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Saturday, December 19, 2015 Vol. 11 No. 72

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PHL KEEPS STREAK OF EFFECTIVE I.P.R. ENFORCEMENT

USTR clears Greenhills, Divisoria, Quiapo anew

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hilippine marketplaces—tagged years ago as intellectual-property (IP) hot spots—were cleared anew by the United States Trade Representative Office (USTR) in its review of notorious hubs for counterfeit products and fake goods.

INSIDE

South koreans plan new march against president The World BusinessMirror

b2-2 Saturday, December 19, 2015

By Catherine N. Pillas

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South Korean protesters attend an antigovernment rally in downtown Seoul, South Korea, on December 5. Wearing white half masks and carrying flowers and banners, thousands of South Koreans marched in Seoul on Saturday against conservative President Park Geun-hye, who had compared masked protesters to terrorists after clashes with police broke out at a rally last month. AP/Ahn Young-joon

South Koreans plan new march against president

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EOUL, South Korea—Hundreds of South Koreans plan to march on Saturday in Seoul against conservative President Park Geun-hye, whose increasingly harsh treatment of union members and dissidents has led to criticism comparing her with her late dictator father.

under 30 is approaching levels not seen since the late 1990s, when millions lost their jobs during a crippling financial crisis.

T he de mon s t r at ion s h ave grown because protesters believe t heir causes have been neglected by politicians and the media, said Chung Jaewon, a social science professor at Seoul ’s Kookmin University.

Park’s government has responded by clamping down on the labor and civic organizations involved in organizing the protests.

Prosecutors are also considering indicting an arrested labor union official for sedition, a crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison, over the eruption of violence at the November rally. South Korean courts have not convicted a defendant of sedition since 1986, when dictator Chun Doo-hwan was in power, legal experts say.

The police have also vowed tougher actions against protesters who use violence. Critics, however, say the injury of a 69-year-old pro-

tester, who remains in a coma, and the heavy use of tear gas and water cannons mixed with pepper spray mean the police put lives at risk last month by using unreasonable force to break up the demonstrators.

A follow-up rally on December 5 was peaceful as thousands of people—many donning masks of Guy Fawkes, Marvel superheroes and other characters to protest Park’s comments comparing masked protesters with terrorists—marched toward the Seoul hospital where the man in a coma was being treated.

Park ’s government has also come under massive public criticism for its botched rescue operation during a ferry disaster last year that killed more than 300, mostly school kids.

Park is the daughter of slain military dictator Park Chunghee, who ruled South Korea in the 1960s and 1970s, and whose legacy as a successful economic strategist is marred by a brutal record of civilian oppression. AP

The rally will be the latest in a series of mass protests against the government in recent months, although the police believe the turnout will be smaller than huge demonstrations earlier this month and on November 14, when dozens were injured in a clash between the police and protesters.

Although Park still has a strong base of loyal supporters, dissatisfaction has been growing. Demonstrators criticize her conservative policies in labor, trade and

education, and also what they see as her attacks on personal and political freedoms.

There is also widespread frustration among young people over joblessness and inequality, analysts say, which has inspired an Internet buzzword, “Hell Joseon,” referring to the feudal Joseon kingdom that ruled Korea before it was colonized by Japan in the early 20th century.

Government figures show that the unemployment rate for people

Mine accidents in China leave as many as 36 dead

EU summit kicks off British reform talks

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EIjIng—As many as 36 coal miners have died in a pair of accidents in nor theast China, the latest misfortunes to hit a beleaguered industry suffering from a drop in demand and looming layoffs.

In the city of huludao in Liaoning province, 17 miners died following a fire in the pit caused by sparks thrown off by welders, the State Administration of Work Safety reported on its web site.

Another 10 miners were being treated in a hospital, the administration said.

To the nor th in the heilongjiang province city of hegang, 19 miners trapped underground since Wednesday have yet to be found, the administration said. With fires in the pit still raging, rescuers have given up hope of finding any of them alive, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

China’s mines have long been the world’s deadliest, but safety improvements and a decline in coal demand reduced the carnage in recent years.

Last year 931 people were killed in mine accidents throughout China, down from nearly 7,000 in 2002. AP

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RUSSELS—With an impassioned plea to European Union (EU) leaders to fundamentally change the way the EU is run, British Prime Minister David Cameron kicked oF two months of negotiations on many of the cornerstones on which the 28-nation bloc is built, with the survival of Britain as a member-state hanging in the balance.

While the other EU leaders sought to be accommodating to several British demands to streamline bureaucracy and increase efficiency, they insisted they would not compromise core values to limit largely unfettered movement in the bloc and discrimination between EU citizens, even it meant losing one of the biggest EU assets.

“We have to be tough when it comes to red lines and fundamental values. We will not give up,” EU President Donald Tusk said after what he called a “make or break” evening to see whether a compromise would be possible. Britain will have a referendum before the end of 2017 to decide whether to stay in the EU. Cameron is seeking

BritiSh Prime Minister David Cameron (left) speaks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (second from right) during a group photo at an European union summit in Brussels on thursday.

European union heads of state meet to discuss, among other issues, the current migration crisis and terrorism. AP/FrAnçoIS WALSChAErTS

wholesale changes to how the EU is managed and wants to ingrain it more with the British view of noninterference and sustained sovereignty rather than the EU’s mantra of ever closer union. And even though Cameron echoed the challenges ahead are huge, he did sound hopeful, saying “there is a lot of goodwill. There is momentum.”

“There is a pathway to an agreement,” Cameron said. “But the truth

is, it will be very hard work.” If there is no fundamental reform, Cameron has indicated it could lead to “Brexit,” or a potential British exit.

British proposals on welfare and migration are expected to be the toughest to find an agreement on.

Particularly grating on memberstates is a plan for a four-year ban on in-work benefits for migrants, something many feel amounts to discrimination. Los Angeles Times/TNS

has faced backlash from many Republican governors, lawmakers and presidential candidates in the wake of deadly attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, which heightened terrorism fears in the United States.

Republican front-runner Donald Trump, whose campaign slogan is “Make America great again,” has called for temporarily banning Muslims from the United States— a proposal criticized by his rivals.

Michigan Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, who considers himself one of the nation’s most pro-immigration governors and has passionately spoken on behalf of newcomers from the Middle East and elsewhere, nonetheless, urged a pause in expanding resettlement efforts beyond current commitments until security concerns are addressed.

Snyder, who said he welcomes Hamo and his family to Michigan, hasn’t proposed blocking Syrians outright as other state leaders have, and has sought to distance himself from Trump.

“It’s clear it became overly politicized across the political spectrum.

I think that’s unfortunate because I view this as a national security interest issue and it needs to be done in an appropriate balance with the spirit of immigration, which is at the core of America,” Snyder said.

“There are other people that have politicized this. I’ve tried to stay true to the course of striking this appropriate balance and doing it in a factual fashion.”

For his part, Norton wrote that Hamo’s story “moved me to tears,” and created the campaign that has raised roughly $450,000 through thousands of individual online donations for Hamo’s family and his medical treatment.

Norton told The Associated Press he would like to help other USbound Syrian refugees profiled by Humans of New York once Hamo’s needs are met, and “we’re well on our way to being able to do that.”

He added that he’s inspired by “the human story that’s behind the immigration stories.” AP

By Roderick L. Abad

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Evolution of pro-creationism laws in US tracked by study

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HE forces opposed to teaching evolution in US public schools just got a new reason to resent the bedrock scientific theory: A researcher has used the principles of evolutionary biology to show that laws ostensibly aimed at improving science education are firmly rooted in efforts to make classrooms safe for creationism.

The analysis of dozens of bills introduced in state legislatures around the country reveals how a single innovation from a small Louisiana parish (population 156,325) was incorporated into 32 subsequent bills through a process the study describes as “descent with modification.” Two of those 32 bills became law and now “negatively affect science education” for students throughout Louisiana (population 4.7 million) and Tennessee (population 6.5 million). “ The creationist origins of modern antievolution strategies are clear,” according to the study

by Nicholas Matzke, who recently became a research fellow at the Australian National University in Canberra. The findings were published on Thursday in the journal Science. Matzke is no stranger to the battles over teaching evolution in public schools. He spent three years at the National Center for Science Education, where he aided the parents of public-school students from Dover, Pennsylvania, who filed a federal lawsuit to remove intelligent design from their school district’s curriculum.

The case, Kitzmiller v. Dover, was decided in favor of the parents in 2005, with the court ruling that attempts to insert biblically inspired

creationist theories into publicschool classrooms were unconstitutional. Matzke went on to earn his doctorate in integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis in Knoxville, Tennessee.

As a computational biogeographer, he studies how plant and animal species got to the places where they live today and where they might wind up in the future—and he uses a lot of complicated computer programs to help him.

He took a similar approach to map the family tree of 65 antievolution bills that have been introduced in 16 US states since the Kitzmiller decision. Those bills do not mention creationism or intelligent design by name, but they generally give teachers legal cover to present a “critical analysis” of evolution. Matzke also included two other texts in his analysis—the school board policy from Louisiana’s Ouachita Parish and a model bill produced by the Discovery Institute, a major proponent of intelligent design.

The Discovery Institute’s postKitzmiller plan has been to promote “Academic Freedom Acts,” which are “aimed at encouraging teachers to promote antievolutionism,” Matzke wrote in Science. The Ouachita approach was to combine skepticism of evolution with criticism for two other hot-button science issues: climate change and human cloning. This strategy has been widely copied by bills that have come to be called “Science Education Acts.” Los Angeles Times/TNS

World

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crashing victory Sports

A newly constructed mall in Taguig City, featuring a man-made canal reminiscent of the Venice Grand Canal in Italy and The Venitian in Macau, is now partially open, giving more reasons for locators to choose the former military base over the Makati Central Business District. ALYSA SALEN

BusinessMirror

A8 | S

AturdAy,

december 19, 2015 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

By Cai U. Ordinario

kind, not just surfing, take center stage in the movie, and the filmmakers used athletes, not stuntmen, to make the scenes as realistic as possible. AP

CRASHING VICTORY PUTIN: RUSSIA WILL COOPERATE M

OSCOW—President Vladimir Putin on Thursday pledged that Russia would cooperate with international officials to eradicate the “poison” of doping, but said it was wrong to suspend athletes who have not been accused of cheating.

Putin suggested the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) blanket suspension of Russia’s entire track and field team was unfair because it penalized athletes for the cheating of others.

Russia’s track and field federation was suspended by the IAAF after a World Anti-Doping Agency panel accused the country of operating a widespread, state-sponsored doping program and covering up positive tests. The penalty could keep Russia’s track and field athletes out of next year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

“If someone is doping, they should definitely be punished in the proper way because it destroys the idea of fair competition,” Putin said in his annual news conference. “Those who are guilty—the coach, the organizer, the athlete—they should be held responsible. Those who have nothing to do with it should not answer for those who are violating something. It’s not fair and it’s not right.”

Putin promised to make sure that Russian officials work with international bodies to fight doping, which he described as a “poison for people.”

“Russia must and will be open for a joint fight on doping,” he said in televised remarks. “I will order officials on all levels to cooperate openly with international bodies, not cover up anything. It’s in our interests.”

Putin also reacted to the corruption scandals at International Football Federation (Fifa) which are overshadowing Russia’s preparations to host the World Cup in 2018.

