The Standard - 2015 December 08 - Tuesday

VOL. XXIX NO. 299 3 Sections 32 Pages P18 TUESday : dECEMBER 8, 2015 www.thestandard.com.ph editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Attempt to freeze Binay’s funds fails

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COMELEC CLEARS WAY FOR DUTERTE

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan and Macon Ramos-araneta

THE Commission on Elections on Monday dismissed the petition of its own legal department to declare PDL-Laban candidate for president Martin Diño a nuisance candidate, removing a major obstacle for Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte to run as his substitute.

The ruling, however, does not mean Duterte is in the clear, since there is still a pending petition against him filed by a broadcaster which the poll body will hear on Dec. 16, Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista said.

Diño withdrew his Certificate of Candidacy on Oct. 29 and asked Duterte to run in his place.

In a resolution released Monday, the Comelec 2nd Division headed

by Commissioner Al Pareño said

the petition filed by the Comelec Law Department to declare Diño a nuisance candidate and cancel his Certificate of Candidacy as moot and academic.

“With the foregoing development, the relief prayed for in the present petition has become moot and academic, that is, whatever judgement is reached can no longer have practical legal effect, or, in the nature of things, can no longer be en-

forced,” the resolution said.

The Comelec Law Department earlier filed a petition against Diño after he said in an interview that Duterte was the party’s “first and best option” and that he was ready to withdraw his candidacy if the mayor decided to run.

The Law Department said this made a mockery of the election process and showed Diño had no bonafide intention to run for president.

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No firecrackers, please. The Health Department led by Secretary Janette Garin announced its campaign against firecrackers at its headquarters in Santa Cruz, Manila, on Monday. DaNNy Pata

Poll body slammed for ‘no-el’ warning

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Survey: PNoy endorsement a handicap

By John Paolo Bencito FILIPINOS are not likely to support the candidate endorsed by President Benigno Aquino III, the latest Social Weather Stations pre-election survey revealed.

Aquino, who supports Liberal Party standard bearer Manuel Roxas

II, received a net figure of -6 percent nationwide when respondents were asked how they would react to his endorsement.

Aquino scored -26 percent in Metro Manila and -10 percent in Luzon, but got a positive net effect of 4 percent in the Visayas and 3 percent in Mindanao.

The President’s endorsement also

fared poorly among all economic classes except for the poorest, where it had a 2 percent effect. Among the highest-income group, his endorsement had a -22 percent score.

The survey was commissioned by an ally of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who is running for president in Next page

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Strike. Hundreds of passengers were stranded in Taguig City on Monday after jeepney drivers held a strike to protest a government plan to phase out old jeepneys. Manny PalMero

LTFRB pushes jeepney phaseout Comelec...

From A1

But Diño withdrew his CoC before the Comelec was able to rule on the petition.

Duterte subsequently withdrew his CoC to run for reelection as Davao mayor and filed his CoC to run for president.

Senator Sergio Osemeña III on Monday said that while the latest Social Weather Stations survey had been commissioned by a Duterte ally, the results seemed to be “realistic.”

“I think Duterte touches a nerve in the psyche of the Filipino voter, especially the D and E voter as called by the pollster. I have seen that. Mayor Duterte truly has clout,” said Osmeña, a Duterte supporter.

Asked if he thought the survey questions might be misleading, Osmeña said “there might be a flaw there.”

Vice presidential aspirant Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on the other hand, slammed SWS for releasing a “rigged and invalid” survey as a propaganda favoring Duterte’s camp.

He added that the sur-

vey was conducted before the tough-talking mayor spewed out foul words in his speeches and interviews, particularly against Pope Francis.

Osmeña said he believed Duterte’s remarks against the Pope would have a negative effect on his survey ratings.

“Yes I’m sure it will affect him so he apologized. How permanent the damage will be on the image and reputation of Mayor Duterte, we will not know until the next survey. There might be a temporary dip, a temporary drop in his rating,” Osmeña said.

Trillanes said the question asked in the survey mentioned Duterte’s name, which gave him a leg up.

The respondents were asked “With Rodrigo Duterte on this list as a substitute candidate for President, who would you most likely vote for President if the elections were held today?”

He added that the SWS was notorious for allowing itself to be used as an instrument of propaganda.

Poe, on the other hand, said it was important to listen to and respect the sentiments of the people.

Survey: ...

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2016. The survey of 1,200 respondents conducted during the last week of November also showed Duterte as the top choice for president with 38 percent, ahead of Senator Grace Poe and Vice President Jejomar Binay, who both had 21 percent.

Roxas, the administration candidate, placed fourth with 15 percent while Senator Miriam

She also acknowledged that the disqualification petitions filed against her have had an impact on her ratings, shifting public attention away from her platform of government.

Her running mate, Senator Francis Escudero, said as long as there are pending cases against Poe, these will have an effect on her standing in pre-election surveys.

The Palace belittled the survey showing Duterte in the lead.

“This is a privately commissioned survey, I understand. So, this is not their usual [survey]. The media have noticed this,” said Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda.

He said surveys were snapshots in time, and the only one that eventually matters is the one in May, just before the elections.

Lacierda added that the administration was not worried about the survey.

“If you have been involved in a campaign as we were in 2010, you will see the numbers go up and down. We are in a marathon, we are not in a sprint. This is not a 100-meter dash,” he said.

With Sandy araneta

Defensor Santiago got 4 percent.

Only 1 percent of the voters were undecided.

Senator Francis Escudero led vice presidential hopefuls in a sixway race with 30 percent, followed

by Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at 24 percent while Duterte’s running mate, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano got 21 percent.

Administration candidate Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo placed fourth at 12 percent.

The survey was conducted from Nov. 26 to 28, covering

By rio n. araja and Joel e. Zurbano

DESPITE protests from drivers groups, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board is pushing to phase out passenger jeepneys that are 15 years old.

“We have already phased out old units of taxi, bus, school service and utility vehicles...

We have to ensure the safety and convenience of our passengers. It is long overdue,” said LTFRB Chairman Winston Ginez.

In a radio interview over radio dzMM, Ginez said they have already met with various public utility jeepney organizations about how to lessen the impact on the plan to retire old jeepneys from roads nationwide.

He said, however, that the dialogue is continuing and no final decision has been reached yet.

The Alliance of Concerned Transport Organizations held a strike Monday to protest the plan, but Ginez said their strike had no basis.

He added that one option is to give operators a grace period before the phaseout.

“Robert Martin of Pasang Masda and [members of] 1-United Transport Koalisyon backed our proposal,” the LTFRB chief said.

Meanwhile, a government program to introduce Non-Stop Buses to ease traffic along Edsa is attracting only a few passengers because of the high fares, which range between P50 and P80.

“The fare is not fair, I think. I can buy two kilos of rice for that amount,” said call center agent Rod Ramos of Makati City.

Metro Manila Development Authority of-

the period in which Duterte filed his Certificate of Candidacy but before he delivered his proclamation speech in which he cursed the Pope for causing traffic during his visit to Manila in January.

The Palace on Monday played down another SWS survey—this one uncommissioned—which showed a declining number of Filipinos believe that Aquino would be a successful president.

The survey, conducted from

ficials admitted that people were initially confused because commuters were unfamiliar with the program initiated by the Department of Transportation and Communications.

“We expected the low number of passengers since it was the first day of the bus service. We need more public information campaigns to make the public aware of this program,” said Crisanto Saruca, head of the MMDA traffic management office.

The DoTC initiated the project to encourage private car owners to leave their vehicles at home in an effort to decongest Edsa during the holiday season.

The MMDA said it is also ready to relaunch a bike sharing system to reduce traffic.

Emerson Carlos, chairman of the MMDA, said his agency will present to the public the newly acquired 40 brand new mountain bikes that will be lent to interested pedestrians and commuters who want to use them to get to their destinations in areas with bike lanes.

On Monday, the agency also announced that it has created an online social network to enable people to complain about and report illegally parked vehicles and other road obstructions.

MMDA chairman Emerson Carlos said the social media site dubbed as Netizens Watch aims to muster support of both the public and private sectors in reporting to the agency all traffic obstructions in Metro Manila, including road diggings.

The MMDA is set to launch the social media site today at the agency’s central office along Orense Street in Makati City.

Carlos said under the virtual complaint desk, motorists can take a picture of the traffic obstructions such as illegal vendors’ stalls, basketball courts, gambling tables and structures that encroach on the sidewalk and unfinished road repairs, and post them on Twitter, and tag the agency’s official Twitter account, @MMDA.

Sept. 2 to 5, showed that 35 percent of respondents believe Aquino is a successful president, down from a peak of 40 percent in June 2013. On the other hand, the number of respondents who believed Aquino would be unsuccessful rose to 26 percent, up from only 13 percent in June 2013. Those who said it was too early to tell shrank to 39 percent, down from 47 percent in June 2013.

The 3rd Quarter 2015 SWS Survey involved face-to-face inter-

views with 1,200 adults in Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao, and had a margin of error of ± 3 percent for national percentages and ±6 percent for regional percentages.

Despite the declining scores, the Palace thanked the people for “recognizing that President Aquino will be a successful president.”

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said, however, that “surveys are just snapshots in time.”

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Bid to freeze VP’s bank account fails

Begging in the city. Members of the Badjao tribe hitch a ride in a jeepney in Malabon City to beg for alms on Monday.

anDrew raBulan

Comelec chief slammed for poll failure warning A LAWMAKER on Monday slammed the Commission on Elections for saying there could be no elections next year in light of the Supreme Court’s temporary restraining order against the poll body’s “No Bio, No Boto” policy.

Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon made the statement in response to the statement by Comelec chairman Andres Bautista that the May 2016 elections could be postponed if the high court does not lift its TRO on its policy that those voters who had no biometrics could not vote.

“The national elections are mandated by no other than our Constitution,” Ridon said.

“It is not an exercise conducted for the convenience of the Comelec. The holding of the national elections requires a lot of forward thinking and planning—some-

thing that is apparently missing right now.”

Ridon made his statement even as Malacañang said it would be in the best interest of all political parties that the May 2016 elections pushed through amid fears there would be no elections if the Supreme Court failed to lift its order on the Comelec’s “No Bio, No Boto” campaign.

“There was a concern by Comelec Chair Andy Bautista that there might be ‘no-el’, but I think it’s in the interest of everyone concerned... that we should vote, that elections should be held in May,” Lacierda told reporters.

“We will defer to the judgment of the Supreme Court. I believe that they also have the best interest of our country in mind.”

In the House, Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez expressed confidence the May 2016 elections would proceed as scheduled despite the issuance of a TRO by the Supreme Court on the Comelec’s “No bio, No boto” policy.

“I have a complete confidence in the

ability of Comelec officials that this minor setback will not totally derail and affect their preparations for the elections next year,” Romualdez said.

“We all know that no-el [no elections] is unacceptable and even unthinkable, so I am confident that the Comelec will eventually find ways to address this situation.”

The high court issued its order to the Comelec on Dec. 1 following a petition filed by the Kabataan party-list that questioned the constitutionality of the Comelec’s policy.

The Comelec’s officials had earlier said if the voters without biometrics were allowed to vote, instances of “flying voters” would become rampant as the Comelec would not be able to validate their voter status.

But Ridon disagreed.

“The right to suffrage is a fundamental right,” he said.

“Why threaten to postpone the elections just because the Supreme Court granted a well-meaning petition that will benefit about three million voters?”

Maricel V. Cruz and Sandy araneta

THE Anti-Money Laundering Council tried but failed to secure an order to freeze a bank account of Vice President Jejomar Binay, supposedly to stop its dissipation, and that proved the move was meant to harass Binay, his spokesman said Monday.

“The court did not grant AMLC’s petition and was instead ordered to comment on the motion of the vice president,” Rico Quicho said.

“This only shows that the case being presented by AMLC has no legal basis to stand on.”

Binay counsel Claro Certeza said a forfeiture case could not be filed against public officials like Binay within a year before the 2016 national elections based on Republic Act 1379.

He said this was the law that they cited in an omnibus motion they filed with the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 57 that sought to dismiss a forfeiture case filed against Binay by the AMLC last November.

Quicho said Binay had volunteered to the court that he would not touch the funds in his account until the court had resolved all legal issues against him.

“Since the 20-day provisional asset protection order was deemed lifted, Vice President Binay volunteered to the court that he will not touch the funds in his account in order for the court to properly resolve the legal issues,” Quicho said.

“This is a voluntary act to show that the vice president has nothing to hide and is confident in his position that the AMLC petition is not only illegal but also a clear act of political harassment.”

Quicho said that, after claiming earlier that the Vice President had billions deposited in 242 accounts, the AMLC had asked the Manila Regional Trial Court to freeze only one account with a deposit of P1.7 million, an admission that it had no solid evidence against Binay.

He said the AMLC had allowed itself to be part of a demolition team formed to discredit the vice president and prevent him from continuing his fight for the poor Filipinos ignored by the present administration. Vito Barcelo

Mass. Cardinal Luis Tagle and former Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide unveil a picture of George J. William, SJ, during a mass for his canonization at the Manila Cathedral on Monday. Danny Pata

Lawyer: Poe never intended to deceive voters INDEPENDENT presidential candidate Grace Poe had no intention to deceive the electorate or to hide a fact of disqualification with respect to her period of residency in the Philippines, her lawyer said Monday.

George Garcia asked the Commission on Elections to reverse the resolution of its Second Division that ordered the cancellation of Poe’s certificate of candidacy for president due to an alleged false statement on her period of residency in the Philippines.

He insisted that Poe did not commit a “material misrepresentation” with respect to her

compliance with the 10-year re5sidency requirement when she declared in her CoC that she would be a resident of the country for “10 years and 11 months” by the elections of May 9, 2016.

Garcia made his plea to the Comelec even as Malacañang denied that President Benigno Aquino III has done a demolition job on the rivals of Liberal Party standard bearer Manuel Roxas II when Aquino attacked them during his speech in Italy recently.

“It is not accurate to say it’s a demolition job,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda told reporters.

“It’s a manner of describing

who the candidates are presented before you in the same way that the candidates... highlight this thing minimizing our accomplishments.”

In Manila, Mayor Joseph Estrada said he was inclined to support the candidacy of Senator Grace Poe instead of his longtime friend and political ally Vice President Jejomar Binay in the May 2016 presidential race.

“It’s very likely because the father of Grace Poe was more than a brother to me,” Estrada said in a radio interview referring to the late actor Fernando Poe Jr. whom he supported in 2004 when the actor ran for president.

Garcia said the Second Division made its decision in “complete and utter disregard of the overwhelming evidence on record” and “contrary to applicable jurisprudence as to amount to a capricious and whimsical judgment.”

He slammed the Second Division for allegedly relying solely on the statements Poe made in the CoC she filed when she ran for the Senate in 2013 while disregarding the documents she submitted proving that she had been a resident of the Philippines since May 24, 2005. Macon ramos-araneta, Sandy araneta and Vito Barcelo

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

COMMISSION ON APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCEMENT President Benigno S. Aquino III has submitted to the Commission on Appointments (C.A.) for confirmation the ad interim appointments of the following senior officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines: Joselito T. Lopena, PAF and Gregorio B. Hernandez, Jr., PN-M – Colonel and Romeo P. Pulido, Jr., PN – Captain The public may submit any information, written report or sworn complaints or oppositions in forty (40) copies on the above appointments to the CA Secretariat, 6th Floor, PNB Financial Center, Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City, Metro Manila.

For the schedule of the public hearings, the CA Secretariat can be reached through telephone numbers 551-7532, 831-0893, 831-1824, 834-2706, 831-1566 and 834-2713.

27 November 2015.

ARTURO L. TIU

Secretary (TS-DEC. 8, 2015) This should have been published last Nov. 28, 2015

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Public warned vs gangs, crackers

Autistic art.

Philatelist and artist Cedric Allen Chua shows the newly released Christmas stamps of the Philippine Postal Corp. featuring artworks of people with autism from Bridges Foundation Inc. DANNY PATA

By Macon R. Araneta and Joel E. Zurbano THE Department of Health urged the public on Monday to use safe merrymaking instruments to avoid being injured while welcoming 2016 while the police are gearing to increase visibility to deter crimes during the holiday season.

Speaking in a news conference at the DoH main office in Manila, Health Secretary Janette Garin called on local government units to help the health department in its antifirecracker drive by implementing the ban on the use of illegal firecrackers.

She said the DoH will also partner with the Department of Education since majority of the victims are children aged six to 15.

DoH records showed cases of firework-related injuries last year were 16 percent lower than the 2013 figures.

She said they will also tie up with the Philippine National Police and local government units because the cause of most accidents during the New Year celebration are the illegal firecrackers.

Meanwhile, Metro Manila police director Joel Pagdilao ordered all district directors and station commanders to increase police visibility and other security measures to prevent street crimes during the holiday season.

Pagdilao reminded the public to be vigilant and urged them to plan their shopping activities and bring just enough money to spend while he warned people to be mindful of what they purchase especially when items are sold to them personally or online at low price.

Marcos eyes DoLE post for labor agenda

By Macon Ramos-Araneta WHILE the Aquino administration has been trumpeting the “remarkable” growth of the economy, the benefits are hardly felt by Filipinos and there has been no significant improvements in the poverty rate, literacy rate or mortality rate, vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Monday.

“You cannot add jobs if the economy is not growing. Now we hear that we are growing at a remarkable rate, but it is not felt by ordinary people. It is felt by big corporations, it is felt by rich people,” Marcos said at the weekly Kapihan sa Manila Hotel.

“There is a very serious failure in the policies for the distribution of wealth,” the 58-year-old senator said, wishing that he is given the

chance to head the Department of Labor and Employment if he wins in next year’s elections.

“I believe that without changing any policies, without passing any new laws, we can improve the performance of the DoLE when it comes to protecting our workers, preparing our workforce and in protecting and supporting our [overseas Filipino workers],” Marcos said.

Marcos backed an end to the

widespread practice of contractualization, adding that the government should rethink policies that only provide band-aid solutions instead of developing infrastructure that will create real quality jobs.

“We have probably arrived at a point of diminishing returns,” he said, referring to the government dole that the Aquino administration is brandishing as its centerpiece social reform program.

“Maybe that money can be used for schools, for hospitals, for roads, for bridges, for power plants, for the improvement of the Internet, a new airport, more ports all of these things are doable,” Marcos said.

Marcos said the money spend for the dole could be better spent on basic infrastructures that will generate more jobs and spread the benefits of economic growth that

will be felt by the poor.

To create more jobs, Marcos also said the government should likewise provide easier credit facilities to small and medium-sized enterprises which is one of the main drivers of the country’s economic growth. He noted that around 90 percent of our work force is in the private sector.

Marcos suggested that the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority should redirect their courses whereby our workers will be able to compete with their counterparts in the forthcoming economic integration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations integration.

Marcos said his proposals whoever is elected president, but he emphasized that he will vote for his running mate Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago for president in 2016.

Korean’s case questioned A LAWYER questioned Justice Secretary Alfredo Benjamin C. Caguioa why he stopped the deportation of a Korean national who had been convicted on two counts of moral turpitude although the case had already been resolved by the court 19 years ago.

Lawyer Alex Y. Tan of the A. Tan, Zoleta and Associates Law Firm asked Caguioa why he ordered Immigration Commissioner Siegfred Mison last month to stop the deportation of Korean national Kang Tae Sik, who was convicted in 1996 of issuing bouncing checks on two occasions.

Tan said in a statement Caguioa issued a memorandum on Nov. 6 directing the immediate release of the Korean from detention and stopped the implementation of four BI resolutions affirming the

deportation of Kang.

Kang was arrested by immigration agents on orders of Mison, but Caguioa, through Chief State Counsel Ricardo V. Paras III, reopened the long-pending case by ordering Mison to explain the deportation within 10 days, Tan said.

Caguioa, who is also applying for a seat in the Supreme Court, ordered the immediate release of Kang from detention and without bail on Nov. 10, or only four days after his order to Mison and without waiting for the explanation of the BI chief, Tan added.

Tan noted that the BI Board of Commissioners had already rejected all appeals by Kang to stop his deportation and the basis for Caguioa’s release order, appeals filed in September 2014, were beyond the reglamentary period for appeals.

Labor agenda. Vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. talks about the need for genuine

reforms that will be felt by Filipino workers as he outlined proposals he plans to pursue if he is elected next year and given the labor portfolio in the Cabinet. Marcos spoke at the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel conducted by the Samahang Plaridel. EY ACASIO

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Comelec told: Do the math “Do your math, be fair and don’t abuse your authority to favor the administration candidate.”

This was the strong message of Ang Grasya ng Masang Pilipino Movement led by Adonis Samson, Rosendo So and former Dagupan City Councilor Luis Samson Jr. to the Commission of elections following the decision made by the Comelec’s 2nd Division to disqualify Senator Grace Poe from the presidential race.

“The Comelec decision by the 2nd Division repeats the same

flaws in the dissenting opinions of the SC Justices,” Samson said adding that “It also misses the very essence of reacquisition of Philippine citizenship under the law when it starts to count the residency only on the date of the approval of the petition for reacquisition and not on the date of actual residency in the Philippines.”

“It was unfortunate that the Second Division ridiculously

concluded that Grace Poe lacks two months to complete the residency requirement since she returned here in 2005 and enrolled her children to Philippine school,” So said. he also chided the Comelec for giving emphasis on the Senator’s Certificate of Candidacy in the May 2013 elections after it had already been superseded and corrected by her CoC for the president.

In its verdict, the three Comelec commissioners considered her to be short of six months to complete the 10 year minimum period.

“Arithmetic seems to be the order of the day rather than the legislative intent of RA No 9225,” said Samson. he lamented that from the time Poe spurned the administration’s offer to be the vice president of Mar Roxas, all these questions on her citizenship and residency suddenly surged on social and traditional media.

“The same forces behind the massive cheating of Fernando Poe Jr. in 2004 are at it again, robbing the people of their fundamental right to elect the president they

want by excluding Grace Poe, his daughter, from the presidential race,” noted the three Pangasinan leaders.

They also lauded the latest Senate electoral Tribunal decision that affirmed Poe both as a natural born Filipino and eligible to run for president.

AGMPM is the same group that insured the victory of FPJ in the vote rich province of Pangasinan in the 2004 presidential elections.

It is allied with other volunteer groups for the Grace-Chiz tandem with chapters in key cities nationwide and overseas.

Pep talk. Yedda Romualdez representing her husband senatorial candidate and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez delivers an inspirational message during the Christmas party of more than 100 barangay leaders of the 3rd District of Manila led by congresswoman Naida Angping (2nd left, right panel) and congressional candidate Harry Angping. VER NOVENO

Old P bills good only until 2015 The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Monday reminded the public, that the old banknotes can only be used at the end of the year.

At a news briefing in the house of Representatives, Maja Gracia Malik, deputy director of the BSP, said a total of 432,000 pieces of money in different denominations are “in the loose,” amounting to about P67 billion.

Malik said those holding old banknotes could register with the BSP, starting October 2016 to December 2016 so that the banks can reserve money for replacement. The BSP put a limit of P10,000 per OFWs, she said.

Malik said some security and new features of the new generation currency had already been launched back in 2010.

“Demonitized currency will no longer be accepted to pay for goods and services,”Malik said.

Starting January 2016, Malik said those with old banknotes can go to the bank to exchange their money for new ones.

By 2017, all the old notes will be demonetized, Malik pointed out.

Maricel Cruz

‘Laude family lacks basis to block marine’s detention’

By Rey E. Requejo and Maricel Cruz A FORMeR Justice official on Monday said the family of slain transgender woman Jeffrey Laude cannot question the arrangement for the detention of US Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton who was convicted of homicide last week.

Former Justice Undersecretary Jose Justiniano stressed that the Laude family has no legal standing to contest the detention of Pemberton inside the Armed Forces headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

It should be the prosecutors of the Department of Justice who should take the issue to the Supreme Court, Justiniano said.

“If ever this matter is brought to the SC, it should be the DoJ through the Office of the Solicitor General and not the private lawyer,” Justiniano said in an interview.

Justiniano, who was part of the defense team of Lance Corporal Daniel Smith `in the 2005 Subic rape case, stressed that the interest of the Laude family should be limited to the civil aspect of the case.

“When you file the complaint, your interest is civil in nature since a criminal case is the interest of the State. This is why the private prosecutor is always under the jurisdiction of the public prosecutor,” he explained.

The former Justice official said it would be difficult for the Laude camp and their private lawyers to justify their challenge to the detention of Pemberton in court.

Justiniano made the statements after the Laude family and their lawyers led by harry Roque Jr. expressed intention to assail Pemberton’s continued detention in Camp Aguinaldo before the Supreme Court.

The issue on detention of Pemberton after promulgation of his

conviction last Dec. 1 arose after the Olongapo Regional Trial Court, Branch 74, ordered his transfer to the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City pending agreement between the US and Philippine governments on his detention facility as provided under the Visiting Forces Agreement between the two countries.

But the DoJ said that Pemberton would remain in detention in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City despite the conviction.

VFA officials also informed the RTC that there was an agreement between the two governments to have Pemberton temporarily detained at AFP custodial center in Camp Aguinaldo under the watch of Bureau of Corrections personnel pending completion of the judicial process, including appeal of his conviction.

This prompted Judge Roline Jinez–Jabalde to issue another order Tuesday evening committing the American serviceman to the Camp

Aguinaldo facility.

Meanwhile, the Makabayan Bloc in the house of Representatives issued a resolution denouncing the blatant disregard of Philippine sovereignty by the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement as shown in the aftermath of convictions involving American mil-

itary service personnel.

In house Resolution 2550, the seven members of the bloc called for the immediate abrogation of the VFA and cited Article II Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution which provides that “(t)he State shall pursue an independent foreign policy.

