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Agents of death strike again n

A MILITARY truck lies at an area where a bomb exploded at the town of Jolo, Sulu, August 24, 2020. Bombs exploded in the southern Philippine town Monday, killing several soldiers and wounding other military personnel and civilians despite extra tight security because of threats from Abu Sayyaf militants. PHILIPPINE NATIONAL RED CROSS VIA AP

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By Rene Acosta & Samuel P. Medenilla

OMBINED security forces have enforced a tight security ring around and inside Sulu in Mindanao, amid the lingering possibility that Monday’s twin suicide bombings near a plaza in Jolo capital town may not be the last of such daring and bloody attacks.

“There’s a possibility,” Maj. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, commander of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom), said when asked if some radicalized Muslims, or their followers, could mount

similar attacks in the near future.

The latest suicide bombings left 15 dead and 64 others wounded, some seriously.

President Duterte was reported to be considering the declaration

of martial law in Sulu, according to Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque, upon the recommendation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

“Although the recommendation has been made, the President has to be very careful that it will pass the scrutiny of both the legislative and the judicial branches of government,” Roque explained, adding the President might just be waiting for additional reports on the bombings before acting on the recommendation.

President Duterte, it will be recalled, had placed the entire Mindanao under martial law from 2017 to 2019 after Islamic terrorists stormed Marawi City.

“You could expect the President will give justice to those who died and were injured because of the incident, and fight terrorism in Sulu,” Roque said.

Radicalization

POLICE attend to their injured at the site of an explosion in Jolo on Monday.

THE Jolo suicide bombing incidents—the fourth and fifth cases in just more than a year to rattle Sulu— also confirmed the radicalization by the Islamic State (IS) of some of the members of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and their followers as indicated by the latest attacks that were both carried out by two women.

“We are on double alert as we continue to hunt down the masterminds of the attacks,” Vinluan said, adding soldiers and policemen have been conducting raids on all possible terrorist lairs and holding relentless patrols, while undertaking target hardening measures on soft targets.

But the priority mission, according to Vinluan, is the manhunt operations against Mudzrimir “Mundi” Sawadjaan, an ASG subleader tagged as the brains behind the twin attacks.

AP/NICKEE BUTLANGAN

Continued on A2

Singapore’s coveted expat jobs threatened by local hire push

By David Ramli & Ishika Mookerjee

S

Bloomberg News

INGAPORE has long been the city of choice for Western expats wanting an easy entrée into Asia. Clean, efficient, with low tax rates, it’s often seen as rivaling Hong Kong, especially with that city hit by street protests and unrest over China’s new national security law.

Yet just when Singapore should be a magnet for global talent, some recruiters say the barriers to entry are mounting. The city is facing the worst recession in its history, forcing a rethink for some firms on expansion and hiring plans.

Alongside soaring unemployment has come a spike in rhetoric against foreigners, seen by some Singaporeans as taking jobs from locals.

An experienced nurse from

New Zealand is finding out how tough it can be. She seemed, on paper at least, the ideal expat—arriving right before Covid-19. But 11 months and over 200 failed applications later, she says she’s on the verge of going home, unable to land a work pass.

She was told by companies that they have a quota and the quota is met, she said, asking not to be identified for fear of jeopardizing her partner’s work permit. When

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 48.6210

A JOGGER runs toward the Central Business District in Singapore, July 6, 2020. BLOOMBERG

attempts to volunteer at hospitals were similarly rejected, she said she felt like she didn’t belong.

The uncertain job prospects, online commentary and stricter conditions risk making Singapore a less welcoming destination just as the city-state needs foreign investment the most. And as workplaces clamp down on hiring it could further limit the options for expats who have long seen a stint in Asia as an important and lucrative experience.

The Singapore government has added to their angst by taking steps to promote local hiring, raising concern that it will come at the expense of expats. Earlier this month, it put 47 companies on a watch list for suspected discriminatory hiring practices.

The list includes banks, fund managers and consulting firms that may have pre-selected foreigners for jobs, or not given Singaporeans a fair chance. This adds to the 240 companies already under Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4565 n UK 64.2283 n HK 6.2736 n CHINA 7.0520 n SINGAPORE 35.5807 n AUSTRALIA 35.2891 n EU 57.4846 n SAUDI ARABIA 12.9656

Source: BSP (August 28, 2020)

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A2 Saturday, August 29, 2020

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Singapore’s coveted expat jobs threatened by local hire push Continued from A1

scrutiny. The names of the firms weren’t disclosed.

And in May, it tightened the framework that governs employment passes for foreigners, increasing the minimum monthly salary to S$3,900 ($2,840) and further expanding rules requiring employers to advertise job openings to locals first. The government said Wednesday it plans to raise that salary threshold further.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a contraction in the number of visas issued because the demand for foreigners is going to be less” in the near term, said Hays Plc. regional director for Singapore Grant Torrens, citing the sharp contraction as the main driver.

The role of foreign workers became a key election issue this year, with several opposition candidates campaigning on claims that overseas talent is taking local jobs. The Workers’ Party, which clinched more seats than ever, published a manifesto that included tightening employment pass approvals.

“The only reason we have foreigners here is to give an extra wind in our sails when the opportunity is there,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan said in a televised election debate in July. “Now we are in a storm, and we need to shed ballast.”

Balakrishnan’s office said in response to Bloomberg queries on the comment that there will be a disproportionate impact on the foreign workforce in a downturn.

Foreign workers on employment passes—the sort issued to

highly skilled workers as opposed to work permits for blue-collar jobs—typically comprise around 5 percent of the total workforce.

Yet among top managers and professionals in some key sectors, the ratio of foreigners can be much higher. Non-Singaporeans made up 57 percent of senior management roles across the financial services sector, the government said in August.

Andrew Zee, team lead for financial services at Selby Jennings, said some of his job candidates were recently denied permits— a first for him in more than four years—though they were later approved on appeal.

Sirva Inc., which owns Allied Pickfords, said inquiries from people wanting to move to Singapore in the first seven months of the year were down 23 percent from the same period in 2019, according to Amanda Jones, senior vice president of sales and account management. Jones doesn’t expect to see expat executives coming to Singapore at pre-Covid numbers until 2022 at best, especially given travel curbs and the recession.

Expats leaving

THE shift is starting to be felt in the real-estate market. Ella Sherman, an associate executive sales director at Knight Frank in Singapore who specializes in expat housing, says she normally signs about four rental agreements a month this time of year. Now she’s lucky to secure one, and knows of several clients heading home.

Beyond the economic woes and the pandemic lies an unease over

foreigners in the country of just 5.7 million people. This has surfaced in public calls, often on social media, for more hiring of locals.

When a Facebook post targeting foreign executives at $215-billion investment giant Temasek Holdings Pte. went viral this month, chief executive officer Ho Ching responded with a post of her own describing it as “a cowardly act of hate.”

Job cuts

COMPANIES are taking pains to describe their efforts to retain Singaporean jobs. When Millennium Hotels and Resorts laid off 159 employees this month, it noted that the move lifted its “core” Singaporean workforce to 69 percent.

After casino operator Resorts World Sentosa reportedly cut 2,000 last month, the Ministry of Manpower issued a statement saying the majority of affected workers were foreigners.

“After the retrenchment exercise, RWS has a stronger Singaporean core,” the ministry said.

Even expats abroad are feeling the pinch. One worker was overseas and between jobs when the pandemic struck. Though he quickly found a new position, he said his employment pass submission has been rejected several times with no explanation.

He’s now stuck in Europe paying rent for his empty home in Singapore, unable to return until his visa gets approved. He declined to be identified for fear of jeopardizing his application. He said the rising anti-foreigner rhetoric was equally worrisome.

For some, the social tensions were brought to the fore when a few expats were caught breaching government-imposed lockdowns by drinking and mingling outdoors without masks in May.

The incident sparked an ugly debate on social media and prompted a minister to caution against the “visceral reaction” by locals. The offenders were fined and banned from working in Singapore, as were 134 others over May and June.

Green cards

TO be sure, some politicians are urging calm. Singaporeans want assurances that the government will continue to create opportunities and provide fair treatment, but a vast majority “understand

that staying open and connected is very important to Singapore,” Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said Wednesday.

Singapore isn’t alone in fighting for local jobs. US President Donald Trump signed an executive order this month barring federal agencies from replacing citizens or green-card holders with foreign workers.

And the city state’s status as a finance hub ensures it will always be a magnet for foreign talent.

Citadel, the hedge fund run by billionaire Ken Griffin, announced this week it’s opening a Singapore office. So is Sun Life Financial Inc., Canada’s second-biggest insurer.

Becton Dickinson & Co. is also expanding.

Attractive hub

“SINGAPORE remains an attractive destination,” said Rahul Sen, the global head of private wealth management at Boyden, an executive search firm. “New businesses that were thinking of setting up in Hong Kong to attract greater China wealth are thinking of setting up shop in Singapore.”

Even so, the avenues for many are narrowing. The nurse from New Zealand has started reaching out to health-care providers back home. They’re eager to hire so she may head back.

“Singapore is an amazing city, and we hoped that if we stayed long enough, things would change,” she said. “But the longer it takes, the further away it seems.”

Agents of death strike again

SOLDIERS carry bodies at a site of an explosion in Jolo, Sulu, August 24, 2020.

Continued from A1

Tactical shift

THE suicide bombings perpetrated by the two women, identified through their aliases “Nanah” and “Indanay,” wives of the late Norman Lasuca and Said Talha Jumsa alias Abu Talha, respectively, also marked a shift in the terrorists’ tactic of attacking areas of convergence rather than well-protected military camps.

While the bombings still targeted security forces, the latest attacks were carried out in an area of public convergence.

Sawadjaan is the nephew of Hatib Hadjan Sawadjaan, commander of the ASG who took over the helm of the IS in Mindanao after the death of ASG Commander Isnilon Hapilon, the “emir” of the IS in Southeast Asia who led the attack on Marawi City in 2017.

Vinluan did not discount the possibility that more members of the ASG, or the group’s followers, could have been radicalized by the IS and have been trained by its local affiliate for suicide bombings, saying such trainings happened between 2016 and 2018.

One of the so-called trainors, Abu Talha, the husband of Indanay, was killed in November last year by Army Scout Rangers. The military had tagged him as the IS’s liaison to the ASG where he had also served as its treasurer.

‘Upgrade’

ABU TALHA even reportedly upgraded the capability of the ASG in bomb making, while training suicide bombers, a fact validated by the death of his wife in one of the two latest attacks.

The successive attacks in Jolo on Monday were the fourth and fifth suicide bombings in Sulu since January this year, with the first one having been perpetrated by an Indonesian couple on the Jolo Cathedral while it was packed with churchgoers.

In July last year, Lasuca and a

AP/NICKEE BUTLANGAN

Caucasian man carried out suicide bombings on the headquarters of the Army’s 1st Brigade Combat Team at Barangay Kajatian in Indanan, Sulu, barely a month after the elite unit was deployed in the province.

“Lasuca was radicalized by the IS while he was with the group of Sawadjaan,” then Westmincom commander and now Army chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana said at that time.

in Metro Jolo when they were neutralized by the AFP during the implementation of a military operation intended to apprehend foreign terrorists in Sulu,” the military said at that time.

Recovered from them were two vests with explosives and triggering devices that were identical to the vest that was used by the suicide bomber during the attacks of the military outposts in Tagbak and Kajatian.

First Filipino bomber

Could there be more?

THE listing of Lasuca as the first Filipino suicide bomber rattled security officials, as they confirmed that the idea of a suicide bombing had not only dawned upon the country, but had already seeped into the ranks of Filipino radicals, something that the government had been working to derail years before.

In September last year, a Caucasian-looking woman, who was believed to be an Egyptian, also carried out a suicide bombing on the outpost of the 35th Infantry Battalion at Barangay Tagbak, also in Indanan.

Both of the attacks targeted the camps of soldiers, prompting Sobejana to declare then that the terrorists are becoming bolder and more determined.

The attacks on the Jolo Cathedral and on the two military outposts were claimed by the IS. In November also last year soldiers apprehended and killed at a checkpoint three suicide bombers, two of them an Egyptian father-and-son team identified as Abduramil and Abdurahman, who, along with a local Moro, were on their way to Jolo for a suicidebombing mission.

The trio came from the town of Maimbung when they were flagged down at Sitio Itawon, Barangay Kan Islam, Indanan.

“The terrorists, composed of two foreign terrorists and one local ASG member, were about to carry out their suicide-bombing mission

FROM the 2019 attack at the Jolo Cathedral up to the twin bombings at the Jolo plaza, eight suicide bombers, including those apprehended and neutralized in the checkpoint, have been accounted for.

The number has already breached the figure of five suicide bombers whom the military earlier said it was still hunting right after Lasuca’s suicide attack.

Vinluan said they already knew about the plan to conduct suicide bombings in Sulu long before the latest twin attacks. But it happened.

“When it comes to terrorism, there is no such thing as an impenetrable barrier. So, although we were able to foil their several attempts in the past, sometimes it also happens. But this does not mean that our soldiers have been remiss of their job,” he said.

Sobejana earlier said that had the Army intelligence team not been killed by Jolo policemen while they were in pursuit of the two women suicide bombers in Jolo in late July, the attacks might have been preempted.

That killing of the Army intel team members, initially tagged a misencounter with Jolo cops but now widely suspected as a deliberate killing, has raised more chilling implications: could rogue cops in league with terrorists have deliberately gone after the soldiers because they were closing in on the suicide bombers? That is the subject of a thorough investigation. And it raises the ante of the war on terror.

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Saturday, August 29, 2020

A3

Duterte orders swift approval of key water-resource projects

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By Samuel P. Medenilla

ersistent low water levels in reservoirs near Metro Manila prompted President Duterte to issue a new order expediting the approval process of flagship infrastructure projects related to water security.

In his Administrative Order (AO) 32, the President instructed all concerned government

agencies to prioritize the completion of reviews and approvals of the said projects.