Asked to comment on the ongoing investigation, he said that Russia has done nothing wrong and had won the right to host the soccer tournament in an “honest competition.”

Putin also praised Fifa’s suspended president, Sepp Blatter, for his contribution to world soccer and reiterated his belief—first expressed in July—that Blatter deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.

Two-time Olympian Bobby Lea of the United States, meanwhile, was suspended for 16 months for doping on Thursday after returning a positive test during the track cycling national championships earlier this year.

Shortly after the US Anti-Doping Agency revealed the suspension, Lea said in a letter posted on his web site that he had taken the prescription painkiller Percocet to help him sleep. He did not realize it contains the substance oxycodone, which is banned during competition.

Lea competed in the points race and Madison at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the omnium at the 2012 London Games. He had hoped to compete in the omnium again at next year’s Rio Olympics.

Lea is planning to appeal the suspension to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. AP

VLADIMIR PUTIN says it is wrong to suspend athletes who have not been accused of cheating. AP

LEBRON JAMES is concerned about Ellie Day’s condition. AP

Cavs’ Shumpert calmly delivers fiancée’s baby

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LEVELAND—Cleveland Cavaliers guard Iman Shumpert showed he has more than basketball skills by calmly delivering a baby girl when his fiancee unexpectedly went into labor. According to the National Basketball Association star’s fiancee, Teyana Taylor, the couple welcomed their daughter on Wednesday morning in their bathroom at home. Taylor posted on her Instagram account that she didn’t initially realize she was in labor, and Shumpert, “playing Dr,”

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LEVELAND—LeBron James crashed into a courtside seat, accidentally knocking over and injuring Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) champion Jason Day’s wife during the Cavaliers’ win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.

Ellie Day was placed on a stretcher with her head immobilized and taken to MetroHealth Medical Center. There was no immediate report on her condition.

James was scrambling for a loose ball in the fourth quarter of a 104-100 win over Oklahoma City, when the 6-foot-8, 250-pound All-Star launched himself into the air, plowing into Ellie Day as she sat next to her husband.

James said he spoke with Ellie while she was being helped by medical personnel during a stoppage in play.

“I squeezed her hand and she said she was OK,” he said.

“She was just a little weary.”

Before he was given more information on her, James, who scored 33 points and flirted with a triple-

double, was noticeably shaken when he left the floor following the Cavs’ win.

“For me, obviously, her health is very important and hopefully she is doing well,” James said. “The guys told me she’s doing great now. For me, just going for a loose ball, tried to keep the possession going, I just hate that that was the end result.”

James said if she had been pregnant, he would have jumped over the first row of seats.

A little while later, James tweeted: “Ellie Day I hope you’re doing okay! My apologies! Hope u guys come back to another game soon. Love LJ!” On Novenber 11 Ellie gave birth to the couple’s second child, a girl named Lucy.

Day, who lives in a Columbus suburb, accompanied his wife as she was carried from the floor. The couple has attended Cleveland games in the past, and she was pregnant with their second child when they went to an exhibition game earlier this year in Columbus. That night, Cavs guard JR Smith bought cotton candy for the Days’ son, Dash, while he sat on the bench.

Day is the No. 2-ranked golfer in the world. He won the PGA Championship this year for his first major win on the PGA Tour.

Shortly before his wife was injured, Jason Day took part in a promotion during a timeout. As fans cheered, the Australian golfer chipped foam basketballs into the crowd.

Cavs Coach David Blatt said he was unaware of the severity of the collision. He has long been nervous about the safety of fans sitting so close to the action.

“Honestly, the only thing I saw was LeBron diving for the ball to save the ball,” Blatt said. “I kind of got blocked and just saw a sea of bodies. We all hope that she’s OK. It’s always concerned me, the sideline seats. Always concerned me, because things like that, when you’re talking about players of this speed and physicality and effort level, it’s not a simple thing.

“The powers that be are the ones that really need to decide how to deal with that. He made an honest attempt at the basketball, that’s all, obviously. We all hope she’s OK.” In Charlotte, North Carolina, Jeremy Lin scored a seasonhigh 35 points and Kemba Walker had 27, as Charlotte beat Toronto, 109-99, in overtime.

PJ Hairston added 14 points, including a three-pointer with 1:30 remaining in overtime that put the Hornets ahead to stay.

DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, Kyle Lowry added 20 and Terrence Ross had 17 for Toronto. Bismack Biyombo, who spent four seasons with Charlotte, had a career-best 18 rebounds, while also blocking seven shots and scoring eight points.

James Harden scored 25 points, and Dwight Howard added 16 points and 15 rebounds in Houston’s second victory over Los Angeles, 107-87, in six days.

Terrence Jones had 16 points to help the Rockets avoid a winless three-game trip. They never trailed in their fifth straight win over the Lakers at Staples Center, Houston’s longest road winning streak in the rivalry’s history.

Kobe Bryant scored 22 points and dunked for the first time in his farewell season, but the Lakers followed up their fourth victory of the season with their 14th loss in 16 games. AP

Sports

helped deliver the baby with “his bare hands.”

Taylor said Shumpert tied a pair of headphones around the umbilical cord while they waited for the ambulance to arrive. Taylor’s message to her daughter—Iman Tayla Shumpert Jr.—is: “Mommy carried you. Daddy delivered you. #MeetTheParents we love you baby girl.”

Shumpert, who is in his second season with Cleveland, did not play on Thursday night against Oklahoma City because of a

strained right groin. He sustained the injury against the Celtics, just hours before he performed his special delivery.

He arrived at Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday shortly before the Cavs tipped off against the Thunder and received congratulatory handshakes in the hallway outside Cleveland’s locker room.

Shumpert recently returned to the lineup after missing 21 games following wrist surgery. AP

FFICE-building owners in Makati City are now feeling the pressure to slash rental fees with the emergence of newer and modern structures in nearby Bonifacio Global City (BGC), according to an executive of a property consulting firm.

Pinnacle Real Estate Consulting Services Inc. Director for Research and Consulting Jojo Salas said owners of “Grade A” buildings with premier office spaces in the country’s first central business district (CBD) have reduced their rates to become more competitive.

On a monthly basis, the weighted average

Falling crude oil prices lead to savings at the pump

The national average is less than a penny higher than the 2015 low (Jan. 26), and should soon fall below the $2 per gallon mark for the first time since 2009.

National average gas price comparison, 2012 to 2015 $4.00 $3.55 $3.10

2012 2013 2014

Dec. 7, 2015: $2.03

$2.65 $2.20 $1.75

2015

Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

Source: AAA Graphic: Staff, Tribune News Service

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il traded below $35 a barrel and headed for a third weekly decline, amid a worsening US supply glut and the first interest-rate increase by the Federal Reserve (the Fed) in almost a decade.

Futures held losses in New York after closing on Thursday at the lowest in almost seven years, and were down 2.4 percent this week. Crude stockpiles surged to 490.7 million barrels, the highest for this time of year since 1930, according to the Energy Information Administration. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. warned of “high risks” that prices may sink further as supplies swell. The Fed decision bolstered the dollar, diminishing the investment appeal of commodities.

Oil is trading near levels last seen during the global financial crisis on signs the surplus will be exacerbated. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries abandoned output limits at a December 4 meeting, while the White House announced its support on Wednesday for a deal reached by congressional leaders that would end the nation’s 40-year restrictions on crude exports.

See “Oil,” A2

See “BGC,” A2

Aquino administration OK’d ₧524-B new projects in 2015

DANGEROUS STUNT Athletes in wing suits make a death-defying shoot for the Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. film Point Break. Extreme sports of every

LeBron James was scrambling for a loose ball in the fourth quarter of a 104-100 win over Oklahoma City, when the 6-foot-8, 250-pound All-Star launched himself into the air, plowing into Ellie Day as she sat next to her husband.

Continued on A2

BGC TRIGGERS DROP IN MAKATI OFC RATES

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Syrian refugee with support from Obama comes to US

OMULUS, Michigan—A Syrian scientist whose harrowing, tragic story spurred supporting words from President Barack Obama and a successful fund-raising effort launched by actor Edward Norton has arrived as a refugee into the Detroit area.

Refaai Hamo and four of his children landed at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, anxious to rebuild their lives in suburban Oakland County. The 54-year-old, who suffers from stomach cancer, fled to Turkey from Syria after a missile attack on his home killed his wife and one daughter.

“If they will only call me a refugee...I don’t want to be here.

I want to be a good citizen,” said Hamo, accompanied by his 18-year-old son at a nighttime news conference at the Romulus airport. The conference was arranged by Lutheran Social Services of Michigan, the state’s largest refugee resettlement agency.

Hamo was profiled earlier this month on the popular photo blog Humans of New York and identified as “The Scientist.” He said in text accompanying seven photos that he “was overseeing a project outside the city when the missile hit my house” and those of relatives next door. He said 16 people died, seven from his family, and he left Syria “with nothing.”

Hamo said his cancer has gone untreated because he lacked insurance, and wants to get well so he can “make a lasting contribution to humanity.”

After reading the story, Obama called Hamo “an inspiration” on the president’s official Facebook page, adding that he’s “proud that you’ll pursue your dreams here.”

“Michigan will embrace you with the compassion and support you deserve,” Obama’s post said. “Yes, you can still make a difference in the world, and we’re proud that you’ll pursue your dreams here.

Welcome to your new home. You’re part of what makes America great.”

Hamo arrives at a time when the resettlement of Syrian refugees

This is now the fourth year that the country’s marketplaces have been absent from the USTR Special Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets Report.

According to the USTR, the Quiapo Shopping District, Greenhills, Binondo, Makati Cinema Square and 168 Malls were on the list before 2011.

The USTR released the Special 301 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets for 2015, which highlights specific physical and online markets around the world that are reported to be engaging in and facilitating

OIL SLIDES UNDER $35 AMID WORSENING U.S. GLUT, FED RATE HIKE

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he Aqu ino ad ministration has approved a total of P524.4 billion worth of new infrastructure projects in 2015, data obtained from the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) showed.

These include the projects approved early this week by the Neda

PESO exchange rates n US 47.3050

Board—its only meeting in the fourth quarter—worth P17.9 billion. As of September 2015, the Neda Board already confirmed P506.5 billion worth of projects.

The total amount covered 20 new projects, including the P170.7billion North-South Railway Project (NSRP)-South Line. The project, which will be implemented by the Department of Transportation and

Communications (DOTC), was the largest approved for the year.

The NSRP, which is being funded through the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme, involves commuter and long-haul railway operations.

Commuter-railway operations will be between Tutuban and Calamba, and the long-haul operations will be between Tutuban and Legazpi City.

“[This includes] extended longhaul rail operations on the branch line between Calamba and Batangas, and extension between Legazpi and Matnog,” Neda documents stated.

The project, which covers Metro Manila, Calabarzon and the Bicol region, will be implemented from 2016 to 2019.

The next big-ticket infrastructure project approved this year was

the P117.3-billion North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Project Phase 1.

Phase 1 of the NSCR involves the construction of a 36.7-kilometer narrow-gauge elevated commuter railway from Malolos to Tutuban using the Philippine National Railways rightof-way, with 10 stations and a depot in Valenzuela City.

Continued on A2

n japan 0.3856 n UK 70.4561 n HK 6.10240 n CHINA 7.2960 n singapore 33.34390 n australia 33.6571 n EU 51.1935 n SAUDI arabia 12.6153

Source: BSP (18 December 2015)

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Saturday, December 19, 2015

News

BusinessMirror

USTR clears Greenhills, Divisoria, Quiapo anew Continued from A1

substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting.

