched a new book, How to Deal with Horror Parents, Mon-

ster Kids, and Freaky Siblings.

In the first chapter of the book, Sanchez talks about “haunted families” — not by ghosts but by past mistakes, failures and pains. Bo says that many parents are haunted by the horrible way they were raised so they eventually repeat the same parenting mistakes to their kids. Then children can become rude and rebellious, and weird siblings just add up to the difficult situation.

The book is divided into four sections: Section 1- How to Deal with Horror Parents; Section 2- How to Deal with Monster Kids; Section 3- How to Deal with Freaky Siblings; Section 4- How to Help Your Loved Ones Change, Grow and Love. Bo talks about how parents become ghosts, zombies, vampires and werewolves — with recommendations on how to stop this cycle.

Horror parents eventually raise up kids who can become horror parents in the future.

In parenting, Bo shares how parenting is a “journey of letting go” and the hats parents should wear at particular stages of their children’s lives. When it comes to sibling relationships, Bo says sacrifice is the key. Someone has to take the smaller pizza. The one who sacrifices automatically becomes the peacemaker.

Bo Sanchez's book

20TH FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL This year, the French Film Festival celebrates its 20th year of bringing critically acclaimed films and blockbusters to local audiences. The festival aims to promote French culture and, at the same time, support the local film industry by screening and paying tribute to classic and contemporary Philippine films.

The French Film Festival will run until June 9 at the Greenbelt 3 cinemas in Makati City and at the Bonifacio High Street cinemas in Taguig. Similar to last year, tickets for each screening are priced at P100 pesos to cover the operational costs of the cinema. Tickets are available at the box office or through www.sureseats.com.

To commemorate the two-decade run of the French Film Festival, two films will be screened at Greenbelt 3 Cinema 1 before and after the red carpet opening ceremonies on June 3 at Greenbelt 5 Fashion Walk. The open-

Taklub's poster

ing French film, La Famille Bélier (The Bélier Family), tells the story of a provincial deaf-mute family that must deal with the desire of their daughter to study music in Paris. On the same night, Taklub, Brillante Mendoza’s latest film and the only Philippine entry to the Un Certain Regard section of the 2015 Cannes Film

The Belier Family

Festival, will be premiering after the festival’s red carpet opening ceremonies.

The French Film Festival, however, is not only about promoting French cinema in the Philippines. For years, the French government, through its embassy, has assisted local filmmakers in bringing their

films to France and has supported initiatives to preserve Philippine film heritage.

Pepe Diokno, with his film Above the Clouds, is the first recipient of the World Cinema Fund granted by the France’s Ministry of Culture and Communication, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development, and Institut Français. This fund seeks to provide funding for joint French and Filipino co-productions.

Moreover, the Centre National du Cinéma et de l’Image Animée (CNC) signed a cooperation agreement with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) to facilitate the establishment of a National Film Archives for the conservation of Philippine film heritage.

The 20th French Film Festival is organized by the Embassy of France to the Philippines, Institut Français, the Alliance française de Manille and Cebu.

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME CHRIS BROWN? Grammy-nominated, multi-Platinum selling recording artist and headline-grabbing Chris Brown will be at The Mall of Asia Arena on July 21. Brown is expected to perform all his Billboard chart-toppers, and then some.

Chris Brown continues to make headlines, and for some, the wrong reasons.

But Chris Breezy isn’t about his past. Ready to take the house down with his greatest-hits set list, Brown is also here to promote X, his sixth studio album, released last September by RCA Records.

Called as his do-or-die album by many, X is everything you’d expect from a hit-maker like Brown, boasting of fine collaborations and featuring the singles “Loyal” featuring Lil Wayne and Tyga, “New Flame” featuring Usher and Rick Ross, “Fine China,” “Don’t Think They Know” and “Love More” featuring Nicki Minaj.

Setting the singer’s tumultuous personal history aside, Brown’s musical career has been pristine since he first stepped onto the scene at age 16. Love him or hate him, Breezy’s talent cannot be denied. “As an entertainer, Chris Brown was always incredible.

“Gimme that”, “International Love” with Pitbull, “Yo (Excuse Me Miss)”, were all part of our playlists at one point.

“A power-house singer and an explosive dancer, Brown was a bona de entertainer long before the controversies,” shares Mike Pio Roda, managing director for Pinnacle Live Concepts, the agency responsible for bringing Brown to Manila in partnership with concert organizer, BoardWorks Media.