The issuance covers water resource-projects included in the list of flagship infrastructure projects approved by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) as of February 17, 2020 and other similar projects to be approved thereafter by the government.

President Duterte said the Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs and Projects (PA-FPP) and Neda will coordinate with the concerned agencies on how to fast-track the said processes.

“If a government office or agency fails to approve or disapprove original application, or request for issuance of license, clearance, permit, certification or authorization

within the prescribed processing time, where all the required documents have been submitted and fees paid and no reason, or explanation in writing was approved therefor, the said application shall be deemed approved,” he said in three-page issuance.

He tasked the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) to monitor the compliance of the said agencies on AO 32 and issue the necessary warning to those which may fail to do so.

“The ARTA shall ensure that local permits and barangay clearances related to infrastructure flagship projects on water security shall be applied, issued, and obtained strictly in accordance with

prescribed processing time under RA 9485 as amended,” President Duterte said.

ARTA will also be required to review licenses, clearances, permits, certifications or authorizations related to water security and recommend the said documents could be repealed for being outdated, redundant and unnecessary 30 days after the implementation of AO 32.

The order took effect on August 26, 2020, but was only released to the media on Friday.

As for the concerned government agencies and offices, they will be required to regularly submit the status of the application for the said projects, as well as the

issues encountered and the cause/s for delay, or inaction, with advice on the corrective measures that may be undertaken as deemed appropriate.

They should make the submission to PA-FPP, Neda, and ARTA within 20 working days from the submission of complete requirements and every week thereafter, until appropriate action is undertaken on the application for the required license, clearance, permits, certification or authorization.

President Duterte said his new order aims to ensure the country’s water security amid the challenges posed by increasing demand for water and climate change.

Palace official suggests new tack Marina commits PHL as major intl crew change hub in Asean meet in resolving PhilHealth anomalies

A

Malacañang official on Friday proposed extending “amnesty” to medical facilities and health-care workers, who may be involved in corrupt practices with the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth).

In a radio interview, Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said this will encourage them to testify against PhilHealth officials and personnel who are engaged in illegal activities.

He noted some doctors and hospitals owners merely agree to such activities so they could collect their payments from PhilHealth.

“I believe in the honesty of hospital owners and doctors. If we will give them amnesty, we will know who gets a percentage [of the collection from PhilHealth]. It may not just be amnesty but immunity. I believe they will speak out and we will see who are responsible [for the said irregularities in PhilHealth],” Roque said.

Some PhilHealth officials are being investigated by the Senate, House of Representatives and an inter-agency task force led by the Department of Justice due to the alleged anomalies in the state health insurer.

Based on initial findings, PhilHealth allegedly purchased overpriced information-technology (IT) hardware, as well as questionable implementation of its Interim Reimbursement Mechanism among others.

Roque said these violations could be prevented by automating the transactions in PhilHealth.

While he is opposing the proposal to privatize PhilHealth, Roque pointed out its IT functions can be handled by a private company to make it more efficient.

“The administration is open [to the possibility] of...some functions [of PhilHealth being] privatized,” Roque said. Samuel P. Medenilla

T

he Philippines, represented by the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), has committed to becoming a major international hub for crew change during the 39th Meeting of the Maritime Transport Working Group of the Asean as part of its role as a major provider of seafarers to the global labor market.

In a news statement issued on Friday, Marina said the meeting, held virtually for the first time on Thursday amid the Covid-19 pandemic, also included the Asean’s other dialogue partners, such as China, Japan, Korea, and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Marina Administrator Robert Empedrad, who served as head of the Philippine

delegation, said the Philippines will continue to cooperate with member-states of the international maritime community for the “facilitation and safe movement of the world’s seafarers.” “[Seafarers] are the lifeline of the world’s economy as such they are our essential workers. In the Philippines, our seafarers are our indispensable partners for our country’s economic development,” Empedrad said.

To date, he said, the Philippines has already opened the Ports of Manila, Bataan, and Subic for international crew change—with more ports planned to open as crew change hubs in the future.

“Our maritime sector is working diligently to activate crew change hubs in the country

to give maritime vessels the avenue to refresh their manpower, and to provide relief to our hardworking seafarers,” Empedrad said.

In a message, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Assistant Secretary Goddes Hope Libiran said these crew change hubs are required to have a “one-stop shop” to process the crew changes.

This, she said, include health screening (with RT-PCR testing), Customs, immigration, and quarantine facilities.

“A location should have these requirements in place to be activated as a crew change hub.

Once other ports are able to comply with these requirements, then they will be opened as crew change hubs,” Libiran said.

During the meeting, Empedrad also noted

the country’s “whole-of-government” approach to keeping the maritime industry afloat during the pandemic.

He said this includes several measures that ensure the operability of supply chains, such as the use of automated systems to lessen personal transactions and the creation of a Shipping Protection Office to protect both domestic and international shippers against “unreasonable fees and charges” imposed by shipping lines.

He said the country is also working on the decongestion of its ports, has issued a directive to all shipping lines to provide cargo space and allocation for agricultural and food products with preferential cargo rates, and the extension of STCW certificates for seafarers still onboard ships. PNA

Saturday, August 29, 2020

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Japan PM Abe reveals he’s resigning for health reasons T

OKYO—Japan’s longestserving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, said Friday he intends to step down because a chronic health problem has resurfaced. He told reporters that it was “gut wrenching” to leave so many of his goals unfinished.

Abe has had ulcerative colitis since he was a teenager and has said the condition was controlled with treatment. Concerns about Abe’s health began this summer and grew this month when he visited a Tokyo hospital two weeks in a row for unspecified health checkups. He is now on a new treatment that requires IV injections, he said. While there is some improvement, there is no guarantee that it will cure his condition and so he decided to step down after treatment Monday, he said.

“It is gut wrenching to have to leave my job before accomplishing my goals,” Abe said Friday, mentioning his failure to resolve the issue of Japanese abducted years ago by North Korea and a territorial dispute with Russia.

He said his health problem was under control until earlier this year but was found to have relapsed in June when he had an annual checkup.

In a country once known for its short-tenured prime ministers, the departure marks the end of an unusual era of stability that saw the Japanese leader strike up strong ties with US President Donald Trump even as Abe’s ultranationalism riled the Koreas and China. While he pulled Japan out of recession, the economy has been

battered anew by the coronavirus pandemic, and Abe has failed to achieve his cherished goal of formally rewriting the US-drafted pacifist constitution because of poor public support.

Abe is a political blue blood who was groomed to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather, former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi.

His political rhetoric often focused on making Japan a “normal” and “ beautiful” nation with a stronger military and bigger role in international affairs.

Abe, whose term ends in September 2021, is expected to stay on until a new party leader is elected and formally approved by the parliament.

Abe became Japan’s youngest prime minister in 2006, at age 52,

but his overly nationalistic first stint abruptly ended a year later because of his health.

In December 2012, Abe returned to power, prioritizing economic measures over his nationalist agenda. He won six national elections and built a rock-solid grip on power, bolstering Japan’s defense role and capability and its security alliance with the US. He also stepped up patriotic education at schools and raised Japan’s international profile.

Abe on Monday became Japan’s longest-serving prime minister by consecutive days in office, eclipsing the record of Eisaku Sato, his great-uncle, who served 2,798 days from 1964 to 1972.

But his second hospital visit Monday accelerated speculation

and political maneuvering toward a post-Abe regime.

Ulcerative colitis causes inf lammation and sometimes poly ps in the bowels. People with the condition can have a normal life expectancy but serious cases can involve life-threatening complications.

After his recent hospital visits were reported, top officials from Abe’s Cabinet and the ruling party said he was overworked and badly needed rest.

His health concerns came as his support ratings plunged due to his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and its severe impact on the economy, on top of a stream of political scandals.

There are a slew of politicians eager to replace Abe:

Shigeru Ishiba, 63, former defense minister No national election need be held until 2021, so a new LDP leader would succeed Abe as premier. Polls show Ishiba is the voters’ top choice to take over.

He has backed economic policies seen as more populist than Abe’s and said in an interview in April that too much wealth was accumulating in the hands of stockholders and company owners. He has also cast doubt on the sustainability of the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy.

On the international front, Ishiba has been aligned with Abe in trying to keep ties with China on a steady path.

Ishiba last month urged an LDP group to think about the consequences of its call for the cancellation of a planned state visit to Tokyo by President Xi Jinping. Ishiba, however, has been far more hesitant than Abe about attempting to change the country’s pacifist constitution.

Taro Kono, 57, defense minister Current Defense Minister Kono is a fluent English speaker and graduate of Georgetown University. He expressed interest in an interview with the Nikkei newspaper earlier this month in working closely with the so-called Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which brings together Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the US. That could suggest he is willing to step up joint pressure on China.

In 2017, Kono urged the Bank of Japan to lay out a strategy for exiting its ultraeasy monetary policy. He is also known for favoring cost-cutting policies and this year canceled plans to deploy the Aegis Ashore ballistic missile defense shield from US firm Lockheed Martin Corp., citing the cost of adapting it to meet Japan’s safety requirements. The move was popular with voters.

Fumio Kishida, 63, former foreign minister Abe has touted Kishida as a potential leader, appointing him as foreign minister and then to a senior party post.

But the mild-mannered former banker has so far failed to build a public profile.

Seen as more dovish than Abe, Kishida sealed an ill-fated deal with South Korea in 2015 that was meant to end a dispute over women trafficked in brothels run

by Japan’s military during World War II. But that accord eventually ended in rancor.

In an interview with broadcaster TV Tokyo on Monday, Kishida said he expected interest rates to remain low, given the state of the economy. He called for plentiful spending to combat the economic crisis, but urged caution on the idea of cutting the sales tax. Kishida also mentioned the need to return to fiscal discipline later.

Yoshihide Suga, 71, chief Cabinet secretary Having served as chief Cabinet secretary—or Abe’s right-hand man— since 2012, Suga is a continuity candidate, who could be tapped as a caretaker if the premier steps down suddenly. In 2007, Abe resigned from an abbreviated first term in office, saying a worsening of chronic ulcerative colitis made it impossible to carry out his duties.

Although Suga hasn’t laid out an alternative policy platform, he has pushed particular issues, including controversial government subsidies for domestic travel during the virus pandemic. “However many times I’m asked, I’m not thinking of it at all,” Suga said in an interview on Thursday when asked if he hoped to succeed Abe.

Taro Aso, 79, finance minister Aso, like Suga, is part of Abe’s inner circle and is Japan’s long-serving finance minister and deputy prime minister. Given his age, he’s unlikely to serve as premier for more than a caretaker period. He served an unsuccessful year in the post in 2008-2009, at the end of which the Democratic Party scored a landslide election victory over the LDP.

AP and Bloomberg News

DFA chief trains sights on Chinese firms involved in SCS reclamation

By Recto L. Mercene

T

HE Philippines will terminate its relationship with any Chinese company that was involved in the massive island-building reclamation conducted by China in the South China Sea, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. said on Friday.

He made the remark one day after the United States slapped more trade sanctions on other Chinese entities, this time on those that were involved in the SCS dredging and construction that scientists said had damaged huge swathes

of marine resources. The trade sanctions bar US companies from exporting products to the targets.

Locsin made his warning during a Zoom interview with Pinky Webb on CNN Philippines: “Yes, if I find that any of those companies are doing business with us, then I would strongly recommend we terminate our relationships with that company, if in any way involved in the reclamation.”

According to Locsin, the move to cease doing business with those companies that have contributed to the damage of marine resources in the SCS “becomes consistent within our part to terminate any contract with them.”

He added, “Of course, since the contracts have already been entered into, they could sue as back.”

However, Locsin added that he had to consult Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade to find out the names of the alleged companies that directly deal with the Chinese SCS projects.

The United States estimates that China had dredged about 3,000 acres to convert undersea

features that were made into military fortresses in the contested waters.

The UP Marine Sciences Department estimates that from 2013 until today, the reclamation continues, “destabilizing the region, trampling on some countries sovereign rights, and causing massive environmental devastation.”

The UP study said the damage on reefs along is estimated at P33 billion and the total estimated area since 2013 is estimated at P231 billion.

The Trump administration added 24 Chinese companies to a trade blacklist for helping China build islands in the SCS, which the United States has labeled as an illegal attempt to control an important shipping route. These firms, Washington said, “must be held responsible” and that individuals connected to these firms, including their immediate family members, will be barred from entering the US. It is estimated that some $5 trillion worth of goods sail through the SCS every year.

Trump’s blacklist, known as Entity List, is his administration’s crackdown tool on China, which now includes more than 300 Chinese entities.

China, which claims a major part of the SCS as its territory, has beefed up its defenses in the

strategic waters, building barracks, runways and radar installations, according to various reports through the years.

Satellite photographs indicate that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has also installed surfaceto-air missiles in these areas, triggering concerns from countries, such as the US, Japan and Australia.

The Philippines in 2013 challenged China’s legal basis for its “excessive claim” in the SCS before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, Netherlands, and won the case in a landmark decision in 2016, invalidating Beijing’s historic assertions.

The Asian giant did not participate in the arbitration and either ignored or belittled the ruling, maintaining “indisputable” and “historical” claim over nearly the entire waters, which impinge a number of littoral states like the Philippines and Vietnam.

Locsin was grateful that former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario filed the case in the Hague during the Ninoy Aquino presidency, but said he would ignore del Rosario’s proposal to bring the PCA’s 2016 ruling before the United Nations again to get more support for its implementation.

“I am going to completely ignore his suggestion...because when you win something you

do not appeal your victory; this is what del Rosario wants me to do,” the DFA chief said.

Locsin said he would not follow del Rosario’s suggestions because “China has the numbers there [the UN], and it’s about numbers, it’s not about law.”

He added, “And I can’t afford to lose our arbitral award, I don’t want to go down as the guy who lost it.”