The report focuses on markets that exemplify global concerns about counterfeiting and piracy, and whose infringing activities pose substantial economic harm to the US and American-made goods.

The report is different from the Special 301 Watch List, which is a broader annual review of nations’ enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR).

The report is tagged by the USTR as far from an exhaustive list, but is simply a compilation of prominent online and physical markets, where pirated or counterfeit goods are

trafficked that were reported and examined during the review process.

This development was welcomed by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), which labeled the country’s absence from the list for four years now as an achievement.

“The Philippines has made great strides on IP enforcement as a result of a whole of government approach. We have a good and active interagency committee on IPR, through the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights, and we have been closely working together also with other government agencies and the private sector, particularly the rights holders.

In terms of legal infrastructure, we

have passed the necessary laws, rules and regulations to ensure protection and enforcement of IPR in the country. The grant of enforcement functions to IPOPHL is also another signifcant development that enhanced our IP regime,” said lawyer Allan B. Gepty, officer in charge of IPOPHL. “This Notorious Markets List illustrates the seriousness of copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting in online marketplaces,” Deputy US Trade Representative Robert Holleyman in a statement said. “The 2015 report underscores the need for accountable governments everywhere to take on these forms of piracy and counterfeiting.”

The 2015 Notorious Markets List takes a special focus on the distribution of counterfeit goods and pirated content online. The sale of counterfeit goods online is estimated to have grown by 15 percent last year.

The Special 301 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets has been published as a separate report from the Watch List yearly since 2011 to increase awareness of IP protection.

China-based commercial establishments dominated the Special 301 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets Report. Other countries, whose physical markets were included, were Nigeria, Paraguay,Mexico,Thailand,India, Argentina,Indonesia and Brazil.

Aquino administration OK’d P524-B new projects in 2015 Continued from A1

“The project also includes the procurement of rolling stock and the installation of electro-mechanical systems,” documents stated.

The project, to be implemented by the DOTC, will be funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica). The project is estimated to be operational by 2020.

The smallest projects approved for the year are the P231.21-million Local Government Units (LGU) Investment Programme (Lip) Supplement 3 and the P1.43 -billion Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Capability Building Program Phase II. The Lip, to be implemented by the Land Bank of the Philippines, aims to finance LGU infrastructure

investments, such as those for local roads, sanitation, flood control, water supply, schools and hospitals, among others. “[T his] would also include revenue improvement and enhancement programs for LGUs, including fiscal and management improvement and other income-generating public facilities,” documents stated.

The project will be funded by the KfW of Germany and will cover LGUs in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen and Caraga regions. The project will be completed by 2017.

Phase II of the BFP Capability Building Program, meanwhile, involves the acquisition of 76 units of fire trucks to be deployed in selected

priority cities nationwide.

The project will also supply and deliver personal protective equipment, breathing apparatus and ancillary equipment and accessories. “[It also involves the] supply and delivery of spare parts equivalent to 5 percent of the cost of fire trucks; and training of personnel on the operation and maintenance of the fire trucks,” Neda said. The project will be funded by the Austrian government and will be implemented by the Department of the Interior and Local Government-BFP. The powers and functions of the Neda resides in the Neda Board.

The board is chaired by the President and cochaired by the Economic Planning secretary.

Neda Board members include

the executive secretary and the Secretaries of Finance, Trade and Industry, Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources, Public Works and Highways, Budget and Management, Labor and Employment, and Interior and Local Government.

The Neda Board confirms approvals made by seven Cabinet-level interagency committees, namely, the Development Budget Coordination Committee; Infrastructure Committee; Investment Coordination Committee; and Social Development Committee.

Other committee include the Committee on Tariff and Related Matters, Regional Development Committee and the National Land Use Committee.

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Oil. . .

Continued from A1

“The major driver this week has been US dollar strength against a backdrop of ongoing refusal to respond rationally to the current market surplus on the supply side,” Michael McCarthy, a chief markets strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney, said by phone. “We’re just not seeing the normal production cuts we’d expect, given the plummet in prices.”

US glut West Texas Intermediate ( WTI) for January delivery was at $34.78 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down 17 cents, at 10:50 a.m. in Hong Kong. The contract fell 57 cents to $34.95 on Thursday, the lowest close since February 2009.

Total volume traded was about 17 percent below the 100-day average. Prices have dropped 35 percent this year, set for a second annual decrease.

BGC. . .

Brent for February delivery was 8 cents lower at $36.98 a barrel on the Londonbased ICE Futures Europe exchange. It has slid 2.5 percent this week.

Brent, the European benchmark crude, closed on Thursday at a premium of 79 cents a barrel to WTI for February, the least in 11 months. The spread has narrowed amid speculation the US plan to allow domestic oil to be shipped overseas may ease the nation’s oversupply. Crude inventories have expanded to 130 million barrels above the five-year seasonal average, Energy Information Administration data showed on Wednesday.

Oil-storage tanks could reach their capacity, pushing prices down to levels necessary to force an immediate halt to some production, Goldman Sachs said in a report on Thursday.

Bloomberg News

Continued from A1

cost of Grade A buildings in Makati stands at P865 per sq m and P675 for Grade B and C buildings.

The standard lease charge in BGC is pegged at P870 per sq m a month.

Meanwhile, the monthly rates for Grade A office buildings in Ortigas, Alabang, Quezon City and Bay Area business districts average P650 per sq m.

In Cebu and Davao, the monthly rate for office spaces in Grade A buildings averages P450 per sq m.

Despite the mark down, Makati office spaces in the “Premium Grade A” category remain high at P1,280 per sq m a month.

In its latest report, titled Real Estate Market Insight, Pinnacle said there was a “phenomenal” uptake of around 200,000 sq m of office spaces in the past three months,

which were mostly preleased.

While new office buildings have opened, the total vacancy rate of major CBDs in the metropolis is still below 5 percent, it added.

Salas said the continuous expansion of the business-process outsourcing (BPO) industry continues to drive the growth of the office market in the Philippines.

According to industry sources, the BPO sector is poised to cap 2015 with 1.2 million employees.

The sector is expected to increase revenues by as much as 18 percent this year from $18.9 billion in 2014.

An HSBC economist said in a recent briefing that revenues from the BPO sector could overtake the dollar remittances of overseas Filipino workers in two years.

A4 Saturday, December 19, 2015 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

Being tough on the government

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f you think about it, who in their right mind would want to participate in governing and running the Philippines?

Certainly, there are many in the government that should not be there for their incompetence, bad attitude toward the people and lack of respect for the job they have taken on. But, on the other hand, we are not inclined to give government officials any kind of break.

We are quick to criticize even the slightest failure and slow to praise successes. Even when there is a notable success, we can always find something wrong with that also.

Perhaps, part of the situation is that we, the people, see opportunities for success being squandered far too often. Maybe we have greater faith in the ability of the nation to right its wrongs and achieve more than what we have.

It is almost like the frustration of a parent who knows that the child can be doing better in school but keeps getting a “line of seven.”

Government officials, believe it or not, are just people too. Imagine going to work each day and having millions of people looking over your shoulder, ready to comment on your results. Sure, those in the government are being paid by the people to do their jobs and we are correct to demand good performance. But then again, if we had a boss as tough as the Filipino people can be sometimes, we might want to quit.

Everyone has heaped a tremendous amount of scorn on Philippine airport operations this past year. The tanim-bala scandal is a complete disgrace and there should be some people—maybe from high levels—doing serious prison time.

But will there be any positive reaction from the media and the people to the opening of Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s (Naia) taxiway extension?

This P452-million extension project is going to help decongest the taxiway and to facilitate ground-handling flexibility of international operations. It will not completely solve the problems of Naia, but it is a step in the right direction.

The public has not only the right, but the obligation to hold the government accountable. But there is no need for this to constantly be an adversarial relationship. And that is exactly what it is.

Politicians and government officials share the blame, and in some ways, may be the cause. There is a need and desire for a practical and comprehensive Freedom of Information law. The politicians have not acted on it. Too many critical government functions are being handled by “political appointees,” with emphasis on “political.”

However, this “us versus them” mentality from both the government and the people is not helping the country progress and go forward. Unfortunately, based on how the 2016 presidential election season is shaping up, nothing is going to change for the positive, and that damages the country’s future.

The Philippine economic cycle John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

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he indigenous Australians—Aboriginal Australians or “Aborigine”—have a culture stretching back at least 30,000 years. Outside of Africa, the Aboriginal peoples have occupied the same territory continuously longer than any other human populations.

Because of the location and topog raphy of t he Aust ra l i a continent, the Aborigine were also some of the most isolated people on the planet. For example, in the 1600s when the British landed in Australia, they found these people living at a Stone Age level in terms of technology. While Australia is one of the great sources of iron ore, the Aborigine had no knowledge of iron and were still using stone implements and tools.

Isolation almost inevitably means slow cultural and technological advancement. By interacting with others, a society learns how the other guy does things and the sharing of knowledge increases the overall knowledge base. The exchange of ideas and experience leads to greater advances. The Chinese invented paper and the cast ceramic printing press. But the first movable metallic type was invented in Korea in 1377.

Ideas exchanged back and forth through the centuries led to Europe being the center of publishing just a generation or two later.

It was not that the Aborigine were unintelligent; it was that they were never exposed to new ideas.

Although we live in a time when the sum total of virtually all human experience and information is available at the click of a computer mouse, we are still subject to the same intellectual isolation as the Aborigine.

Look at the global economic condition. Wikipedia lists some 1,200 notable and important living economists. Yet, as a group, the global financial crisis we are now in was not predicted nor have they come up with any successful solutions to make the situation better.

Traditional economics of whatever “school” is incapable of forecasting the future because these people rarely have any real world experience and they do not talk to other people that do. There was probably a village elder 10,000 years ago that assured his people that the latest shape of the stone axe was as good as it was ever going to get.

Every business owner knows that the business cycle is tangible, constant and cannot be defeated.

That great new product, whether an ice cream bar or an electronic gadget, will run out of steam eventually and something new must be created. Product excitement is a part of the business cycle.

But economics does not believe in these cycles and is more closely in tune with the random-walk theory that says that things happen and cannot be predicted. This is particularly true with economists talking about the stock market. But every stock trader who uses some sort of tool, such as technical analysis, Elliot Wave, Gann, or Ichimoku, knows that patterns rule stock prices.

A nd t hose patter ns are nothing more than a representation of cycles.

Economists, in general, operate on the basic assumption that economies are just too complex to figure out. Rather than observe the patterns, they create models that can never take into account all the variables. Those models fail. You do not need to figure out how the heavens move to understand the cycle of night and day, and you don’t need a model. But if economies do run on cycles, the real losers are the politicians.

During upswings, your favorite politician is the one who caused it to happen. In a downswing, the next politician is the one to fix the problem.

Certainly, some problems are not part of the cycle but are caused by interfering with the cycle.

Other crises are a result of long cycle events that we do not think about or take into our planning, like an earthquake.

W h i le ou r pol it ic i a n s a re praised and criticized, how much impact have they had on the economy? Since 1964 the average annual economic growth is 4.12 percent. Since 2000 that average is 5.06 percent, and since 2010 we have averaged 6.25 percent. But here is the pattern reality.

