BusinessMirror December 01, 2022

OVERSEAS Filipino Workers (OFWs) who can spare an investment of around $200 could do so through the government’s dollar denominated bonds set to be launched next year, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).

In the Kapihan sa Manila Bay, Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said the government is eyeing to float around $1 billion to $3 billion worth of these bonds in the

fi rst quarter of 2023.

While the terms for the float are still being determined, it is possible that these bonds would have a tenor of a minimum of 5 years which makes investments in these bonds tax-free.

“If you have a young kid whom you must send to school in five years, you can invest your money there. [ is is a better investment than] using their earnings for tricycles or something similar,” Diokno said in the forum.

e amount of the investment, Diokno said, represents around 10

percent of the $30 billion worth of dollar inflows that the country receives from abroad.

In terms of whether the tenor will be a single one or several, Diokno said the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) will determine that.

Meanwhile, Diokno said he is confident that the government will be able to exceed its revenue targets.

He noted that the Bureau of Customs (BOC) has already met its annual target for the year by collecting P745.5 billion as of November 11.

e BOC said its target for the year is P721.52 billion. Its revenue collection as of November 11 was up by P23.98 billion or 3.27 percent.

e DOF attached agency said all 17 collection districts of the Bureau also reached their respective collection targets, garnering a surplus of 16.8 percent or P103.29 billion as of October 31.

Diokno, however, said the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) remained 3 percent behind its col-

HIGHER

power rates and liquefied petroleum gas prices as well as the impact of Typhoon Paeng on various commodities may have increased inflation to 8.2 percent in November, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

In its month-ahead infl ation forecast for November, BSP said infl ation could settle within the range of 7.4 percent to 8.2 percent.

Infl ation data for November will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Tuesday, December 6.

“Upward price pressures for the month are expected to emanate from higher electricity rates, uptick in the prices of agricultural commodities due to severe tropical storm Paeng, and higher LPG prices,” BSP said.

“ e reduction in petroleum and pork prices as well as the peso appreciation could contribute to easing price pressures for the month,” it added.

However, BSP said, infl ation is projected to gradually decelerate in the succeeding months as the impact of the typhoon and recent transport fare hikes dissipate.

Nonetheless, BSP said it will closely monitor price developments to ensure that the government can implement timely interventions to ease price pressures.

“ e timely implementation of non-monetary measures will

FILIPINO security leaders believe that the use of unregistered devices for hybrid work has the tendency to cause cybersecurity incidents— including malware, phishing, and data leaks—and has in fact cost some organizations as much as $500,000, a recent study conducted by Cisco revealed.

According to Cisco’s latest report titled, “My Location, My De-

vice: Hybrid Work’s New Cybersecurity Challenge,” more than 8 in 10 security professionals in the Philippines believe their employees are using unregistered devices to log into work platforms. About 75 percent say their employees spend more than 10 percent of the day working from these unregistered devices.

e study further found that 89 percent of respondents in the Philippines believe that logging in remotely via unregistered devices has increased the likelihood of

occurrence of cybersecurity incidents.

But it’s not just the device that they believe could cause breaches. Using public Internet may also cause cybersecurity incidents, according to Cisco. About 91 percent of respondents in the Philippines say their employees use at least two networks for logging into work, and 47 percent said their employees use more than five networks.

“As hybrid work becomes the norm, companies are empowering their employees to work from

anywhere. While this has brought many benefits, it is also opening new challenges, especially on the cybersecurity front, as hackers can now target employees beyond traditional corporate network perimeters. To make hybrid work truly successful in the long run, organizations need to protect their business with security resilience. is includes establishing visibility on their networks, users, endpoints, and applications to acquire

NOVEMBER is turning out to be the best month for Asia stocks since early 1990s relative to their global peers.

e MSCI Asia Pacific Index jumped 14 percent this month, set for its biggest jump since 1998, as benchmarks in markets from Hong Kong to the Philippines saw strong gains that cracked records held for at least a decade. e MSCI All Country World Index is up less than 6 percent.

Asia’s surge has been driven by growing signs that China is easing its Covid-Zero policy, and expectations that the Federal Reserve will move toward a slower pace of rate hikes. Asset managers are arguing this is only the start, making the case for the outperformance to continue into 2023 after the region lagged global peers for months.

“Relative to other EMs, we have much stronger balance sheets at sovereign and corporate levels, more prudent policy making, and positive structural reforms in a few key countries,” Peter Monson, portfolio manager at Nikko Asset Management, said in an interview.

Foreign funds bought $12.6 billion worth of shares on a net basis in emerging Asia excluding China this month, the biggest inflows in two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Taiwan accounted for nearly half of the flows, as foreign investors including Warren Buffett bet on chipmakers amid easing tensions between China and the US.

Traders also piled back into Chinese assets, spurred fi rst by rumors spread early this month over a Covid-Zero exit plan, and then as the authorities introduced measures underlining an intent to relax restrictions. A slew of policy aid for the troubled property sector also helped.

ere was a “dramatic change

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Shipping, logistics infra woes hinge on trade needs

Continued from A10

“DTI Secretary Alfredo Pascual has talked about clusters and we’re really excited about his idea to create clusters because the most important part about trade, the most important impact on cost of transport is scale,” Magsaysay-Ho said.

The official of the major shipping firm also pointed out, “Right now everything is tingi, as I said everything is small small small, so therefore the cost is also high high high.”

A nother solution to the logistics woes, she said, “These production clusters should ideally be located near port zones to reduce the costs of building roads and rails to connect exports to ports.”

It’s so much cheaper when you have scale. So what we hope we can do in the future is create production hubs that have scale in clusters around the port area,” Magsaysay-Ho added.

Former President Jiang Zemin, who guided China’s rise, dies

By Joe McDonald The Associated Press

BEIJING—Former President Jiang Zemin, who led China out of isolation after the army crushed the Tiananmen Square prodemocracy protests in 1989 and supported eco nomic reforms that led to a decade of explosive growth, died Wednesday. He was 96.

Jiang died of leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai, where he was a former mayor and Communist Party secretary, state TV and the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

A surprise choice to lead a divided Com munist Party after the 1989 turmoil, Jiang saw China through history-making changes includ ing a revival of market-oriented reforms, the return of Hong Kong from British rule in 1997 and Beijing’s entry into the World Trade Orga nization in 2001.

Even as China opened to the outside, Jiang’s government stamped out dissent. It jailed hu man rights, labor and pro-democracy activists and banned the Falun Gong spiritual move ment, which the ruling party saw as a threat to its monopoly on power.

Jiang gave up his last official title in 2004

but remained a force behind the scenes in the wrangling that led to the rise of current Presi dent Xi Jinping, who took power in 2012.

Xi has tightened political control, crushed China’s little remaining dissent and reasserted the dominance of state industry.

Rumors that Jiang might be in declining health spread after he missed a ruling party congress in October at which Xi, China’s most powerful figure since at least the 1980s, broke with tradition and awarded himself a third fiveyear term as leader.

Jiang was on the verge of retirement as Shanghai party leader in 1989 when he was drafted by then-paramount leader leader Deng Xiaoping to pull together the party and nation.

He succeeded Zhao Ziyang, who was dis missed by Deng due to his sympathy for the stu dent-led Tiananmen Square protesters and was held under house arrest until his 2005 death.

In 13 years as party general secretary, China’s most powerful post, Jiang guided the country’s rise to economic power by welcom ing capitalists into the ruling party and pulling in foreign investment after China joined the WTO. China passed Germany and then Japan to become the second-largest economy after the

United States.

Jiang captured a political prize when Bei jing was picked as the site of the 2008 Summer Olympics after failing in an earlier bid.

A former soap factory manager, Jiang capped his career with the communist era’s first orderly succession, handing over his post as par ty leader in 2002 to Hu Jintao, who also took the ceremonial title of president the following year.

Jiang tried to hold onto influence by staying on as chairman of the Central Military Commis sion, which controls the party’s military wing, the 2 million-member People’s Liberation Army. He gave up that post in 2004 following complaints he might divide the government.

Even after he left office, Jiang had influence over promotions through his network of prote ges. He was said to be frustrated that Deng had picked Hu as the next leader, blocking Jiang from installing his own successor. But Jiang was considered successful in elevating allies to the party’s seven-member Standing Committee, China’s inner circle of power, when Xi became leader in 2012. Portly and owlish in oversize glasses, Jiang was an ebullient figure who played the piano and enjoyed singing, in con trast to his more reserved successors, Hu and Xi.

ARTA bares red tape busters for logistics sector

Continued from A10

A ccording to ARTA, this JMC applies to all “responsible” officers of ARTA, Department of Trans portation (DOTr), Philippine Ports Authority (PPA),  Maritime Indus try Authority (MARINA), Philip pine National Police (PNP), Land

Transportation Office (LTO), Office of Civil Defense (OCD), the Provin cial Government of Sorsogon, and the Municipal Government of Mat nog. Meanwhile, the anti-red tape watchdog on Tuesday also present ed the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) addressing the Philippine Shipping Lines concerns.

The ARTA, together with part ner agencies including the Board of Investments (BOI), Department of Transportation (DOTr), Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), Department of Finance (DOF), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), agreed to resolve the ongoing concerns in the Shipping Lines Industry.

A mong the salient features of the agreement is the creation of a Technical Working Group for: do mestic and international shipping to oversee ongoing concerns.

A nother salient feature, ARTA said, is to issue a JMC with the primary objective of: prescribing a streamlined or integrated pro cess and requirements for the ap plication of required clearances through the creation or establish ment of a Business One-Stop Shop (BOSS) for a more efficient process of securing these clearances; and, reducing the operational costs for both shipping lines, among others.

A RTA said both “the MOA and JMC intend to strengthen the com petitiveness of the shipping lines industry by avoiding costs due to unnecessary delays and other inef ficient government services.”

A RTA also listed the Unified Logistics Pass (ULP) among the re forms for the logistics and supply chain sector. The ULP’s pilot imple mentation was launched in Janu ary 2022.

A ccording to ARTA, the ULP is a unified Quick Response (QR) code that will facilitate the unhampered movement of trucks for hire that deliver basic goods and necessities across the country.

In January, ARTA said in a statement that the ULP aims to “eliminate the varying and sepa rate pass-through stickers being required by economic zones, ports, and LGUs to allow easier move ment and ease port-entry restric tions for trucks.”

Andrea E. San Juan

Study...

insights into access behaviors, le veraging these insights to detect threats, and harnessing threat in telligence to respond against them on-premises or in the cloud,” Cisco Asean Director for Cybersecurity Juan Huat Koo said.

The use of unregistered devices is adding a new layer of challenge for security professionals with 77 percent of Filipino respondents ex periencing at least one cybersecuri ty incident—malware, phishing, or data leaks—in the past 12 months.

Among those who suffered an incident, 69 percent said it cost them at least $100,000, and 38 percent said it cost them at least $500,000.

Furthermore, cybersecurity in cidents are “likely to disrupt” busi nesses for as short as a year to as long as two years.

Given this scenario, 87 percent of security leaders in the Philip

OCTA poll: PBBM earns trust, approval of majority of Pinoys

THE majority of Filipinos have expressed appreciation over the work performance of and have given their trust in President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., according to OCTA Research’s latest survey.

OCTA Research, in its Tugon ng Masa poll conducted from October 23 to 27, found that 78 percent of 1,200 adult Filipinos appreciate Mar cos, while 86 percent trust the Chief Executive. Only 5 percent were dissatisfied with Marcos’s performance, while 4 percent expressed dis trust in him.

Marcos earned the highest approval score in Mindanao, registering 85 percent, followed by Visayas (81 percent), Metro Manila (75 per cent), and the Balance of Luzon (74 percent).

He also received a high approval rating from respondents belonging to Classes D or middle class (79 percent), E or the poorest of the poor (77 percent), and ABC or the upper middle class (67 percent).

Marcos’s trust rating was also highest in Mindanao (92 percent) and among those from Class E (90 percent).

A high trust rating was also recorded in the Visayas and Class D (both 87 percent), Balance of Luzon (84 percent), Metro Manila (82 per cent), and Class ABC (78 percent).

Meanwhile, Vice President Sara DuterteCarpio also posted high trust and approval scores at 86 percent and 80 percent, respective ly. The survey found that 100 percent of adult Filipinos are aware of Marcos and Duterte-Car pio. OCTA Research conducted the October 2327 survey, using a ±3 percent margin of error.

OCTA Research also released a survey that showed that 85 percent of adult Filipinos be lieve that the country is on the right track under the Marcos administration, with only 6 percent expressing disagreement.

Marcos, in a media interview on Tuesday, described the poll results as “very encourag ing,” saying it is vital for government policies and programs to be felt by Filipinos across all socioeconomic classes. PNA

Stocks...

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in market sentiment, with policy makers in China unleashing dif ferent sets of policy support,” said David Townsend, managing di rector of EMEA Business at Value Partners Group.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. ex pects a further stock rally in China and South Korea while Morgan Stanley has touted a 14-percent increase for the MSCI China Index next year. Bloomberg News

pines expect their organization to increase its cybersecurity budget by more than 10 percent over the next year, and 95 percent expect upgrades to IT infrastructure in the next two years.

“In a digital-first hybrid world, cybersecurity threats not only im pact IT, but also financial, opera tional, organizational, and supply chain practices. With hybrid work here to stay, it is crucial that Fili pino organizations relook their overall IT and security strategy to ensure that resilience is interwo ven into the fabric of their business from the network to the endpoint and the cloud edge. People are a cornerstone of fostering this resil ience. Organizations need to edu cate their people on the challenges that unregistered devices and un secured connections pose to com promised credentials and cyber threats,” Cisco Philippines Manag ing Director Zaza Nicart said.

The report surveyed 6,700 se curity professionals from 27 coun tries, including 150 security pro fessionals from the Philippines.

Diokno...

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lection target. But this was also an improvement since, the DOF Secre tary said, the new administration assumed office with BIR behind by 6 percent in its targets.

Despite this, Diokno said he is confident that the surplus from the BOC collections would be sufficient to cover the country’s deficit.

Maharlika Fund

DIOKNO also spoke about the pro posed Maharlika Fund which is envisioned to become the country’s sovereign wealth fund.

He said the sovereign wealth fund will be patterned after Singa pore’s Temasek as well as Austra lia’s Future Fund. Diokno said the idea behind the sovereign wealth fund is to save for the future.

The fund will be set up with several government financial insti tutions as well as representatives from key agencies such as the DOF and the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

According to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (SWFI), the sovereign wealth fund is a govern ment owned investment fund or entity that is commonly estab lished from balance of payments surpluses and official foreign cur rency operations. These funds can also be created using the proceeds of privatizations; governmental transfer payments; fiscal surplus es; and/or receipts resulting from resource exports.

The SWFI, however, said sover eign wealth funds exclude foreign currency reserve assets held by monetary authorities for the tradi tional balance of payments or mon etary policy purposes.

It also does not include stateowned enterprises (SOEs) in the traditional sense; government-em ployee pension funds (funded by employee/employer contributions); and assets managed for the benefit of individuals.

On Tuesday, in the fund’s ver sion that was approved by the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, the Ma harlika Wealth Fund will include P125 billion from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) has committed P50 billion.

The GSIS provides “social securi ty/insurance and financial benefits to all government employees and their dependents” while the SSS extends social security protection to workers in the private sector.

The Land Bank of the Philip pines (LBP) has also committed P50 billion for the Maharlika Fund while another GFI, the De velopment Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has committed P25 billion. ( full story: www.businessmirror.com. ph/2022/11/30/4-gfis-agree-to-in vest-%e2%82%a7250bin-maharlikawealth-fund/)

BSP...

also help temper price pres sures in the months ahead,” BSP stressed.

Earlier, inflation was identi fied by the International Mon etary Fund (IMF) as one of the primary challenges faced by the Philippines.

The IMF thinks the BSP must be more aggressive in raising in terest rates in the event that the situation worsens.

In the IMF Executive Board’s recently concluded 2022 Article IV Consultation with the Phil ippines, the Washington-based lender said should inflation worsen, they would recommend that the BSP respond with a tighter monetary policy stance.

Inflation in the Philippines, IMF said, is being fueled by the strong dollar, higher commod ity prices, and tightening global financial conditions. IMF said high inflation has weakened the country’s external position and narrowed its fiscal space.

House OKs bill on creation of virology body on 2nd reading

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz  @joveemarie

THE House of Representatives has approved on second read ing the charter of the Virology and Vaccines Institute of the Philip pines (VVIP), a priority measure of the Marcos administration.

In a news statement, Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, principal author of the bill, said that he is hopeful that “since we approved it in the House early, there is enough time in the Sen ate to get it done this time around.”

T he lower chamber is expected to approve the bill creating the Virology and Vaccines Institute of the Philip pines next week.

T he institute will be a research center for the study of viruses, how the government can respond to them, and how they can be used for different purposes, said Salceda.

T he lawmaker added that the institute aims to be the country’s serum institute.

India continues to be one of the world’s largest manufactur ers of Covid vaccines even if it did not originate [from] them, because they have a serum institute. Viet nam solved ASF [African swine fever] first because their serum institute invented a vaccine early on,” he said.

A ccording to Salceda, the vac cine institute is not merely a health institute.

“ The applications for virology are immense and broad. Food security, forest management, and the devel opment of a strong pharmaceutical sector all benefit from a strong grasp of viruses,” he added.

Salceda said “a campus is now ready for the VVIP in Clark, where they will be a key feature.”

T he VVIP will create a state-ofthe-art virology laboratory in New Clark City, which can create vaccines and serums and conduct research and projects on plant and animal viruses, on top of human viral diseases.

These measures will make our health system more resilient. The capacity of a country to contain epidemics depends on its institu tional capacity above everything else. If we have strong and resilient disease control and management institutions, we can weather global pandemic events more strongly,” he said.

We can’t predict the future, but institutional capacity anticipates a broader range of extreme events. It’s like bodybuilding for future pandemics,” Salceda added.

T he lawmaker said that mul tilateral financing could easily be obtained once the Senate approves the measure.

We don’t have it in the 2023 budget yet, but multilaterals will be happy to finance it so we can hit the road,” he said.

“I am confident the Senate will get it done this time around since we started early in the administration,” Salceda added.

The Nation

BI flags new human trafficking modus at the airport as ‘a big security issue’

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Wednesday admitted that the new human trafficking scheme being employed by syndicates is “a big security issue” that should be looked into with other law enforcement agencies.

Bureau of Immigration (BI) Com missioner Norman Tansingco issued the statement, even as he urged air port authorities to look into the ris ing cases of attempted trafficking involving fake entry passes.

Tansingco said the victims were using fake airport access passes and pretend to be employees of various airport concessionaires to be able to gain access to boarding gates.

T he immigration chief admit ted that previous victims might have used the employees’ entrance

to evade strict departure assess ment to depart from the country to illegally work in countries, such as Myanmar.

T he BI said airport security and police intercepted three victims car rying airport passes early this month.

Upon closer inspection by air port security, it was found out that their passes were counterfeit and that their passports and boarding passes contained counterfeit im migration stamps.

Aviation security personnel inter

cepted another female victim bound for Kuala Lumpur last November 16.

T he victim presented a fake ac cess pass and attempted to enter the airport through the employ ees’ entrance.

Her passport and boarding pass also contained fake stamps, which she said, were only given to her out side the airport premises.

I n line with this, Tansingco said he has issued an order to BI Port Operations Division (POD) Chief lawyer Carlos Capulong to coordi nate with the Manila International Airport Authorities (MIAA) to re quest a thorough investigation of the new modus.

“ We are investigating several victims of a trafficking syndicate that entices our kababayans to work abroad as call center agents, only to be transported to a third coun try to work as online scammers,” Tansingco said.

“ We are trying to see if these two cases are linked.  This is already a big security issue, and we see the need

to refer the matter for a thorough investigation, together with local law enforcement agencies and the MIAA,” he added.

No links with BI personnel

WHEN asked if there are BI person nel also being probed for possible involvement in the new human trafficking scheme, BI spokesman Dana Krizia Sandoval answered: “Hearing the statement of the victims, it seemed like their de parture was facilitated by some one from outside BI. Fake stamps were impressed on their passports, which were given to them outside airport premises.”

She added the BI would continue its probe to determine the extent of the operation of the syndicate.

“ We will still be conducting fur ther investigation as to the scale of this syndicate, but so far no links with BI personnel have been detect ed,” Sandoval added.

However, Department of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla is

not discounting the possibility that some immigration personnel might also be involved.

Very possible,” Remulla said when asked to comment on Senator Risa Hontiveros’ claim that a group of rogue immigration personnel is likely involved in a new human traf ficking scheme.

I n her privilege speech last Tuesday, Hontiveros disclosed that several overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who were prom ised jobs in Thailand were traf ficked to Myanmar to become crypto scammers of a Chinese syndicate based in Shwe Kokko, a town in Kayin State of Myanmar.

S he lamented that unscrupu lous individuals continue to vic timize OFWs even after the inqui ries conducted by the Senate on “pastillas” scam and other human trafficking schemes.

Tansingco assured that strict de parture procedures would be imple mented to prevent human traffick ing victims from leaving the country.

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes  @brownindio

TRANSPORTATION Secretary Jaime Bautista said the Phil ippines needs to collaborate and partner with more countries to enhance the development of its maritime capabilities.

“ I think it’s very important we collaborate with more countries, more agencies, for us to be able to ensure maritime safety and secu rity in Philippine waters. Because this will also help our ships that tra verse over international waters to be secure and safe,” Bautista said in his presentation recently during the recently concluded Pilipinas Conference 2022, organized by think tank Stratbase ADR Institute.

W ith the aim of becoming a major maritime nation in the region, Bautista said the Philip pines is looking for opportuni ties to forge collaborations with maritime-related agencies of other countries to benchmark our ef forts at raising our maritime in dustry to global standards.

B autista also welcomed the partnership between the Philip pine and Australian governments in enhancing the country’s mari time capabilities. Australia is in vesting P3.5 billion in regional maritime programs, and the Phil ippines will be benefiting from this funding through training, capac ity building, vessel sustainment and marine environment projects.

I n his speech at the Pilipinas Conference 2022, Acting Austra lian Ambassador to the Philippines Richard Sisson said Australia is ready to expand cooperation with

the Philippines.

Australia is an open economy deeply enmeshed in the global trad ing system. 83 percent of our mer chandise trade is carried by sea, and most of it comes through the South China Sea. About 70 percent of it passes through the Sulu Sea. The statistics alone should suggest to you, reveal to you, just why maritime law is so important to Australia, and why the Philippines is so important to Australia,” he explained.

Sisson also discussed the impor tance of enforcing maritime rules, such as the United Nations Con vention on the Law of the Sea and respecting and abiding by the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Ruling.

