BusinessMirror December 22, 2014 by BusinessMirror

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Tuesday, Monday,November December 18, 22, 2014 Vol. Vol.10 10No. No.40 74

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B.S.P. SAYS FOREIGN-DENOMINATED LOANS REMAIN AT COMFORTABLE LEVEL AT $57.7B AS OF Q3

PAPAL VISIT 2015

External debt continues to drop

he country’s foreigncurrency debt, at one time totaling nearly $62 billion, continued to fall in the third quarter due to so-called revaluation or exchange-rate adjustments, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

23 DAYS INSIDE

HOLIDAY ATTIRE DOESN’T HAVE TO BE A JOKE Work

EAR God, we willingly, joyfully and gratefully do the best of our ability for the work we need to do each day at home and elsewhere. We recognize that work is part of our obligation as human beings. We cooperate with others as we do our work. We help others do their work as maybe appropriate and within our capacity and position. We see our work as a gift from God. We give thanks each day for the opportunity to do whatever work we do. We use the income we derive from work, in ways that are consistent with the teachings of our Faith. Amen. JO A. SALDANA AND LOUIE M. LACSON Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

Life BusinessMirror

Monday, December 22, 2014

The Philippines’s external debt—or the sum of all types of borrowings from foreign sources—hit $57.7 billion as of end-September this year. This was 0.6 percent, or $375 million, lower than the foreign debt of only $58.1 billion in June. “The decline resulted from negative foreign-exchange [FX] revaluation adjustments, as the US dollar strengthened against most third currencies, particularly the Japanese yen,” the central bank said. A significant part of the country’s debt was in the yen currency, especially debt intended for infrastructure projects pursued in cooperation with Japan. Continued on A2

Holiday attire doesn’t have to be a joke B D D. B Saint Louis Post-Dispatch

HEN it comes to holiday attire, people generally fall into three camps: staid and classic, casual everyday wear, or absurdist and loud. I’m talking to you, ugly sweater crew. Few strike the happy-holiday medium of fun but holiday-photo ready. Sure, you can wear your regular old clothes, but special times call for special items. When you look back on the images of holidays past, it’s nice to be instantly transported back and, let’s face it, that usually happens because you notice what you’re wearing...or a particularly dubious haircut. Ugly holiday garb has gained soaring interest, and that’s fine. People are making fun of midcentury attire that families once felt compelled to don for the iconic holiday family portraits that we now take great pleasure in ridiculing. Images hearken back to a bygone era that’s now deemed sufficiently corny and ripe for ironic costuming. But I’d like to defend corny holiday attire. Give it a little contemporary styling, and it becomes enviable for something other than its unabashed cynicism. Holiday clothing shouldn’t be taken too seriously, but that doesn’t mean that any attempt to dress for the

occasion should be considered a joke. Those in ski sweaters adorned with Christmas trees or mistletoe are too often paired with a script of selfdeprecating remarks. No one wants others to think that they are wearing that seriously. It’s a joke, right? Well, here’s your license to officially wear your nonugly holiday-themed sweaters with pride. And if anyone starts an eye-roll, derides your fashion choice or otherwise suggests that your attire provides unintended humor, we have a few suggestions to silence that Scrooge. Ignore the comment, invoke some good will toward all and wish them a happy holiday, Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year or greeting of your choice. Tell them that you wear your holiday spirit with pride, and you’re glad it made them smile. Explain that moods are contagious, and you’re trying to spread the cheer you feel around the holidays. Then you could just start singing carols. Reason that there are about six weeks a year that you get a free pass to wear your corny holiday clothes with impunity. So why waste them in khakis and blue shirts, black skirts and gray sweaters? You can also state that “I like this sweater, and I think it looks pretty sexy, thank you very much.” Here are a few suggestions of items to wear and ways to wear them that fit the holiday spirit. Go forth, dress

well and with great cheer. Sales are rampant and choices will vary, but these are some examples and notions that can apply to similar items. ‘JOY’ SWEATER ■ Dress it up—Consider winter white slacks, patent leather shoes and sparkle earrings. ■ Rock it out—Pair it with a black leather skirt and boots. ■ Holiday casual—Faded blue denim and canvas sneakers. HANUKKAH SWEATER ■ Dress it up—Add a collared shirt, dark slacks and dress shoes. ■ Rock it out—Dark wash denim and shoe boots. ■ Holiday casual—Colored khaki pants, white undershirt and athleisure shoes.

HOLIDAY HOODIES ■ Dress it up—Add a collared white shirt, solid up— skinny tie and dark slacks. ■ Rock it out—Under a blazer and over a white crew-neck tee with denim. ■ Holiday casual—Add fitted track pants and athletic shoes.

‘ROBIN’ SWEATER ■ Dress it up—Try a knee-length sequin skirt and heels. ■ Rock it out—Pull it on over a denim shirt dress, dark tights and shoe boots. ■ Holiday casual—Over a white turtleneck with long denim skirt.

PLAID SHIRTS ■ Dress it up—Wear it under a solid V-neck sweater and tucked into a coordinating skirt. ■ Rock it out—Untucked with leather or fauxleather skinny pants and boots. ■ Holiday casual—Style it with an upscale casual sweatshirt and boyfriend-fit denim. ■

JOY sweater from Style&Co

LIFE

ISABEL COJUANGCOSUNTAY: A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE TheElderly

news@businessmirror.com.ph

A8 Monday, December 22, 2014 • Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Isabel Cojuangco-Suntay: A woman of substance

HAT is the secret to aging gracefully? Most people take the path of the good life: enjoying travel, seeing the best doctors, undergoing cosmetic changes, staying in expensive hotels and resorts, and dining in the best restaurants. But there is one person who has chosen a better way: giving her time, effort and resources to help alleviate the plight of the poor. Isabel Cojuangco-Suntay or Doña Isabel as she is fondly referred to in Tarlac province believes in giving back her blessings to the community. She is now 76. Belonging to the province’s renowned Cojuangco clan, she recalled how this country has been good to her ancestors and to the Cojuangcos as a whole. “My paternal great grandfather who was Chinese encouraged his children and grandchildren to be grateful to this country and to see ourselves as Filipinos first and foremost. I think this basic influence drove all the Cojuangcos to be patriotic Filipinos. Over the years, we have had a lot of Cojuangcos in public service,” she said. Suntay said that as long as she could remember, her grandfather Martin Co migrated from the village of Hongjian, Fujian province, China, now popularly called Xiamen. Martin’s son was Don Jose Cojuangco I, known among the Cojuangco clan as “Ingkong Jose.” He married Antera Estrella and they had three children: Ysidra, Melecio and Trinidad. Jose I and his wife valued education for their only son Melecio who pursued his education at San

Juan de Letran and then at the University of Santo Tomas. Melecio became a teacher, a graduate of the Escuela Normal de Manila. At age 25, he married Tecla Chichioco, a Chinese mestiza from Malolos, Bulacan, who was his sister Ysidra’s close friend. Melecio and Tecla had four sons: Jose (better known as Pepe)— born in the ancestral bahay na bato (stone house) in front of the Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan; Juan, Antonio and Eduardo. The last three were all born in Paniqui, Tarlac. Pepe was the father of the late President Corazon Cojuangco-Aquino, mother of the current President Aquino. Melecio, then age 36, was listed as Assemblyman Melecio Cojuangco in the directory of the first Philippine Assembly. His life was cut short when on March 13, 1909, he suffered a heart attack after an altercation with an American soldier who tried to grab the seats Melecio bought for his two sons Jose and Juan, in the first-class section of the ManilaDagupan train line at the Tutuban station in Manila. Eduardo, the youngest of the four Cojuangco brothers, met the beautiful Josephine Murphy, the “Belle of

ISABEL COJUANGCO-SUNTAY up close

Baguio” at the baptism of the infant Armand of the Fabella clan, owners of the Jose Rizal College, (now University), in Paris, France. After a courtship of seven years, they married at the Ermita, the Cojuangco family’s chapel and mausoleum in Barangay Abogado, Paniqui. It was the first and only wedding solemnized in the Ermita. Eduardo Sr. and Josephine (popularly known in Tarlac as Doña Nene), had six living children: Eduardo Jr. (“Danding”), Mercedes (Teodoro), Aurora (Lagdameo), Isabel (Suntay), Enrique and Manuel. Eduardo Sr. died at the age of 49 from a kidney disease. His eldest, Danding was 16 and Isabel

only 12 at the time. The Cojuangco clan headed by Doña Ysidra Cojuangco owned the Philippine Bank of Commerce which was the first Filipino-owned private commercial bank. This was where all the good future bankers trained. In spite of offers to buy the bank after her husband died, the widowed Nene chose not to sell and oversaw the workings of the bank as a caretaker for her six children. Isabel, the fourth child, was born on November 5, 1939. When World War II ended, she, together with her siblings, attended local public schools in Paniqui. When Catholic private schools reopened in Manila, for her elementary education, she

attended Saint Paul’s College for a year, the Assumption Convent in Herran for a year and Saint Scholastica’s College. She married at an early age, was widowed early and became a single parent to three children. Despite being a hands-on mother, she pursued a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration course, graduating magna cum laude. As her children grew up, she redirected her life and now shares her cause-oriented projects with her doctor-daughter and namesake, Dr. Isabel “Isa” Cojuangco-Suntay. Having experienced the joys and travails of motherhood, Suntay says her heart goes out to mothers who do not have the resources to send their children to school nor to provide food and the daily needs of their children. It was the realization that many people in Tarlac need help in terms of starting livelihood projects that in 2007, she founded the Tarlac Heritage Foundation, with Isa as the chairman. This foundation has helped poor Tarlaqueños in countless ways. The “Belenismo” sa Tarlac, the reenactment of the Nativity scene through the making of belens, is a major project the mother-and-daughter tandem started in 2007. Throughout Tarlac, they have inspired the locals, in the spirit of bayanihan, to build belens. Even at her age, Suntay would accompany Isa in touring visitors until 3 a.m. “Do you see how joyful Tarlaqueños are in honoring Jesus and making children happy?” she would enthusiastically tell guests and visitors. She would also urge them to partake what the local belen makers offer: rice cakes, balut, arroz caldo and other home-cooked delicacies. Tarlaqueños always acknowledge her presence in these events. Aside from Belenismo, the Tarlac Heritage Foundation also promotes