The Philippine economy has been in an uptrend since 1985— after a downtrend from 1976— with peaks and reversals just like a stock price. The growth in the last five years is not unexpected.

In fact, had economic growth not averaged over 6 percent since 2010, t h at wou ld h ave been unexpected.

However, here is some further cycle reality. Since 1964 economic growth has never gone more than six years before coming back to the median—mid-point of higher or lower growth—of 4.73 percent.

Elect a president whomever you think is best qualified to challenge the economic cycle, but be prepared for less than 6-percent annual growth within the next two years. That’s what the 51-year cycle is saying.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail. com. Visit my web site at www. mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets.

PSE stock-market information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

Martin Shkreli accused of being surprisingly good at fraud

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By Matt Levine | Bloomberg View

here is a fairly standard trajectory for a lot of securities frauds. A brash youngster comes along and thinks he will be good at trading. He raises money from people who also think he will be good at trading. Maybe he lies to them a bit—about how good he already is at trading, or about how much money he’s already raised—or maybe, at this stage, everything is completely on the up and up. In any case, he gets the money and starts trading. Then he starts losing. This is bad. It’s bad for his bottom line, of course— he’s getting paid to invest his investors’ money well, not badly—but more important, it is bad for his self-conception. In his own mind, he is a winner; he is supposed to be good at trading. It is unbearable to him that he isn’t.

So he starts lying, telling investors that everything is great and he’s making money for them hand over fist. This is a hard lie to sustain, since eventually the investors will want their money back, and he’s promising them more and more of it. There are only two real ways to sustain the lie. One is to Ponzi it up, and keep raising new money from investors to pay out the old ones. In the right environment, and with the right sales pitch, this can work really well for a really long time, but since the supply of suckers is

finite, it can only ever end in prison or the grave.

The other way to sustain the lie— and the only possible permanent solution—is to gamble on redemption. If you’ve lost half of your investors’ money, but you’ve told them that you’ve doubled it, then you need to quadruple the money you have left.

So you take riskier and riskier bets, hoping that one will eventually pay off and make up for all of the earlier losses. This basically never works! But it could work. And if it does, your

investors will be happy, you will be rich, and no one will ever be the wiser.

Of course, these methods aren’t mutually exclusive, and you can Ponzi along for a bit while looking for the big score that will return you to legitimacy.

Here are the criminal indictment and Securities and Exchange Commission complaint against Martin Shkreli, who was arrested on December 17, not for jacking up prices for lifesaving drugs, not for buying the only copy of a Wu-Tang Clan album and not listening to it, not for being generally vile on Twitter and in interviews, but just for gardenvariety securities fraud. Here’s how the indictment describes the early going at Shkreli’s second hedge fund, MSMB Capital: Shkreli told Investor 1 that MSMB Capital had $35 million in assets under management and that the fund’s independent auditor and administrator were Rothstein, Kass & Company, P.C. (Rothstein Kass) and NAV Consulting Inc. (NAV Consulting), respectively.

At the time of this representation, MSMB Capital did not have an in-

dependent auditor or administrator, and Shkreli had lost through trading the approximately $700,000 that had been invested by the four Capital Limited Partners. In fact, as of November 30, 2010, the value of assets in MSMB Capital’s bank and brokerage accounts totaled approximately $700.

So he was down 99.9 percent. Here I will humbly offer you a very small bit of investing advice: It is hard to come back from being down 99.9 percent. Just making a 99.9 percent return won’t do it; if you lose 99.9 percent, you have to make returns of 99,900 percent on the money you’ve got left just to get back to breaking even. Shkreli didn’t want to get back to breaking even. Here’s how he allegedly wound up MSMB Capital in September 2012: Shkreli sent an e-mail (the liquidation e-mail) to the Capital Limited Partners, including Investor 2, and stated, in part: “I have decided to wind down our hedge fund partnerships with a goal of completing the liquidation of the funds by See “Martin,” A5

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Opinion

An impressive record

Caritas Manila accepts donations for Nona victims

BusinessMirror

Rev. Fr. Antonio Cecilio T. Pascual

Cecilio T. Arillo

SERVANT LEADER

database

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HE government should be commended for chalking up an impressive record in “sin” tax collections and enforcement against illicit cigarettes.

The excise-tax take from sin products went beyond the P100billion mark at the end of October, with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) expecting to chalk up a record-high collection by year-end of P1.67 trillion in taxes—including P140.4 billion that should come from excise taxes on alcohol, tobacco, minerals, petroleum and motor vehicles.

Latest BIR data showed that excise-tax collections from tobacco and alcohol products during the first 10 months of the year alone reached P105.5 billion, increasing 22 percent from P86.5 billion in the same period last year.

Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares reported that her agency collected P72.2 billion from cigarettes from January to October, 27.5 percent higher than the P56.7 billion a year ago, while the tax take from fermented liquors grew by almost 14 percent to P22.6 billion, f r o m P 19. 8 b i l l io n f o r t h e same period.

Since the implementation of Republic Act (R A) 10351, or the sin-tax reform law, excise taxes collected from sin products continued to grow not only due to increased rates of alcohol and tobacco products but also the strict enforcement of the law.

Under the law, cigarette packs that cost below P11.50 are taxed an additional P21 this year, up from P17 last year, while those priced above P11.50 are charged P28, up P1 from 2014. Fermented liquors that cost less than P50.60 per liter are taxed P19, from P17 last year; while those priced at P50.60 and above are levied P22, from P21 in 2014.

Distilled spirits are lev ied this year an additional P20 plus 20 percent of the net retail price per proof, from just P20 plus 15 percent last year.

Collections last month from distilled spirits and compounded liquors increased by 7.2 percent to P10.7 billion, from last year’s P9.9 billion.

The excise tax collected from sin products last month surged 79.8 percent to P14.5 billion, from P8.1 billion a year ago.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the take from cigarettes amounted to P10.9 billion, P2.3 billion from fermented liquors and P1.3 billion from distilled spirits and compounded liquors.

As of end-October, incremental revenues from sin-tax reform reached P48.1 billion—of which P35.4 billion came from tobacco products, while P12.7 billion was contributed by alcoholic drinks—to surpass by 23 percent the P39.1-billion goal for the period.

In 2013, the first year of implementation of the sin-tax reform law, total incremental revenues from tobacco and alcohol products reached P51.2 billion, exceeding the target by 51 percent.

Incremental revenues, though, dropped last year to P50.2 billion, but this amount is still 17 percent above the 2014 goal. In end- October the incrementa l revenues from the implementation of sin-tax law since 2013 stood at P149.5 billion.

This year the BIR tightened its monitoring of cigarette companies’ tax payments through the Internal Revenue Stamps Integrated System.

T he s y s t e m w i l l a l s o i n clude alcoholic drinks by early next year.

Latest Bureau of Internal Revenue data showed that excise-tax collections from tobacco and alcohol products during the first 10 months of the year alone reached P105.5 billion, which is 22 percent higher than the P86.5 billion collected during the same period last year.

Relentless campaign against illicit cigarettes

In the drive against illicit trade, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) the BIR, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police have successfully tallied a string of arrests, raids and seizures of fake cigarettes from vendors and warehouses in Nueva Ecija, Cebu, Zamboanga del Sur, Batangas, Cavite and, lately, in Metro Manila, as they vowed to root out the illicit cigarette problem.

One of those raided by the BOC’s Enforcement Group was a warehouse in Santa Cruz, Manila, where a large cache of various brands, including 345 reams of Mighty cigarettes, was seized.

A mon g t he d i s c re p a nc ie s found were the absence of distinct cigarette-manufacturing code on the packs, quality of the tobacco used and misprints on the packaging, among others.

On December 4 Customs officials from the Auction and Cargo Disposal Division, together with representatives of Mighty Corp., went to Carmona, Cavite, and witnessed the eventual destruction of subject adulterated Mighty cigarettes.

The destruction was done through shredding to ensure that said illicit cigarettes will no longer be recycled. After shredding, the fake Mighty cigarettes will either be buried or subjected to a special mode of disposal by the accredited wage-disposal company that handled the destruction to ensure that it will not fall into unscrupulous hands.

With the destruction of the illicit stuff, the message of the government in eradicating the problem is loud and clear.

Prior to this, PNP Chief and Director Genera l R icardo C .

Marquez ordered his deputy director general for operations, Danilo Constantino, to intensify the PNP’s campaign against counterfeit products, including illicit cigarettes.

The PNP’s intensified order, initiated by Mighty Corp., also resulted in the successful apprehension and seizures of fake cigarettes and the arrest of several dealers and sellers.

Meanwhile, the BIR and the NBI also warned that under RA 8293, or the Trademark Infringement and Unfair Competition Law, manufacturers, dealers, storeowners and vendors selling counterfeit products of any kind, including cigarettes, are criminally liable.

More particular, those apprehended would be heavily fined and charged with appropriate criminal charges of infringement of trademark under the said law.

The NBI said offenders are also liable to be sent to jail up to eight years and fined P50,000 for nonuse of the tax stamps as provided under RA 8240, which amended certain excise-tax provisions of the Tax Code.

To reach the writer, e-mail cecilio. arillo@gmail.com

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s Tropical Storm Nona (international code name Melor) entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on December 12 and intensified into a typhoon on December 13, a total of 165,554 families were affected by the typhoon in Regions 4A, 4B, 5, 7 and 8 (source: National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council as of 8 a.m., December 16.)

Caritas Damayan (Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Program) is continuously coordinating with the diocesan social-action network in Nona-affected areas. The Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan and dioceses of Catarman, Sorsogon and Romblon are appealing for help. Donations needed are food, water, basic medicines and temporary shelter (trapal, blankets, towels).

To help Caritas Damayan Nona efforts, donations may be brought to Caritas Manila at 2002 Jesus Street, Pandacan, Manila, or you

Martin. . .

Continued from A4

November or on December 1, 2012....

Original MSMB investors [2009] have just about doubled their money net of fees....investors will have their limited partnership interests redeemed by the fund for cash. Alternatively, investors may ask for a redemption of Retrophin shares, or a combination of Retrophin shares and cash.”

That is, investors were up 100 percent from their original investments, or I guess up almost 200,000 percent from the November 2010 trough.

That is a mind-bogglingly good performance! It was also, allegedly, completely fake. Of course, it was. If you’re down 99.9 percent, it’s hard to come back, but it’s reeeeeeally easy to lose that last 0.1 percent. Shkreli, the indictment says, did: On or about September 5, 2012, the defendant Martin Shkreli, CoConspirator 1 and MSMB Capital entered into a settlement agreement with Merrill Lynch to resolve a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. arbitration proceeding in connection with the OREX trading losses of approximately $7 million. Pursuant to the settlement with Merrill Lynch, Shkreli, Co-Conspirator 1 and MSMB Capital agreed to pay Merrill Lynch a total of $1,350,000 on or before December 15, 2012. Notably, in the settlement agreement, Shkreli and Co-Conspirator 1 admitted that MSMB Capital had $0 in assets.

The Orex losses had to do with a naked short sale that MSMB Capital allegedly did with respect to Orexigen Therapeutics. Anyway the indictment dryly notes that the liquidation e-mail, telling investors that they’d doubled their money, came “a mere five days after the defendant Martin Shkreli and Co-Conspirator 1 admitted that MSMB Capital had no assets.” In total, eight investors put a total of about $3 million into MSMB Capital, and it ended up worthless.