Australia is deeply concerned when countries pursue their claims or engage in activities that are in consistent with international law, when they undertake activities that are provocative and destabilizing. When they don’t respect the rights and freedoms of others. When they advance their claims by intimida tion and coercion,” he said without mentioning China.

“ We have committed to uphold ing international law, and in par ticular, the law at sea, and this is why we invest in maritime part nerships in the region, to build maritime domain awareness and to combat challenges like illegal, unreported and unregulated fish ing,” Sisson explained.

Stratbase ADRi President Profes sor Victor Andres Manhit also un derscored the importance of foster ing multilateral cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.

“As the dynamics of the In do-Pacific continue to shape the

shared future of states, fostering multilateral cooperation is crucial to addressing destabilizing forces in the region, particularly in the maritime domain. For the Philip pines, its engagements must have the national interest as the guiding principle in its independent foreign policy,” he explained.

M anhit urged the Marcos ad ministration to continue advanc ing the Philippines’s defense coop eration with credible partners and other like-minded states to address security threats in the region effec tively. “This will enable the Philip pines to build a robust and reliable defense posture as well as build its capacity as a reliable partner in the Indo-Pacific,” Manhit said.

M oreover, Foreign Affairs Un dersecretary Jesus Gary Domingo said the Philippine government is working hard to develop a stronger regional network of Coast Guard and maritime law enforcement authorities.

“An initiative which is gaining ground is the Asean Coast Guard Forum, which the Philippines has helped to spearhead… The Asean Re gional Forum and the Asean Defense Ministers Plus are invaluable cata lysts for confidence building among all the maritime security stakehold ers in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response is an excellent activity in which the militaries of all nations engage in and offer op portunities for positive regional maritime cooperation…Counterterrorism and piracy offer another great opportunity for multilateral and regional security cooperation,” Domingo added.

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

DAVAO CITY—The im provement in local gov ernance in Panabo City of Davao del Norte has attracted several visits from other local gov ernment units (LGU) to conduct benchmarking on various public services and infrastructure.

L ast week, the LGU Banaybanay of Davao Oriental visited Panabo City to learn from the latter the good practices in conducting tech nical skills and livelihood programs to beneficiaries.

Banaybanay was particularly in terested in how Panabo City’s Public Employment Service Office (PESO) provided “the right and quality” technical vocational education and training (TVET) to individuals, or ganizations and the communities.

Lysander V. Gran, focal per son in Community Skills Train ing Livelihood and Entrepreneur ship Program (CSTEP) briefed the Banaybanay delegation on its 149 trainings conducted so far. Gran represented PESO Manager Cher elle B. Espinosa.

Banaybanay Municipal Agricul turist, Ester M. Solamo, expressed the gratitude of her delegation to Panabo City.

Executive Assistant III Jo-Anne Relampagos Capuyan expressed gratitude also to the Banaybanay delegation for selecting Panabo City for its benchmarking visit.

O ther officials from the two LGUs included Councilor Ronald Ang, chairman of the Committee on Labor, Employment and Manpower

Development, Acting Regional Di rector/Provincial Director-Davao Oriental Remegias G. Timonio, Wena C. Tinio of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Labor and Employment Assistant Glory Grace E. Trinidad and Labor and Employment Officer Mr. Keir Jay S. Balingan.

On September 12, the LGU Mati City of Davao Oriental also conduct ed a benchmark on the city economic enterprise to help Mati City improve its revenue code.

A lso earler in August, the city also received two municipal local gov ernments on benchmarking visits, one from Jimenez town, Misamis Occidental which looked into the best practices in establishing and maintaining a sanitary landfill, and the other from Talakag Bukidnon, which wanted to learn on how to adapt green technology in its gov ernment buildings.

Jimenez town sent 13 of its de partment heads to Panabo City on August 4 to be briefed on how the latter maintained its sanitary land fill facility to help Jimenez improve further its own sanitary landfill to suit the standard laid out by the na tional regulatory bodies.

T he Talakag team also wanted to get new ideas in the construction phase of its municipal hall.

A cting City Planning Develop ment Coordinator Felix Senajon told the Talakag team that it must look at the design of the rooftop of their municipal hall building to ensure that solar panels have the space and could be easily installed.

A solar-powered electricity for the municipal hall building would ensure the steady electrical supply.

PBBM discusses 10-point defense agenda with top DND officials

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday met with officials of the Department of National Defense (DND) to discuss the 10-point defense agenda.

T he meeting between Marcos and defense officials led by DND Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. was held at the State Dining Room of Malacañan Palace in Manila, according to a Facebook post by state-run Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM).

Faustino, during the meeting, presented to Marcos the DND’s 10-point defense agenda, which will help the agency boost its

capability to deal with national security issues, the Office of the President (OP) said in another news statement posted on its official Facebook page.

“The DND, on the other hand, discussed with the Commander-inChief the 10-point defense agenda aimed at improving the agency’s capability to respond to various aspects of national security,” the OP said.

The RTVM said Faustino also assured Marcos of the DND’s commitment to align its policies with the national government’s agenda for a “stronger” Philippines and strengthen its efforts in

protecting Philippine territory.

“OIC Senior Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. highlights the DND’s 10-point defense agenda covering the following areas: sovereignty and territorial integrity; internal security and stability; disaster resilience and climate change adaptation; cyber defense; modernization, capability and capacity development; security cooperation and engagements; Reserve Force development; welfare of soldiers, veterans and civilian human resource; legal and legislative agenda; and protection of cognitive domain,” it said.

The DND also gave an

update on its “significant accomplishments,” the RTVM said.

The RTVM, however, did not elaborate on the DND’s presentation of its accomplishments.

In July, Faustino said the 10-point defense agenda will serve as guidelines to align the DND’s policies with Marcos’s promise of a stronger and better Philippines through national unity, nationbuilding and economic recovery.

Faustino said the agenda is envisioned to build a “united DND that is not only formidable but can readily thrive under the direst of circumstances.”

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

DOTr chief pushes foreign tie ups to boost advancement of PHL maritime capabilities

Davao del Norte city receives more LGU benchmarking visits

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. meets with the officials of the Department of National Defense (DND) at the State Dining Room of Malacañan Palace on Tuesday, November 29, 2022. During the meeting, DND Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. presented the department’s 10-point defense agenda, which aims to align its policies with Marcos’s promise of a stronger and better Philippines. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Economy

BusinessMirror

Group backs BAI’s assurance of ample pork supply to meet Yuletide demand

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

ALEADER of the Samahang In dustriya ng Agrikultura (SIN AG) on Wednesday dismissed claims by “economic saboteurs” that there is a shortage of pork supply in the country.

I n a news statement, SINAG Chairman Rosendo So said stocks of pork would last beyond the first quarter of 2023, citing government data that cold storages for pork im ports are overflowing.

The contents of the cold storages are getting bigger, beyond their ca pacity. This week, it is at 110 million

kilos, the biggest recorded stock of pork imports,” he said.

“ We have been saying this since the discussions on the tariff re duction on pork and rice at the Senate and the Tariff Commission as early as January of last year,” he said.

If there was a supply gap on pork,

even rice and chicken, So said, the farm-gate price of rice, pork or chick en will go up.

But farm-gate [price] of live hogs is only at P155 to 175 per kilo. There is no shortage, but there are exploit ers,” he said.

“Importers and traders continue to dominate the retail market and

rake [in] profits at the expense of the producers, consumers and the fore gone revenues of the government,” So pointed out.

On Tuesday, the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) assured the public that there is sufficient supply of pork as well as chicken and eggs during the holidays.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

SEN. Sherwin T. Gatchalian aired gripes over the delay in the implementation hounding a new law aimed at boosting Filipino competitiveness and employability.

T he lawmaker lamented that the early enactment of Republic Act No. 10968 or the Philippine Qualifications Framework (PQF) Act was intended to “make Filipinos more competitive and employable,” but said he was disappointed that “a strategic plan for its implementation is yet to be implemented.”

Unwilling to accept further delays, Gatchalian flagged this in Senate Resolution No. 15, seeking an inquiry on the status of the implemen tation of the PQF Act, saying “there has been no significant progress on the adoption of programs and concrete actions to achieve the goals of the PQF law.”

A iring concerns, he added this might have “a significant impact on the reforms that seek to improve the Philippine education sector.”

Gatchalian said a 2021 World Bank report had affirmed that the implementation of the PQF is weak with limited utilization and evi dence of labor market impact, despite having a robust framework, adding that based on the Labor Force Survey, the annual unemploy ment rate in 2021 reached 7.8 percent or about 3.7 million unemployed Filipinos and the annual underemployment rate was 15.9 percent or about 7 million underemployed Filipinos.

Moreover, the senator cited the United Nations Educational, Scien tific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) Institute for Lifelong Learn ing, in its country report, had noted that PFQs are meant to address the unemployment and underemployment rates of the Philippines which are largely the “result of a mismatch” between the jobs on offer and the skills possessed by the work force.

He recalled that the PQF Act, which was signed into law in Janu ary 2018, seeks to adopt national standards and levels of learning outcomes of education, noting it was designed in 2003 and adopted in 2012 to address the mismatch in jobs and skills.

T he PQF evolved from the Philippine Technical and Vocational Qualifications Framework (PTVQ) and was designed to harmonize basic education, technical and vocational education, and higher educa tion into a nationwide unified framework of skills and competencies.

“Ipinasa natin ang PQF Law upang iangat ang competitiveness ng ating mga kababayan at matiyak ang kanilang kahandaan para sa trabaho. Ngunit dahil nakikita nating hindi naipapatupad nang maayos ang batas, napapanahon ang ating pagsusuri sa pagpapatupad nito, lalo na’t ang ating mga kababayan ang lubos na makikinabang rito,” Gatchalian said.

A N entry-level salary of C$74,000 (around P3 million) per year awaits Filipino nurses in Canada’s Saskatchewan province as it turns to Southeast Asia, including the Philippines to boost its health-care work force.

In an interview Tuesday night, visiting Saskatchewan Health Minister Paul Merriman said recruitment is ongoing for Filipino health-care workers, specifically nurses and continuing care assistants (CCA).

The starting rate, he said, is on top of the pension, health care, and other benefits offered by Canada.

“Saskatchewan will fully assist and support Filipino healthcare professionals with skills, qualifications, education and training credentials as they enter our work force,” he said.

“We will also provide needed assistance and support for families settling in our communities. We are committed to following ethical principles in the employment of Filipino health-care workers, while creating the positive environment that makes us a top destination of choice for employment,” he added.

Claudine de Vera, 35, who has been working as a nurse in a hospital in Mandaluyong for four years, was among the newly-hired CCAs.

De Vera sent her application in June 2022 and got a job offer in September. In January 2023, she’s expected to fly to Canada.

De Vera said migration is already part of her plan but Canada’s competitive salary for nurses is among the biggest factors why she chose Saskatchewan.

BALER, Aurora—Tourist arrivals in this province have reached more than 990,000 in a span of 10 months, with the number ex pected to further increase during the Holiday Season.

Provincial Tourism Officer Ana Riza S. Mendoza said on Wednesday the number of foreign and local tourists that visited the various tourist desti nations in the province from January to October, this year totaled 992,112.

D ipaculao town had the most number of overnight and same-day travelers with a total of 385,913, who mostly headed to the popular Dinadiawan Beach.

T his was followed by the capital town of Baler with a total of 151,097 visitors. The top destinations in Baler include the Dicasalarin Cove, Dituma bo Mother Falls, Sabang Beach, and Diguisit Rock Formations.

Dingalan, which is known for its many caves, had a total of 13,983 over night and same-day tourist arrivals.

Maria Aurora town, on the other hand, had 77,105 total visitors. The main attraction in the municipality is Balete Park, home to the country’s Mil lennium Tree, a centuries-old balete tree that is said to be the biggest in Asia.

Meanwhile, the town of San Luis had 58,654; Casiguran, 54,745; Di nalungan, 52,890; and Dilasag, 48,428 tourist arrivals.

Mendoza said the report was based on the data supplied by the province’s

“Unang una mas mataas ang salary sa kanila tapos may health care, pati na rin ’yong sa education ng mga bata [First of all, the salary is high then there’s health care. Also a consideration is education for my kids],” she told the Philippine News Agency.

“Nababalitaan kasi namin na kapag kailangan kang operahan or what libre na compared dito magbabayad ka ng mahal, so malaki talaga ’yong difference [We’ve been hearing it a lot that they cover even surgeries for free unlike here where you have to shell out a huge amount, so the

difference is really big],” she added.

The Canadian province, according to Merriman, will hire more than 1,000 health-care workers from several countries, including the Philippines.

Merriman is currently in the country until Friday to meet with Filipino stakeholders and provide information sessions for interested applicants.

He will also participate in a number of events to strengthen collaboration on health care and between post-secondary institutions. PNA

ALEADER of the House of Rep resentatives has cited the vi tal role of food technologists in the nation’s efforts to achieve food security and responding to the needs of the global market.

Senior Deputy Speaker and for mer President Gloria MacapagalArroyo issued the statement after attending the recent Philippine As sociation of Food Technologists Inc. (PAFT) 61st Annual Convention.

“Because the world is in the midst of a technological revolution, food tech is leading the way in transform ing the global food sector,” she said.

Food tech is increasing food production to help reduce the rate of hunger and feed the world. The expansion and diversification of the food trade can be attributed, among other factors, to the discipline of food technology, which is continu ously providing a broader range of foods by developing new and more sophisticated preservation, process ing and packaging techniques which make foods safer, less perishable and more attractive to the consumer,” Macapagal-Arroyo added.

According to the senior lawmaker, a strong national food industry is an important supplier of food to the population and a significant con tributor to food security.

A rroyo also lauded the PAFT for supporting President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s goals towards human security, quoting what the President stated at the recently-concluded APEC Summit that “food is not just a trade commodity, it is not a liveli hood; it is a survival imperative, it is a moral imperative. It is the very basis of human security. ”

T he PAFT’s convention theme for this year is Food for All- Responding to the Need of the Global Market.

T he senior deputy speaker and former president also emphasized food security, particularly rice suf ficiency, during her presidency.

In the early part of her term, rice costing P 16 to P18 per kilo was made available at particular stores acces sible to the most vulnerable sectors.

W hen prices of imported rice dou bled during the 2008 recession, she ordered the National Food Authority (NFA) to subsidize rice prices so the agency could continue selling rice at P18.25 per kilo. Lower-costing rice was sold at NFA and certain govern ment-run outlets.

municipal tourism offices.

To boost the local tourism industry, she said they tapped 12 local vloggers for the promotion of the existing and newly discovered tourist sites and at tractions in the province.

“ We tapped our local vloggers in the multi-media exposure project of the Provincial Tourism Office under the provincial government of Aurora. Last year, we covered the northern Aurora towns of Dinalungan, Casiguran and Dilasag. And this year was the second project at the central Aurora towns in Baler, San Luis and Maria Aurora. Natutuwa naman kami at nakakasama

namin sila [We are happy to be with them],” Mendoza said in an interview.

S he thanked the local vloggers and content creators for helping them in promoting the province’s tourism industry.

“We gave them the certificate of rec ognition for sharing their valuable time and skills as one of the content creators of our project. We will continue this kind of project for marketing and promotional events. On behalf of the Provincial Tour ism Office and the provincial govern ment, we will continue our partnership. Maraming salamat sa inyo [Thank you very much],” Mendoza added. PNA

SEN. Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday asked Malacañang to create and implement labor policies that would respond to the growing clamor of workers for wage hikes and more stable jobs.

Hontiveros said serious govern ment interventions are needed to address the growing concerns of the public, amid the impacts of the pandemic and a looming world recession.

I think it is an urgent mat ter that we heed the calls of labor groups. Extraordinary ang epekto ng pandemya sa ekonomiya natin. Sa hul ing Pulse Asia survey, ito din naman ang mga nangungunang alalahanin ng mga kababayan natin. Kailangan na talaga ng seryosong [The impact of the pandemic on our economy is extraordinary. In the last Pulse Asia survey, these are also the top concerns of our countrymen. It re ally needs serious] government in terventions,” Hontiveros said in a news statement.

She said there must be a compre hensive plan to help workers cope with inflation. PNA

FPGMA lauds PAFT’s support to PBBM’s food security agenda Delay

Govt urged to prioritize wage hikes, jobs creation

US dismisses China’s protests over South China Sea mission

BEIJING—The US Navy on Tuesday dismissed Beijing’s protests over a “freedom of navigation operation” conducted near a Chinese-held island in the South China Sea, in the latest incident drawing new attention to one of the world’s potential military flashpoints.

The Navy said its guided mis sile cruiser USS Chancellorsville on Tuesday “asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the South China Sea near the Spratly Islands, consistent with international law.”

China called the action illegal and said it mobilized naval and air assets to issue warnings and drive off the ship, a characterization the Navy and Pentagon disputed.

“I know that there has been some reporting that China essen tially ejected our ship from the area, that is not true,” said Pen tagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder.

China said the US Navy’s sail “seriously violated” its sovereignty and security, and called it “further ironclad evidence of its pursuit of navigational hegemony and mili tarization of the South China Sea,” the spokesperson for the Southern Theater Command, Air Force Col. Tian Junli, was quoted as saying.

“China has indisputable sover eignty over the South China Sea

islands and their adjacent waters,” Tian said.

The Navy’s 7th Fleet, which is responsible for US naval operations in the region, issued a rebuttal, call ing it “the latest in a long string of [Chinese] actions to misrepresent lawful US maritime operations and assert its excessive and illegitimate maritime claims” in the South China Sea. China claims the area virtually in its entirety.

“As long as some countries con tinue to claim and assert limits on rights that exceed their authority under international law, the Unit ed States will continue to defend the rights and freedoms of the sea guaranteed to all,” it said.

The long-seething South China Sea territorial conflicts involving China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei have long been regarded as a delicate fault line in the US-China rivalry in the region.

While the US lays no claims to the strategic waterway, where an

estimated $5 trillion in global trade transits each year, it has said that freedom of navigation and over flight is in America’s national in terest. The sea is also home to rich fishing stocks and a potential wealth of energy and mineral resources.

In March, US Indo-Pacific com mander Adm. John C. Aquilino told The Associated Press that China has fully militarized at least three of several islands it built in the disputed waters with anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems, laser and jamming equipment. He described it as an increasingly ag gressive move that threatens all nations operating nearby.

Then in July, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on China to comply with a 2016

arbitration ruling that invalidated Beijing’s vast claims on historical grounds in the South China Sea.

On a visit to the area earlier this month, US Vice President Kamala Harris reaffirmed Wash ington’s commitment to defend the Philippines under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty. She also announced additional aid of $7.5 million to Philippine maritime law enforcement agencies.

That came shortly after the Philippine Navy alleged a Chinese coast guard vessel had forcibly seized Chinese rocket debris as Filipino sailors were towing it to their island.

A P/Tara Copp in Washington contributed to this report.

UN special envoy warns military escalation in Syria is ‘dangerous’

By Edith M. Lederer The Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS—The UN special envoy for Syr ia warned Tuesday that the current military escalation in Syria is dangerous for civil ians and regional stability, and he urged Turkey and Kurdish-led forces in the north to de-escalate immediately and restore the rela tive calm that has prevailed for the last three years.

Geir Pedersen told the Security Council that the UN’s call for maxi mum restraint and de-escalation also applies to other areas in Syria. He pointed to the upsurge in truce violations in the last rebel-held stronghold in northwest Idlib, airstrikes attributed to Israel in Damascus, Homs, Hama and Lata kia, as well as reported airstrikes on the Syria-Iraq border and secu rity incidents and fresh military clashes in the south.

In northwest Idlib, he said, gov ernment airstrikes have killed and injured civilians who fled fighting during the nearly 12-year war and now live in camps. He said the at tacks destroyed their tents and displaced hundreds of families.

The al-Qaida-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, the most powerful militant group in Idlib, reportedly attacked govern ment forces and government-

controlled areas with civilian casualties, he added.

But Pedersen said his major concern now is the slow increase in mutual strikes between the Syr ian Democratic Forces, the main US-backed Kurdish-led force in Syria, and Turkey and armed op position groups across northern Syria, with violence spilling into Turkish territory.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to order a land in vasion of northern Syria targeting Kurdish groups following a Nov. 3 explosion in Istanbul that killed six people and wounded dozens, and the government has launched a barrage of airstrikes on suspect ed militant targets in northern Syria and Iraq in retaliation.

The Kurdish groups have denied involvement in the bombing and say Turkish strikes have killed ci vilians and threatened the fight against the Islamic State group. But Pedersen cited reports of Syr ian Democratic Forces attacks on Turkish forces including inside Turkish territory.

The UN envoy said he came to New York to warn the Security Council of “the dangers of military escalation” taking place and of his fear of what a major military opera tion would mean for Syrian civilian and for wider regional security.

“And I equally fear a scenario where the situation escalates in

part because there is today no se rious effort to resolve the conflict politically,” Pedersen said.

He expressed concern that the committee comprising govern ment, opposition and civil society representatives that is supposed to revise Syria’s constitution has not met for six months and reiterated his call for a meeting in Geneva in January.

Russia had raised issues over Geneva as the venue, which Ped ersen said were “comprehensively addressed” by Swiss authorities, but Moscow has now raised an other issue—which he refused to disclose.

“It is now the question of politi cal will from Russia to move on or not to move on,” the UN envoy told reporters later. “And as I said to the council, the longer it takes before we meet again, the more problematic it will be. So, I really hope I will get some positive news on this.”

Pedersen said there is a way forward in the weeks ahead: stop the military escalation, renew cross-border aid deliveries to northwest Idlib which expire in January, resume constitutional committee meetings, prioritize work on Syrians detained and missing, and identify and imple ment step-for-step confidencebuilding measures.

Russian Ambassador Vassily

Nebenzia hinted at Moscow’s con cerns, saying decisions on further inter-Syrian dialogue in the con stitutional committee “should be made by the Syrians themselves without external interference.”

To that end, he said, Russia welcomes Pedersen’s contacts with Damascus and the opposition, but not his “step-by-step initiative,” saying this is not part of the spe cial envoy’s mandate.

Nebenzia called the overall situation in Syria tense, with ter rorist threats persisting, and the north, northeast and south “ex posed to illegal foreign military presence while the humanitarian and socioeconomic situation keeps deteriorating.” He blamed US and European sanctions for making the situation worse.

US Ambassador Linda ThomasGreenfield called Russia’s claims that Syria’s humanitarian crisis is a result of sanctions, allegedly lackluster Western funding, and supposed shortcomings in early recovery programs for Syria “un founded” and “deliberate mis information and malicious in intent.”

“This is nothing but a danger ous distraction—one designed to steer the conversation away from the real issue at hand: renewing the cross-border mechanism in Syria” to deliver humanitarian aid to the northwest, she said.