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

COMMISSION ON APPOINTMENTS ANNOUNCEMENT President Benigno S. Aquino III has submitted to the Commission on Appointments (C.A.) for confirmation the ad interim appointments of the following ranking officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines: Guillermo A. Molina, Jr., Rodolfo D. Santiago, Andre M. Costales and Elmer S. Pabale – Major General; Rafael A. Sera Jose, Raul M. Farnacio, Arleen N. Gorreon, Maximo J. Ballesteros, Demy T. Tejares, Romeo N. Dela Cruz, Archimedes H. Viaje, Alvin A. Parreno and Alvin Francis A. Javier – Brigadier General; Jande S. Francisco, Robert A. Empedrad, Gaudencio C. Collado, Jr. and Rene V. Medina – Commodore; Victor D. Tanggawohn, Jr., PA, Eduardo B. Gubat, PA, William P. Peñafiel, Jr., PA, Cornelio T. Arboleda, PA, Edgar I. Yerro, PA (Reserve), Angel I. Madarang, PA, Ferdinand T. Barandon, PA, Faisal A. Nawang, PA (Reserve), Rogelio P. Percol, PA, Noe Alberto Q. Peñafiel, PA, Anthony T. Cacayuran, PA, Potenciano C. Camba, Juan S. Jancilan, PA (Reserve), Noel J. Detoyato, PA, Leandro V. Abeleda III, PA and Vincent B. Iringan – Colonel; Fernando V. Naval, PN Captain The public may submit any information, written report or sworn complaints or oppositions in forty (40) copies on the above appointments to the CA Secretariat, 6th Floor, PNB Financial Center, Diosdado Macapagal Blvd., Pasay City, Metro Manila.

For the schedule of the public hearings, the CA Secretariat can be reached through telephone numbers 551-7532, 831-0893, 831-1824, 834-2706, 831-1566 and 834-2713.

07 December 2015.

(TS-DEC. 8, 2015)

ARTURO L. TIU Secretary

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16 SC aspirants up for vetting

By Rey E. Requejo

The Judicial and Bar Council will start on Jan. 6, 2016 its public interviews of aspirants for a seat in the Supreme Court to be left vacant by the early retirement of Associate Justice Martin Villarama Jr. next month.

Lawyer Jose Mejia, member of the sevenmember body tasked to screen nominees to posts in the judiciary, revealed they have set the interviews for 16 nominees from Jan. 6 to 8 next year.

After the interviews, Mejia

said the council could then come up with a short list by February next year, which means President Aquino may be able to name his sixth appointee in the high tribunal before the period covered by the election ban on midnight appointments.

But posts in the SC are exempted from the ban per SC’s 2010 ruling for the vacancy in the retirement of then Chief Justice Reynato Puno, which President Aquino had questioned.

Among the nominees for the post is Justice Secretary Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, President Aquino’s former chief presidential legal counsel and classmate from grade school to college.

The other nominees for the SC vacancy are: Court of Appeals Presiding Justice Andres Reyes Jr. and Associate Justices Apolinario Bruselas, Rosmari Carandang, Mariflor Cas-

tillo and Stephen Cruz, Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo CabotajeTang and Associate Justices Maria Cristina Cornejo and Alex Quiroz, CA Solicitor General Florin hilbay, former Commission on Audit chairperson Maria Gracia Pulido-Tan, DOJ Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras III, Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon Gerard Mosquera, Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 90 presiding judge Reynaldo Daway, Citizen’s Battle Against Corruption party-list Rep. Cinchona Cruz-Gonzales and lawyer Joe-Santos Bisquera.

The seven-member JBC is the constitutional body tasked to accept nominations and applications, screen and come up with a short list of nominees for vacancies in the judiciary and the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Constitution requires a justice of the SC to be natural-born citizen, at least 40 years old, with at least 15 years of experience as judge of a lower court or lawyer.

The law also requires that the magistrate “must be a person of proven competence, integrity, probity, and independence.”

Villarama was supposed to retire on April 14 next

year when he reaches mandatory retirement age of 70.

But in his letter to Sereno, the magistrate requested to avail of optional retirement effective Jan. 16, 2016 due to “deteriorating health condition.” his condition was brought about by his double-knee metal implantation in 2013 and his cataract operation in 2014.

Of the 15 current justices of the high court, five were appointed by Aquino—Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno and Associate Justices Bienvenido Reyes, estela PerlasBernabe, Marvic Leonen and Francis Jardeleza.

Lim sued for graft over park-ticket deal

By Rio N. Araja

May your tribe increase. Pagcor’s assistant VP for Corporate Communications and Services Maricar Bautista, assistant VP of General Services and Engineering Lyn Visque and Lizette Mortel of PAGCOR’s Human Resource and Development Department distribute gift packs to members of Dumagat-Remontados tribe in Rizal during the 6th day of the gaming agency’s Pamaskong Handog 2015.

FORMeR Manila mayor Alfredo Lim is facing graft raps before the Office of the Ombudsman for alleged irregular installation of parking ticket machines at city streets during his term from 2010 to 2013.

Lim’s accuser is Ricardo Cruz, through his lawyer Moses Pua, who filed the suit against the former mayor and two private executives vice president Rorie Cariaga of the Tokagawa Global Corp. and managing officer Napoleon Ibalio of the Matsuyama Corp. The complaint cited an Oct. 13 report from the city auditor’s office of Manila Mayor Joseph estrada.

The evaluation report of supervising auditor Mario Lipana showed the tripartite memorandum of agreement signed among Lim, Cariaga and Ibalio

was “grossly disadvantageous” to the city government, he said.

“The city auditor’s report itself describes the [TMoA] as grossly disadvantageous to the city.

As an active citizen of the Philippines and resident of Manila, the complainant cannot sit idly and ignore the blatant disregard and corruption of our laws,” Cruz’s complaint read.

Under the arrangement, the city government would take only 20 percent as its share from the parking income, while the remaining 80 percent would go to the private contractors.

In 2013 and 2014, the city was able to get P61 million out of the total income of P277 million.

Despite the contractors’ investment of P11.5 million only, a huge sum of P216 million went to them, the lawyer said.

INC: 2015 a good year despite challenges The Iglesia ni Cristo on Monday said that 2015 was a good year for the church, citing its record-breaking activities and the continuation of various public livelihood programs, despite the challenges it has faced in recent months.

“The INC has continued its mission to make itself socially and spiritually relevant to our membership and to the Filipino people as well as to the communities outside the Philippines where our congregations are found. We have faced a number of challenges, but guided by our faith in God and our confidence in our legal institutions, we have hurdled these issues,” said edwil Zabala, spokesman for the homegrown Filipino church.

Zabala was referring to the filing of illegal detention and harassment charges last August against INC officials. The complaints were eventually dismissed by the Department of Justice for lack of evidence.

“We are humbled at the success offered by our legal system. That being said, the INC would rather focus, as it has always in the past, on our activities and assistance efforts,” Zabala stated.

Last October, “Felix Manalo,” a movie depicting the life of church founder Felix Manalo, entered the Guinness World Records by being awarded citations for “Largest Attendance For A Film Screening” and “Largest Attendance For A Film Premiere.” The biopic, produced by Viva Films and helmed by award-winning director Joel Lamangan, performed well at the box office.

These were not the first world records set by the INC, explained Zabala. In February 2014, its Worldwide Walk for Yolanda victims set two Guinness World Records for the largest charity walk in a single venue, as well as for the largest charity walk in 24 hours.

The church also inaugurated a new, self-sustaining, 100-hectare eco-farming site in Paracale, Camarines Norte in November to assist members of the province’s indigenous Kabihug community.

It was INC’s 10th eco-farming area, coming after the launch of a 3,000-hectare “eVM Self-Sustainable eco-farming Community” in Alangalang, Leyte earlier in 2015.

The project was implemented to assist local residents in the aftermath of

Typhoon “Yolanda”, which struck the province in November 2013.

INC’s livelihood sites are scattered in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The first one, in Palayan, Nueva ecija, was established for laborers in hacienda Luisita.

Zabala pointed out that the church is always ready to extend assistance to victims of typhoons and other calamities, all year-round.

“Our disaster relief efforts have even reached the United States, as we extended assistance to those victimized by hurricane Katrina in 2005 and 2012’s hurricane Sandy. This has been made possible through the church’s Felix Y. Manalo Foundation, and we are proud of these mobilization and relief efforts,” said the spokesman.

According to Zabala, the INC “has become an international church with a very strong biblical core and character.”

“Our members worldwide draw strength from our faith in God, and our collective strength has allowed us to lend a helping hand to everyone—whether part of the church or not—during those times when the INC has been called upon to serve.”

Monday movies. Caloocan City Mayor Oscar Malapitan greets senior

citizens after signing an agreement entitling the elderly to free movies at SM. ANDREW RABULAN

Pump prices down by 70c The country’s oil firms cut the price of petroleum products by as much as P0.70 per liter starting Monday night to reflect the movement of world oil prices.

Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell Petroleum, eastern Petroleum and Phoenix Petroleum Corp. issued their respective advisories of the price cut.

The oil firms cut the price of kerosene by P0.70 per liter and diesel by P0.50 per liter.

There was no price movement for gasoline,

said Fernando Martinez, eastern Petroleum chairman and chief executive officer, said the continuous downward trend in world oil price has prompted oil companies to adjust pump prices accordingly.

“Analysts expect the ongoing oversupply would push prices to fall further, and that the effective removal of the OPeC (Organization of Petroleum exporting Countries) quota would leave the market in a more vulnerable position,” Martinez said. Alena Flores

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 5

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NEWS

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Gunmen kill policeman in Cagayan home

By Florante Solmerin FIVE armed men believed to be hired killers barged into the home of a policeman and shot him dead Saturday night in Barangay Centro 2, Lasam, Cagayan, the town’s chief of police, Chief inspector Ramil Alipio, said Sunday.

The victim was identified as 45-year-old Senior Police Officer 2 Ronel Saturno who was assigned to the Provincial Police Office in Quirino during the time of his death.

“He was just recently transferred to his new assignment at the Quirino police as one of the advisers of newly recruit policemen with the rank of police officer 1. While doing his job as adviser, he was also in schooling for his next promotion,” Cagayan police director Senior Superintendent Ronaldo Olay said in a phone interview.

Saturno was dead on the spot from at least nine bullets of calibre .45 pistol that pierced into his head, neck, chest, and other parts of his body. Responding cops rushed him to the hospital but the attending physician declared him dead on arrival.

One of Saturno’s daughters said her father had been receiving death threat from known men of an influential politician in their town.

According to Alipio, the assailants declared themselves as members of the New People’s Army based on the testimonies of witnesses.

But investigators said previous incidents of assassinations in the said town showed that the killers always made sure they were known as NPA rebels by shouting who they were before they escaped.

Alipio said Saturno and his driver arrived home at around 7 p.m. from Lallo town.

“The victim and his driver arrived on board the former’s service vehicle Foton white pick-up. After few minutes, two of the customers happen to be his relative invited him to join them at their table for snack and while having conversation the suspects arrived on board a green center-car and ordered the duty security guard to drop while the other entered the establishment and shoot the victim,” Alipio said.

But according to Leandro Aglibot, security guard on-duty, the assailants looked more like hired killers than NPA rebels.

Bulacan engineer: Local exec may have wanted me dead

By Francisco Tuyay

A CITY engineer in Bulacan who survived an ambush try by two still unidentified gunmen hinted Sunday that a local executive in the province may have been the architect of the failed attempt on his life last Thursday.

Engineer Rufino Gravador, speaking at his hospital for

the first time after the ambush try, said he could not think of

anybody else wanting him dead aside from the ranking official in San Jose del Monte City.

He said the local official wanted to silence him as he was a witness to a plunder case arising from the alleged overpriced construction of a government building in the city.

Royalty. Shoppers are treated to a costume parade like this one at a mall in Antipolo City. MANNY PALMERO

“He is angry at me,” Gravador told media who visited him at hospital.

Gravador was driving his blue Mitsubishi Montero (license plate RKE 377) when he was fired upon by two motorcycleriding men while traversing a curved portion of Maharlika Highway in Barangay Bulac, Sta. Maria, Bulacan at about 5 p.m. Thursday.

Though wounded, he managed to drive his vehicle to a nearby hospital for treatment.

He was later transferred to a medical facility in Metro Manila.

The victim was in stable condition recuperating from bullet wounds at his neck, and portion of his head he sustained during the attacked.

Gravador said he had received a threat (through text messages) from a stillunidentified person days before the attack.

Gravador’s legal counsel, Elmer Galicia, said his client has been receiving several death threats since he testified against the local official on alleged irregularities in the construction of the city hall.

Sensing that the threat on his life was serious, Gravador wrote letters, including last will and testament, stuffed inside his vehicle saying that if something happened to him, nobody would be responsible aside from the local official.

The same official made him city agriculturist instead in 2013 and 2014.

Meanwhile, San Jose Del Monte City Mayor Reynaldo San Pedro said Gravador’s ambush was staged, as perpetrated by his political.

“A certain group has been out to tarnish my name for a long time,” according to the mayor.

Education Dept. gives journalism seminar to alternative teachers

By Ronald O. Reyes PALO, Leyte—The Department of Education in Leyte has trained 40 mobile teachers under Alternative Learning System unit on journalism.

Roberto Mangaliman, ALS education program specialist at Leyte division office, said the recently concluded three-day journalism workshop was aimed to enhance mobile teachers’ capacity to document important activities in the lives of their students and stakeholders.

“Our long-term goal is to produce and maintain a website, a quarterly newsletter and yearly magazine issues for our ALS advocacy. Through this, we can also improve our communica-

tion mechanism to reach out to our clientele and to our partner agencies in terms of generating program support and funding,” said Mangaliman.

Journalism topics introduced during the training-workshop were news writing, editorial writing, feature writing, editorial cartooning, lay-outing, sports writing, photojournalism, online writing, plagiarism, and publication management.

“I am thankful for this training. This will help me a lot in documenting my daily encounter with my learners,” said Jake Laurence, 30, the newlyinducted Leyte ALS editorin-chief and a mobile teacher assigned at Abuyog Leyte SubProvincial Jail.

“With your publication, you can touch the lives of your stakeholders at the same time ask their support. You can be a champion in their respective lives. Your works will be remembered, and the document you made will tell on what you have contributed,” Mangaliman told the participants.

Mangaliman said they needed more support particularly from local government units in the promotion and implementation of their programs.

“Based on a survey consolidated by LGUs in the province, Leyte has over 60,000 out-ofschool youths and adults, yet we have only catered to 20,000 plus to date. We are still looking for the 40,000,” he said.

Winning form. The Standard’s David Chan Leprozo Jr. won this year’s Agriculture Photo of the Year award. He won the same distinction in 2013.

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 0 8 , 2 0 1 5

A8

OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

EAGLE EYES DEAN TONY LA VIÑA

STATE OF PARIS CLIMATE TALKS

[ EDI TORI A L ]

WAITING FOR THE ONE

WHEN President Benigno Aquino III got elected in 2010, there were high hopes that finally, this was one person who would place the country’s interests ahead of his own, and live true to his calling of being a leader-servant.

How could the Philippines go wrong with Aquino? He was the son of sainted political personalities and has never had a record of wrongdoing in his entire political career.

Aquino fired up our patriotism during his inauguration when he said we were his bosses. He was doing away with the wang-wang system, he promised, which was the symbol for the culture of entitlement of politicians used to being treated as VIPs when it was the people forking out their salaries however they performed their jobs.

Indeed, Mr. Aquino promised us a rosy future with greatly diminished poverty and corruption.

How the people’s sentiments have changed more than five years since that day.

These days, Mr. Aquino is seen as a petty, vindictive leader who cannot even own up to mistakes or inadequacies, who is quick to chastise enemies yet protect his erring friends, and who is colossally insensitive to the plight of those outside his comfortable, affluent circle.

The daily inconveniences suffered by ordinary wage earners are just few of the many hallmarks of this administration.

It now appears the people cannot wait for the administration to be over. They would not extend it for a minute, thank you very much.

This is likely the reason that the survey ratings of Mr. Aquino’s anointed one, former Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, has failed to improve however they wish it to get better. In fact, surveys say the presidential endorsement has a negative effect on the candidacy.

But nobody could perhaps be more desperate than the people themselves who find that there are no serious options. All they can do is choose the least objectionable names on the list.

People have become so fed up with the current administration that they are just about ready to take someone—anyone—despite glaring flaws: sicknesses, citizenship and residency issues, human rights records and lifestyle choices.

Then again, this is not just happening now.

We conclude each administration with much frustration and see each election as an opportunity to stumble into a savior or at least a breath of fresh air.

As a result, the candidates try, not to strengthen their grasp on national issues and solidify their platforms but to present themselves as The One the nation has been waiting for.

This is bound to fail. There is no single person that could carry the weight of all our problems on his shoulders and solve them. No single person to provide all answers and transform us into the opposite of the poor, jobless, hungry and bitter nation that we are today.

This is the sad reality of elections: the cycle of disillusion, desperation, euphoria, high expectations, and disillusion yet again.

What we really need is someone to break the cycle—if such a person exists.

WHAT MAR WON LOWDOWN JOJO A. ROBLES IN A CLASSIC case of buyer’s remorse, a recent poll says President Noynoy Aquino’s endorsement of a presidential candidate will actually cause that unfortunate person to lose votes, instead of gaining them.

So much for continuing on the daang matuwid.

Former Secretary Mar Roxas is the latest presidential candi-

date to get the endorsement of a chief executive who is about to step down. And while the blessing comes with some benefits, it certainly has its drawbacks.

Of course, the most obvious value that an incumbent president’s endorsement is how it opens the faucets of official funding. This is what Senator Serge Osmeña meant when he said recently that Roxas seems hell-bent on buying up as many politicians as he can, like governors, congressmen and mayors, at P5 to P10 million each.

(Those funds are not really

direct bribes, but funding for pet projects of the officials to whom they are given. Depending on the official, most of the funds can either be used for actual projects or just pocketed through some creative accounting.)

But even with such formidable resources, Roxas, in the same survey, continues to languish near the cellar in terms of popularity. That’s because the lack of traction of the Roxas campaign is also directly related to the fact that he is Aquino’s anointed.

A9

Roxas’ courting of Aquino gave him the endorsement, but that is all that Roxas will win.

As the inheritor of daang matuwid, Roxas has precious little wiggle room, policy-wise.

And when Aquino commits some serious missteps, as he often does, the best option open to Roxas is to remain deathly silent and maintain an almost invisible profile.

Well, I guess you can’t really have everything. If Roxas has the benefit of almost unlimited funds—mostly, I suspect, from the P900 billion or so allocated funds that were not spent by the Aquino administration over five years—he also has the disadvantage of never straying from the official palace line, wherever it takes Noynoy and him.

But the Social Weather Station survey has brought up another factor that could totally negate Roxas’ funding advantage: People are simply tired of Aquino in these late days of his administration.

The general feeling, even amongst many of his formerly rabid supporters, is that Aquino—like many presidents before him, to be fair—simply didn’t live up to expectations. And the survey on the value of his endorsement only proves that people are once again

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-

aching for change, change that voting for Roxas and the continuation of Aquino’s underwhelming performance cannot provide.

But I guess Roxas—who cannot be accused of being stupid, for all his perceived faults—knew this from the beginning, when he wangled the endorsement in exchange for playing the all-too-willing understudy and successor of Aquino. And by now, Roxas simply cannot back out of the role he applied for, that of

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MST ONLINE

can be accessed at: www.manilastandardtoday.com

MEMBER

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Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

continuing the imaginary gains of this administration.

Roxas’ courting of Aquino gave him the endorsement. But that, according to all the surveys, is all that he will win. *** The official Vatican photo showed President Noynoy Aquino flashing his usual open-mouthed grin, which is par for the course for him. The scowl on the face of Pope Francis, who is almost always photographed in a jovial mood, was the surprise.

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 Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager

Chairman President & Chief Executive Officer Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Director of Operations Finance Officer Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

WE ARE now in the final stretch of the marathon climate change negotiations that was launched in Durban, South Africa in December 2011 just around the time Typhoon “Sendong” hit the Philippines and killed thousands in my hometown Cagayan de Oro. I remember hearing the news of that tragedy, including of relatives and friends dying in the floods in my city, when I was boarding the plane to return to Manila. I knew then that I could not walk away from the work that had to be done to overcome the challenge of climate change. This is personal, I told myself. We can get this done.

Four years later, here we are in Paris, France, on the eve of a new agreement on climate change. I am certain now that in a few days, perhaps on Friday or at most on Saturday, the 196 countries and regional economic organizations who are Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be adopting such a new agreement. Whether the new agreement is ambitious and adequate enough is uncertain—but for sure, it will be adopted.

From the 86 pages that came out of the first negotiating meeting in Geneva, Switzerland last Friday, to the four dozen pages that came out of meetings in Bonn in June, August, and October, we now have a manageable 21 pages as the second week of the Paris Conference of the Parties begin.

For sure, there are still many brackets in the text, signifying contentious issues and text that are not yet agreed. Ministerial consultations continue, a process we are intensely involved in given that we have three cabinet members leading our effort in Paris. Secretaries Emmanuel de Guzman, Ramon Paje and Neric Acosta will be intervening in the ministerial consultations backed up colleagues from government, civil society, and academe.

Secretary Paje will be delivering a powerful speech today and will once again echo our main demands in this negotiation: that the world adopt a 1.5-degree Celsius cap on temperature increases from pre-industrial level, that human rights (including the rights of indigenous peoples) and ecosystems integrity be protected in responding to climate change, that a review and ratchet up mechanism be incorporated to ensure that we can increase ambition over time, that support in terms of finance, technology transfer and development, 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

Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editiorial Board

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 0 8 , 2 0 1 5

A8

OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

EAGLE EYES DEAN TONY LA VIÑA

STATE OF PARIS CLIMATE TALKS

[ EDI TORI A L ]

WAITING FOR THE ONE

WHEN President Benigno Aquino III got elected in 2010, there were high hopes that finally, this was one person who would place the country’s interests ahead of his own, and live true to his calling of being a leader-servant.

How could the Philippines go wrong with Aquino? He was the son of sainted political personalities and has never had a record of wrongdoing in his entire political career.

Aquino fired up our patriotism during his inauguration when he said we were his bosses. He was doing away with the wang-wang system, he promised, which was the symbol for the culture of entitlement of politicians used to being treated as VIPs when it was the people forking out their salaries however they performed their jobs.

Indeed, Mr. Aquino promised us a rosy future with greatly diminished poverty and corruption.

How the people’s sentiments have changed more than five years since that day.

These days, Mr. Aquino is seen as a petty, vindictive leader who cannot even own up to mistakes or inadequacies, who is quick to chastise enemies yet protect his erring friends, and who is colossally insensitive to the plight of those outside his comfortable, affluent circle.

The daily inconveniences suffered by ordinary wage earners are just few of the many hallmarks of this administration.

It now appears the people cannot wait for the administration to be over. They would not extend it for a minute, thank you very much.

This is likely the reason that the survey ratings of Mr. Aquino’s anointed one, former Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, has failed to improve however they wish it to get better. In fact, surveys say the presidential endorsement has a negative effect on the candidacy.

But nobody could perhaps be more desperate than the people themselves who find that there are no serious options. All they can do is choose the least objectionable names on the list.

People have become so fed up with the current administration that they are just about ready to take someone—anyone—despite glaring flaws: sicknesses, citizenship and residency issues, human rights records and lifestyle choices.

Then again, this is not just happening now.

We conclude each administration with much frustration and see each election as an opportunity to stumble into a savior or at least a breath of fresh air.

As a result, the candidates try, not to strengthen their grasp on national issues and solidify their platforms but to present themselves as The One the nation has been waiting for.

This is bound to fail. There is no single person that could carry the weight of all our problems on his shoulders and solve them. No single person to provide all answers and transform us into the opposite of the poor, jobless, hungry and bitter nation that we are today.

This is the sad reality of elections: the cycle of disillusion, desperation, euphoria, high expectations, and disillusion yet again.

What we really need is someone to break the cycle—if such a person exists.

WHAT MAR WON LOWDOWN JOJO A. ROBLES IN A CLASSIC case of buyer’s remorse, a recent poll says President Noynoy Aquino’s endorsement of a presidential candidate will actually cause that unfortunate person to lose votes, instead of gaining them.

So much for continuing on the daang matuwid.

Former Secretary Mar Roxas is the latest presidential candi-

date to get the endorsement of a chief executive who is about to step down. And while the blessing comes with some benefits, it certainly has its drawbacks.

Of course, the most obvious value that an incumbent president’s endorsement is how it opens the faucets of official funding. This is what Senator Serge Osmeña meant when he said recently that Roxas seems hell-bent on buying up as many politicians as he can, like governors, congressmen and mayors, at P5 to P10 million each.

(Those funds are not really

direct bribes, but funding for pet projects of the officials to whom they are given. Depending on the official, most of the funds can either be used for actual projects or just pocketed through some creative accounting.)

But even with such formidable resources, Roxas, in the same survey, continues to languish near the cellar in terms of popularity. That’s because the lack of traction of the Roxas campaign is also directly related to the fact that he is Aquino’s anointed.

A9

Roxas’ courting of Aquino gave him the endorsement, but that is all that Roxas will win.

As the inheritor of daang matuwid, Roxas has precious little wiggle room, policy-wise.

And when Aquino commits some serious missteps, as he often does, the best option open to Roxas is to remain deathly silent and maintain an almost invisible profile.

Well, I guess you can’t really have everything. If Roxas has the benefit of almost unlimited funds—mostly, I suspect, from the P900 billion or so allocated funds that were not spent by the Aquino administration over five years—he also has the disadvantage of never straying from the official palace line, wherever it takes Noynoy and him.

But the Social Weather Station survey has brought up another factor that could totally negate Roxas’ funding advantage: People are simply tired of Aquino in these late days of his administration.

The general feeling, even amongst many of his formerly rabid supporters, is that Aquino—like many presidents before him, to be fair—simply didn’t live up to expectations. And the survey on the value of his endorsement only proves that people are once again

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-

aching for change, change that voting for Roxas and the continuation of Aquino’s underwhelming performance cannot provide.

But I guess Roxas—who cannot be accused of being stupid, for all his perceived faults—knew this from the beginning, when he wangled the endorsement in exchange for playing the all-too-willing understudy and successor of Aquino. And by now, Roxas simply cannot back out of the role he applied for, that of

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

continuing the imaginary gains of this administration.

Roxas’ courting of Aquino gave him the endorsement. But that, according to all the surveys, is all that he will win. *** The official Vatican photo showed President Noynoy Aquino flashing his usual open-mouthed grin, which is par for the course for him. The scowl on the face of Pope Francis, who is almost always photographed in a jovial mood, was the surprise.