Or did it? In 2011, even before shutting MSMB Capital, Shkreli started a third hedge fund, this one called MSMB Healthcare, and allegedly raised $5 million through a series of lies to 13 investors. He also started a new drug company called

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Let us offer prayers for those displaced by Nona and help in any way we can to alleviate their sufferings.

“May the Jubilee of Mercy bring us all closer to God’s goodness and love,” Pope Francis said.

24thSegunda Mana Charity Outlet at Tutuban Center Mall

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Lacson-Quiapo; Greenfield Paseo de Santa Rosa and Mandaluyong; Isetann Recto; Riverbanks, Marikina; Farmer’s Plaza Cubao; Makati Square; Harrison Plaza; Metropoint Pasay; Comoda Ville Antipolo; San Roque Cathedral in Caloocan; Ang Palengke Natin Service Cooperative Malabon; Simbayanan ni Maria Multipurpose Cooperative; and Sancti Josef Commercial Malabon.

Please support Segunda Mana by donating items that you no longer need, have excess of, or your company’s old and slow-moving inventories. Proceeds from Segunda Mana charity outlets fund Caritas Manila’s flagship program, Youth Servant Leadership and Education Program (YSLEP). There are currently over 5,000 poor youth beneficiaries under Caritas Manila’s YSLEP.

may call DonorCare lines at 5639311, 564-0205, 0999-7943455, 0905-4285001 and 0929-8343857.

Donations are also accepted through our peso bank accounts: n Bank of the Philippine Islands, Savings Account 3063-5357-01 n Banco de Oro, Savings Account 5600-45905 n Metrobank, Savings Account 175-3-175069543 n Paypal – visit our web site www. caritasmanila.org.ph Or donate to any nearest Cebuana Lhuillier outlets nationwide.

Buying is the new way of giving!

Segunda Mana recently opened its 24th charity outlet in Tutuban Center Mall.

Segunda Mana is the donationsin-kind program of Caritas Manila, which accepts preloved items, such as clothes, shoes, bags, toys, home and fashion accessories, as gifts for charity. Through Caritas Manila’s Segunda Mana, it advocates the 3Rs: reuse, reduce and recycle. And, likewise, provides opportunities for livelihood to about 900 Segunda Mana suki microentrepreneurs.

Other charity outlets are in Caritas Manila’s main office at 2002 Jesus Street, Pandacan, Manila, and in our partner malls: Starmall Edsa, Alabang, Las Piñas and San Jose del Monte; Sta. Lucia Mall; Victory Mall-Caloocan, Alabang, Pasay and

Retrophin, which he controlled; MSMB Healthcare invested in Retrophin. He took Retrophin public (with Nasdaq ticker symbol RTRX) through a reverse merger with a shell company in late 2012. Then, the allegations go, he looted Retrophin to pay off his disgruntled MSMB Capital and MSMB Healthcare investors. So for instance Shkreli allegedly “engaged in a scheme to fabricate an investment by MSMB Capital in Retrophin Llc. and engineered a series of fraudulent transactions that were backdated to the summer of 2012 to create the appearance of an investment by MSMB Capital”; in fact, MSMB Capital had (allegedly) lost all its money before Retrophin was even started. He “improperly reclassified a $900,000 equity investment by MSMB Healthcare in Retrophin Llc. as an interest-bearing loan through the use of a backdated promissory note,” had Retrophin pay off the “loan” to MSMB Healthcare, and then used that money to pay back Merrill Lynch for the MSMB Capital Orex losses.

Most notably, though, he just had Retrophin write checks to MSMB Capital and MSMB Healthcare investors to settle their claims against MSMB/Shkreli, even though Retrophin was at that point a public company with outside shareholders, and it is generally frowned upon for public company executives to have their companies pay off their personal debts. These checks came in two forms, each of which had the absolute minimum of superficial legal plausibility. First, Shkreli allegedly “caused Retrophin to pay more than $3.4 million in cash and RTRX stock to settle claims with the seven Capital Ltd. Partners and Healthcare Ltd. Partners even though Retrophin was not responsible for those claims.” When Retrophin’s auditor noticed, Shkreli and Retrophin’s outside lawyer, Evan Greebel (who was also indicted today), allegedly came up with this idea: When Shkreli then admitted that “there were serious faults with the [settlement] agreements, including lack of board approval” and that redoing the settlement agreements may be a good idea, Greebel responded: “That will open up some

very big issues. The current thinking is let rtrx pay, get a note from the fund[,] and if the fund can’t [sic] fulfill the note[,] rtrx will write it off as a bad debt. It would be easier than the road you are referring to.

Also, [the auditor] would get very spooked with what you are talking about [which could also spook your investors and counter parties].” In response, Shkreli stated, “[o]n current thinking: that works for me.”

That is: Retrophin paid the MSMB funds’ investors on behalf of the funds, and in exchange took promissory notes from the funds for the amount that Retrophin paid. This might have been a fair exchange, except that the funds had no money, so the notes were worthless.

Next, Shkreli “caused Retrophin to pay more than $7.6 million in cash and RTRX stock through sham consulting agreements to settle claims with Capital Limited Partners and Healthcare Limited Partners even though Retrophin was not responsible for those claims.” Again, there are awkward e-mails, but the investors allegedly entered into agreements to consult on things like “strategic and corporate governance matters” or “cluster headache drug development,” got paid in cash or stock, and—the government implies— never did any actual consulting. You are not supposed to do this. Shkreli was named “Worst Biotech CEO of 2014” by TheStreet and Retrophin fired and sued him over the sham consulting stuff.

But never mind that. Just do the math. Shkreli raised $3 million for MSMB Capital and $5 million for MSMB Healthcare. He allegedly returned $3.4 million to investors from the settlement agreements, and $7.6 million from the consulting agreements. So his MSMB investors, in aggregate, put in $8 million and got back $11 million.That isn’t exactly doubling their money, but it is a profit, which is pretty amazing when you remember that at least some of them were down 99.9 percent at one point. Obviously, prosecutors and the Securities Exchange Commission and Retrophin all allege that Shkreli stole that $11 million from Retrophin, which is not at all a nice thing to do. But Retrophin

shareholders, overall, are up, too.

Shkreli started it from scratch; it now has a market capitalization of over $750 million. Here’s its stock price since going public: It’s had its ups and downs, of course, and a lot of its gains have come since Shkreli left in September 2014. But it was then, and is now, well up from where it started, and it seems to be a real company with actual revenue, totally independent of whatever original sin occurred at its founding.

Shkreli’s other business accomplishments are a mixed bag, but all in all pretty impressive for a guy who started off by losing all of his investors’ money at least twice. He has a real talent for short selling: “One ranking, by short selling data firm Activist Shorts, puts the performance of his published bearish calls above those of Citron Research, Kase Capital Management’s Whitney Tilson, Greenlight Capital and Jim Chanos’s Kynikos Associates Lp.,” Bloomberg reported yesterday. Turing Pharmaceuticals, his private drug company that has been in the news so much recently, at least ...seems to throw expensive parties? His more recent investment, KaloBios, isn’t going that great: It closed on Thursday well above where it was when Shkreli announced his position, but was halted today and is looking perilous.

Still, I can’t shake my sense of amazement that Shkreli seems to have gambled on redemption and won. If you believe the allegations in today’s indictment, he lost (or stole) all of his investors’ money, then lied to them to string them along, Ponzied it up by raising new money to keep them happy, and then finally found an investment that allowed him to pay off his earlier investors, with profits all around.

He wasn’t caught because his scheme, like most such schemes, eventually crashed under its own weight. His scheme worked! He was caught, as far as I can tell, for being so abrasive about everything. How could shareholders not complain; how could prosecutors not go after him?

Still, it is quite an accomplishment. If he is a securities fraudster, he should be an inspiration to securities fraudsters everywhere.

growth in most of the world, but with side effects that need to be managed.

The fall in oil prices will encourage oil consumption, both in the short term (people will use their cars more) and long term (they’ll buy cars that are less fuel-efficient). This works against reducing carbon emissions, and over time could help to restore Opec’s market power. Later, if prices bounce back, the economic hit would be disruptive.

The answer is for governments to smooth prices by adjusting the tax on fuel. When prices are low, like now, a higher gas tax would barely be noticed. Almost painlessly, it would

raise revenues to pay for tax cuts elsewhere—while maintaining the incentive for energy efficiency and keeping Opec on its heels. If and when prices go back up, governments can soften the blow to their economies by lowering the tax.

Keeping the price of gas to consumers both relatively stable and sufficiently high would give carmakers an incentive to boost investment in electric vehicles, making them cheaper and more reliable. Only about 3 percent of vehicles sold in the USare electric, a number that has fallen each year since 2013.

Kick Opec while it’s down

he Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) is in disarray. The price of Brent crude fell to less than $38 a barrel on Friday, the lowest since 2008. If the cartel had been working, it would be cutting output to force prices back up. Its members chose to keep pumping.

Why? Because just as demand from emerging markets is slowing, technology has changed the economics of oil.

That’s bad news for Opec, but good news for everybody else—especially if the US government and others have the wit to kick Opec while it’s down.

Saturday, December 19, 2015

The US shale-oil revolution has greatly increased non-Opec supply.

At the same time, efforts to curb oil consumption as part of the fight against climate change are further limiting the cartel’s power to set prices. Oil prices are notoriously hard to predict, but these forces aren’t going away, and they mean that Opec’s troubles may not be temporary.

Shed no tears. If the cartel collapsed altogether, there’d be no need to reinvent it. Meanwhile, Opec’s weakness presents an opportunity—and smart policy can make the most of it.

Cheap oil will directly boost

To know more about Caritas Damayan, Seg unda Mana and other programs of Caritas Manila, visit www.caritasmanila.org.ph.

For your donations, call our DonorCare lines 563-9311, 564-0205, 0999-7943455, 0905-4285001 and 0929-8343857.

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Saturday, December 19, 2015

News BusinessMirror

Philippines gets second grant from US aid agency

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United States aid agency has unanimously re-selected the Philippines to receive a second grant in recognition of the country’s continuing efforts to improve its policies on good governance.

The formal re-selection of the Philippines by the Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) on Wednesday will succeed the first grant or compact of $434 million that will expire at the end of May 2016.

“The re-selection of the Philippines for a second compact is a recognition of President Aquino’s firm and continuing commitment to good governance,” Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose L. Cuisia Jr. said

in a news statement on Friday.

MCC is an independent American aid agency created by the US Congress in 2004 that supports developing countries address human rights, poverty and corruption through good governance.

Approved in 2010, the first grant provided the Philippines with $262 million for the Secondary National Roads Development Project to improve access to

markets and services for farmers, fishermen and small businessmen; $120 million for poverty reducing activities; and $54.3 million for the computerization and streamlining of business processes of the Bureau of Internal Revenue to bolster tax collection and reduce corruption under the Revenue Administration Reform Project.

Cuisia said Manila’s re-selection came following the recent release of the latest MCC scorecard where the country passed 12 out of 20 indicators, such as Trade Policy, Land Rights Access, Rule of Law and the “must-pass” indicators of Control of Corruption and Democratic Rights, both of which are considered “hard hurdles.”

“This is a strong vote of confidence by the MCC Board that will have important implications for maintaining investors’ confidence in the Philippine economy and will complement the great strides we

have made in the economic front,” he added.