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

Half of China firms had Covid infections in November–survey

THE coronavirus is rapidly spreading across China and hitting production further, with more than half of firms re porting a case among their em ployees this month, according to a new survey.

About 53 percent of companies surveyed by China Beige Book said they’d had a case in their work force this month. That was more than double the 24 percent who reported a case in October and the highest level in data back through January last year, according to the report.

China’s economy was “barely treading water” this month, with every business indicator deterio rating, according to the report. The first quarter could be worse still, as November is not typically the peak of Covid outbreaks and cases might continue to rise through the winter, the report said.

Company revenue and profits both had double-digit declines from last year this month, accord ing to the survey of more than 2,400 firms conducted November 17-27. Factory output “slowed sig nificantly,” as did domestic and export orders.

The report confirms official data released Wednesday showing that manufacturing and services activity both slowed in November.

Economic activity falls

CHINA’S economic activity con tracted further in November amid a record Covid outbreak, with growth likely to remain weak and the central bank expected to add more stimulus to bolster the recovery.

The official manufacturing pur chasing managers index fell to 48 this month, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday, the lowest reading since April and worse than an estimate of 49 in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

The non-manufacturing index, which measures activity in the construction and services sectors, declined to 46.7 from 48.7 in Octo ber, also lower than the consensus estimate of 48. A reading below 50 indicates contraction, while any thing above suggests expansion.

The economy is suffering in creasing damage and residents have taken to the streets to protest tighter Covid controls in several major cities recently. Economists expect growth to slow to around 3 percent this year, putting pressure on officials to step up stimulus to spur the recovery next year.

“Policymakers are working at full steam to create strong im petus for growth with stimulus packages,” said Bruce Pang, chief economist and head of research for Greater China at Jones Lang La Salle Inc. He sees China’s economy as likely to return to a potential growth rate of over 5 percent “no earlier” than the second quarter of next year, assuming less dis ruptions from Covid outbreaks and curbs.

China’s benchmark CSI 300 In dex of stocks rose 0.28 percent as of the mid-day break, led by energy and telecom service shares. The yuan traded onshore strengthened 0.18 percent to 7.1449 per dollar as of 11:31 a.m. local time, while

the yield on 10-year government bonds was up 2 basis points at 2.91 percent.

Manufacturing PMI gauges measuring output, new orders, raw material inventories and employ ment all contracted in November at a faster pace than the month be fore. A sub-index measuring sup pliers’ delivery times also fell fur ther, a sign of supply disruptions.

“Recovery will be slow as China works out ways to live with the vi rus, but each new sign of economic weakness is likely to nudge in the direction of loosening Covid Zero. Any new approach will need to strike a delicate balance: boosting economic activity without allow ing an unmanageable spread of the virus,” said Bloomberg economists Chang Shu and David Qu.

Economic activity will likely continue to weaken in Decem ber and the first quarter of next year, according to Zhang Zhiwei, chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd., adding that a reopening-fueled rebound seems set for the second half of 2023.

“At this early stage of reopen ing, more cities face rising number of Covid patients,” he said. “These cities have to impose restrictions to ‘flatten the curve.’ The eco nomic cost is inevitable.”

As Covid outbreaks spread, more companies are seeing infec tions rise among their employees.

About a quarter of China’s to tal gross domestic product is now affected by lockdowns, according to a recent estimate from Nomura Holdings Inc. That was higher than the firm’s previous peak recording of 21 percent in April, when the whole of Shanghai was shut down to curb Covid cases.

“In November, Covid outbreaks brought negative impact to some firms’ production and operation. Production activity slowed, and product orders declined,” Zhao Qinghe, a senior statistician at the NBS, said in a statement.

While the government has taken steps to help the economy recently—including lowering the amount of cash banks must hold in reserves and offering financ ing support to property develop ers—the policies aren’t likely to be enough to shore up household and business confidence.

Bloomberg Economics down graded its GDP growth forecast for this year to 3 percent from 3.5 percent, and trimmed next year’s projection to 5.1 percent from 5.7 percent. The International Mon etary Fund said Tuesday it may have to trim its forecast for China’s growth because of Covid restric tions and property sector turmoil.

The IMF currently sees China’s GDP expanding 3.2 percent this year and 4.4 percent in 2023.

Several economists say the central bank could provide more stimulus in the coming months as the global outlook makes it some what more favorable for China to ease monetary policy.

Adjustments to the reserve re quirement ratio and banks’ loan prime rate are “possible early next year,” said Zhou Hao, chief econo mist at Guotai Junan Internation al Holdings Ltd. With assistance from Fran Wang and James Mayger/Bloomberg.

US OKs $1B arms sale to Qatar during key World Cup match

WASHINGTON—The Biden administration on Tuesday approved a $1 billion arms sale to Qatar in a transaction unveiled during halftime of the key World Cup 2022 match in Doha between Iran and the United States.

The State Department an nounced it had signed off on

Qatar’s purchase of 10 defen sive drone systems, 200 in terceptors and related equip ment just as the second half of the US-Iran game began. Qatar, along with other Gulf Arab states, faces threats from Iranian-backed proxies in the region.

The department said in

a statement the sale would “support the foreign policy and national security objec tives of the United States by helping to improve the secu rity of a friendly country that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East.”

It will “improve Qatar’s ca pability to meet current and future threats by providing electronic and kinetic defeat capabilities against Unmanned Aircraft Systems. Qatar will have no difficulty absorbing these articles and/or services into its armed forces,” the department said. AP

IN this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese Coast Guard ship sails near a Philippine Coast Guard vessel during its patrol at Bajo de Masinloc, 124 nautical miles west of Zambales province, northwestern Philippines on March 2, 2022. The Philippines has sought an explanation from China after a Filipino military commander reported that the Chinese coast guard forcibly seized Chinese rocket debris in the possession of Philippine Navy personnel in the disputed South China Sea, officials said Thursday, November 24, 2022. PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD VIA AP

Agriculture/Commodities

BusinessMirror

Marcos asked to shield farmers from cheap imports

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

AGRICULTURE

T he groups, in a joint statement, reminded the President of his state ment, that “relying primarily on imports makes the Philippines vul nerable to supply disruptions from external factors like the Covid pan

demic, the war in Ukraine and cli mate change.”

In his inaugural address, Presi dent Marcos pointed out that food is not only a tradable commodity or source of livelihood. Food, he

stressed, is an existential imperative because without it, people weaken and die; societies come apart,” said the groups, quoting the President.

T hey said, however, that “some forces” within the Marcos adminis tration are apparently resisting the president’s policy declarations.

They seek to continue the past regime’s trade liberalization agen da of opening our local markets to more and cheaper imports. This is highlighted by the veiled attempt of our current economic managers to extend the validity of Executive Order [EO] No. 171—after Congress begins its December recess.”

T he EO was originally issued by President Duterte in May 2021 pur portedly to address the rising prices of pork, rice and corn by lowering

their tariffs until the end of 2022.

Now, they want to keep the low tariffs until end-December 2023, citing the lingering effects of Covid and the war in Ukraine. Despite the huge import volumes engendered by EO 171, consumers continue to reel from high food prices.”

T he groups said the surge in im ports has not benefited the buying public, but it has depressed farm gate prices.

“ The National Treasury has lost billions in revenues due to reduced customs duties. Cheap imports have further discouraged our farmers from sustaining and expanding their production, thus causing even more supply shortages and increasing our dependence on imports. This vicious cycle will persist—for as long as we

do not rationalize and align our trade policy with our sustainable food selfsufficiency objective.”

What President Marcos does with EO 171 will be a litmus test of his political will in prioritizing local food production over imports and his ability to rein in economic managers who are pursuing a different tack,” they said.

T he groups also urged the Presi dent to consider the plight of local farmers and fishers in view of the Philippines’s proposed membership in the Regional Comprehensive Eco nomic Partnership trade agreement.

“ Entry into any trade or eco nomic deal must be based on equal ity, reciprocity, mutual benefit and national interest.”

T hey asked the President to

“broaden and deepen” consultations and participative processes with farmers and other primary stake holders by the Department of Agri culture and other agencies dealing with the agro-fisheries sector. This will contribute to better for mulation, implementation and moni toring of policies and programs.”

G roups that signed the joint statement include the Agricul tural Sector Alliance of the Philip pines, Federation of Free Farmers, United Broiler Raisers Association, Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines Inc., Philippine Maize Federation, Alyansa Agrikultura, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipi nas, Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka, Philippine Egg Board Association.

PRODUCERS would need at least

35 percent of additional fresh water resources to meet the growing demand for food, according to the Food and Agriculture Organi zation (FAO) of the United Nations.

M anaging the earth’s stressed water resources is an imperative to produce the extra food required to feed an expanding population by mid-century, according to the participants of the Rome Water Dialogue held last November 29 in the lead-up to next year’s UN Water Conference.

T he dialogue is aimed at raising awareness of water’s role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), forging deeper links between the water sector and the largest wa ter user—the agriculture sector; developing innovative solutions and actions for the future; and discuss ing the National Water Roadmap, or country-owned strategic approach to achieving global commitments and SDGs at the national level.

“ By 2050, global production of food, fiber and feed will need to increase by 50 percent compared to 2012 levels to meet growing demands. Under a business-asusual scenario, this would mean at least 35 percent of additional freshwater resources,” said FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu, ad dressing the event.

Qu also said “integrated water resource management is a global priority for FAO.”

‘Unprecedented stress’

CLIMATE change is putting the world’s precious water resources un der unprecedented stress. According to FAO data, currently 2.3 billion people live in water-stressed coun tries, of whom more than 733 mil lion people—approximately 10 per cent of the global population—live in countries with high and critical water stress. This year has seen the climate’s impacts on water, with both record-breaking floods and droughts in many countries and regions.

A griculture relies on water, ac counting for 72 percent of global freshwater withdrawals, alongside other economic sectors, making it critical to the 2030 Agenda for Sus tainable Development.

W hile there is increasing aware ness of the importance of water for agriculture and sustainable develop ment, FAO has consistently argued there is still a need for more effective, integrated and coordinated actions, coupled with strong political will in recognizing, valuing and managing water in a holistic and integrated manner to achieve all the SDGs.

There have been several important events in the run-up to the UN 2023 Water Conference, including the Ninth World Water Forum held in March, the Second High Level International Conference on International Water Decade for Action “Water for Sustain able Development 2018-2028” in June, the High Level Political Forum and the Geneva Water Dialogue in July.

ASTUDY, which identified “knowledge hotspots” in In donesia and the Philippines, ranked the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) as the third most prolific rice research-producing insti tution in the two countries.

S creening and retrieving arti cles published from 2001 to 2021 on various topics and questions surrounding rice research, the re cently published article “Two de cades of rice research in Indonesia and the Philippines: A systematic review and research agenda for the social sciences,” reviewed 2243 rice-related articles cumulatively written by more than 6000 authors and published in over 900 scien tific journals.

T here were 160 institutions that contributed to the scholarly publica tions from the two countries, with researchers attached to universities and research organizations dominat ing the contributions.

P hilRice, an attached agency of the Department of Agricul ture, contributed 122 papers on a wide range of topics such as rice worms, hybrid rice, alternate wet ting-and-drying technology, and community development strate gies on rice production.

T he same article noted that former PhilRice consultant and national scientist Bienvenido Ju liano is among the most prolific authors or those with more than 10 published articles during the period covered.

PhilRice’s “impressive local and global collaborations,” as noted in the review, helped in enabling the institute to push for the rice research

FROM WWW.PHILRICE.GOV.PH

for development agenda.

T he paper “Effect of watersaving irrigation on rice yield and water use in typical lowland conditions in Asia,” published in Agricultural Water Management in 2004 has the most number of global citations. The authors were from the International Rice Research Institute, Wageningen University, Huazhong Agricul tural University, DA-PhilRice, and the Ministry of Water Resources (Beijing). Dr. Eduardo Jimmy P. Quilang, DA-PhilRice OIC director for research, is among the authors.

John C. de Leon, PhilRice ex

ecutive director, congratulated the institute’s researchers and devel opment workers for “sustaining the passion for scholarly discourse, publication, and collaboration in rice research for development [R4D] these recent 20 years.”

O verall, authors Ginbert P. Cu aton and Laurence L. Delina ob served a stark increase in the num ber of scholarly articles published from Indonesia and the Philippines. The increase was noticed in 2014 when the scholarly articles aver aged hundreds as opposed to just 57 from 2001 to 2013.

I n terms of subject areas, ag

riculture and biological sciences topped the list followed by bio chemistry, genetics, and molecu lar biology. There are a few studies conducted in the social sciences and humanities.

Cuaton and Delina, who are re searchers from the Hong Kong Uni versity of Science and Technology, chose to review articles from the two countries owing to their high volume of production and level of rice consumption.

T he review article appeared in a Springer Nature-published jour nal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.

FAO: At least 35% more freshwater needed to feed expanding population Study recognizes PhilRice as among major rice knowledge producers China’s

THE worsening spread of Covid in China could upend food and energy markets this winter by cutting demand at a time when con sumption typically rises.

Coal and gas usage is highly con tingent on industrial power demand, which will slow if the government continues to impose tighter restric tions that curtail factory activity.

Oil markets will take a hit as fewer people travel by road and air and less fuel is needed to transport goods.

C hina’s demand for cooking oils, meanwhile, is likely to stay weak as fewer customers frequent restaurants. That will hurt prices for commodities such as palm and soybean oil, especially ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday in January, usually a peak period for travel and consumption.

It’s a bleaker outlook for prices that runs counter to earlier optimism that China was preparing to exit the worst of its virus controls, after the government released a 20-point plan earlier this month refining its Covid Zero policies. At the same time, less industrial demand for power over the cold season will help prevent the outages that have blighted China’s economy during peak periods in

recent years—as long as the virus doesn’t overly disrupt the supply of coal, China’s mainstay fuel.

“ The frequent recurrence of Co vid outbreaks, and no significant change in the policy to control them, make it hard for demand to improve,” said Wang Xiaoyang, se nior analyst with Sinolink Futures. “This will weigh on commodities prices in coming months.”

A record number of virus cases has been accompanied by stunning scenes of public dissent across China, as citizens take issue with a Covid Zero strategy that has kept infec tions tiny by international standards but caused hardship and weakened

the economy. How Beijing responds is in the balance, with all eyes on whether the protests hasten the end, or entrench, President Xi Jinping’s signature policy.

S &P Global Commodity Insights expects Covid Zero to be main tained at least until mid-2023, said Lara Dong, a senior director at the research firm. Others, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have said there’s a chance the policy could end sooner, although the exit could be disorderly.

L ockdowns this year have al ready squeezed demand across a number of key commodities. China is the biggest importer of every

thing from oil to iron ore and soy beans, and purchases have slowed from the previous year’s levels as the economy has stumbled. The impact on power demand has been particularly marked.

Depressed demand

AFTER expanding by 10 percent in 2021, growth in power demand slowed in the first nine months to 4 percent, according to the China Electricity Council. S&P’s Dong said she expects demand growth of 4 percent in the fourth quarter as well, as weaker industrial consump tion undercuts the usual increase from heating homes and buildings over the winter.

Demand for natural gas is likely to be worst hit. Consumption, which is largely dependent on imports, is ex pected to drop this year for the first time in four decades amid soaring global prices and a tepid domestic economy. Cheaper domestic coal has taken up much of the slack as China has raised production to record levels to ensure its energy security.

But Covid outbreaks in major mining regions, especially Shanxi, have crimped coal output in recent months. That’s probably put the

high hit earlier this year of 12.89 million tons a day out of reach, al though production will “likely still stay above the government’s target of 12 million tons per day to ensure winter demand is met,” said Pat See Khoo, a senior analyst at S&P.

C hina’s persistence with lock downs is also expected to depress oil consumption through Chinese New Year. S&P director Fenglei Shi said she expects demand to decline sequen tially in both the fourth quarter and first quarter of 2023. Bloomberg News

stakeholders and farmers groups on Wednesday urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to stand firm on his commitment to shield farmers and fishers from cheap imports.

PHOTO

editorial

‘Gaslighting’ chosen as word of the year

The US dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster announced on Monday that their 2022 word of the year is “gaslighting,” which is defined as “psychological manipulation of a person usually over an extended period of time that causes the victim to question the validity of her own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one’s emotional or mental stability, and a dependency on the perpetrator.”

In this age of misinformation—of “fake news,” conspiracy theories, Twitter trolls, and deepfakes—gaslighting has emerged as a word for our time. Merriam-Webster said 2022 saw a 1,740 percent increase in lookups for gaslighting, with high interest throughout the year.

A driver of disorientation and mistrust, gaslighting is “the act or practice of grossly misleading someone especially for one’s own advantage.” The term comes from “Gaslight,” the title of a 1938 play and the movie based on that play, the plot of which involves a man attempting to make his wife believe that she is going insane. His mysterious activities in the attic cause the house’s gaslights to dim, but he insists to his wife that the lights are not dimming and that she can’t trust her own perceptions. When gaslighting was first used in the mid 20th century, it referred to a kind of deception like that in the movie.

In recent years, the meaning of gaslighting evolved into something simpler and broader: “The act or practice of grossly misleading someone, especially for a personal advantage.” In this use, the word is at home with other terms relating to modern forms of deception and manipulation, such as fake news.

The idea of a deliberate conspiracy to mislead has made gaslighting useful in describing lies that are part of a larger plan. Unlike lying, which tends to be between individuals, and fraud, which tends to involve organizations, gaslighting now applies in various contexts:

Patients who have felt that their symptoms were inappropriately dismissed as minor or primarily psychological by doctors are using the term “medical gaslighting” to describe their experiences and sharing their stories.—The New York Times, March 28, 2022. The “I’m sorry you feel that way” approach, along with avoiding an argument in lieu of admitting fault, is good old-fashioned gaslighting.—Psychology Today, March 29, 2022

My Committee’s investigation leaves no doubt that, in the words of one company official, Big Oil is “gaslighting” the public. These companies claim they are part of the solution to climate change, but internal documents reveal that they are continuing with business as usual.—Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, chairwoman of the US House Committee on Oversight and Reform, September 14, 2022.

In Russia, the truth became a matter of opinion under a gaslighting strategy implemented by Vladislav Surkov, a former aide to President Vladimir Putin. Surkov, who has a background in the arts, orchestrated a kind of political theater in Russia by dismantling democracy while enhancing its facade. For example, he funded civic forums and human rights NGOs. Then he would quietly support nationalist movements that accuse the NGOs of being tools of “the West,” removing all trust and sowing doubts about all of these organizations at the same time.

In 2017, a CNN opinion writer said President Donald Trump was “‘gaslighting’ all of us” after he denied making several statements he’d made in public. Frida Ghitis said: “After mimicking a disabled reporter and seeing the video used as evidence against him, Trump repeatedly denied it, claiming his opponents should be embarrassed to say he did. “I would NEVER mock disabled. Shame!” With the video easily available, Trump’s argument boiled down to “Who do you trust, me or your lying eyes?”Here’s the ultimate in gaslighting: At a special online summit on November 22, 2021 between leaders of China and Asean to commemorate 30 years of dialogue relations, Chinese President Xi Jinping assured Southeast Asian leaders that China does not seek hegemony and will not bully its smaller neighbors. But just days before the event, two Philippine boats headed for Ayungin Shoal with food supplies for our military forces were blocked and blasted with water by Chinese Coast Guard vessels. Recently, the Chinese coast guard forcibly seized floating debris being towed by the Philippine Navy. Gaslighting is a wicked tool generally used by abusers in relationships— and by world leaders that specialize in obfuscation and other forms of truthblurring techniques. The challenge for journalists covering them is how to keep up with all the facts all the time because a gaslighter can make it hard for everyone to find an easy path to the truth.

An economic ‘Brand Ambassador’

OUTSIDE THE BOX

Think of Michael Jordan and you think of the nike brand. in 1984, nike hoped to generate $3 million in “Jordan” sales over four years. it is reported that Michael Jordan makes five percent out of every Jordan Brand item sold, and nike generates $15 million revenue in Jordan Brand sales every day.

However, Nike wants to reach many different customers for their sports related products. Twentythree-year-old golfer Rory McIlroy from Ireland gets a cool $25 million a year for endorsing Nike polos, pants, shorts, and gear. Tennis superstar Rafael Nadal nets about $10 million a year, and American baseball player Derek Jeter is also getting $10 million.

Celebrity endorsements are based on the notion that you might respect a particular person’s opinion about a certain product that will cause you to try it. Theoretically, a beautiful young starlet with equally beautiful hair looks that way because of the shampoo she uses. You should use it too. It is not much different from Peter “Mr. Everest” Athans as the spokesman for The North Face climbing gear and equipment.

Companies need “brand ambassadors.” So do countries.

If asked to name a Prime Minister of England, probably the only name that comes to mind is Margaret Thatcher. She from 1979 and the Queen since the 1950s were the face of the UK. Think of Malaysia and Mahathir’s face pops up, as does Lee Kuan Yew for Singapore.

One term US president Jimmy Carter is remembered for the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Iranian taking of the US embassy and hostages, ordering the withdrawal of troops from South Korea, and tacit consent to the Chinese invasion of Vietnam in 1979. After he left the White House, his work for “Habitat for Humanity” gained the world’s respect for both him and the US.

It is unfortunate that the two most prominent Filipino “represen-

We need a person out there in the world talking about the business and economic potential of the country other than the President and more “human” than the typical member of the “Economic Team” as they are usually called and their too predictable “roadshows.”

tatives” on the world’s stage have nothing, if anything, good to say about the Philippines.

Yet, most national “Brand Ambassadors,” particularly national leaders, are looked at primarily as the face of their country’s foreign policy. An exception might be Aung San Suu Kyi who won the Nobel Peace prize for being Myanmar’s opposition leader and the “next day” critics called for her Nobel to be revoked, citing her silence as State Counselor over the persecution of Rohingya.

President Marcos’s recent foreign trips were characterized as favorable to attract foreign investment, which is true to some extent. But the reality is, that is a narrative for domestic consumption. No global headlines will ever note the potential of increased foreign investment because it does not affect them.

Both Thailand and South Korea made great inroads in helping to attract both investment and tourists

through the government-assisted private sector “food diplomacy” campaigns. Even the foreign experts —like the locals—are “confused” by the Philippine economy.

November 11, 2022: “Fitch estimated a 7.4 percent output for the domestic economy this year, higher than the 6.6 percent it previously projected. Fitch Solutions noted the strong domestic output in the third quarter, buoyed by the rise in fixed investments that rose by 21.7 percent year-on-year.”