Street dogs transform lives of Bucharest elderly

portant for them to have something to look forward to; it’s a reason to look forward to next Wednesday.” Rici, Tzuca, Mulan and Tibi visit the home once a week. Tibi, 11, is the most popular and sits quietly as he is patted, cuddled and stroked by residents who indulge him with sausages and biscuits. Alexandrina, who is in her 70s, has seen her life transformed by weekly visits from Mulan, a 4-year-old cognaccolored female stray. “She is a schizophrenic. She didn’t go out, she didn’t make any visual contact until she met the dogs and from that point on, she became functional,” Dumitrescu said. Victor Chitic, a psychologist from animal-welfare group Vier Pfoten, the project organizer, said the dogs have been through a rigorous selection process and only dogs that enjoy human company and are not aggressive are chosen. “When looking at the fight or flight reflex, we make sure they flee rather than fight,” he said. Once trained, the animals periodically go through refresher courses where they are trained and disciplined. “The dogs make me feel safe; they IN this December 10, file photo, Elena Calugaru, 60, pets Tibi, an 11-year-old stray dog, in Bucharest, Romania. Calugaru calls Tibi “my boy, my love!” and her eyes well up with make me feel better about myself and tears as she cuddles him. AP PHOTO/OCTAV GANEA, MEDIAFAX, FILE offer me love,” said Constantin Ionita, UCHAREST, Romania—They say that a dog unless they find a home. 78, a former economist who enjoys watching ballet on is a man’s best friend. Alexandrina, an elderly Authorities have been putting down thousands of the Internet. resident in a home in the Romanian capital dogs since the law took effect, while thousands of othRici, the youngest dog, is frisky, noisy and friendly, found not only a new friend, but a new outlook on life ers have been adopted or put in shelters, but there are according to his owner, who found him in a plastic after one of the city’s infamous street dogs walked still estimated to be tens of thousands of street dogs bag in a car park two years ago and quickly discovered into her life. in Bucharest. his potential. At an elderly people’s home in west Bucharest, four The dogs have found support from celebrities, “At one-and-a-half-months, he understood ‘sit,’” specially trained street dogs make weekly visits, offerincluding actors Hilary Swank, Brigitte Bardot and Iulia Miu says. ing residents love and company and changing percepSteven Seagal, who adopted or visited them. But that But the star is Tibi. “Most residents see themselves tions about strays. has done little to win over city residents who are wary in him,” she said. Elena Calugaru, 60, calls Tibi “my boy, my love!” Bucharest’s thousands of strays have had a bad or even downright hostile toward the dogs. rap. They have fatally mauled three people in rePsychologist for the elderly Diana Dumitrescu and her eyes well up with tears as she cuddles him. cent years and the latest death of a 4-year-old boy was initially skeptical about the project at the care “I can’t express what I feel in words. I have nobody in 2013 led to a law that orders strays euthanized home, but she has changed her mind. “It’s very imin the world apart from Tibi,” she said. AP

OIL MARKET OVERSUPPLIED BY 2 MILLION BARRELS/DAY

audit trail A Metro Rail Transit (MRT) train passes through Edsa, Cubao. The Hong Kong-based railway operator tasked to do an audit of the MRT Line 3 has warned the public of the possibility of train derailment that can result in “substantial casualties,” if the tracks of the mass-railway line are not immediately replaced. Metro Pacific Investments Corp. will submit a cheaper proposal to expand the MRT 3 if the government drops its planned takeover of the train service. KEVIN DELA CRUZ

il producers outside of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) should cut their “irresponsible” output with excess supplies harming the market, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) energy minister said. The oil market is oversupplied by 2 million barrels per day (bpd), Mohammed Al Sada, Qatar’s energy minister, told Bloomberg at a conference in Abu Dhabi. Opec has produced about 30 million bpd since January 2013, while global output climbed more than 2 million bpd to 93.6 million barrels, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “We call on all other producers to stop the increase, because the increase is harming the market,” UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei told Bloomberg at the conference. “If the increase stops, and they follow Opec’s lead, Opec’s decision is to fix production; if production stabilizes in 2015, things will stabilize much faster.”

CA: It’s still a go for Obando sanitary landfill

BusinessMirror

By Sylvia Europa-Pinca | Special to the BusinessMirror

By Bianca Cuaresma

the planting of organic vegetables, fruit trees, and medicinal herbs for food and medicine in the backyards of Tarlaqueños. Promoted under the Hardin ng Lunas project, Suntay and Isa have also encouraged military camps to transform their idle lands into productive vegetable and herbal plant gardens to provide extra food and income for soldiers. They have hired experts to teach soldiers how to take care of plants and build fishponds to propagate fish for the soldiers. The foundation also holds medical missions and animal dispersal projects. Recently, a farmer with 12 children was given his own cow. Last year, when typhoons devastated Tarlac, the hearts of Doña Isabel and Isa melted for Aytas and the poor who were severely affected by the disaster. This was the reason they chose not to hold the belenismo last year as they wanted to concentrate their efforts and resources in helping disaster victims. The mother-and-daughter tandem went up rugged mountains to distribute food gifts to the poor. Some of the gifts consisted of fish raised by soldiers in fishponds found in military camps. “Just imagine these fish were raised by soldiers, some of whom graduated from the Philippine Military Academy,” she said. “The food and goodies for children were handed out to families who were very happy to receive these things for Christmas. I wish I could win the lotto so I could provide for all their needs, fix their roads, so children do not walk for hours to attend school.” “The Aytas who used to own all these ancestral lands have been driven into the mountains and have to contend with the absence of amenities. I hope all these children will finish school and grow up to be productive citizens,” she said. “Yes, I hope I have all the money in the world to change lives,” she said.

A reminder for senior citizens this Christmas By Cheridine P. Oro-Josef, MD, FPAFP, FPCGM

RIGHT TO HEALTH Diplomate and fellow, Philippine Academy of Family Physicians; Diplomate and fellow, Philippine College of Geriatric Medicine

HRISTMAS means a lot to senior citizens. It means going back to memories of past Christmases when they enjoyed the company of their children and their families. It is looking forward to another year added to their long lives. It is savoring the spirit of sharing and giving. It is enjoying the sumptuous food served on the Christmas table. In whatever way, senior citizens should be reminded: 1. You can eat. You may taste the food served on the table. If you are young to middle old (60 to 79 years old), it is always wise to enjoy small frequent meals rather than starve yourself and go bingeing. For the old old (80 and above), try to enjoy the food and in the spirit of Christmas, eat more but do not overfeed yourself. 2. Always exercise. The call to active aging encompasses all ages. It is best to continue to be active. During the holiday season, the cold weather is very conducive to cuddling and lying down on the bed under the sheets. Rise up to the cold season and move your joints. It is always best to move when you have a lot to eat. 3. Enjoy the love. Whatever situation you are in and whatever problems you face, always feel the love that Christmas brings. As we age, we need to be more positive. The children are away? Remember the times when you were together. You are all alone? Be in the company of friends and neighbors. You do not have money? Look around and share the spirit of love instead. Shed tears of joy rather than tears of sadness and loneliness. Be active and be positive. Thank God for another year added to your life. Merry Christmas, everyone!

ELDERLY For comments, e-mail cheridinemd@gmail.com

PESO exchange rates n US 44.7490

See “Oil market,” A2

By Joel R. San Juan

HE Court of Appeals (CA) has sustained its decision allowing the construction and operation of a P600million, 45-hectare engineered sanitarylandfill project in the town of Obando, Bulacan province. In an 11-page decision penned by Associate Justice Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla, the CA’s Former 10th Division denied the motion for reconsideration filed by Concerned Citizens of Obando seeking the reversal of its decision issued on August 29, 2014. The CA held that the issues raised by the petitioners in their motion “were already assessed, considered and adjudicated” in

its August 29 decision. The appellate court did not give credence to the claim of the petitioners that it failed to state its reason for its findings that the petition does not involve an environmental damage of such magnitude as required by the Rules of Procedure for Environmental Cases (RPEC). The CA also dismissed the argument of the petitioners that the measures—which Ecoshield Development Corp. (EDC), led by businessman Antonio L. Cabangon Chua, will undertake to mitigate the environmental threats posed by the landfill—do not negate the environmental requirements of Section 1, Rule 7 of the RPEC. “The contending parties presented their

respective expert testimonies. In the exercise of its discretion, coupled with the opportunity to evaluate the witnesses’ character and to observe their respective demeanor, this court opted to rely on the testimonies of the EDC’s expert witnesses, who made a comprehensive study of the project and who actually went to the project site,” the CA ruled. “That these experts were under the employ of EDC does not necessarily warrant the presumption of bias on their parts as witnesses, considering that their statements were duly supported by evidence,” it added. The CA emphasized that the magnitude requirement under the RPEC does not only See “Sanitary landfill,” A2

n japan 0.3766 n UK 70.1396 n HK 5.7703 n CHINA 7.1986 n singapore 34.0737 n australia 36.5387 n EU 54.9831 n SAUDI arabia 11.9219 Source: BSP (19 December 2014)

News BusinessMirror

Monday, December 22, 2014

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Aquino sure to sign budget External debt continues to drop bill during holidays–Coloma Continued from A1

By Butch Fernandez

cisms aired by Social Watch Philippines lead convenor Leonor Briones that the over P2-trillion budget bill passed by the Senate and the House was still infested with pork-barrel fund sleaze despite the Supreme Court ruling that outlaws the Priority Development Assistance Fund and the Budget Department’s Disbursement Acceleration Program. Coloma insisted that such criticisms have no basis, except for that they have a different interpretation of the structure of the pork barrel and what is actually contained in the budget. The secretary pointed out that the main task of the senators and congressmen is to make laws that comply with the Constitution, and it would be unfair to say the lawmakers are passing bills that violate the law. Coloma added this was why the Palace is taking the effort to clarify the issue.

ALACAÑANG assured on Sunday that President Aquino will sign the Congressapproved P2.6-trillion 2015 national budget during the Christmas holidays, although the date for the signing rites at the Palace has yet to be fixed. “The budget-signing ceremonies is one of the important things the President will attend to in the coming days,” Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. said. He added, however, that the announcement of the final date is still forthcoming.

The Palace official recalled that, as in previous fiscal years, President Aquino makes it a point to sign the annual budget measure into law before December 30 for it to be effective by the first day of 2015. Speaking over state-run Radyo ng Bayan, Coloma clarified criti-

Oil market. . . Continued from A1 Brent oil prices tumbled 45 percent this year. The Opec decided last month to keep production unchanged at 30 million barrels, resisting calls from cash-strapped Venezuela that the group needs to stem the rout in prices. “Irresponsible production from outside Opec is behind the fall in prices,” Mazrouei said in a speech at the conference. “The market will improve over time.” Output in the US is the highest in three decades, and production is poised to approach a 42-year high next year, as declining equipment

costs and enhanced drilling techniques more than offset the drop in oil markets, according to Troy Eckard, whose Eckard Global Llc. owns stakes in more than 260 North Dakota shale wells. Oil extraction is soaring at shale formations in Texas and North Dakota, as companies split rocks using high-pressure liquid, a process known as hydraulic fracturing or fracking. The estimate of oversupply of 2 million barrels is more than the 540,000-barrel surplus signaled from International Energy Agency (IEA) figures as of September 30. Global production

was 93.6 million barrels a day, compared with a demand of 93.06 million barrels, IEA figures show. Global output was 90.54 million barrels a day early in 2013. “We are now in a provisional, correctional period,” Al Sada said. “Markets have stabilization mechanisms that will bring stability. We don’t know exactly how long it will take but it will stabilize because the current prices will separate the efficient producers from the producers who have high costs.” Bloomberg News

Revaluation adjustments brought down the foreign-currency obligations by as much as $1.1 billion during the period, but its positive impact on the debt load was partly offset by the increased investments of nonresidents in Philippine debt papers amounting to about $519 million and net availment hitting $237 million. “Looking at external debt indicators, these were observed to remain at comfortable levels at the end of the third quarter,” BSP Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. said. Aside from a comfortable level of gross international reserves during the period, the external debt ratio,

DECEMBER 22, 2014 | MONDAY

relate to the geographic scope, or the number of cities or provinces to be affected, but, more important, to the widespread dimension of the environmental damage brought about by the establishment of the project as to prejudice life, health and property of inhabitants in two or more cities. However, the CA noted that the petitioners failed to substantiate their allegation of environmental damage of such magnitude to warrant the issuance of a writ of kalikasan. The CA also did not give weight to the claim of the petitioners that the manner of transporting wastes from Manila to Obando by barge, which would traverse the areas of Manila, Malabon and Navotas and the province of Bulacan, meets the magnitude requirement. “The alleged consequential dam-

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age to the environment on how the wastes will be handled during the transport is dubious and speculative. This is especially so when EDC undertook the construction of special customized barges to securely hold the wastes during transport to prevent spillage,” it explained. Concurring with the ruling were associate justices Jose Reyes Jr. and Agnes Reyes Carpio. In its August 29 decision, the CA dismissed the petition filed by Concerned Citizens of Obando seeking the issuance of a writ of kalikasan to stop the project of EDC. The CA said the sanitary landfill will unlikely cause an adverse effect on the environment and that it is actually suited for its location in Barangay Salambao, off Manila Bay. The CA also said the operation of a landfill in the area will

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help the ongoing efforts by various government agencies to clean the Manila Bay. With regard to the claim of the petitioners that the landfill is not suitable in the area since Obando is flood-prone, the CA said the concern was already addressed by the structure and design of the subject landfill. The CA noted that it was built with four-level engineered perimeter dike and embankments consisted of one perimeter dike with mangrove vegetation, three-tiered main dikes and a staging area using various grades of geosynthetic materials as structure reinforcement. It added that the main dike was constructed based on the highest flood-level that has occurred in the area and was made 1 meter higher than the highest flood level.