“I expect that the reforms and good governance that the Philippines has embraced under President Aquino will be sustainable even after June 30, 2016, because these have been institutionalized and the Filipino people will continue to be vigilant.”

Cuisia said a Philippine Core Team is currently developing proposals on possible investment areas that will be sent to the MCC for approval.

Projects are expected to focus on “constraints” that have so far been identified by the MCC, particularly on government coordination and implementation capacity, high costs of transport logistics, cost of electricity, and land and market failures.

Cuisia added that he hopes all project proposals could be finalized before a new government is inaugurated in June 2016, the time when President Aquino ends his six-year presidency. PNA with Recto Mercene

There’s still ‘slim chance’ to pass BLBar–Marcos

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hile the proposed law on the Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BLBar) is practically on its death throes, there may still be a slim chance it could be saved, Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. said on Friday in a radio interview with former Sen. Orly Mercado.

Marcos, chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Government and sponsor of the measure in the Senate, expressed fears that Congress may ran out of time to pass the proposed BLBar ,with the bill still in the period of interpellation and just a few session days next year for the Legislature to act on it.

However, Marcos has not given up and will try to find possible means to save the measure up to the last minute.

“In our version, if we finish the period of interpellation I think we can find a compromise so we no longer have to debate on the proposed amendments in the plenary,” Marcos said.

The suggestion, according to Marcos, is for the senators to send him all their proposed amendments, agree on what they could, and let the Committee propose the amendments to speed up the process.

“But I don’t know how things will go in the House of Representatives. The House terminated the debates on their own version of the bill before adjourning for the Christmas break.”

Marcos said it may be difficult for the House to muster a quorum when they resume sessions in January because most of the congressmen would already be busy then for the election campaign.

Marcos clarified that in the Senate, there is no time limit for senators to ask their questions on a proposed measure.

In addition, he said, the Senate has yet to rule whether or not the BLBar is a bill of local application and, thus, they would need to await the House version before voting on the measure.

“Even if the Senate and the House manage to pass the measure, a big hurdle remains as it may prove difficult for the Bicameral Conference Committee to reconcile the differing provisions given the limited time,” Marcos said.

“In the Senate we are discussing the substitute bill I filed but in the House they are essentially deliberating on the so-called Palace version. A possible solution may be for the House to adopt the Senate version or the Senate to adopt the House version to speed up the process,” he added.

Earlier, Marcos stressed that he remains committed to the search for peace in Muslim Mindanao and that the quest for peace must continue even if the proposed Bangsamoro Law fails to pass under the present Congress. Recto Mercene

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Meralco shifts to CSP to acquire power needs

By Lenie Lectura

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HE Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) has moved to comply with a government mandate to purchase its power requirements via a competitive bidding instead of entering into bilateral contracts.

In separate bid invites for price challenge, Meralco said that it had received separate proposals from 1590 Energy Corp., a unit of publicly listed Vivant Corp.; Toledo Power Corp. (TPC); and Panay Power Corp. (PPC).

PPC and TPC are both units of Global Business Power Corp., which proposed to supply Meralco a total of 73 megawatts (MW), of which, 45 MW will be supplied by PPC and the remaining 28 MW from TPC. 1590 Energy, meanwhile, proposed to supply Meralco 170 MW. “The Meralco is in receipt of a proposal from 1590 Energy Corp. to sell 170 MW from trading intervals 0901H to 2100H from Mondays to Saturdays, excluding holidays,” Meralco said in the bid invite.

“All interested power companies…are invited to submit better tariff proposals for contract capacity of at least 170 MW up to 210 MW,” the utility firm added. The deadline for the submission of counter proposals is on December 9.

In a separate bid invite, Meralco said it also receive unsolicited proposals to sell 28 MW and 45 MW from TPC and PPC. The offer covers the trading intervals 1000H to 2100H during Mondays to Saturdays, excluding holidays.

“All interested power-generation companies are invited to submit better tariff proposals

for contract capacity of at least 28 MW up to 35 MW for Offer 1, and/or at least 45 MW up to 55 MW for Offer 2…on or before December 28 at 4p.m.,” Meralco said.

Meralco President Oscar Reyes said the three proposals cover “peaking plants to partly supply Meralco’s power requirements from February to July next year.”

“We received proposals for an interim power supply for summer peaking for a total of 243 MW,” Reyes said. “We would like to put these proposals to price challenge. We are prepared to accept those terms,” Reyes added.

Meralco, he added, “can use all three” but these are still subject to the approval of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

The interim power supply agreements prev iously approved by the ERC were entered into by Meralco and power producers to address the forecasted supply constraint and mitigate the utility firm’s exposure to the spot market.

Meralco used to source additional capacities via interim bilateral negotiations, with power producers with available contracted capacity. But when the Department of Energy and the ERC issued a resolution that implemented the competitive selection process, Meralco now has to source its power requirements via competitive bidding.

briefs

Aquino not yet ready to sign P2K SSS pension hike bill into law

Time to shop With their 13th-month pay on hand and a relatively fair weather on Friday, shoppers troop to Divisoria in Manila, the country’s so-called bargain capital, in droves less than a week before Christmas day. Roy Domingo

New taxiway extension ‘November’ seen to ease airport traffic at Naia

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he guest of honor at the inauguration of the P452-million Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) taxiway extension “November” was notably absent, sending his regret that he is unable to attend due to conflict of schedules.

Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya may have sent his message of regret a bit too late although airport sources said that the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) chief may probably be attending a Christmas party at his office. The 658-meter extension was opened to air traffic on Friday morning with the following officials in attendance: Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) Director General William Hotchkiss lll; Caap Deputy Director for Administration Rodante Joya; Civil Aeronautics Board Executive Director lawyer Carmelo Arcilla; Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) General Manager, Jose Honrado, and Miaa Project Manager and assistant General Manager for Operations Engineer Ricardo Medalla Jr. Medalla said the taxiway exten-

sion’s code name “will definitely decongest the taxiway, particularly the intersection of the runways 0624 and 13-31 as it will allow speedy connection to another taxiway code named “Charlie.”

The increase length of the taxiway, along runway 13-31 and activation of the rapid-exit taxiway on the runway 06-24, would do away with congestions that in the past forced aircraft to wait for as long as one hour, he said.

Travel taxiing time of the aircraft would be lessened and wide bodied aircraft has to wait for two to three minutes, instead of about five minutes when pulling out of their parking berth at the Naia Terminal 3. Narrow-bodied aircraft especially A320s have to wait for about one-and-a-half minutes, instead of three minutes, avoiding the so called “hot spot” near 13-31 and the taxiway Charlie, Medalla added.

This is in contrast to previous taxiways that were constructed at a 90-degree angle to the runway, which forced aircraft to make a full stop before turning into the runway, consuming much time between landings. Recto Mercene

Junjun Binay faces another rap, this time over a ‘rigged’ IT deal

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lawyer on Friday filed criminal charges before the Office of the Ombudsman against dismissed Makati City Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay and two private firms in connection with alleged irregularities in the P828-million information-technology (IT) contract in 2008.

Lawyer Renato Bondal, in his complaint, said that Powerlink.com Corp. (PCC) and Codeworks.ph Inc., (CPI) bagged several contracts with the Makati City government from 2008 to 2014. Bondal said that the two IT firms failed to provide services since the city’s Urban Development Department is the one doing the project. From 2008 to 2014, CPI bagged the 57 percent, or P526-million IT contract, while PCC got the remaining 35 percent, or P322 million, he alleged.

“Binabayaran ng hundreds of millions of pesos pero ang gumaganap na dapat ginawa ng mga kumpanyang ito ay mga empleyado rin ng city hall ng Makati,” Bondal said.According to Bondal, PCC’s Irene Lopez and CPI’s Marguerite Lichnock were allegedly dummies of Vice President Jejomar C. Binay who was the Makati mayor when the deal was closed in 2008 and later continued by the Junjun in 2010.

“It has been fairly established that it was a standard operating procedure during the incumbency of Vice President Jejomar C. Binay as mayor of Makati, all biddings were rigged and prearranged so these lucrative contracts were won by chosen companies fronted by so called incorruptors or incorporators for thebenefitoftheirgodfather,JojoBinayandJunjunBinay during the latter’s incumbency as heir to the mayoralty throne,” Bondal said. Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

MalacaÑang is not yet ready to sign into law a bill already passed by Congress as Christmas gift granting P2,000 increase for Social Security System (SSS) pensioners.

“The bill is still under review,” Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. said.

For his part, Secretary Edwin Lacierda said he would first need to check if the bill was already transmitted to the Palace.

Asked if President Aquino would be able to sign the bill approved on final reading earlier by the Senate and the House of Representatives before adjourning for the Christmas recess, Lacierda asked for time to do some verification.

Lawmakers are prodding the Office of the President to sign the measure into law, saying it is a much awaited Christmas gift for SSS retirees who depend on their pensions for their daily needs, including their maintenance medicines.

According to Congress insiders, the SSS pension hike bill had been submitted to Malacañang for signing into law soon after its final approval by the Senate and the House of Representatives. Butch Fernandez

Group to recruit 1M ‘warriors’ to champion clean air drive

The Coalition of Clean Air Advocates of the Philippines (CCAAP) has vowed to recruit a million volunteers who will act as “clean air warriors” to fight air pollution, particularly in Metro Manila.

“What we will launch is not just a movement but a revolution for clean air,” Mike Aragon, senior vice president for advocacy of CCAAP. told the BusinessMirror.

Together with the Private Hospital Association of the Philippines, Inc. (Phapi) and its member-organizations, CCAAP will launch on Saturday its Clean Air Warrior Program which aims to mobilize concerned citizens to act as individual watchdogs.

The warriors, Aragon said, will champion clean air through an information campaign. Jonathan L. Mayuga

Sarangani power plant to start commercial operations by March

GENERAL SANTOS CITY—Power producer Sarangani Energy Corp. (SEC) has continued to gain headway toward the planned commercial operations of the first of its two 105-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plants in Maasim town in Sarangani Province by the first quarter of 2016.

Marino Gamotin Jr., SEC project engineer, said that they are currently working on the synchronization of the power plant to the Mindanao grid and distribution utility South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (Socoteco II).

He said they are targeting to start the commercial streaming of power supplies from the plant in the coastal village of Kamanga in Maasim by March 1 next year.

“By then, regular supplies from the plant will be fully connected to the power lines of Socoteco II,” Gamotin said.

Socoteco II, which serves this city and parts of South Cotabato and Sarangani provinces, had signed a power sales agreement with SEC for the supply of 70 MW of base load capacity.

SEC earlier started firing the plant’s boiler engines as a calibrated step toward its full operations. PNA

Sports BusinessMirror

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph | sports@businessmirror.com.ph

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AKATI City pulled through in a fierce final showdown with Sta. Maria (Bulacan) and hacked out a 2-1 decision to capture the 2015 National Inter-secondary Girls Softball Championships crown via sweep at the Sto. Nino baseball field in Marikina City on Friday.

After trading a series of strike outs in the first three innings, the Makati girls went to hurler Henna Santiago, who came through with a big hit, sending Tin Bautista home then pounced on their rivals’ errors on the top of the sixth to go 2-0.