November 20, 2022: “MUFG (Japan’s largest bank) sees Philippines growing by up to 8 percent in 2022.” November 24, 2022: “Moody’s Analytics said it lowered (by an insignificant amount) its 2022 growth estimate for the Philippines to 6.7 percent from 6.8 percent previously. November 29, 2022: “S&P Global Ratings raised its GDP growth forecast to 7.1 percent from the original target of 6.3 percent.”

We need a person out there in the world talking about the business and economic potential of the country other than the President and more “human” than the typical member of the “Economic Team” as they are usually called and their too predictable “roadshows.”

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis provided by AAA Southeast Equities Inc.

China vows crackdown on ‘hostile forces’ as public tests Xi

BeiJinG—China’s ruling Communist Party has vowed to “resolutely crack down on infiltration and sabotage activities by hostile forces,” following the largest street demonstrations in decades staged by citizens fed up with strict anti-virus restrictions.

The statement from the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission released late Tuesday comes amid a massive show of force by security services to deter a reoccurrence of the protests that broke out over the weekend in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and several other cities.

While it did not directly address the protests, the statement serves as a reminder of the party’s determination to enforce its rule.

Hundreds of SUVs, vans and armored vehicles with flashing lights were parked along city streets Wednesday while police and paramilitary forces conducted random ID checks and searched people’s mobile phones for photos, banned apps or other potential evidence that they had taken part in the demonstrations.

The number of people who have been detained at the demonstrations and in follow-up police actions is not known.

The commission’s statement, issued after an expanded session Mon-

day presided over by its head Chen Wenqing, a member of the party’s 24-member Politburo, said the meeting aimed to review the outcomes of October’s 20th party congress.

At that event, Xi granted himself a third five-year term as secretary general, potentially making him China’s leader for life, while stacking key bodies with loyalists and eliminating opposing voices.

“The meeting emphasized that political and legal organs must take effective measures to…resolutely safeguard national security and social stability,” the statement said.

“We must resolutely crack down on infiltration and sabotage activities by hostile forces in accordance with the law, resolutely crack down on illegal and criminal acts that disrupt social order and effectively maintain overall social stability,” it said.

Yet, less than a month after seemingly ensuring his political future and unrivaled dominance, Xi, who has signaled he favors regime sta-

Beijing’s Tsinghua University, where students protested over the weekend, and other schools in the capital and the southern province of Guangdong sent students home in an apparent attempt to defuse tensions.

Chinese leaders are wary of universities, which have been hotbeds of activism including the Tiananmen protests.

bility above all, is facing his biggest public challenge yet.

He and the party have yet to directly address the unrest, which spread to college campuses and the semi-autonomous southern city of Hong Kong, as well as sparking sympathy protests abroad.

Most protesters focused their ire on the “zero-Covid” policy that has placed millions under lockdown and quarantine, limiting their access to food and medicine while ravaging the economy and severely restricting travel. Many mocked the government’s ever-changing line of reasoning, as well as claims that “hostile outside foreign forces” were stirring the wave of anger.

Yet bolder voices called for greater

freedom and democracy and for Xi, China’s most powerful leader in decades, as well as the party he leads, to step down—speech considered subversive and punishable with lengthy prison terms. Some held up blank pieces of white paper to demonstrate their lack of free speech rights.

The weekend protests were sparked by anger over the deaths of at least 10 people in a fire on November 24 in China’s far west that prompted angry questions online about whether firefighters or victims trying to escape were blocked by anti-virus controls.

Authorities eased some controls and announced a new push to vaccinate vulnerable groups after the demonstrations, but maintained they would stick to the “zero-Covid” strategy.

The party had already promised last month to reduce disruptions, but a spike in infections swiftly prompted party cadres under intense pressure to tighten controls in an effort to prevent outbreaks. The National Health Commission on Wednesday reported 37,612 cases detected over the previous 24 hours, while the death toll remained unchanged at 5,233.

John Mangun

San Francisco will allow police to deploy robots that kill Cybercrimes and Data Privacy Act

By Janie Har | The Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO—Supervisors in San Francisco voted Tuesday to give city police the ability to use potentially lethal, remote-controlled robots in emergency situations—following an emotionally charged debate that reflected divisions on the politically liberal board over support for law enforcement.

The vote was 8-3, with the majority agreeing to grant police the option despite strong objections from civil liberties and other police oversight groups. Opponents said the authority would lead to the further militarization of a police force already too aggressive with poor and minority communities.

Supervisor Connie Chan, a member of the committee that forwarded the proposal to the full board, said she understood concerns over use of force but that “according to state law, we are required to approve the use of these equipment. So here we are, and it’s definitely not an easy discussion.”

The San Francisco Police Department said it does not have pre-armed robots and has no plans to arm robots with guns. But the department could deploy robots equipped with explosive charges “to contact, incapacitate, or disorient violent, armed, or dangerous suspect” when lives are at stake, SFPD spokesperson Allison Maxie said in a statement.

“Robots equipped in this manner would only be used in extreme circumstances to save or prevent further loss of innocent lives,” she said.

Supervisors amended the proposal Tuesday to specify that officers could use robots only after using alternative force or de-escalation tactics, or concluding they would not be able to subdue the suspect through those alternative means. Only a limited number of high-ranking officers could authorize use of robots as a deadly force option.

San Francisco police currently have a dozen functioning ground robots used to assess bombs or provide eyes in low visibility situations, the department says. They were acquired between 2010 and 2017, and not once have they been used to deliver an explosive device, police officials said.

But explicit authorization was required after a new California law went into effect this year requiring police and sheriffs departments to inventory military-grade equipment and seek approval for their use.

The state law was authored last year by San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu while he was an assembly member. It is aimed at giving the public a forum and voice in the acquisition and use of military-grade weapons that have a negative effect on communities, according to the legislation.

A federal program has long dispensed grenade launchers, camouflage uniforms, bayonets, armored vehicles and other surplus military equipment to help local law enforcement.

In 2017, then-President Donald Trump signed an order reviving the Pentagon program after his predecessor, Barack Obama, curtailed it in 2015, triggered in part by outrage over the use of military gear

The San Francisco Police Department said it does not have prearmed robots and has no plans to arm robots with guns. But the department could deploy robots equipped with explosive charges “to contact, incapacitate, or disorient violent, armed, or dangerous suspect” when lives are at stake, SFPD spokesperson Allison Maxie said in a statement.

during protests in Ferguson, Missouri, after the shooting death of Michael Brown.

San Francisco police said late Tuesday that no robots were obtained from military surplus, but some were purchased with federal grant money.

Like many places around the US, San Francisco is trying to balance public safety with treasured civilian rights such as privacy and the ability to live free of excessive police oversight. In September, supervisors agreed to a trial run allowing police to access in real time private surveillance camera feeds in certain circumstances.

Debate on Tuesday ran more than two hours with members on both sides accusing the other of reckless fear mongering.

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who voted in favor of the policy authorization, said he was troubled by rhetoric painting the police department as untrustworthy and dangerous.

“I think there’s larger questions raised when progressives and progressive policies start looking to the public like they are anti-police,” he said. “I think that is bad for progressives. I think it’s bad for this Board of Supervisors. I think it’s bad for Democrats nationally.”

Board President Shamann Walton, who voted against the proposal, pushed back, saying it made him not anti-police, but “pro people of color.”

“We continuously are being asked to do things in the name of increasing weaponry and opportunities for negative interaction between the police department and people of color,” he said. “This is just one of those things.”

The San Francisco Public Defender’s office sent a letter Monday to the board saying that granting police “the ability to kill community members remotely” goes against the city’s progressive values. The office wanted the board to reinstate language barring police from using robots against any person in an act of force.

On the other side of the San Francisco Bay, the Oakland Police Department has dropped a similar proposal after public backlash.

The first time a robot was used to deliver explosives in the US was in 2016, when Dallas police sent in an armed robot that killed a holed-up sniper who had killed five officers in an ambush.

Beijing’s Tsinghua University, where students protested over the weekend, and other schools in the capital and the southern province of Guangdong sent students home in an apparent attempt to defuse tensions. Chinese leaders are wary of universities, which have been hotbeds of activism including the Tiananmen protests.

Police appeared to be trying to keep their crackdown out of sight, possibly to avoid encouraging others by drawing attention to the scale of the protests. Videos and posts on Chinese social media about protests were deleted by the party’s vast online censorship apparatus.

“Zero-Covid” has helped keep case numbers lower than those of the United States and other major countries, but global health experts including the head of the World Health Organization increasingly say

Dennis gorecho

Kuwentong Kule

The cyberspace is a boon to the need of the current generation for greater information and facility of communication.

It is a system that accommodates millions and billions of simultaneous and ongoing individual accesses to and uses of the Internet.

But all is not well with the system since it could not filter out a number of persons of ill will who would want to use cyberspace technology for mischiefs and crimes.

The Supreme Court noted in the case of Disini  v.  Secretary of Justice  (GR 203335 February 11, 2014) that there are also those ill-motivated who can use the cyberspace, like vandals, to wreak or cause havoc by sending electronic viruses or virtual dynamites that destroy those computer systems, networks, programs, and memories.

Cybercrime is criminal activity that either targets or uses a computer, a computer network or a networked device.

Cybercriminals or hackers who want to make money commit most of the cybercrime. However, occasionally, cybercrime aims to damage computers or networks for reasons other than profit. These could be political or personal.

Episode 15 of Extraordinary Attorney Woo series of Netflix involved a case of spear phishing wherein the personal data of around 80 percent

of Korean citizens have been stolen from Raon, an online shopping site’s database.

Raon’s computer system was targeted by the malware attack undetectable by anti-malware software because of its format being in a .doc file.

The company is facing a 300 billion won surcharge due to their failure to safeguard the personal data of customers.

The culprit later turned out to be the son of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Taesan law office, which is the rival of Attorney-Woo’s Handaba law firm.

This episode essentially is the scenario used during the workshop of the recent conference organized by the National Association of Data Protection Officers of the Philippines (NADPOP).

“As the world emerges from the pandemic, the incidence of data breaches and cybercrimes will continue to increase as most businesses and individuals were forced to go online,” Sam Jacoba, NADPOP Founding President, said as he called on the

Sam Jacoba,

President,

public and private sectors to work together to uplift the Data Protection profession in the Philippines.

Republic Act 10173 or the Data Privacy Act was passed  in 2012 that aimed to “(1) protect the privacy of individuals while ensuring free flow of information to promote innovation and growth; (2) regulate the collection, recording, organization, storage, updating or modification, retrieval, consultation, use, consolidation, blocking, erasure or destruction of personal data.

The act states that the collection of personal data “must be a declared, specified, and legitimate purpose” and further provides that consent is required prior to the collection of all personal data.

The law requires a data breach notification within 72 hours upon knowledge of the breach or reasonable belief that it has occurred to the National Privacy Commission and the data subject.

The notification is generally required when the breach involves sensitive personal information or any other information that may be used to enable identity fraud; this

information has been acquired by an unauthorized person; and the acquisition is likely to give rise to a real risk of serious harm to the affected data subject.

The law provides for criminal sanctions for violations of its provisions composed of fines ranging from P100,000 to P5,000,000 (about $2,400 to $123,450) and/or imprisonment ranging from 6 months up to 7 years.

Separate counts exist for unauthorized processing, processing for unauthorized purposes, negligent access, improper disposal, unauthorized access or intentional breach, concealment of breach involving sensitive personal information, unauthorized disclosure, and malicious disclosure.

Individuals or “any aggrieved party” may also file civil actions for restitution in court based on the general provisions of the Civil Code (in particular, parties may invoke “abuse of rights” provisions, meddling in privacy and/or quasi-delicts provisions).

The NPC has recently set a ceiling of P5 million on fines imposed on data privacy violators.

Specifically, an administrative fine may be imposed based on the annual gross income of entities like the personal information controllers or personal information processors within the range of 0.25 percent to 3 percent for grave violations and 0.25 percent to 2 percent for major violations.

Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho heads the seafarers’ division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan law offices. For comments, e-mail info@sapalovelez.com, or call 0917-5025808 or 0908-8665786.

Twitter ends enforcement of Covid misinformation policy

By David Klepper | The Associated Press

TwITTeR will no longer enforce its policy against Covid-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts and social-media researchers that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus.

Eagle-eyed users spotted the change Monday night, noting that a one-sentence update had been made to Twitter’s online rules: “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the Covid-19 misleading information policy.”

By Tuesday, some Twitter accounts were testing the new boundaries and celebrating the platform’s hands-off approach, which comes after Twitter was purchased by Elon Musk.

“This policy was used to silence people across the world who questioned the media narrative surrounding the virus and treatment options,” tweeted Dr. Simone Gold, a physician and leading purveyor of Covid-19 misinformation. “A win for free speech and medical freedom!”

Twitter’s decision to no longer remove false claims about the safety of Covid-19 vaccines disappointed public health officials, however, who said it could lead to more false claims about the virus, or the safety and effectiveness of vaccines.

“Bad news,” tweeted epidemiologist Eric Feigl-Ding, who urged people not to flee Twitter but to keep up the fight against bad information about the virus. “Stay folks—do NOT cede the town square to them!”

While Twitter’s efforts to stop false claims about Covid weren’t

it is unsustainable. China dismissed the remarks as irresponsible.

Beijing needs to make its approach “very targeted” to reduce economic disruption, the head of the International Monetary Fund told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday.

“We see the importance of moving away from massive lockdowns,” said IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva in Berlin. “So that targeting allows to contain the spread of Covid without significant economic costs.”

perfect, the company’s decision to reverse course is an abdication of its duty to its users, said Paul Russo, a social media researcher and dean of the Katz School of Science and Health at Yeshiva University in New York.

Russo added that it’s the latest of several recent moves by Twitter that could ultimately scare away some users and even advertisers. Some big names in business have already paused their ads on Twitter over questions about its direction under Musk.

“It is 100 percent the responsibility of the platform to protect its users from harmful content,” Russo said. “This is absolutely unacceptable.”

The virus, meanwhile, continues to spread. Nationally, new Covid cases averaged nearly 38,800 a day as of Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University—far lower than last winter but a vast undercount because of reduced testing and reporting. About 28,100 people with Covid were hospitalized daily and about 313 died, according to the most recent federal daily averages.

Cases and deaths were up from two weeks earlier. Yet a fifth of the US population hasn’t been vaccinated, most Americans haven’t gotten the latest boosters, and many have stopped wearing masks.

Musk, who has himself spread

Economists and health experts, however, warn that Beijing can’t relax controls that keep most travelers out of China until tens of millions of older people are vaccinated. They say that means “zero-Covid” might not end for as much as another year.

On Wednesday, US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns said restrictions were, among other things, making it impossible for US diplomats to meet with American prisoners being held in China, as is mandated

Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House Covid-19 coordinator, said Tuesday that the problem of Covid-19 misinformation is far larger than one platform, and that policies prohibiting Covid misinformation weren’t the best solution anyway.

Covid misinformation on Twitter, has signaled an interest in rolling back many of the platform’s previous rules meant to combat misinformation.

Last week, Musk said he would grant “amnesty” to account holders who had been kicked off Twitter. He’s also reinstated the accounts for several people who spread Covid misinformation, including that of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose personal account was suspended this year for repeatedly violating Twitter’s Covid rules.

Greene’s most recent tweets include ones questioning the effectiveness of masks and making baseless claims about the safety of Covid vaccines.

Since the pandemic began, platforms like Twitter and Facebook have struggled to respond to a torrent of misinformation about the virus, its origins and the response to it.

Under the policy enacted in January 2020, Twitter prohibited false claims about Covid-19 that the platform determined could lead to realworld harms. More than 11,000 accounts were suspended for violating the rules, and nearly 100,000 pieces of content were removed from the platform, according to Twitter’s latest numbers.

Despite its rules prohibiting Covid

by international treaty. Because of a lack of commercial airline routes into the country, the Embassy has to use monthly charter flights to move its personnel in and out.

“Covid is really dominating every aspect of life” in China, he said in an online discussion with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

On the protests, Burns said the embassy was observing their progress and the government’s response, but said, “We believe the Chinese people have a right to protest peacefully.”

misinformation, Twitter has struggled with enforcement. Posts making bogus claims about home remedies or vaccines could still be found, and it was difficult on Tuesday to identify exactly how the platform’s rules may have changed.

Messages left with San Franciscobased Twitter seeking more information about its policy on Covid-19 misinformation were not immediately returned Tuesday.

A search for common terms associated with Covid misinformation on Tuesday yielded lots of misleading content, but also automatic links to helpful resources about the virus as well as authoritative sources like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House Covid-19 coordinator, said Tuesday that the problem of Covid-19 misinformation is far larger than one platform, and that policies prohibiting Covid misinformation weren’t the best solution anyway.

Speaking at a Knight Foundation forum Tuesday, Jha said misinformation about the virus spread for a number of reasons, including legitimate uncertainty about a deadly illness. Simply prohibiting certain kinds of content isn’t going to help people find good information, or make them feel more confident about what they’re hearing from their medical providers, he said.

“I think we all have a collective responsibility,” Jha said of combating misinformation about Covid. “The consequences of not getting this right—of spreading that misinformation—is literally tens of thousands of people dying unnecessarily.”

“They have a right to make their views known. They have a right to be heard. That’s a fundamental right around the world. It should be. And that right should not be hindered with, and it shouldn’t be interfered with,” he said.

Burns also referenced instances of Chinese police harassing and detaining foreign reporters covering the protests.

“We support freedom of the press as well as freedom of speech,” he said. AP

“As the world emerges from the pandemic, the incidence of data breaches and cybercrimes will continue to increase as most businesses and individuals were forced to go online,”

NADPOP Founding

said as he called on the public and private sectors to work together to uplift the Data Protection profession in the Philippines.

‘STAY VIGILANT VS SOCIAL ILLS, THREATS TO LIBERTY’

PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bong bong” Marcos Jr. called on the Filipinos to remain vigilant in protecting the country from “social ills and other elements that threaten our liberties.”

The shackles that once held our forebears may no longer constrain us, but we must remain vigilant in protecting our country from social ills and other elements that threat en our liberties. I call on my fellow Filipinos to honor Bonifacio’s life of extraordinary selflessness by becoming dutiful and law-abiding citizens who will contribute to wards a brighter and freer future for all Filipinos,” Marcos said in a separate statement on Wednesday.

In his speech at the 159th Birth Anniversary of Philippine national hero Andres Bonifacio in a wreathlaying ceremony held at the Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan City, Marcos underscored that it is the duty of every Filipino to uphold the freedom and in dependence that the country’s national heroes including Bonifacio fought for.  Bonifacio was the founder of the Katipunan, who led the rebellion against Spain—Philippines’s former colonizer. He is called the “Father of the Philippine Revolution.”

“Kaya’t hinihikayat ko ang aking mga kapwa Pilipino na patuloy na parangalan si Bonifacio at ang lahat ng mga bayan ing Pilipino, kilala man o hindi, na nagalay ng kanilang buhay upang matiyak ang Kalayaan at pagkakakilanlan na siyang ipinagmamalaki natin ngayon,” Marcos said on Wednesday.

“Bilang mga tagapagmana ng kalay aang kanilang ipinaglaban, tungkulin

natin bilang mga Pilipino na panatili hing buhay ang diwa ng kanilang mga layunin at siguruhing mapayapa, ma laya, at masagana ang ating sambay anan,” the President added.

I n following Bonifacio’s legacies, Marcos said every Filipino can be a hero in his or her own way. He also hailed the country’s modern-day he roes such as the doctors and overseas Filipino workers.

“Magagawa po natin ito sapagkat katuwang natin ang ating mga mak abagong bayani—ang ating mga dok tor, mga nars, mga sundalo, mga pulis OFWs, at ang bawat Juan at Juana— na buong pusong naglilingkod para sa kapwa,” the chief executive said.

“Sama-sama nating harapin ang mga hamon ng panahon ngayon nang may pagmamahal sa bayan, determinasyon, tapang, [at] karangalan upang maita guyod natin ang isang Pilipinas na tunay na nais natin ipagmalaki,” Marcos added.

He enjoined the Filipinos to be “the best kind of themselves” and imitate the loyalty and patrio tism of Bonifacio.

According to the Office of the Press Secretary, the president was joined by other government officials includ ing House Speaker Martin Romual dez, National Historical Commission Chairman Rene Escalante, members of the Senate and the Diplomatic Corps, Armed Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Bartolome Vicente Bacarro, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Police Gen eralRodolfoAzurinJr.,PhilippineCoast Guard Commandant Admiral Artemio Abu, Caloocan Rep. Oscar Malapitan and Caloocan City Mayor Dale Gonzalo G. Malapitan. Andrea E. San Juan

Shipping, logistics infra woes hinge on trade needs

By Andrea E. San Juan

her presentation that the country’s exporters and importers pay an ad ditional feeder transport and repo sitioning costs of empty containers, contrary to other countries that are hub ports or that have a lot of exports.

Since Philippine trade is small, she said mother vessels don’t come to the country. Import and export goods are brought in and out of the Philippines on foreign-operated shipping feeder ships.

economy.”

M agsaysay-Ho also revealed the reason behind the high land logis tics costs. She said “our export pro cessing zones are located in [Phil ippine Economic Zone Authority] PEZAs that are often far away from ports. Ports are designed without needed logistics hubs around them.”

W ith these challenges, the offi cial of the major shipping firm laid out the proposed infrastructure so lutions for export and import trade.

D oris Magsaysay-Ho, CEO of Magsaysay Group of Companies, underscored that trade dictates the port infrastructure.

“ It is important to design the country’s shipping and logistics infrastructure around the needs of both import/export and for in terisland trades. The port design should address the needs of trade, if exports require containerized ser vices, a cold chain, liquid cargoes, bulk or other infrastructure,” Mag saysay-Ho presented on Wednesday during the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA)’s Logistics Forum 2022.

S he emphasized that in solving the country’s logistics infrastruc ture woes, these two factors must be considered: “what is that trade and what is the need of that trade.”

M agsaysay-Ho cited the Port of Rotterdam in Netherlands as an ex

ample, which she said is the gateway to Europe. “In that port, they have all kinds: container port, even ports for liquids, all the juices that enter Europe go there and those ports are not container ports, they are big depots for juice, milk…So we have to remember that trade dictates the port infrastructure.”

Feeder economy

MEANWHILE , Magsaysay-Ho pointed out that the Philippines is a “feeder economy,” since the country’s economy is driven by consumption and has little outgo ing trade.

“ In terms of our import and ex port trade, our trade in the Philip pines is driven by consumption, we are not exporting, we have very little manufacturing,” she stressed.  M agsaysay-Ho also revealed in

Magsaysay-Ho stressed that the lack of focus on building the country’s manufacturing and agricultural ex ports these past decades has resulted in an imbalance of trade, so contain ers arrive full and leave empty.