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 Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager

Chairman President & Chief Executive Officer Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Director of Operations Finance Officer Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

WE ARE now in the final stretch of the marathon climate change negotiations that was launched in Durban, South Africa in December 2011 just around the time Typhoon “Sendong” hit the Philippines and killed thousands in my hometown Cagayan de Oro. I remember hearing the news of that tragedy, including of relatives and friends dying in the floods in my city, when I was boarding the plane to return to Manila. I knew then that I could not walk away from the work that had to be done to overcome the challenge of climate change. This is personal, I told myself. We can get this done.

Four years later, here we are in Paris, France, on the eve of a new agreement on climate change. I am certain now that in a few days, perhaps on Friday or at most on Saturday, the 196 countries and regional economic organizations who are Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be adopting such a new agreement. Whether the new agreement is ambitious and adequate enough is uncertain—but for sure, it will be adopted.

From the 86 pages that came out of the first negotiating meeting in Geneva, Switzerland last Friday, to the four dozen pages that came out of meetings in Bonn in June, August, and October, we now have a manageable 21 pages as the second week of the Paris Conference of the Parties begin.

For sure, there are still many brackets in the text, signifying contentious issues and text that are not yet agreed. Ministerial consultations continue, a process we are intensely involved in given that we have three cabinet members leading our effort in Paris. Secretaries Emmanuel de Guzman, Ramon Paje and Neric Acosta will be intervening in the ministerial consultations backed up colleagues from government, civil society, and academe.

Secretary Paje will be delivering a powerful speech today and will once again echo our main demands in this negotiation: that the world adopt a 1.5-degree Celsius cap on temperature increases from pre-industrial level, that human rights (including the rights of indigenous peoples) and ecosystems integrity be protected in responding to climate change, that a review and ratchet up mechanism be incorporated to ensure that we can increase ambition over time, that support in terms of finance, technology transfer and development, 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

Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editiorial Board

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OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

WHERE ARE WE HEADED? TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

THE surge of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s poll ratings in almost all surveys, even getting ahead of restwhile frontrunner Mrs. Mary Grace Natividad Poe Llamanzares, comes as a surprise to me.

Despite his vulgarity, profanity and obscenity, people see in Duterte as the candidate who can stop crime and corruption as he did in Davao City.

I am sad to see people supporting Duterte given his vulgarity, profanity and obscenity.

People see Duterte as the opposite of the Aquino administration’s utter incompetence in dealing with criminality and corruption. They do not anymore care how he would do it. More than that, the survey results also reflect the breakdown of the people’s values and sense of morality.

This is why I feel sad to see where this country is coming to. People cheer Duterte on when he boasts of killing people and burning their bodies, when he says he has many women, and when he said he was sexually molested as a teenager by a Jesuit priest at the Ateneo de Davao.

Senator Koko Pimentel, who proclaimed Duterte as PDP-Laban candidate, and Duterte’s running mate Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, said that people see in Duterte the typical traits of a local politician who is admired and even revered.

Duterte is not somebody we can emulate. He is vulgar, profane and obscene. His methods shatter everything we were taught about family values, decent conduct and law and due process.

Thus, I ask again, where is our country headed when large segments of the population from all socio-economic classes go for Duterte as their knight in shining armor?

This is why I cry for our country. *** President Aquino confessed he is confused about the residency and citizenship issues against Mrs. Mary Grace Natividad Poe Llamanzares.

Confused?

How can anybody who understands English and logic be confused? It is clear that Mrs. Llamanzares should be disqualified as a senator and more importantly, as a candidate for President.

The confusion speaks volumes about what kind of president we have.

It is clear that when Mrs. Llamanzares ran for the Senate, she fell short of the residency required of a senatorial candidate.

She said under oath that she only had six years and six months residency in the Philippines when she filed her Certificate of Candidacy. She never corrected it. Obviously, at that time, she never though of running for the presidency.

Thus, when a petition was filed at the Comelec Second Division by lawyer Estrella Elemparo that Mrs. Llamanzares was short of the 10-year-residency requirement, the Comelec commissioners said that Mrs. Llamanzares misrepresented herself. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand this, Mr. President.

Mrs. Llamanzares lied to the Comelec about her residency status.

As for the citizenship issue of Mrs. Llamanzares, the Comelec commissioners took the argument of three associate justices of the Supreme Court when they said that she was not natural born but a naturalized Filipino.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS COMMISSIONER Heidi Mendoza had it all planned out. She was supposed to stay put until 2018 to complete her term at the commission, where she serves with Chairman Michael Aguinaldo and Commissioner Jose Fabia. She knew exactly how many days she would remain in her office, and how many Christmases she would spend there.

Everything changed when she was informed she had been appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon as UndersecretaryGeneral of the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services.

On Oct. 13, the UN General Assembly unanimously approved her appointment.

She will be the first Filipino to occupy the post which she will occupy for the next five years.

According to the UN website, the OIOS assists the secretary general in fulfilling his oversight responsibilities in respect of the resources and staff of the UN through internal audit, monitoring, evaluation, inspection, evaluation and investigation services.

The office issues more than 200 reports, and more than 800 recommendations to improve internal controls and correct underlying obstacles to organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

A certified public accountant with masters degrees in national security and public administration with emphasis on fiscal administration, Mendoza has also served in the Philippine government and other organizations in the field of audit, investigation, fraud examination, anti-corruption and integrity and advocacy. She has served as US senior external auditor in the past.

Thus there appears to be no question in her qualifications for the job —but is she ready to pack her bags and leave the commission and her life in the Philippines just yet?

Mendoza was supposed to have assumed her post last Nov. 15, but she had to stay a few more weeks to take care of some personal loose The three associate justices of the Supreme Court added that even granting that international laws were on the side of Mrs. Llamanzares, international law cannot prevail over the Constitution which states that to be natural born, parents should be Filipinos.

The three associate justices may have lost to the majority. Their dissenting opinions however are precise according to the Constitution. The disqualification case is legal and constitutional in nature. This is why I believe that the Supreme Court will eventually disqualify her.

Get it, Mr. President? *** When the Ombuds-

CHASING HAPPY ADELLE CHUA ends. Now that she is about to uproot herself to begin her five years of international work, she said she wants to strike a balance between accountability and flexibility. Auditors are trained to be rigid and to follow the rules by the book, but flexibility would allow them to look at the context and appreciate facts by looking at the bigger picture.

Mendoza’s work at the commission, specifically her advocacy for citizen participation, has allowed her to observe that state auditors need to change their mindset about opening up. They have to challenge their decades-old notions about audit.

In the community of nations, the Philippines fares relatively well in opening itself up and being flexible.

According to Mendoza, this is due partly to the current administration’s efforts towards transparency, but also because of the series of reforms begun in the previous administration. An example is the public procurement law of 2003 (Republic Act 9184) where citizens are required to observe bidding. *** Then again, because of the suddenness of her departure, Mendoza admitted to being sad. “I will not be around to see some of the major reforms we had wanted,” she said. Among these reforms are the outsourcing of financial/compliance audits, and the shift in focus of the commission from financial/ compliance audits to performance audits.

In a financial/compliance audit, auditors render their opinion on the fairness of the presentation of an agency’s financial statements.

Performance audits, on the other hand, evaluate whether the objectives of government projects that had been laid out in the beginning

man filed charges against former MRT-3 general manager Al Vitangcol III and five others over the anomalous maintenance contract of the MRT system, people believed that the time of reckoning had come.

The surprise came when we learned that Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya was not included. It was Abaya who signed the contract. Logic and reason dictate that the person who signed the contract should also be liable.

The Ombudsman, however, said there was no probable cause to charge Abaya. Why? Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales must have been

were achieved.

To be sure, this idea may be met with resistance by some auditors themselves, given the way they take pride in how they have always done their jobs. Mendoza, however, said she believes that there is only resistance because they are not yet able to appreciate the bigger picture.

Another area Mendoza wants to see changed is the way audit reports are written. Currently, audit reports following guidelines that are often an excuse to simply copy and paste content under each heading.

What she envisions is a report written in clear, simple language that looks at the entire picture. “In this way, we can come up with more meaningful conclusions and more effective recommendations.”

A big question remains: Is the workforce ready for such changes?

It can be done, of course, there just has to be somebody within the commission to lead them into making this shift.

Mendoza served the commission for four years and six months this time around. In one of her last flagraising ceremonies with her colleagues, she thanked them for their support and assistance, “especially for those who have toed the line when it was most difficult.”

Mendoza leaves her job at a crucial junction. But just as the CoA loses a commissioner to a bigger stage abroad, it acquires a bigger audience now that more Filipinos have become aware of its role in the nation’s life.

So keep in mind that the commission, despite its dwindling (and aging) workforce, still tries to perform its mandate in the way it has known for many years. Auditors sometimes risk their safety, even their lives, in doing their job especially in far-flung areas in the country ruled by local lords who resist being audited.

There is a lot of unfinished business at the CoA. Mendoza’s examples are but a few of them. adellechua@gmail.com

told by the President that Abaya is secretary-general of the Liberal Party and to charge him would endanger the candidacy of Liberal Party candidate Mar Roxas. How else can this be interpreted?

Now, Senator Poe, who is running for the presidency, is asking the same question. Why did not the Ombudsman include Abaya in the list of those charged for the anomalous contract? Is Morales now taking orders from Malacañang? Morales has to answer this question. *** Right after the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation summit in Manila a few weeks ago, Malacañang promised to make an accounting of where

the P10 billion went for the event.

Until now, there has been no report about any attempt by President Aquino to let the people know how the money was spent. I do not expect any answers soon.

After all, did we ever get to find out how the donations for “Yolanda” victims were spent?

The millions of pesos coursed through Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman have remain untouched in bank accounts. Now there are reports that hundreds of sacks of rotten rice meant for Yolanda survivors have been buried.

This is criminal negligence and Soliman is getting away with it.

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OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

HAIL TO THE CHAIR VICTOR AVECILLA WHAT began as an ordinary quest for the presidency on the part of Senator Grace Poe has become one of the biggest political controversies in recent times. It is all about whether or not Poe is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines—an indispensable requirement imposed by the Constitution on those who seek election as senator of the republic or president of the country.

Voting 5-4, the Senate Electoral Tribunal allowed Poe to remain in the Senate on the ground that she is a naturalborn citizen. Last week, it refused to reconsider its ruling, which means that its decision is ripe for challenge before the Supreme Court—which has a record of reversing rulings of electoral tribunals.

Rizalito David, the petitioner in the SET case, intends to go to the highest tribunal in the land.

His case is expected to draw its strength mainly from the unanimous opinion of the three justices of the Supreme Court in the SET to the effect that Poe is not a natural-born citizen. By now, Poe must be aware that from a legal perspective, the unanimous opinion of the three justices is her most serious obstacle to victory in the Supreme Court. It will certainly be an uphill battle for her.

The ruling of the SET not-

VOX POPULI IS NOT ALWAYS VOX DEI withstanding, Poe will still have to contend with the four disqualification cases lodged against her in the Commission on Elections. Poe’s success in the SET does not automatically spell easy times for her in the Comelec. Citizenship was the only issue resolved in the SET case. In the Comelec, however, Poe faces issues concerning both her citizenship as well as her residency. If Poe is disqualified by final judgment even on the ground of residency alone, that is enough to derail her presidential ambitions for 2016.

Poe’s recent defeat in the first of the four disqualification cases pending in the Comelec is keeping her supporters occupied with damage control. According to the Comelec, Poe is not a natural-born citizen, and she does not meet the 10-year residency requirement imposed by the Constitution on candidates for president. Although Poe is expected to seek a reconsideration of that ruling, it has already prompted many of her supporters to rethink their options. After all, who wants to waste a vote on one who is ineligible for office?

One strategy so far employed

by Poe’s camp is to accuse her adversaries of masterminding the disqualification cases against her. Senator Francis Escudero, whose political allianc-

State...From A9 and capacity building be provided to developing countries so we can adapt and mitigate better, and that a loss and damage mechanism is set up as part of the Paris deal.

We had a good first week here in Paris as a Philippine delegation starting with the powerful speech of President Aquino; the President framed the issue as a global fairness and justice issue and that resonated with many. Our successful leadership of the Climate Vulnerability Forum, where we were able to increase membership from 20 to 43 countries and the great work of our negotiation teams that ensured our positions are all in the final negotiation text showed that a united and inclusive Team Philippines, one that harnessed our best and most experienced minds for a single goal, can make a lot of difference.

The preamble of the draft agreement supports what we would like to see in this agreement. For example, it recognizes the intrinsic relationship between climate change, poverty eradication and equitable access to sustainable development, and reaffirming that responses to climate change should aim to meet the specific needs and concerns arising from the adverse impacts of response measures. It also takes accounts of the specific needs of developing country Parties, and especially those that are particularly vulnerable to climate-related events.

The draft agreement emphasizes the need to respond to the urgent threat of climate change on the basis of the best available scientific knowledge, in particular, the assessment reports of the Inter-

es are unclear at the moment, is doing precisely that. He says that Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, the pro-administration Liberal Party bet for president, is behind Poe’s recent defeat in the Comelec. More specifically, Escudero claims that the petitioner in the first disqualification case has strong connections with a prominent lawyer retained by Roxas.

Well, what was Escudero expecting in a presidential derby anyway? Even assuming that Roxas is behind the disqualification cases, what is wrong with that? If a candidate is not legally qualified for an elective office, why shouldn’t that candidate face disqualification raps?

One who seeks public office should be ready to face public scrutiny in all forms, including law suits challenging one’s qualifications for the public office sought. The extent of public scrutiny is directly proportional to the importance and prestige of the public office concerned.

As a politician, Escudero should have expected that many obstacles will be thrown in Poe’s way, lawsuits included, the moment Poe announced that she will take a crack at the highest office in the land.

Other Poe supporters, like her superfluous spokesman Rex Gatchalian, insist that vot-

governmental Panel on Climate Change.

Although not yet agreed, it notes that the largest share of historical global emissions of greenhouse gases has originated in developed countries, that per capita emissions in developing countries are still relatively low and that the share of global emissions originating in developing countries will grow to meet their social and development needs.

An important paragraph for us is the emphasis given by the draft Paris agreement on the importance of promoting, protecting and respecting all human rights, the right to development, the right to health, and the rights of indigenous peoples, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable climate situations as well as promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women, while taking into account the needs of local communities, intergenerational equity concerns, and the integrity of ecosystems and of Mother Earth, when taking action to address climate change.

The first version of this paragraph was introduced by the Philippines and we have consistently fought for its inclusion. When we first proposed this in Lima, Peru last year, we only had a few allies. Today, it is almost universal— the acceptance of this idea that human rights and climate change are inseparable. We are proud that we will likely win this battle and provide the climate change regime with a necessary human rights connection.

Important also for us are the imperatives of a just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs in accordance with nationally defined development priorities and

ers should be the ones to decide whether Poe should be president or not. This strategy relies heavily on the mantra vox populi, vox Dei—the voice of the people is the voice of God. Senator Cynthia Villar, who sided with Poe in the SET case, subscribes to this view.

That sounds good, but it isn’t so. First, the Constitution must be obeyed by both candidates for public office and the sovereign Filipino people as well. Anything outside that doctrine is a sure ticket to lawlessness and anarchy. Second, the separation of Church and State mandated by the Constitution renders the invocation of the Divine in a state-run national election highly suspect. Third, the voice of the people does not always produce good results. More often than not, that voice often elects film personalities, comedians and action stars in particular, and other misfits to Congress.

Since God is associated with pleasant results, attributing the voice of the people with divine characteristics arguably smacks of a hybrid between blasphemy and the inability to judge a voter’s character.

The biggest surprise comes from President Benigno Aquino III. By urging Poe’s opponents and critics to allow, not the SET or the Comelec, but the elector-

the fundamental priority of safeguarding food security and ending hunger, and the particular vulnerabilities of food production systems to the adverse impacts of climate change.

Finally, the draft agreement affirms the importance of education, training, public awareness, public participation and public access to information and cooperation at all levels on relevant matters.

Last Saturday, when the final negotiation text was adopted, everyone in the plenary hall, nicely named La Seine, was happy that good will and trust has prevailed so far and we are all hopeful this spirit will endure next week. It’s not over until it’s over of course. But I am more hopeful now than I was when we landed on this great city Saturday and even as late as Thursday when we seemed stuck.

I agree with my friend Dan Reifsnyder, co-chair of the negotiating process, that this is a historic moment. Dan being American, I was able to predict that he would mention Charles Lindbergh’s historic landing of the first transatlantic flight here in Le Bourget in 1927 and he did. That was good, mentioning Lindbergh because what we need next week is the spirit which made this global hero fly the Spirit of St. Louis—one of imagination, hope and courage.

In the same plenary, Dan’s co-chair from Algeria, Ahmed Djoghla, shared a quote from Africa: “If you want to travel fast, go alone. If you want to travel far, go together.”

Together, this week, we will make history. I am sure of that.

Facebook: Dean Tony La Vina Twitter: tonylavs

ate to decide Poe’s political fate in the presidential race, Aquino was invoking vox populi to justify disobedience to the Constitution.

Aquino’s invocation of vox populi is uncalled for because his political party, the LP, is supposed to be supporting Roxas.

Considering that Poe is ahead of Roxas in the recent surveys (but with Duterte in the lead), that spells serious problems for the Roxas camp.

Actually, Aquino should be the last person to invoke vox populi as an excuse for disobeying the Constitution.

Once, when vox populi was successfully invoked during the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, the 1973 Constitution got “ratified” sans the plebiscite required by the 1935 charter then in force.

Under the 1973 Constitution, an authoritarian political order was installed in the country and a strongman administration governed the nation for the next 13 years. That was an era Aquino and his family openly detest up to today.

Now, it’s Aquino invoking vox populi to justify a violation of the Constitution. It looks like the outgoing conductor of the Malacañang orchestra wants his musicians to do a repeat performance of a symphony performed 42 years ago.

What... From A9 I’m not about to guess what the pope was thinking when he met Aquino over the weekend in Vatican City. What I want to point out is that Aquino is turning out, in his final days in office, to be just the sort of person he told us he would never be.

I remember very vividly that Aquino said he would not be traveling abroad as often as his predecessors if he is elected because such trips are often just a waste of people’s money. But now, in the twilight of his term, Aquino seems to be only too willing, as they say about the social-climbing set, to attend even the opening of an envelope, as long as it’s done abroad.

And to compound his turning back on his promise not to travel abroad if he can help it, Aquino now keeps saying that he “brings home the bacon,” as presidents afflicted with wanderlust near the end of their terms always do, upon his return.

After his latest sojourn to Europe, Aquino boasted about closing investment deals worth the usual billions, without bothering to explain that the chances of actual money coming in are about the same as those of him quitting smoking.

And you wonder why people have gotten tired of Aquino and his folksy, fauxearnest speechmaking, of his over-promising and under-delivering? At the end of his term, the President who was swept to power on a mighty wave of reform is no different from everyone else who held that post—and, in many respects, a lot worse.

No wonder the pope looked so unhappy.

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Warriors rout Nets, remain perfect LOS ANGELES— Stephen Curry scored 11 of his 28 points in the final 2:10 of the third quarter, and the Golden State Warriors remained perfect on the season with a 114-98 win over Brooklyn Sunday.

HD tossers foil Airmen, bag Spiker’s Turf crown CIGNAL HD TV pulled through in a pulsating second-set duel then thwarted Air Force’s fightback in the third to carve out a 25-17, 32-30, 25-23 victory and snare the Spikers’ Turf Season 1-Reinforced Conference crown at The Arena in San Juan City late Sunday.

The HD Spikers leaned on their prized rookie Edward Ybañez and solid blocking and superb reception to turn back the Airmen and complete their come-from-behind victory in their best-of-three series presented

by PLDT Home Ultera.

Ybanez, a 25-year-old spiker from University of Southern Philippines Foundation in Cebu, drilled in a match-high 13 hits, including 12 attack points, as the HD Spikers dominated the first set, survived the fiercely-fought second skirmish before outsteadying the Airmen in the third to secure the one-hour, 32-minute victory.

“I was happy we decided to get him on board,” said Carino, referring to the high-leaping, power-spiking Ybanez, who went on to capture the Finals MVP honors.

It was an inspiring triumph for Cignal, which dropped the series’ opener, 15-25, 25-19, 19-25, 19-25, but came back strong with an emphatic 25-16, 25-17, 25-18 to force a sudden death.

Ybanez expressed elation in helping Cignal win the coveted crown after failing to win one back home in the Cebu league.

“We were always second in the CESAFI and I’m happy to have finally nailed one,” said Ybanez, an engineering graduate.

Carino also made mention of their excellent blocking.

“No. 1 factor is our blocking, which was truly extra ordinary because my middle players were just as determined to stop the offense of the opposing team,” he said.

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors reacts after scoring against the Brooklyn Nets during the fourth quarter in an NBA basketball game at the Barclays Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Warriors defeated the Nets, 114-98. AFP

All set for 2 softball tournaments IT’S another action-packed season for softball players and enthusiasts as the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines and Cebuana Lhuillier team officially kick off the InterSecondary Women’s and Inter Collegiate Women’s and Men’s Softball Championships this month.

In the hopes of expanding the pool of women softball players for the national team, the 2015 Cebuana Lhuillier Inter-Secondary and Inter-Collegiate Softball Championships were revived six years ago.

Led by ASAPHIL President and Cebuana Lhuillier President and CEO Jean Henri Lhuillier, 20 teams will gather anew for the week-long Inter-Secondary Women’s softball tournament in Marikina City starting Dec. 12.

Meanwhile, 11 teams are set to compete for the National Inter-Collegiate Women’s Softball Championship crown in Baguio City on Dec. 13 to 19.

Last year, softbelles from San Mateo, Rizal won the championship trophy for the Inter-Secondary division besting 10 other hopefuls, while Adamson University Softball Team aced the Inter Collegiate Championships.

A guest team from Indonesia will also return to the country to join the Inter Collegiate tournament.

In addition, ASAPHIL and Cebuana Lhuillier also opened for the first time the Inter Collegiate Men’s Softball Championships this year with five competing pioneer teams.

“Through these national opens, we hope to provide op-

portunities to provincial players to get the needed exposure and training in case they want to pursue a professional league. We hope to discover new and fresh talents that could be part of our country’s softball team in the future,” Lhuillier said.

ASAPHIL is the official governing body for the sport of softball in the Philippines. It is a private sports organization, recognized as the National Sport Association for softball.

At present, it manages the Philippines’ national softball teams, the PH Blu Boys and Blu Girls.

A known advocate and supporter of grassroots developmental sports in the Philippines, Cebuana Lhuillier will once again serve as the tournaments’ main sponsor this year.

Blatter in FBI spotlight over $100-million bribery case LONDON—US authorities are investigating evidence indicating FIFA’s suspended president Sepp Blatter knew about $100 million (92 million euros) in bribes paid to former members of the football body, a BBC report said Sunday.

The BBC investigation alleges that sports marketing company ISL paid a total of $100 million to officials including ex-FIFA president Joao Havelange and former FIFA executive Ricardo Teixeira.

In return, the company received television and marketing rights during the 1990s, the report said.

Blatter has maintained he was unaware of the payments, but the BBC said it had seen a letter obtained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States that casts doubt on his denial.

The letter refers to the ISL payments and is alleged to have been written by Havelange, who notes that Blatter had “full knowledge of all activities” and was “always apprised” of them.

Blatter was Havelange’s top deputy before taking over from Havelange as FIFA president in 1998.

The BBC said Blatter had declined to respond to their allegations.

Blatter, who was suspended in October for 90

days by FIFA’s ethics committee, is due to stand down in February.

Separate from the reported US probe, Blatter has also become the target of a Swiss criminal investigation over possible mismanagement at FIFA and a $2 million payment made in 2011 to his would-be successor, UEFA boss Michel Platini.

The Swiss criminal probe spurred FIFA’s internal ethics watchdog to launch a further inquiry.

FIFA investigators finalised their probe in November, turning evidence over to the ethics committee’s judges, who will issue a verdict this month.

Platini is implicated in the same probe and investigators have called for a lifetime ban against him, but the requested punishment against Blatter is not yet known.

US prosecutors are investigating several top football officials in a quest to root out graft at FIFA. Late last week, 16 officials were charged over corruption in what the US justice department called an “outrageous” betrayal of trust by those who govern the world’s most beloved sport.

The most recent charges included the predawn arrests of two FIFA vice presidents at a

luxury Zurich hotel.

While eight people implicated in US investigations have already pleaded guilty, Attorney General Loretta Lynch has said there remain 27 defendants from within global football alleged to have taken more than $200 million (183 million euros) in bribes and kickbacks over decades. AFP

FIFA president Sepp Blatter looks on as fake dollar notes fly around him, thrown by a British comedian during a press conference at the FIFA headquarter’s in July this year. AFP

Klay Thompson tallied 21 points and combined with Curry to shoot 19for-35 overall and eightfor-19 from beyond the arc for the Warriors, who ran their NBA record start to 22-0.

The Warriors won their 26th consecutive regularseason game dating to April 9 and improved to 12-0 on the road. They outworked the host Nets at the start and at the finish when it counted the most.

“One of our biggest strengths is we are never out of the game and we are always one big run from putting the game away,” said interim coach Luke Walton. “We constantly encourage our guys to be on the attack.”

Draymond Green finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Warriors.

ERRATUM The headline “Warriors extend streak to 25,” which came out on page A13 of The Standard’s Dec. 7, 2015 issue, should have read “Warriors extend streak to 21.” Our apologies. AFP

Wildcats, Griffins win Games Dec.14 9 a.m. CDSL vs PNTC 10:30 a.m. PATTS vs LPUAlabang 12 noon NCBA vs AIMS 1:30 p.m. Philsca vs St. Francis

THE National College of Business and Arts Wildcats and the Colegio de San Lorenzo Griffins got off to a good start with big wins yesterday in the opening games of the 8th Universities and Colleges of Luzon Athletic Association basketball tournament at the Marikina Sports Complex.

CJ Catura led two others in scoring double-digit outputs, shooting 13 points for the Wildcats as they subdued the Lyceum-Alabang Pirates, 72-60.