Asked about another suggestion by del Rosario, backed by former Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, to seize Chinese assets in compensation for the damages in the West Philippine Sea, Locsin said he had first to study the UP finding.

On the other hand, the Harvard-educated lawyer said he had to consult with international lawyers also on what can be done about those claimed damages, “but I can assure you there is no hesitation on my part if I have the law on my side.”

According to the DFA chief, “as a country without any independent means to protect its own interests, it is imperative that we always rely on one thing, precision in facts, precision in law, and we will proceed by law because that is all we have now.”

Trump accepts GOP nomination on White House lawn, hits Biden

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ASHINGTON—Facing a moment fraught with national crises, President Donald J. Trump accepted his party’s renomination on a massive White House South Lawn stage Thursday night, breaking with tradition by using the executive mansion as a political backdrop and defying pandemic guidelines to address a tightly packed, largely maskless crowd.

As troubles churned outside the gates, Trump painted an optimistic vision of America’s future, including an eventual triumph over the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 175,000 people, left millions unemployed and rewritten the rules of society. But that brighter horizon can only be secured, Trump asserted, if he defeats Joe Biden, against whom he unleashed blistering attacks meant to erase the Democrat’s lead in the polls.

“We have spent the last four years reversing the damage Joe Biden inflicted over the last 47 years,” Trump said. “At no time before have voters faced a clearer choice between two parties, two visions, two philosophies or two agendas.”

Presenting himself as the last barrier protecting an American way of life under siege from radical forces, Trump declared the Democratic agenda as “the most extreme set of proposals ever put forward by a major party nominee.”

As his speech brought the scaled-back Republican National Convention to a close, Trump risked inflaming a divided nation reeling from a series of calamities, including the pandemic, a major hurricane that slammed into the Gulf Coast and nights of racial unrest and violence after Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot by a white Wisconsin police officer.

He was introduced by his daughter Ivanka, an influential White House adviser, who portrayed the famously bombastic Trump as someone who empathizes with those who have suffered through the pandemic.

“I’ve been with my father and seen the pain in his eyes when he receives updates on the lives that have been stolen by this plague,” she said.

The president spoke from a setting that was both familiar and controversial.

Despite tradition and regulation to not use the White House for purely political events, a huge stage was set up outside the executive mansion, dwarfing the trappings for some of the most important moments of past presidencies. The speaker’s stand was flanked by dozens of American flags and two big video screens.

Trying to run as an insurgent as well as incumbent, Trump rarely includes calls for unity, even in a time of national uncertainty.

He has repeatedly, if not always effectively, tried to portray Biden—who is considered a moderate Democrat—as a tool of the radical left, fringe forces he has claimed don’t love their country.

The Republicans claim that the violence that has erupted in Kenosha and some other American cities is to be blamed on Democratic governors and mayors. Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday said that Americans wouldn’t be safe in “Joe Biden’s America.”

That drew a stern rebuke from his predecessor in the post.

“The problem we have right now is that we are in Donald Trump’s America,” said Biden on MSNBC. “He views this as a political benefit to him, he is rooting for more violence not less.

He is pouring gasoline on the fire.”

Both parties are watching with uncertainty the developments in Wisconsin and cities across the nation with Republicans leaning hard on support for law and order—with no words offered for Black victims of police violence—while falsely claiming that Biden has not condemned the lawlessness. Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal attorney and New York City’s former mayor, declared that Democrats’ “silence was so deafening that it reveals an acceptance of this violence because they will accept anything they hope will defeat President Donald Trump.”

Though some of the speakers, unlike on previous nights, offered notes of sympathy to the families of Black men killed by police, Giuliani also took aim at the Black Lives Matter movement, suggesting that it, along with ANTIFA, was part of the extremist voices pushing Biden to “execute their pro-criminal, anti-police policies” and had “hijacked the protests into vicious, brutal riots.”

Along with Biden, running mate Kamala Harris offered counter-programming for Trump’s prime-time speech. She delivered a speech a half mile from the White House, declaring, “Donald Trump has failed at the most basic and important job of a president of the United States: He failed to protect the American people, plain and simple.” AP

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

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Saturday, August 29, 2020

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China’s missiles warn US aircraft carriers to stay away

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hina’s latest volley of missile launches into the world’s most hotly contested body of water served as a warning to two key US targets: aircraft carriers and regional bases.

The missiles launched into the South China Sea on Wednesday included the DF-21D and DF-26B, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a person close to the People’s Liberation Army. Those weapons are central to China’s strategy of deterring any military action off its eastern coast by threatening to destroy the major sources of US power projection in the region.

“China is signaling to the US, its allies and partners that China has an answer to America’s aircraft-carrier strike groups, an answer that is always available and not dependent on deployment schedules,” said Carl Schuster, an adjunct faculty member of Hawaii Pacific University’s diplomacy and military science program and a former operations director at US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center. “In effect, China is saying, ‘If the US puts two carriers in the South China Sea, we send aircraft carrier-killer missiles there.’”

The launches show the US the growing cost of any armed conflict, with a high-profile reminder of China’s increasing arsenal of medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles. President Xi Jinping rolled out the new PLA

Rocket Force as part of a massive military parade in October, showcasing a capability that is challenging American military superiority in Asia for the first time since World War II. Researchers at the University of Sydney warned last year that Chinese missiles could wipe out US bases in the “opening hours” of any conflict.

A US defense official who asked not to be identified told Bloomberg News that China fired four medium-range ballistic missiles during a series of military exercises this week. They landed in the sea between China’s southern Hainan Island and the disputed Paracel chain near Vietnam, the official said, not far from where US carriers conducted drills in recent weeks to back up the Trump administration’s decision to challenge Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

“Conducting military exercises over disputed territory in the South China Sea is counterproductive to easing tensions and maintaining stability,” the Pentagon said in a news statement Thursday. China’s “actions, including missile tests, further destabilize the situation in the South China Sea.”

The Chinese Defense Ministry reiterated its contention that the exercises weren’t directed at any one nation Thursday, without mentioning the missile launch. Still, ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Wu Qian accused “some US politicians” of trying to provoke a conflict between the two nations, telling a briefing in Beijing that China was “not afraid.”

On Thursday, China’s military issued a statement, saying it expelled a US Navy guided-missile destroyer that “trespassed” into waters near the Paracel Islands, calling the ship’s move “provocative.”

The missile tests appeared intended for US consumption, rather than a domestic audience, with coverage on the country’s heavily censored Internet largely limited to foreign media reports. Earlier this week, China protested an American U-2 spy plane’s flight near the exercise zone in the East China Sea, presumably to glean intelligence about the country’s capabilities.

“The aim is to test the capability of the troops,” said Li Jie, a Beijing-based naval expert, who stopped short of confirming the missile test. “You could say it is sending a warning to the US, as the US has increased its military activities in the South China Sea.” While the two nuclear-armed powers have many incentives to avoid a clash, the risk of escalation is growing as the US and its allies seek to push back against a more assertive Beijing. The US has in recent weeks carried out a series military exercises around the region and approved

a landmark fighter jet sale to Taiwan—against the backdrop of a national election President Donald Trump has attempted to focus on China.

The US Navy’s recent exercises in the South China Sea have included joint operations by the USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike groups last month and separate drills by the Reagan this month.

Those moves followed Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s July 13 announcement clarifying US legal opposition to Chinese claims over most of a vital shipping lane, parts of which are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The real risk is a US-China conflict over Taiwan escalating to nuclear war, in part because the DF-26 can be armed with both nuclear and conventional warheads, said Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.

“If the US were to see DF-26 missiles mobilizing to str ike US aircraft carriers, the President would have to order strikes against missile bases throughout all of China, not just coastal areas,” Lewis said.

“The United States would likely be striking China’s nuclear forces.

It would be very hard to keep such a conflict limited.”

China launched at least one other DF-26 missile in recent weeks, in what the Communist Party’s Global Times newspaper characterized as a response to the

US carrier operations. The paper had earlier touted its “carrier-killer” missiles on Twitter—drawing a terse rebuttal from the US Navy, which noted that the warships were nonetheless “still there.”

And yet, there they are. Two @ USNavy aircraft carriers operating in the international waters of the South China Sea. #USSNimitz & #USSRonaldReagan are not intimidated #AtOurDiscretion https://t. co/QGTggRjOul —Navy Chief of Information (@chinfo) July 5, 2020 Although China has yet to prove the ability to sink a moving warship, the cost of losing a $10-billion aircraft carrier, the troops and hardware on board—and all the American military prestige they represent—would be immeasurable.

That threat is causing Pentagon planners to consider less conspicuous ways of projecting force, with an internal Defense Department study recommending reducing the country’s carrier f leet to nine from 11 now, Defense News reported in April.

The People’s Liberation Army’s missile arsenal is among the many factors driving the US’s shifting security posture in Asia, with the Pentagon cycling nuclear-capable B-1 bombers to and from Guam, where they’re more vulnerable to attack.

Concern about the threat also contributed to the US’s decision to withdraw from the IntermediateRange Nuclear Forces Treaty with

Russia and seek three-way arms talks with China.

Even before this week’s launches, China had quietly ramped up tests of ballistic missiles, in an apparent attempt to gauge their operationa l capabi lities. T he country fired off in excess of 100 ballistic missiles last year, more than three times North Korea’s record tally, Kyodo News reported in February, citing people familiar with the matter.

China possesses what former Pacific Commander Harry Harris has called “the largest and most diverse missile force in the world,” with scores of different weapons in development. The DF21D can travel more than 1,500 kilometers, while the DF-26 can deliver warheads an estimated 4,000 kilometers, far enough to reach Guam.

T here are “rea l questions” about whether China’s carrierkillers actually work, said Ankit Panda, a Stanton senior fellow with the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The latest tests may provide the US a chance to better understand their performance. “ T h e Pe o p l e ’s L i b e r a t i o n Army Rocket Force has a busy testing schedule and this was l i ke ly operat ion a l t ra i n i ng ,” Panda said. “But certainly it’ll be a reminder to folks in Washington that China’s military continues to modernize and can deny access to the US Navy in parts of the Asia-Pacific.”

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A6 Saturday, August 29, 2020

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PHL, Indonesia investment agencies ink accord on closer promotion cooperation

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HE Philippines and Indonesia on Tuesday (August 25, 2020) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that calls for greater facilitation, collaboration, and promotion of programs and joint activities between the two Asean countries.

Trade Undersecretary and Board of Investments Managing Head Ceferino S. Rodolfo and Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Deputy Chairman Ikmal Lukman signed the MOU that will allow both agencies to exchange public information on policies, regulations, and procedures on investment issues and potential investment opportunities. Additionally, the agreement will foster closer cooperation in organizing business meetings, joint consultations, seminars, roadshows, and business match-ups in areas of common interest.

It will also promote and facilitate foreign direct investment from the Philippines to Indonesia and vice versa, a news statement posted on the Department of Trade and Industry web site said.

“This is a testament to foster investment promotion cooperation between our agencies as part of our national government’s efforts for a closer bilateral relationship with

Indonesia,” Rodolfo said.

“Both are emerging economies and have a lot of similarities, being archipelagic and accounting for a majority of the consumer market in the Asean region. Our large populations, constant pursuit of economic of growth and even our similar situation in this pandemic complement our needs and provides an imperative for greater cooperation,” he added.

Rodolfo pointed out that the MOU will facilitate direct investments to enterprises of both countries. “The roles of BOI and BKPM as central points of contact for existing and potential foreign investors will spur not only our efforts to promote and facilitate investment activities and services but also will trigger mutual economic growth,” he said.

“We express our gratitude to BKPM for the support it has extended in finalizing the details of this MOU and we look forward in working and collaborating with them that will

Turkish firms urged to participate in PHL infra drive, hike trade

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PHOTO shows (left) Philippine Board of Investments Undersecretary and Managing Head Ceferino S. Rodolfo and Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Deputy Chairman Ikmal Lukman.

further strengthen the ties of our countries,” he added.

For his part, Lukman said, “The BKPM welcomed the signing of the MOU between the Philippine government and the Indonesian government and hoped that cooperation between the two countries would be better.

“Furthermore, both countries can do something more synergized and can utilize the Competitive Advantage and Comparative Advantage of each country, which certainly has different characteristics,” said Lukman.

Lukman added that with this collaboration, the Philippines can equip Indonesia in order to increase foreign investment entering Indonesia.

“Likewise, in vice versa, Indonesia can assist the Philippines in

increasing the entry of foreign investment to its country,” he said.

The signing of the MOU comes as both countries recently conducted the 8th Meeting of the Joint Working Group on Trade, Investments, Handicrafts and Shipping, where they discussed issues, such as halal products quality assurance, creative economy, and other possible collaborative activities.

Indonesia is considered among the country’s major sources of foreign investments within Asean. In 2018, it ranked as the 7th top investing country, committing P7.54 billion ($143.2 million). Last year, Indonesia ranked 27th among the sources of Investment Promotion Agency-approved foreign investments, committing P104.54 million ($2.02 million).

HE government is urging Turkish companies to participate in the Philippines’s massive infrastructure initiative which it banks to revive its economy following the pandemic and, at the same time, expand bilateral trade with the country.

Philippine Ambassador to Turkey Raul Hernandez said that under the “Build, Build, Build” program, the country will continue constructing a number of roads, railways, airports and other infrastructure projects.

“We believe that the Build, Build, Build program is the best way to revive the economy due to infrastructure’s high multiplier effect, stimulating demand, and generating new jobs and businesses,” he said in an online seminar.

“We are aware that Turkey is the world’s second-largest contractor and we encourage your construction companies to participate through contracting, joint ventures, consortiums, and PPP [public-private partnership],” he added.

Ceferino Rodolfo, Trade undersecretary and Board of Investments (BOI) managing head, said total BOI approved investments rose by 120 percent in the first seven months of the year, driven mainly by registration of those in the medium- to long-term type sectors, including in infrastructure.

“We continue to give incentives and we are further enhancing the incentives that we provide to investors,” he said.