“Staging a show that will bring the house down is our main focus. A thunderous applause as the music fades is what we look forward to. Breezy fans deserve nothing less than a party,” concludes Mike.

Tickets for the Chris Brown Live In Manila are now available at all SM Ticket Outlets.

Buy yours now by calling 470-22-22 or visiting www. smtickets.com.

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ISAH V. RED EDITOR isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

Isabella is Kuh Ledesma's unica hija

Paolo Valenciano is Gary Valenciano's younger son

Karylle is Zza Zsa Padilla's daughter

Robin is Martin Nievera and Pops Fernandez's son

MEET ‘THE NEXT ATTRACTION’ the thought that the future of OPM is in good hands, indeed.

ISAH V. RED If you were a teen-ager of young adult in the 80s, you were probably among the crowd in the gigs of Kuh Ledesma, Pops Fernandez and Martin Nievera, Zsa Zsa Padilla, and Gary Valenciano cheering till your lungs were hurting and your throats bleeding.

Now, at this time, you may have kids, teenagers like you were before and perhaps they’re screaming their lungs out too for their idols.

Do you know your idols have kids too who are getting in the same game…performing?

This puts the question, is there really a “talent gene”? If there is, then this new generation of artists and performers are living proof of it.

These young artists make up the upcoming event called The Next Attraction.

They have come together not to top what their parents have done but to continue the legacy of Filipino music icons that have enriched our lives with their work.

Friends who have grown up in show business and the music industry, Isabella, Robin Nievera, Paolo Valenciano, and Karylle Yuz on celebrate friendship and song in numbers they have prepared. Not exactly new to the scene, these young artists are ready to show how far they’ve come on their own. In doing so, they will give their audience a night of fun, laughter and singing together – and maybe a little dancing as well. And maybe, “The Next Generation” will reinforce

MEET THE NEW ATTRACTIONS The daughter of Philippine Pop Divas, Kuh Ledesma, Isabella is also a singer-songwriter who first performed on stage when she was just 10. Although she focused on visual arts when she was growing up and established her own identity away from her mother’s shadow, her love for singing surfaced after asking people for advice and asking the Lord to show her the way. She debuted a jazz album identity: Isabella in 2010, but has since collaborated with her mom in songwriting, producing or directing shows, and even touring.

One of the two sons of Concert King Martin Nievera and Concert Queen Pops Fernandez, Robin has also gone into the music business, crafting tunes in the singer-songwriter mode, guitar in hand, that calls to mind American singer John Mayer and the likes.

His dad Martin may joke around and call him “the Prince of Pops,” a pun on his ex-wife, but make no mistake, Robin is serious with his craft. This year, he kicked off 2015 as a guest performer on his dad’s New Year’s Day concert. He has released two albums and, apart from preparing for this show, is working on his third.

The younger son in Mr. Pure Energy Gary Valenciano’s brood of three (brother of “Super Selfie” Internet sensation Gab, and sister of budding singer Kiana), Paolo Valenciano has already dabbled in commercial modeling and stage acting. He was also the front man and vocalist of the rock band Salamin, which came out in 2004

and released a self-titled debut album in 2006. He has appeared in production numbers in ASAP, but has been most proud of his solo rock album entitled Silence/Noise released last year. In April 2014, Paolo also co-directed his dad’s successful Arise Gavy V 3.0 concerts, as well as its repeat show.

The daughter of singer/actress Zsa Zsa Padilla and wife of Spongecola vocalist Yael Yuzon, Karylle has made a name for herself in showbiz – anyone who watches It’s Showtime would know. She has also landed a plum role in the Asian TV musical drama The Kitchen Musical alongside Christian Bautista. The series was telecast in over 19 territories on Asian cable channel AXN. Apart from being an actress and a theater performer, this singer/songwriter has several albums under her belt, among her many accomplishments.

Paolo Valenciano directs The Next Attraction with music by Robin Nievera at the Music Museum in Greenhills 8 p.m. on July 4.

For ticket reservations or inquiries, call the DSL office telephone numbers 659-3474 / 0918-5633781 / 0943-266-7101 / 0933 519 8118; Music Museum at 7216726; and Ticketworld - 891 9999 ➜ Continued on C7

The Next Attraction are made up of the sons and daughters of 80s music icons – Isabela, Paolo Valenciano, Karylle, and Robin Never

Is there really a “talent gene”? If there is, then this new generation of artists and performers – Isabella, Karylle, Paolo and Robin – are living proof of it