Yves Nicolas tallied a game-high 18 points for the Griffins as they stopped the Asian Institute of Maritime Studies cagers, 95-73.

This put them in the early lead of this cagefest, which will have eight of nine participating schools vying for the top honors .

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Huey proud ACCEL endorser

Tiger Woods (left), Pawan Munja (center) of Hero Motocycles and Bubba Watson pose with the trophy after Watson’s three-stroke victory at the Hero World Challenge at Albany, The Bahamas in Nassau, Bahamas. AFP

La Salle, Adamson cagers set pace BAGUIO CITY—The favorites made their statement early on opening day of the national finals of the 2015 BEST SBP Passerelle Twin Tournament backed by Milo.

Metro Manila champions La Salle Greenhills and Adamson University scored two straight wins in their respective divisions to set the pace for the rest of the cast.

In the Small Basketeers Philippines division, La Salle Greehills overcame a stubborn Ateneo de Iloilo side,70-61, then trounced Ateneo de Davao, 64-46, for its second straight win and a seat in the championship game.

In the other SBP games, Luzon champion Berkeley School of Baguio halted Ateneo de Davao, 55-43, but bowed to Ateneo de lloilo, 50-64, to create a two-way tie for second with the Visayas champions at 1-1.

Ateneo de Iloilo (1-1) needs to win over Ateneo de Davao (0-2) for a slot in the championship as Berkeley (1-1) faces the tough task of handing LSGH (2-0) its first loss of the tournament.

While LSGH is safely in the finals, the battle is for its opponent which is still an open race among the three other teams who are in must-win situations.

ACCEL endorser and Filipino doubles’ specialist Treat Huey has joined forces with some of the top tennis stars in the Manila leg of the International Premier Tennis League at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Huey is teaming up with superstar Serena Williams and legend Mark Philippoussis for the Philippine Mavericks against the best players in the world.

Huey wears the ACCEL Quantum Plus technology to enhance his performance and maintain his positive outlook every game. ``To play with the best tennis players in the world in the IPTL is already an accomplishment for Treat. We, at ACCEL, support him all the way,’’ said Sporteum Philippines Inc. president Willie Ortiz, a big tennis fan himself.

Sporteum Philippines Inc. owns ACCEL, the No. 1 Filipino-owned sports apparel in the country.

Just like Huey, Filipino tennis standout Cecil Mamiit is also an official ACCEL endorser for the past three years.

ACCEL Quantum Plus is the latest technology in sports apparel manufacturing. Every clothing with ACCEL Quantum Plus keeps the energy of the wearer intact despite the sweat and challenging competition.

Watson shoots 6-under, wins Hero Challenge golf MIAMI—Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson fired a six-under par 66 Sunday to win the Hero World Challenge invitational event in the Bahamas by three strokes.

The 37-year-old American, who won at Augusta in 2012 and 2014, captured the 18-man event hosted by Tiger Woods with a 72-hole total of 25-under 263 at the Albany resort.

Fellow American Patrick Reed was second on 266 after a 66 of his own with countryman Rickie Fowler shooting at 64 to stand fourth on 267, one stroke better than 2014 winner Jor-

dan Spieth, the reigning Masters and US Open champion.

England’s Paul Casey, who played in the final pairing alongside Watson, fired 70 to share fifth with American Bill Haas.

Watson had back-to-back birdies three different times Sunday, at the par-3 second and par-5 third, the par-5 sixth and par-4 seventh and on the first two holes of the back nine.

He birdied the par-4 14th and a bogey at the last only

shrank the final victory margin.

England’s Justin Rose fired a course-record 10-under par 62 Sunday, breaking the day-old mark shared by Casey and Watson.

Rose, the 2013 US Open champion, birdied the third and fourth holes, fired three in a row starting at the par5 sixth, began the back nine with his sixth birdie and then fired four more in a row capped by a 2 at the par-3 17th. He finished on 275 overall. AFP

Hobe Bihon, Far Eastern U grab semis lead HOBE Bihon-Cars Unlimited and Far Eastern Univer- the FEU Tamaraws, who were given an outright berth sity-NRMF scored similar runaway victories to take the to the Final Four after posting a clean 5-0 record in the early lead in the single round-robin semifinals of the 5th elimination round.

DELeague Basketball Tournament on Sunday night at The Realtors, on the other hand, were paced by Kathe Marikina Sports Center, Marikina rim Abdul, who finished with 15 points City. and eight rebounds. Mike Tolomia addGames on Tuesday Hobe Bihon-Cars Unlimited led ed 14 markers.

(Marikina Sports Center) from start to finish to upend PhilipThe semifinal round of the league 7 p.m. - Philippine Christian pine Christian University, 89-80, even sponsored by PSBank, Accel Sportswear, University vs Sta. Lucia Land Inc. as Far Eastern University-NRMF PCA -Marivalley, Angels Burger, Mck8:30 p.m.- Hobe Bihon- Cars remained unbeaten in the league by ies Construction Equipment Sales and Unlimited vs Far Eastern posting a 92-83 win over Sta. Lucia Rentals, Luyong Panciteria, Azucar BouUniversity-NRMF Land Inc. langerie and Patisserie, JAJ Quick Print Wayne Schism collected 22 points Advertising, Mall Tile Experts Corporaand 12 rebounds and Gandry Sanjo added 16 points tion, Jay Marcelo Tires, Polar Glass and Aluminum Supand eight rebounds for Hobe, which ousted Metro ply and Mr. and Mrs. Dot Escalona, resumes on Tuesday Pacific Toll Corporation, 80-63, on Saturday to claim with PCU and Sta. Lucia colliding at 7 p.m. and Hobe a semis slot.

Bihon and FEU-NRMF clashing at 8:30 p.m.

Von Tambeling scored 20 points and Mike AyonayA three-win sweep in the semis would earn the on chipped in 20 markers for the PCU Dolphins. team the twice-to-beat advantage in the finals. The Meanwhile, Taylor Stratham scored 17 points and top two teams would dispute the title in a best-ofBright Akhuetie added 14 points and 15 rebounds for three series.

Far Eastern University-NRMF’s Bright Akhuete (right) tries to prevent Sta. Lucia Land big man Mac Andaya, from making a basket.

T UE S DAY : DE CE M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 5

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Gilas coach Tab Baldwin to handle Ateneo Eagles

By Peter Atencio

GILAS Pilipinas coach Tab Balwin will call the shots for the Ateneo Blue Eagles in Season 79 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament.

Ateneo de Manila University President Fr. Jose Ramon “Jett” Villarin, SJ, confirmed this in the university’s official website yesterday.

“I am pleased to announce the appointment of Thomas Anthony ‘Tab’ Baldwin as Head Coach of our men’s basketball team,” Fr. Villarin wrote in a memo ad-

dressed to the University community. “Many of you may know Coach Tab because of his great success with our Gilas Team, which won the silver medal in the FIBA Asia tourney last October.”

Baldwin replaces Bo Perasol, who handled the Blue Eagles for the past three years.

“We remain truly grateful to

him (Perasol) for all that he has done for us and we wish him all the best,” Fr. Villarin added.

Baldwin starts handling the Blue Eagles this month.

“We begin our preparations for Season 79 right away this December and we look forward to working hard for the UAAP championship,” added Fr. Villarin in his statement.

Villarin said winning the championship is the primary goal under Baldwin’s watch.

“As I have said before, if we set our sights on winning, it is never solely for our own glory,” he wrote.

He added that Baldwin’s entry into the team was made possible with the support of alumni and

team supporter Manny Pangilinan.

“We could not have accomplished bringing such a renowned coach to the Ateneo without the support and guidance of Manny Pangilinan. As always, we thank MVP for his leadership and constant care of our alma mater,” added Villarin.

Meanwhile, Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao warned of the legal ramifications that Ateneo may encounter, citing a court ruling obtained by the Basketball Coaches Association of the Philippines barring foreigners from holding local coaching posts that should have been given to a Filipino instead.

Coach Roger Gorayeb gets a victory lift from his wards after piloting PLDT Home Ultera to a sweep of Army in the Shakey’s V-League Season 12 Reinforced Conference Finals.

Uichico: Texters can still do more

By Jeric Lopez TALK ‘N TEXT coach Jong Uichico is far from satisfied with how his Tropang Texters are playing in the 2015 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup. Despite his team already booking a berth in the quarterfinals, being tied for fourth and having a solid 5-3 record, Uichico said his team can do more.

The multi-titled tactician wants to see his team improve further in the homestretch of the elimination round as the playoffs are fast approaching. ‘’We just want to win more games and try to fix the way we’re playing,’’ said Uichico, who feels that his wards have yet to live up to their full potential. ‘’I still don’t like how we’re

playing. We’re not playing hard enough,’’ he said. ‘’May times na bumababa laro namin at nagre-relax kami.’’

That was Uichico’s assessment after Talk ‘N Text routed erstwhile co-league leader Rain or Shine, 95-85, last Sunday in a game, where the Tropang Texters even led by as much as 21 points.

Uichico is now looking forward to the next challenges ahead for his team as he is aiming for a strong eliminationround finish. ‘’We still have GlobalPort, Ginebra and San Miguel. All strong teams. Hopefully, we can have a good finish and get more wins. We want to win as many as we can, then kung saan kami bumagsak, doon kami. As long as walang disad-

vantage, we’ll be okay,’’ Uichico said.

Talk ‘N Text still has an outside shot at a Top 2 finish and an outright semifinal berth but at the moment, it seems that the more achievable goal is to finish in the Top 4, where it will have a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarters over a lower-seeded team.

Talk ‘N Txt is still playing without forward/center Ranidel De Ocampo, but top rookies Mo Tautuaa and Troy Rosario continue to impress, filling the void left by their veteran teammate.

The top two picks in the draft actually led Talk ‘N Text in that win over Rain or Shine, with Tautuaa topscoring with 27 points and Rosario firing 19.

Gorayeb, PLDT seek more volley triumphs WITH two victories in the season, PLDT Home Ultera, with a young, intact roster, could be in for a dynastic reign in the country’s premier women’s volleyball league.

But coach Roger Gorayeb has opted to underplay the notion, saying there will always be tough, worthy opponents ready to stop their looming dominant run in the Shakey’ V-League.

“Yes we’re winning championships but I don’t want to call it that way,” said Gorayeb, moments after steering PLDT Home Ultera to a sweep of the Army side in the league’s Season 12 Reinforced Conference Finals before a huge crowd at The Arena Sunday.

What concerns Gorayeb most is how to find ways to win more championships since the opposition, especially, Army, will always be there to foil them.

“Army is always a tough opponent. They will always make sure that every game we played them would be tougher than before,” said Gorayeb. “So forget about dynasty. I’m more concerned in finding ways to beat them whenever we face them.”

The Lady Troopers, indeed, made sure to push the Ultra Fast Hitters to the limit.

In the Open Conference title duel early in the year, Army dragged Home Ultera to a sudden death before losing steam in a classic five-setter.

In the just-concluded Reinforced Conference, the Lady Troopers beat the Ultra Fast Hitters in the elims and were on their way to sweeping their rivals in Game One of the finals after taking the first two sets. But ace spiker Alyssa Valdez, who missed the entire elims and the semis, step into the picture, took charge in the clutch and anchored the team’s title sweep.

“Ours have become a rivalry.

Don’t mistake it for bad blood because we don’t feel that way, but it’s really intense whenever we play them,” said Gorayeb. “But I think it’s good for the league, good for the fans.”

Tiu bags Blitz chess title SHERWIN Tiu of Crown Asia defeated Michael Punzalan of MJ Yabut Realty in the seventh and final round to cap a brilliant campaign and rule the individual side of the rapid event in the InterCommercial Rapid and Blitz Chess Team Championship Sunday at the Alphaland Southgate Mall in Magallanes, Makati City.

Overall, the 11thranked Tiu finished the tournament jointly organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines and the Artillery Foundation of the Philippines, Inc., undefeated with 6.5 points out of a possible seven, half a point ahead of runnerup and no. 4 seed Lennon

Hart Salgados of MJ Yabut Destroyers, who scored six points for solo second.

Punzalan placed third with 5.5 due to a superior tiebreak score over Don Tyrone delos Santos of Marie Bernardo College, NM Alex Milagrosa of FEU Tams-Manila and Jerry Areque, also of MJ Yabut Destoryers, who also had 5.5 points and finished fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively.

Rounding out the Top 15 finishers in the sevenround tournament also supported by the Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine Olympic Committee were IM Barlo Nadera , Fide Master Joseph Mari Turqueza (Crown Asia B), WIM

Janelle Mae Frayna of FEU Diliman, and John Marvin Miciano (FEU Juniors), FM Nelson Mariano III of PLDT C.C. and Paul Robert Evangelista, Kevin Arquero of Orbe Chess Team, NM Noel Dela Cruz of Crown Asia A and Richard dela Cruz of Novelty Chess Club, who all finished with 5.0 points each.

In the team event, Crown Asia took the title as Tiu and NM dela Cruz scored 6.5 and 5.0 respectively, with Jaime Criste getting on the board with 4.5.

Settling for runner-up honors were the Salgadosled MJ Yabut D Destroyers with 15.5, followed by the Frayna-backstopped FEU Diliman with 13.5 points.

T UE S DAY : DE CE M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 5

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Cyna breaks into LPGA Tour, ties for 4th place CYNA Rodriguez became the first Filipina to break into the LPGA Tour in 15 years, turning in a strong joint fourth place finish in the Final LPGA Qualifying School at the LPGA International Hills Course in Florida Sunday.

Rodriguez actually made it to the world’s premier ladies pro circuit on her very first try when she fired a bogey-free 67 in the penultimate round of the five-day elims, virtually securing her place in the Top 20 for automatic berths in next year’s tour.

She actually moved to solo third late in the final round with a twounder card but bogeyed No. 17 and settled for a 71 and a 350 total for a share of fourth with Canadian Maude-Aimee LeBlanc, who also finished with a 71.

“It’s a dream come true and I’d like to thank those who supported me and believed that I can pull it off someday,” said the 24-year-old Rodriguez, a former Philippine Ladies Open champion who also racked up a number of amateur titles here and abroad.

She cited ICTSI chairman and president Ricky Razon and Philippine Golf Tour executive director Narlene Soriano, who backed her local and foreign campaigns during her amateur days under the ICTSI golf program and put up the ICTSI Ladies Philippine Golf Tour to develop the skills and talent of the country’s golfing ladies.

“It is in the LPGT where I toughened up and gained confidence that I can compete against the best,” said Rodriguez, who dominated the first three editions of the LPGT, winning half of the eight tournaments in 2014 and sweeping the Order of Merit titles.

The former South Australian

AT the outset, I’d like to thank the Far Eastern University Tamaraws for saving me from falling flat on my face by winning the UAAP men’s basketball crown.

Last week, I stuck my neck out and predicted that the Tams will beat the UST Growling Tigers for the title and I’m sure glad that I was proven right. The win saved me from the possible ribbing I would get from my sister, a UST graduate, and from others, who insisted that I was foolish to make

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

P0 M+ P0 M

Marist School U-16 booters win 2 straight

champion also thanked her parents Cherry and Eli for their allout support and coach Bong Lopez of Team The Country Club, who drew up the program in 2006 to produce world class players.

“Thank you coach for everything you’ve done for me.

You helped make my dream come true,” said Rodriguez in a text message to Lopez, who is in Singapore to oversee the campaign of the TCC players, headed by former US Girls’ Junior champion Princess Superal, the next player groomed

to make it to the big league.

“We were actually hoping Dottie (Ardina) would also make it but she had a bad week, particularly in the fourth round. But I believe it’s only be a matter of time before she joins Cyna and J-Ro in the LPGA,” said Lopez.

MARIKINA’S Marist School 16-under football varsity team, led by Juan Pablo Sison, Japheth Lico, Geo Juico and Austin Papa, is off to a strong start in its bid of snatching a third championship in the League of Southern Manila Schools following twin wins over De La Salle Lipa and Tanauan High School recently at the Brent International School, Biñan, Laguna.

The pair of Sison and Lico both had 3 goals as Marist FC edged DLS Lipa, 3-2, in the morning game, and blasted Tanauan HS, 7-1, a few hours after.

Marist played tough defense as they limited Tanauan to a single goal. Defender Guico played his usual brilliant game.

But, the revelation was Mitchell Avila as he scored 2 goals in their second game. The other goals were scored by Luis Orlina Macapagal, Jigo Laygo, and Paul Palogan.

Marist is now tied with Don Bosco Canlubang at first place with a score of 10 apiece.

Marist is the back-to-back LSMS champion for the U-16 category having won it first in 2014, and again early this year (Jan. 19, 2015). They still have to beat Brent, DB Canlubang, and British School Manila to successfully defend their crown.

MFC’s head coach, Frank Muescan, is on leave to oversee the training of the UFL champions Ceres FC back in Bacolod.

Coach Gerald Pasinabo Pacquiao ably steered the team to its twin wins.

Thanks, FEU

ARMAN D. ARMERO

STEP BACK

LOTTO RESULTS

a prediction in the first place.

I also said that I was making the prediction without any bias, but last Saturday, during the opening ceremony of the InterCommercial Blitz and Rapid Chess Team Championship at the Alphaland Southgate Mall in Magallanes, I was reminded that aside from being a former patient of the FEU hospital, I also had another association with the school from Morayta—with a pretty chess player.

The chess player is none other than Woman International Master Janelle

Mae Frayna, a 19-year-old FEU graduating psychology student, someone I admire for her skills and consider as a friend.

There she was with her teammate from FEU and they sure like they’re still celebrating the win. I congratulated Janelle and the rest of the girls and I was met with happy smiles.

Later, the FEU Purepower ran away with the blitz title, and while chess is not as celebrated as basketball, the victory just underscored that the Tams are a talented bunch whatever they do. No offense meant of course to UST

and other schools. After all, Pinoys generally have the inherent capacity to be awesome. *** Congratulations are also in order to the Philippine Canoe-kayaking and Dragonboat Federation, which last night capped its El Lobo Series 3 tournaments with a party-cumawarding ceremony at the CCP complex in Roxas Boulevard.

And what a party it was.

PCKF president Jonne Go and head coach Len Escolante and their army of volunteers made sure the event was a resounding

success, and the paddlers who attended the event had a grand time bonding (and drinking beer) well into the night.

Trophies were given away to the winners of the races, with the Philippine Marines winning quite a bulk, while raffle prizes, ranging from electric fans, compression leggings and shorts and Champion Paddles, were won by practically all the club teams which attended the event.

Escolante said the PCKF now has around 1,600 members and plans are in store to make every region

represented in the next few years.

I believe that if anyone can do it, the PCKF can since it’s inevitable that we’ll have more paddlers because we are a nation of islands and waters. Also, Go and Escolante’s partnership have proven to produce results.

Happy paddling PCKF and many more paddlers to come.

And to The Standard readers, Merry Christmas!

May you find Christ amid this busy season of Christmas.

For reaction, e-mail me at armero_23@yahoo.com.

A16

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 , 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

Spanish supertar Rafael Nadal uses his patented double-fisted backhand as he returns the ball to Tomas Berdych in the second day of the IPTL Manila leg on Monday.

LINO SANTOS

‘Rockstar’ Nadal powers Aces

By Randy Caluag

SPANISH superstar Rafael Nadal walked into the playing court of the Mall of Asia Arena amid bursts of lights and a thunderous roar usually seen only in rock concerts.

And it did not take long for the world’s no. 5 netter to justify such a rockstar treatment.

Nadal wowed the crowd with his display of powerful forehands and patented double-fisted backhands as he thwarted stubborn Tomas Berdych in the men’s singles play, 6-5 (7-3) to complete the demolition job by the Indian Aces of the UAE Royals Monday night in the penultimate round of the Coca-Cola International Premier Tennis League’s Manila leg.

Earlier, Nadal worked in tandem with Ivan Dodig to easily trounce David Nestor and Berdych, 6-3, in the men’s doubles as the Aces virtu-

Gorayeb, PLDT eye more crowns TURN TO A14

ally clinched the game with a 24-13 lead going into the final set.

“It’s great to be here. It’s the first time in my life to visit the Philippines,” said Nadal, who is actually making his debut in the IPTL after begging off from last year’s event due to appendicitis.

The pair of Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna got the ball rolling for the Aces with a 6-4 victory over the UAE Royals’ tandem of Nestor and Kristina Mladenovic in the mixed doubles.

Shortly after, Samantha Stosur blasted Ana Ivanovic, 6-3, in the women’s singles and Fabrice Santoro thumped Goran Ivanisevic, 6-3, in the

men’s legends’ battle as the Aces went ahead, 18-10, going into the final two sets with Nadal seeing action.

Meanwhile, Russian legend Marat Safin, who has become a politician after a long, successful career in tennis, is very much aware of Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao’s heroics on the boxing ring.

He is also aware of Pacquiao’s budding career in Philippine politics.

“It’s a good thing he (Pacquiao) has done. It’s good for the country, for youth, for the economy, for tourism,” said Safin, during the media interview after his Japan Warriors lost to the Singapore Slammers on opening day of the IPTL Sunday night.

As a politician, Safin supported the legislation of a law preventing American citizens from adopting Russian orphans.

“He (Pacquiao) just has to be patient. He can pick a fight with just his hands, but I am not allowed to take my racquet in the senate” said

Cyna breaks into LPGA TURN TO A15

Safin, who also kidded that Senate hopeful should “not hit anyone” in the Senate if he gets elected.

Safin bowed to Carlos Moya in their men’s legends singles’ match.

World no.1 Serena Williams regaled the Sunday night crowd with her power shots in her easy 6-3 win over Ana Ivanovic of the UAE Royals in their women’s singles’ match, although it was pretty obvious she was still groping for form.

In partnership with Fil-American Treat Huey, Williams committed several unforced errors, turning what would have been a very winnable match into a close game they lost out to the tandem of Nestor and Mladenovic.

“I don’t lack motivation, I have always been motivated. I just needed to take some time off and heal, to be able to walk without pain. And since my season ended earlier this year, I thought it was great to be able to come here and get some good match practice,” said Williams.

Tamaraws, Julaton to grace Forum NEWLY-crowned UAAP champion Far Eastern University and former world champion Ana ‘The Hurricane’ Julaton will grace today’s special session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at Shakey’s Malate.

School athletic director Mark Molina and some players and members of the coaching staff are appearing in the public sports program aired live over DZSR Sports Radio 918 to relive their victory over University of Santo Tomas in the Season 78 men’s basketball finale.

Julaton, on the other hand, will be accompanied by manager Angelo Reyes to talk about her coming fight in the ONE Championship event slated this weekend at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Joining them in the session presented by San Miguel Corp., Accel, Shakey’s, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. are officials of the National Golf Association of the Philippines, who will tackle the muchawaited Philippine Open set next week, together with boxer Giemel Magramo who battles Jeny Buca for the World Boxing Council international flyweight championship.

TUESDAY: DECEMBER 8, 2015

RAY S. EÑANO EDITOR

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ ASSISTANT EDITOR

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

BUSINESS

B1

BSP reviews P10,000 travel cap BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas is evaluating currency restrictions, including possibly raising the P10,000 ($212) limit of local currency that can be taken in and out of the country by travelers, to boost trading.

“If we see that there are still restrictions that could prevent an otherwise vibrant cross-border trading, then we will address those restrictions or ceilings,” Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said.

“We are about to present something to the board… Not sure if we are going to increase the amount but we are looking at it,” Guinigundo said at the sidelines of an event at Bangko Sentral

Monday.

The bank’s international operations department would make the recommendations, he said.

Guinigundo, however, said raising the P10,000 limit of local currency that could be taken in and out of the country by travelers might require the amendment of several laws.

“There are laws covering that….We can’t do that without

amending the law,” Guinigundo said. “One way of relaxing [the rules] is change the amount but that is something that we are looking at very carefully because there might be some legislative issues.”

Taking in and bringing out of Philippine currency in excess of P10,000 is prohibited under the Central Bank Act, unless the traveler was given authorization

by BSP international operations department.

Bangko Sentral has implemented several vital currency reforms since 2007, including easing the rules for foreign-currency purchases and loans.

Bangko Sentrral Governor

Amando Tetangco Jr. earlier said that transparency and flexibility in foreign-exchange transactions help the market plan better.

Since 2007, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has implemented several waves of currency reform including easing rules for foreigncurrency purchases and loans.

While the peso has fallen about 5 percent this year, it is still among the best performing Asian currencies with Indonesia’s rupiah and Malaysia’s ringgit losing more than 10 percent.

The peso closed at 47.13 against the US dollar Monday, down from 44.72 at the start of the year.

Tetangco earlier said transparency and flexibility in foreign-

exchange transactions help the market plan better and from experience, these policies have helped the central bank better manage external vulnerabilities.

In February, Bangko Sentral approved further amendments to the regulations on foreign exchange transactions in a bid to build a sound financial system and stable forex market.

The regulator allowed the sale of foreign exchange, on spot and forward basis, by banks and affiliate forex corporations to residents, without prior approval from the bank regulator to settle net obligations or payables under intercompany netting arrangements.

Bloomberg with Julito G. Rada

PSe comPoSite index Closing December 7, 2015

8000 7700 7400 7100 6800 6500

6,911.86 10.07

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing DECEMBER 7, 2015 43.50 44.60 45.40

P47.130

46.20

CLOSE

47.00

HIGH P47.055 LOW P47.155 AVERAGE P47.112 VOLUME 384.100M

P487.00-P682.00 LPG/11-kg tank P35.15-P42.40 Unleaded Gasoline

oPriceS il P today

Newly-listed. Real estate developer Italpinas Development Corp. concludes its initial public offering by listing its shares at the Philippine Stock Exchange. The company, which engages in real estate development using passive and active green design strategy, raised P207.44 million from the offering. Shown during the bell-ringing ceremony at PSE are (from left) IDC president Jose Leviste III, IDC chairman and chief operating officer Romolo Nati, PSE chairman Jose Pardo, PSE director Ma. Vivian Yuchengco, PSE president and chief executive Hans Sicat and PSE director Alejandro Yu. See story on B3.