NORTHEAST MONSOON AFFECTING NORTHERN LUZON.

Northeast Monsoon locally known as “Amihan”. It affects the eastern portions of the country. It is cold and dry; characterized by widespread cloudiness with rains and showers.

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in June 2014 and 8.2 percent from a year ago to 6.4 percent. The ratio has consistently remained in single digit since 2010. This trend, according to the central bank, indicates sustained improvement in the country’s capacity to service maturing obligations. “The external debt portfolio remained predominantly mediumto-long-term [MLT] in tenor, with MLT accounts remaining at 83.5 percent, hence keeping funding requirements for debt servicing at manageable levels since payments are spread out over a longer period of time. MLT accounts are those with maturities longer than one year,” the central bank said.

Sanitary landfill. . . Continued from A1

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TODAY’S WEATHER

or the percentage of the country’s debt in relation to the gross national income, declined during the period. “The external debt ratio, or outstanding external debt expressed as a percentage of gross national income, improved to 17.2 percent, from 17.6 percent in June 2014 and 18.3 percent a year ago. The same trend is observed using gross domestic product as the denominator, despite the slower growth of the economy at 5.3 percent in the third quarter,” Tetangco said. Meanwhile, the external debt service ratio, or total principal and interest payments as percentage of exports of goods, receipts from services and primary income, likewise, further improved from 6.9 percent

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The Nation BusinessMirror

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Military notes PHL defense readiness on contested waters By Rene Acosta

HE military believes it can parry off any security threat in the West Philippine Sea, even the one coming from China, with the list of assets and equipment that it is currently procuring.

Navy Vice Commander Rear Adm. Caesar Taccad said they are capable of defending the country’s stakes in the disputed territory, even while the Philippines is not in the level of China militarily and even with the armies of its neighbors. He said the credible deterrent force would even be boosted once the Navy would have its complete share out of the ongoing modernization program of the military,

like the two frigates and several antisubmarine helicopters. The frigates, which are to be sourced out from South Korea; and the antisubmarine helicopters, would hopefully be delivered next year, according to Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang. Taccad said the credible defense posture, coupled by the military strategy that they are putting up in

the West Philippine Sea, should at least make them on a par with China in the disputed territory. “In the West Philippine Sea, yes we could catch up in the sense that we can attain the desired level that we can provide the necessary deterrence,” Taccad said last week. “You don’t need to overtake their capability. You just need to be able to approximate their capability and be able to proficiently use such capability in the sense that you will be able to hurt [them] where it [would] hurt most,” he added. While the Navy vice commander did not mention China, he was obviously referring to Beijing, which former President Fidel Ramos referred to as a “bully” during the 79th anniversary celebrations of the AFP last week. Credible defense posture is what Catapang is pushing for for the military, citing their mandate to defend the country’s territory and their necessity to meet and respond to evolving regional threats and se-

curity challenges. “In the middle of an evolving regional security architecture that is increasingly volatile and uncertain, it is imperative for the AFP to develop its territorial defense capability,” Catapang said. “It is important that we adjust our defense structures and synchronize our systems and processes in order to shape an Armed Force capable of providing a credible defense posture,” he added. Taccad admitted the security challenge in the West Philippine Sea hastened the modernization of the military, given China’s activities in the area. “It is our mandate to protect our territory and, of course, safeguard our sovereignty. “The events in the West Philippine Sea actually did gave some urgency to the acquisition,” he said. “For us, it is already urgent before, but because of the event there, it became more urgent for the Filipinos and, of course, for the country,” he added.

PN: First SSV to be in service by 2nd quarter of 2016 By Priam F. Nepomuceno PNA

HE Philippine Navy (PN) has announced that one of its two strategic sealift vessels (SSVs) will be in service by the second quarter of 2016. This was confirmed by Navy Vice Commander Rear Adm. Caesar Taccad in a press briefing, saying the contract price for the two SSVs is P4 billion. “The first unit is expected to be delivered on the second quarter of 2016 and the second unit is scheduled for the second quarter of 2017,” Taccad said. “These ships can be used for military and nonmilitary operations, such as humanitarian assistance and disasterrelief missions, sealift, logistics, rescue

operations, or as a floating government center platform,” the PN vice commander stressed. He added each SSV would carry a crew of 126 officers and enlisted personnel. It can also transport a battalion of troops (500 soldiers) and their equipment. Indonesian shipbuilder PT PAL confirmed on Friday it has signed the contract to supply two SSVs to the PN. The Department of National Defense (DND) and the Indonesian shipbuilder PT Pal signed the contract for the SSVs in July. “The SSV is an integral part of the PN’s Service Force [logistic] and is needed to accomplish the Navy’s missions in different areas,” the Navy earlier said. The ships are estimated to weigh around 7,300 gross register tons. The SSVs will also be used to improve

the PN’s transport and lift capabilities. These missions are needed especially in times of natural disaster, of which the Navy is one of the responders. The ships are capable of acting as minihelicopter carriers as they are capable of carrying two helicopters at their flight deck sand another at their enclosed hangar areas. “SSVs must have helideck capacity for two 10-ton helicopters [based on Sikorsky Black Hawk] and an enclosed hangar for another 10-ton helicopter [also based on the Black Hawk],” a DND supplemental bulletin on the SSVs stated. With the capability to carry three helicopters, the SSV has the capacity to conduct long-range patrol and conduct rescue work. The DND supplemental bid bulletin also said the two ships must

PINOY RIDE A man checks out one of 14 finalists in the Pinoy Ultimate Jeepneys (PUJ) Design Contest on

December 18 at the Newport Mall of Resorts World Manila (RWM), Pasay City. From designs and sketches to fully functional vehicles, all entries have been painstakingly customized by artists from different regions all over the Philippines according to this year’s theme, “Festival of Stars.” The modified units are on display until December 30 as part of RWM’s Yuletide celebration, Grand Fiesta Manila 2014. The grand winner of the competition will receive P300,000, while the second prize will take home P200,000. The entry that gets the most number of online votes will receive the 2014 PUJ People’s Choice Award along with a P100,000 cash prize. ROY DOMINGO

No weather disturbance seen until Wednesday; ‘hanging amihan’ is dominant weather system affecting Philippines

HE Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Sunday the country will be spared from storms in the next two to three days. Pagasa weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio told the Philippines News Agency they are not anticipating any cyclone to affect the country until Wednesday. Aurelio said the dominant weather system is the northeast monsoon or affecting Northern Luzon. The northeast monsoon is the cold wind from Siberia that blows into the country usually from October until March. Aurelio said that except in some parts of Northern Luzon and Metro Manila, the rest

of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers due to localized thunderstorms in the next three days. He said that due to the presence of the northeast monsoon, the regions of Cagayan Valley, Cordillera and Ilocos will have partly cloudy to at times cloudy skies with isolated light rains. Aurelio added that with the surge of northeast monsoon or hanging amihan, a gale warning has been issued by Pagasa reminding of rough to very rough sea condition along the seaboards of Northern Luzon. “Fishing boats and other small seacrafts are advised not to venture out into the sea while larger sea vessels are alerted against big waves,” Pagasa warned. PNA

have a beam of 21 meters and a propulsion system consisting of two diesel engines coupled with two controllable pitch propellers, giving it a minimum speed of 13 knots and a maximum speed of 16 knots. It should also have a cruising range of 7,500 nautical miles and a crew of 100 to 130 officers and men. The SSVs must be also capable of carrying two landing craft mechanized/utility at floodable well decks, two RHIB or LCVP on boat davits. The SSVs must be also equipped with navigation, surface and air-search radars, electronic warfare suite, electro-optical fire-control system and combat-management systems. It must be armed with one main gun between 40mm and 127mm in caliber and two 30 mm automated cannons and from four to six light machine guns.

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo • Monday, December 22, 2014

Car coding lifted starting Dec. 23

Passengers line up for their bus at a bus terminal in Cubao, Quezon City, on December 21, as people begin an exodus to the provinces, where they are expected to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. Nonoy Lacza

HE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is suspending the implementation of the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program, commonly known as Number-Coding Scheme, for 13 consecutive days in time for the coming holiday celebrations. MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said the scheme will be suspended starting December 23, 2014, until January 4, 2015. Tolentino said motorists should expect heavy traffic on roads near transportation terminals in Metro Manila, as there will be exodus of people going to the provinces, where they will celebrate Christmas and the New Year. Under the scheme, which aims to ease the volume of traffic on Metro Manila’s streets, vehicles are banned from major roads from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., depending on the last digit of their license plates.

Tolentino said the agency has come up with a list of Christmas-related efforts as part of its traffic-mitigating measures this season. He added that the MMDA has already deployed additional 443 personnel to assist motorists and to avoid traffic delays. He advised motorists to use designated alternate routes under the “Christmas Airport and Shopping Loops” that were opened on December 5 until January 5. The agency also extended the operating hours of the Pasig River Ferry System. In addition, the moratorium on road reblocking and repair started on December 15, while the agency also dispatched Edsa Christmas shuttle and airport shuttles. The MMDA noted that traffic volume in the metropolis usually rises by 15 percent to 20 percent between November and December. PNA

Economy

A4 Monday, December 22, 2014 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

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Rail-fare hike to encounter roadblock

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

he increase in train fares will not be implemented as smoothly as expected, as commuter groups are set to exhaust all legal means to block the government from effecting the “unjustified” order.