Sta. Maria refused to bow out and fought back behind consecutive hits of Alma Tauli to narrow the gap at 1-2 but Makati toughened up on defense and stranded two runners on the second and third bases to preserve the lead and the victory in the week-long event sanctioned by the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines (Asaphil) and sponsored by Cebuana Lhuillier headed by sports patron Jean Henri Lhuillier.

As the proprietor of the competition and an advocate of the sport himself, Lhuillier lauded the brilliant talent of the young athletes he has witnessed in the 2015 edition of the annual event which lured 22 of the country’s top teams.

Singontiko scored 10 points in the first period, including two triples which propelled the Altas to a 21-12 edge at the end of the quarter.

Kevin Lucente added seven points in the second period, as the Altas went widened their lead to 16 at halftime, 47-31.

“Our game was pretty good.

We came out ready. For us, winning this is a big thing, coming out of the last NCAA [National Collegiate Athletic Association] season not making it to the Final Four,” Omorogbe said.

The Altas started their campaign with a 78-76 victory over the University of the East Red Warriors two weeks ago, with Coronel scoring the winning shot.

Altas defeat Pirates in men’s volley

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NIVERSITY of Perpetual Help survived Lyceum of the Philippines University’s upset bid and eked out a gripping 25-17, 23-25, 19-25, 25-18, 15-9 triumph on Friday to remain on top of the men’s division of the 91st National Collegiate Athletic Association volleyball tournament at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Rey Taneo Jr. unloaded 17 hits, while Ranidean Philippe Abcede and Allan Jay Salaan chipped in 14 points apiece, as the Altas booked their sixth straight victory to remain ahead of the Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) Generals, the defending champions who are at No. 2 with a 6-1 (win-loss) slate.

Taneo, Abcede and Tanaan delivered in the final two sets when the Las Piñas-based school fought back and pulled off the comefrom-behind win.

“The boys never gave up, that was the most important thing,” Perpetual Help Coach Sammy Acaylar said.

Lyceum, which dealt EAC a shocking 25-23, 14-25, 25-22, 18-25, 16-14 lost last week, fell to 3-4.

In juniors’ action, defending champion Perpetual Help also stayed unscathed as it smashed Lyceum of the Philippines, 25-10, 25-19, 25-17, for its fourth straight win.

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HE Beach Volleyball Republic (BVR) will stage its last tournament of the year— the Christmas Open—on Saturday at the SM Sands By the Bay in Pasay City.

Buoyed by a successful year, the BVR headed by Charo Soriano, Bea Tan, Alexa Micek, Fille CaingletCayetano, Gretchen Ho and Gzi Gervacio, will give their fans a Christmas treat through the tournament.

Ten teams bracketed into two groups hit the sand in a round-robin elimination starting at 8 a.m.

Soriano and Micek, who represented the country in the Spike for Peace Invitational, will

again team up. Tan will partner with Petron’s Brazilian import Rupia Inck, while Cayetano will reunite with co-Atenean Denden Lazaro.

Other teams seeing action are April Hingpit and Maica Morada, Judy Caballejo and Camille Abanto, Janine Marciano and Shiela Pineda, Julie Ann Tiangco and Mariel Sinamban, Rica Rivera and Cherry Rondina, April Romero and Rose Cailing, and Arielle Estranero and Vina Alinas.

The top two teams in each group will advance in the crossover semifinals, with the winners playing for the title. Lance Agcaoili

Hongs, Barcelon top BMW Golf Cup

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IBLINGS William and Mary Kim Hong topped the men’s class I and ladies categories, respectively, of the recent BMW Golf Cup International National Final 2015 at the Tagaytay Midlands Golf Club in Batangas.

The Hongs will join men’s class II winner Emmanuel Barcelon in the World Final in George, South Africa in March 2016..

William Hong bested more than 50 contenders with 55 points. Noel Flores settled for second with a net 28, while Harrison Milo Paltongan was third with a net 27.

Victor Mapua finished second and Renato Ongtao was third behind Barcelon in men’s class II. Mary Kim Hong, on the other hand, topped Malu

Castro, Texters bring down Batang Pier

Gamboa and Marilou de Leon in the Ladies class.

Arnel Paras, Ricky de Roca and Chino Raymundo finished 1-2-3 in the guest division.

“Golf is defined by athleticism, accuracy and mobility—values that are deeply imbibed

by BMW. This is why we recognize the discipline as a reflection of our identity as a brand and continue to be its strongest partner across the globe and in the Philippines. Through the National Final, where we gather our most valued clients, BMW hopes to echo its commitment to the sport and of course automotive excellence in the years to come,” Asian Carmakers Corp., the official importer and distributor of BMW in the Philippines, President Maricar Parco said.

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Philippine Karatedo Federation (PKF) Secretary-General Raymond Lee hopes the team’s successful campaign in Turkey would augur well for the Filipinos’ participation in next year’s World and Asian Championships and the 2017 Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia.

“Next year sana magawa pa rin namin ’yun,” Lee told the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at Shakey’s Malate early this week.

Lee was joined in the session, presented

by San Miguel Corp., Accel, Shakey’s and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.,

by Parvinfar, Santiago, John Paul Bejar, Carmelo Patricio Jr., Eugene Dagohoy, and

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LEADER Lindsay Renolds (above) studies the line of his putt at No. 18, while Miguel Tabuena watches his chip shot roll onto the 18th green.

RENOLDS

UP BY ONE C

ANADIAN Lindsay Renolds, needing no less than a victory to salvage an Asian Tour card next year, launched his title bid in grand fashion—a bogey-free 6-under 66 that put him one stroke ahead of a charging Miguel Tabuena, Korean rising star Jeunghun Wang and two others at the start of the weather-shortened Philippine Open on Friday.

Despite playing longer than its 7,045-yardage, the Luisita Golf and Country Club layout took a severe beating from the men of the tour under the lift, clean and place rule with 52 breaking par and 15 others turning in even par cards in the $300,000 event, serving as the final leg of this year’s Asian Tour.

The Phuket-based Canadian gunned down three birdies at the back where he teed off, then added three more birdies at the front for a 33-33 he spiked with three scrambling pars on Nos. 1, 2 and 6.

Tabuena, who shot a 22-under card in ruling the Central Azucarera de Tarlac Open here in September, shrugged off an opening bogey mishap on No. 1 with a cluster of birdies—six in a 12-hole stretch from No. 5—and put himself in early contention for the championship with a 35-32 card in the event sponsored by International Container Terminal Services Inc. and sanctioned by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

The 21-year-old local circuit’s reigning Order of Merit winner, battling slight fever earlier in the week, preserved his spot at joint second by scrambling for pars in the last two holes.

“I can’t complain with my score considering my condition. I’m feeling much better, which is good. I was very lucky play was called off yesterday because I got an extra rest day. I made most out of it,” Tabuena said. “I left a couple out of birdie putts so hopefully I can

hole more putts on Saturday.”

Wang, who will represent Team Asia in the EurAsia Cup next year, also shot six birdies but had one bogey on the par-5 No. 12 to settle for a tie with Tabuena, Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand and five-time Asian Tour winner Gaganjeet Bhullar of India.

Juvic Pagunsan also lived up to the hype as the 2011 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner fired a 4-under 68 in his very first stint at Luisita to join the early charge of the local aces in the 54-hole event.

Like Tabuena, Pagunsan kicked off his bid with a bogey on No. 10 but the smoothswinging shotmaker, who dominated the Asian Development Tour field to win the Aboitiz Invitational at Manila Southwoods by eight in August, also bounced back with three straight bogeys from No. 12, added another on No. 16 before closing out with back-to-back birdies at the front to negate a bogey-birdiebogey roll from No. 3.

“It was tough because it was my first time playing here,” Pagunsan said. “It was difficult to find the breaks on the greens. I didn’t play a practice round this week. I struggled a bit but my game is in good shape. I’m happy with the result.

I really had to fight for my score.”

Johnrey Pactolerin, nephew of former Philippine Open champion and many-time Philippine Masters winner Robert Pactolerin, charged back with four birdies at the back to join Pagunsan at sixth along with Korean Giwhan Kim, former champion Mardan Mamat of Singapore and Englishman Simon Griffiths.

Seven players, including Aussie Scott Barr, Korean Seukhyun Baek and Ireland’s Niall Turner, fired 3-under 69s, while Jhonnel Ababa, Clyde Mondilla and Nilo Salahog carded identical 70s to lead 18 others at

FILIPINO KARATEKAS IN HARNESS FOR 2016 HE national karatedo team geared up for its campaign in three major international tournaments by bagging three gold medals in the recent Turkey International Open in Istanbul.

National Coach Alvin Parvinfar of Iran led the country’s bid by clinching two gold medals, while newcomer KC Santiago provided the other gold won by the Filipinos in the tournament that gathered teams from 21 countries.

Parvinfar topped the individual kumite and kata, while Santiago ruled the women’s individual kata. Santiago also clinched bronze in individual kumite.

“I’m so happy with results of the Inter-secondary tournament. The matches have been very competitive and exciting. Congratulations to the winners and we will do our best to sustain the gains we have made through our grassroots development,” said Lhuillier.

On their way to the finals, Makati, which swept the elims, toppled Manila, 12-5, while Sta. Maria crushed Miriam College, 6-0, in the other semis duel.

Santiago went on to bag the best pitcher and MVP awards while teammate Angelu Gabriel took the best hitter honors. Other awardees were Tauli (best slugger), Ma. Charlotte Sales, also of Makati, (most number of homeruns), Gabriel (most number of stolen bases), and Trisha Tiozon of Manila (most number of RBIs).

Meanwhile, Manila whipped Miriam, 12-0, to clinch third place honors.

The Makati lasses thus took the top P25,000 purse with Sta. Maria and Manila receiving P15,000 and P10,000, respectively.

Over in Baguio, University of Mindanao-Davao’s Irene Lumanas beat University of the Philippines’ Cochise Diolata in a pitching duel to power her team to a 1-0 win for a 4-0 mark in the 2015 Inter Collegiate Championships late Thursday.

In other results, Ateneo de Manila demolished Papua, Indonesia, 10-2, while the Polytechnic University of the Philippines beat Rizal Technological Institute, 4-1.

Christmas Open spikefest on at MOA

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MAKATI TRIUMPHS

Perpetual Help still unscathed, PMMS wins in Martin Cup hoops

NIVERSITY of Perpetual Help Altas bagged its second straight victory, while Philippine Merchant Marine School opened its bid with a bang in the recent 12th Fr. Martin Cup Collegiate Open basketball tournament at the Far Eastern University Gym in Morayta, Manila.

The Altas, with Cameroonian Nick Omorogbe calling the shots, took the solo lead in Group B at the expense of the Philippine College of Criminology, 82-66.

The Mariners, on the other hand, leaned on Rocky Antonares, who had 15 points, and their defense in the last 48 seconds to repulse the Far Eastern University Tamaraws, 70-68, in Group A. The Altas took charge right away with AJ Coronel and Daryl Singontiko hitting 18 and 17 points, respectively.

Saturday, December 19, 2015

Rexor Romaquin. They are members of the team that grabbed the kata bronze medal in Turkey. Romaquin also snatched a bronze in individual kata.

For Parvinfar, the two golds were the first he won in a tournament after a long time.

NATIONAL team Head Coach Ali Parvinfar »(seated, from left) with Team Manager Raymund Lee Reyes and KC Santiago, and (standing, from left) Rexor Romaquin, John Paul Bejar, Engene Stoner Dagohoy and Carmelo Patricio Jr. ALYSA SALEN

joint 18th and Aussie Marcus Both, who won by two at Wack Wack last year, struggled with an even par 72 for joint 51st.