Gonca Yilmaz Batur, deputy minister of Trade of the Republic of Turkey, underscored the need for Turkish companies to recognize the significant con-

struction projects in the Philippines.

“Henceforth, we think that our contracting companies should undertake projects under the Build, Build, Build initiative and transfer technical expertise to the Philippines in this field,” she said in the same seminar. Apart from participating in infrastructure projects, Hernandez encouraged Turkish businesses and investors to explore opportunities in other areas of trade, tourism and investments.

The ambassador said the Philippines continues to perform well in information technology and businessprocess management, electronics and retail sectors.

“The Philippines has a large domestic market of 110 million with an average age of 25 years old. Strong domestic consumption is a large contributor for economic performance,” he said.

“We are also home to a highly and well-educated work force that is fluent in English, a very important skill [that] investors look for. Second, we are liberalizing our legislation to attract more investors to the Philippines,” he added.

Rodolfo also identified other sectors the Philippines and Turkey can collaborate, including manufacturing, agriculture, fishery and forestry, strategic services, health-care services, mass housing, innovation drivers, environment and climate change-related projects, and defense industry.

He added production of personal protective equipment (PPE) needed by the medical frontliners is another area the two countries can do business with.

Govt readies initiatives to assist A three-decade economic boom MSMEs recover from pandemic comes to a sudden halt in Vietnam

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HE government is embarking on initiatives, including shifting toward digitalization, to help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) recover from the impact of Covid-19 and adapt to the new normal.

During the national conference of employers, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary Ana Dione said technology plays a crucial role in ensuring sustained business operations and continued employment in the new normal labor market, while ensuring the safety and health of the work force.

“The challenge that we need to face and accept with the retooling, reskilling and upgrading all of the Filipino work force as companies repurpose their products and services and as the production process requires more de-

mand for digital and soft skills,” she said. Dione said they are ready to deploy a productivity toolbox for MSMEs and technical assistance in developing productivity-based incentives schemes to these firms.

“These include business continuity plan capacity building. Those are the programs we are going to implement from now and up to December and hopefully next year, we hope that it will help contribute to the recovery of the economy,” she added.

Kim Lagcao, board secretary at the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region, earlier said two-hour productivity trainings through Zoom online platform have been started for the MSMEs for free even during lockdowns.

Rosemarie Edillon, undersec-

retary for Planning and Policy at the National Economic and Development Authority, said the Task Force on Recovery chaired by Neda is formulating and monitoring the government’s action plans to facilitate the restarting of social and economic activities, while engaging the society in preventing the spread and mitigating the ill effects of Covid-19 pandemic.

Edillon said the sub-task force uses REBUILD PH framework where rebuild stands for revitalized business, livelihood, investments and domestic demand.

She said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will come out with a set of assistance measures to help the businesses, especially the MSMEs, on how to shift toward digitalization.

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OR the past three decades, Vietnam has known only good— or great­ economic news. The nation’s consistent growth as an exporter, propelled by Communist leaders who began embracing marketoriented policies in the late 1980s, pushed many into the middle class.

T he coronav irus pandemic changed all that. With garment companies seeing orders slashed and other sectors hit with sudden export declines, Vietnam’s workers are enduring the downside of being tethered to the global economy. The economic slowdown in the US and other markets Vietnam depends on for growth is being felt on the streets of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, as well as in villages and tourist centers.

Le Thi Hoa, who sells pineapple

and mango slices outside Ho Chi Minh City’s Ben Thanh Market in the heart of the commercial hub, is among those wondering where the good times have gone.

“Now people don’t go out,” said Hoa, 55, wearing a face mask and sitting on a plastic chair next to fruit baskets in front of a closed seafood restaurant. “I can only sell about a third of what I did before the epidemic.”

Vietnam has been one of globalization’s stars, transforming itself from a largely agricultural economy to a manufacturing powerhouse within the span of a few decades.

With exports equivalent to the size of its GDP, Vietnam has seen its economy grow as fast as 7.02 percent in 2019. Now it’s bracing for the slowest growth in two decades,

of 2.4 percent this year. During the second quarter, it expanded by just 0.36 percent from a year earlier.

“Vietnam has experienced a tsunami of good news over the past 30 years,” said Ralf Matthaes, managing director of Infocus Mekong Research, who has lived in the country since 1994. “This is the first time since joining the global economic community two decades ago that Vietnam is experiencing a significant economic downturn.”

Vietnam’s abrupt slump highlights the sweep of the epidemic’s financial fallout and how even countries that have been relatively successful in containing the virus are unable to avoid its economic afflictions. Such economies won’t be able to return to business as usual until the rest of the world does.

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Emma Imperial: Promoting affordable houses and green housing innovations

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By Rizal Raoul S.Reyes

HEN Emma Imperial established Imperial Homes Corp. (IHC) in 1983 in Bicol, a lot of people thought it was a very insane idea because she entered the low-cost housing market at a time when the country was experiencing a political turmoil brought about by the assassination of Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. Later, she made another bold move by introducing solar power for the mass housing community at a time when only rich people could afford it. Nevertheless, Imperial proved cynics wrong as IHC delivered the integrated solar technology in its housing projects for low-income Filipinos.

“IHC has walked the talk and created a new demand for green housing innovations. IHC is leading the way in sustainable home development, bringing unmatched benefits to its homeowners. As homebuyers now realize the value of green and innovative homes, IHC keeps on receiving local and international recognitions.

Other developers could no longer cast a doubt on the long-term impact of sustainability in branding and profitability,” Imperial, the president and CEO of IHC, told the BusinessMirror in an e-mail interview.

Imperial has proven that pursuing the green agenda in business is the way to thrive and survive in these challenging times. IHC achieved record-breaking sales when its Tough Homes posted a 20-percent sales growth compared to the December 2019 period. “It surged to 66 percent in June,” Imperial said.

Tough Homes is a solar-powered home built with Connovate’s ultrahigh-performance concrete panels that feature superior resistance to fire, earthquake, molds and typhoon.

Furthermore, Connovate is an

uses low carbon emission materials, which contribute to climate-change mitigation. Construction with Connovate is faster and more efficient.

Prefabricated panels are put together like Lego blocks. A single home can be put up in a day. A row of 12 houses can be put in eight days. This significantly cuts down the manpower required to put up a house or a building.

For customers, this can also mean faster turnovers for their houses.

When IHC worked on the numbers to see the financial benefits of Connovate compared with concrete hollow blocks (CHBs), it found out that the construction cost with regular Connovate costs 34 percent lower than building a home using concrete hollow blocks.

“The computation incorporated the cost of money that developers could have avoided if they could only finish construction in two months, the foregone reinvestment opportunity due to faster financing turnover, and the savings on wastage, workmanship, and rectification works,” Imperial said.

She said a development with 100 housing units would save about P56 million if they use Connovate technology.

Solar power

IMPERIAL

ultra-high-performance concrete panel that is 20 times stronger than a concrete hollow block, which enabled IHC to achieve success. Aside from giving homes resistance to natural hazards and molds, the ultra-high-performance concrete panel also prevents the growth of bacteria and viruses.

Developed in Denmark, Connovate is an advanced concrete preparation and production technology that produces high performance cement panels with 100 years material lifespan. Connovate panels have superior resistance to earthquakes. The panels are lightweight with and strength of 14,000 PSI HPC. It is resistant to fire and also molds free.

Aside from these, Connovate

IN another e-mail interview, Enfinity Imperial Solar Solutions Inc. (EISSI) CEO Aldren Samson said the use of solar power enabled homeowners at Via Verde to save on average between 30 percent and 70 percent on their monthly electricity bills.

Samson said solar panels generate electricity used by the household appliances during daytime. Any excess electricity is either stored in batteries for nighttime usage (as in the case of hybrid systems) or sold to the grid (as in the case of grid tied systems).

Based on their hours of usage, EISSI, the affiliate of IHC, estimates that the average electricity bill of a home at Via Verde is P2,776. “Because of solar, almost all their daytime electricity consumption would be free already. At night, batteries kick in to support the household’s electricity requirements,” he said.

The end result is a lower electricity bill of around P218.

Factoring in the monthly amor-

By Nanette Guadalquiver

B

ACOLOD CITY—A tale of hope and inspiration amid the gloom of the coronavirus pandemic sprang from a southern Negros city, which has recorded

one of the oldest in the country to recover from the illness —92-yearold Antonina Gargoles.

The good news about the patient’s recovery was shared on Facebook by Dr. Kaye Marie Yap, a doctor to the barrio in Himamaylan City, who pro-

vided medical care for Lola Antonina.

“Such an inspiring story gives us hope amid the current situation we are facing. It shows how genuine love and care can greatly contribute to a patient’s recovery,” Yap told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) in an

The times call for ‘kwekkwek’ thinking

tization payment for solar, the client will be saving a net of P1,060 per month.

By Nick Tayag

MY SIXTY-ZEN’S WORTH

EDGE

IHC is also committed to the World Bank and International Finance Corporation to certify all future projects with EDGE or Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies, a software developed by IFC to promote sustainable and green standards in the building industry.

Apart from EDGE, IHC is also exploring IFC’s latest Building Resiliency Index, a newly developed application that measures how resilient a building structure is against natural calamities and other hazards.

In 2019, Imperial Homes committed to certifying all its new construction projects using EDGE. That amounts to 2,267 residential units that are set to be constructed over the next three years. EDGE certification allows Imperial Homes to further promote green technologies to other developers, not only in the Philippines but also across Asia. Imperial believes that everyone has to switch to sustainable building solutions in order to mitigate climate change.

From its early projects in Bicol, IHC now has developments all over Luzon—including Cabanatuan in Nueva Ecija, Sto. Tomas in Batangas, San Pablo in Laguna, Trece Martires and Silang in Cavite, Labo in Camarines Norte, San Fernando and Iriga in Camarines Sur, Polangui and Legaspi in Albay and finally, Sorsogon.

IHC has built over 20,000 homes.

Since it launched the world’s first solar-powered affordable communities, it is also now supplying other top developers of its Danish Ultra High performance building technology that utilizes 85 percent less cement and is rated to last for 100 years.

Imperial is elated with latest milestone of IHC when it was awarded the ACES Awards for Responsible SMEs in Asia. “It is like a breath of fresh air amid the chaos and uncertainties that this pandemic has brought us. This award is another validation of our tireless efforts in addressing climate change and lifting the quality of life of Filipinos using green housing technologies,” Imperial said.

92-year-old Negrense recovers from Covid-19

THE recovery of 92-year-old Antonina Gargoles of Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, has brought hope and inspiration amid the gloom of the Covid-19 pandemic. “She is our inspiration in our struggle to fight this pandemic,” her physician Kaye Marie Yap said on August 24, 2020.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF KAYE MARIE YAP

Editor: Angel R. Calso • Saturday, August 29, 2020 A7

online interview on Monday.

She said with the increasing cases of local transmission, medical frontliners like her have been struggling to cope. “We fear for our health, our family’s health, and the community’s health at the same time, but with Lola Antonina’s story, I can say that all our struggles are worth it. It keeps us going,” Yap added.

On Sunday, she shared four photos and a video of the nonagenarian, looking spritely in various poses.

In the video, a smiling Lola Antonina described her doctor as “very beautiful.”

In her post, Yap said the patient from Barangay Sara-et, who has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, contracted the virus on July 23.

“She was too weak, febrile, and dyspneic when we visited her at their house last August 6. I advised their family that Lola should be referred to a tertiary hospital. However, they refused. They wanted to be the ones to take care of Lola, considering her old age and bedridden status,” she added.

Yap said they provided Lola Antonina with medicines and constantly monitored her condition under the care of her daughter and grandson.

“Two days after she started taking hermedicines,herconditionimproved, eventually leading to her full recovery—negative repeat swab and with no symptoms!” she announced. PNA

I

N primary school, on our way home, a few classmates and I would often help ourselves to cheap street food to quell our growling stomachs. Our favorite was boiled eggs, which we would sprinkle with a little rock salt, and eat with gusto.

It was just your commonplace boiled egg that looked like any other.

Then as the years went by, someone had a bright idea. He added a twist to the same boiled egg that everybody was peddling.

He breaded the boiled egg, and then he furbished it with an artificial attractive orange color to catch the eye. And to pep it up, there’s spicy vinegar as dip. Voila! It worked!

Thus was born the kwek-kwek­—the glorified boiled egg you see in street food stalls everywhere.

That’s Pinoy innovative thinking at the grassroots. Maybe, someone will also add a new twist to other street food offerings like fishball or skewered bituka or lugaw. In fact, I wonder what would be the next creative mutation of the kwek-kwek.

What goes for food, can also go for other products and services.

This becomes even more relevant now because the pandemic has devastated a lot of small and medium businesses. Analysts say up to 45 percent of nearly a million micro, small and medium enterprises have closed shop or are about to shutter. Ideally, the state should come to their rescue.

But no less than the President has said that our national coffers are now empty. Wala na tayong pera.

Hoping to gamble what remains of his depleted savings, the poor Pinoy entrepreneur can only rely now on his native gift of creativity and resourcefulness. Be ingenious or go hungry. It’s the only way to survive, recover and thrive.

In our community, the chosen way is food retailing online. But like the hot pan de sal or pearl milk tea craze, everybody is doing it. Nagsulputan parang kabute, goes the expression.

Many of them have come and gone, disheartened by the usual problems of ningas-cogon business projects.

One big problem is the sameness or parity of the food items being offered online. Everyone seems just ready to follow a trend like salted egg something or ube whatnot.

There is a lack of kwek-kwek thinking behind many ventures. No real standouts in terms of taste, packaging, and variety of menu. Gayagaya, puto maya.

This is not the way it should be because the Filipino is inherently innovative and adoptive. Malikot ang utak, malikhain. And it is this natural talent that is precisely what the country needs to put to work to haul itself back to health, economically.