Train Riders Network (TREN) Spokesman James Relativo said his group will take legal actions against the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) over the “surprise” announcement of fare increases at the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2 and the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3. “TREN is now conferring with lawyers on the possible legal actions to take not just against the fare hike but against those who irresponsibly gave their approval,” he said. He said his group views the fare hike as “Christmas and New Year gift” of President Aquino and Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya to “the incompetent MRT private owner and private contractor, and to the new LRT overlords who bagged the deal to take over the profitable, more-efficient and state-run LRT.” Relativo was referring to MRT

Holdings Inc. Chairman John Robert L. Sobrepeña and the Light Rail Manila Corp. of the Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Ayala Corp., which won the P64.9-billion contract to extend LRT Line 1 to Cavite and to operate and maintain the said line. The transportation agency announced on Saturday that fares at the overhead train systems in Metro Manila will be jacked up starting January 4. He said the three lines will start implementing the 11+1 fare matrix, which will effectively double the ticket prices at the three train systems. Once the fare hike is implemented, a ride on LRT 1, from Baclaran to Roosevelt, will cost P29, while a oneway trip on LRT 2, from Santolan to Recto, will be at P24, a trip on MRT 3, between North Avenue and Taft Avenue, will cost P28. Currently, a ride on the MRT 3 ranges from P10 to P15, while a ride

Double-digit exports growth likely–Neda By Cai U. Ordinario

Eternal Gardens holds Christmas Lantern-making Contest at Concepcion branch Arts and crafts enthusiasts from selected barangays in Batangas City gathered on December 8, for the first-ever Christmas Lanternmaking Contest organized and sponsored by Eternal Gardens Concepcion. The top prize of P10,000 was awarded to Barangay Concepcion for coming up with the best Christmas lantern design. Barangay 24 came in second place and was awarded P6,000, while the third prize of P4,000 was bagged by Barangay Kumintang Ilaya. Meanwhile, those who did not make it to the top 3 were given P1,000 each as consolation prize. The winning lanterns, (close up in insets) are shown hanging along the façade of Eternal Gardens Concepcion, with the first placer at the center.

on LRT 1 and LRT 2 costs from P12 to P15 and P20, respectively. “The reason fare hikes have been overwhelmingly opposed and always delayed is simple: they are unjustified,” Relativo said. Abaya noted, however, that the increase is justifiable as this would give financial muscle to

both the government and the operators to improve the train systems’ facilities. The “crippled ability to invest in large-scale improvements for their facilities, since revenues have only been enough for day-to-day operational requirements” stems out from the “practically breakeven finances for all three lines,” he explained. The increase is in line with the 2011-2016 Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan, which directs the adoption of the “user-pays” principle in the pricing of transportation services. Currently, LRT and MRT operations are subsidized by the government to the tune of approximately P12 billion per year. Under the “user-pays” principle, riders will shoulder more of the cost for their own trips. In the case of LRT and MRT, this will entail a shift from the current zonal-fare scheme to a distance-based system. As such, riders will be charged based on the distance they travel. Since the government subsidizes around 60 percent of the cost for each LRT 1 and LRT 2 passenger and around 75 percent of each MRT 3 passenger, an estimated P2 billion will be freed up for development projects and relief operations in other parts of the country. The last round of increase for LRT 1 was in 2003, while LRT 2’s fares have never been jacked up since it was built. MRT 3 fares, on the other hand, were even lowered from the original range of P17 to P34 in 1999 to P12 to P20 in 2000. Currently the fare range at the most-congested train system in the country is at P10 to P15 per ride.

Congressional probe

Reps. Neri J. Colmenares and Carlos Isagani T. Zarate of Bayan Muna, meanwhile, expressed their opposition to the fare hike, urging the lower chamber to conduct a probe on the matter. “We are not against development or the extension of the rail systems but we are against passing government irresponsibility and corporate greed, not to mention corrupt practices, onto hapless commuters. We are also against sweetheart deals that to put it in the vernacular, ay ginigisa tayo sa sarili nating mantika, Colmenares, who is also the House senior deputy minority leader, said. “As it is, we are calling on the House leadership to call for a special session for this or for Congress Transportation Committee to hold hearings for House Resolution 111 even during the Christmas break because the fare increase will be implemented as early as the first Monday of January,” he added. Zarate said the Aquino government has adopted privatization as its escape hatch whenever it needs to bail out its public utilities buried in

debt due to poor management and/ or corruption. “The experience with privatization has shown that privatized utilities bring about unregulated price increases. It is feared that increasing fares will eventually lead to privatization and the state’s abandonment of its duty to provide affordable mass transportation to the citizens,” he said. The increase in fares is expected to net P2 billion in savings, which is equivalent to 8,240 classrooms, 82 kilometers’ worth of farm-to-market roads, or 11,440 hectares’ worth of irrigated farmlands, the transport chief noted. The scheduled increase will be implemented despite the lack of improvements in the lines. Practically all three systems are either nearing their rated capacity or have barged through their crush capacity. But work is under way for the development of the three train lines, Abaya said. The primary solution to long lines at the MRT 3, for instance, is in progress, as new light-rail vehicles are already being manufactured. The prototype unit will be delivered in August 2015, and after one month of testing, three to four additional train cars will be delivered until all 48 units are operational. Once completed, this will improve the current three-car configuration to a four-car configuration, allowing more passengers to board for each arrival. Headway or the gap between train arrivals will also be faster, from the current 3 minutes down to 2.5 minutes. Other MRT 3 improvement projects in 2015 include 6 kilometers’ worth of rail replacement for better safety and faster trips; upgrading of its signaling system and a new radio-communications system also for safety, upgrading of elevators and escalators for convenience; and traction-motors replacement for service reliability. Train overhauling is scheduled for completion in 2016. A new three-year maintenance contract is also being procured for awarding in the first quarter of 2015, in order to improve MRT 3’s reliability, while the new tap-and-go ticketing system for all three lines will be operational by September 2015 at the latest. This new common ticketing scheme, or Automatic Fare Collection System, will lessen queuing time and will allow for seamless transfer between each line. For LRT 1, operations are set to be turned over to the Light Rail Manila Corp. on or before October 2015, at which time civil works for the 11.7-km Cavite Extension may begin. The LRT 2 line will also be extended by 4.2 km to Masinag by 2017, and its operations and maintenance requirements are currently being bid out.

he National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the country’s exports may reach double-digit growth by year-end despite a very slow start. Socioeconomic Planning Secretay and Neda Director General Arsenio M. Balisacan said the January-to-October export growth was already at 9.2 percent and may reach at least 10 percent for the entire year. This is despite exports beginning the year with a contraction of 3 percent in January. However, apart from January, all other months posted positive export growth. “For this year we have exports much better than what we expected,” Balisacan said. “The contribution of the external sector of the economy in the GDP [gross domestic product] is much higher than in previous years.” Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that exports posted double-digit growth in six of the months during the January-toOctober period. Exports grew 11.6 percent in February and 12.4 percent in March. After May exports again posted doubledigit growth in June at 21.3 percent, followed in July at 12.4 percent; August, 10.5 percent; and September, 15.7 percent. Compared to exports, imports growth in the January-to-September period was slower. In the nine-month period, imports only posted an average growth of 3.4 percent. “What goes into the GDP is net exports, that’s why ang taas ng contribution ng trade sa GDP because exports is growing much faster than imports,” Balisacan said. In the January-to-October period, Electronics accounted for $20.95 billion of total exports worth $51.77 billion. However it only grew 6 percent. The fastest growth was recorded in control and instrumentation, which grew 115.6 percent to $483.13 million in the 10 months of 2014 from $224.08 million in the same period last year. The second-fastest growth was posted by abaca, which grew 109.1 percent to $9.42 million in January to October from $4.51 million in 2014.

Singson satisfied with ongoing Naia 1 rehab

ublic Works Secretary Rogelio L. Singson on Sunday labeled the ongoing rehabilitation of the 32-year-old Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 (Naia 1) as “well-done job” following an early morning inspection. Singson made a tour of the facility, walking alone at the arrival concourse with his camera, taking shots of the “buckling resistance braces,” the steel trusses that will protect the old building from earthquakes. “Matibay ang pagkagawa, at kayang protektahan ang lumang building against any disaster,” he told the media. The upgrading and refurbishing of the Naia 1, costing P1.6 billion, will be finished on May 2015. Manila Internaitonal Airport Authority Assistant General Manager Vicente Guerzon told reporters earlier that the renovation is now 40-percent complete. Last week Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya also inspected the Naia 1. He said the renovation had made the terminal look good, despite the delays encountered by the improvement project. “It is such a big facility, you can never pin down the final date of completion,” Abaya was quoted as saying. The usually drab Naia 1 now sports colorful decoration, Christmas trees and plenty of colorful lights. A chorale group was invited to serenade incoming passengers singing Christmas songs and Filipino songs at the arrival concourse. Recto Mercene

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‘60-40 rule to limit PHL’s development under AEC’

By Cai U. Ordinario

imitations on foreign ownership of land and mass media are among the reasons the Philippines continues to lag in the region in terms of foreign direct investments (FDI). In the latest Economic Issue of the Day release of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), author Claudette S. Malana said lifting restrictions on foreign ownership will be necessary in order for the country to fully participate in the Asean Economic Community (AEC). Malana said limits to foreign equity in the exploration, development and utilization of natural resources; public utilities; buildoperate-transfer projects, operation of deep-sea commercial vessels, land ownership, mass media, and the practice of professions have kept the country’s FDI low. “To sustain the growth of the Philippine economy, these restric-

tions need to be examined and amended, as they have constrained FDI,” Malana said. “Under the AEC, Asean companies, Filipino firms included, can own 100 percent of companies in other Asean countries and should be able to own at least 70 percent of services companies,” she added. Malana’s data showed that the Philippines’s FDI only increased to $2.8 billion in 2012, while Singapore, was at $56.65 billion and Indonesia $19.62 billion. It can be noted that Indonesia’s FDI level in 2001 was in the red at -$2.98 billion. The country was only able to recover in FDI in 2004, which started eight consecutive years of positive FDI inflows, allowing it to

exceed the Philippines’s FDI performance starting in that year. The country’s highest FDI level was recorded in 2006, when FDI reached $2.921 billion and, in 2007 at $2.916 billion. The lowest FDI level was recorded in 2001 at $195 million and in 2003, $491 million. “They [East Asian nations] did impose specific restrictions on foreign capital as they saw it fit for their national interests; but they had the essential flexibility to make adjustments in these provisions,” Malana said. “For the country to catch up and compete with its neighbors in the high-growth regions of East Asia and Southeast Asia, it is crucial to amend the economic provisions that have caused binding constraints to the growth and productivity of the economy,” she added. The latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed the total approved foreign investments in the nine months of 2014 declined 35.4 percent. Total approved foreign investments amounted to P91.8 billion in the January-to-September period of 2014, from P142.1 billion in the same period in 2013. The total approved foreign investments contracted 44.4 percent in the third quarter to P18.3 billion

in 2014, from P32.9 billion in 2013. These investments include those that are coursed through the Board of Investments, Clark Development Corp., Philippine Economic Zone Authority and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, as well as the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan, Board of Investment-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority. In terms of total approved investments of foreign and Filipino nationals, the PSA said it also contracted 15.7 percent in the third quarter of 2014. Total approved investments of foreign and Filipino nationals only reached P159.6 billion during the period, lower than the P189.3 billion recorded in the same quarter in 2013. The PSA explained that foreign investments, approved and registered by the investment promotion agencies, are termed “approved foreign investments,” replacing the term “approved foreign direct investments” used in the previous reports. This is to distinguish the approved foreign investments, which are only commitments and pledges, from the actual FDI, which are actual investments being released in the Balance of Payments by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Watershed-management board created to address problems in Laguna Lake By Roderick L. Abad

MID the challenges in flood and watershed management in Calabarzon (area brought about by its rapid urbanization, the pioneering watershed institution was created in the Laguna Lake region to address multiple facets of the water cycle. Leaders of the Santa Rosa Watershed recently signed a Memorandum of Agreement creating the Water Quality Management Area (WQMA) Board. This agreement resulted from a project funded by Coca-Cola that was implemented by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) from 2008 to 2012 to help local stakeholders in sustainably managing the Santa Rosa Sub-watershed. Groundwater studies show how rates of extraction will surpass those for groundwater recharge in the lake by 2023. Many shallow wells in surrounding communities of Laguna Lake are, likewise, reported to be depleted, polluted and unfit for human consumption. In the four-year study commissioned by WWF and Bank of the Philippine Islands Foundation dubbed “Business Risk Assessment and the Management of Climate Impacts,” it bared the need to “think beyond a city’s fences” when managing issues on water and resource security.