P25.03-P28.48 Diesel P34.55-P39.15 Kerosene Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Monday, December 7, 2015

F oreign e xchange r ate Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

47.0810

Japan

Yen

0.008120

0.3823

UK

Pound

1.510800

71.1300

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.129034

6.0750

Switzerland

Franc

1.003512

47.2463

Canada

Dollar

0.747999

35.2165

Singapore

Dollar

0.715768

33.6991

Australia

Dollar

0.735998

34.6515

Bahrain

Dinar

2.654280

124.9662

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266539

12.5489

Brunei

Dollar

0.713216

33.5789

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000072

0.0034

Thailand

Baht

0.027962

1.3165

UAE

Dirham

0.272301

12.8202

Euro

Euro

1.087400

51.1959

Korea

Won

0.000860

0.0405

China

Yuan

0.156201

7.3541

India

Rupee

0.015002

0.7063

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.236742

11.1461

New Zealand

Dollar

0.676087

Taiwan

Dollar

0.030569

31.8309 1.4392 Source: PDS Bridge

Infrastructure spending rose 58% in Q3—Abad

By Gabrielle H. Binaday THE government’s infrastructure spending jumped 58 percent to P92.6 billion in the third quarter of the year from P58.8 billion year-on-year, but still fell below the target for the period, the Budget Department said Monday.

Spending on infrastructure and capital outlays was P8.2 billion short of the P100.8-billion target in the third quarter of 2015.

The department said the growth in capital outlay spending was driven by releases for aircraft acquisition of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Moderniza-

tion Program and infrastructure programs of the Departments of Education and Tourism, as implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Meanwhile, personal services increased 7.3 percent to P146.5 billion from the P136.5 billion in the same period in 2014. The figure is also 13.1 percent short of the P168.5-billion target.

Interest payments slightly increased 2 percent to P99.6 billion from P97.7 billion in the threemonth period last year. The payments fell 11 percent short of the target of P111.9 billion.

The July-to-September dis-

bursement performance was also supported by maintenance and other operating expenses spending, which grew 46.8 percent year-on-year.

“This is mainly due to expanded maintenance expenditures in relation to the implementation of the Conditional Cash Transfer and other community development programs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development , the PAMANA in the ARMM program of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Bottom-Up Budgeting,” Budget said.

Infrastructure and capital outlays spending reached P243 bil-

lion from January to September, 16 percent short of the P289.3billion target for the nine-month period.

Infrastructure spending in the nine-month period increased 24.3 percent from the P195.4 billion recorded in the same period in 2014.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said the spending momentum would be sustained until the end of the year. He was optimistic the economic full-year growth woud reach 6 percent, as public spending would play a pivotal role in the economic expansion in the fourth quarter.

TUESDAY: DECEMBER 8, 2015

B2

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

The STandard BuSineSS daily STockS review Monday, deceMber 7, 2015

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

7.88 75.3 124.4 107 56.5 2.49 4.2 17 30.45 10.4 2.6 890 1.01 100 1.46 30.5 91.5 137 361.2 57 180 124 3.26

2.5 66 88.05 88.1 45.45 1.97 1.68 12.02 19.6 6.12 1.02 625 0.225 78 0.9 17.8 62 88.35 276 41 118.2 59 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. I-Remit Inc. Manulife Fin. Corp.

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl. Reinsurance Corp.

PB Bank Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank PSE Inc. RCBC `A’ Security Bank Union Bank Vantage Equities

2.74 46 101.50 82.85 39.35 2.49 1.49 15.1 18.56 7.60 1.87 750.00 0.520 82.5 0.96 17.50 50.95 102 293 32.75 138.7 57.00 3.1

47 5 1.46 2.36 15.3 148 20.6 36 65.8 2.97 4.14 21.5 21.6 11.96 9.13 11.8 31.8 109 20.75 15.3 9.4 0.98 241

35.9 1.11 1.01 1.86 7.92 32 15.32 10.08 29.15 1.5 1.5 10.72 9.55 9.04 6.02 8.86 20.2 71.5 13.86 13.24 5.34 0.395 173

79 3.95 33.9 90 13.26 293 5.25 12.98 6.75 15 7.03 3.4 4.5 6.3 7.34 238 3.28 0.315 2.18 2.65 234 5.28 1.3 26 2.17

34.1 2.3 23.35 17.3 5.88 250.2 3.87 8.45 3 10.04 3.03 1.95 1 4.02 5.9 161 1.55 0.138 1.02 2.09 152 4.28 0.640 10.02 1.2

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Asiabest Group C. Azuc De Tarlac Century Food Cirtek Holdings (Chips) Concepcion Crown Asia Da Vinci Capital Del Monte DNL Industries Inc. Emperador Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) EEI First Gen Corp.

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

LBC Express Liberty Flour LMG Chemicals 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 Holdings San Miguel’Pure Foods `B’ Splash Corporation Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Trans-Asia Oil Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

40.6 5.15 0.79 1.5 10.62 98.95 17.18 21.9 41.05 2.43 1.58 10.36 9.300 9.20 6.18 5.15 24 67.55 11.98 14.50 5.85 2.150 205.00 12.48 31.00 1.87 24.6 21.8 5.7 312.20 3.65 7.36 3.03 11.76 3.78 1.74 2.32 4.06 5.26 130 2.5 0.148 1.12 2.20 185.3 4.55 0.66 22.50 1.17

0.59 59.2 30.05 7.39 3.4 3.35 823.5 10.2 84 3.35 3.68 0.66 1455 76 9.25 0.85 17.3 5.53 6.55 0.0670 2.31 1.61 84.9 3.5 974 1.66 1.39 156 0.710 0.435 0.510

0.44 48.1 20.85 6.62 0.23 0.23 634.5 7.390 12.8 2.6 1.15 0.152 837 49.55 4.84 0.59 12 4.2 4.5 0.030 1.23 0.550 59.3 1.5 751 1.13 0.93 80 0.211 0.179 0.310

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anscor `A’ ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp `A’ Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings F&J Prince ‘A’ F&J Prince ‘B’ Forum Pacific GT Capital JG Summit Holdings Lopez Holdings Corp.

Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

LT Group Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

Minerales Industrias Corp.

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

0.390 57.3500 17.10 6.45 0.249 0.237 736 7.54 13.64 5.06 5.4 0.265 1265 71.35 7.5 0.74 14.88 5.26 9.94 0.0310 1.370 1.780 47.20 2.70 849.00 1.17 0.72 73.000 0.3000 0.2070 0.265

10.5 26.95 1.99 1.75 0.375 41.4

6.74 12 0.65 1.2 0.192 30.05

8990 HLDG 7.100 Anchor Land Holdings Inc. 7.25 A. Brown Co., Inc. 0.90 Araneta Prop `A’ 1.190 Arthaland Corp.

0.209 Ayala Land `B’ 34.100

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

SHARES 10,931,949 50,932,708 65,598,476 101,919,707 100,199,569 447,412,291 902,927,899

Close

High

Low

FINANCIAL 2.8 2.7 46.1 45.05 102.90 100.40 83.95 81.70 38.75 38.4 2.50 2.50 1.48 1.40 15.16 15 19 18.56 7.59 7.36 1.88 1.68 760.00 760.00 0.620 0.520 82.45 80.2 0.94 0.93 17.20 16.80 52.40 51.50 102.9 102.9 292 292 32.7 31 139.1 138 57.00 57.15 3.05 3.05 INDUSTRIAL 41 40.2 5.17 4.78 0.77 0.77 1.5 1.49 10.8 10.62 95.00 95.00 17.26 17.12 22.2 21.5 41.05 40.5 2.44 2.39 1.6 1.49 10.36 10.36 9.27 9.180 9.40 9.00 6.19 5.99 5.32 5.17 24.55 24.25 67.8 67.4 12.00 12.00 14.22 14.02 5.88 5.82 2.160 2.250 207.00 205.80 12.7 12.1 28.30 28.30 1.87 1.86 24.9 24.6 21.8 21.35 5.7 5.65 316.00 312.00 3.7 3.6 7.45 7.25 3 3 11.50 11.40 3.85 3.78 1.75 1.67 2.34 2.22 4.10 4.05 5.01 4.29 130 128.5 2.6 2.48 0.151 0.147 1.27 1.05 2.20 2.16 188.5 185 4.56 4.54 0.67 0.64 22.50 22.50 1.17 1.10 HOLDING FIRMS 0.395 0.395 57.4000 56.7000 17.20 17.08 6.50 6.30 0.238 0.230 0.237 0.236 751.5 730.5 7.59 7.5 13.76 13.46 5.5 5.11 5.7 5.7 0.265 0.245 1280 1267 72.80 71.30 7.42 7.21 0.77 0.74 14.82 14.78 5.28 5.22 9.95 0.86 0.0320 0.0300 1.360 1.300 1.760 1.780 47.25 46.20 2.70 2.41 857.00 849.00 1.17 1.17 0.72 0.71 73.000 72.750 0.3100 0.2950 0.2060 0.2050 0.265 0.260 PROPERTY 7.200 7.000 7.26 5.72 0.93 0.88 1.150 1.150 0.220 0.217 34.500 33.800

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

2.8 46.1 101.40 81.95 38.4 2.50 1.40 15 19 7.59 1.70 760.00 0.580 80.2 0.94 16.98 51.80 102.9 292 31.55 138.1 57.10 3.05

2.19 0.22 -0.10 -1.09 -2.41 0.40 -6.04 -0.66 2.37 -0.13 -9.09 1.33 11.54 -2.79 -2.08 -2.97 1.67 0.88 -0.34 -3.66 -0.43 0.18 -1.61

43,000 21,400 746,610 2,030,900 6,400 1,000 46,000 13,800 127,700 1,700 62,000 10 6,189,000 353,430 37,000 210,300 167,820 50 310 59,200 447,180 94,530 32,000

40.2 4.88 0.77 1.49 10.66 95.00 17.2 21.75 41 2.41 1.49 10.36 9.190 9.02 6.17 5.32 24.4 67.8 12.00 14.22 5.83 2.180 206.00 12.7 28.30 1.86 24.8 21.8 5.65 315.20 3.7 7.28 3 11.50 3.85 1.71 2.3 4.07 4.56 128.5 2.5 0.148 1.15 2.18 185 4.55 0.67 22.50 1.17

-0.99 -5.24 -2.53 -0.67 0.38 -3.99 0.12 -0.68 -0.12 -0.82 -5.70 0.00 -1.18 -1.96 -0.16 3.30 1.67 0.37 0.17 -1.93 -0.34 1.40 0.49 1.76 -8.71 -0.53 0.81 0.00 -0.88 0.96 1.37 -1.09 -0.99 -2.21 1.85 -1.72 -0.86 0.25 -13.31 -1.15 0.00 0.00 2.68 -0.91 -0.16 0.00 1.52 0.00 0.00

2,260,300 1,218,200 6,000 125,000 1,000 50 254,200 5,154,800 2,227,000 265,000 1,555,000 2,000 7,127,600 1,035,000 15,269,600 910,300 1,506,300 87,870 12,700 4,400 56,800 1,845,000 463,680 43,300 2,300 33,000 1,112,600 122,500 14,100 164,840 483,000 631,200 10,000 10,300 120,000 175,000 175,000 197,000 44,200 17,430 886,000 3,340,000 222,000 208,000 2,304,390 77,000 27,000 1,000 23,000

0.395 57.1000 17.10 6.50 0.233 0.236 734 7.55 13.50 5.45 5.7 0.265 1268 72.05 7.42 0.75 14.8 5.25 9.93 0.0320 1.360 1.780 47.25 2.70 856.50 1.17 0.71 73.000 0.2950 0.2060 0.260

1.28 -0.44 0.00 0.78 -6.43 -0.42 -0.27 0.13 -1.03 7.71 5.56 0.00 0.24 0.98 -1.07 1.35 -0.54 -0.19 -0.10 3.23 -0.73 0.00 0.11 0.00 0.88 0.00 -1.39 0.00 -1.67 -0.48 -1.89

20,000 759,680 3,073,300 50,100 2,300,000 1,310,000 193,930 2,230,400 2,199,200 188,000 1,900 940,000 45,495 2,446,180 1,296,900 104,000 492,700 7,807,800 903,400 35,300,000 14,000 525,000 174,700 2,000 243,490 45,000 56,000 3,470 1,770,000 320,000 590,000

7.010 5.72 0.90 1.150 0.220 33.950

-1.27 -21.10 0.00 -3.36 5.26 -0.44

375,900 37,500 2,372,000 6,000 310,000 6,000,100

570,270.00 7,130,012 -33,731,745.50

163,712.00 -473,010.00 7,600.00 -84,500.00 -14,660,838.00 931,600.00 -4,034,910.00 468,130 21,605,624.00

-58,490,720.00 177,369.00

669,792.00 -413,200.00 -5,470,695 58,400.00 2,086,007.00 -5,747,041.00 -37,804,069.00 20,625.00 25,595,625.00 4,058,567.00

21,821,380.00 -121,280.00 -50,940.00 6,163,835.00 -349,345.00 -42,750.00 -3,340,272.00 1,266,510.00 1,440,058.00 12,540.00

-69,010.00 -98,918.00 -1,739,200.00 50,800.00

-221,542,787.00 59,120.00 22,500.00

-24,354,869.00 -20,951,708.00 -47,200.00 -14,779,965.00 1,223,652.00 4,169,228.00

-22,134,285.00 85,150,220.00 -4,472,838.00 183,372.00 17,211,270.00

196,350.00 -1,602,115.00 69,116,565.00

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

5.6 5.59 1.44 1.48 0.201 0.69 10.96 2.22 2.1 1.8 5.94 0.180 0.470 0.72 8.54 31.8 2.29 4.9 21.35 1.06 7.56 1.62 8.59

3.36 4.96 0.79 0.97 0.083 0.415 2.4 1.15 1.42 1.27 4.13 0.090 0.290 0.39 2.69 22.15 1.6 3.1 15.08 0.69 3.38 0.83 5.73

Belle Corp. `A’ Cebu Holdings Century Property Cityland Dev. `A’ Crown Equities Inc. Cyber Bay Corp.

Double Dragon Global-Estate Filinvest Land,Inc. Interport `A’ Megaworld MRC Allied Ind. Phil. Estates Corp.

Phil. Realty `A’ Primex Corp.

Robinson’s Land `B’ Rockwell Shang Properties Inc. SM Prime Holdings Sta. Lucia Land Inc. Starmalls Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. Vista Land & Lifescapes

10.5 66 1.44 1.09 14.88 15.82 0.1430 5.06 99.1 12.3 7.67 1700 2720 8.41 70.5 1.97 119.5 0.017 0.8200 2.2800 12.28 3.32 2.53 3.2 95.5 1 2.46 15.2

1.97 35.2 1 0.63 10.5 8.6 0.0770 2.95 56.1 10.14 4.8 830 1600 5.95 17.02 1.23 102.6 0.011 0.041 1.200 6.5 1.91 1.01 1.95 3.1 0.650 1.8 6

0.62 1.040 22.8 6.41 4 185 22.9 3486 0.760 2.28 46.05 90.1

0.335 0.37 14.54 3 2.28 79 4.39 2748 0.435 1.2 31.45 60.55

11.6 0.85 10 0.490 1.9

7.59 0.63 5 0.315 1.14

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

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

DFNN Inc. FEUI Globe Telecom GMA Network Inc. Grand Plaza Hotel Harbor Star I.C.T.S.I. IP E-Game Ventures Inc. Island Info ISM Communications Leisure & Resorts Liberty Telecom Lorenzo Shipping Macroasia Corp.

Manila Broadcasting Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Melco Crown Metro Retail MG Holdings NOW Corp.

Pacific Online Sys. Corp.

PAL Holdings Inc. Paxys Inc. Phil. Seven Corp.

Philweb.Com Inc. PLDT Common PremiereHorizon Premium Leisure Puregold Robinsons RTL SBS Phil. Corp.

SSI Group STI Holdings Travellers Waterfront Phils.

Yehey

0.0098 5.45 17.24 12.7 1.19 1.62 9.5 4.2 0.48 0.420 0.022 8.2 49.2 4.27 1.030 0.020 12.88 10.42 0.040 420 9

0.0043 1.72 6.47 6.5 0.85 0.77 5.99 1.17 0.305 0.2130 0.013 3.240 18.96 2.11 0.365 0.012 7.26 2.27 0.015 115.9 3.67

Abra Mining Apex `A’ Atlas Cons. `A’ Benguet Corp `A’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto `A’ Manila Mining `A’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Omico Oriental Pet. `A’ Philex `A’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. `A’ Semirara Corp.

TA Petroleum

70 8.21 12.28 111 1060

33 5.88 6.5 101 997

78.95 84.8

74.5 75

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

GMA Holdings Inc. Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred A PCOR-Preferred B SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C SMC Preferred D SMC Preferred F

6.98

0.8900 LR Warrant

-65,699.00 -19,800.00 -6,900.00 2,785,075.00

Close

Alterra Capital Makati Fin. Corp.

Italpinas Xurpas

15

3.5

12.88

5.95

130.7

105.6 First Metro ETF

High

VALUE 384,721,946.40 1,109,556,181.10 858,283,970.98 986,438,640.17 534,275,621.042 46,332,587.626 4,453,528,661.752

FINANCIAL 1,524.39 (DOWN) 17.36 INDUSTRIAL 10,930.35 (DOWN) 6.30 HOLDING FIRMS 6,525.75 (UP) 14.21 PROPERTY 2,917.43 (DOWN) 3.33 SERVICES 1,598.54 (DOWN) 2.61 MINING & OIL 10,764.66 (DOWN) 24.11 PSEI 6,911.86 (DOWN) 10.07 All Shares Index 3,986.43 (DOWN) 6.80 Gainers: 68; Losers: 112; Unchanged: 36; Total: 216

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

3.16 5.05 0.56 1.03 0.126 0.480 23.5 1.04 1.86 1.19 4.54 0.083 0.2550 0.4350 8.78 28.65 1.46 3.2 21.30 0.75 7.4 0.910 5.300

3.2 3.13 3.16 5.15 5.1 5.15 0.57 0.56 0.57 1.070 1.070 1.07 0.125 0.125 0.125 0.490 0.475 0.480 24.9 23.5 24.9 1.06 1.04 1.05 1.88 1.85 1.87 1.18 1.17 1.17 4.69 4.56 4.59 0.083 0.080 0.080 0.2550 0.2550 0.2550 0.4100 0.4100 0.4100 8.75 8.56 8.7 29.00 28.00 28.00 1.5 1.46 1.46 3.1 3.1 3.1 21.85 21.35 21.40 0.74 0.72 0.72 7.4 7.25 7.4 0.910 0.930 0.950 5.350 5.290 5.310 SERVICES 7.33 7.27 7.2 7.2 64.3 64.35 63.25 64.25 1.2 1.16 1.15 1.15 0.500 0.530 0.500 0.510 11.08 11.18 10.9 10.9 5.18 5.28 5.14 5.14 0.0430 0.0460 0.0430 0.0450 3.43 3.5 3.43 3.5 83.65 84 83.65 83.65 10 9.81 9.81 9.81 5.00 5.18 4.95 5.12 955 955 951 955 1988 2004 1974 1974 6.91 6.92 6.82 6.82 21.50 21.50 21.50 21.50 1.29 1.30 1.28 1.28 71.9 72.95 71.6 72 0.011 0.011 0.010 0.010 0.173 0.171 0.169 0.170 1.4400 1.4400 1.3800 1.4300 8.99 8.99 8.96 8.96 4.24 4.32 4.19 4.26 1.23 1.24 1.20 1.24 2.20 2.25 2.20 2.25 28.90 28.90 28.90 28.90 0.570 0.600 0.550 0.600 2 2 1.97 2 3.36 3.33 3.13 3.14 3.86 3.95 3.87 3.88 0.255 0.255 0.255 0.255 0.800 0.880 0.820 0.820 18.98 18 17.68 18 4.52 4.52 4.52 4.52 2.53 2.54 2.52 2.52 102.00 102.00 102.00 102.00 20.65 20.95 20.70 20.95 2140.00 2160.00 2132.00 2138.00 0.460 0.470 0.450 0.450 0.940 0.950 0.870 0.890 33.30 34.70 33.20 33.85 68.85 69.00 68.85 69.00 6.32 6.35 6.12 6.12 4.43 4.52 4.14 4.33 0.460 0.465 0.465 0.465 3.86 3.87 3.8 3.83 0.350 0.350 0.325 0.350 4.530 4.670 4.410 4.510 MINING & OIL 0.0051 0.0051 0.0050 0.0051 2.00 2.00 1.95 1.95 4.31 4.30 4.19 4.30 5.7000 5.68 5.65 5.6500 0.66 0.65 0.63 0.64 0.63 0.64 0.63 0.63 7.60 7.80 7.20 7.60 0.77 0.79 0.75 0.75 0.295 0.295 0.285 0.290 0.189 0.190 0.189 0.190 0.0110 0.0100 0.0100 0.0100 2.18 2.18 2.15 2.18 6.57 6.75 6.61 6.65 2.87 3 2.85 2.85 0.5900 0.5600 0.5600 0.5600 0.0100 0.0110 0.0100 0.0110 5.00 5.050 4.99 4.99 1.42 1.430 1.38 1.39 0.0120 0.0120 0.0110 0.0120 136.10 136.30 135.60 136.00 2.33 2.3 2.25 2.3 PREFERRED 65 65.5 65 65.5 6.91 6.81 6.8 6.8 1.11 1.12 1.12 1.12 108 107.5 107.5 107.5 1050 1050 1050 1050 1073 1073 1072 1072 80 79.05 79.05 79.05 83.05 83.2 83.05 83.05 79.4 79.4 79.3 79.3 80.7 80.9 80.65 80.8 WARRANTS & BONDS 2.710 2.740 2.700 2.700 SME 3.52 3.48 3.41 3.48 2.7 2.57 2.57 2.57 3.6 5.4 4.16 4.22 14.46 14.6 13.96 14.1 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 113.4 114.1 113 113

T op g ainerS STOCKS

Low

0.00 1.98 1.79 3.88 -0.79 0.00 5.96 0.96 0.54 -1.68 1.10 -3.61 0.00 -5.75 -0.91 -2.27 0.00 -3.13 0.47 -4.00 0.00 2.20 0.19

4,493,000 32,081,300 1,344,000 6,000 100,000 3,000,000 4,923,800 1,106,000 2,322,000 50,000 21,957,000 400,000 200,000 10,000 37,100 2,749,600 4,000 3,000 13,274,900 3,420,000 2,500 588,000 732,700

8,141,120.00 -45,899,960.00 178,070.00

-1.77 -0.08 -4.17 2.00 -1.62 -0.77 4.65 2.04 0.00 -1.90 2.40 0.00 -0.70 -1.30 0.00 -0.78 0.14 -9.09 -1.73 -0.69 -0.33 0.47 0.81 2.27 0.00 5.26 0.00 -6.55 0.52 0.00 2.50 -5.16 0.00 -0.40 0.00 1.45 -0.09 -2.17 -5.32 1.65 0.22 -3.16 -2.26 0.00 -0.78 0.00 -0.44

29,200 41,320 17,000 2,111,000 3,700 1,363,400 27,100,000 142,000 82,750 400 104,400 250 22,925 70,000 134,900 61,000 561,300 4,100,000 1,220,000 330,000 600 444,000 22,000 10,000 200 102,000 95,000 7,219,000 4,990,000 700,000 21,009,000 200 11,000 29,000 153,870 30,300 51,065 970,000 11,250,000 1,210,800 463,050 896,500 8,593,000 2,110,000 387,000 380,000 372,000

0.00 -2.50 -0.23 -0.88 -3.03 0.00 0.00 -2.60 -1.69 0.53 -9.09 0.00 1.22 -0.70 -5.08 10.00 -0.20 -2.11 0.00 -0.07 -1.29

375,000,000 35,000 145,000 -21,110.00 3,200 302,000 37,000 8,200 6,321,000 1,224,390.00 50,000 1,070,000 5,100,000 135,000 2,521,800 -6,360,111.00 6,000 7,000 1,500,000 1,110,700 -415,590.00 422,000 -160,160.00 53,400,000 105,030 11,587,329.00 33,000

0.77 -1.59 0.90 -0.46 0.00 -0.09 -1.19 0.00 -0.13 0.12

345,000 41,000 99,000 4,500 70 260 1,500 26,000 8,300 110,610

-0.37

4,000

-1.14 -4.81 17.22 -2.49

55,000 2,000 41,301,000 4,463,040.00 3,110,600 -17,008,916.00

-0.35

1,290

105,600.00 34,766,000.00 -130,200.00 498,520.00 24,433,630.00 83,000.00

-37,835,920.00 127,108,135.00 18,455.00 9,300.00 503,866.00

-408,000.00 -1,410,139.00 -27,000.00 -240,297.00

-4,381,850.00 62,700.00 17,054,094.50 1,430.00 546,400.00

-5,094,630.00 388,360.00 -57,900.00 -1,768.00 22,600.00 0.00 -31,081,390.00 147,720.00 21,777,820.00 -20,261,258.00 71,560.00 19,706,120.00 749,800.00 -116,090.00

597,170.00 -88,400.00 44,800.00 0.00

1,972,437.50

T op L oSerS Close (P)

Change (%)

STOCKS

Close (P)

Change (%)

Italpinas

4.22

17.22

Anchor Land Holdings Inc.

5.72

-21.10

MEDCO Holdings

0.580

11.54

Roxas Holdings

4.56

-13.31

Oriental Pet. `A'

0.0110

10.00

I-Remit Inc.

1.70

-9.09

F&J Prince 'A'

5.45

7.71

IP E-Game Ventures Inc.

0.010

-9.09

Double Dragon

24.9

5.96

Manila Mining `A'

0.0100

-9.09

F&J Prince 'B'

5.7

5.56

Liberty Flour

28.30

-8.71

Arthaland Corp.