So because we have very little outgoing trade, so for every 10 boxes that come to the Philippines, 4 may go back full, the rest are empty and that’s why they all get stuck. No body wants to come here because they don’t want their containers stuck in the Philippines,” Magsay say-Ho said.

T he official of the major shipping firm highlighted that being a feeder economy, the Philippines needs to have scale if it aims to make exports and imports more cost-efficient. She cited Vietnam as an example, which she said is “determined to manufacture at scale because their goal is to get out of being a feeder

DOT-TPB hopeful for more Japanese tourists

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo @akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

THE Philippine tourism agen cies are wooing travel buyers in Osaka and Tokyo to boost arrivals of Japanese tourists in the Philippines.

I n a Viber message, Tour ism Promotions Board (TPB) COO Maria Margarita Montemayor Nograles told the BusinessMir ror , “We are sending the message that the Philippines warmly wel comes our Japanese friends, and we are giving them a preview of our exciting new tourism products, which they can fully enjoy in a safe, healthy space.”

T he TPB and the Department of Tourism (DOT) are conducting an ongoing tourism business mission, which started on November 28 and will last until December 4. The TPB is the marketing arm of the DOT.

Nograles underscored the im portance of the tourism business mission: “Prior to the pandemic, Japan was our fourth largest source market for tourists, and now that we are in the new normal, we hope their tourists can push their way to the top of the market.”

I n 2019, the Philippines received 682,788 tourists from Japan, ac counting for some 8.2 percent of the historic-high 8.3-million ar rivals that year. From February 10 to November 14 this year, tourists from Japan are in sixth place among the major tourist markets with ar rivals at 75,564, representing just 3.7 percent of the 2.03-million total arrivals for the period.

60 sellers to meet 120 buyers

ASIDE from Nograles, also leading the Philippine delegation is DOT Undersecretary for Administration and Finance Shereen Gail C. YuPamintuan. They will be joined by some 60 Philippine sellers such as hotels, resorts, and airlines.

I n a news statement, the TPB said the tourism business mission in Japan is an annual program that

serves as a platform for the coun try’s travel and tourism suppliers to meet with their Japanese coun terparts to initiate and strengthen business partnerships.

T his year’s event will include a Philippine seminar to introduce and update the Japanese travel trade on significant developments in Philippine tourism; Businessto-Business (B2B) meetings with a targeted 120 Japanese buyers; and a Philippine reception to serve as a venue for additional business net working.

Now in its 14th year, “the Phil ippine business mission  aims to generate sales leads, secure busi ness deals, and gather important market intelligence for sustained and effective marketing efforts,” said Nograles.

Saudi opportunities

MEANWHILE , Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said her agency is targeting to train some 100,000 Filipino tourism workers for 2023. She made this announce ment at the ongoing 22nd World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit Global Leaders’ Dialogue in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. No other details were made available.

A ccording to the DOT’s Facebook page, Frasco also attended a bilat eral meeting with her counterpart, Saudi Vice Minister of Tourism HH Princess Haifa Al Saud, where they discussed opportunities and poten tial areas of cooperation to advance both countries’ tourism sectors.

From February 10 to November 14, there were 8,902 tourists from Saudi who arrived in the Philip pines. The DOT considers the Mid dle East an opportunity market, and has been participating in the Arabian Travel Market regularly.

Earlier, the DOT identified the need to train more Arabic speakers and establish halal restaurants to at tract Middle East travelers to the Philippines. (See, “‘Arabic speak ers, halal food key to attracting more Mideast tourists’,” in the BusinessMirror , May 8, 2019.)

A mong the solutions is to urge the government “to improve the vital performance of ports with a ‘whole of government’ working on solutions outside the port.” Mag saysay-Ho said international ports in Luzon including International Container Terminals Services, Inc. (ICTSI) have made “significant” investments and contribute “valu able” revenue to government.

A nother solution she proposed is to pattern the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)’s plans to devel op industry clusters after achieving economies of scale, particularly to: “attract the ecosystem of suppliers when they serve more than one cus tomer; create opportunities to invest in production of part of the supply and value chain; and lower the cost of shipping and logistics and other costs because of scale.”  Continued on A2

ARTA bares red tape busters for logistics sector

THE Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) launched on Tuesday reforms for the logistics and supply chain sector.

A mong the reforms was the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) on addressing the port congestion in Matnog, Sorsogon.

A ccording to ARTA Director General Ernesto V. Perez, the pur pose of the said JMC is to “reduce congestion, particularly in the queuing, marshalling, loading, and embarkation of passengers and roll ing cargoes.”

A nother objective of the circular, he said, is to ensure the efficient delivery of government services in the Port of Matnog and address rampant fixing activities in the immediate vicinity of the Port of Matnog.

A s part of addressing the con gestion in the said port, the antired tape watchdog bared some of the salient features of the JMC, including streamlining and auto mating processes through a onestop shop (OSS).

A RTA said this OSS will include an “online portal for the stake holders to enable advance reser vation and payment for a ticket in advance of their arrival at the port.” The Authority said the pay ment shall be made through the online portal.

A s for the bundling of fees, ARTA said “no separate payments need be made, as the price of the ticket shall already be inclusive of all relevant fees such as the Rollon/Roll-off (RORO) Terminal Fee, Passenger Terminal Build ing (PTB) fee, Local Government Unit (LGU) fees, and other related processes.”

Under the OSS, ARTA said there is also “the implementation of a single window in relation to the queuing and pre-marshalling pro cedures and other related verifica tion and confirmatory processes.”

AMAJOR shipping firm said it is important to take into consideration the needs of both import and export and inter-island trades in solving the country’s shipping and logistics infrastructure woes.

Ayala, Taiwan’s Gogoro aim to hasten PHL shift to EVs

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

Director, said in a statement.

“In addition, because of the Swap & Go technology that enables riders to be fully charged in just seconds, we hope Gogoro will also help address hesitations surrounding charging electric vehicles and even finding parking slots. hopefully, this technology will encourage more Filipinos to switch to eV.”

In Taiwan, Gogoro currently has over 11,000 battery swapping GoStations at more than 2,260 locations.

With over 1 million batteries in circulation the number of GoStations has already surpassed the number of gas stations in Taiwan’s major cities, making Gogoro battery swapping the de facto standard for electric twowheel refueling in Taiwan.

The United States, through the US Trade and Development a gency (USTDa), wants to work with homegrown firm NOW Telecom Co. Inc. (NowTel) for the deployment of 5G technologies in the Philippines.

Globe Telecom Inc. said its venture builder 917Ventures and ayala Corp. (aC) teamed up to “pilot” in metro m a nila Gogoro’s Smartscooters, which “will serve as an eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuel-powered vehicles currently used by the logistics and last-mile delivery industry.”

Gogoro Smartscooters are powered by Gogoro’s battery swapping platform through conveniently lo-

cated swap stations, where users can quickly swap depleted batteries for fully-charged ones in seconds.

This is expected to be launched within the first quarter of 2023.

“We are committed to help address the climate crisis by introducing Gogoro to logistics businesses, helping them in their sustainability efforts,” Vince y a mat, 917Ventures m a naging

aC head of Business Development and Innovation Jaime a lfonso Zobel de ayala said this initiative is the group’s support to the Department of energy’s (DOe) thrust to transition towards cleaner technologies.

“We are excited to contribute to a high-quality consortium focused on enhancing mobility through sustainable solutions, which aligns with our broader decarbonization and digital transformation ambitions,” he said.

The Gogoro Network has more than 520,000 riders that perform more than 370,000 battery swaps per day.

“Gogoro is honored to have the support of the Philippine’s Department of energy and the Department of Trade and Industry to kickstart this new smart mobility movement in manila that utilizes Gogoro’s intelligent battery swapping, a new generation of eV refueling,” said horace Luke, founder and CeO of Gogoro.

Aboitiz BESS starts operations

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

Therma marine Inc., a subsidiary of aboitiz Power Corp. (a boitizPower), announced on Wednesday the start of the commercial operations of its first battery energy storage system (BeSS).

Located in maco, Davao de Oro, Therma marine said the 49-megawatt (m W ) BeSS is “the first of its kind in Southeast a sia to be built on a floating platform.” This, it added, is a model for future battery investments and hybrid renewable energy projects.

aboitizPower sees battery technology as a great opportunity to address concerns about the reliability, affordability, and sustainability of energy supply,” aboitizPower President and CeO manny rubio said. “We respond to the needs of our customers and communities while supporting economic growth by ensuring the stability of the grid.”

The maco facility is among 12 projects with a total capacity of 248 m W for regulating and contingency reserves that aboitizPower is targeting to develop within this decade.

a Be S S is a type of energy storage that uses a set of batteries to

store electrical energy when there is a supply surplus in the Grid and released when customers need power the most. The B e S S will complement T m I ’s existing diesel engines by providing ancillary services to sustain the transmission capacity and energy that are essential in maintaining the power quality, reliability, and security of the m i ndanao grid.

a nother aboitizPower BeSS project under SN aboitiz Power Group (SNa P) is the 24-m W magat BeSS project at the SNa P magat hydroelectric power plant in r amon, Isabela. The magat BeSS began construction

last august and is expected to start commercial operations in the first quarter of 2024.

In addition to its entry into the battery market, a b oitizPower’s growth strategy in the next decade will also be significantly driven by renewable energy.

In the next 10 years, the company will significantly expand its Cleanergy portfolio, in support of the government’s efforts to promote renewable energy in the country. It vowed to build an additional 3,700 m W of renewable energy, growing its existing Cleanergy capacity threefold by 2030.

This is included in new initiatives of Washington, particularly with regards to upskilling and the digital economy, which are meant to strengthen its economic and investment relationship with its Philippine counterpart.

No less than US Vice President Kamala harris launched these undertakings when she visited the country last November 20 to 22.

“These efforts will provide faster and more reliable digital services and increased broadband internet access for Filipinos countrywide,” said the Fact Sheet released by White house in relation to this matter.

Both nations enjoy long-time friendship, partnership, and alliance—thanks to their strong and deep historical, economic and cultural ties.

The recent three-day trip of the a m erican Vice President to the Philippines reaffirmed the bilateral bond between the two countries, spurring cooperation on various issues, including advancing clean

energy, addressing the climate crisis, promoting inclusive growth and innovation, increasing access to quality education and health resources, combating trafficking in persons, facing common security challenges, supporting freedom of the seas, and deepening people-topeople ties.

Publicly-listed company NOW Corp. has confirmed that its affiliate, NowTel, has been engaged with this collaborative work.

In addition to the White house’s Fact Sheet, the firm said that it will make appropriate and prompt disclosures of material events and further developments.

NowTel has the license to operate nationwide mobile telephony services not specific to 3G, meaning including 5G and Satellite direct to mobile devices, homes and enterprises.

The a nti-red Tape authority, in its resolution dated march 31, 2022, reiterated its earlier resolution declaring the completeness of NowTel’s application for provisional authority to operate cellular mobile telephone service in the 220 mhz frequency range from 1970 mhz to 1980 mhz paired with 2160 mhz to 2170 mhz and 3.6 Ghz to 3.8 Ghz, including 5G frequencies for mobile and fixed wireless. Roderick L. Abad

The National e lectrification a d ministration (N e a ) announced on Wednesday the appointments of key officials of Isabela electric Cooperative (ISeLCO).

Ne a ad ministrator a ntonio ma riano C. a lmeda said the Board of administrators approved the appointments of atty. Oswaldo Gabat of the Ne a Legal Services Office as the new Project Supervisor of ISeLCO I and ISeLCO II and atty. Karen a buan as the acting General ma nager of ISeLCO I. a l meda said his office followed proper and fair selection process and that their appointments were in compliance with the agency’s rules and guidelines in selecting the most competent officials. he said his office is committed to drive sustainable rural development in the country through creating and maintaining high-performing electric cooperatives.

To achieve this, the Ne a chief is soliciting as well the cooperation and support of the electric cooperatives and the different organizations in the electric distribution industry and various consumer groups for a more effective and efficient service to the consumer public. a l meda took his oath of office before energy Secretary r aphael Lotilla last November 17. he served as the deputy executive director of the Joint Congressional energy Commission, formerly known as the Joint Congressional Power Commission, the country’s primary watchdog in the power sector. Lenie Lectura

By VG Cabuag @villygc

Are I T Inc. is planning to diversify into shopping malls, and other assets other than office buildings as part of its plan to acquire properties worth about P30 billion to P45 billion over the next three years.

In its disclosure, the real estate investment trust ( r e I T) of property developer a y ala Land Inc. said it plans to continue to grow its portfolio of assets at an average of 100,000 square meters of gross leasable area every year starting next year through 2025.

“While focus will continue to be on the resilient office sector, a r eit will consider acquiring freehold and other asset classes such as the malls, logistics and industrial properties to diversify investor risk,” the company said in its three-year plan submitted to the regulators.

a r eit said this will increase its assets under management at P10 billion to P15 billion annually.

The firm said it aims to maintain its leadership in the Philippine r e I T sector in terms of asset size and market capitalization.

In 2020, the company said it is targeting to double its assets under management from P30 billion to P60 billion two years from its initial public offering.

To date, the company has P53 billion in assets and post infusion of the Cebu assets via a property for shares swap. It is projected to increase its portfolio to 673,000 square meters and reach P64 billion upon approval of the asset for shares swap by the Securities and e x change Commission.

“a r eit’s future acquisitions will ensure its very stable cashflow profile is preserved from long-term leases and minimal expiries in the next three years. Typical office lease terms are fixed for a period of five to ten years and renewable for another five to 10 years,” it said.

a r eit also plans to grow and diversify its asset portfolio in terms of sector, location and income contribution, funded through leverage and equity.

“The company will continue to demonstrate yield accretive acquisitions and ensure borrowings are within the aggregate

maximum leverage limit of 35 percent of deposited property value,” the company said.

It will continue to expand its portfolio of quality commercial assets, but will also diversify into other asset classes, such as shopping malls, given the recovery and reopening of the economy.

a r eit said it intends to fund future acquisitions through a combination of debt and equity. a t current gearing ratio of 6 percent of deposited property value, the company has the opportunity to borrow up to 35 percent of its deposited property value and further demonstrate yield accretive acquisitions.

The company, the country’s first r e I T, is looking at a combination of debt and equity funding in the next three years and optimize the leverage limit of up to 30 percent of deposited property value.

TO

Output was up 23 percent from October 2021, when supply chains were disrupted by the spread of Covid in Southeast a s ia, Toyota said in a statement Tuesday. The world’s biggest automaker is now adjusting some production in China, which is still gripped by the virus and related restrictions.

Toyota’s global sales also rose 23 percent from a year earlier in October, reaching a total of 832,373 vehicles.

Including subsidiaries Dai-

924,132 and 918,756 vehicles, respectively, Toyota said.

In early November, the company cut its global target for the fiscal year through m a rch and stuck with a conservative profit outlook.

Toyota shares slipped 1.2 percent Tuesday in Tokyo. They’re down 4.6 percent this year.

Separately, Nissan m o tor Co. said its global output fell 2.4 percent from a year earlier to 297,801 units in October, the first decline in four months, while sales dropped 13 percent. h o nda m ot or Co.’s global output increased 1.1 percent to 330,002 units last month versus a year earlier.

yO T a m o tor Corp. produced 771,382 vehicles in October, down from a record of 887,733 the previous month, and warned of an uncertain outlook due to Covid and semiconductor shortages.

hatsu m o tor Co. and h i no m ot ors Ltd., output and sales totaled

Banking&Finance

Retention of credit card interest cap gets kudos

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

alawMakER lauded the decision of the Bangko Sentral ng pilipinas (BSp) to keep the current 2-percent per month or 24-percent per annum limit to credit card interest rates.

in a statement issued last wednesday, Makati c ity Rep. luis n c a mpos Jr. called it “a highly positive move to safeguard the welfare of Filipino consumers” reeling from uncontrolled increases in the cost of goods and services.

we are counting on the banking regulator to retain the caps on credit card charges for a longer period to help middle class families cope with the severe economic difficulties brought on by widespread inflation,” c a mpos was quoted in the statement as saying.

t he lawmaker noted that most of the country’s 10.3 million credit cardholders are salaried employees “struggling to make ends meet.”

c a mpos had previously filed House Resolution 459, “strongly urging” the BSp to preserve the 2-year-old ceilings on credit card charges as inflation hit 7.7 percent in October, the highest in 14 years.

t he BSp recently resolved to maintain the existing ceilings on credit card transactions under c ircular 1098 dated September 24, 2020.

t h e central bank said these ceilings remain in effect unless revised

by the BS p : the maximum interest rate or finance charge on the unpaid outstanding credit card balance of a cardholder of 2 percent per month or 24 percent per year; the maximum monthly add-on rate on credit card installment loans of 1 percent; and, the maximum processing fee on the availment of credit card cash advances of p 2 00 per transaction.

t he BSp also said it would review “the reasonableness of the ceilings” by January next year.

c a mpos is not the only member of congress that wants the BSp to keep the thresholds.

a lbay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda had said the lifting of the cap on credit card interest rates would merely benefit the country’s biggest banks but hurt the middle class.

it ’s just going to pad bank profits. w hy would we want to adjust the interest rates upward? a s if that’s not high enough is beyond me,” Salceda said in a previous interview with the state-run ph ilippine news a gency.

Salceda noted that the cap in t hailand is 18 percent per annum, 17.5 percent in Malaysia and 28 percent in Singapore.

“indonesia has the same cap as we do. Our current average interest rate on credit cards is already for subprime customers in the US.”

Salceda asked: “ w hy inflict pain on ourselves?”

AUB taps Ant app for use of e-wallet in payments

OVER a million users of the ewallet app of a sia United Bank ( aU B) c o rp. can now make cross-border payments as the lender tapped the use of the alipay-plus system owned by Hangzhou, c hina-headquartered ant Group co ltd.

aUB said the use of a nt’s a l ipay-plus will make it the first ph ilippine bank to have an e-wallet—called “HelloMoney”—that can be used overseas.

t he lender promises that users of the app can experience “seamless payment” when they travel overseas for leisure and business. aUB also promises users can avail of “more competitive exchange rates compared to prevailing market rates.”

aU B Executive Vice p resident w i lfredo E. Rodriguez Jr. said that over the years, his firm has been building “a digital arsenal that include pioneering initiatives and innovations—from end-to-end digital account opening, to enabling clients to make banking easy through their mobile phone and merchants to sustain their businesses even with restricted mobility during the pandemic.”

Rodriguez, who also heads the lender’s operations and information technology division, added that with a l ipayplus, “our HelloMoney users will have a wider reach in payment acceptance while ensuring a safe and secure digital transaction.”

t he deal with a nt allows HelloMoney users to pay at local merchants accepting a l ipay-plus for shopping, dining, convenience stores, transportation and other travel-related activities. t h is will

first be available for those travelling to South korea and Japan.

aUB has been a long-term partner to a nt Group, and we are excited to extend the partnership further to enable its e-wallet’s cross-border operations through a l ipay-plus,” a nt Group executive Jia Hang said.

“Despite it being a relatively young e-wallet, HelloMoney has garnered strong growth and adoption momentum among users. t h rough this partnership, users of HelloMoney can rely on the e-wallet when they travel overseas, too, without the hassle of carrying cash or change currencies,” he explained.

aU B launched HelloMoney before the pandemic in the hopes that users can open an account without going to a physical branch and perform bankto-bank fund transfers, buy prepaid load, remit money, settle bills, withdraw via at M and shop using the HelloMoney app.

t he launch was immediately followed by the release of a companion mobile app to the pag-iBiG l oyalty c a rd plus where cardholders can manage their account and perform banking transactions. in 2021, aUB introduced the HelloMoney Mastercard for online shopping.

HelloMoney posted double-digit growth in transactions even as lockdown restrictions have started to ease. a s of October, the number of HelloMoney transactions has reached 19 million, a 45-percent increase compared to last year. t he value of transactions reached p63 billion or 49-percent higher than in 2021, according to the aUB. Cai U. Ordinario

20% jump in consumer loans pushes up bank lending in Oct

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

BANK lending posted doubledigit growth in October driven by the rise in consumer loans which jumped by more than 20 percent during the period, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

BSp data showed bank lending grew 13.9 percent to p10.555 trillion in October from p9.267 trillion in October 2021.

On a month-on-month seasonally-adjusted basis, outstanding universal and commercial bank loans, net of reverse repurchase rates (RR ps), inched 1.1 percent from p10.497 trillion in September.

“ t he sustained growth in credit activity and ample liquidity will continue to support the recovery of economic activity and domestic demand,” a statement from the BSp read.

l ooking ahead, the BSp will continue to take all necessary action to ensure that liquidity and bank lending conditions remain consistent with promoting price and financial stability,” it added.

w hile 87.4 percent of the outstanding net of RR ps was composed

of loans to residents for various economic activities, it only posted a growth of 12.5 percent to p9.229 trillion in October.

consumer loans, which accounted for 9.4 percent of the outstanding net of RR ps, grew 22.6 percent, faster than the 20.6 percent posted in September. total consumer loans amounted to p987.1 billion in October.

Credit card, motor vehicle U n DER consumer loans, “salarybased general purpose consumption loans” surged 62.8 percent to p122.247 billion in October 2022. t h is was even faster than the 57.2-percent growth recorded in September 2022.

credit card loans also increased by 26.8 percent while motor-vehicle loans grew 6.6 percent in October. in September, credit card loans grew

26.1 percent while motor-vehicle loans grew 4.3 percent.

“consumer loans to residents increased by 22.6 percent in October from 20.6 percent [revised] in the previous month, due mainly to the year-on-year increase in credit card loans, motor vehicle loans, and salary-based general purpose consumption loans,” BSp said.

Outstanding loans to non-residents grew by 33 percent in October from 26.6-percent expansion in September.

Meanwhile, outstanding loans to residents, net of RR ps, also increased by 13.4 percent in October after growing by 13.1 percent in the previous month.

Outstanding loans for production activities rose by 12.5 percent in October, from 12.3-percent expansion in September, driven largely by the growth in loans to key industries such as real estate activities at 14 percent.

BSp data also showed loans for manufacturing grew 17.7 percent; wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, 11.5 percent; financial and insurance activities, 12.8 percent; information and communication, 25 percent; and electricity, gas, steam, and airconditioning supply, 10.9 percent.

M3 growth

BSp data showed domestic liquidity or M3 grew 5.4 percent year on year to p15.4 trillion in October

2022 from p14.65 trillion in October 2021.

Month on month, BS p data showed, M3 only increased by 0.4 percent from the p15.38 trillion posted in September 2022.

l ooking ahead, the BSp will ensure that liquidity conditions continue to support domestic demand and economic activity, in line with its price and financial stability objectives,” BSp said.

t he data showed domestic claims rose by 11 percent year-on-year in October from 11.2 percent in the previous month, due to the continued improvement in bank lending to the private sector.

c l aims on the private sector grew by 10.4 percent in October from 10.3 percent in September with the expansion in bank lending to nonfinancial private corporations and households.