“Cities cannot work alone. Flooding, pollution and water scarcity respects no boundaries,” said Ed Tongson, senior consultant for water resources management of WWFPhilippines. “Unless these issues are addressed by upstream and downstream communities through a watershed approach, unilateral solutions by individual towns or cities will not be enough.” While there is no institutional framework to draw on watershed management, the closest legal recourse for creating accountable institutions is Republic Act 9275, or the Clean Water Act of 2004, which establishes a WQMA Board whose members are consist of local government units (LGUs), National Water Resources Board, Laguna Lake Development Authority, National Irrigation Administration, water utilities, water districts, non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders. With the creation of WQMA Board, the next step is to approve the 10-year WQMA plan as a basis for common legislation, budgeting and coherent action by LGUs. “ There are over 30 agencies involved in the management of one or more aspects of Santa Rosa’s water cycle. When planning was once uncoordinated and fragmented, the WQMA Board can finally ensure unified and strategic efforts to keep the tap flowing,” Tongson said.

Tourism

A6 Monday, December 22, 2014 • Editor: Alvin I. Dacanay

REMEMBERING TH S  P  J K | The Associated Press

ANDA ACEH, Indonesia—Ten years after a tsunami hit this city on December 26, 2004, killing 167,000 people, roads and bridges have been rebuilt, there are houses on the beach, trees have grown back, and the millions of tons of debris that covered the island are gone. But for a first-time visitor, reminders of the disaster seem to be everywhere.

A sculpture of a giant wave marks Lambaro, one of four mass gravesites, where 46,000 bodies are buried. A hotel front desk displays a photo of smashed boats fi lling its parking lot. The dome of a mosque— torn off its building a mile (1.6 kilometers) away—rests in an emeraldgreen rice field. Water streams down the cave-like walls of the Tsunami Museum, which serves as both a memorial and evacuation site, with a knoll on high ground offering refuge in case another tsuna-

mi strikes. The center of the museum is an atrium that rises above a park, decorated with the word “Peace” and the fl ags of countries that provided assistance. Exhibits explain how the community worked together to rebuild, and how the once-embattled province even found ways to make peace after the disaster, with rebels in a long and bloody separatist fight signing a deal with the central government. Almost everyone in Banda Aceh has a story to share. Dara Umarra and

IN this August 16 photo, the sun rises in the town of Ipoih, on the island of Pulah Weh in Indonesia’s Aceh province.

her neighbors have in their yards two wrecked boats that came to rest there after the storm. Visitors can climb in one boat, but it’s tilted at a steep angle. I couldn’t position myself squarely on the ladder and, as I dangled from the rungs, I wondered what it was like trying to cling to anything stable to survive the waves.

IMUS BRINGS PINOY FLAVOR TO CHRISTMAS

HRISTMAS is always a grand event in many places in the Philippines, but the city of Imus in Cavite province—known not so long ago as the country’s Christmas capital—takes this a notch higher by imbuing the merriment of the season with a distinctly Filipino flavor, thanks to the richness of the city’s history. A neighbor of Kawit town, Imus was the home of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo’s Magdalo faction and is proud of its deep Filipino roots, which it aims to bring alive in its Christmas celebrations. Imus has a fairly long tradition of colorful Christmas celebrations, starting in the 1990s, when the local government enjoined the townsfolk to engulf the entire city in a blaze of lights, with each barangay trying to outdo the others by decorating homes with Christmas ornaments. This activity highlighted the distinctively Filipino spirit of bayanihan and pakikisama, with people working together to create a truly festive atmosphere in their respective barangays. Since then, the practice has lived on, participated in by residents from both affluent and less prosperous districts, thanks to the support of local government officials. In keeping this tradition alive, Imus held a ceremony ushering its monthlong Christmas festivities on December 1, which included switching on the colorful lights that adorn the huge belen (Nativity scene) at the city plaza. Proud of its people’s musical abilities, Imus is celebrating the joys of the Yuletide season in 2014 with an exciting line-up of musical variety shows scheduled throughout December, all of which will showcase the amazing talent of the city’s residents. Everyone can look forward to the Christmas Carol Choral Competition, featuring very talented choral groups from various elementary and high schools in the city that will compete for prizes. One of the highlight of this year’s Paskuhan is the Panuluyan 2014 on December 23. This is a reenactment of the search of the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph for a place where she could give birth to Jesus Christ. In the Imus depiction, there are four preselected locations in different parts of the city where the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph

will ask to be let in for the night. The Panuluyan ends with the glorious birth of Jesus and the subsequent visit of the Magi. Acting as the Magi are Mayor Emmanuel L. Maliksi, Vice Mayor Armando I. Ilano and Rep. Alex Advincula of the Third District of Cavite, who will then present their gifts to the Holy Family. The Panuluyan will showcase the depth of the talents of Imus’s residents. Actors who will play the key roles were chosen for their vocal and acting talents. Equally eyecatching are the costumes and the stage design of the entire Panuluyan production, which showcases the artistry of the people. “We strive to make Christmas more meaningful and joyous in Imus, and we do this by celebrating our people’s unique strengths and abilities, and bringing them together in a spirit of cooperation and togetherness. Through our activities, we are able to create a sense of unity

among our people,” Maliksi said. Spearheaded by the Imus City Tourism Office, this year’s Paskuhan will also focus on the warmth and hospitality of Filipinos, alongside the traditions that earned the city the title of Christmas Capital of the Philippines. “We aim to bring back the missing touch of small-town Christmas spirit and cherished practices that are often sought by balikbayan and other travelers from here and abroad. This is a glittering [way] to cap the year and showcase the heart and soul of Imus,” City Tourism Officer Corazon del Mundo said. At the same time, the Paskuhan aims to show tourists the warmth and hospitality of the residents of this city, and to capture the essence of the camaraderie and cooperation in its barangays—a great way to celebrate the meaning of Christmas: love, peace and hope for everyone.

m&Entertainment BusinessMirror

tourism@businessmirror.com.ph • Monday, December 22, 2014 A7

HE 2004 TSUNAMI IN BANDA ACEH 2

THIS August 11 photo shows the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh.

THIS August 11 photo shows the atrium in the Tsunami Museum in Banda Aceh, which also serves as a public park.

A massive, 2,500-ton steel barge that housed a floating diesel power generator, the Apung 1, was carried 5 kilometers (3 miles) inland. Walkways and five flights of stairs leading to a viewing tower allow visitors to appreciate its sheer bulk. A monument outside the barge honors victims from the immediate area. A copper-colored

sculpture, symbolizing the height and color of the massive waves, surrounds a clock tower where time is stopped just before 8 a.m., the moment when the earthquake struck, unleashing the tsunami. One of the most-visited sites is a long fishing boat that crashed on top of a house. A ramp leads to the

roof, and you can also walk underneath where it’s wedged between two dwellings. The boat provided a refuge for 56 survivors. Some memorials include photo galleries of the destruction and recovery. They do not attempt to sanitize. Mixed in with photos of debris and rebuilding are graphic

images of human suffering. The Baiturrahman Grand Mosque, with its 35-meter (115-foot) minaret, pearly white walls and seven majestic black domes, survived the tsunami largely unscathed, with hundreds of locals taking refuge there. Visitors can wander through the mosque’s pillars and admire the chandeliers, marble floors and architecture. It’s beautifully lit at night, and Friday prayers offer a colorful experience. Be aware that the province has implemented a version of sharia, or Islamic law, and visitors to the mosque must cover up. Sarongs can be borrowed by those who come unprepared. While residents tolerate tourists in shorts elsewhere, modest clothing covering legs and shoulders is more socially acceptable. Local women are veiled and dress conservatively. Lum-

puuk, a few kilometers to the south of Banda Aceh, is known for its beaches, but if you’re planning on swimming in a bikini, it’s best to stick to the area near the cliffside bungalows, where most of the tourists congregate. A short ferry ride from Banda Aceh to the north is the island of Pulah Weh, or Sabang. It’s legendary among in-theknow divers, and nondivers can enjoy snorkeling, fishing, hiking and views from hotel balconies. Prices are moderate by Western standards: A spacious upscale bungalow with water view at Casa Nemo is less than $40 a night. The nicest beach near the port is Sumur Tiga, about 20 minutes away, and much of the island is ringed by easily accessible coral reefs. The closest thing to a typical beach town is Ipoih, an hour from port. Sharia law bans alcohol, but some restaurants and beach hotels

geared toward tourists quietly sell beer. Organized tourist activities, such as water excursions, come to a halt on Friday mornings for the Muslim holy day. While all the tsunami sites are somber reminders of one of the worst natural disasters in modern history, visitors cannot help but feel Aceh’s resilience. A multibillion-dollar reconstruction effort, widely considered a success, has left the province in many ways better off than others in Indonesia, which remains a poor country, despite sustained economic growth over the last 10 years. A huge tower inside the museum is engraved with just a few names of the dead, but the dark funnel reaches up to the bright sky.

IF YOU GO: BANDA Aceh, Indonesia: http:// visitbandaaceh.com/ BANDA Aceh can be reached from Jakarta and Medan, Indonesia, on Garuda or Lion Air; and from Malaysia on AirAsia from Kuala Lumpur or on Firefly Air from Penang.

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Monday, December 22, 2014 • Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Isabel Cojuangco-Suntay: A woman of substance

By Sylvia Europa-Pinca | Special to the BusinessMirror

ISABEL Cojuangco-Suntay up close

Street dogs transform lives of Bucharest elderly

portant for them to have something to look forward to; it’s a reason to look forward to next Wednesday.” Rici, Tzuca, Mulan and Tibi visit the home once a week. Tibi, 11, is the most popular and sits quietly as he is patted, cuddled and stroked by residents who indulge him with sausages and biscuits. Alexandrina, who is in her 70s, has seen her life transformed by weekly visits from Mulan, a 4-year-old cognaccolored female stray. “She is a schizophrenic. She didn’t go out, she didn’t make any visual contact until she met the dogs and from that point on, she became functional,” Dumitrescu said. Victor Chitic, a psychologist from animal-welfare group Vier Pfoten, the project organizer, said the dogs have been through a rigorous selection process and only dogs that enjoy human company and are not aggressive are chosen. “When looking at the fight or flight reflex, we make sure they flee rather than fight,” he said. Once trained, the animals periodically go through refresher courses where they are trained and disciplined. “The dogs make me feel safe; they IN this December 10, file photo, Elena Calugaru, 60, pets Tibi, an 11-year-old stray dog, in Bucharest, Romania. Calugaru calls Tibi “my boy, my love!” and her eyes well up with make me feel better about myself and tears as she cuddles him. AP Photo/Octav Ganea, Mediafax, File offer me love,” said Constantin Ionita, 78, a former economist who enjoys watching ballet on UCHAREST, Romania—They say that a dog unless they find a home. the Internet. is a man’s best friend. Alexandrina, an elderly Authorities have been putting down thousands of Rici, the youngest dog, is frisky, noisy and friendly, resident in a home in the Romanian capital dogs since the law took effect, while thousands of othaccording to his owner, who found him in a plastic found not only a new friend, but a new outlook on life ers have been adopted or put in shelters, but there are bag in a car park two years ago and quickly discovered after one of the city’s infamous street dogs walked still estimated to be tens of thousands of street dogs his potential. into her life. in Bucharest. “At one-and-a-half-months, he understood ‘sit,’” At an elderly people’s home in west Bucharest, four The dogs have found support from celebrities, Iulia Miu says. specially trained street dogs make weekly visits, offerincluding actors Hilary Swank, Brigitte Bardot and But the star is Tibi. “Most residents see themselves ing residents love and company and changing percepSteven Seagal, who adopted or visited them. But that in him,” she said. tions about strays. has done little to win over city residents who are wary Elena Calugaru, 60, calls Tibi “my boy, my love!” Bucharest’s thousands of strays have had a bad or even downright hostile toward the dogs. and her eyes well up with tears as she cuddles him. rap. They have fatally mauled three people in rePsychologist for the elderly Diana Dumitrescu “I can’t express what I feel in words. I have nobody cent years and the latest death of a 4-year-old boy was initially skeptical about the project at the care in the world apart from Tibi,” she said. AP in 2013 led to a law that orders strays euthanized home, but she has changed her mind. “It’s very im-

A reminder for senior citizens this Christmas By Cheridine P. Oro-Josef, MD, FPAFP, FPCGM

right to health Diplomate and fellow, Philippine Academy of Family Physicians; Diplomate and fellow, Philippine College of Geriatric Medicine

Regions BusinessMirror

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Monday, December 22, 2014

GenSan settles row with squatters to start city’s bridge construction T

DAR’s legal affairs usec, asec resign

By Manuel T. Cayon | Mindanao Bureau Chief

AVAO CITY—The city government of General Santos settled the road right-of-way problem with squatter families and an undermanned contractor to revive its stalled P1.135-billion circumferential road project.