0.220

5.26

Melco Crown

3.14

-6.55

Manila Bulletin

0.600

5.26

ATN Holdings A

0.233

-6.43

Boulevard Holdings

0.0450

4.65

Bright Kindle Resources

1.40

-6.04

Cityland Dev. `A'

1.07

3.88

Phil. Realty `A'

0.4100

-5.75

TUESDAY: DECEMBER 8, 2015

B3

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

Stocks decline; SM Prime, BPI drop

New PCCI leaders. The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country’s largest business organization, elects its set of 20162017 board of directors during the PCCI annual meeting on December 4, 2015. The new board unanimously voted Benedicto Yujuico (sixth from left) and George Barcelon (sixth from right) as chairman and president, respectively. Congratulating them after the PCCI annual meeting are (from left) Angelito Colona, Aurelio Aure, Ramon Escueta, Joseph Sy, Alberto Fenix Jr., Anton LL. Sayo. Francis Chua, Roberto Amores, Gregorio Batiller, Renato Simbulan and William Co.

Italpinas shares soar 50% in market debut

By Jenniffer B. Austria

SHARE price of property developer Italpinas Development Corp. sizzled in its debut Monday at the Philippine Stock Exchange after announcing expansion and the acceleration of current projects over the next two years.

Italpinas shares opened at a high of P5.40 apiece, up 50 percent from the IPO price of P3.60 before closing at P4.22.

Italpinas chairman and chief operating officer Romulo Nati said in an interview following the listing of the shares the company would use the bulk of the IPO proceeds to expand its portfolio by acquiring land for future development and venturing into hotels, office and commercial developments.

“The access to equity market will enhance

our capability to develop more projects. The number of projects that we will be doing will grow exponentially,” he said.

Nati said the company was in initial discussions with other companies for possible partnershipd in the hotels, office, commercial and tourism-related projects.

“We may announce something in 2016,” Nati said.

Italpinas, prior to the initial public offering, was just building one project every two years. The company now plans to accelerate its activity to three to five projects over the next two years.

Italpinas president Jose Leviste III said the company was also looking to take a broader step after raising as much as P207 million in the proceeds from the maiden share sale.

Leviste said Italpinas was poised to enter in markets that had not yet been penetrated by other big players.

Italpinas launched its first project in Cagayan de Oro, a twin-tower mixed-use development called Primavera Residences.

Big property developers like Ayala Land

Inc., Filinvest Land Inc. and Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. later entered the Cagayan de Oro market “We are currently studying where the next growth is, the growth within the growth,” Leviste said.

He said the company would study the demographic growth of an area in terms of population and consumer spending in choosing the area for a planned expansion.

The company is also focused on areas with growing number of migrant Filipino workers.

The company has identified land acquisition targets in Lipa Batangas; Cagayan de Oro in Misamis Occidental; Subic in Zambales; Montelago in Oriental Mindoro; Dumaguete in Negros Oriental; and Iloilo City.

It is also looking at properties in Camiguin and northern Luzon.

The company is currently developing a 1,800 square-meter lot in Sto. Tomas, Batangas to build a residential condominium targeting employees working in several industrial zones surrounding the property.

THE stock market declined slightly Monday, ignoring the gains in the region and another strong US jobs reading that provided fresh evidence the economy is recovering and reinforced expectations of a December interest rate rise.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 10.07 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,911.86 on a value turnover of P4.4 billion.

Losers overwhelmed gainers, 112 to 68, with 36 issues unchanged.

SM Prime Holdings Inc., which operates the biggest retail chain, lost 0.5 percent to P21.40, while Bank of the Philippine Islands, the third-largest lender in terms of assets, dropped 1.1 percent to P81.95. Robinsons Land Corp., the property unit of retail tycoon and industrialist John Gokongwei, fell 2.3 percent to P28.

Italpinas Development Corp. sizzled on its market debut after announcing expansion and the acceleration of current projects over the next two years.

Italpinas shares opened at a high go P5.40 apiece, up 50 percent from the IPO price of P3.60, before closing at P4.22, up 17.2 percent.

The rest of Asian stock markets mostly climbed Monday, after dealers tracked a surge on Wall Street to return to buying, following Friday’s sharp sell-off in Asia that was fueled by disappointment with the European Central Bank’s revised stimulus program.

The US Labor Department said Friday that 211,000 jobs were created in November and the unemployment rate held at five percent.

Wall Street’s three main indexes jumped more than two percent Friday on the report.

“The post-payrolls rally in US equities was notable,” Kymberly Martin, a markets strategist in Wellington at Bank of New Zealand, said in an e-mail to clients. With AFP

AirAsia upbeat after consolidating Philippine operations

By Darwin G. Amojelar SOUTHEAST Asia’s largest budget carrier has consolidated its Philippine operation two years after local unit AirAsia Inc. acquired home grown airline ZestAir in 2013.

Philippines AirAsia Inc. has replaced the AirAsia Zest brand following the approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission in September and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and Civil Aeronautics Board this month “Efficient service to our guests and safety are at the heart of everything we do in Philippines AirAsia. We are here

to provide only the best value and worldclass service that every Filipino deserves,” Philippines AirAsia chief executive Joy Cañeba said.

The airline has 927 regular employees after the transition into a single operating certificate in September. Captain Dexter Commendador was also recently appointed chief operating officer.

Philippines AirAsia also announced promotional sale for its international and domestic flights to/from Manila, Davao, Cebu, Tagbilaran (Bohol), Puerto Princesa (Palawan), Kalibo(Boracay), Tacloban, Hong Kong, Macau, for as low as P1,299, all-in and one-way only.

The booking period is between December 7 and December 13, while the travel period is now until June 30, 2016.

Malaysia’s Air Asia, through AA International, owns 40 percent of Philippines’ Air Asia Inc., while Filipinos Marriane Hontiveros, Michael Romero, Antonio Cojuangco and Alfredo Yao hold the balance of 60 percent.

Cañeba earlier said the company planned to lease five A320 aircraft from Malaysia’s AirAsia Berhad, which would be deployed in China and South Korea.

She added the company’s planned IPO would be moved to the first quarter of 2018 from the original target of 2017.

“The IPO will definitely happen,” Cañeba said, adding the company planned to raise $200 million.

Philippines Air Asia incurred a net loss of P777 million in the April-to-June period, down 40 percent from P1.3 billion in the same three months of last year.

The company’s revenue during the period rose 6 percent to P2.3 billion from last year’s P2.2 billion.

The airline attributed the higher revenue to a 6-percent increase in passenger traffic to 976,381 this year from 924,155 passengers last year.

Load factor expanded to 80 percent from 77 percent on year.

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Starmobile eyes phone factory

By Darwin G. Amojelar

STARMOBILE, a Filipino smartphone and tablet brand, plans to put up a mobile phone assembly plant in the country within five years, its top executive said Monday.

“There’s a possibility or talks [to build an assembly plant] because labor cost in China is double and triple that of the labor cost here in the Philippines,” Star Telecom Alliance Resources Inc. president Ulysses Lao told reporters at the sidelines of Lazada’s 3-day grand Christmas sale launching at Makati Shangri La Hotel in Makati City.

“In terms of supply and everything, it’s not yet available here, but if you look at the logistics and everything, it is something possible,” Lao said.

Lao said the planned assembly plant could be built within five years in one of the export processing zones to take advantage the tax and incentives from the government.

“Right now, we only have a product development department in our office. We have [developed] some proprietary software,” he said.

Starmobile occupies seven floors of an office building in Kapitolyo, Pasig City, where it has a research and development team.

Smarmobile, a four-year-old company, currently has a 3-percent share of the Philippine mobile phone. “Our target is to increase it to 8 to 10 percent in the next five years,” Lao said.

Jerry Manus, a former executive of Apple and Nokia in the Indochina region, was recently appointed as the new chief operating officer of Starmobile.

Lao said the appointment of Manus as the company’s new chief operating officer would lead Starmobile to a bigger and brighter future.

Manus, in his recent role, pioneered and established the presence of iOS in Indochina, leading the company’s dominance in the market. Prior to Apple, Manus was the country manager of Nokia Cambodia and Laos where he was instrumental in leading the company to sustain market

leadership.

Under his mentorship, the Finnish brand’s presence in the region was recognized by global management as a top performing market.

Before venturing abroad, Manus was a key executive of Nokia Philippines where he led distribution and retail operations. The practices and procedures he introduced helped shape the industry to what it is today.

“I am more than thrilled to be part of a homegrown brand,” said Manus. “This will be a great opportunity for Starmobile to further prove that a Filipino company can stand toe-to-toe with the best of the world.”

Star mobile last month launched Knight Spectra, its most advanced cameraphone, which has unique dual rear sensors.

Manulife forum. Manulife

Philippines holds #StartYourBestStory Investment Forum at the Makati Shangri La Hotel, where Manulife Investments team and Manulife agents provide existing and potential new customers with an outlook on the Philippine economy and discuss about savings and investment tools available in the market. Shown are (from left) Manulife Philippines chief products officer Jasper Cheng, chief marketing officer Melissa Henson, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas monetary policy sub-sector managing director Francisco Dakila Jr., chief investment officer Aira Gaspar and chief agency officer Stephen Ong.

PH e-commerce seen reaching P220b by 2020

By Othel V. Campos THE electronic commerce market in the Philippines is expected to reach P220 billion by 2020, as more Filipinos acquire smartphones, the chief executive of online shopping platform Lazada Philippines said Monday.

Lazada Philippines co-founder and chief executive Inanc Balci said in an interview at Makati Shangri La Hotel the country’s potential to expand online trading was “immensely huge” as connection to the Internet became more rapid with the improving income level of most Filipinos.

“This means that the e-commerce market size will more or less [reach] P220 billion for the Philippines. We are working hard to hit the targets,” Balci said at the sidelines of the launch of the company’s 3-day grand Christmas sale happening on Dec. 10 to 12.

Balci said e-commerce penetration rate in the Philippines was expected to rise from just 0.2 percent or 0.3 percent of the population in

2015 to around 4 percent by 2020.

Lazada is the single biggest online shopping platform in the Philippines today with an estimated 80-percent market share on non-food and non-travel category. The remaining 20 percent is being shared by various online start-ups.

Lazada, which employs 1,850 individuals in the country, has 4,500 merchants selling 1.2 million products on its mobile platform and website.

Balci said that on Nov. 11 which marked the start of its online revolution, Lazada recorded 2.4 million visits, up from 700,000 a year ago. Customers bought 120,000 items on the website on the same day, up from 44,000 items last year.

He said in 2016, the company planned to add new categories within the platform to include digital solutions such as electronic credits for gaming and other similar products as well as coupons for the services industry like hair dressers, restaurants and wellness

companies.

“At one point we may also start selling ebooks but that’s not in the agenda yet. We are slowly moving to provide digital solutions to both tangible and intangible items,” said Balci.

He said the company was also pushing for micro, small and medium enterprises within the platform. MSMEs comprise the majority of vendors at Lazada while international merchants or those selling on cross border trade were not as significant as those MSMEs in terms of volume.

“And it will stay that way for many years.

We have been talking to the Philippine government to help us how we can be of more assistance to MSMEs in the market. At the same time, we are talking to big brands, since we’ll be having super big announcement coming by the end of December,” Balci said.

The company introduced the online revolution promo on Nov. 11, when it recorded the sales so far.

Energy pushes nuclear policy

By Alena Mae S. Flores THE Energy Department cited the need for a clear government policy on nuclear power that will guide future action on the mothballed 620-megawatt Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.

Energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos said three public consultations were already conducted on nuclear power by a technical working group from the Energy and Science Departments and National Power Corp.

“The TWG is working on reviews and other related materials including policy direction in Congress to come up with a clear one. Definitely, there would be a lot of public consultation,” he said.

Marcos said among the proposals raised was to conduct a plebiscite because nuclear power is a “a national concern.”

“We want the public to decide. We want a plebiscite, not in 2016, but in the near future.

Congress should come up with a policy direction on that. We don’t have a law about nuclear,” he said.

“We’re the only country with a nuclear power plant completed, but not yet operated and we don’t have any policy on nuclear energy,” Marcos said.

Former Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla wanted a nuclear regulatory body to decide whether to revive the mothballed Bataan nuclear facility.

“No one will sell uranium to us if we have no nuclear body.

This is a big task,” Petilla said earlier.

President Aquino made an announcement shortly after assuming the presidency in 2010 that he would not revive the operations of BNPP due to safety concerns.

Aquino also shelved any new plan for BNPP, following the Fukishima nuclear power disaster in 2011.

His mother, former president Cory Aquino mothballed the Bataan Nuclear power plant in 1986, also citing safety concerns. The plant is said to be sitting on a fault line.

The ownership and title of the Bataan nuclear property is now in the name of the Republic of the Philippines under the control of the Finance Department.

Napocor, however, continues to perform its mandate of preserving the facility until the government finally decides on what to do with the facility.

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 5

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

MPIC loan.

BDO Unibank seals a 10-year

fixed-rate term loan of P10 billion with Metro Pacific Investments Corp. Proceeds of the loan will be used by MPIC to fund its investment in various projects and for other general corporate purposes. Shown signing the loan agreement are (from left) BDO institutional banking group executive vice president Edmundo Soriano, MPIC chief financial officer David Nicol and BDO IBG senior executive vice president Walter Wassmer.

UAE buys Mindanao carabao mangoes

By Anna Leah E. Gonzales

November exchange reserves fell to $80.6b

By Julito G. Rada

THE gross international reserves fell $503 million in November, as the value of Bangko Sentral’s gold holdings decreased and the government paid some of its foreign debts.

Bangko Sentral said foreign reserves fell to $80.572 billion as of end-November from $81.097 billion in October.

Data showed that on a year-on-year basis, reserves increased by $1.893 billion or 2.3 percent from $78.679 billion in November 2014.

“The end-November 2015 GIR level remains ample as it can cover 10.3 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and income,” Bangko Sentral Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a statement.

The amount was also equivalent to six times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 4.2 times based on residual maturity.

Short-term debt based on residual maturity refers to outstanding external debt with original maturity of one year or less, plus principal payments on medium- and long-term loans of the public and private sectors falling due within the next 12 months.

“The decrease in reserves as of end-November 2015 was due mainly to revaluation adjustments on the BSP’s gold holdings resulting from the decrease in the price of gold in the international market and payments by the national government for its maturing foreign

exchange obligations,” Tetangco said.

Net international reserves, which refer to the difference between GIR and total shortterm liabilities, also decreased by $520 million to $80.56 billion as of end-November 2015, compared to the end-October NIR of $81.08 billion.

Data showed that the value of Bangko Sentral’s gold holdings in November dropped to $6.7 billion from $7.178 billion a month ago.

Foreign investments also declined to $71.081 billion from $71.362 billion in October.

Bangko Sentral officials earlier expressed optimism about meeting the GIR target of $81.6 billion this year. In 2014, international reserves stood at $79.540 billion, lower than $83.187 billion in 2013.

Bangko Sentral said the sustained strong current account surplus following the decline in international oil prices was expected to boost reserves.

Mango growers in North Cotabato recently shipped one metric ton of carabao mangoes to the United Arab Emirates, the Agriculture Department said Monday.

Agriculture regional executive director Amalia Jayag-Datukan said the trial shipment of carabao mangoes reached Dubai on Nov. 29 under the supervision of the region’s agribusiness and marketing assistance division.

The mangoes were owned

by Rickson Olimpus of Tulunan town in North Cotabato and other members of Region 12 Mango Industry Development Council.

Datukan said the region’s participation in a trade fair in Dubai opened an opportunity to mango growers.

“Bringing local farmer groups to trade fairs encourage them to become agri-entrepreneurs,” Datukan said.

The Middle East Natural and Organic Products Expo, which was held in Dubai in the first week of November, showcases a wide range of organic products like food, beverage, beauty products and others.

Olimpus said she was confident the region’s mango council would sustain what DA 12 started for them and that the foreign buyers would like their mangoes.

Treasury bill rates increase ahead of possible UA Fed hike

By Gabrielle H. Binaday THE Treasury on Monday sold only P10.46 billion worth of government debt papers out of the original offer of P20 billion, as investors demanded higher rates ahead of the possible US Federal Reserve rate hike before the end of the year.

Interest rate on 91-day or threemonth debt facilities climbed 6.3 basis points to 1.836 percent from the previous rate of 1.773 percent.

Tender for the three-month pa-

pers reached P10.255 billion, or slightly higher than the P8-billion offer.

The Treasury accepted only P4.24 billion worth of the 91-day re-issued Treasury bills of the original P8-billion offer.

“Amidst healthy NG cash position, limited demand and rising rates, the auction committee decided to partially award to provide market guidance,” the Treasury said in a statement after the auction. “[This will also] allow a gradu-

al adjustment in light of the possible Fed rate liftoff in December,” the Treasury said.

Interest rate on the 182-day or six-month debt instruments also went up by 3.7 basis points to 1.843 percent from 1.806 in the previous auction. Tenders for the six-month debt papers reached P8.32 billion, slightly higher than the P6-billion offer.

It also awarded P4.12 billion out of the original offer of P6 billion worth of 182-day papers.

Interest rate on the 12-month

debt papers also increased by 7.4 basis points to 1.952 percent from 1.878 percent in the previous auction. It accepted only P2.1 billion of the 364-day treasury bills with an original offer of P6 billion.

The national government earlier reduced its borrowing requirement from the original target after it posted a fiscal surplus in the first half of 2015, as opposed to the programmed deficit for the six-month period.

Based on the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination

Committee’s mid-year report on the 2015 national budget, the revised net financing program for 2015 was P296.8 billion, compared to the original P310.4 billion.

The borrowing mix was also revised from 86 percent domestic and 14 percent foreign loans to 75 percent domestic and 25 percent foreign.

The government intends to borrow P241.8 billion from the domestic market this year while the remaining P55 billion will come from foreign creditors.

TUESDAY: DECEMBER 8, 2015

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

URC readies Griffin’s launch

By Othel V. Campos

UNIVERSAL Robina Corp. is going full steam ahead in launching recently-acquired snack brand Griffin’s from New Zealand with plans to penetrate Hong Kong as a potential market next to Singapore.

URC executive vice president for branded consumer food group Cornelio Mapa Jr. said the company was confident of expanding the presence of Griffin’s products in Southeast Asia.

“We are currently looking for a

site in Southeast Asia to produce this particular snack line. This can be done locally but as of the moment, we still don’t have the capacity,” Mapa said at the sidelines of a forum organized by KPMG R.G Manabat & Co. and the Uni-

versity of Asia and the Pacific.

“Currently, the products still come from New Zealand but hopefully we’ll [see] more of these products made from this part of the world,” he said.

The creation of a new line, he added, would cost the company several hundred millions of dollars.

The snack line’s launch in Southeast Asia that started in Singapore will reach Hong Kong in the next few months and the Philippines in the latter part of 2016.

URC is drawing up a completely-dynamic strategy to promote

the products in Southeast Asia.

URC, Philippines’ leading snacks manufacturer, bought New Zealand-based Griffin’s for NZ$700 million (P26.48 billion).

The company said the acquisition would further strengthen its position as the foremost snack maker in the Southeast Asia. URC manufactures the famous Jack & Jill brand.

Its other recent acquisition was Calbee Potato Snacks of Japan and a joint venture to locally market lifestyle beverage B’lue, a product of French beverage mak-

er Danone Asia Holdings Private Ltd. Calbee and B’lue are now available locally.

URC currently markets around 400 stock keeping units, the biggest in the Philippines compared with other local snack makers.

The company is the third biggest biscuit manufacturer in the Philippines, next to Monde Nissin Corp. and Republic Biscuit Corp.

It is the biggest biscuit producer in Thailand.

It has presence in all 10 countries in Southeast Asia with operations in nine countries, with the exception of Laos.

Pag-IBIG asks other victims to sue D. Lee

Uber-Samsung promo. Five lucky Uber riders display a Samsung Galaxy Note5 units after winning in the partnership promo between Samsung Electronics Philippines and Uber. Uber Manila marketing manager Stephanie Sy (left) poses with winners (from left) Katrina Romualdez, Diana Ecija, Justin Poniente and Fe Reyes. Joining them is Patty Rodriguez (right), product manager head of Samsung Electronics Philippines.

Enter Bloomberg TV THE Philippines has for a long time been the third largest foreign market for the US motion picture industry, a not surprising fact considering that this country is the third largest English-speaking country in the world.

In more recent times the Philippines has become the world’s No. 1 country for BPO (business process outsourcing). Not unrelated to that, this country is recognized as being the SMS (short message system) capital of the world.

Despite these manifestations of market significance and technological savvy, the giants of the world television industry regarded the Philippines as a market of less than prime status. That appears to be changing.

The first indication of the world TV industry’s attitudinal change vis-à-vis the Philippines was the entry into the Philippine market, two years ago, of the redoubtable, Atlanta-based CNN. Said by many observers to be the industry’s No. 1—a claim that BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) News hotly disputes—CNN entered into a market tie-up with, first, Solar TV of the Tieng group and, later, with the business group headed by Antonio Cabangon Chua.

CNN was followed, two months ago, by

Bloomberg Television, a member of the trio of American TV industry giants (the third being Fox News). The TV network controlled by former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has entered the Philippine market via a tie-up with News 5 and Cignal TV, two leading media companies affiliated with the conglomerate headed by Manuel V. Pangilinan. News 5 is the country’s thirdranking TV company (after ABS-CBN and GMA), while Cignal TV is the nation’s No. 1 pay-TV service provider.

Another component of the Pangilinan-led group of media companied is MediaQuest, which is the mother company of News 5 and Cignal TV. Given their business-TV orientation, there can be no doubt that CNN Philippines and Bloomberg TV Philippines discern a bright future in this country for the business-news side of the TV industry. At the time that they made their decisions to enter the Philippine market, they doubtless were aware that ABS-CBN already had an arrangement with CNBC, the business-news service of the American broadcast giant NBC. The tie-up will provide Cignal TV’s over 1 million subscribers and News 5’s viewers access to the business and economic news

generated by Bloomberg’s 2,400 news professionals reporting from 150 bureaus in 73 countries. News 5 is recognized as being rather weak on the business side of the news.

Observers within and outside the TV industry have been heard to wonder whether it was deliberate on the part of industry leaders ABS-CBN and GMA to not seek tie-ups with foreign TV networks for business-news content. If it wasn’t, it would appear that News 5 and the Cabangon-Chua organization have beaten them to the punch.

One can only hope that the Cignal-News 5-Bloomberg tie-up will bring first-rate news—especially business news—to Cignal and News 5 audiences. The material that the mother CNN currently allows CNN Philippines to air leaves much to be desired. With the exception of two or three news shows, the locally generated component of CNN Philippines’ programming likewise falls short of the mark.

With CNN and Bloomberg now in the Philippine market, can BBC and Fox News be far behind?

E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com

PAG-IBIG Fund is willing to help the double-sale victims of Globe Asiatique’s homes in Xevera subdivision in Pampanga, the agency’s chief executive said.

“We are both victims of GA here,” said Pag-IBIG president and chief executive Darlene Marie Berberabe on Dec. 3, after receiving reports that certain Xevera homeowners are urging the agency to accept payments for their housing loans.

Pag-IBIG has accused GA’s owner Delfin Lee of syndicated estafa for endorsing fake housing loan accounts to the agency worth at least P6 billion. Lee was then placed in the list of the country’s most wanted fugitives with a bounty of P2 million put up by the Office of the President. Lee has since been arrested and detained at the Pampanga provincial jail while facing trial for syndicated estafa in RTC San Fernando.

Xevera homeowners complaining for the non-acceptance of their housing loan payments, however, are not Pag-IBIG housing loan borrowers.

This is the reason why the agency could not accept their payments, Berberabe said, adding they are the second buyers of properties which GA sold to different buyers.

Recognizing that the second buyers were themselves victims of GA, Berberabe said Pag-IBIG Fund had long assured the buyers in dialogues that they would not be dispossessed of their properties until the cases against Delfin Lee and GA were resolved.

Berberabe said the second buyers must also do their part to make GA accountable for the illegal transactions by joining other homeowners who filed estafa cases against Lee because of doublesales. At least 27 such complaints are pending before the Department of Justice, excluding those filed with the NBI. “It is regrettable that the homeowners got caught in the middle of the lengthy court proceedings.

We at Pag-IBIG are here to provide access to financing to our members so they can be homeowners,” Berberabe said.

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WORLD

CESAR BARRIOQUINTO EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Witness against Bo Xilai is dead BEIJING—The billionaire tycoon who testified that he paid former rising Communist Party political star Bo Xilai millions in bribes has died in prison, Chinese state media reported Monday.

Xu Ming, the chief accuser at the trial of the fallen Chongqing party chief, probably died of a “sudden heart attack”, the official Xinhua news service said, despite being only 44.

But social media users asked whether Xu’s death—months before his scheduled release— could have been more than a coincidence.

State media largely glossed over Xu’s central role in one of the country’s most lurid political episodes of recent decades. Instead it described him as the founder of conglomerate Shide Group and former chairman of Chinese football champions Dalian Shide, an indication of the case’s continued sensitivity.

Bo, whose wife was convicted of killing a British businessman, was accused of accepting almost $3.5 million in bribes from Xu, who also provided the family with funds for a French villa. The politician was jailed for life for graft in 2013.

Xu got his start selling prawns, before founding Shide Group in the early 1990s, building it into a national conglomerate with interests in everything from construction and petrochemicals to sport.

His close ties to Bo’s family allegedly helped him to expand his business empire and increase his personal fortune to over a billion dollars. At one time he was listed as the eighth richest person in China.

In 2000 he bought China’s then most successful football team and renamed it after his company.

The club was left in financial limbo after his detention and played its last game in 2012 before being acquired by the Aerbin Group.

Xu was due to be released in September 2016 but died on Friday, Xinhua said.

“His honor and shame will both follow his ashes eternally into the grave,” it said. AFP

B7

French rightists win polls PARIS—France’s far-right National Front saw record gains in the first round of regional polls Sunday, held under a state of emergency just three weeks after Islamic extremists killed 130 people in Paris.

Despite the strong result, it faces an uphill battle to clinch a run-off vote next week after the Socialists withdrew candidates in an attempt to block it from power.

The FN came first with around 28 percent of the vote nationwide and topped the list in at least six of 13 regions, according to final estimates from the interior ministry.

FN leader Marine Le Pen and her 25-year-old niece Marion Marechal-Le Pen broke the symbolic 40 percent mark in their respective regions, shattering previous records for the party as they tapped into voter anger over a stagnant economy and security fears linked to Eu-

rope’s refugee crisis.