Meanwhile, net claims on the central government rose by 14.7 percent in October from 16.5 percent (revised) in September owing to the sustained borrowing by the national Government.

net foreign assets (nFa) in peso terms declined by 1.4 percent in October from the 2.1-percent (revised) contraction in September.

t h e n Fa of banks fell mainly on account of higher bills payable. Similarly, the BS p ’ s n Fa position contracted by 0.5 percent in October.

Technology firm to help spread financial literacy

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio

SinG a pORE-B a SED technology firm lista technologies pte. ltd. seeks to help spread financial literacy to Filipinos. lista co -founder a aron Villegas said the demand for money-saving tips became prevalent during the pandemic.

“Being aware of how we spend is one of the best ways to utilize money. t h rough personal budgeting on [the] l i sta [app], we envision every Filipino to easily gain financial clarity through the help of technology,” Villegas said in a recent interview.

He added that “with the holidays coming up, whether you’re planning to buy gifts or a spread for your c h ristmas celebration, [the app] makes it easy to see where your hardearned money goes.” Villegas said the eponymous financial management app can help maximize budgets “to help you give more to what’s most important in your life.”

He said personal budgeting remains the most popular feature of the app as it allows users to set a budgeting cycle whether weekly, semi-monthly or monthly.

“a f ter they are done in developing a budget cycle, users can then list their expenses and get reports on their spending plus additional insights and tips for better budgeting.”

Villegas said that in case users need more help in creating a budget, the app can suggest one guided by the “70-20-10” principle that segregates income into three buckets: needs (70 percent); savings (20 percent); and, wants (10 percent).

w hile this method can be ideal for people learning how to manage their income, Villegas said a user’s budget can also be further personalized and adjusted at any time.

co -Founder k hriztina lim said they created the app “to help every Filipino raise their quality of life, one step at a time.”

“Beyond the holidays, budgeting is a great way to gain control over your income, which is why we’ve made it easier for Filipinos to cre-

ate a budget, stick to it, and use it as a tool to gain greater financial freedom,” said l i m. lista technologies recently raised over $5.1 million in a recent funding round led by Singaporean Vc firm Openspace Ventures pte. ltd. t he firm said the app has been downloaded 1.4 million times. it added that 60 percent of users are micro-sized, small and mediumsized enterprises while 40 percent are personal users.

“Our goal is to help them keep track of their expenses. we will help users manage their expenses,” lim said.

From “money in and money out” feature, the app was developed to add inventory, collection and payment reminder. t he latter feature reminds borrowers of their loan through short-message sending.

t here are plans to introduce financial features payments in the future, according to lim.

“Our focus was primarily targeting as many users as we can and gradually introducing the financial services they need. we’ll help users transition from paper and pen to digital.”

lim said they plan to enter the lending market in the future.

Investment house Unicapital feted for ₧6.4-B IPO of PHL’s 1st RE-focused REIT

Unicapital i n c., a leading independent, full-service investment house, has won the 2022 “ i n novative Deal of the Year” award from the a s ian Banking & Finance ( a B F) magazine of Singapore-based c h arlton Media Group p te. l td. for the successful p 6 .4-billion initial public offering ( i p O ) this year of the country’s first-ever renewable energy-focused real estate investment trust (RE i t )

Unicapital said it received the award “in recognition of the crucial role it played as financial advisor, issue manager and lead underwriter for the offering of citicore Energy REi t corp., or “creit.”

“ t h is recognition from a B F highlights Unicapital’s strength and creativity in packaging finan-

cial solutions for clients even under challenging market conditions,” Unicapital president and cEO Jaime J. Martirez was quoted in a statement as saying. “Our full range of financial services, extensive experience, expertise and familiarity in handling customized financial solutions helped turn c reit into an ipO success story.”

Martirez added that the support that Unicapital gave to creit “typifies the kind of service we provide our clients.”

Integrated, customized Unicapital provides clients with an integrated and customized range of products and services designed to help its clients grow and achieve financial success.

t hese products and services allow

Unicapital and its subsidiaries—Unicapital Finance and investments inc. and Unicapital Securities inc.—“to give its clients a wide array of financial solutions that include underwriting ipOs, financial advisory, loans and financing, as well as fund placements and securities trading for clients.”

Unicapital has been thriving and operating for several decades now independent from universal and commercial banks.

Unicapital shareholders supporting the company include GM a network inc. and firms controlled by former GM a network inc. president Menardo R. Jimenez Sr., who is Unicapital’s chairman Emeritus; GM a network’s current chairman Enrique Felipe l Gozon; and, na ito Securities co ltd. of Japan.

Despite uncertainties

nE a R lY 20,000 investors swamped cR Eit ’s offering despite political and economic uncertainties hovering over the stock market during cR Eit s 5-day offering period in early February this year.

Martirez said that Unicapital showed innovation and creativity by positioning the c reit deal “as a defensive ESG [environmental, social, and governance] stock investment, which we believed was well suited to the market conditions at the time.”

“ t he ipO allowed creit’s parent company to recycle invested capital in its 163-megawatt installed renewable energy projects [and to] raise p6.4 billion in fresh capital to partially fund its robust 1.5-gigawatt pipeline of renewable energy

projects,” Martirez said during the awarding ceremony.

Described as companies organized mainly for owning incomegenerating real estate assets, REi ts are allowed by law to distribute at least 90 percent of their income to shareholders, making them attractive to investors who prefer an assured dividend income.

ESG appeal BEFORE the cR Ei t offering, not a single power company–much less RE firm–tried the nascent philippine REi t market as an avenue in going public, Unicapital Senior Vice president pamela l ouise Q. Victoriano explained during the a BF ceremony. t his allowed the philippine REi t market to be dominated by officethemed REi ts

i n the regulations, however, REi t s definition includes “other income-earning real estate assets” outside of office buildings. Victoriano said that Unicapital saw this as an opportunity to turn creit into the first renewable energy company to go public as a REi t V ictoriano explained that Unicapital structured the c r eit offering in such a way that it helped support the government’s energy program to further develop muchneeded power plant capacity, while meeting at the same time the capital market’s demand for investment products with a strong ESG appeal and an assured dividend income.

creit subsequently debuted as a publicly listed company on the pSE last February. Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace

According to Aaron Villegas, co-founder of Singapore-based technology firm Lista Technologies Pte. Ltd., demand for money-saving tips became prevalent during the pandemic.

Health& Fitness

BusinessMirror

Health-care workers, students need to conquer mental health issues to fight future pandemics

By Rory Visco Contributor

IT’S been 32 months and two weeks since the pandemic was declared in the Philip pines. Though it’s a lot easier nowadays with more people going out to do more things than they did prior to the pandemic, many are also suffering in silence. Many are still not well, many are still har boring negative thoughts of being uncertain of what the future holds. They feel irritable and disconcerted, and hardly sleep or eat.

These feelings are experienced mostly by those in the medical pro fession such as doctors, nurses and other allied medical professionals.

With the stress of continuing to deal with a pandemic that seems to still have no end in sight, it is tak ing a toll not just on their physical but also mental health. The World Health Organization (WHO), in a survey, revealed that 23 to 46 per cent of health-care workers reported bouts with anxiety, while 20 to 37 percent showed depressive symp toms, and 41 to 52 percent said they felt burned out.

From a pandemic to a parallel pandemic that is all about mental health problems. What do we do?

Dr. Josefina Ly-Uson, Associate Professor with the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine and Chairperson of the Committee on Student Resiliency and Wellness at the UP Philippine General Hos pital (UP-PGH), said during the re cent “Stop COVID Deaths” webinar titled “Para! Gusto ko na Bumaba!

It’s Okay not to be Okay” organized by the University of the Philippines, UP Manila NIH National Telehealth Center together with the UP-PGH, that mental health and wellness have become universal buzzwords particularly during the Covid-19

pandemic, with the number of cases rising to an all-time high. To rem edy this, Dr. Ly-Uson said they came up with a wellness program at the UP College of Medicine and at the UP-PGH.

Heroes but not superheroes

SHE said that while frontline health-care workers were hailed as heroes, they are not superheroes. “We really are human beings and we need to care for ourselves very well in order to be able to care for our patients and to continue doing our work so I hope that we do not forget that.”

She emphasized the burnout, anxiety, and depression that rose during the pandemic. In a study done at the UP-PGH, those who were at risk and had frank burnout were at 60 percent, many of whom were disengaged and ineffective at work and over-extended in their train ing. “So you can just imagine how even local numbers matched those shown globally.”

In the Medscape Physician Burn out and Depression Report for 2022, it showed that Emergency Room physicians are at the top of the list of those experiencing burnout. But Dr. Ly-Uson said they don’t want to normalize burnout and say that it’s something that happens to all doc tors but want to effectively try to counter it because their work need not take a toll on their mental health.

As for medical students, in a sys tematic review of 195 studies with 135,000 student participants from 47 countries, she said that almost 30 percent suffered from depression but only 15 percent of those screened positive of depression sought help. This is a very low number, Dr. LyUson said, considering that depres sion is treatable. “Even though they do develop the condition, it is still important that they seek help for it

so that they can recover and become optimal in condition considering their line of work.”

She also cited some stressors among medical students that she thinks will still remain in the pan demic and beyond such as heavy aca demic load, lack of physical interac tion and social activity, inadequate learning due to less clinical expo sure, financial concerns, difficulty with work-life balance, uncertainty during the pandemic, and adjust ment to hybrid mode of learning.

Dr. Ly-Uson also mentioned sev eral contributors to burnout among health-care workers such as a lot of administrative work and bureau cratic tasks, lack of respect from staff and from patients, lack of con trol and autonomy over their lives, not enough or inadequate salary, which may affect job satisfaction, and when they get sick and are not given any subsidy.

Wellness programs

The UP College of Medicine (UPCM) and UP-PGH Wellness Programs are holistic and collaborative programs, Dr. Ly-Uson said, that started even before the pandemic and were de signed to address concerns using promotive, preventive, and inter ventional measures.

The UPCM Wellness program starts with the conduct of a Health Needs Assessment then coordina tion with the various offices like in academic development, coordi nators, faculty, and a mentoring committee, the Student Council, class presidents, and mental health committee heads. Wellness activi ties are also organized and wellness champions per level and department are also assigned.

Some of these wellness activities include mindfulness-based stress reduction programs, movie show ing, inter-class fitness challenges,

expressive and movement therapies, Qi Gong (ancient Chinese exercise and healing technique) sessions, field trips, mental health confer ences, or reading or wellness breaks.

At UP-PGH, Dr. Ly-Uson said they came up with a wellness program, an initiative of the Director through the Deputy Director for Health Op erations and was launched in 2021 in alignment with the UPCM wellness program. “This holistic and collab orative program is department-spe cific for each of the 18 departments. If health-care workers get very bur dened, their work of caring for pa tients may suffer. So we encourage everyone to look after their health and well-being,” she said.

Moving forward

DR. Ly-Uson said there is really a need to acknowledge the toll that the pandemic and the after-effects have brought on the mental health and well-being of health-care workers and students. She emphasized that support can be provided at any level be it at the college, department or hospital, or their place of practice.

She also reiterated that both UPCM and UP-PGH wellness pro grams are targeted towards the pro motion of well-being and resilience, prevention of burnout and psycho logical distress and interventions for those with mental health con ditions. Dr. Ly-Uson added that curating a wellness program can be based on the needs of the con stituents and the resources avail able. “Let us promote the culture of wellness, respect and inclusiv ity wherever we are. Together, let us build a safe, nurturing, healthy and compassionate work and learn ing environment, and where phy sicians can be happy healers and healthy humans since they deliver care for everyone and patients,” she concluded.

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

THE country must step up its game in battling lung cancer as it is the second most com mon cancer and top cause of cancer death globally and in the Philip pines. And as they say “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure” aptly applies in treating lung cancer.

In her presentation “Lung Cancer 101: Signs, Symptoms, and Screen ing,” Dr. Christine Chavez, a spe cialist in clinical and interventional pulmonology, said on Tuesday that the earlier lung cancer is detected and diagnosed, the more likely it is to be treated successfully.

She said one major factor behind the mortality rate is that the majority of lung cancer patients are diagnosed in the advanced stage which leads to slimmer chances of surviving.

Citing a Globocan 2020 report, approxiamtely 17,063 died from lung cancer in 2021 while there were 19,180 new lung cancer patients in the same year.

Although lung cancer patients face a herculean challenge in bat tling the dreaded disease, Chavez, a trained pulmonologist, pointed out that current practices use X-ray or Low-Dose Computed Tomography (also called low-does CT and LDCT) to detect lung cancer. She added these quick and painless techniques produce images of the lungs to help pinpoint any abnormalities.

Symptoms

C OM MON lung cancer symptoms

include persistent or worsening cough, coughing up blood or rustcolored spit, chest pain that wors ens with coughing, deep breathing or laughing, persistent or recur ring chest infections, hoarseness or loss of voice with no sore throat, breathlessness or wheezing, unex plained weight loss, appetite loss and fatigue.

“While the above symptoms can be indicators of lung cancer, early stage lung cancer can pres ent and progress without outward signs, which is why lung cancer screening is vital in helping to detect only disease,” Chavez said in the forum organized by the Lung Ambition Alliance held in Pasig City.

“A timely diagnosis can help en sure improved outcomes for some one with lung cancer. Although it may be daunting, if you have any of the following, or notice them in a loved one, speak to a doctor as soon as possible, or urge those close to you to get checked.”

Chavez said people who are con sidered high risk individuals should be screened for lung cancer. These include people who are 50 years old and above and a 20-pack per year smoker.

She said smoking is the biggest risk factor for developing lung can cer. Nevertheless, Chavez said it is also possible that cancer can occur in non-smokers through second hand smoke. Moreover, the triangle of life, namely, environment, hered ity and lifestyle can also be causes of lung cancer.

By Edwin P. Sallan

It’s a fact that smoking is never easy to give up, even for those who are al ready conscious of its consequences to one’s health.

Cigarette alternatives

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

MA n IL A d o ctors h o spital (M dh ) r e cently commemorated the legacy of d r. George s k ty, Chairman of the Metrobank Group, with a ceremony dedicat ing its new building as the d r. George s k ty Medical to wer.

M d h s newest tower was inaugurated in 2016 and comes as the fulfillment of d r ty ’s dream and vision for M dh d r ty passed away on n o vember 23, 2018 at the age of 86. d r ty e nvisioned the hospital to become one of the top hospitals in the country, a pro vider of safe, comprehensive, and accessible health-care to anyone in need.

t he naming ceremony on n ovember 22, 2022 was held on the eve of d r ty ’s fourth death anniversary and was part of the ac tivities that the Metrobank Foundation Inc (MBFI) and M dh held in honor of his memory.

Vision of comprehensive care d r. ty ’s vision has afforded M dh the oppor tunity to provide comprehensive care to its patients and be with them every step of the way in their journey to living full, healthy lives.

In dedicating the tower to d r. George s k ty, the community honored not just the founder of the Metrobank Group, “but ev

eryone who remains committed to pursuing the highest standards in caring for our fellow men,” said Aniceto M. s o brepeña, MBFI Presi dent and vice-chairman of the Manila Medi cal s e rvices, Inc (MM s I) Board of d i rectors.

t h e new tower allowed M dh to grow its services, opening new specialty centers such as the Cancer Institute, one of the hospi tal’s Centers of Excellence; more diagnostic services through high-tech equipment in stalled in its new centers and laboratories; and a one-stop shop Wellness h u b. W ith more spaces for both doctors and patients, M dh has since taken care of over a million outpatients and more than 50,000 inpatients in this new tower.

Key partners

t h E c eremony held at the d r. George s k ty Medical to wer lobby brought together key partners who helped make the dream a reality.

In his opening remarks, s o brepeña, re called d r ty ’s passion in building the new tower.

h e w as at the site nearly every day to inspect, monitor the construction progress, and make adjustments as he saw fit.

h e w anted more than a place that went beyond providing cure and critical illness prevention; he envisioned a leading center

By Roderick L. Abad Contributor

Jo I n I n G t he national effort to address the ensuing health crisis, Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower) and Ma nila Electric Company (Meralco) combined their energy to mount a medical mission, benefiting more than 200 employees and their dependents at the Cavite Economic Zone (CEZ).

“Covid-19 remains a threat and we need to keep our guards up by having all

the vaccines and medical resources ac cessible, especially to the communities we work with,” said o b et Galang, general manager of Meralco Ecozone Power (MEP).

t h e event formed part of Cardinal s an t os Medical Center’s h ospital on Wheels initiative, with the support of MEP, o n e Meralco Foundation, and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza).

We thank AboitizPower and o n e Meral co Foundation for supporting us in this cause and being our partner in safeguard ing the health of CEZ employees,” he noted.

of wellness in the country,” s o brepeña said.

In delivering her family’s response, Anjanette ty- d y Buncio, MBFI s e nior Vice President and chairman of the MM s I B oard of d rectors, recalled her father’s true love for the hospital when, despite his frail health at the time, d r ty w ould still drive by to the hospital nearly every day to lovingly look at the building entrance before going home.

s h e also shared photos that rekindled memories of d r t y , showing his com manding presence and dynamism but also reflecting his enthusiasm, joy, gratitude, and generosity.

“It is our family’s very hope that the M dh c ommunity will continue to pursue our fa ther’s legacy,” she said, adding that this legacy goes beyond the name and the building.

“ It is about working together to provide the medical care our patients expect; it’s about finding true fulfillment in what we do, and it’s about touching lives and making a difference,” she added.

Generosity

In closing the program, Arlene P. Ledesma, M d h president thanked the late Group Chairman for his generosity to M dh It was the Filipino people who ben efited from the fulfillment of d r t y ’s

dreams,” she said.

Ledesma expressed her gratitude to d r ty f or his dedication to uplift M dh so that it may become and continue to be one of the top hospitals in the country.

s h e called on the M d h community to move his dream forward by staying true to the promise of proving safe and accessible healthcare for all, and to keep pushing their boundaries in delivering quality healthcare.

Unveiling the marker bearing the d r ty ’s name were Mary V. ty, wife of the late d r ty and adviser to Metrobank, MBFI, Federal Land, and MM sI; MBFI President and vice-chairman of the MM s I B oard of d i rectors; d r h ian h o n kua, M dh h o spital d i rector; d r. Mario Joselito Juco, M dh Medical d i rector and advisor to the MM s I B oard of d i rectors; and d r d ante Morales, MM s I B oard Member and head of M d h s Cardiovascular Center.

Also present at the ceremony were Arch. d e wey s an tos of d F s n Architects and r c ardo Gutierrez, president of the Philippine h o spital Project d e velopment Corporation, who were both involved in the design and construction of the building, other offi cials of MBFI, and M dh ’s management and medical directorate. o t her members of the ty f amily and M d h community joined the event virtually via Zoom.

Anxiety, loss of appetite, restless cough ing and yes, even constant and uncontrollable cravings are just some of the many challenges a typical smoker will likely encounter on the road to kicking the habit.

Even those who managed to be success ful at quitting still have to deal with manag ing withdrawals, relapses, changing habits and the urge to resist lighting “just one more stick” of cigarette.

John Matthew Uy, who started smoking as early as the age of 15, is one of those “quitters” who found it very challenging to give up the habit for good.

“When I started smoking, it was due to peer pressure. t h en, I was still a ‘social smoker.’ I wasn’t really enjoying myself yet or did not feel the cravings yet. In short, at that stage, I wasn’t quite addicted yet. But my peak was after college at around 19 to 20 years old and I would find myself consuming close to two packs a day,” John Matthew, who is now 29 years old, recalled.

Sense of calmness

Ask E d w hat pleasures he derived from smoking, John Matthew said that the habit provided him with “a temporary sense of calmness.”

John M At th E W tried just about everything including the many so-called “cigarette alter natives” but none proved to be effective at all in helping him curb the habit. t hen he discovered n i corette, the original nicotine replacement therapy product in chewing gum that was first introduced way back in the late 1970s.

“With n i corette, I felt like I was on the right path to finally quit for good. s i nce I started using it, I never found myself needing to step out and miss precious moments with my family unlike cigarettes. All I would have to do is pop a piece of gum and that would be it. It did help me during the first week of craving the cigarettes but once I overcame that, it got much easier to say no and quit for good,” he admitted.

“ n i corette pushes you to use less and less of it until you finally feel like you don’t need it anymore. It did reduce withdrawal cravings in as fast as 15 minutes which really helped me especially in the first week where quit ting smoking is hardest.”

Closer contact

In terms of changes to his well-being, John Matthew is proud to say that he no longer shies away from coming in close contact with his family, especially his son who was a big reason for him to quit smoking.

Responding to pandemic A s part of the constant fight against the coronavirus, AboitizPower donated the medicines that were distributed during the medical mission, including the flu vaccines that were administered to CEZ employees.

Medical consultations were, likewise, given to them pro bono. A forum on Covid-19, Monkeypox, and dengue was also held.

According to Cavite Export Zone Inves tors Association Corporate s e cretary Jose Cabral IV, employee wellness is at the core of their business.

“Much like the machines they handle, their bodies can only take so much strain from the hustle of daily work,” he shared.

“ We believe that employees who are healthy come to work happier and in turn, are able to perform and engage with their colleagues better,” he added

F or AboitizPower s e nior Vice President for Commercial o p erations s an dro Aboitiz, it is a privilege to build synergies with other industries because it allows their organiza tion to help solve social problems that are overlooked a lot.

“It would also serve as a past time for me sometimes while I waited or when was free to kill time. I used to have anxiety, which was worse when would be going into a meeting for work. I found this as a quick fix for things like that and realized later that this is a vicious cycle. t h at would be the time I would consume the most cigarettes. I found it helpful for my anxiety back then,” he pointed out.

s o w hat made him decide to quit? In John Matthew’s case, it had something to do with a turning point in his personal life.

t hat w as when I found out that I was going to be a dad. My fiancé’ is asthmatic and my brain instantly went into ‘dad mode’ and thought that my son could be asthmatic as well and that my smoking could possibly affect either or both my fiancé and son. I did not want to put them at risk, and, for me, that was when decided to quit for good,” he confessed.

“Also, my skin got better, my sense of smell got a lot better, food started to taste better, I would even be sleeping better cause my breathing got better, I could once again play my favorite sports without having to take breaks to catch my breath,” he happily shared.

John Matthew also shared that he was able to temporarily gain some weight after quitting smoking and started using n i corette.