I strongly urge the country’s leadership to make it a national mission to make innovation a way of thinking and doing for the Filipino. Kwek-kwek thinking as a mindset, a habit, a way of life.

Let’s harness our natural abilidad. But it should be the kind of ingenious thinking that transcends our pwede na mentality and stopgap approach to problem solving.

Our businesses and public service institutions should learn from companies, such as Apple, Google, Starbucks, YouTube and Facebook that keep introducing game-changing innovations in small ways that add up to the big picture. To people with an innovative mindset, there’s always a better way.

Tried-and-tested methods may be reliable, but trying out new things,

even crazy ideas, is a worthwhile experiment that can make a difference and lead to rewarding returns. Innovation can give you an edge in penetrating markets faster, especially in the international marketplace.

The main pitfall is doing something because it’s the new thing, rather than because it’s anchored on a distinctive idea that meets the needs and wants of consumers or constituents. Any innovation that a business or public service agency decides to adopt must always be based on a solid grasp of the people to whom you’re trying to sell to, or to serve.

Just the other day, my wife complained about having to endure the ordeal of wearing a face mask for hours. After using it several times, she finds the smell repulsive and suffocating. Light bulb. Why not come up with a face mask that has just a whiff of refreshing long lasting scent like lemon or sea breeze, without overwhelming the nose?

This is why it’s important to observe or talk to people. By doing so, you can pick up some fresh ideas. You must also be open to different ideas from different minds.

Surround yourself with people who have ideas that differ from yours. Creativity oftentimes can be sparked by the clashing of ideas.

An unfortunate example of closed thinking is shown by our country’s economic managers. In their press conferences, they keep brandishing the Build, Build, Build program as the main strategy for economic recovery in the light of the recession we are in. This, to me, is myopic thinking. Their focus is too single-minded. They are putting all the eggs in one basket of a solution.

Why limit your thinking to just big ticket hard infrastructure projects?

Maybe, they need to listen to others outside their closed circle for alternative and out of the box ideas. They should do a little kwekkwek thinking.

For instance, why not first take stockofwhatwehavealreadyonhand, ouruseableassets?Let’sadmitthefact thatwedon’thaveunlimitedfinancial resources, nor a developed industrialized sector nor the advanced technology needed to compete mano-a-mano with developed countries.

What we have is a vast organic pool of talents and artists who can compete in the area of cultural economy: music, food, performing arts, cinema and digital arts. That’s our intrinsic wealth, our cultural capital, or what is called “soft” assets. Shouldn’t our so-called experts consider this sector as another way to generate jobs and revenues for the country in addition to their beloved BBB? As we ordinary citizens try to navigate our way through the debris and the wreckage left on the wayside by the relentless pandemic, my advice is to spend the quarantine time to think, recalibrate innovative ways to start a new business or re-invigorate the old one we had before the pandemic. Use the downtime to get the pulse of the people who you will be interacting with. Understand them as human beings, not just their attitude to your product or category in the new business that you plan to launch.

Show your ideas and concepts to others, check their reactions, and then go back to the drawing board and reimagine or rebuild the idea.

Remember, there’s always a better idea waiting somewhere, even amid the economic wreckage. Find it and run with it.

Kwek-kwek thinking pa more!

A8

Saturday, August 29, 2020 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

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The truth about those IG giveaway posts Y

OU’VE perhaps been tagged in one of those iPhone and/or Macbook giveaways on Instagram by a complete stranger, even when the mechanics require them to tag a friend. It makes you wonder why these people would tag you. Are they ashamed to tell their real friends that they join such giveaways?

So what are these giveaways? Are influencers pooling their money for these?

So I asked people whose Instagram followings are substantial and who I think have been approached for these giveaways. I learned the giveaways are organized by marketing groups with the intention of helping individuals grow their following on Instagram. I don’t have Facebook so I don’t know whether it’s happening there, too, but on Twitter, there is nothing like it.

Based on the messages sent by these marketing companies to people I talked to, these firms put together several batches for these giveaways. Each batch is “headlined” by minor celebrities, meaning those who are legitimate show business personalities but who aren’t necessarily A-listers.

Each batch of giveaways (which usually consist of two to three gadgets, including one iPhone) runs for a period of 10 to 15 days. Accounts are approached for participation and each one that agrees coughs up P1,100 to P4,500. I am not sure why the amount varies so much.

Once you agree to take part of the giveaway, you become part of a “batch.” The mechanics of a giveaway includes being followed by all who want to win. The marketing firm will create an Instagram page just for the giveaway for this purpose and will follow you and all the other giveaway sponsors.

In terms of growing your followers, the scheme is quite effective. If you have about 4,000 followers right now, you’ll grow it by about 1,500 to 3,000.

If you’re a small business hoping to gain more followers and if you’re actually selling something, then being part of such a giveaway helps. But if you’re growing your brand, either as an individual or as a brand, this would help numbers-wise.

But my question is whether this would help in the

LONDON—European Union privacy regulators are wrangling over the penalty Ireland’s data privacy watchdog was set to issue Twitter for a data breach, pushing back the case’s long awaited conclusion under the bloc’s tough new data privacy rules.

The Irish Data Privacy Commission was expected to issue its decision in the Twitter case, which would be its first involving a US technology company since the new privacy law, known as GDPR, took effect in 2018, allowing for hefty fines.

But it said on Thursday that its counterparts in other countries— so-called concerned supervisory authorities—challenged a draft decision it circulated in May. “A number of objections were raised,” the Irish regulator said in a brief statement. “However, following consultation a number of objections were maintained and the [Irish Data Privacy Commission] has now referred the matter to the European Data

BY RODERICK L. ABAD Contributor PHYSICAL distancing protocols won’t stop Globe and TM subscribers to still sharpen their technical skills or learn more online while staying at home without worrying about data connectivity cost.

The Ayala-led telco firm and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) have partnered to give all Globe and TM subscribers free data access to the Tesda Online Program (TOP) at www.e-tesda.gov.ph.

With this ongoing offering, they can visit the site anytime they want using their Globe- or TM-powered mobile device even without load and without incurring any data charges.

TOP is an open educational resource aimed at making technical vocational education and training more accessible to Filipinos and broaden their chances of employment or sources of livelihood.

It offers free online courses such as Computer Systems Servicing NC II, Food Processing NC II, Bread and Pastry NC II, Housekeeping NC II and other courses from industies such as automotive, agriculture, entrepreneurship and healthcare, among others.

“We are glad to have this opportunity of serving more Filipinos in line with our guiding principle, ‘Tesda Abot Lahat’.

Now, our services can reach even our kababayans who have no access to the Internet or mobile data. Indeed, this is a very special milestone,” said Tesda Secretary Isidro Lapeña.

Globe Chief Sustainability Officer and Senior Vice President for Corporate Communications Yoli Crisanto noted that over 80 million Globe and TM subscribers can get equal opportunity to further better themselves by making Tesda’s online courses more accessible through free data.

“With the uncertainties that we are facing, we need to be prepared to take on new challenges, making it important to continuously learn and explore new ways of doing things.

By making Tesda’s online courses more accessible through free data, our Globe and TM customers will have another opportunity to improve their skills,” she said.

GLOBE CAMPAIGNS AGAINST ILLEGAL ONLINE CONTENT long run. My answer would probably be a “no” and I’m basing this on work I’ve done with influencers and brands.

These days, brands look for numbers and engagements. They’re more savvy in looking at influencers and how their influence can help relay their message to consumers.

I’m not dissing anyone or throwing shade by writing about this. So many people have been asking me how the giveaways work. Some have asked me because they’ve been approached to “sponsor” the giveaway.

I’m not an expert but I do know that unless you’re a celebrity, the best way to grow your following is to post good content so that you’re able to engage your followers. The thing is that most of those who followed you because of the giveaway will likely

unfollow once it’s over. That is, unless you give them content that will make them stay.

Some of these giveaways also claim to donate to medical frontliners and students in need of gadgets so that’s a good thing, I guess. It’s really amazing how people can think of schemes like this. It’s actually very ingenious, if you think about it.

Speaking of social media trends, Korean boy group BTS’ new song “Dynamite” was perhaps one of the biggest trending topics worldwide with two hashtags—#BTS_Dynamite and #Dance_ Dynamite—going strong for days after the August 21 launch of the music video.

The feel-good song broke records everywhere. I will not even attempt to put in the numbers because I might make a mistake but “Dynamite” is big and will continue to get bigger. ■

EU regulators wrangle over Twitter data privacy penalty

BY KELVIN CHAN The Associated Press

Globe, TM users get free data access to Tesda online courses

Protection Board,” the independent body representing the bloc’s privacy regulators. It provided no other details.

The board has up to two and a half months to come up with a decision.

Under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, a single regulator takes the lead role in crossborder data privacy cases as part of a “one-stop shop” system.

Twitter and other US tech companies like Apple, Facebook and Google have their European headquarters in Dublin, making the Irish watchdog their lead privacy regulator in the EU. But in this system, the main regulator has to share its draft decision with regulators in other EU member states and take their feedback into consideration. The Twitter case could foreshadow more disagreements and delays that Irish authorities may face as they wrap up about two dozen other investigations involving the Silicon Valley giants. The Twitter case stems from a security breach that affected its Android app users and let anyone view protected tweets over more than

four years. The Irish regulator said in a June report it was investigating the company for failure to report the breach within 72 hours.

Under GDPR, companies that don’t make such timely disclosures can be

fined up to €10 million ($12 million) or 2 percent of a company’s annual revenue, whichever is higher. In 2019 Twitter’s revenue reached $3.46 billion, making a potential fine worth up to $69 million.

AS the bridge between content creators and content users, Globe Telecom has come out strongly advocating against online piracy, which enables illegal streaming or downloading of unfiltered content. A few years back, the telco launched its #PlayItRight anti-online piracy awareness campaign with the goal to educate customers about illegal content consumption, to protect the Filipino family, the local entertainment industry, and the content creation industry.

The campaign makes consumers aware that piracy websites can be hotbeds for illegal online activities, malware and other cybersecurity threats.

“As a telco company, we at Globe strongly advocate legitimate content consumption to protect the country’s vulnerable sector. We likewise uphold the work of creators who have put in a lot of resources and hard work into their content, and the industry that has been providing decent jobs for people,” said Yoly Crisanto, Globe chief sustainability officer and SVP for Corporate Communications.

Through #PlayItRight, the teleco seeks to help combat illicit content passing through its data networks, as well as protect customers against malware, ID theft and ransomware that typically come with pirated content and infect users’ electronic devices.

Globe denounces the use of its data network for illegal online activities, including online child exploitation such as cybersex trafficking and child pornography. Yearly, the Philippines receives tens of thousands of reports of child exploitation which has become a scourge in the Filipino youth sector. A study by the United Nations Children’s Fund reveals that the country is one of the “top global sources of child pornography.”

Due to the nature of its service, Globe has strongly advocated against illegal content because these multimedia content traverses its data highways. The rise of Illegal Streaming Devices has also made it much easier to get access to these pirated content, including child pornography.

ISDs are set-top boxes that allow consumers to stream pirated content from illegal streaming servers.

Last year, #PlayItRight partnered with Optical Media Board, and Asia Video Industry Association’s Coalition Against Piracy to educate the public against these widely used ISDs. A study commissioned by AVIA about Filipino consumers’ content viewing behavior revealed that 34 percent of consumers use an ISD to stream pirated television and video content, with a staggering two-thirds (66 percent) of online Filipino consumers having accessed streaming piracy web sites or torrent sites.

Availing of such illicit content (pirated TV channels, live sports, channels and movies) robs content creators of revenues, which go instead into pockets of criminal syndicates and individuals. What’s worse is that consumers and some distributors might not even be aware that such devices are illegal under Republic Act 9239 or the Optical Media Act of 2003.

More information is available at bit.ly/31vnB2K.

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Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Saturday, August 29, 2020

Huawei, long resilient, suffers under tougher US pressure

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BY JOE MCDONALD The Associated Press

EIJING—For nearly a decade, Huawei kept worldwide sales growing as Washington told US phone companies not to buy its network equipment and lobbied allies to reject China’s first global tech brand as a security threat. Focusing on Europe, Asia, Africa and China’s booming market, Huawei became the biggest maker of switching gear and a major smartphone brand. As the White House cut off access to American components and Google’s popular music and other smartphone services, Huawei unveiled its own processor chips and app development. Last year’s sales rose 19 percent to $123 billion.

Now, Huawei Technologies Ltd. is suffering in earnest as Washington intensifies a campaign to slam the door on access to foreign markets and components in its escalating feud with Beijing over technology and security. European and other phone carriers that bought Huawei gear despite US pressure are removing it from their networks.

Huawei got a flicker of good news when it passed rivals Samsung and Apple as the No. 1 smartphone brand in the quarter ending in June thanks to sales in China, but demand abroad is plunging.

“Huawei is losing market share quite dramatically outside China,” said industry analyst Paul Budde.

“Their international position is most likely going to get worse rather than better.”

In the latest blow, the Commerce Department has confirmed the rules announced in May that will bar non-American companies from using US technology to make processor chips and other components for Huawei without a government license.

The president of Huawei’s consumer business, Richard Yu, says it is running out of chips for smartphones. Yu said as of September 15, contractors will be forced to stop making Kirin chips designed

by Huawei’s engineers and used in its most advanced handsets. “This is a very big loss for us,” Yu said on August 8 at an industry conference, China Info 100.

Yu did not say how sales might be affected. Huawei declined comment on how it was responding.

Huawei heads a growing list of Chinese tech names the Trump administration is targeting as security risks in an initiative dubbed “Clean Networks”. It wants countries to remove them as suppliers to telecom systems, undersea cables and smartphone app stores.

The White House has banned unspecified transactions with popular Chinese-owned social media apps TikTok and WeChat. Washington is pressing TikTok’s owner to sell the short-video app.

In June, the Pentagon added Huawei and video surveillance company HikVision to a list of companies it said were owned or controlled by the ruling Communist Party’s military wing.