Marine Le Pen, a lawyer by training, welcomed the “magnificent result”, saying it proved the FN was “without contest the first party of France”.

A grouping of right-wing parties took 27 percent, the official estimates showed, while the ruling Socialist Party and its allies took 23.5 percent.

The polls were held under tight security following France’s worstever terror attacks, which have thrust the FN’s anti-immigration and often Islamophobic message to the fore.

Around half the 45 million regis-

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPlNES PR0VINCE OF ILOCOS SUR MUNICIPALITY OF LIDLIDDA

tered voters took part in the polls.

Any party which secures 10 percent backing in the first round has the right to present candidates in the second round, due next Sunday.

Final estimates showed 47-year-old Le Pen taking a whopping 40.5 percent of the vote in the economically depressed northern region of NordPas-de-Calais-Picardie, once a bastion of the left.

PRIME MEDIA HOLDINGS, INC. NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS Please be advised that PRIME MEDIA HOLDINGS, INC. will hold its Annual Shareholders’ Meeting on 22 December 2015, 9:30 am at Room 201, The Metropolitan Club Inc., Estrella corner Amapola Sts., Guadalupe Viejo, Makati City,with the following agenda: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Call to Order Certification of Quorum Approval of Minutes of the previous meeting Approval of Management Report and Audited Financial Statements Ratification of Management’s Act Authority to enter into Management Agreement with RYM Business Management Corp.

7. Election of Directors 8. Appointment of External Auditor 9. Other Matters 10. Adjournment The Board of Directors has fixed the close of business on the 08 December 2015 as the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Stockholders’ Meeting.

All proxies (which must be acknowledged before a notary public) must be submitted to the Corporate Secretary on or before 11 December 2015, 5:00 p.m. at the following address: Prime Media Holdings, Inc. c/o Ocampo and Manalo Law Firm 6th Flr. Pacific Star Building Makati Ave. cor. Sen. Gil Puyat Ave. Makati City Attention: Monica Isabelle I. Villanueva

INVITATlON TO BID The Municipal Government of Lidlidda, Ilocos Sur, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), invites Contractors to apply for eligibility and to bid for the hereunder projects: 1. Name of Project : OPENING OF FARM-TO-MARKET ROAD Location : SAN VICENTE-BANUCAL, LIDLIDDA, ILOCOS SUR Brief Description : Bulldozing (Roadway excavation) ABC : Php 6,039,294.19 Source of Fund : R. A. 7171 (Municipal Share) Contract Duration : 158 1/2 C.D. Delivery Period : January 16, 2016

Very truly yours, (SGD) DIANE MADELYN C. CHING Asst. Corporate Secretary

Padrigal St., Karuhatan, Valenzuela City Telefax No. 294-4625 Email addressvmc_bac@yahoo.com

INVITATION TO APPLY FOR ELIGIBILITY AND TO BID

All particulars relative to Eligibility Statement and Screening, Bid security, Performance Security, Pre Bidding Conference(s), Evaluation of Bids, PostQualification and Award of contract shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of RA 9184 and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR).

Activities Date Schedule 1. Advertisement/Posting of Invitation to Bid December 1-7, 2015 Request for Expression of Intent 2. Issuance and availability of bidding document December 1- 21, 2015 3. Pre-Bid Conference December 8, 2015 at 2:00 p.m., Conference Hall 4. Submission and receipt of bids/opening of December 21, 2015 at 8:30 a.m., Bids Conference Hall 5. Bid Evaluation December 22, 2015 at 8:30 a.m., Conference Hall 6. Post-qualification December 23, 2015 at 8:30 a.m., Conference Hall 7. Approval of Resolution/Issuance of Notice December 28 & 29, 2015 of Award 8. Contract Preparation & Signing January 4-5, 2016 9. Approval of Contract by higher authority January 6, 2016 10.Issuance of Notice to Proceed January 7, 2016 Bid Documents will be available only to prospective bidders upon payment of Non-refundable to the Treasury Office, Lidlidda, lIocos Sur, to wit: APPROVED BUDGET FOR THE CONTRACT 1.

2.

3.

4.

INFECTIOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE AND DISPOSAL FACILITY OPERATOR PUBLIC BIDDING NO. 2015-039 Dated January 4, 2016 1.

FUNDING SOURCE: The Valenzuela Medical Center (VMC) through INCOME/GAA/GOP intends to apply the amount of Two Million Sixty Nine Thousand One Hundred Pesos Only (Php 2,069, 100.00), being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) for the provision of public bidding for INFECTIOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE AND DISPOSAL FACILITY OPERATOR . Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at Bid Opening.

2.

The Valenzuela Medical Center now invites sealed Bids from eligible Bidders for infectious waste treatment, storage and disposal facility operator. The description of an eligible Bidder is contained in Section II of the Bidding Documents’ ITB.

3.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using nondiscretionary pass/fail criteria as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations Parts A (IRR-A) of Republic Act No. 9184 (RA 9184), otherwise known as the Government Procurement Reform Act, and is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws and regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to Republic Act 5183 (RA 5183) and subject to Commonwealth Act 138 (CA 138). Only Bids from bidders who pass the eligibility check will be opened. The process for the eligibility check is described in Section II of the Bidding Documents, ITB. The Bidder with the lowest calculated bid (LCB) shall advance to the post-qualification stage in order to finally determine his responsiveness of the bid to the technical and financial requirements of the project. The contract shall then be awarded to the Lowest Calculated and Responsive Bidder (LCRB) who was determined as such during the post-qualification procedure.

4.

Interested Bidders may obtain further information from Valenzuela Medical Center and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below from 9:00AM-4:00PM starting December 8, 2015 to January 4, 2016.

5.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee in the amount of Five Thousand Pesos Only (P5,000.00).The method of payment will be in cash. The Bidding Documents shall be received personally by the prospective bidder or his authorized representative. It may also be downloaded free of charge from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the website of the Procuring Entity, provided that Bidders shall pay the nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

6.

The Valenzuela Medical Center will hold a Pre-Bid Conference open to all interested parties on December 17, 2015 10:00 AM at 4th Floor, Conference Room of Valenzuela Medical Center, Padrigal St., Karuhatan, Valenzuela City which shall be open only to all interested parties who have purchased the Bidding Documents.

7.

Eligibility Check and Bid Opening will be on January 4, 2016. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below.

8.

Bids and eligibility requirements must be delivered to the address below on or before, January 4, 2016 10:00 AM, 4th Floor, Conference Room of Valenzuela Medical Center, Padrigal St., Karuhatan, Valenzuela City. All bids must be accompanied by a Bid Security in the form of Cash, Manager’s Check or Cashier’s Check Bank Draft or Bank Guarantee of two (2%) percent, 5% Surety Bond and Securing Declaration (notarized) of the total amount to bid. Late Bids shall not be accepted.

9.

The Valenzuela Medical Center reserves the right to accept or reject any Bid, and to annul the bidding process and reject all Bids at any time prior to the contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected Bidder or Bidders.

MAXIMUM COST OF BIDDING DOCUMENTS

500,000.00 & below More than 500,000.00 up to 1 Million More than 1 Million up to 5 Million More than 5 Million up to 10 Million

: Php 500.00 : Php 1,000.00 : Php 5,000.00 : Php 10,000.00

The Municipal Government of Lidlidda, Ilocos Sur assumes no responsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify bidders for any expenses incurred in the preparation of the bid.

Prepared by: (SGD) MON Z. MAGAN-AN BAC Secretariat

(TS-DEC. 8, 2015)

NOTED: (SGD) ENGR. EDGAR F. TIONGSON BAC Chairman

(TS-DEC. 2,8 & 15, 2015)

Republic of the Phillippines Department of Health National Capital Regional Office VALENZUELA MEDICAL CENTER BIDS AND AWARD COMMITTEE

Prospective bidders should have experience in undertaking a similar project within the last two years with an amount of at least 50% of the proposed project for bidding. The eligibility Check/Screening as well as the Preliminary Examination of Bids shall use non-discretionary “pass/fail” criteria. Post-qualification of the lowest calculated bid shall be conducted.

The complete schedule of activities is listed as follows:

Marechal-Le Pen did equally well in the vast southeastern ProvenceAlpes-Cote d’Azur, known for its glamorous beaches and stunning countryside.

The far-right success triggered an immediate debate among the mainstream parties as to whether, in regions where they trailed third, they should urge voters to back the candidate opposing the FN. AFP

(SGD) DONA D. SALMOS, RN, MAN BAC Chairperson (TS-DEC. 8, 2015)

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 5

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CESAR BARRIOQUINTO EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

WORLD

Australia, NZ lead whaling protest SYDNEY—New Zealand led an international protest Monday against Japan’s plans to resume killing whales in the Southern Ocean, while Australia said it was considering further legal action.

Prime Minister John Key said New Zealand’s ambassador to Tokyo delivered a “strong” formal message from 33 countries, including the United States and Australia, to Japan.

“We consider that there is no scientific basis for the slaughter of whales and strongly urge the government of Japan not to allow it to go ahead,” Key said in a statement.

A Japanese whaling fleet set sail for the Antarctic last week, despite environmentalists slamming the move as a “crime against nature”.

Tokyo said last month it planned to kill 333 minke whales for scientific research this season, despite a worldwide moratorium and opposition led by Australia and New Zealand.

The fleet’s departure marked the end of a year-long suspension prompted by a United Nations’ International Court of Justice ruling in 2014 that the annual hunt was a commercial venture masquerading as research.

Australia, which hauled Japan before the ICJ in 2010 in a bid to end the annual hunt, would continue to raise concerns, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said.

“We are working with other like-minded nations to build international consensus against Japanese whaling,” Bishop said in a statement.

“We are also exploring options for further legal action.”

Tokyo claims it is trying to prove the whale population is large enough to sustain a return to commercial hunting, and says it has to kill the mammals to carry out its research properly.

However, it makes no secret of the fact that the animals’ meat ends up on the dinner table or served up in school lunches.

New Zealand, which said Mexico, South Africa and EU member countries also joined the formal protest, said it would press for an end to “this outdated practice.” AFP

After the flood. Residents assist in the cleanup at a pharmacy in Cockermouth, northern England, on December 7, 2015, following heavy flooding in the town. Thousands of homes and businesses were affected by the heavy rains and strong winds that battered Britain over the weekend, with one death reported in London after a man was blown into the path of a bus, police said. AFP

Venezuela seen shifting as opposition wins vote CARACAS—Venezuela’s opposition won control of congress for the first time in 16 years Monday as voters punished the socialist government for an economic crisis and insecurity in the oil-rich nation.

President Nicolas Maduro promptly accepted the defeat, a blow to his leadership and the “revolution” of “21st century socialism” launched by his late predecessor Hugo Chavez.

The result was a triumph for the center-right opposition, which has struggled for years for a foothold and has seen many of its leaders jailed.

The Democratic Unity Roundtable or MUD coalition won a majority of 99 out of 167 seats in the state legislature, the head of the National Electoral Council or CNE, Tibisay Lucena, announced shortly after midnight, five hours after polls closed.

Fireworks erupted over the capital Caracas as opposition supporters celebrated.

“Venezuela has won,” tweeted Henrique Capriles, leader of one of the parties in MUD. It was unclear, however, how far the MUD will be able to push its advantage in congress to force a change of course or even to get rid of Maduro, who vowed to push on with his socialist programs.

“We have come with our morals and our ethics to recognize these adverse results, to accept them and to say to our Venezuela that the constitution and democracy have triumphed,” the 53-year-old said in a televised address.

“We have lost a battle today, but the struggle to build a new society is just beginning.”

Maduro’s United Socialist Party of Venezuela won 46 seats in the single-chamber National Assembly, Lucena said. The results for 22 other seats have yet to be confirmed.

Maduro called for the opposition to “live together” with his side.

He softened his tone from before the elections when he had vowed to hold onto power “no matter how.”

After warnings of a repeat of last year’s deadly riots that left 43 people dead, his acceptance of defeat seemed aimed at calming tensions— though he stuck to his political position.

“A counter-revolution has triumphed, which has imposed its own way, its war,” he said, in reference to what he alleges is a US-backed “economic war” against Venezuela by businesses.

Maduro’s supporters fear an oppositiondominated congress will stop approving his social spending programs.

Hit by falling prices for the oil exports on which it relies, the country of 30 million is in an economic crisis, with shortages of basic foods and supplies.

Voters also complained of insecurity in a country ranked by the United Nations as having the second-highest murder rate in the world. AFP

Japan unit to gather data on terrorists

Mass wedding. This photo taken on December 6, 2015, shows

Maheshbhai Savani (seated 2nd row from top, in white shirt) with brides at a mass-marriage ceremony for 151 fatherless women in Surat, around 265 km from Ahmedabad. Savani, an Indian diamond trader, has thrown a mass wedding ceremony for 151 fatherless women, saying giving a bride away was ‘sacred’. AFP

TOKYO—Japan is launching a new diplomatic unit this week to collect and analyze information on international terrorism, the government said Monday, in light of attacks on its citizens overseas and global assaults including those last month in Paris.

The beheading of two Japanese citizens earlier this year, claimed by the Islamic State group, and the deaths of 10 others in a hostage crisis in Algeria in 2013 have highlighted the vulnerability of Japanese people abroad.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, the chief government spokesman, said the new unit, within the foreign ministry, will focus

on gathering and analyzing information.

“We will take full measures to prevent terrorism and to protect Japanese nationals from harm,” Suga told a regular press conference.

The unit, due to start operating Tuesday, will have about 20 personnel in Tokyo and 20 more based in Japanese diplomatic missions abroad, officials have said, and will concentrate on four geographic areas: Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and North and West Africa.

The government had originally planned to start the unit in April 2016. But recent major terrorist attacks, such as those in Paris,

prompted the start date to be brought forward, a Japanese diplomat said.

Until the last few years Japan had been virtually unaffected by international terrorism, though there have been several incidents in the past, including when one of its aircraft was hijacked in the 1970s by a domestic group allied with a Palestinian faction in the Middle East.

Suga also expressed Japan’s solidarity with the United States shortly after President Barack Obama gave a speech in which he vowed to defeat Islamic State following last week’s deadly rampage in California, which the US leader described as an act of terrorism. AFP

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TATUM ANCHETA EDITOR

BING PAREL

A S S O C I AT E E D I T O R

BERNADETTE LUNAS WRITER

life @ thestandard.com .ph

@LIFEatStandard

A RTS, CU LT U RE & T ECH

LIFE

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

The University of Santo Tomas Singers

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra guest conductor Ruggero Barbieri

Soprano Rachelle Gerodias

Celebrate a memorable Christmas at the Pen

A

ll over the world, Christmas is one of the most celebrated seasons, with people feeling extra generous and their hearts brimming with joy, love and goodwill for their fellowmen. Christmas is also the time of giving, of providing comfort especially to the less fortunate such as those who lost their homes due to natural calamities and disasters.

This 2015, the Peninsula Manila ushers in Christmas with a concert dubbed as “Celebrations: 32 Years of Christmas Concert at the Pen.” This festive event which has been held for over three decades is being held in aid of Hope for the Philippines, a charity which helps provides homes for the families affected

by Typhoon Yolanda.

Those familiar with the Pen’s annual Christmas concert can expect an afternoon filled with beautiful classical and holiday music wafting from the Lobby of the Peninsula Manila starting on Saturday, December 12 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

“Our holiday program offers an opportunity (for people) to hear music for the holiday season by some of the world’s greatest composers like Handel, Verdi and Tchaikovsky, as well as those from the Philippines,” says the Peninsula Manila’s resident manager Yves Thoma.

Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” Strauss’ “Radetzsky March” and Shostakovich’s “Festive Overture” together with Christmas selections from Handel’s ever-popular oratorio “Messiah” – including the “Hallelujah Chorus” – will be performed by the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra and the 50-voice University of Santo Tomas Singers.

The latter will also render the premiere performance of “Zadok the Priest” in commemoration of the hotel’s 40th anniversary. Also known as the “Coronation Anthem” as Handel composed this piece for the coronation of King George II in 1727, it has since been sung at every British coronation during the anointing of the sovereign.

“We are fortunate every year to have as our partners the SSI Group, Inc., Philippine Tatler and Citibank, as well as the Cultural Center of the Philippines, in mounting a holiday season concert filled with joy and hope,” says Thoma.

“Without their help and the generous assistance of concertgoers who will be asked to contribute a P1,900 consumable fee (exclusive of taxes) that comes with selections from a festive merienda menu, the hotel would not be able to raise the money needed for the ‘Hope for the Philippines’ fund,” he adds.

The hotel and its partners have assembled an accomplished cast and put together a sparkling musical repertoire, with Maestro Ruggero Barbieri teaming up once again with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. Also joining them on stage on December 12 are Rachelle Gerodias (soprano) and ByeongIn Park (baritone), with Freddie Santos as the concert director.

Baritone Byeong-In Park

The Peninsula Manila resident manager Yves Thoma

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T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 : 2 0 1 5

LIFE life @ thestandard.com .ph

@LIFEatStandard

T EC H TA L K The controls are situated in one earcup for easy accessibility

BackBeat SENSE: Wireless Stereo Headphones, Reimagined

A

lot of smart bluetooth headphones are surfacing in the market and Plantronics, pioneer in audio and wearable technology, recently launched BackBeat SENSE, an on-ear wireless headphone that had customers raving about it.

“From sunrise to sunset, people are indulging in streaming media on-the-go. They need headphones that don’t just keep up, but actually optimize their experience,” says Plantronics director of Consumer Marketing Lori Langona.

“With BackBeat SENSE, we’re bringing a new breed of headphones to the market that are equipped with intuitive sensor technology to help make the most of today’s always-on, contentrich, music-first reality,” he adds.

This latest addition to the market is ultra-light and uses intuitive smart sensor technology that automatically pauses your music when you slip off the headphones. It has intelligent features that preserve battery life when they’re not being worn, then gently fading in your tunes when you put them back on. Quirky, right? You can also pair this headphone with two devices simultaneously from up to 330ft/100m away – the length of a football field. The best part is, it talks to you when

there is an important update on battery life, connection status, and more. Its dual mics enable HD Voice communication for clear calls or interactions with voice applications such as Siri, Google Now, Cortana and Skype.

The battery has the ability to stream music and media for up to 18 hours on a single charge. The controls is situated in one ear cup for easy accessibility. The design has a unique patent-pending headband to comfortably fit 99 percent of head sizes and evenly distribute the weight of the headphones, extending wear time by eliminating pressure that can cause fatigue and discomfort.

Fold-flat ear cups make the headphone easy to transport and store, and a durable pouch is included with a handy pocket for charging and audio cables.

The lightweight design is about the same weight as a smartphone and 50 percent lighter than most on-ear Bluetooth headphones available in the market today.

BackBeat SENSE is the newest member of the BackBeat family of wireless stereo products from Plantronics. The headphone is available in two styles – Black/ Espresso and White/Tan and costs P8,295 with GST. For more information, please visit www.plantronics.com/asia/ where-to-buy.

The lightweight design is 50 percent lighter than most on-ear Bluetooth headphones in the market

A durable pouch is included with a handy pocket for charging and audio cables

The headphone is designed to comfortably fit 99 percent of head sizes

Fold-flat earcups makes the headphone easy to transport

Smart Shopping with The Shop Guam Festival Mobile App

G

uam is home to a lot of shopping finds especially during the Shop Guam Festival season. From now until the 15th of February 2016, locals and tourists will be flocking to the shopping areas, and the festival prepared for the influx with the help of a smart shopping mobile app.

Available for free on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, the app showcases all the great deals and exclusive promos that establishments across Guam have to offer. Learn about the shopping discounts, food

treats, exclusive offers, unique experiences, and special events all on your mobile device.

The best part of the app is the map and search features to help you find your way around the festival.

Downloading the mobile app is fast and easy. Simply open the app store on your mobile device and search for “Shop Guam Festival.” Click on the Shop Guam Festival item to bring you to the official app page. From there, download the app for free. Once installed, you’ll have instant access to the best deals and offers in Guam.

All that’s left to do is visit the shop or establishment of your choice to avail of the promo that you want.

Catch the best shopping festival of the year. Book a trip to Guam and download the mobile app to navigate your way through the best deals. To know more about the 2015 Shop Guam Festival, Shop Guam Festival Mobile App, and the latest news about Guam, you may visit the Guam Visitors Bureau’s Philippine Facebook page Visit Guam Ph, or you may follow @visitguamph on Instagram.

T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 : 2 0 1 5

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LIFE life @ thestandard.com .ph

@LIFEatStandard

ARTS AND CULTURE ROUNDUP What’s on in theaters and galleries this week

EXHIBITS A Round of Day Dreams: Hadrian Mendoza ArtistSpace, Ayala Museum, Makati City Ongoing until December 18

Painted Memories Bridgeway Gallery and Foyer, Yuchengco Museum, Makati City Ongoing until January 16

Through ceramic sculptures, Washington, DC-based Filipino visual artist Hadrian Mendoza molds the real and the makebelieve together. In Mendoza's solo exhibition here in the country, he presents his current series of ceramic creations that borrows images from the rich heritage, flora and fauna of the Philippines.

Noted for his expressionistic and abstracted indigenous forms with heavy cultural undertones, Mendoza transformed bamboos, tarsiers and rice gods into stoneware that aim to intrigue the visual and tactile senses of the viewers.

The Filipino stoneware potter is currently a Master of Fine Arts candidate at the George Washington University. He will be flying to the Philippines on December 10 for the opening night of his exhibit.

For more information on this ongoing show, contact the gallery coordinator at (02) 759-8288 or email artistspace@ayalafoundation.org

Two generations of Chinese art are currently on display here in the Philippines. The exhibit showcases 36 Chinese calligraphy and brush paintings of portraits, landscapes and animals rendered by the father and daughter duo of Lai You Sun and Yueh Faye Lai. The three-dozen artworks are created with both traditional and modern techniques.

Lai You Sun, sans formal training, expressed his creations using classical techniques; he painted tirelessly for nine years and produced nearly 400 paintings. Yueh Faye Lai, on the other hand, studied the classics under masters such as Chu Hing-wah and Huang Yongyu as a young girl in Taiwan, hence her works on the exhibit convey her journey from a student to an artist.

This show is part of Yuchengco Museum's "Full Circle” exhibition series, which showcases how the works of Chinese and SinoFilipino families highlight the flow of creativity and artistry from one generation to the next.

Ticket prices range from P25 to P100. For more details, call (02) 889-1234 or email info@yuchengcomuseum.org

No Singing Allowed: Jigger Cruz and Pow Martinez Silverlens Galleries, Makati City Ongoing until December 19

BenCab Portraits Ground Floor Lobby, Ayala Museum, Makati City Ongoing until January 24

Two Manila-based contemporary artists come together in a duo exhibition that showcases paintings using acrylic, oil and mixed media. Jigger Cruz, whose creations often rework many of the stylistic quirks of classical painting, plays with ideas of defacement and vandalism.

Pow Martinez, on the other hand, is an interdisciplinary artist who is known for his eclectic and humorous drawings inspired by Filipino culture, pop imagery and genre music.

For more details about this ongoing exhibit, call (02) 816-0044 or visit www. silverlensgalleries.com

CONCERTS Hirsch-Pinkas Piano Duo Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino, Cultural Center of the Philippines, Manila December 9, 7:30 p.m.

Coveted duo pianists are coming to the country for a one-night show at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Evan Hirsch and Sally Pinkas are set to perform together in a program which includes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Andante mit Variationen in G major, KV 501 (1786), Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Six Pieces, Op. 11 (1894), Franz Schubert’s Rondo in A Major, Op. 107 D. 951 (1828), and Samuel Barber’s Souvenirs, Op. 28 (1954).

Hirsch, an active recitalist and chamber player, and Pinkas, a solo pianist and professor of Music and Artist-in-Residence at Dartmouth College, made their European debut at the Officina Musicale Scotese in Abruzzo, Italy, and have since toured Nigeria, China, Southeast Asia, Russia, Italy, Bulgaria and Israel.

For ticket inquiries, call the CCP Box Office at (02) 832-3704

As part of the yearlong exhibition in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the artistry of Benedicto “BenCab” Cabrera, the Ayala Museum mounts an exhibit featuring over a hundred portraits of the National Artist, many of which are being publicly exhibited for the first time.

The portraits will be complemented by digital displays powered by Samsung showing BenCab's sketches and a slideshow of his stylistic progression. The show is curated by historian Ambeth R. Ocampo who says the portraits don't just copy the face but also tell the story of the subject.

Together with the Ayala Museum, the exhibit is co-presented by Citi Private Bank. Call (02) 759-8288 or visit ayalamuseum.org for more details.

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T U E S D AY : D E C E M B E R 8 : 2 0 1 5

LIFE life @ thestandard.com .ph

@LIFEatStandard

Krispy Kreme Holiday Doughnuts

JOY

Chocolate Iced Glaze with Holiday Sprinkles

Snowflake

Chocolate Iced Kreme Filled

Snowman

Peppermint Chocolate Cake

Santa

Chocolate Peppermint

Holiday Tree

Chocolate Cake Snow

Snowflake

Chocolate Iced Kreme Filled

in a can

I

t’s 17 more days before Christmas and the holiday decorations everywhere are prominent in all public areas, with different gimmicks and promotions in restaurants and shops. All kids and kids at heart (except some Grinch in our midst) love seeing the festive atmosphere of the holiday season. From food to drinks, everyone can enjoy the holiday cheer, and our favorite seasonal themed desserts from Krispy Kreme add to the fun.

This season, Krispy Kreme gets creative with its 14 Christmas-themed doughnuts to choose from.

But the highlight of the season is the interactive event that embodies the spirit of sharing and giving with its loyal patrons. On Saturday, December 12, Krispy Kreme BGC High Street will tap into people’s creativity with an activity aptly named “Crafty Christmas at Krispy Kreme.”

The activity allows patrons to customize their own limited

edition Krispy Kreme tin cans which can hold up to half a dozen doughnuts. These personalized tin cans can serve as a personal gift for your loved ones this holiday.

To add to the fun display, a popular sketch artist will customize a giant Krispy Kreme tin can during the event. The best part of the event is the “gift of giving,” with proceeds from each Krispy Kreme tin can purchased for this activity going to the construction of an art room in a selected public elementary school. The art room will give students the outlet to let their imaginations come to life, one art class at a time.