The project was stopped on its track by the stalled construction of the vital Silway Bridge that connects Barangay Mabuhay and Barangay Apopong.

The city information office said the construction of the bridge and the entire northern section of the road “was hampered several times by road right-of-way problems and

the failure of the project contractor to provide adequate manpower”. The bridge was supposed to be finished by March this year but construction work had to stop as 40 families living between the bridge site and the new road insisted on relocation. City Mayor Ronnel Rivera intervened last week and mediated between the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the families to come up with an agreed settlement of the families’ claims. The DPWH has also already allotted P60 million for project contractor Grace Construction to build the bridge, which was criticized for undermanned construction works. Aside from the Silway Bridge, the Lower Apopong Bridge II is another one being constructed in the northern portion

of the circumferential road. The construction of the Silway Bridge would take another 10 months, although Arturo Valero, regional director of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said that despite the delays, “the circumferential road is now at 94 percent in its overall completion.” The northern circumferential road is a key route to decongest traffic along the streets of General Santos City, the city information office said. It would also provide a better connection between the city and its neighboring areas. The road begins from the diversion road along the General Santos-Davao highway in Barangay Katangawan and extends up to the Sinawal Road along the General Santos-Isulan highway in Barangay Apopong.

Pampanga city seeks law vs ‘riding in tandems’ By Joey Pavia

consult the public and study” a proposed ordinance aimed at “limiting the movements of suspects using motorcycles when committing crimes.” “We must be proactive and must seek other options to solve the problem on criminality,” Morales said. A series of sensational crimes committed from November to December, including the murder of 29-year-old Marian Lucas Gantan who was waylaid by stillunidentified suspects along the MacArthur Highway in Barangay Mabiga on November 23, reaped

Correspondent

UBAO, Pampanga—Mabalacat City Mayor Marino “Boking” Morales has urged the City Council to come up with an ordinance designed to drastically reduce the crimes committed by those riding motorcycles in tandem. Morales, who was interviewed at the Pampanga Mayors’ League Christmas party on Saturday night, said he had just spoken with Vice Mayor Christian Halili and asked him to “immediately

controversies highlighted on newspaper and television reports. Morales said he had asked Halili to study an ordinance of Mandaluyong City implemented in August and it was passed to reduce the crimes committed by people riding motorcycles in tandem. Based on the ordinance, only spouses, parents and siblings are be allowed to be with motorcycle drivers. Mandaluyong City Mayor Benhur Alabos said they based the ordinance from a law in Colombia. The country known for the existence of drug cartels

4Ps ON LINE Beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) rush to withdraw from a Land Bank of the Philippines automated teller machine in Roxas, Isabela. They too, join the holiday rush for Christmas goodies. LEONARDO PERANTE II

Use of Tacloban airport runway limited while undergoing rehab, construction

HE ongoing runway rehabilitation at the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport in Tacloban has limited the utilization of the aviation hub, the safety regulator advised. In an advisory, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said the usable runway length at the airport will be limited to 1,300 meters until December 25. Hence, budget carriers Cebu Pacific and Tigerair Philippines had to cancel some of their flights to and from Tacloban from Monday to Thursday. Passengers in the canceled flights may rebook their flights within 30 days from original departure date or request for a full travel fund or refund. The Tacloban airport is still

recovering from damages brought about by Supertyphoon Yolanda (international code name Haiyan) which pummeled the Visayas region late last year. Rehabilitation works are currently ongoing, with the transportation agency spending P143.2 million for the asphalt overlay and construction of a turnaround pad at the devastated gateway. The contract was awarded to Tacloban-based firm B.M. Marketing earlier this year. Rehab works are expected to be finished within 240 days or sometime in the first half of 2015. Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya earlier said his agency has tapped the Japan International

Cooperation Agency to conduct a feasibility study on the possible relocation of the Tacloban airport. The Roman pontiff will visit the Eastern Visayas city on January 17 to spend some time with the victims of the devastating typhoon, which left thousands of families homeless. Pope Francis will celebrate Holy Mass in Tacloban, thereafter will meet the survivors of the super typhoon. All the commercial flight operations to and from Tacloban on the day of the Roman pontiff’s visit will be suspended for security purposes. Flag carrier Philippine Airlines will host the pope to Tacloban from Manila, and back to Rome. Lorenz Marasigan

had rampant crimes committed by criminals riding in tandem. Abalos pushed the ordinance following the 125- percent increase of crimes in the city based on a report from January to March this year. “We must imitate best practices of other cities,” Morales said. Morales said there is “really a need to add more cops.” He added that, “There are only 59 active police operating in the city out of some 80 total cops. Our population is around 300,000 during daytime and how can a few cops do their job well.”

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

WO top officials of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) tendered their resignation last Friday. Agrarian Reform Undersecretary for Legal Affairs Anthony Parungao and Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Mary Frances Aquino submitted their resignation letters which were accepted by Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes. Parungao and Aquino were appointed by President Aquino on July 30, 2010. Both were personally recommended by de los Reyes for the position, noting their knowledge in law. A graduate of the University of the Philippines, Parungao was a partner in the Santos Parungao Aquio Abejo and Santos Law Offices before being appointed to as DAR undersecretary. JV La Chica, de los Reyes’s head executive assistant, will act as officer in charge pending President Aquino’s appointment of Parungao and Aquino’s replacements. Parungao has been criticized by militant groups for being de los Reyes’s defender. Aside from being head of the DAR’s legal affairs office, Parungao was also de

los Reyes’s spokesman. Parungao defended the DAR chief’s decision to distribute Hacienda Luista to 6,212 farmer beneficiaries, despite criticisms of the process of identifying qualified beneficiaries. A total of 130 of the original farmer beneficiaries were eventually disqualified for failure to sign the Application to Purchase and Farmers Undertaking. De los Reyes did not comment on Parungao’s decision to leave the DAR, which has been criticized for its poor performance over the past two decades. Aside from his job as DAR undersecretary, Parungao is also part of the DAR Adjucation Board which decides on agrarian cases filed both by land owners and beneficiaries of Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. Parungao gave no specific reason as to his leaving the DAR, except he wants to go back to law practice and take care of his family. “I want to return to private law practice and spend more time with my family,” Parungao told the BusinessMirror in an interview during their office Christmas party-cumdespedida party last Friday.

Davao del Norte capital city hikes mobility fund for its barangays

AVAO CITY—The city government of Tagum purchased P7.23 million worth of vehicles and equipment to increase the mobility of its barangay functionaries and expedite the maintenance and repair of barangay infrastructure for their safekeeping. Mayor Allan L. Rellon handed over to barangay captains the equipment and vehicles amounting to P7,233,872.76 early this month. The equipment was given to 14 barangays and consisted of six-wheeler

cargo trucks, motorcycles, Mitsubishi L300 vans and a dump truck. The barangays were Apokon, Bincungan, Cuambogan, Liboganon, Madaum, Magdum, New Balamban, Pagsabangan, Pandapan, San Agustin, San Miguel, Visayan Village, La Filipina and San Isidro. Many of these barangays have perennial problems with flooding and inaccessible roads to the interior villages. The barangays were given responsibility to take care of the new equipment. Manuel T. Cayon

Opinion BusinessMirror

A10 Monday, December 22, 2014

Editor: Alvin I. Dacanay

editorial

Is the Philippines an ‘emerging market’?

HE Philippines has been given so many labels in the last 25 years, the best known of which is probably “basket case”. We can add “sick man of Asia” and, more recently, the “the next Asian miracle” to the list. Being given labels should not surprise us, considering that we live in an age when everything and everybody must be properly categorized and put in its own box, like the colored rubber bands that children use for their “loom-band” bracelets. We all know the Group of Seven (G-7) nations; they are the “big boys” that try to rule the world. The Philippines is not a G-7 member. Then there is the Group of 20 (G-20) countries; the Philippines is not a member of that, either. Why? Perhaps, it’s because we have not defaulted on our foreign debt, like G-20 member Argentina. The Philippines is having credit-rating upgrades and 5-percent economic growth, unlike another G-20 member, South Africa, which has below 2-percent growth and is barely hanging on to its investmentgrade credit rating. We are a member of the informal “Next 11”, made up of “high-potential economies”, including “economic standouts” Bangladesh, Iran, Nigeria and Egypt. The Philippines is part of a select group called the TIMPs, which includes Turkey, whose president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, issued an arrest warrant for a self-exiled opposition leader. Another is Mexico, which has been battling to save its currency, which is at the weakest exchange rate, since 2009. The one broad category that the Philippines probably belongs to is “emerging market”. However, we are considered just a “secondary emerging market”. That almost sounds like being an illegitimate child who is not entitled to a full share of the family estate. So what should we think when we read newspaper headlines like these: “Emerging markets are risky business”, “The sun is setting on the emerging market miracle”, and “Dollar strength to hammer emerging markets in 2015”? We have been taught to believe the “duck test”—that is, if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it is probably a duck. Except that the ill-informed could mistake the double-crested cormorant or the red-throated loon for a common duck. Maybe it is not a duck, but an eagle disguised as one. An emerging market is commonly defined as a country that has some characteristics of a developed market, but does not meet all the standards. This is true. The Philippines is not drowning in debt. The Philippine economy is not being propped up by government stimulus. By those standards, we will never be “developed”.

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The President’s successful mission to South Korea Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II

RISING SUN

ONGRATULATIONS to President Aquino for a successful mission to South Korea a couple of weeks ago. He went there to attend the 25th Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit in Busan. In addition to attending meetings related to the summit, President Aquino also met with South Korean President Park Geun-hye to discuss plans for a “comprehensive strategic partnership” for bilateral cooperation between the two countries, both democracies that share “the values of freedom, respect for human rights, and adherence to the rule of law,” Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. said. Relations between the two countries date back to 1949. As an ally of the United States, the Philippines sent 7,240 soldiers to South Korea during the Korean War in the early 1950s. The two presidents also discussed mutual security concerns for the region; agreements related to education, peace and order; and dialogue with the large South Korean community in the Philippines. There an estimated 90,000 South Koreans residing in the Philippines,

and most of the tourists in our country come from South Korea—some 1.16 million since 2013, which is a quarter of the number of annual tourist arrivals. For its defense concerns, the Philippines has acquired for the government transport equipment and raw materials from a state-owned South Korean aerospace firm, according to a news item, as well as 12 FA-50 fighter jets. W hile in South Korea, Mr. Aquino visited Korea Aerospace Industries, the manufacturer of the planes, and inspected one of the jets that the Philippine government bought. Two of the fighter jets will be delivered in December 2016, and the rest in 2017. To support Philippine disasterrelief efforts, South Korea donated a 1,200-ton patrol combat corvette, a landing vessel and 16 rubber boats. This assistance extended to the Philippines is, by no means, the East Asian nation’s first; in one instance, they sent 500 troops to form

Pope Francis, peacemaker By Francis Barry Bloomberg View

HEN Pope John Paul II arrived at the airport in Havana in 1998 for a first-ever papal visit, he said: “May Cuba, with all its magnificent potential, open itself up to the world, and may the world open itself up to Cuba.”