Last year, the Chinese owner of Grindr was ordered to sell the dating app.

Huawei is hardly finished. It says sales rose 13 percent to 454 billion yuan ($65 billion) in the first half of 2020. And China is one of the biggest markets.

But after spending a decade and billions of dollars to become a leader in next-generation technology, the company that says it serves 45 of the top 50 phone carriers faces the threat of being shut out of many major markets.

That is a setback for the Communist Party’s ambition to make China a global tech leader.

Western companies and consumers also may lose access to Huawei’s creativity and network gear that can cost 30 percent less than that from its rivals

Smarter viewing experience touted

A WOMAN wearing a mask to protect from the coronavirus walks with an umbrella as it rains outside a Huawei store in Beijing. AP

Ericsson AB of Sweden and Finland’s Nokia Corp.

US, European and Japanese suppliers of processor chips and other technology stand to lose billions of dollars in potential sales to Huawei.

“It doesn’t benefit any country to exclude Huawei,” said Nikhil Batra of IDC. The Trump administration is ramping up pressure on European and other allies, including by threatening to withhold intelligence sharing if they allow Huawei into next-generation, or 5G, networks.

Huawei’s US market evaporated after the company and Chinese rival ZTE Corp. were declared security threats in 2012 by a congressional panel. Small, rural carriers still use Huawei’s lower-cost equipment, but Washington is prodding them to stop.

Last year, Huawei raced to remove American components from its products after President Donald Trump blocked access to US processor chips and other technology including Google services. Huawei, ranked No. 6 on Boston Consulting Group’s list this year of the most innovative global companies, said sales went ahead without disruption.

The White House’s restrictions on use of US technology to produce chips and other components for Huawei is more painful.

Huawei relies on vendors such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s biggest contract chip producer. TSMC said this week it still was studying the new rules.

The Communist Party has fought back by threatening unspecified consequences against

countries that block Huawei’s market access.

After the latest sanctions, the foreign ministry called on Washington to “stop suppressing Chinese companies.” The party also is stepping up a decadesold campaign to build up China’s own chip-making industry. This month, Beijing announced new tax breaks for semiconductor makers.

In Europe, which supplied one-quarter of Huawei’s 2019 sales, Germany and France are deciding what role it can play in 5G. Britain agreed in January to a limited presence but changed course in July and banned Huawei from its mobile networks.

“There is a bit of panic” among European carriers, said Budde. “There are hectic negotiations” with other suppliers. British mobile carrier BT and Vodaphone Group Plc. are removing Huawei from their European networks. Vodafone has warned that rolling out 5G in Europe could be delayed by up to five years if other governments impose British-style limits.

“It would be hugely disruptive,” CEO Nick Read said in February.

Huawei celebrated, lauding its own “exceptional resilience,” when Canalys reported it had become the top-selling smartphone brand for the first time.

But those gains came from its home market. Sales outside China fell 27 percent from a year earlier.

Huawei has stepped up sales efforts in Russia, Turkey and other markets that are smaller but friendly with Beijing, said Ben Stanton of Canalys.

Those are the “biggest opportunities if the main bloc of Western countries turn away from them,” he said. ■

WITH most of the country still on community quarantine, a lot of families are spending their time watching their favorite TV shows, videos and online content, making quality entertainment devices such as smart TVs an essential in Filipino homes.

Samsung, touted as the global No. 1 TV brand for 14 years, has been coming up with products that are laden with technology-driven features to provide families with only the best entertainment possible. Now, the brand is introducing its latest, feature-packed Samsung TU8000 Crystal UHD TV, now available at Samsung’s authorized dealer stores nationwide. Apart from providing colors for more vivid and crisp pictures through a stunning 4K UHD screen, the latest smart TV offers one of the most convenient viewing experiences with its Tap View, Bixby Voice Assistant and Ambient Mode, for crystalclear entertainment with the entire family.

With Tap View, one can easily cast images and videos from their smartphones with the rest of the family by simply tapping their phone on the smart TV. A Bixby Voice Assistant function lets the family “talk” directly to the smart TV, enabling it to perform specific tasks through simple voice commands. This makes for a more enhanced entertainment experience as time spent navigating through menus is greatly minimized.

The Crystal UHD TV’s adaptive Ambient Mode, on the other hand, enables the smart TV to seamlessly blend in with the surroundings and be a beautiful display when not in use. Ambient mode enables the family to add color and personality to their living space, even showcasing their favorite family photos as wallpaper.

Aside from these prime features, the Crystal UHD TV delivers an immersive real 4K UHD resolution for powerful picture quality courtesy of an ultra-fast crystal processor 4K. Its slim, 3-side bezel-less design also makes for a truly immersive viewing experience because it lets the family see the picture and not the TV, drawing everyone into the screen, even from different angles.

For more exciting family-bonding activities, the Crystal UHD TV also features an auto game mode which readily optimizes the screen and minimizes input lag, giving dad and the kids a smooth gaming experience, and the best reasons to enjoy their favorite online games.

ABS-CBN achieves milestone in digital pivot; lawyer says cancellation ill-timed

BY RIZAL RAOUL S. REYES DESPITE suffering a massive setback when it was not granted a congressional franchise renewal, ABSCBN discovered that cyberspace was a viable avenue when ABS-CBN News garnered 10 million subscribers on YouTube.

After showing that it has become a major part of the Filipino lifestyle with six billion lifetime views, ABS-CBN News also achieved a milestone when social analytics firm Social Blade reported that as of August 4 the program ranked fifth based on YouTube views from local viewers.

Furthermore, ABS-CBN News proved it has a huge following with over 18 million likes and 20 million

followers on Facebook, seven million followers on Twitter, and 1.7 million followers on Instagram to enable its followers to get updates and links to news sites news.abs-cbn.com and www.patrol.ph.

Aside from YouTube, followers of popular news programs TV Patrol and The World Tonight can also view them online on the ABS-CBN News Facebook page and iWant, and on cable via ANC, TeleRadyo, and Kapamilya Channel.

Meanwhile, Far Eastern University Institute of Law Dean Melencio Santa Maria Jr. said the non-renewal of network’s franchise was ill-timed mainly because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the current economic uncertainties.

Through its huge presence, Santa Maria said ABS-

CBN has not only uplifted the broadcasting industry standards in the country but also provided millions of Filipinos news, special reports, information and entertainment through its radio, television and digital platforms.

Moreover, Santa Maria said ABS-CBN has also acquired the gravitas to change the definition of a franchise by being the benchmark of broadcasting and disseminating news in the country.

“This cannot be compared to putting up a franchise of a certain hamburger brand. ABS-CBN provides certain values in our democratic system under our Constitution such as the freedom of speech, freedom of expression and freedom of the press,” he explained.

He lamented that the legislators who opposed the renewal of the franchise failed to comprehend the impact of ABS-CBN’s contribution to the country.

Although the granting of a franchise is a privilege, Santa Maria said lawmakers should have taken a broader look because the network has elevated the definition of a franchise.

Meanwhile, at the same webinar Presidential Chief Legal Counsel Salvador S. Panelo said the Duterte administration supports the media. “President Duterte is open to criticism as long as there is basis,” Panelo said.

Asked to comment on the Rappler issue, he pointed out that “it has nothing to do with press freedom but accountability.”

A9

SAMSUNG’S NEW TU8000 Crystal UHD TV

BusinessMirror

A10 Saturday, August 29, 2020 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Facebook to pay $125 million in back taxes to France PARIS—Facebook’s French subsidiary has agreed to pay €106 million ($125 million) in back taxes and penalties following persistent government efforts to get online giants to pay more taxes where they make their money.

The agreement came after French tax authorities carried out an extensive audit of a decade of Facebook’s operations in the country, from 20092018, a company spokesperson said on Monday.

The spokesman, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to Facebook policy, said the company “takes its tax obligations seriously”

Human interaction still important in digital banking

BY RIZAL RAOUL S. REYES ALTHOUGH contactless solutions are becoming popular these days in the age of social distancing, an executive of a major Philippine bank pointed out human touch still remains relevant in these transactions in order for them to become more meaningful for the end users.

Ana Delgado, chief customer experience officer and consumer finance center head of Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank), stressed that human interaction is still important because a contactless experience will be “an experience devoid of human feelings and interactions.”

“Rather, we feel that the experience should still, perhaps even more at this time, allow people to connect with each other,” Delgado said in a recent media webinar that discussed contactless banking solutions and their importance in the new normal.

Although known as a pioneer in digitalization in the banking industry, Delgado said UnionBank has always employed a human-centric approach when it comes to the creation of digital solutions, and part of this is ensuring that customers are able to enjoy contactless experiences that are seamless while still being able to create meaningful human connections, especially amid the Covid-19 pandemic where physical interactions must be minimized as much as possible.

“What we are now focusing on is how we can increase the ability for people to connect to other people as they are doing financial transactions in a contactless world. For instance, when buying things via Viber groups, how do we design our receipts to be more friendly? How do we make it easier for people to transfer using QR code?” Delgado explained.

By embarking on digital transformation, Delgado said UnionBank will have hire more data scientists, artificial intelligence (AI) specialists and app developers.

Aside from evaluating the features of their products, Delgado explained how UnionBank is redesigning and repositioning these features. She said this is part of the bank’s culture that involves continuous cycle of testing, redefining and deploying that allows them to deliver contactless solutions that address the different pain points of customers when making financial transactions online.

“We are constantly reviewing what we’ve launched. When we look at our design process, there are several layers to it. We always start with the customer and are led by the customer, which is why we have a purely digital and a hybrid approach,” she added.

UnionBank also touts its Facebook page, chatbots and call center to answer customer’s complaints.

Furthermore, Delgado said the hybrid approach remains relevant as it helps customers open a bank account using two methods led by a relationship manager.

To reach out to more customers, the bank has also formed a partnership with the 7-11 group that make it possible for clients to deposit money to their account to any branch of 24/7 convenience store.

She pointed out the agile work culture of the bank enabled it to quickly serve the ever changing needs of customers during the pandemic period.

“We expect that we will learn about more things that need to be prioritized, and I think, thanks to our agile way of working as part of our digital transformation, we are confident that we will be able to respond quickly,” Delgado said.

wherever it operates.

The French tax department would not comment on the deal, citing the right to tax secrecy.

Facebook’s French revenues soared last year after the company decided to include advertising income from French companies in its local accounting declarations, instead of declaring them in low-tax Ireland, where Facebook’s international operations are based.

As a result, Facebook will pay €8.4 million in profit taxes in France this year, about 50 percent more than last year, the spokesman said.

That change came in the wake of efforts from French President Emmanuel Macron and his government to press online powerhouses like Facebook, Google and Amazon to pay more taxes locally.

The push has led to a tit-for-tat tax battle with the United States.

France imposed a 3 percent digital services tax on global technology giants, and last month the Trump administration announced plans to impose taxes on $1.3 billion worth of French imports, including handbags and makeup, in retaliation. AP

A US WeChat ban could hurt many in America, not just China

BY TALI ARBEL, KELVIN CHAN & JOSEPH PISANI The Associated Press

F

OR millions of people in the US who use the Chinese app WeChat, it’s a lifeline to friends, family, customers and business contacts in China. That lifeline is now under attack by an executive order from President Donald J. Trump that could ban the app in the US as early as midSeptember, potentially severing vital relationships.

“It’s the first thing I check in the morning,” Sha Zhu, who is Chinese and lives in Washington, says of WeChat. It’s how she talks to her mother and old friends from China, which she left in 2008, and how she communicates with her colleagues as a public relations manager for a Chinese-owned consulting company. It’s where she stores Chinese currency in her virtual wallet.

Most important, it’s where she keeps videos and audio clips of her father, who died four years ago.

In China, WeChat, or Weixin as it’s known, is critical infrastructure—texting, social media, cabhailing, payments and more, all wrapped into one app. Many Chinese businesses don’t even take credit cards anymore, just WeChat. It has over a billion users, owner Tencent says, mostly in China. Mobile app firms have varying estimates for US downloads— in the range of 19 to 26 million.

People in China have little choice but to use it because the country’s communist rulers block access to Google’s search engine, Facebook, Twitter and other social media, along with many other foreign websites and online services.

For people in the US, WeChat has less functionality than it does in China. But it’s what connects immigrants and students from China to their pasts and to each other. Chinese restaurants in the US use it to take food orders. Businesspeople in the US that have work in China rely on it as well.

Kurt Braybrook, who spent 22 years doing business in Shanghai before moving back to the US in 2017, says the app is irreplaceable for him and his China-born wife. He could lose roughly 500 WeChat contacts, few of which he could reach without the app.

“If they banned it entirely, it will wipe out connections to my wife’s family, all our friends and my network of business contacts I built over 22 years,” says Braybrook, who now lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Trump’s August 6 order, released after hours without additional explanation, purportedly aims to ban all “transactions related to WeChat.”

Trump simultaneously issued a nearly identical order aimed at the popular, Chinese-owned video app TikTok. Both orders have thrown users into confusion, leading some to begin moving to alternative services.

But that’s especially difficult for regular users of WeChat.

Executives of more than a dozen US multinationals

pushed back against the Trump order on WeChat in a conference call with White House officials, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. Some feared the order might prevent their subsidiaries in China from using the app, which could place them at a competitive disadvantage.

The day after Trump’s order, Zhu got dozens of queries from friends, family members and colleagues, asking if they should switch to messaging options such as Telegram, WhatsApp or Signal. Those offer secure messaging and aren’t Chinese-owned.

She still doesn’t know if she’ll be able to access her money, or what she’ll do with all those stored memories of her father. “We can’t make a plan,” she says. She blames politicians, especially Trump, for her current stress: “We’re the pawn that they can manipulate to put anywhere on the chess board.”

Some US users are trying to reassure each other that they already have the app, and the US government can’t ban it entirely, because that’s their free speech—a right guaranteed to them in the US but not in the country they left behind.