Bring your creative hat and don’t miss out on the fun activity in BGC Krispy Kreme. Share your work and your gift via #JoyInACan. For updates and more information visit Krispy Kreme PH on their Facebook Page and @hotlightgirl via twitter and @krispykremeph on Instagram.

ART IS EVERYWHERE

A

rt is in the eye of the beholder – and if people just look hard enough, they will discover that there is art everywhere in the Philippines – in coffee shops, underpass tunnels, in schools and offices, the streets – name it, there’s bound to be a piece of art lurking there.

Unfortunately, most Filipinos pay no attention to art because they don’t really see its value. In a bid to make people become more aware of art, the E. Zobel Foundation, 4As Creative Guild of the Philippines, and Publicis JimenezBasic conceptualized the #ArtLotto project that utilizes a medium that many Filipinos are familiar with – the Lotto – as ticket to a fortune. #ArtLotto is a public service effort to make people more conscious of art all around and at the same time give them the opportunity to become richer both in their minds and in their pockets. The project brings something perceived as elitist down to the level of the man on the street, making art inclusive rather than exclusive. The project

was an entry to the E. Zobel Diwa Awards, a platform that aims to help uplift the state of the arts in the Philippines. The project won the grand prize and was given a grant to make it happen.

The promo, which is open to all Filipino citizens residing in the Philippines, ages 18 and up, will run until December 31, 2015. The mechanics are simple: simply take a photo or video (no longer than 15 seconds) of any form of art found anywhere in the Philippines (but not limited to) painting, sculpture, poetry, short story, novel, mosaic, printmaking, dance, theater, architecture, film, photography, music); upload the photo or video on Twitter or Instagram, caption it, and hashtag it #ArtLotto.

Participants may submit as many entries as possible, but an account cannot submit the same art twice.

Reminder: participants must keep the Instagram or Twitter account active throughout the duration of the promo. One grand winner of P450,000 will be determined through a random electronic draw on January 4, 2016.

Holiday Raspberry

The prize money can be redeemed at the Publicis JimenezBasic office, 4F Solaris One Bldg., 130 Dela Rosa St., Legaspi Village, Makati.

The winner must present a government-issued ID, NSOcertified birth certificate, printout or video file of entry; and should be able to log in to the Twitter /Instagram account used in submitting the entry and show the actual entry to the Publicis JimenezBasic representative.

Qualified winner must claim the prize within 60 calendar days from the announcement of winner on the Art Lotto Facebook page. Failure to claim within the allotted time/ duration will result in a forfeiture.

All employees of the E. Zobel Foundation, 4As, Creative Guild of the Philippines, and Publicis JimenezBasic and its subsidiaries and affiliates, sponsors, agencies, and their family members up to the second degree of consanguinity are not eligible to participate in this promo.

To learn more about #ArtLotto and for the complete mechanics, like its Facebook page Art Lotto or visit www.artlotto.ph.

T UES DAY : DECEMBER 8, 2015

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

muSic StarS brighten up choraL competition

C5 Jason Dy

from c8

S

pecial guest artists will brighten up the Aliw Theater stage when Manila Broadcasting Company and Star City mount the 2015 MBC National Choral Competitions.

Luke Mejares fires the opening salvo tonight, followed by Kean Cipriano and Eunice on tomorrow.

Jason Dy takes center stage on Thursday and 90.7 Love Radio’s Papa Jack on Friday. For the grand finals on Dec. 12, Tanya Chinita of 101.1 Yes-FM and the J Brothers band will entertain the audience.

The competition will have 44 of the country’s top chorales trading musical notes as they vie for the 2015 MBC National Choral Competition championships. The prizes are P150, 000.00 for the grand champion in the open category, and P100, 000.00 for the children’s division.

Alaska, Shell, HapeeToothpaste, Coca Cola, Cobra Energy Drink, Speed Detergent, M. Lhuiller, Jollibee, Dunkin Donuts, and the Philippine Choral Directors Association are among the generous sponsors of the competition.

Winners of the semifinal rounds will compete in the grand finals on Dec. 12, with the children’s choir champion taking home over P100, 000.00 and the open category winner receiving P150, 000.00 in cash and kind. The public is invited to watch on all five nights. Showtime is at 7 pm. Admission is free.

HHHHH StarStruck uLtimate four Last Friday was a non-elimination night in StarStruck. So, all six contestants –Arra San Agustin, Elyson de Dios, Klea Pineda, Jay Arcilla, Ayra Mariano and Migo Adecer – were all declared safe. They have another week to prove they should stay in the search.

Next week, they will have serious acting test with Glydel Mercado and Christopher de Leon.

Meanwhile, the StarStruck Avengers, or those that had been eliminated, have their bets for the Ultimate Final 4.

Ayra Mariano and Elyson de Dios seems to be the favorite to win in the #StarStruckLoveMatters challenge.

But the other StarStruck Avengers have their own bets for the love teams. They still continue to support the remaining six in the search.

So, as the search reaches its end, everyone is curious who will be the Ultimate Survivors.

Papa Jack Kean and Eunice

Elyson de Dios

Arra San Agustin

Jay Arcilla

J Brothers

Luke Mejares

Ayra Mariano

Migo Adecer

Klea Pineda

Luis Manzano shares styLing tips

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The new face of Dockers: Luis Manzano in business casual look

ike it or not, your style reflects your personality. Put in another way, your personality shapes your style options. Whatever it is for you, know that it is important to find comfort in your style.

This certainly explains why TV host Luis Manzano fell in love with Dockers, in the first place.

For him, a brand that offers a good mix of style and comfort is something he will choose any day.

As the newest face of the leading provider of khaki pants in the world, Manzano, one of the few entertainment celebrities known for their fashion savvy, shares that he sticks to the basics, which are what Dockers is all about.

“My priority will always be comfort. But when I find a brand that meets style and comfort halfway, I’m all in. This is why when Dockers expressed interested in having me as part of their family, I said ‘yes’ immediately,” Manzano revealed in a casual interview

during the brand’s VIP Sale held last Nov. 28 in Glorietta, where he surprised the shoppers with his presence and gave them tips on how to sport the perfect business-casual look.

The VIP Sale, which ran from Nov. 28 to 30 in all outlets nationwide, gave Dockers lovers a 30-percent discount on regular-priced items. Customers with a minimum purchase of P3, 500.00 likewise received a limited edition Dockers luggage tag—plus a free Dockers leather bracelet.

The brand can’t find a more impeccable fit than Manzano, who is known for his sartorial flair and is admired not only for his success in the entertainment industry, but for his business and entrepreneurial savvy as well.

Kaths Laudit, Dockers Philippines Marketing head, affirms this, saying, “No one could be more perfect for the brand than Luis Manzano, who is one of the most in-demand events and tele-

vision hosts in the country today.

We see him on TV almost every day wearing Dockers pants and sporting the perfect business-casual look. So when we asked him to be the newest face of the brand, he instantly said ‘yes’ and told us that he had been a Dockers fan for years.”

Dockers, as Manzano has shown time and again, is all about layering essential pieces, but keeping the look simple, polished, and effortless. This perfect mix of casual and refined styles is the brand’s vision, which is totally in sync with Manzano’s personal fashion statement. After all, he carefully chooses each piece for that sophisticated but not over-dressed look.

“You can wear the business-casual look pretty much for any occasion, like when I wanna do a casual episode of ASAP or even when I’m hosting the grand finals of The Voice Kids. It’s something that I can easily put on,” says the

34-year-old Manzano.

Through the years, the brand created its stamp on its core market, which goes for the casual and classy yet comfortable get-up rather than for the rugged look. Manzano knows this only too well because he has always been a Dockers fan and it’s what you see him wearing, on and off the camera.

“I’ve worn Dockers since I was younger, and I know what the brand stands for,” says Manzano.

“I have always relied on Dockers for all my shows. Anyway you look at it, this means a lot—it is having faith in the brand’s quality.”

On a final note, Manzano dispels people’s notion that Dockers caters to a more mature market, especially after seeing the brand’s newest collection the last time he visited the store.

Showing his appreciation for Dockers’ timeless fashion pieces, Manzano readily declares, “Dockers has something for you—whatever age bracket you are in.”

T UES DAY : DECEMBER 8, 2015

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SHOWBITZ isahred @ gmail.com

ThiS iS EDWaRD BEnOSa’S BEST yEaR With less than a month to go before 2015 ends, it’s looking like a very good year for up-and-coming balladeer Edward Benosa.

In fact, 2015 is turning out to be his best year. This year, Edward scored two major victories with twin nominations, first, in the Best New Recording Artist category of the recent MOR awards, and second, in the Star Awards for Music of the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC).

In the MOR Awards, he was up against both male and female artists (who fought it out in one category) that included eventual winner Morissette Amon, while in the Star Awards—where there were separate categories for male and female artists—he won over some heavy-hitting newcomers, including The Voice Kids runner-up Darren Espanto.

In the wake of his Star Awards victory, there were a few who questioned his winning, and some who asked, “Sino siya? Di namin siya kilala.” But the reactions were generally positive, and Edward has just happily moved on.

Edward had attempted a professional singing career before, even trying out for the premier season of The Voice of the Philippines, but only started taking it really seriously less than a year ago.

He signed with Star Music, and released his debut album produced by his manager and discoverer, stage and indie film actor Arnold Reyes, with the carrier single, “Di Man Lang Nagpaalam”, a song about a loved one who leaves without even saying goodbye. The touching ballad found an

HBO AsiA wins At PROMAXBDA AsiA 2015 AwARDs

Edward Benosa accepting his award (2015 Star Awards best new artist of the year)

audience and topped several radio countdowns and sales charts nationwide, making Edward a household name. He also gained a following, called the Edward Benosa Loyal Supporters.

He is relatively young in the music business, so for him to earn those two nominations, have an album and a hit song in so short a time is nothing short of a miracle.

But winning his first award in the span of only nine months was the most memorable and incredible thing to happen to him this year.

Sometimes even he can’t believe it. The night of the award ceremony, he went there, not expecting anything. He honestly did not see himself winning because he felt he was too much of a newbie, and had no right to do so. So when his name was called, Edward was shocked, and when he got onstage, he forgot to thank so many people, including his manager.

“Di ko talaga in-expect. Sobra akong nagulat, sobrang surprised,” he says. “Kasi alam ko naman na bagong-bago ako na artist, halos nine months pa lang

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

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DOWN 1 2001, to Livy 2 Many many years 3 Hassle a debtor 4 Ms. Sanford of TV 5 In a ferment 6 — -do-well 7 Compensate 8 Peeved 9 Like slate 10 Bugging off 11 Aleut language 12 Marsh stalker 13 Selects a card

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ANSWER FOR PREVIOUS PUZZLE ACROSS 1 Street divider 7 Internet suffix 10 Told a whopper 14 Chocolate dessert 15 Fragrant tree 16 MIT grad 17 Natural 18 Gulf st.

19 Mystique 20 Big picture (2 wds.)

23 Heist, slangily

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Wk. day Oven gloves Slow time Angkor — It may blow hard Wyo. neighbor In honor of Paper-folding art Andy Gump’s wife — Wiedersehen Family mem.

Beauty pack Spools

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2015

“— Rheingold” Pizarro’s quest Advanced deg.

“I saw a mouse!”

Two-way One-celled plants Santa — winds Bikini sporters Cumulonimbus Lecture — -Magnon Pilot’s position Atlas dot Mortar trough Glamour Flung Have debts Gave off fumes

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ako sa business, ang dami ko pang hindi nagagawa, eh ‘yung iba ang dami nang napatunayan, kaya nu’ng matawag ang pangalan ko, nagulat talaga ako.”

He is grateful, though, because winning the award definitely gave his career a big boost.

“Sa isang nagsisimula na tulad ko, o kahit sinong nagsisimula, ‘yung mabigyan ka ng Best New Artist of the Year, parang enough reason na ‘yon na ipagpatuloy mo itong ginagawa mo, na kailangan mo sundan, at ipagpatuloy ang sinimulan.”

Another achievement of Edward in 2015 was appearing in his first stage musical, Chuva Choo Choo, inspired by the music of multi-awarded songwriter and record producer Vehnee Saturno. He played the love interest of Morissette Amon and also costarred with former Miss Saigon star and stage veteran Joanna Ampil. The musical produced by STAGES will have an extended run in mid-2016.

Being given all these opportunities to stretch himself and his

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Overshadows PC messages Shinny Broadcast portion Fallback strategy (2 wds.)

Snaked around Like some accidents Conked out Nightmare “My Cherie —” (Stevie Wonder tune) Fresco Goddesses’ statues Bed covering Make unreadable, for security Toy with Upper room Tibet’s capital Beach scavengers Silent projectile Deceitful cunning Canyon reply Gen. — Bradley Puffin kin Umbrage Flaming

craft make Edward feel that this is where he was meant to be.

Now, he says, he is really serious about wanting to build a career as a singer, songwriter and performer.

Edward is thankful for all the blessings and breaks he’s been getting—and the timing, with the holidays just around the corner— couldn’t be better.“Napaka-gandang Christmas gift ng taon na ito, ang gandang bonus galing kay Lord,” reflects Edward.

So now, the game plan is just for him to keep moving forward.

He dreams of releasing a second album, and maybe even staging a concert in 2016, as a way of giving back and thanking all his friends (he prefers not to call them ‘fans’, but friends) for their support.

There is so much ahead of him as 2016 approaches, and Edward is excited to experience everything.

For more of Edward, visit his Facebook page at https://www. f a c e b o o k . c om / re a l e d w a rd benosa. For bookings and inquiries, please call Ranjo Isip 09178822773.

HBO Asia claims 12 wins at the PromaxBDA Asia 2015 Awards, the biggest among TV networks in Southeast Asia. This was announced at The Arts House in Singapore on Dec. 3.

HBO Asia’s six gold and six silver awards, which honors the finest in television promotion, marketing and design for the region, include the network’s on-air and print marketing campaigns for Game of Thrones, the Oscars and its Christmas ID. The same Christmas and Oscars spots also clinched gold and silver awards at the Clio Key Art Awards held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood this year.

Upping the network’s accolades are two wins at the 20th Asian Television Awards (ATA) for the HBO Asia Original miniseries, Grace – for Best Supporting Actor (Lim Kay Tong) and Best Editing (Stephen Evans). Grace also came in highly commended at the ATA for three categories: Best Director (Tony Tilse), Best Supporting Actor (George Young), and Best Original Screenplay (Yalun Tu and Zach Hines).

This adds to the miniseries’ earlier triumphs at the Apollo Awards 2015, for Best Sound Design (Rennie Gomes), Best Cinematography (Derek Loo), and Best Music Composition (Ricky Ho), bringing Grace’s awards tally to eight.

T UES DAY : DECEMBER 8, 2015

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SHOWBITZ isahred @ gmail.com

Rox Santos

Meet underrated producer-songwriter rox santos

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ow profile, behind-thescene geniuses often find themselves in the shadow of their illustrious work.

Roque “Rox” Balaoro Santos, in-house music producer and songwriter for giant record label Star Music, is one example -- an underrated achiever silently doing stuff only the real talented can.

That he scored two consecutive “Best Selling Album” plums from Awit Awards as producer makes him an industry dark horse.

As proven, Rox has the skill and passion to deliver the goods, guiding heartthrob Daniel Padilla to the top of the charts and record sales race through his work for the latter’s self-titled debut and 2014’s “DJP.” This year’s “I Heart You” also became a highly touted candidate for “Best Selling” nod.

“I am in love with the art of creating records, writing songs, and bringing out the best in the artists I’m working with,” shares Rox who came on board in 2007 and fast-became a prolific record producer and songsmith from the talent-laden group ABS-CBN Creatives.

As songwriter, he co-wrote the phenomenal hit “Boom Panes” by comedian Vice Ganda, as well as the latter’s “Wag Kang Pabebe.”

He also penned the radio favorites “Ngayong Alam Ko Na” by Liezel Garcia and “Now We’re Together” by Bailey May of Pinoy Big Brother fame.

The lists of musical artists he has handled and original songs he contributed for them to sing are proof of his strong grip on industry-level professionalism and pop

sentimentality. He wrote “Pag-Ibig Ko’y Ikaw” for Martin Nievera, “Only With You” for Toni Gonzaga, “Sana Ngayon Ang Kahapon” for Angeline Quinto,” “Buhay Ko’y Ikaw” for Vina Morales, “Paskong Puno Ng Kasiyahan” for Juris Fernandez, among others.

With credential and credibility empowering his every step in the control room, Rox likewise spelled his magic touch in the field of movies, soaps, and TV commercials.

He provided “Akin Ka Na Lang” for My Illegal Wife, “Karakaraka” for Bromance and the theme for The Amazing Praybet Benjamin.

For TV, he is behind the theme songs for Annaliza, The Love Story of Kang Chi, Pretty Man, I Do and others, having collaborated with singers Roel Manlangit, Kathryn Bernardo, Juris Fernandez and other noted voices and faces today. Several brands have also gained more grounds because of his talent, having crafted the main theme campaign for ABS-CBN mobile (“Unlimited and Free” by Daniel Padilla), jingle for Rejoice (“Gandang Filipina, Gandang Natural”), and that for Alaska (“Change for the Better”).

Rox points out, “The key is to not stop learning and be professional all the time. You can’t put in some half-baked material and hope they become hits. You quietly produce the hits. ” The finished products under his care are almost always assured of making it to the hit parade. His decorated track record shows he can churn out albums that turn into gold and even platinum.

Daniel Padilla’s DJP reached Platinum a staggering four times while the debut hit thrice; then the current year’s release already climbed to double Platinum status. Having said this, albums he produced for Richard Yap, Kim Chiu, Kathryn Bernardo, Vice Ganda, Xian Lim and Enchong Dee all reached the Platinum plateau.

Soundtrack and compilation albums Rox worked on mostly became Gold, too, like the Juan de la Cruz, Walang Hanggan, and Be Careful With My Heart soundtracks, as well as compilations of movie themes and past hits.

As a multi-awarded professional, Rox received a handful of Catholic Mass Media Awards, beginning with Best Inspirational Album trophy for May Bukas Pa (Conversations of Bro and Santino) during the Awards’ 2010 edition.

This year, he bagged the MYX Music Awards’ “Favorite Song of the Year” for Daniel Padilla’s “Simpleng Tulad Mo,” then collected trophies from the MOR Pinoy Music Awards after scoring Album of the Year for Himig Handog P-Pop Love Songs, Dance Hit of the Year for Enchong Dee’s Chinito Problems, and LSS Hit of the Year for “Boom Panes.”

At the 7th PMPC Star Awards for Music, “Boom Panes” won Best Novelty Song of the Year, Himig Handog P-Pop Love Songs was picked 2015 Compilation of the Year, and ADA The EDM Diva had been cited Best Dance Album.

Boom! Rox Santos is a real deal. And there you have the records to show.

Viral star Zendee’s new album

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his viral star has proved that raw talent will always get attention.

And her move to her new home, MCA Music, is another amazing beginning in Zendee’s career.

“Syempre nakaka-proud (to be part of MCA Music)… Ang daming international and local artist na kilala under that label at isa ako dun,” Blessings still continue to pour in for the 24-year old, being the world-famous “Random Girl” belting Whitney Houston’s biggest hit. From General Santos City, she flew to Manila and tried her luck at landing a singing career. She used to sing on videoke in malls, a video landed in the hands of Ellen DeGeneres. The rest is history.

Zendee’s dreams almost instantly came true – album, tours, guest appearances, interviews and appearances – she got it all.

And her new album under MCA Music, Z, is another answered prayer.

Zendee is more than ready for the new album and she’s going to rock hard for the first single, “Run Wild”. “Naramdaman ko yung pag-mature ng boses ko (on this track),” Aside from this strong track, she will show her versatility with her “contest piece” “When Love Calls Your Name”, the

90’s RnB-influenced “Chances”, and hugot songs (her favorite cuts in the album) like “Lie” and “I Wasn’t Ready For This.”

Her Jessie J sounding single “Watch This!” is what best describes her trending status right now as her duet with the “Flashlight” hit maker has reached more than five million views. Thanks to friend, KZ Tandingan, their little chat about the app became a viral success. “Actually, hindi ko talaga in-expect na mag-va-viral yun.

Nakapambahay nga lang ako at nag-lipstick! Haha! Na-shock na lang talaga ako at di ko in-expect na ganun ang magiging feedback ng mga tao.” The experience of being a viral star once again has made Zendee nostalgic about her appearance on Ellen. “Para sa akin, yun ang pinakamalaking break na nangyari sa buhay ko. After ng Ellen, sunod-sunod na yung mga guestings ko,” Just ecstatic to have shared the same fate with her idol, Charice, she also hopes that her new release gets the same love as her videos online, “Siguro lahat ng may kopya magugustuhan din nila yung mga songs ko at maraming makaka-relate.”

“Random Girl” is random girl no more.

Zendee is now known by her name and by her talent. She has inspired millions of as-

piring singers to go for their dreams and sing their hearts out, whatever the opportunity. All she is now is just grateful. “Sa mga walang sawang sumusuporta sakin since Random Girl days ko pa, hanggang sa naging recording artist na ako, maraming salamat talaga. Hindi po ako magsasawa na mag-try at mag-upload ng maraming videos pa para sa inyo. I’ll make you proud,” Indeed she has. The entire country knows it. The world has already seen what she can do. It’s just a matter of anticipating what she’ll do next. And it’ll be awesome.

Zendee’s Z is now available for digital downloads via Spinnr and iTunes and on CDs at Astroplus and Astrovision outlets. It

No long just “A random Girl,” Zendee is now a recording star

can also be streamed via Spinnr, Apple Music, VEVO, Spotify, Deezer, Guvera and Rdio.

For bookings and inquiries, please contact Sammy Samaniego of MCA Music Artist Management at +632 9162504 local 107, +639178565174 and +639209682991 or email sammy.samaniego@umusic.com or mcabookings@umusic.com.

T UES DAY : DECEMBER 8, 2015

C8 Wyeth executives, Promil Pre-School I -Shine Talent Camp hosts and mentors with the Grand I-Shiners and parents

ISAH V. RED EDITOR isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

Pre-school kids shine in online talent camP Grand I-Shiners Altamira Saicon and Yessha De La Calzada

Dimples Romana with the 10 finalists

Altamira Saicon and Yessha De La Calzada are the winners of the Promil i-Shine Talent Camp Season 4

The Judges and Mentors

kid finalists’ past submissions as well as their photos and profiles.

Aside from the announcement of winners, Celebrity mentors Agot ISAH V. RED Isidro, John Prats, and Menchu Lauchengo-Yulo also joined the After months of scouting for kids top 10 I-Shiners open the show in who have the potential to shine a special performance. Later, in a with their talents, Promil Pre- surprise heartwarming number, school and ABS-CBN announced mentors Karylle and Xian serenadlast Saturday, at the Dolphy The- ed the I-Shiners’ parents and as a atre this year’s grand winners in special tribute to the parents of the the Promil Pre-school I-Shine’s finalists were treated to a tribute for Online Talent Camp. their unending love and support.

They are Altamira Saicon, the After amazing performances paintbrush royalty of Cebu for Visu- and art works from the top 10, al Arts and Yessha de la Calzada for the two Promil Pre-School I-Shinperforming arts. Angela Tan took ers who emerged as grand winners home the crowd favorite award. in the Promil Pre-School I-Shine Now on its fourth year, Promil Online Talent Camp were awardPre-school I-Shine helped nurture ed cash prizes, one year supply of the gift of over a hundred talented Promil Pre-School products and pre-school children from all over a contract with ABS-CBN’s the country. Six weeks of compre- Multi-Channel Network: Chicken hensive lessons were spent with Pork Adobo and a talent workshop Kapamilya host Dimples Romana, from Star Magic Workshops. They Visual Arts mentor Xian Lim and each had lucky home partners who Performing Arts mentor Karyl- were also awarded with special le who helped nurture the gift of tal- cash prizes and one-year supply of ented kids enrolled and participated Promil Pre-School products. in the online talent camp. They also The Promil Pre-School I-Shine hosted this special closing event.

Online Talent Camp aims to conAt the entrance of the Dolphy tinue to help exceptionally talentTheater, guests were able be up ed pre-schoolers unleash develop close and personal with the top their full potential and nurture 10 I-Shiners and their works by Filipino children’s talents with the browsing the exhibit showcas- help of their parents, proper care, ing the kids’ exceptional talents. and proper nutrition.

There was an Art Station with a HHHHH mini exhibit showcasing artworks Yuletide season by the five kid finalists in the Vi- at Pagcor sual Arts category with their pho- ‘Tis the season to be jolly at Catos and profiles displayed. At the sino Filipino as it celebrates the Performing Arts Station, there Holiday Season with lots of merwas an LED that showcased the 5 ry-making and exciting line-up

of celebrity shows.

Have a riotous holiday with the comic tandem of Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola on Dec. 11 at Casino Filipino Mimosa. Share a night of laughter with the duo as they make the crowds holler the moment they deliver their sidesplitting punches.

Catch K Brosas and Pooh as they ignite the stage with their hilarious antics on Dec.11 at Casino Filipino Tagaytay. What happens if we put two of the nation’s top comedians onstage? It’s definitely twice the fun, wackiness, and riot.

The Philippines’ great impersonator Willie Nepomuceno returns on the Pagcor stage on Dec.11 at Casino Filipino Carmona. See for yourself why he remains one of the most enduring and respected artists in the industry.

Laugh till you drop with comedians Le Chazz and AJ Tamiza on Dec. 16 (Casino Filipino Angeles) and Dec. 19 (Casino Filipino Olongapo).

Can’t get enough of Mistres?

The multi-talented trio, who wowed the judges and audience of Asia’s Got Talent, will take the spotlight once again on Dec. 16 (Casino Filipino Pavilion) and Dec. 26 (Casino Filipino Cebu).

The alluring Rufa Mae Quinto will warm the cold Dec.19 night at Casino Filipino Hyatt. Joining her onstage is Petite.

For inquiries, call the PAGCOR Entertainment Department at (02) 708-2046, 526-0337 local 2401 or 2403. Check and ‘Like’ us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ pagcor.artists. ➜ continued on c5