Sixteen years later a new pope— himself no stranger to repressive dictatorship, having lived through Argentina’s “Dirty War”—has helped breathe new life into those aspirations, by prodding the United States and Cuba into normalizing diplomatic relations. The agreement between the two old antagonists effectively ends one of the last battles of the Cold War. It also highlights what could prove to be the most historically consequential aspect of Francis’s papacy: His commitment to the work of healing old wounds— w it hin his f loc k, w it h ot her churches and governments, and among bitter enemies. It may be the most ambitious peacemaking agenda any pope has ever undertaken. Francis’s active role in brokering the US-Cuba detente wasn’t his only foray into peacemaking this year. When he

visited South Korea in August, the Vatican convinced Chinese officials to allow the papal plane to fly over Chinese airspace, a first. While over China, the pope sent a goodwill message to President Xi Jinping and the Chinese people. The ultimate goal: Restoring Vatican ties to China, where Catholics have long been forced to worship underground or in churches run by the government. In April after a visit to the Middle East, Francis invited the Israeli and Palestinian presidents to the Vatican for a prayer session. Both accepted, and while no breakthrough resulted (and none was expected), the gesture ref lected Francis’s willingness to become personally involved in peacemaking efforts. It was the first time that the Vatican had ever hosted such a gathering with Middle East leaders. The chief purpose of Francis’s

a joint support group, nicknamed the Araw Troop, which conducted medical missions and helped with rehabilitating infrastructure, such as hospitals, schools, public offices and welfare facilities, after Supertyphoon Yolanda (international code name Haiyan), hit the country in November 2013. South Korea also extended $5 - m i l l ion a nd $20 - m i l l ion grants for reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in Yolandastricken areas. President Aquino thanked South Korea for its disaster-relief efforts to the Philippines. In addition, while the President was there, the South Korean government extended a $500-million framework agreement loan—which has a favorable interest rate—for Philippine development projects. Related to this, South Korea outlined development plans for the Philippines, specifically for Mindanao, in line with the infrastructuredevelopment program of the Korea International Cooperation Agency, as well as a program for capacitybuilding in the future Bangsamoro region, Mr. Aquino said. South Korea will also be providing expertise on port development and the building of coastal breakwaters. A nother fruit of President Aquino’s trip was the information shared by Park that some South Korean businessmen are interested in investing or expanding in the Philippines.

All in all, it was a productive mission, and an enhancement of the warm and mutually beneficial relations between the two countries. nnn As Christmas approaches, let me share with you my best wishes for a happy and meaningful holiday. Let us take this opportunity to give thanks to the Almighty for the blessings bestowed upon us that enable us to care for our families and loved ones, do productive work and enjoy our lives to the fullest. We often take things that come our way for granted. But just take a look outside your window, and realize that many of our countrymen are carrying heavier burdens or dealing with greater challenges. Let us pause for a moment in the midst of our celebration and spare a thought for those who have less and have lost more. May we, in our own little way, be a source of compassion and comfort to others, for no one goes through life alone. In the midst of the darkness and despair in the world, let each of us be a light, a blessing, a hope. May our commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ inspire us all to strengthen our commitment to serve the country. I wish you and your families have a very merry and blessed Christmas!

Middle East trip was a meeting with the Patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church that marked the 50th anniversary of a meeting that ended hostilities between the two churches, which split in 1054. Relations have steadily improved in recent decades, and Francis has said he wants to restore the churches into communion with each other, a message he repeated last month while attending an Orthodox service with Patriarch Bartholomew I in Istanbul. If he succeeds, it would be a monumental achievement for Christian unity. Other popes have cautiously waded into these conflicts; Francis has been diving in. And that is especially true of his approach to healing the divisions within the Catholic Church itself. In October when Francis convened a major conference on family life, he thrust into the center of it questions about how the Church can build stronger bonds with those who have felt abandoned, including gays and lesbians and remarried couples. He warned the bishops against “hostile rigidity” in their thinking and all but invited them to

challenge the Church ’s status quo, evoking the same spirit that inspired so many changes at the Second Vatican Council. Some were unhappy about the new openness, but the talks achieved what Francis wanted: Forcing the cardinals to approach issues from a pastoral perspective, centered on the Church’s obligation to embrace those most in need of healing. “The Church is called to waste no time in seeking to bind up open wounds,” Francis said afterward, “and to rekindle hope in so many people who have lost hope.” Francis’s efforts to bind up old wounds are taking many forms. Not all will succeed, and there is always the possibility that new wounds may open as a result; critics have been quick to suggest a possible schism between the Church’s liberal and conservative wings. But we are learning that his papacy is best understood by reading the prayer of the saint whose name he took, which begins: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.” That plea seems to be getting heard.

Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II is the vice chairman and general manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

A growing problem with China

Be careful whom you vote for in 2016

By Jeff Bergner

Teddy Locsin Jr.

Tribune News Service

ORMER World Bank President Bob Zoellick encapsulated American policymakers’ hopes for a growing China: China should become a “responsible stakeholder” in the world economic and political system.

To date, this notion has largely been interpreted as foreign-policy guidance. American diplomats work to channel China’s pursuit of regional security objectives into peaceful undertakings and without the threat of military force. They work to gain China’s cooperation in addressing worldwide issues, like nuclear proliferation and climate change. And they work to shape China’s foreign-assistance program to respond to humanitarian needs, and not simply to benefit China’s mercantile interests. What is less well understood is that being a responsible stakeholder entails fair and open economic policies, as well. This includes both China’s export policies and its regulation of foreign firms doing business in China. Here is where the United States confronts a growing problem. The rhetoric on both sides is solid. US President Barack Obama said in Beijing recently that “we look to China to create a more level playing field on which foreign companies are treated fairly, so that they can compete fairly with Chinese companies.” And Chinese President Xi Jinping, for his part, said recently that “we shall proceed with reform and opening up without hesitation.” Unfortunately, however, China’s deeds do not match its words; its economic practices are moving in exactly the wrong direction. Foreign businesses generally, and American businesses specifically, are increasingly singled out for different—and far harsher—treatment than Chinese businesses. This is true across the board and across all sectors of business. It is true of new business-license applications, approvals for mergers, pricing decisions and generally accepted business practices. US businesses report an increasingly unfriendly atmosphere in China, and new foreign investment in China has slowed appreciably. There is one area in which Chinese regulatory practices have been especially egregious, and that concerns food and drug safety. Every nation certainly has the right, and even the obligation, to enforce regulations guaranteeing the safety of food and drugs. There is no doubt about that. But China has gone about this in a clearly antiforeign manner.

Regulatory overkill

EXAMPLES abound, but, perhaps, the poster child for selective regulatory overkill concerns the US food processing firm OSI. OSI processes meat and poultry for the Chinese fast-food market. OSI’s Shanghai plant was raided by Chinese authorities on the basis of the flimsiest and most contrived allegations. Its plant was shut down, its employees idled and its management detained. What is especially troubling is the Chinese government’s behavior not only during such raids, but in their aftermath. Business managers have, in this case, as in others, been “detained” (sent to prison) on no clear charges, and held in order to produce “confessions” of wrongdoing as a condition of their release. This procedure flies in the face of any notion of transparency or due process. Contrast this with Chinese behavior in the US market. China’s Taishan Gypsum Co. supplied the US market with defective, dangerous drywall that was used in the construction of thousands of US homes. Taishan is part of the China National Building Material Corp., which, in turn, is run by the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. Taishan is a Chinese government-

run corporation. And what position did this corporation take in US legal proceedings? Taishan’s attorney argued that its actions in the US could not be controlled by the American legal system and that cases involving Chinese exports should be adjudicated under Chinese law. What is to be done about this obvious—and growing—double standard? American businesses in China are constrained by the fact that they must seek justice from the very government that allows them to operate in China in the first place. For this reason, there is a clear role for the US government to play in addressing this growing problem. The US-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, which, as I write this, is meeting in Chicago this week, would be a good place to start. This should be an occasion for some direct talk about China’s growing double standard. More than that is required. Max Baucus, the US ambassador to China, has a strong background in international finance, dating back to his days as chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance. He understands the problem of selective Chinese enforcement against US businesses. He needs strong backing from the State Department in Washington, however, in order to successfully address this issue.

Expanded relationship

U.S. businesses have been one of the strongest voices advocating an expanded relationship between the US and China. They have unfailingly advocated engagement, while other voices have focused on the more divisive issues of human-rights violations or Chinese policies toward Taiwan, Tibet, North Korea or Taiwan. American businesses have argued that an expanded economic relationship with China is an important way to open up China, expand its middle class and move its government in a more democratic direction. In the wake of China’s growing double standard over business practices, it is becoming harder and harder for American businesses to play this role. There is a vital role for the US Congress to play, as well. When the new Congress convenes, the announcement of an early set of hearings on the US-China economic relationship would be entirely appropriate. A joint hearing including both the Foreign Relations and Commerce committees in either or both houses would be a way to elevate the importance of these issues. Congress has often played the role of keeping both China’s government and the US administration’s “feet to the fire.” This has been the case regarding China’s policy toward Taiwan, its policy toward Tibet, its one-child policy and its currency exchange rate. Congress can, and should, play this role here, as well. The US and Chinese economies are now roughly the same size. China is a competitive economic world power, and there is no reason for it to operate on a different and preferential basis vis-à-vis America. This problem should be met head on before it jeopardizes the overall relationship between the two largest economies in the world today. Jeff Bergner is a lecturer at the Batten School of the University of Virginia. He previously served as staff director of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and as an assistant secretary of state.

Monday, December 22, 2014 A11

Free fire

N an article published in The Diplomat magazine, writer Hayato Watanabe says China is poised to dominate the market for legal marijuana, even as its officials continue a savage crackdown on its sale and use in the country.

It wants to market legal marijuana, so its officials are cracking down on illegal marijuana so it could control the market. Marijuana for medical purposes has been in the Chinese pharmacopeia since ancient times. As a pain reliever, it works faster than sticking needles in your head for headaches. C h i n a a l ready ow n s more than half of the 600 patents on medical marijuana filed with the World Intellectual Property Office. Four American states have legalized marijuana; more are poised to follow. Marijuana, along with crack and cocaine, can also cure social problems, like an angry popula-

tion. Sociologists say drugging them is the way to resign a country to a huge gap between the few rich and the many poor. It is also the way to leave a population to foreign occupation, like the British did in China. So a neighboring superpower with a highly developed, marijuana-based medical technology is a huge temptation for a corrupt Philippine president to strike a deal with it to per petuate himself in power, rob our country blind and, yet, keep everyone docile or, rather, drugged. So be careful whom you vote for in 2016. Cross out people who love money, because the drug trade, legal or illegal, has plenty to offer.

New focus on how Pakistan will address militancy By Rebecca Santana The Associated Press

SLAMABAD—Many wonder if the attack that killed 148 people at a Pakistani school will be a watershed in the country’s long, conflicted history with Islamic militancy.