WeChat users are censored by the government in China. It’s not quite the same for international users who registered their accounts outside China, but the Citizen Lab internet watchdog group in Toronto says WeChat monitors documents and images shared abroad to aid its censorship in China. WeChat’s parent, Tencent, said earlier this year that “all content shared among international users of WeChat is

Affordable communication rates launched PLDT wireless subsidiary Smart Communications, Inc. has launched Flexi Call & Text Abroad, a simpler and more affordable way for Filipinos to keep in touch with their loved ones abroad.

Available to Smart Prepaid and TNT subscribers, Flexi Call & Text Abroad offers international call rates for as low as P2 per minute, and international texts for as low as P5 per message.

By combining international calls and texts into one offer, Flexi Call & Text Abroad makes it easier for customers to register without having to memorize multiple keywords and access codes to avail of both services. To register, simply dial *123#, select Balance/

Services > International Services > FLEXI CALL & TEXT ABROAD. There are also three denominations to choose from: P50 valid for 15 days, P100 valid for 30 days, and P300 valid for 45 days.

With Flexi Call & Text Abroad, subscribers won’t need to worry about maxing out their regular load while calling or texting abroad. Plus, with the option to switch between calls and texts anytime, users can enjoy their conversations with their loved ones whether through a long catch-up call or a series of heartwarming messages.

More information is available at www.facebook.com/ SmartCommunications.

private.” Many users who see it as a necessity aren’t particularly concerned about privacy.

The Chinese-American Planning Council, a New York Asian American social services agency that works with 60,000 New Yorkers a year, relies on WeChat to share information with community members, says spokeswoman Carlyn Cowen. This year, for instance, the agency has messaged its members about participating in the US Census, since the government’s in-person door-knocking for the Census has been truncated, or where Covid-19 tests are available.

“I can’t say I’ve thought deeply about personal data concerns because that’s not really how we use it,” she says. If there’s some kind of ban on WeChat, it’s not clear what the agency will do instead—perhaps use other apps more if Chinese-Americans do that. “We haven’t really thought through what that looks like.”

Indianapolis college student Seth Workman was introduced to WeChat last year while studying abroad in China, where he used it to chat with coworkers at a hotel where he worked.

But when Workman returned to the US last fall, he started using it to order $6 lunches from a local Chinese restaurant that took orders from a group chat of about 60 people. A van would show up on campus with the orders, typically boxes filled with rice, vegetables and meat.

“The food is really good,” says Workman. “If WeChat was banned, I would be a little bit upset.” ■

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Saturday, August 29, 2020 A11

Budget gadgets: Lower price but at what compromise?

BPO expands flagship education program OVER the last decade, TELUS International Philippines (TIP) has encouraged the growth and development of their team members by providing access to continued learning programs and courses offered under the company’s flagship education program, TELUS International University (TIU).

Now in its 10th year, TIU is expanding college degree courses to the family and friends of TIP employees. This latest development reinforces the company’s commitment to deliver enhanced learning and development opportunities to their team members and their loved ones. Currently, these degree courses include: Bachelor of Science in Accountancy, Bachelor of Science in Accounting Information System, Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Bachelor of Library and Information Science, and Bachelor of Science in Tourism Management.

“Access to learning and development has always been important to our team members, and we are proud to have supported them through our own focused educational programs. Since we launched TIU in 2010, more than 100 team members have finished their college degree courses while working, and over 4,600 team members and their loved ones have pursued their passions through workshops and certificate courses,” says Ely Lim, TELUS International Philippines’s director for Global Learning Excellence.

Within TIU’s pipeline is the expansion of their partner schools and learning institutions to be able to increase course options and capability. As of July 2020, TIU has a total of 14 college degree courses and 87 workshops and certificate courses in its program.

“Many members of the TELUS International Philippines family are breadwinners. We are happy to be able to help them achieve not only their dreams but also their aspirations for their families and friends,” shares Lim. Tuition fees are subsidized by TIP where team members can pay via flexible arrangements through salary deduction. Since its inception, the company has continued to provide team members with tuition fee subsidies of 50 percent to 85 percent. The company has partnered with the newly established National Book Store College for its six new college-degree courses which will enable employees to sponsor their family and friends at a 50 percent tuition fee subsidy.

The degree offerings are a healthy addition to a different set of partner schools, including the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P), Asia Pacific College (APC), and Lyceum of the Philippines University, which offer employees the opportunity to earn their college degrees in humanities, IT, psychology, and different fields of business and management.

Short courses, meanwhile, are also offered through partner schools, which includes SoFA Design Institute, Center for Pop, Swim Central, Narra Survival Camp, Center for Pop, Enderun Extension, and Center for Culinary Arts Manila, among others.

Recognizing that employee work schedules may challenge their ability to take advantage of the learning programs, TIP has enabled distance learning and onsite learning at TIP sites; however, given the Covid-19 restrictions, onsite learning is currently on hold and will resume when restrictions are lifted and it’s safe to do so.

Virtual and on-site classes make it possible for more employees to participate in degree programs and short courses. Where degree courses demand attendance at a partner school location, TIP also provides school-to-site shuttle services.

Career counseling is also offered to help team members decide which degree programs or short courses to pursue that are aligned with their longterm life goals.

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UYING a new gadget these days may be the least of our priorities, but for those who need a replacement or a new device, this series aims to help our readers in choosing the best value-for-money devices worthy of their hard-earned peso. In this second Budget Gadget feature, we take a look at two of the latest phones from realme: the C11 and C15.

The C11 and C15 are targeting those who are either looking for their first smartphone or switching from a feature phone, or those who need a phone they could use for e-learning, and that means anything below 2GB RAM and 32GB storage is out.

YOUR NEW ‘C11 AS MATE’

POSITIONED as the “tech-companion for young Filipinos,” the realme C11 is priced at P4,990, making it more attainable to those who need a smartphone.

It’s also worth mentioning that as part of its corporate social responsibility efforts, realme Philippines will be donating C11 units to the Young Focus Foundation for children in need of smartphones for distance learning.

■ DISPLAY AND DESIGN: The realme C11 has a 6.5inch, IPS LCD display with an HD+ resolution of 720 x 1600 and an 88.7 percent screen ratio. The panel is nice and vibrant with good color reproduction; viewing angles are decent and have good contrast, which makes it great for watching multimedia content or playing games.

While the realme C11 looks just like a lot of other phones on the front, its rear design helps it stand out.

The back panel features a “geometric design” similar to the C3, but with a smooth vertical stripe that drops from its rear-camera module down to the realme logo at the bottom. I really liked this stripe design though I’m still undecided about that HUGE realme logo. It has a square camera module that seems to be thing for similarly-priced phones recently. It’s housed in textured plastic which gives an enhanced grip, and the matte finish makes it somewhat resistant but not totally impervious to smudge and fingerprints.

In terms of overall design and build quality, the realme C11 doesn’t look or feel like a cheap device and the color choices—mint green and pepper gray—give it a subdued and sophisticated look, something you rarely see in this price range. I actually prefer these shades better than that of the realme C15.

■ CAMERA: The realme C11 has a total of three cameras. You get a dual rear setup consisting of a 13MP primary sensor and a 2MP depth sensor and located in that dot drop notch in front is a 5MP camera for selfies.

I honestly had low expectations given that entry-level phones usually have terrible cameras; thankfully, the Redmi 9a I previously reviewed changed that perception. The realme C11 even has a slight advantage because of its dual cameras.

Shots taken with the rear camera are satisfactory, especially with HDR and AI Color turned on. It’s even comparable to the sameras of some midrange phones.

Images have a nice pop of color, with considerable details especially in ideal lighting. Indoor photos are okay, while low-light photos are serviceable at best which is again typical for a phone in this price range, nothing a quick Snapseed edit can’t fix.

That said, the realme C11 cameras are best used for close to midrange shots with sufficient amount of lighting.

■ PERFORMANCE: Keeping things running is a MediaTek Helio G35 chipset with a PowerVR GE8320 GPU, along with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC 5.1 storage. However, the unit we used for review is a special edition that comes with 3GB of RAM. The realme C11 is a phone best used for the basics, like making calls, messaging, browsing the web, checking/updating your social-media feeds, simple photo editing, and playing casual games—you’ll have no problems doing any of that stuff. Multitasking is possible but it does take a toll on that low amount of

RAM, so I do suggest you keep a minimal number of apps running.

When it comes to gaming, the Helio G35 has proven to be able handle mainstream games. Mobile Legends, Call of Duty, PUBG Lite, Asphalt 9 are all playable, but on low graphic settings with some occasional lags.

The realme C11 has a 32GB storage which again should just be adequate for its intended user. The last big selling point of this phone is its 5,000mAh battery with support for 10W charging.

According to realme lab tests, the C11 could last for 40 days on standby mode, up to 31 hours of talk time, 21 hours of offline video playback, 10 hours of PUBG gaming, 169.85 hours of listening to offline musice, and 19.11 hours of watching YouTube. In real-life use, I had no problems using it the entire day and still had lots of juice left in the evening. Oh, it can also function as a powerbank with special OTG reverse charge.

■ FINAL WORD: The realme C11 is a good choice for an entry-level smartphone. It’s well designed, has a capable processor, long-lasting battery life, and a camera that gets the job done. The 2GB RAM does seem to be a bit underpowered but as long as you are aware of its limitations, you won’t have any problems using it. It’s a fairly well-balanced device, and one of the best phones you can buy at its price.

MORE CAMERAS; MORE POWER

NOW if you have a bit more budget to spend and want a snappier experience, there’s the realme C15.

The realme C15 is the first 6,000mAh battery smartphone and 18W Quick Charge in its price point. The large-capacity battery is ideal for heavy smartphone users such as online learners, sellers and content creators who rely on their device for digitalheavy interactions. According to realme tests, the realme C15 can last up to 46 hours of continuous calls, 28 hours of YouTube and a standby time of up to 57 days. In its most power-saving state—Super Power Saving Mode—the phone can be on standby for up to 2.9 days and support 1.73 hours of YouTube and 2.45 hours of call with only 5 percent battery.

It shares the geometric gradient design of the C11 but this time instead of a stripe, a trapezoid divides the back cover into three areas with different angles of lines bringing out the colors with different gradation.

That back cover is also said to be fireproof as the phone incorporates a power-monitoring sensor and a temperature-monitoring sensor that automatically checks the thermal state of the smartphone, eliminating users’ worry about battery explosions or

other accidents during extensive use.

The realme C15 has a 6.5 inch screen and 88.7 percent screen-to-body ratio bringing a larger field of view for excellent game, audio and video experience with less visual disturbance for a near-full screen experience.

For budding content creators, the C15 has a quad camera setup with a 13MP AI main camera that features a Super Nightscape Mode, 119-degree UltraWide Mode and Portrait Mode with hardware-level portrait-blurring effect to provide more shooting options for the artsy youth. A new addition are the B&W and Retro lenses that provide two more special artistic effect for portraits. These two lenses could reproduce portraits in black-and-white with higher exposure and enhanced contrast between light and dark parts of the images.

The 8MP selfie camera features f/2.0 large aperture, gesture command, AI Beauty options and 1080P full-HD video recording. It also allows users to achieve high-definition effects no matter how many self-portrait photos or videos are taken.

The realme C15 packs the MediaTek Helio G35 processor, which is the best in its price segment. It is an eight-core 12nm processor that clocks up to 2.3 GHz and adopts Cortex A53 structure which makes it one of the fastest and latest in its category. Again, it’s ideal for mainstream smartphone users and gamers because it can handle most mid-to-heavy apps and games that are widely used.

Other notable features of the realme C15 is its ultra-fast rear fingerprint sensor, face unlock, dark mode, Focus Mode to help users concentrate and relax without getting distracted, 3-Finger Selected Screenshot; and Personal Information Protection wherein the system will provide empty information pages when the apps are requesting to access the user’s personal information. This ensures all call history, contacts and messages stay private to prevent any information leak. Dual Mode Music Share is extremely useful if two users are trying to enjoy the same video or song at the same time from the same device. Users can connect a pair of wireless earbuds and a wired earphone simultaneously to enable both users to listen to the same song played from the same realme smartphone provided that one user is listening to music in Bluetooth and the other with wired headphones simultaneously.

The C15 is available in two storage configurations: a 3GB RAM + 64GB storage (P6,490) and 4GB RAM + 64GB storage (P6,990); and two colors options—Power Blue and Power Silver. ■

A12

Sports BusinessMirror

Saturday, August 29, 2020

Sport-by-sport snapshot of racial injustice protests

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OVED by the videotaped shooting of Jacob Blake, many professional athletes—some who had previously donned Black Lives Matter t-shirts and knelt for the national anthem to protest racial injustice—made a more dramatic statement.

They refused to play.

National Basketball Association (NBA) players led the way Wednesday and Thursday by sitting out of scheduled playoff games in the “bubble” in Florida, the league’s answer to finishing up the season amid the coronavirus pandemic. The movement quickly spread to the other professional sports.

“We are scared as Black people in America,” LeBron James said. “Black men, Black women, Black kids. We are terrified.”

Athletes similarly came together after the death of George Floyd, another Black man who died when an officer pressed his knee into his neck for more than seven minutes. Some players knelt during the national anthem or stood in silence, fists raised, while others wore Black Lives Matter t-shirts or had names of Black people killed by police on their jerseys.

But then the cell-phone video of Blake getting shot in the back seven times by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin, about 40 miles south of Milwaukee, emerged.

Athletes say the moment has forced them to act. Here’s a look at what they are doing across the major professional sports to call for an end to racial injustice: NBA: The Milwaukee Bucks set off a wave of postponements in professional sports Wednesday, when players refused to take the court for a playoff game against Orlando. The two other playoff games for that day were also postponed, as were the three games set for Thursday.