Other Filipinos in early contention are Charles Hong, a former winner here, who shot a 71; Orlan Sumcad, Tony Lascuña, Cassius Casas, Artemio Murakami and Keanu Jahns matched par 72s; while Michael Bibat, Arnold Villacencio, Elmer Salvador, Randy Garalde, Michael Alejandro and Frankie Minoza, who blew a 2-under card with three straight bogeys from No. 15, turned in similar 73s.

Renolds, ranked 95th on the Order of Merit, is on a do-or-die mission to save his Asian Tour card for next year. The Canadian needs nothing less than a victory this week to break into the top 63 on the Order of Merit to retain his Tour card for 2016.

By Joel Orellana

ALK ‘N TEXT bucked a slow start and turned back GlobalPort, 107-96, to moved close to a twice-to-beat incentive in the next round of the Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup on Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Jayson Castro dished out another solid performance for the Tropang Texters, while rookie Troy Rosario filled the void left by Moala Tautuaa with a steady effort to help their team snatch the must-win victory.

Castro finished with 25 points, four rebounds and six assists to win the duel of guards against Batang Pier’s Terrence Romeo and Stanley Pringle, who had 24 points each in the loss.

Rosario had 19 points and seven boards in 33 minutes, as Talk ‘N Text missed the services of top pick Tautuaa who nursed a back injury. Ranidel de Ocampo has yet to play for the team this conference also because of back problems.

“We really needed to win this game because our goal is to get the twice-to-beat [advantage],” said Head Coach Jong Uichico, who drew nine points each from Aaron Aban, Danny Seigle, Larry Fonacier and Harvey Carey.

The triumph improved Tropang Texters’ record to 6-4. They must win their final elimination round game against Barangay Ginebra San Miguel on Sunday, also at the Big Dome, to grab the twice-to-beat advantage in the first phase of the quarterfinal round.

It also snapped the four-game winning streak of GlobalPort, which ended its elimination round campaign with a 7-4 mark. Batang Pier are already assured of the bonus in the next round.

GlobalPort started hot, taking a 22-15 first quarter lead, but it was all Talk ‘N Text the rest of the way with Castro and Rosario leading the charge.

Talk ‘N Text exploded for 38 points in the second period, while limiting Batang Pier to 22 to take a 53-44 halftime lead.

TALK ‘N TEXT’S Jayson Castro (left) goes one on one with GlobalPort’s Stanley Pringle. NONOY LACZA

Unheralded team prevails

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NHERALDED Elman 1, a team led by International Master (IM) Joel Pimentel Jr. and National Master (NM) Hamed Nouri, crushed Aqua Eternal, 3-1, in the ninth and final round for a total of 16 points to run away with the title and the P400,000 cash in the Second Manny D. Pacquiao Random Chess Championship at the SM Mall recently in General Santos City.

Pimentel lost to IM Ronald Dableo in their top board tussle, but Nouri, June Syrell Coleta

and Romeo Sadia won in the lower boards to lead Elman 1 to the victory.

Elman 1’s sister team Elman A, behind unheralded Raymond Salcedo and Luffe Magdalaga, was tied for second and third places with Nica Team Ilonggo of NM Rolando Andador with similar 14 points. They split the combined second and third place cash prizes of P350,000.

Café Ligbeans B, Team Zamboanga, Team Larry D, Tagaytay City Chess Team and Batucan and

Friends finished fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, and also won cash prizes.

Dableo, finished with 8.5 points to win Board 1 honors, while Jerry Areque of Tagaytay City Chess Team, was the Top Board 2 player with 8.0 points.

Eutemio Coquillo of MJ Yabut Realty-PamCdo A, took the top plum in Board 3 with 7.5 points, while John Michael Parrenas of Suralla, So. Cotabato topped Board 4 with 8.5 points.

Sports BusinessMirror

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aturday, December 19, 2015 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

DANGEROUS STUNT Athletes in wing suits make a death-defying shoot for the Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. film Point Break. Extreme sports of every kind, not just surfing, take center stage in the movie, and the filmmakers used athletes, not stuntmen, to make the scenes as realistic as possible. AP

CRASHING VICTORY PUTIN: RUSSIA WILL COOPERATE M

OSCOW—President Vladimir Putin on Thursday pledged that Russia would cooperate with international officials to eradicate the “poison” of doping, but said it was wrong to suspend athletes who have not been accused of cheating.

Putin suggested the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) blanket suspension of Russia’s entire track and field team was unfair because it penalized athletes for the cheating of others.

Russia’s track and field federation was suspended by the IAAF after a World Anti-Doping Agency panel accused the country of operating a widespread, state-sponsored doping program and covering up positive tests. The penalty could keep Russia’s track and field athletes out of next year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

“If someone is doping, they should definitely be punished in the proper way because it destroys the idea of fair competition,” Putin said in his annual news conference. “Those who are guilty—the coach, the organizer, the athlete—they should be held responsible. Those who have nothing to do with it should not answer for those who are violating something. It’s not fair and it’s not right.”

Putin promised to make sure that Russian officials work with international bodies to fight doping, which he described as a “poison for people.”

“Russia must and will be open for a joint fight on doping,” he said in televised remarks. “I will order officials on all levels to cooperate openly with international bodies, not cover up anything. It’s in our interests.”

Putin also reacted to the corruption scandals at International Football Federation (Fifa) which are overshadowing Russia’s preparations to host the World Cup in 2018.

Asked to comment on the ongoing investigation, he said that Russia has done nothing wrong and had won the right to host the soccer tournament in an “honest competition.”

Putin also praised Fifa’s suspended president, Sepp Blatter, for his contribution to world soccer and reiterated his belief—first expressed in July—that Blatter deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.

Two-time Olympian Bobby Lea of the United States, meanwhile, was suspended for 16 months for doping on Thursday after returning a positive test during the track cycling national championships earlier this year.

Shortly after the US Anti-Doping Agency revealed the suspension, Lea said in a letter posted on his web site that he had taken the prescription painkiller Percocet to help him sleep. He did not realize it contains the substance oxycodone, which is banned during competition.

Lea competed in the points race and Madison at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the omnium at the 2012 London Games. He had hoped to compete in the omnium again at next year’s Rio Olympics.

Lea is planning to appeal the suspension to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. AP

VLADIMIR PUTIN says it is wrong to suspend athletes who have not been accused of cheating. AP

LeBron James was scrambling for a loose ball in the fourth quarter of a 104-100 win over Oklahoma City, when the 6-foot-8, 250-pound All-Star launched himself into the air, plowing into Ellie Day as she sat next to her husband.

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LEVELAND—LeBron James crashed into a courtside seat, accidentally knocking over and injuring Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) champion Jason Day’s wife during the Cavaliers’ win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.

Ellie Day was placed on a stretcher with her head immobilized and taken to MetroHealth Medical Center. There was no immediate report on her condition.

James was scrambling for a loose ball in the fourth quarter of a 104-100 win over Oklahoma City, when the 6-foot-8, 250-pound All-Star launched himself into the air, plowing into Ellie Day as she sat next to her husband.

James said he spoke with Ellie while she was being helped by medical personnel during a stoppage in play.

“I squeezed her hand and she said she was OK,” he said.

“She was just a little weary.”

Before he was given more information on her, James, who scored 33 points and flirted with a triple-

double, was noticeably shaken when he left the floor following the Cavs’ win.

“For me, obviously, her health is very important and hopefully she is doing well,” James said. “The guys told me she’s doing great now. For me, just going for a loose ball, tried to keep the possession going, I just hate that that was the end result.”

James said if she had been pregnant, he would have jumped over the first row of seats.

A little while later, James tweeted: “Ellie Day I hope you’re doing okay! My apologies! Hope u guys come back to another game soon. Love LJ!” On Novenber 11 Ellie gave birth to the couple’s second child, a girl named Lucy.

Day, who lives in a Columbus suburb, accompanied his wife as she was carried from the floor. The couple has attended Cleveland games in the past, and she was pregnant with their second child when they went to an exhibition game earlier this year in Columbus. That night, Cavs guard JR Smith bought cotton candy for the Days’ son, Dash, while he sat on the bench.

Day is the No. 2-ranked golfer in the world. He won the PGA Championship this year for his first major win on the PGA Tour.

Shortly before his wife was injured, Jason Day took part in a promotion during a timeout. As fans cheered, the Australian golfer chipped foam basketballs into the crowd.

Cavs Coach David Blatt said he was unaware of the severity of the collision. He has long been nervous about the safety of fans sitting so close to the action.

“Honestly, the only thing I saw was LeBron diving for the ball to save the ball,” Blatt said. “I kind of got blocked and just saw a sea of bodies. We all hope that she’s OK. It’s always concerned me, the sideline seats. Always concerned me, because things like that, when you’re talking about players of this speed and physicality and effort level, it’s not a simple thing.

“The powers that be are the ones that really need to decide how to deal with that. He made an honest attempt at the basketball, that’s all, obviously. We all hope she’s OK.” In Charlotte, North Carolina, Jeremy Lin scored a seasonhigh 35 points and Kemba Walker had 27, as Charlotte beat Toronto, 109-99, in overtime.

PJ Hairston added 14 points, including a three-pointer with 1:30 remaining in overtime that put the Hornets ahead to stay.

DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, Kyle Lowry added 20 and Terrence Ross had 17 for Toronto. Bismack Biyombo, who spent four seasons with Charlotte, had a career-best 18 rebounds, while also blocking seven shots and scoring eight points.

James Harden scored 25 points, and Dwight Howard added 16 points and 15 rebounds in Houston’s second victory over Los Angeles, 107-87, in six days.

Terrence Jones had 16 points to help the Rockets avoid a winless three-game trip. They never trailed in their fifth straight win over the Lakers at Staples Center, Houston’s longest road winning streak in the rivalry’s history.

Kobe Bryant scored 22 points and dunked for the first time in his farewell season, but the Lakers followed up their fourth victory of the season with their 14th loss in 16 games. AP

helped deliver the baby with “his bare hands.”

Taylor said Shumpert tied a pair of headphones around the umbilical cord while they waited for the ambulance to arrive. Taylor’s message to her daughter—Iman Tayla Shumpert Jr.—is: “Mommy carried you. Daddy delivered you. #MeetTheParents we love you baby girl.”

Shumpert, who is in his second season with Cleveland, did not play on Thursday night against Oklahoma City because of a

strained right groin. He sustained the injury against the Celtics, just hours before he performed his special delivery.

He arrived at Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday shortly before the Cavs tipped off against the Thunder and received congratulatory handshakes in the hallway outside Cleveland’s locker room.

Shumpert recently returned to the lineup after missing 21 games following wrist surgery. AP

LEBRON JAMES is concerned about Ellie Day’s condition. AP

Cavs’ Shumpert calmly delivers fiancée’s baby

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LEVELAND—Cleveland Cavaliers guard Iman Shumpert showed he has more than basketball skills by calmly delivering a baby girl when his fiancee unexpectedly went into labor. According to the National Basketball Association star’s fiancee, Teyana Taylor, the couple welcomed their daughter on Wednesday morning in their bathroom at home. Taylor posted on her Instagram account that she didn’t initially realize she was in labor, and Shumpert, “playing Dr,”