But Pakistan has had many potential turning points in the war on terror that, at the time, were called game changers. “If you look back, I cannot even remember how many times one has held one’s head in disgust and said, ‘This can’t happen again,’” said Adil Najam, who heads the global studies school at Boston University. He cited, for example, the suicide bombing that killed at least 54 people and devastated the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad in 2008. So it’s easy to be skeptical that authorities will now wage an all-out war on terror. Still, there are some reasons to believe the latest attack could be different—and it’s not just that almost all the dead were children. “I think this has the potential to be a historic moment,” Najam said. “I think everyone senses that.” Mohammed Amir Rana, a Pakistani analyst, whose Pak Institute for Peace Studies tracks militant organizations, called this a “critical juncture” for people in the country, who have been sympathetic to Taliban militants or called for talks with them. Consensus is building for military or security action against the militants, Rana said. The improved relations between neighboring Afghanistan and Pakistan, who have accused each

other of harboring militants, could go a long way to improving security on the western border, he added. The day after the school attack, Army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif traveled to the Afghan capital, where he asked for that country’s help in going after the militants. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the assault last Tuesday, during which a small cadre of suicide bombers stormed a militaryrun school in the northwestern city of Peshawar. The Taliban said the attack was in retaliation for an army operation launched in June in the North Waziristan tribal area. Last Thursday hundreds of Pakistanis went to the school to show their support for the dead and wounded and condemn the militants. One student, Bilal Khan, said they had wanted to help clean the school, but were not allowed to go in. A woman in the crowd held a sign that read: “Down with Taliban. We demand peace and prosperity for our land.” Analysts say Islamabad needs strong public support to continue the fight against militants in the country’s northwest. But many Pakistanis view the militants sympathetically, seeing them as fighting for an Islamic cause. Others say the militants are taking up arms

against Pakistan only because it aligned itself with the United States-led war in Afghanistan. Still more questions whether the militants are Pakistanis at all, suggesting the attacks are a “foreign plot”—code words often used to suggest Indian or American involvement. Pakistan has long been accused of playing a double game when it comes to dealing with militancy—fostering some militant groups that operate in Afghanistan and India as a way of maintaining influence there, while pursuing other militants who target the Pakistani state. When the military launched the North Waziristan operation, it vowed that it would go after all militants. Doubts remain, though, about how aggressively the army has pursued groups like the Afghan Taliban or the Haqqani network, which the US says is responsible for numerous attacks in Afghanistan. One key challenge, Pakistani analyst Mahmood Shah said, will be addressing the network of seminaries and religious schools that promote religious hate. “There should be a zero-tolerance policy for extremists and terrorism,” he said. For example, a religious school in Islamabad associated with the Lal Masjid mosque named a library this year after slain al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Outside the mosque last Thursday, a group of roughly 60 protesters rallied against its ideological support for militancy—a rare instance of people publicly questioning religious leaders. Other Pakistani madrassas, which

operate with little government oversight, also preach a hard-line form of Islam and support the fight against the US in Afghanistan. Another challenge for Pakistan will be creating a criminal justice system that can properly handle the militant networks. Many praised as a hopeful sign Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s decision last Wednesday to lift a moratorium on the death penalty in terrorism cases. Nevertheless, analysts say the system is deeply flawed. There are few convictions in militancy cases, partly because of a lack of protection for witnesses and judges. Last Thursday a Pakistani antiterrorism court granted bail to the chief defendant on trial for the 2008 attack that killed 166 people in the Indian city of Mumbai. The judge, Kausar Abbas, found that there was not enough evidence to keep Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi in custody, according to a defense lawyer. India has blamed the Pakistanbased militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba for the attack. Pakistan pressed charges against Lakhvi and six other men for assisting in the deadly siege, but the trial has not made any progress. India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesman, Syed Akbaruddin, urged Pakistan to reverse last Thursday’s decision to grant bail and referred to last week’s attack at the school. “Given the scale of the tragedy that Pakistan itself has faced in recent days,” he said in a statement, “it is incumbent on it to realize that no compromise can ever be made with terrorists.”

How my mother and Bob Hope taught me the true meaning of Christmas By Joel L.A. Peterson Tribune News Service

Conclusion

SAT—alone—opening brightly wrapped packages that contained the presents sent by my mother to represent the love and warmth of family. I sat and opened those bright boxes in the glare of the blinking lights of the pathetic tree. And, in the flashing hues, I was suddenly swept with loneliness so absolute, so profound and pure, a desperate longing that gripped my soul and squeezed and squeezed, until tears were squeezed from my eyes. And as I sat and stared amid the torn wrappings, so happy in their colors and cheery brightness, I cried. I cried for the loss of those long-ago Christmases that were warmth and childhood. I cried for that forever fled long ago, when I had sat between my parents at church on Christmas Eve, warm and safe and oh so large on each side of me, and sang the ancient songs of harking herald angels and mangers that were far and away. I cried for a world that needed men like me, in uniform, in harm’s way, flung across the world, separated and

gone away. In the tear-blurred lights and at that moment, I missed my mother and my family as I had never before. I missed the staggering perfume clouds. I missed the fogged-up mirrors. I missed the cooking smells. I missed each and every one of them in my crystal pure, absolute loneliness. It was the kind of missing that stripped away my outer man, shucking me like a husk, leaving only the naked little boy that still lived inside me, exposed and crying. I believed in what I was doing. I believed in the duty I had as a US Navy officer. I firmly believed that societies grow and flourish only so long as there are those who are willing to sacrifice on their behalf. My mother had taught me this. But theories, duty and abstract beliefs can be pretty inconsequential when a man is exposed to the icy winds of his little-boy loneliness. And in the winking lights of my plastic Charlie Brown tree, all blurred with my tears, I wondered if I wasn’t on the wrong path. I couldn’t help thinking that, when it came down to the brass tacks of life, there really wasn’t a whole lot else that exemplified the best of life than Christmas spent with Mom,

Dad and family. But then, I also thought how someone as famous as Bob Hope, who was such an American icon, had traveled so far to give a show to me and my shipmates. How he and so many had given up their families at Christmas to come such a long way to reach out to men like me. Just to let us know that we weren’t alone—not really—that we were all part of a society of shared hopes, shared dreams and shared striving. Suddenly, I felt that I understood more clearly than ever the beliefs I’d been taught by my mother regarding Christ’s birth and sacrifice: that our God had taken on the frailty and limited form of humanness, that He might share in human joys, pains, loneliness and deaths. I suddenly grasped with new insight what my mother had always said: It is in the wonder, hope and belief in the love of a God who would willingly share in the crushing mortality and limitations of His fleeting creations, which is at the heart of Christmas. My mother’s teachings found their mark that lonely Christmas. I came to understand as never before what Christmas was for my mother. For Mom, Christmas was not in the glitter and props and mate-

rial objects offered and received. It was not in the half-pagan rituals whose meanings had long been forgotten. Christmas, for my mother—and now, for me—would always be in the warmth of family, in the hearts of loved ones and of those who one cares about. It would always be in the drawing together against the world’s cold to share the warmth that only we can give to each other, and, together, to dare hope for a time when the world won’t be quite so mean, lonely or cold. In 1987, in the Gulf of Oman, in the North Arabian Sea, my mother and Bob Hope helped me understand the true meaning of Christmas. I have never lost this lesson. I hope I never will. And I hope that my future Christmases will have that magic that it once had when I had heroes and they were just and good, when the night was cold, but the hearts that surrounded me were warm, big and oh so safe. And when the wonder of God’s—and my mother’s—love was the wonder of the world itself. Joel L.A. Peterson is the founder and CEO of Student Planning Services LLC and the author of the upcoming book Dreams of My Mothers.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Monday, December 22, 2014

AGRIBUSINESS, MANUFACTURING TO SUSTAIN JOBS GROWTH–ECOP By Catherine N. Pillas

mployment prospects could look bright next year if the Philippines would be able to capture more of the manufacturing investments flowing out of China and into neighboring countries, according to the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop). “Employment could be sustained, if the trend will continue and the manufacturing continues to grow. Many factories are moving out of China because of the rising wage level. Unfortunately, the bulk of it is moving to Myanmar and Cambodia. Hopefully, we could attract them here, but the way to do that is to address electricity costs and stability of supply,” said Edgardo G. Lacson, president of Ecop, in an interview with reporters. Lacson said agribusiness and manufacturing, aside from the business-process outsourcing sector that is already growing, are the biggest drivers of employment, and should be given focus next year. Another factor that can fuel more jobs is the progress in the talks on the Bangsamoro region, and how the agreements between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front will actually lead to peace in the area. Unemployment rate eased by 6 percent in October, reported the Philippine Statistics Authority early in December, from 6.4 percent over the same period in 2013. According to the National Economic and Development Authority, the 6-percent unemployment rate is the lowest the Philippines has seen in over a decade.

However, according to Lacson, whatever further boost in employment the country will enjoy in the fourth quarter of the year is an effect of seasonality; as historically, employment always improves nearing the holidays. The sustainability of the improving employment should be observed come the first quarter of 2015. Employment figures can be improved, added Lacson, if the public-private partnership projects of the government are rolled out soon. Based on the results of the October 2014 Labor Force Survey, the Philippine labor force stood at 41.3 million as of October 2014. Compared with year-ago level, the labor force grew by 2.3 percent, or an additional 925,000 people in the active work force. Within the active labor force, the number of employed Filipinos increased by 2.8 percent year on year, increasing from 37.8 million to 38.8 million. The latest figure translates to a net gain, or employment generation, of 1 million, while the number of unemployed persons declined by 121,000 to 2.5 million in October 2014, pulling down the unemployment rate to 6 percent. The PSA data showed employment grew the fastest in the industry sector at 5.1 percent (+294,000), largely on the back of the robust expansion in construction (12.6 percent, or 285,000). Manufacturing added 24,000 jobs, and mining and quarrying 3,000. Meanwhile, small losses were reported in electricity, gas, steam and airconditioning supply, as well as in water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PSE seeks more listings in SME Board next year

By VG Cabuag

he Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) said it wants to increase the number of companies listed in its Small, Medium and Emerging (SME) Board next year.

“As the economy experiences prolonged highgrowth levels, it is inevitable that the gains become more inclusive even at the corporate level. The companies that listed in the SME Board this year support this observation, as we see smallersized and emerging companies starting to seek capital market-based funding to expand their operations,” PSE President and CEO Hans Sicat said in a statement. This year two companies were added to the SME Board. DoubleDragon Properties Corp. listed on April 7 and raised P1.16 billion from its initial public offering, while Xurpas Inc. listed on December 2 and raised P1.37 billion. In 2013 the PSE simplified its listing-board structure to just two, from the three-board system, to accommodate more small, medium and emerging companies into the stock market, while enhancing the governance requirements

to boost investor protection. To be listed in the SME Board, the PSE requires a company to have an authorized capital stock of P100 million or more, of which a maximum of 25 percent must be subscribed and fully paid. The company should also have a cumulative earnings before interest, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) of at least P15 million, excluding nonrecurring and extraordinary income and/or loss for the last three fiscal years immediately preceding the application for listing. The company must have a positive Ebitda during at least two of the three full-fiscal years immediately preceding the application for listing, including the fiscal year immediately preceding the application. On the other hand, those listed in the main board must have an authorized capital of at least P500 million, at least three years of operating

history and Ebitda of at least P50 million for the last three years before their listing. “We hope that the market’s overwhelming response to the share sale of DoubleDragon and Xurpas will encourage more SMEs to consider listing at the Exchange,” Sicat said. To support this initiative, the PSE said it has conducted seminars and discussions with the Development Bank of the Philippines, start-up technology firms, and small and medium enterprise owners. Sicat earlier said the PSE is maintaining its P200-billion target for next year, despite failing to hit the level this year and the potential headwinds from developed nations. Sicat added that the P200-billion target funding from the equities market will still be a good target for next year, as a result of relatively low interest rates and high consumption level. “We are also cautiously optimistic that, despite the potential headwinds from around the globe, the Philippines will be able to remain flexible. And despite any headwinds, we continue to have strong [economic] fundamental background,” Sicat said. Sicat already admitted that the P200-billion funds raised from the equities market will not be met by the end of the year, partly as a result of the deals that did not materialize due to various issues, including the long processing and approval time from the side of the Securities and Exchange Commission.