“But that was because my sense of taste got a lot better, and the eating experience was so much better for me. But that was eas ily negated since was now able to do more exercise,” he added.

n o w that he was able to quit smoking, does he think he can sustain this in the long run? John Matthew does not see any reason why he can’t.

“It has been a year and half now since my last cigarette and I see no signs of looking back,” he concluded.

to know more about n i corette, visit their web site or follow their Facebook and Ins tagram. n i corette is available in Johnson & Johnson’s e-pharmacy on s h opee and Lazada.

Power companies join forces to bring medical services to Cavite ecozone

Manila Doctors Hospital dedicates new medical tower to founder Dr. George Ty

PhL should step up fight vs lung cancer, the 2nd most common cancer–expert how influencer John Matthew Uy kicked the smoking habit with the help of nicorette

Parentlife

PHOTO BY ANNIE SPRATT ON UNSPLASH

How parents and kids can protect themselves from cyberbullying

yourself from a bully neighbor, the same can be said of one’s personal account across social networks. Guides that parents can peruse on how to do this are available on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Twitch and Reddit.

n Do not answer: Reacting with offensive words will only escalate the situation. Trying to reason with the bully without the participation of adults is also not worth it. Ignoring them is the only way to protect yourself from the likely abyss of clarifications, insults and the like.

sadness with irritability, avoiding going to school, or withdrawing from the normal fun activities they once enjoyed.

SENATE SPOUSES PLAY SANTA TO dELIgHT kIdS

ChRISTMAS came early to 60 children from the Tahanang Mapagpala Center and the Social Development Center in Caloocan City when members of the Senate Spouses Foundation Inc. (SSFI) recently played Santa in “Christmas in November,” the group’s annual gift-giving event at The SM Store Megamall.

A joint project of the SSFI and the retail giant, the event— which began with lunch at Wendy’s—was a day of fun for the kids, many of whom experienced the joys of shopping for the first time after more than two years of the Covid-19 pandemic. No less than the spouses and their representatives took them around The SM Store to shop for clothes, school supplies, toiletries, toys and more.

SSFI president Audrey Zubiri led the group of spouses who played moms and dad for a day. These included Nancy dela Rosa, Teodoro “Neil” Llamanzares, Precy Ejercito, Gladys Cruz-Villanueva, Kathryna Pimentel, and Atty. Emmeline Villar, as well as Maricel Tulfo-Tungol, daughter of Senator Raffy Tulfo, who took the kids around the store for a funfilled shopping spree during the yearly Christmas outreach program.

They were warmly welcomed and assisted by SM’s Millie Dizon and The SM Store Megamall staff led by VP for operations Maribel Sibayan, as well as SM Megamall AVP for operations Ian Mathay.

The “Christmas in November” project of Senate Spouses Foundation Inc. and SM started way back in 1998 by Mrs. Eloisa Nolasco-Fernan, wife of then Senate President Marcelo Briones Fernan. “We are thankful to SM for the many years of helping us bring joy to these children,” shared Zubiri.

This year’s activity became a happy reunion of sorts for the spouses and SSFI staff when Jimboy, a special child they met at the shelter 12 years ago, performed a dance number together with two other special kids. The kids showed their appreciation through their live and festive dance number and spreading more the spirit of sharing, love and thanksgiving. Before returning to Tahanang Mapagpala Center, the kids were treated into a sumptuous early dinner at Chowking.

The Tahanang Mapagpala Center and the Social Development Center are shelters for the abandoned, foundlings and orphans of Caloocan City.

Much of today’s child have formed their own “digital life”—from young children playing games and watching their videos online, to the more complicated “digital social life” that our pre-teens and teenagers are now a part of. This comes with the risk of encountering unfavorable realities in the digital environment such as cyberbullying. According to unicef, “cyberbullying is bullying with the use of digital technologies. It can take place on social media, messaging platforms, gaming platforms and mobile phones. It is repeated behavior, aimed at scaring, angering or shaming those who are targeted.” This may include spreading lies, posting embarrassing content, sending hurtful and abusive content, or impersonating someone to send mean messages.

Security specialists at Kaspersky (www.kaspersky. com) have collected a range of tips for parents and children on what to do if they’re bullied, and how to protect themselves.

TIPS FOR KIDS

n Set privacy settings: Parents teach children not to talk to strangers on the street. So why don’t we talk to them about employing the same rule in the online space? If it is impossible to completely protect

n Block the aggressor, complain to moderators: Many web sites and all social networks have a black/block list that kids can use. contact the site’s administrators with a request to block the instigator. Guides on how to do this are available on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Twitch and Reddit.

n Take screenshot: Evidence can be useful if you need to contact law enforcement agencies. You can also discuss the problem with the offender’s parents, or explain to them personally the possible consequences.

n Temporarily delete or deactivate the personal account: Leaving social media for a period can help a teen to breathe and focus on themselves. Moreover, bullies will see that a user is not responding and can lose interest in a possible victim since they won’t get any reaction. The most important thing is not to blame yourself because of the situation.

TIPS FOR PARENTS

n Support and trust are essential elements: If children are faced with cyberbullying, parents can be a support for them. But at the same time, according to various surveys, it’s a common situation when kids don’t share such problems with their parents. however, parents can pay attention to possible signs if their kids are being bullied. In particular, it could be issues with sleeping or eating, tearfulness or

n Prohibition is not the answer: To prohibit your teen to use of social media or the Internet is not the perfect solution to cyberbullying. Such a step can complicate relations with any child as they can withdraw and become less open about their feelings. It’s maybe much more effective to help them take a critical attitude to the situation, to "disconnect" the bully’s messages from the kid's personality. In addition, such situations can help children comprehend what is happening as an experience that will help them form skills to counter cyber-aggression and manipulation.

n Keep in touch with kids online: One more good option can be to keep in touch with your child on social networks and instant messengers. It can help to check children’s posts and better understand their condition.

n Don’t dismiss digital help: Today’s technology also comes with a number of parental controls to help safeguard kids from harmful or inappropriate online material. Parents can also avail themselves of third-party apps which offer protection from harmful content, as well as enable them to set screen time limits, monitor their online activity, or also track their location via GPS.

cyberbullying is a very complex and serious problem, which may seem impossible to deal with. Studies show that children often do not tell adults that they are experiencing bullying. Building a trusting relationship with the child will help parents be aware if their child encounters bullying,” comments Andrey Sidenko, lead web content analyst at Kaspersky.

More information on what else children and parents can do to deal with cyberbullying is available at www.kaspersky.com/blog/?s=bullying n

By Kelsey Sheehy NerdWallet

ThRIFTInG is hot, and Goodwill finds are cool again. But while we’re thrilled to find the perfect throwback tee for our own closet, gifting used goods still carries a stigma for some. It shouldn’t.

Secondhand gifts are better for your wallet, your community and the environment. “The planet is drowning in excess stuff,” says Lauren Bravo, 34, the London-based author of How to Break Up With Fast Fashion. “It feels more sustainable to buy from things that are already out there in the world than adding to the demand for more, more, more.”

Not convinced? Here are four big benefits of secondhand gifts, plus a few tips and ideas to help you thrift a gift this holiday season.

THE CASE FOR SECONDHAND GIFTS

1. It’s better for the environment: Fast fashion and fast furniture generate an incredible amount of waste. In 2018 alone, nearly 21 million tons of

textile waste, furniture and furnishings ended up in landfills, according to the most recent data published by the uS Environmental Protection Agency.

Buying a sweatshirt, jacket, vase, side table or virtually any other thrifted item keeps it from landing in a heap at the dump or on some foreign shore (where much of our donated clothing lands). Most secondhand purchases are made locally, too, so you avoid many of the environmental impacts that go along with packaging and shipping items.

2. Secondhand is more budget-friendly: You may have noticed, but everything is more expensive right now (inflation hit a 40-year high in September).

Even with rising prices, buying secondhand is almost always less expensive than buying new.

And Bravo says shopping thrift shops allows her to gift higher-quality items.

“I can afford to buy pricier brands for people if I get things secondhand,” she says. “And, frankly, they’re often still brand new in their box.”

3. You support small businesses: Vintage shops and thrift stores are almost always small businesses—and they’re counting on your support

this holiday season. In fact, 73 percent of smallbusiness owners say holiday sales like Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are important to the success of their business, according to a new NerdWallet survey of over 3,000 US adults (including more than 900 small-business owners) conducted online by The Harris Poll from October 3 to 5, 2022.

Money spent at small local shops typically stays in the community, supporting jobs and other businesses.

Popular nonprofit thrift stores like Goodwill and habitat for humanity ReStore give back to the local community in many other ways, too.

4. Thrifted gifts have a history: There can be something special about a book, handbag or article of clothing previously owned by someone else. The item lived another life and sometimes quite literally has the notes to prove it.

TIPS FOR SECONDHAND GIFTING

LAST mINUTe shoppers, take note: Thrifted gifting works best when you have time to find the perfect item. So start your holiday shopping now. Or better yet, hunt for secondhand gifts throughout the year.

Thrift stores, vintage shops, used bookstores and Goodwill are all great places to hunt for secondhand gifts, but estate sales can also yield treasures, says Richard Clews, 55, a retail and e-commerce founder who lives in Boston. “Estate sales are the gold mine for me,” Clews says. “You can find such magnificent objects that have history, care and wisdom all wrapped up into something meaningful.”

neighborhood listservs, Facebook marketplace and Buy nothing groups can also yield treasure, especially if there are children on your to-gift list. Kids age out of toys rather quickly (assuming they take to them at all), and you can often find like-new toys for a few dollars—or better yet, for free.

While toddlers will rarely scoff at a slightly scuffed toy, it’s best to show others on your gift list that you put some measure of thought into their gift. That is always the case but is especially true with pre-loved gifts. “They need to really display that you had the person in mind—that you know them and love them and found something they’d truly appreciate,” Morris says. “If you can let that guide your decisions, you can find an incredible secondhand gift.” AP

SENATE Spouses Foundation Inc. (SSFI) president Audrey Zubiri (middle) with fellow spouses Neil Llamanzares, Nancy dela Rosa, Kathryna Pimentel and SM’s Millie Dizon during the annual SSFI gift-giving event Christmas in November at The SM Store Megamall.

GLADyS CRuZ VILLANuEVA with the kids who filled their shopping bag with treats from SM.

SSFI president Audrey Zubiri with her group of kids are all set for Christmas shopping at SM Store.

Two groups spearhead learning program for children with disabilities in Bacolod City

CHILDFUND Philippines and CHILDInitiative have teamed up to launch a three-year project that will facilitate equitable learning for children with disabilities in Bacolod City. In partnership with ChildFund Australia, Generations Foundation, and DepEd Region VI and local school partners, Project ACHIEVE (Advancement of Children’s Inclusive Education through Virtual Engagement) aims to support children with disabilities to grow into young adults who can bring lasting change in their own communities.

Project ACHIEVE is another embodiment of ChildFund Philippines’ mission to work with partner organizations, government units, companies, and individuals to help create a safe environment for children.

“Project ACHIEVE is another innovative solution that is aimed at creating a positive impact for children who need assistance,” said Dong Waña, ChildFund Philippines Program and Sponsorship Director. “This is aligned with our commitment to make inclusive, relevant, and equitable education accessible to children, especially those with disabilities.”

Among the highlights of Project ACHIEVE is the development of digital learning modules using the Moodle app. Moodle is an open-source platform for online learning, an interactive digital learning management system that enables teachers to create online courses, add assignments, and keep track of students' progress. It also allows teachers to communicate with the students and encourage communication between them in forums and discussions. With Moodle as the platform, the modules developed under Project ACHIEVE will supplement and enrich the hybrid learning experience of children with hearing and visual impairments.

“ChildFund Philippines has been exploring ways to incorporate digital program delivery into its programs and Project ACHIEVE’s modules for learners with disabilities are among its first demonstrations,” said ChildFund Philippines Education Specialist Marlene Floresca. “We want to carefully study how this can support and improve the learning experience of school children. Eventually, we aim to reach more children while ensuring that

the intervention will remain relevant and responsive to their needs.”

Floresca added that the modules through the Moodle app were intentionally designed to accommodate the learning needs of hearing and visually impaired children. “It is intended to be a supplemental learning delivery mode that should be easily navigated by children with disabilities and their parents/ caregivers. It shall complement self-learning modules,” she shared.

CHILDInitiative and ChildFund worked with experts from DepEd to form a technical working group that closely looked at technicalities and all programand operations-related issues regarding the Moodle app as a learning management system. Select teachers in the city have undergone orientation about Quality Assurance Process and trainings for skills and knowledge on app navigation as well as course content development and uploading. A pool of consultants have also developed a user-friendly guide to the platform to serve as reference for teachers and parents.

“Project ACHIEVE will initially facilitate guided learning to 60 learners from Bacolod City,” said CHILDInitiative Executive Director John Patrick Sedantes. “The project team is continuously working with DepEd Bacolod City Division and

its Learning Resource Division for the ongoing development of course content and for further technical aspects for Quality Assurance, respectively.”

Sedantes also said that within the three-year duration, Project ACHIEVE will be exclusive to select Special Education (SPED) schools. “But in the series of meetings and reflection, DepEd Bacolod City is positively looking at possible replication of the project components to other schools,” he said, adding that CHILDInitiative and its partners are also considering the possibility of scaling out the use of the learning modules and platform to regional or national level.

“The use of the Moodle app as a learning management system for our hearing and visually impaired children is something new to them,” said Reynaldo Gico, EdD, Schools Division Superintendent of Bacolod City DepEd Division. Thus, he emphasized the need for continuous training for teachers, learners, and even the children’s parents.

However, Gico underlined the convenience and effectiveness of the platform for tracking students’ learning progress. “It is convenient for teachers to create courses and the platform is interactive for students’ learning since these are children with hearing and visual impairment.”

Philanthropist works with local government units to distribute food packs and school supplies to families affected by Paeng

Maxwealth Infinity Holdings recently donated 7,000 sacks of rice to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as relief aid for the families affected by the typhoon. Simple turnover rites were held last November 11 at the DWSD National Resource Operations Center for the 350,000 kilograms of rice that will be distributed by the Department to typhoon victims in hard hit localities.

The donation was received by DSWD officials including DSWD-National Resource and Logistics Management Bureau Assistant Secretary Diana Rose Cajipe. The sacks of rice will serve to augment the department’s relief efforts as they help the affected communities rebuild their lives and livelihood.

Express widens delivery coverage to cover more customers nationwide ahead of the holidays

2GO Express is geared up to deliver to more areas and more customers across the Philippines ahead of the holiday rush and even beyond given the e-commerce boom in the country.

To date, 2GO Express serves 95 percent of the online population nationwide. The company is looking to widen its coverage in support of social sellers, which increased exponentially during the pandemic.

“The Philippines is actually a very strong market for e-commerce, and that includes your MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises).

Everyone would gravitate towards the larger platforms, but we are also seeing a growing number of social sellers and monobrands, and they’re localized,” said Honeylyn Sanchez, 2GO Express Senior Corporate Sales Manager for E-Commerce.

“We have seen micro-enterprises like social sellers continuously growing in the Philippines for the past two years, and we intend to ride on that wave. Social sellers make an impact on retail businesses online,” she added.

Currently, 2GO Express services more than 33,000 or over 75 percent of all barangays nationwide and is looking to grow this in the coming months through various key investments. This includes more omnichannel solutions to be rolled out for shippers, as well as their customers and consignees.

“We have been growing our service coverage and reliability, especially in the provinces, by setting up more hubs to speed up deliveries, as well as adding close to 1,000 drop-off locations, a hybrid of owned and third-party outlets, so that customers have more touchpoints,” said Xervin Maulanin, 2GO Express AVP for

Product Development.

2GO Express is one of the few last-mile delivery companies in the Philippines to utilize an automated sortation machine, which makes deliveries more efficient through an enhanced data capture system by segregating parcels and packages down to the barangay level.

To even liven up the holidays, 2GO Express launched its Pasko, Delivery, Panalo raffle promo. Customers just need to head to a participating 2GO outlet to book a delivery. Each transaction garners a raffle entry.

Lucky customers get a chance to win one of either a Samsung Galaxy Tab 7, Samsung Galaxy A03 Smartphone, a Sail and Stay package to Cebu and Boracay from 2GO Travel, or an SM Gift Pass worth Php5,000.

The promo runs until January 24, 2023. IN addition, those who book deliveries in 2GO outlets at SM Mall of Asia, SM Manila, and SM Fairview can have their gift items wrapped free for every transaction made until January 5, 2023.

donations of food packs and school supplies.

Huang recently worked with the national government to bring muchneeded aid to families affected or displaced by Typhoon Paeng (international name: Nalgae), which brought flash floods and landslides as it swept through the Philippines last October.

“Through our corporate social responsibility efforts, we are committed to doing our part in nation-building. We want to help Filipinos enjoy a better quality of life by supporting efforts towards food security and education. These, we believe, are two of the basic building blocks of a progressive and inclusive society,” says Huang.

Maxwealth Infinity Holdings is a Philippine based private managed holding company that is one of the largest financial technology companies in the Philippines. It was founded on a vision of leadership to innovate and shaping an empowered future across the Philippines.

TO Live Boldly is to live with purpose, with intention, and without reservations. It means to be free to express yourself, pushing aside norms and strongly getting things your way, opening doors to a concept more than society’s definition of beauty, the same way as your choice of hair color and style.

Revlon Professional® brand encourages women to freely express their passion, optimism, strength and style, that is why every shade promotes your pace, your desires, your dreams and goals, it is everything about who you want to be.

To further celebrate the strength and individuality of women Revlon Professional Philippines under the distributorship of New Summit Colors Distribution Inc., interviewed two women who embodies every beat of Living Boldly.

First is, mental health advocate, Cat Triviño who is the co-founder and Head of Content of the mental health organization, MindNation, and Communications Lead for the environmental and human welfare nonprofit CORA. Cat lives with great purpose and that is her lifelong commitment to fight for mental healthcare accessibility and affordability, and all its intersectional dimensions – gender equity, sustainability, women empowerment, youth leadership, and purpose-building.

Her strong sense of accountability towards people suffering from mental health issues stems from her journey and struggle with anxiety and depression. When asked about her advice to women experiencing difficulties right now “take what you can from these difficult experiences, and make something beautiful and meaningful out of what we’ve been given. Don't be afraid to seek help, too.” she ends.

Next is, Chefpreneur Monica Marchadesch the Executive Chef and Co-Owner of Prawn Star PH, a seafood restaurant that has been crossing waves since 2016. Chef Monica plans to empower women by opening doors and showing them that it is possible to build

a restaurant from scratch, it is possible to make their ideas come to life.

Prawn Star PH is proud that their staff is mostly hardworking women and breadwinners of their families, she also adds that “my amazing partners at Prawn Star Ph are all women who dared to dream big, and here we are still dreaming to get bigger and better and to continue reaching for our goals”. Timely to today’s celebration of National Choose Women Wednesday, Chef Monica embodies realizing the potential and power women hold, as this celebration promotes female entrepreneurs and pushes awareness for women-owned businesses.

The interview happened while both women were pampered with a hair makeover performed by Revlon Professional Philippines’ Educators, Matt Collado and Mutya Malapaya, both experienced the power of REVLONISSIMO COLORSMETIQUE™

Permanent Hair Color Naturals and REVLONISSIMO™ Satinescent Fashion Colors. Before the interview we asked Collado and Malapaya, about their “creative inspiration” for Cat and Monica, “Women like Cat and Monica are adventurous with their image and hair color, and we know that they will embrace the latest metallic trends,” Collado mentioned. “While we also wanted to give Cat and Monica a refreshing yet braver look for the holiday season, we also considered their personal preference, and a beautiful collaboration took place,” Malapaya adds. “And yes, that is what we are, we live to transform, and we Live Boldly,” ended Collado.

REVLONISSIMO COLORSMETIQUE™

Permanent Hair Color Naturals, REVLONISSIMO™ Satinescent Fashion Colors, REVLONISSIMO Color Sublime™ and Revlon Professional® Nutri Color Filters are available at Azta Urban Salon, Freshaire Salon, Stud & Sassy | Barber Salon, RME Salon, Wow Salon, Ombre Salon, Cut and Care Salon, or shop online via newsummitcolors.com.

2GO

Revlon Professional Philippines seeks to inspire women to live boldly with new hair color choices

MAXWEALTH Infinity Holdings

CEO Alfonso Huang is proactive about uplifting the lives of marginalized Filipinos. Under his leadership, the financial technology company has been working with several local government units to ensure that families in underprivileged communities have access to basic necessities, through

PHILANTHROPIST Alfonso Huang donated 7,000 sacks of rice to the DSWD for victims of Typhoon Paeng.

Envoys&Expats

SoKor collaborate for crime prevention

Union envoys endorse ‘22 Euro Higher Educ Fair

The Quarterly Joint Consultative Meeting on November 22 between the embassy and the PNP Commission assessed three programs contributory to the “considerable downturn trend in crime statistics, and the upward trend in [solving] crime.” According to the embassy, these are the results of producing a highly efficient, competent and effective police force.

Said programs being supported by the Korean government through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) comprise the following: (1) the Enhanced Management of Police Operations (EMPO); (2) Utilization of technology and adoption of various systems, including that of the National Police Clearance; and (3) Human resourcedevelopment activities, such as training of officers.

South Korea has supported the PNP’s EMPO through the “Enhancing Criminal Investigation Capability” project—a $6.6-million endeavor that started in 2017 and is slated for completion in 2022. About 130 police vehicles, 142 motorcycles and 120 forensic-investigation kits were provided and distributed to local and

regional police units in Metro Manila and the cities of Davao, Cebu, Angeles and Baguio.

The project, the embassy reported, achieved the following outcomes: (a) Contributed to the reduction of crime-occurrence rate; (b) Enhanced mobility of the police force and increased their initial capability to respond to crimes, plus (c) Strengthened the police capability on investigative planning and administration, as well as digital forensic-evidence analysis.

Likewise, South Korea will plan to give technical assistance in implementing the PNP’s digital initiatives in integrating the existing digital programs with linkages to the latter’s Clearance System. KOICA, in partnership with the PNP, will launch another project: “Establishment of Criminal Investigation Data Management and Analysis System of the PNP.”

Through this $7-million project, which will last from 2023 to 2028, the PNP will be able to strengthen its capacity to prepare data-based countermeasures against crimes, secure consistency, integrity of crime data, and establish human rights-friendly

policies for crime investigation.

Next, the East Asian country has shared its knowledge and expertise with the PNP through KOICA’s capacity-building programs in the field of crime prevention and solution, which have aided the PNP’s Human Resources development activities.

Some 370 PNP officers have joined multiple capacity-building initiatives in various fields, including forensic investigation, cyber investigation, violent crimes and vehiclemobility management.