NBA Executive Vice President Mike Bass issued a statement that said: “We are hopeful to resume games either Friday or Saturday,” and added that a group of players and representatives from the teams in the bubble were going to hold a videoconference call with the league’s front office and union officials about the next step.

“We don’t want lip service anymore,” said San Jose’s Chris Wondolowski, who is of Native American descent. “It’s time for actual actions to be made, and time for a change.” n MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL: Seven games were postponed Thursday, a day after three games were called off.

“In this world, I’ve always believed, there’s two things you can’t live without. It has nothing to do with food and water. It’s love and hope.

And I don’t think we’re doing a good job in our country giving that to everyone and I think that needs to be the focus here,” Philadelphia Phillies Manager Joe Girardi said. n NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: Nine teams canceled practice Thursday. The league is set to start its season on September 10. n NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE: Announced Thursday that it postponed two days of playoff games. The league’s games went on as scheduled Wednesday. San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane, who is Black, was vocal about the issue on Twitter, saying it would send “a clear message that human rights take priority over sports.” n GOLF: The Professional Golfers Association Tour event at Olympia Fields outside Chicago—less than 100 miles from Kenosha, Wisconsin—went on as scheduled Thursday.

Cameron Champ, who has a Black father and a white mother, wore a black show and a white shoe. On the white shoe he wrote: “Jacob Blake BLM.” The LPGA Tour is set to begin play Friday in Rogers, Arkansas. n WNBA: The six WNBA games set for Wednesday and Thursday were postponed in the league’s bubble in Bradenton, Florida.

Players from the Washington Mystics wore t-shirts that had Blake’s name on the front and seven holes in the back. Later, players held a candlelight vigil. The league had just passed its halfway mark of the 22-game season. n MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER: Five of six scheduled matches Wednesday were postponed. Players for the other game, between Nashville SC and Orlando City, said they had already taken the field in preparation for their game before a collective decision was made. The MLS had no games scheduled for Thursday. AP

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AKE BUENA VISTA, Florida—An unprecedented National Basketball Association (NBA) walkout over racial injustice postponed a second day of the playoffs Thursday, although players pledged to finish the postseason even as they wrestled with their emotions about wanting to bring change in their communities.

For now, the basketball courts in the NBA’s virus-free bubble at Disney World remained empty.

And other athletes across the sports world also said they weren’t ready to resume playing.

They are still angry and emotional after the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. NBA players considered not playing again the rest of the postseason and going home to their communities, although they decided Thursday they wanted to continue, according to a person with knowledge of the details. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement had been made.

“We obviously agree that whether we play or not, we still have to do our best to make change and we still have to do our part in the community,” Orlando guard Michael CarterWilliams said in a video interview with a Magic public relations official.

“It’s obviously not easy, given everything that’s going on. But I think that if we can go out there and do our best and also have a list of things that we want to accomplish, everything gets completed.”

The NBA decided to postpone three more games Thursday to join the three that weren’t played a day earlier.

NBA spokesman Mike Bass said the league hoped to resume Friday or Saturday. He added in as statement that a group of players at Disney would hold a videoconference call later Thursday with representatives of the owners, including Michael Jordan, and National Basketball Players Association to discuss the next steps.

The tennis tours had already decided they would pause play Thursday at the Western & Southern Open in New York; a number of NFL teams canceled practices; and the NHL postponed two nights of playoff games.

PROTESTS GO VIRAL

NATIONAL Basketball Association referees march in support of players seeking an end to racial injustice in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. AP

A second night of WNBA games were postponed and other teams and sports pondered whether they would play on.

“This is not a strike. This is not a boycott. This is a affirmatively day of reflection, a day of informed action and mobilization,” WNBA players’ union President Nneka Ogwumike said on ESPN. Seven Major League Baseball games also

were postponed.

The sudden stoppages were reminiscent of March, when the NBA suspended its season after Utah center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus. Other sports quickly followed until the worldwide sporting landscape had almost completely come to a halt.

NBA players agreed to resume their season

in July at Disney, making clear they intended to chase social justice reform just as passionately as a championship. But the video of Blake’s shooting on Sunday left them so disgusted and dispirited that they wondered whether they should continue playing.

The players voiced their frustrations in a meeting Wednesday night, then continued talks

TOUR UNLIKE ANY OTHER FLAGS OFF IN NICE P

ARIS—Already delayed, the Tour de France sets off Saturday shrouded in uncertainty, flying in the face of the coronavirus pandemic and the imponderable question of how many of the 176 riders will avoid infection and endure three exceptionally tough weeks of racing to reach the finish in Paris.

That’s if the rolling road show gets that far.

Staging cycling’s premier race when Covid-19 infections are rising again in France represents both a health risk and an embodiment of French President Emmanuel Macron’s insistence that the country must learn to function as normally as possible with the virus.

Failure to safely steer the Tour to the cobbles of Paris’ Champs-Elysées avenue on September 20 could cast further doubt on the feasibility of holding other sporting mega-events, including the Tokyo Olympics postponed to next year, while the coronavirus remains untamed. A key question posed by pushing ahead with the race will be whether it would have been wiser and

safer to simply cancel it.

“Is the Tour adding to the human community experience this year? Or hurting it? That’s what needs answering,” Jonathan Vaughters, boss of the EF Education First team, told The Associated Press. “If we choose to take on the risk of living life, then I suppose we might have to take the risk of letting events go forward that make life worth living, like the Tour. Is that responsible for the community at large? I think there are many opinions. Many.”

Amid the pandemic, the usually boisterous celebration of cycling that for decades has drawn packed throngs of cheering roadside spectators promises to be a strange and more subdued affair, moved for the first time in its 117-year history out of its traditional July slot to a September month when many fans will be back at school or at work after summer vacations.

Riders who in more carefree times were habitually besieged by admirers congregating outside their team buses and hotels are expected to

A WOMAN wearing a face mask rides a bike past a Tour de France logo in Nice. AP

TRUMP: NBA ‘POLITICAL ORGANIZATION’ W

ASHINGTON—President Donald J. Trump said Thursday that the National Basketball Association (NBA) has become like “a political organization,” criticizing the league the day after player protests over police brutality led to the postponement of playoff games.

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph / Editor: Jun Lomibao

Senior White House aides earlier had suggested that the protests were not constructive and were hypocritical considering the league’s relative silence about human-rights violations in China, where US pro basketball has a large audience. The president said in a radio interview this month that NBA players

were “very nasty” and “very dumb” for kneeling during the national anthem to protest social injustice.

“They’ve become like a political organization, and that’s not a good thing,” Trump told reporters Thursday, noting that the league’s ratings are down from previous

be largely sealed off from the outside world, except while out on the roads. Organizers are beseeching spectators to wear face masks, but won’t be able to prevent them from turning out to watch as riders speed through their towns and villages, starting in the Mediterranean city of Nice on Saturday.

Masks will be obligatory for spectators at stage starts and finishes, and have become mandatory outdoors in a growing number of cities and towns as French infection rates have ticked upward over the summer.

“If you love the Tour, if you love the champions, wear a mask,” race Director Christian Prudhomme said. “Not only will this not be the year to collect an autograph, but you shouldn’t ask for autographs or ask for selfies.

The riders will say ‘Hello’ from afar. That isn’t to say that they’re not nice. All in all, it will be like Wimbledon: You don’t get [Roger] Federer’s autograph in the morning.”

To try to keep the coronavirus from infecting the peloton of riders as it negotiates the clockwise, 3,484-kilometer route, organizers aim to shield the 22 teams inside what they call a “race bubble”—opened only to riders and staff who have twice tested negative in the race run-up, including this week at a mobile laboratory in Nice.

The Tour’s Covid-19 protocol, detailed in a 17-page document distributed to teams and obtained by the AP, says teams will be expelled if two of their riders or staff test positive for the virus or show strong symptoms of infection.

Race organizers say that scenario will be reserved only for two or more cases within a seven-day span. The threat of expulsion is making riders and managers even edgier than usual on the eve of the biggest event on cycling’s calendar, anxious not only about infection but also about the reliability of virus testing.

The German team BoraHansgrohe is among those expressing concern, after one if its riders first tested positive and then tested negative Tuesday, prompting the withdrawal of its entire squad from the one-day Bretagne Classic race. Bora team manager Ralph Denk appealed for immediate changes to cycling’s testing regimen to combat false positives.

seasons. “I don’t think that’s a good thing for sports or for the country.”

Trump, who was to deliver his renomination acceptance speech Thursday evening at a scaled-back Republican National Convention, has made restoring “law and order” to cities a centerpiece of his campaign during a summer of sometimes violent protests following the death of George Floyd, a Black man whose killing by Minneapolis police in late May spurred national unrest. AP

“We are talking about athletes who have prepared for a race for weeks or months and then might not be allowed to start the event due to a false finding,” he said.

The Lotto Soudal team had to send home several staff members on Thursday after “nonnegative” coronavirus tests.

The Belgian team said a mechanic and a member of the rider support staff returned “one positive and one suspicious result.” Both were sent home along with their roommates, the team said, without disclosing their identities.

When Tour teams arrived in Nice, some were surprised to discover that they were sharing their designated hotel with ordinary guests, raising doubts about how hermetically sealed the race bubble will be.

As Tour riders, wearing face masks, were presented to a thin crowd at the traditional prerace unveiling in Nice on Thursday, the Lotto Soudal squad became the first to announce coronavirus exclusions. It said it was sending home two mechanics and two rider support staff. One of them tested positive Wednesday, another had what the team called a “suspicious result.” The other two staffers being sent home were their roommates.

On top of Covid-19 concerns, riders will contend with one of the most unrelenting Tour routes in memory, with an usually high total of 29 tough climbs. They will scale all five of France’s mountain ranges: the Alps, the Massif Central, the Pyrénées, the Jura and the Vosges.

Uphill slogs come as soon as Stage 2 on Sunday, in a first for the race, with two ascents to 1,500 meters (4,920 feet) and higher.

An uphill time trial on the penultimate stage before Paris will decide the standings among contenders chasing podium places and the winner’s prize of 500,000 euros ($590,000).

Defending champion Egan Bernal from Colombia is the only previous winner in a field stripped of four-time champion Chris Froome and 2018 victor Geraint Thomas, both omitted

by Bernal’s Ineos team, leaving him as its sole leader. Principal among Bernal’s rivals could be Primoz Roglic, a Slovenian who finished fourth in 2018, and Tom Dumoulin, the Dutch runnerup that year who is now Roglic’s teammate at Jumbo-Visma.

But with the pandemic having forced riders to train indoors on stationary bikes and with scant racing in this year of tumult, the readiness of top contenders is one of many uncertainties in a Tour unlike any other. AP

Trump

Thursday morning. As they prepared to do that, NBA referees led a march around campus to show their support in the fight against racism.

Play had been set to resume at 4 p.m. with Game Six of the Western Conference series between Utah and Denver. Boston and Toronto were also to begin their second-round series before the Clippers and Dallas met in the nightcap.

It was the Raptors and Celtics who had been most vocal about the idea of not playing, but the Milwaukee Bucks acted first when they opted to remain in their locker room instead of playing their Game Five against Orlando on Wednesday.

Kenosha is about 40 miles south of Milwaukee.

Before coming to Disney, many NBA players wrestled for weeks about whether it was even right to play, fearing that a return to games would take attention off the deaths of, among others, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in recent months.

They ultimately decided that playing would give them the largest platform—while also providing a bigger target for critics.

The NBA’s relationship with the White House eroded when Donald Trump was elected after President Barack Obama was close with some players and officials. Trump was critical of the league again Thursday.

“They’ve become like a political organization, and that’s not a good thing,” Trump told reporters, noting that the league’s ratings are down from previous seasons. “I don’t think that’s a good thing for sports or for the country.”

Earlier Thursday, Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff Marc Short said in a CNN interview that the NBA protests are “absurd and silly” when compared to their response to the ongoing humanrights violations in China. AP

tolentino

POC General Assembly convenes online today

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HE Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) convenes an online General Assembly for the first time this year as face to face meetings remain forbidden amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The General Assembly was scheduled last February but was canceled following the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine. Mass gatherings are still prohibited under existing health protocols.

As a result, POC President Rep. Abraham Tolentino will make a long overdue report on the successful hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games, as well as the POC’s bicycle project during the pandemic.

Membership issues covering the national sports associations of karatedo, dancesport and esports, among others, are also on the table.

The Dancesports Council of the Philippines headed by Becky Garcia has, for the longest time, been an active member of the POC. In the last SEA Games, Filipino athletes in the sport won 10 of the 13 gold medals offered.

Interestingly, the group only held an associate membership in the POC—meaning it couldn’t vote in any electoral process in the body. On Saturday, Garcia and her association are expected to be vested regular membership.

Arguments on the POC’s recognition on Ricky Lim’s Karate Pilipinas Inc. and 2005 SEA Games gold medalist Gretchen Malalad’s Philippine Karatedo Federation NSA Inc. will also be tackled by the assembly.

More than 50 regular, associate and recognized members of the POC registered for the meeting.

Osaka to play after all

N

EW YORK—Naomi Osaka will play in the Western & Southern Open semifinals, after all.

A day after saying she would withdraw from the hard-court event to protest the “continued genocide of Black people at the hand of the police”— prompting the tournament to call off all of Thursday’s matches—the two-time Grand Slam champion and former No. 1-ranked player changed course.

Her agent confirmed that Osaka will face No. 14 Elise Mertens when play resumes at the tournament Friday with the semifinals. The finals were shifted from Friday to Saturday.

“As you know, I pulled out of the tournament yesterday in support of racial injustice and continued police violence. I was [and am] ready and prepared to concede the match to my opponent,” Osaka said in a statement to the Guardian newspaper.

“However, after my announcement and lengthy consultation with the WTA [Women’s Tennis Association] and USTA [US Tennis Association], I have agreed at their request to play on Friday. They offered to postpone all matches until Friday and in my mind that brings more attention to the movement. I want to thank the WTA and the Tournament for their support.” AP