KOICA, the embassy revealed, will consult with the PNP on the rollout of workshops in multiple fields—including the “Capacitybuilding for traffic-management implementation and safety transportation environment for [PNP] in the Republic of the Philippines (2024-2026)” training course.

On November 23 Police General

Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr. welcomed KOICA’s technical delegation for the second digital project led by Korean National Police Agency’s assistant director for Investigation Management and Support Division Shon Jeong-mee, who shared the vision on utilization of digital technologies for crime investigation with KOICA delegation members.

The embassy said it is looking forward to working closely with the PNP to ensure the effective implementation for the latter project.

It believes that the robust partnership between South Korea and the Philippines in the field of crime prevention and solution will contribute to creating safer business and tourism environments.

Doing so, the deputation shared, will attract more foreign businesses and investors, as well as international tourists, to the Philippines.

ENVOYS from European Union ably supported this year’s hybrid European Higher Education Fair (EHEF 2022), organized by the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to the Philippines, together with the bloc’s member-states’ embassies, education services and cultural institutes, in collaboration with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

EHEF 2022 was formally opened by EU Ambassador Luc Véron and Commissioner Ronald Adamat of CHED, among others.

The event was joined by more than 100 European higher-education institutions and education services from the European region’s member-states such as Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Finland and Sweden.

Ambassadors Jana Šedivá (Czech Republic), Titanilla Toth (Hungary), Juha Pyykkö (Finland), Michel Parys (Belgium), Ioannis Pediotis (Greece), as well as diplomats and officers from the embassies of the said countries graced the event.

In his opening remarks, Véron said: “As the [bloc] celebrates the 2022 International Year of the Youth, we focus on enabling [young citizens] to innovate and… help build a better future: greener, more inclusive, and digital.”

For his part, Adamat remarked that “[we] need to take advantage of technological advancements [and harness] valuable digital assets to develop and implement policies and programs that will broaden access and ensure quality of Philippine higher education benefitting the wider Filipino community.”

EHEF 2022 gathered about 1,900 students, academicians, researchers and faculty members on-site at the Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong City. It also recorded an average of more than 6,000 online participants navigating the fair’s web site: www.ehefphilippines.com and its Facebook page. Through the partnership between the EU Delegation to the Philippines and CHED, EHEF has become “the premier platform to link higher education institutions, cultural groups and other EU-academic programs with [learners] aspiring to study in the region.”

This year’s Philippines university-partners included regional hubs Wesleyan University and the University of the Cordilleras (Luzon), Silliman University (Visayas), as well as Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, Holy Cross of Davao College, Mabalacat City Colleges, Rizal Technological University, Trinity University of Asia, University of Santo Tomas, and Visayas State University.

AMBASSADOR Juha Pyykkö provided an exclusive interview to ENVOYS&EXPATS ahead of the Republic of Finland’s National Day festivities on December 6.

According to Pyykkö, there’s much to explore as the Philippines refreshes its bilateral relations with the Scandinavian nation. The diplomat provides an impressive overview of such.

ENVOYS&EXPATS: Congratulations on the reopening of the Finnish Embassy in the Philippines! What made your government decide on this?

PYYKKÖ: Thank you very much! I am naturally very happy and proud that I am the first “new” ambassador of Finland to the Philippines since fall of 2020.

There were—and are—three main reasons for the reestablishment of our deputation here. First, with an embassy on the spot, we can more actively and meaningfully engage in facilitating the entry of Finnish companies in the Philippine market. In many respects, I see that Finnish firms have expertise in fields which directly contribute to the recovery of the Philippine economy and further development of society at large. Here, we are talking about green transition: increasing use of renewable energy, waste-to-energy and circular economy solutions in the fight against plastic waste, for example.

Further, digitalization is running through our economies and societies, and we can offer Finnish know-how

and solutions. In Finland, we see education as the foundation of our own development story over the decades, and we are happy to introduce our solutions here as well. In addition to the commercial side of all these, we want to engage in a policy dialogue with the Philippines on these topics in order to exchange ideas and experiences.

Second, our embassy plays an important role in the processing of residence permit and visa applications of Filipinos who want to travel to Finland. There is a growing number of local professionals, largely in the health-care sector, who travel to live and work there, which is highly appreciated. The Philippine community in Finland, estimated to number some 6,000 to 7,000, is a respected and much liked part of the Finnish economy and society.

Third, the geoeconomic and geopolitical situation in this region, and in the Indo-Pacific more broadly, is of great interest and significance to

Finland and the European Union (EU). With an outpost in Manila, we can follow and analyze the developments more closely.

Overall, all our work at the embassy is based on human rights, since the foreign and security policy of Finland is founded on such.

What should Filipinos know about the Finns and Finland? How are we the same or different? How can we work together?

Something that people share all over the world is the quest for happiness. You might know that, five years running, Finland has been ranked “the happiest nation in the world.” We Finns are so humble that when learning about the results of the ranking for the first time, we could hardly believe it.

As I express it many times, for us Finns, being happy in life is more of being content. This feeling and experience is based on our freedom, relationship to nature, social security, gender equality, and trust. Trust in society and among inhabitants is, for me, the most important thing that defines Finnish society and us Finns. We might be a bit slow to warm up as individuals but when you get a Finn as a friend, she or he will be there as a rock to firmly stand on, or as a shoulder to cry your tears.

Filipinos smile and laugh more than Finns. This is something that I like a lot here. Your display of happiness through resilience is something I really admire. We should learn from your smiles, and your affection for your family and close-ones.

In many ways, I see Finns and Filipinos complement each other. Being in different parts of the world and our populations being of hugely different magnitude, I think we can learn from each other in so many ways by sharing views and experiences. As they say, it is always a two-way street where both partners stand to give, learn, and get.

On the more professional side, one aspect of international politics where Finland and the Philippines share similar views, is the importance of multilateralism where the United Nations system is at the core. That said, I want to express my appreciation to the government of the Philippines for joining the condemnation of the Russian aggression against Ukraine. That is a grave breach of international law. We should all be vigilant and work relentlessly against the disinformation spreading about the reasons for and implications of the invasion.

What can we expect from your term as ambassador? What are the relations’ areas you wish to focus on?

I sincerely hope that I, together with my great team in our embassy, can make a successful fresh start in the bilateral relations between our two countries—be it in commercial relations, immigration matters, and cooperation on international issues in various multilateral fora.

Likewise, I hope that as memberstate of the EU, the Embassy of Finland in the Philippines can contribute to strengthening the role of the EU in this region.

Israel offers novel solutions for PHL’s water challenges

THE Embassy of Israel recently organized a seminar to impart its country’s expertise and experience on waterresource management.

Through MASHAV, or Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation, and the United States Agency for International Aid and Development by way of the latter’s “Safe Water” initiative, held a “Water Security Strategies” gathering on November 17 with the Philippine government and local water concessionaires for the said purpose.

“The technologies were introduced together with good policies and regulations that made Israel the [world’s leading country] in managing the water sector: from desalination to reuse of sewage, minimum loss of water, and more,” Ambassador Ilan Fluss shared. “Israel invested in technology to support [its growing demand and urbanization…Through the seminar, we hope that the Philippines’s key implementing agencies will gain insights from our] experience, and adapt them to local conditions.”

Like all countries in the region, Israel faced several challenges in the water sector. The Middle East, the region where the “Holy Land” belongs, is a dry area, with more than 50 percent of its land situ-

ated in the desert.

Among Israeli companies in attendance which presented their water technologies were ARAD Group, Atlantium, Okiana, and Watergen. The delegation offered cutting-edge Israeli technologies in the areas of advanced metering infrastructure, water and wastewater-management and treatment solutions, water-control solutions, and turnkey projects.

They highlighted their country’s innovation and technology that are hoped to inspire and encourage the Philippine water sector, businesses and local government units (LGUs) to invest in technologies that will help manage water sustainably.

Officials from the National Water Resources Board, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, as well as Manila Water shared challenges of the Philippines, as water availability continues to fall and demand expands, then presented perspectives on managing water scarcity in the country.

These were analyzed by the Israeli delegation, as they presented new solutions to better manage the country’s water sector. Representatives from national government agencies, LGUs, private sector and the academe were in attendance.

THE Embassy of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) has committed to a multiyear cooperation with the Philippine National Police (PNP) to preserve safety, security and peace in the country.

KOREAN National Police Agency Assistant Director Shon Jeong-mee and PNP Police General Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr. FB: EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA IN THE PHILIPPINES

E.

DIPLOMATS and officials from the European Union member-states’ embassies join organizers of the EHEF 2022

pads lead to 11

VETERAN Jun Jun Plana

booked an impressive round at the tough Baguio Country Club course to help Manila Southwoods score 109 points and hike its lead to 11 points over Luisita in the Fil-Championship of the 72nd Fil-Am Men’s Invitational Wednesday in Baguio City.

Plana hit 10 greens at the par-61 layout for a two-over 63 worth 34 points. With Theody Pascual’s 26, Manfred Guangko’s 25 and Raul Miñoza’s 24, Southwoods tallied 357 with one round left in the premiere senior division.

This is not yet a safe lead. No lead is safe in BCC. For sure, it’s going to be man for man,” Southwoods skipper Freddie Mendoza said. “Anything can happen. A guy can suddenly score high at BCC.”

Luisita pooled 103 for 346 with Dan Cruz and Benjie Sumulong making 28 apiece, Eddie Bagtas contributing 25 and Marty Ilagan adding 22.

There’s one more day, so we still have a chance to make it. Since we are playing BCC, no lead is safe here,” Luisita’s designated captain Sumulong said. “But it’s going to a huge task because this means each of our player must beat the other by at least 3 points.”

C amp John Hay Hotels and Baguio Blue Bloods, meanwhile, wrapped up the titles in their respective divisions.

C amp John Hay Hotels went wire-to-wire for 367 and a 16-point win over Hotel Bahia in Fil-A. Monet Garcia poured in 27 points, Shean Bedi signed for 22 while Federico Mandapat and playing captain Jimmy Borromeo each had 18 for 85 points. The Baguio Blue Bloods, on the other hand, scored 102 for 344 points for the Am-A crown. Pradera Verde finished runner up with 326.

AMERICANS SHOOT DOWN IRANIANS, 1-0

OHA, Qatar—Chris tian Pulisic kicked the ball, scored the goal and crashed into the goalkeeper, a collision that sent the American star to a hospital and the United States into the second round of the World Cup.

More than an hour later, he contacted his teammates by FaceTime to join the celebration.

Pulisic’s 38th-minute goal had held up, and the United States had beaten Iran, 1-0, on Tuesday night in their politically charged rematch to advance to the World Cup’s knockout stage.

Every single player is ready to lay their body on the line to make sure this team is successful,” midfielder Weston McKennie said.

A fter finishing second in Group B with five points, two behind England, the US plays the

First woman referee at World Cup D

OHA, Qatar—French referee Stéphanie Frappart will become the first woman to take charge of a men’s World Cup game when she handles Germany against Costa Rica on Thursday in Qatar.

F IFA also picked two women as assistants to Frappart—Neuza Back of Brazil and Karen Diaz Medina of Mexico—to complete an all-female refereeing team on the field.

The fourth woman match official FIFA picked for this World Cup, Kathryn Nesbitt of the United States, will also be working at the Al Bayt Stadium as the offside specialist in the video review team.

F IFA made the historic appointments for the 44th of the 64 games being played in Qatar.

F rappart previously was picked for fourth official duties.

The 38-year-old Frenchwoman has been promoted in the men’s game by European soccer body UEFA and in her home country.

S he was refereed men’s games in World Cup qualifying and the Champions League, and this year’s men’s French Cup final. She also took charge of the 2019 Women’s World Cup final for FIFA. AP

Arcilla, Pague advance to Brookside quarters

JOHNNY ARCILLA scored an abbreviated 1-0 (retired) win over Elvin Geluz while Jose Maria Pague crushed Alberto Villamor, 6-0, 6-3, as they towed six other seeded players to the quarterfinals of the Brookside Open National Tennis Championships at the Brookside Hills courts in Cainta, Rizal, Wednesday.

S eeking a follow-up to his Open wins in Puerto Princesa and in San Carlos, Negros Occidental, the multi-titled Arcilla held off Rodolfo Barquin, 6-4, 6-3, coming off an opening round bye then advanced to the Last 8 of the Group A championship when Geluz retired due to injury.

The top seeded nine-time Philippine Colombian Association Open champion faces No. 11 Loucas Fernandez at 8 a.m. today for a berth in the semis after the latter, who also drew a bye in the first round, thwarted Giulian Bandoquillo, 6-0,

7-5, and Alexis Acabo, 6-3, 6-4.

Pague, on the other hand, survived Ibarra Ortego, 6-2, 7-6(7), in the second round then the second ranked bet from Zamboanga, Sibugay smothered Villamor to arrange a showdown with No. 8 Noel Damian, Jr. at 9:30 a.m.

Damian repulsed top junior campaigner Eric Tangub, 3-6, 6-3, 10-3, then bested Rollie Anasta, 6-3, 6-4, in the lower half of the 64-player draw of the week-long championship sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala (PPS-PEP), Rep. Jack Duavit, BHTC president Allan del Castillo, Ret. PNP Dir. Gen. Oscar Calderon, Ret. Gen. Louizo Ticman and Selective Security Services.

Meanwhile, top ranked Hannah Divinagracia bagged the girls’ 16-andunder crown in last week’s PPS-PEPP Brookside Open national juniors championships, also at Brookside Hills, overpowering Chloe Mercado, 6-1, 6-0, in the finals.

Netherlands on Saturday with the chance to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002.

I always say it’s us against the world,” winger Tim Weah said, “’cause no one believed that the US could play good football.”

Back in the World Cup after missing the 2018 tournament, the US needed a victory to reach the round of 16. Iran finished third in the group with three points and has failed to advance in six World Cup appearances.

The dream is over,” Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said.

McKennie started the play for the goal when he lofted the ball from just past the center circle to Sergiño Dest at the edge of the 6-yard box. Dest headed the ball in front of the net on a bounce as Pulisic charged up the center of the field past Ramin Rezaeian and Majid Hosseini.

Twisting his body, Pulisic redirected the ball with his right foot for his 22nd international goal and first in World Cup play. His momentum carried him into goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.

“Christian makes those runs.

That’s what he does. That’s the special quality he has,” US coach Gregg Berhalter said. “As soon as the ball is wide, he goes in with intensity to the penalty box and good things happen.”

Pulisic was sprawled on the field and for about three minutes as he received treatment. He tried to continue playing but was substituted at the start of the second half and taken by athletic trainer Harris Patel for abdominal scans at Hamad General Hospital, where Pulisic followed the game on phone apps. The US Soccer Federation said Pulisic was diagnosed with a pelvic contusion, returned to the team hotel and is day to day.

I sent him a text and checked on him, and he said, ‘Best believe I’ll be ready on Saturday,’” McKennie said.

Weah nearly doubled the lead in the seventh minute of first-half stoppage time but was ruled offside.

R aucous Iranian fans with horns and drums in the crowd of 42,127 filled the lower bowl behind one goal at Al Thumama Stadium, a circular venue shaped like a gahfiya, a traditional hat.

W hile the US outshot Iran,

Senators Tolentino, Villanueva cite Brownlee’s love for PHL, passion

By Butch Fernandez

ON the day the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading the bill granting Filipino citizenship to basketball player Justin Donta Brownlee, Senators endorsed for plenary approval their counterpart  report pushing for quick approval of the same in the Senate.

In his co-sponsorship speech Tuesday on House Bill No. 6224 under Committee Report No. 13, granting Philippine citizenship to Brownlee, Majority Leader Joel Villanueva noted that Brownlee’s contributions helped his team Barangay Ginebra San Miguel win five Philippine Basketball Associa tion (PBA) titles.

His love for the Philippines and basketball truly makes him a Filipino at heart and we are lucky to have him,” Villanueva affirmed. “We welcome him as one of our own and we look forward to seeing him wearing the Philippine jersey in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.”      The senator noted in thanking  colleagues for fast-tracking what he said must be the “fastest” citizenship bills ever heard in the Senate, Villanueva singled out for praise the main sponsor of the measure granting Brownlee citizenship, Senator Francis Tolentino, “for his unwavering support to the field of sports in the country and for steadfastly pushing for the passage of this bill.”        In his sponsorship speech on Tuesday, Tolentino said two things struck him, among others, about why Brownlee deserved citizenship.

First, unlike other players who were bestowed citizenship, “he was the one who stayed.” Brownlee had lived in the Philippines the past six years, playing for professional teams, and soaking in the culture and embracing the people.

Tolentino recalled that when asked why he chose to be a Filipino citizen, Brownlee replied that  the past six years, especially during the pandemic, he had gone around a lot on his motorbike and noticed that everywhere he went, even in the humblest communities, Filipinos went along their daily lives cheerfully, despite adversity. And quite often, they played basketball to keep themselves happy, whether it’s on well-appointed gyms, or the humble dirt-road type of basketball court.      Tolentino said Brownlee had enthused that he wanted, above all, to live with this kind of people.

For his part, Villanueva said, “Basketball is life. It goes without saying that the Philippines as a nation, is basketball crazy. Aside from religiously following the National Basketball Association and idolizing its superstars, the country likewise prides itself for its own Philippine Basketball Association, the country’s professional basketball league and the first of its kind in Asia. Since then, a number of other professional and collegiate basketball leagues have been introduced in response to the growing enthusiasm of the Filipinos to participate in this sport.”

Vi llanueva himself played varsity basketball for University of Santo Tomas.

9-0, in the first half, Iran had a 4-3 advantage in the second, knowing it needed only a draw to advance. Berhalter inserted Walker Zimmerman in the 82nd minute and shifted to a five-man defense.

Nine minutes of stoppage time were announced. Morteza Pouraliganji’s diving header in the third minute went just wide. In the eighth minute, Cameron CarterVickers had a hand on Mehdi Taremi’s shoulder as the striker slid into Matt Turner, and the ball squibbed through the goalkeeper only for Zimmerman to clear it. Spanish referee Antonio Mateu denied Iran’s appeal for a video review, and the final whistle blew after the 10th extra minute.

I hope that our fans and our people in Iran forgive us,” Taremi said.

Turner gave the US consecutive World Cup shutouts for the first time since 1930. Inside the locker room, teammates tried to speak with Pulisic.

Everyone was screaming, so we couldn’t really hear too, too much,” Turner said. “He left everything, put everything on the line there and was able to get the ball across the line.” AP

“ This dedication to the game is further manifested in international basketball competitions such as the Asian Basketball Cup, where we found out that Justin Brownlee is one of our prized players,” Villan ueva said.

Thus, Villanueva added, “it is my great honor” to co-sponsor House Bill No. 6224 under Committee Report Number 13, or An Act Granting Philippine Citizenship To Justin Donta Brownlee.”

Brownlee was born on April 23, 1988, in Georgia in the US.

His contributions helped his team win five PBA titles. And as a Barangay Ginebra fan, we are looking forward to his sixth title in the PBA,” said Villanueva.

Aside from winning the Best Import Award not once but twice,” the senator acknowledged “these achievements have brought enormous pride and joy to the Philippine Basketball Association and admiration from all basketball enthusiasts in the country.”

H e notes that “with a very illustrious career in basketball, Brownlee wishes to play for the Philippine national team and has expressed his desire to stay in the country and be a naturalized citizen.”

Brownlee, the senator said, volunteered to train Filipinos.

I was present during the committee hearing held in this very building. I was very impressed that he himself volunteered to train our very own Gilas players because of his experience,” the senator recalled, reminding that Brownlee  “has been playing in different parts of the world so he knows what it’s like to play in international competitions. He volunteered himself, so that our basketball players can be further trained and exposed to international competition.” Villanueva said, partly in Filipino.

By Josef Ramos

DIAZ NARANJO

HIDILYN

found herself as the women’s 55 kgs top seed at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Championships after Kazakhstan’s Zulfiya Chinshanlo’s was mysteriously scrapped from the start list.

B ut with or without Chinshanlo—and even top Chinese Liao Qiuyun—Diaz Naranjo said the competition remains tough in the Bogota world championships set from December 5 to 16.

It’s going to be tougher field because these are the world championships,” Diaz said.

Diaz Naranjo said Liao, who settled for silver behind Diaz Naranjo at the Tokyo Olympics last year, is retired.

C hinshanlo, bronze medalist in Tokyo, was the erstwhile top seed when she entered a target lift of 215 kgs to Diaz Naranjo’s 210 kgs.

It’s not known why the Kazakh was dropped from the now 25-athlete 55 kgs roster, but Diaz Naranjo surmised she could be skipping Bogota perhaps exhausted from the Asian championships last October in Bahrain where she won the gold medal.

But Diaz Naranjo said she’s not totally dismissing Chinshanlo from the competition. She can still beat this Saturday’s registration deadline.

“ She [Chinshanlo] is performing really good particularly in Bahrain she lifted a total 220 kgs,” said Diaz Naranjo, who’s training for the world championships at the Power and Grace Performance Gym in Suwalee, Georgia, in the US with husbandcoach Julius Naranjo.

Seeded behind the pride of Zamboanga City who has yet to win her first world championships gold medal are Tokyo Olympian Ana Gabriela Lopez (No. 2) and Irene Esmeralda (No. 3) both of Mexico, Andreaa Cotruta (No. 4) of Romania and Enkhtamir Enkhbaatar (No. 5) of Mongolia. They submitted similar weight entries of 205 kgs.

Diaz Naranjo’s cousin, coach Allen Diaz, told BusinessMirror Chinshanlo could still appear on the start list as he also cited her stint in Bahrain as a factor for her dropping out.

“ Maybe she withdraw or transferred to Group B,” Diaz said. “She came from a tough Asian competition in Bahrain.”

The other Filipino weightlifters seeing action in Bogota are Asian champion Vanessa Sarno and Kristel Macrohon (71 kgs), Rosegie Ramos and Lovely Inan (49 kgs), Elreen Ann Ando (59 kgs),

Rio Olympian Nestor Colonia (55 kg)s, John Febuar Ceniza (61 kgs) and Dave Lloyd Pacaldo (67 kgs).  D iaz Naranjo is looking at moving to the 59 kgs division after the 55 kgs division where she won gold in Tokyo was scrapped for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

JUN JUN PLANA cards another impressive round.

WOMAN rising as French Stéphanie Frap part makes World Cup history. AP

Hidilyn now No. 1 seed after Kazakh entry vanishes in start list for worlds

THE US’s Christian Pulisic scores his side’s opening goal against Iran at the Al Thumama Stadium in Tuesday. AP

BROWNLEE TOLENTINO

VILLANUEVA

HIDILYN DIAZ NARANJO trains for the world championships at the at the Power and Grace Performance Gym in Georgia.