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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 Vol. 17 Nos. 85-86

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A YEARENDER REPORT

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By Cai U. Ordinario

HAT if the year could be defined by just one economic indicator? Wouldn’t that be something?

But, as it turned out, it can’t.

Indeed, there are a number of indicators that stood out in 2021.

The BusinessMirror interviewed economists, statisticians and analysts to weigh in on these numbers.

Many of the answers were dead giveaways while others were not, and not always for the reasons Filipinos expect.

The year that was

EVEN before it began, a lot of judgment had been passed regarding the state of affairs in 2021.

For pundits, 2021 signified déjà vu. They would say 2020+1, which meant 2021 would only be a repeat of 2020, this generation’s annus horribilis.

In the beginning, it seemed the pundits were correct in their assumptions. First growth numbers were not that encouraging at a contraction of 3.9 percent. Second was the lackluster growth of employment, with millions continuing to be part of the unemployed.

But what dimmed the lights for many Filipinos was the surge in cases in the third quarter which kept Filipinos locked down in their homes.

The surge in Covid-19 cases in September saw cases peaking at 22,455 on September 13. This placed the country’s 7-day moving average of the country’s Covid-19 cases to 17,937 cases. The 7-day moving average, however, peaked in the week of September 6 when it reached 18,274. September 6 recorded the second highest number of Covid-19 cases at 22,428.

At that time, many Filipinos were feeling hopeless—an ominous dark cloud hung over their

hopes for a bright and reunited Christmas. Many economists also feared the economy would again tank in the third quarter of the year due to the surge.

But the government was not worried because of their vaccination efforts. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua has repeatedly expressed confidence in the vaccination drive, leading him to believe less stringent mobility restrictions were just weeks away.

His optimism was given some credence when cases started declining. Right after peaking at 22,455 cases on September 13, the country recorded 19,563 cases on September 14. There was no looking back after that day as cases started declining to the three-digit level, a huge relief for an entire country imprisoned in over 650 days of lockdown, the longest in the world.

At that point, much like gravity, what goes up must come down, the opposite happens as things begin to turn out better than expected.

This optimism found toward the end of the year has even prompted the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to revise its growth forecast for the Philippine economy.

Despite the pandemic and the detection of a new Covid-19 variant, Omicron, the ADB revised its economic growth forecast for the year to 5.1 percent in 2021, higher than its 4.5-percent forecast in September.

For 2022, the ADB estimates that the Philippine economy will post a growth of 6 percent, better than the 5.5-percent projec-

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.2690

ROMEL LO-ANG plays with his horn, a Christmas gift from his godfather, near their damaged home due to Typhoon Odette in Cebu City on Christmas Day, Saturday, December 25, 2021.

His mother Alona Nacua said she and her husband managed to receive rice and four small cans of sardines and corned beef to be able to feed their family Saturday. “It's the saddest Christmas for me, seeing my children suffer this way on this day,” added Nacua, who is pregnant. AP/JAY LABRA

tion the Manila-based multilateral development bank made three months prior.

The ADB said this is largely due to the “resilience” shown by the Philippine economy. In the third quarter, the country’s GDP grew 7.1 percent owing to the steady recovery of consumption spending, the primary driver of the country’s economic performance.

The fourth quarter, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), could be even better given the expected holiday consumption and decline in Covid-19 cases as well as vaccination efforts.

Beyond GDP

CERTAINLY, it is worth noting that the story of 2021 is incomplete without people and knowing how they have fared this year amid their struggles and the grief that they have experienced due to Covid-19.

“It has to be the family of indicators based on official and unofficial statistics that tell the story of how badly or inefficiently we managed the Covid crisis and its impact on the lives of people, particularly the poor and the marginalized,” Romulo A. Virola, former head of the National Statistical Coordination Board, told the BusinessMirror.

Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4378 n UK 67.5515 n HK 6.4461 n CHINA 7.8928 n SINGAPORE 37.1428 n AUSTRALIA 36.3344 n EU 56.8693 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.3851

Source: BSP (December 29, 2021)

2021 Broader Look BusinessMirror

A2 Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022

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2021 in numbers: A yearender report Continued from A1

Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Senior Research Fellow Jose Ramon G. Albert told this newspaper that there is a trifecta of key economic indicators to gauge how the country performed— GDP, inflation and employment.

While GDP is the widely accepted indicator, Albert noted it can be significantly affected by base effects. The country’s third-quarter economic performance, he said, was an example.

The 7.1-percent growth in the third quarter may be good news and a higher than expected number but, Albert pointed out, this remains below pre-pandemic levels.

“2020 Q2 (second quarter) GDP growth was at -17 percent, thus the levels of GDP are still smaller than pre-Covid levels. In fact, we have had 5 straight GDP quarters of contraction from 2020 Q1 (first quarter) to 2021 Q1,” Albert said in a recent event.

“Even if we celebrate the growth in the second quarter, which compares Q2 with the previous year level, the seasonally adjusted GDP posted a contraction of 1.3 percent, which means, quarter-on-quarter, the Q2 was actually worse off than the Q1 for this year,” he added.

Albert said the government’s “draconian” measures that placed the country in the longest lockdown in the world was largely to blame for what has happened to the economy this year. Economic growth, unfortunately, tells the story of Filipinos.

This is why it’s important to look at employment, Albert said. He said the employment data is the next most watched metric of the economy, specifically the unemployment rate, which describes the labor market.

The challenge when it comes to employment data, he said, is that data disaggregated are not immediately available.

A WOMAN waits with her brother during a lunchbreak during a nationwide vaccination drive at a school in Navotas on Wednesday, December 1, 2021. There has been no reported infection so far caused by the new coronavirus variant in the Philippines, a Southeast Asian pandemic hotspot where Covid-19 cases have considerably dropped, but the emergence of the Omicron virus variant has set off a new alarm. AP/AARON FAVILA

Keep your ears grounded on Philippine business and economy with the BM Broader Look podcast —the broader look, on air. businessmirror.podbean.com

Albert said this makes it difficult to determine if “the unemployed of the pre-Covid days were the same as the unemployed of the Covid days,” for example.

Nonetheless, Albert said challenges experienced by the labor market stems from the inability of the economy to provide decent employment opportunities to millions. This is also the reason why he believes that together with labor force participation, this is the most important indicator for the year.

“The bigger challenge on the jobs agenda in the country has always been in addressing underemployment, i.e., improving the quality of jobs, but that also means we need to improve the quality of our workforce,” Albert said.

The other part of the trifecta of indicators, Albert said, is inflation.

Inflation has been higher than government targets since January. It is worth noting that prior to 2021, the last time inflation breached 4 percent was in January of 2019, just before Covid-19 wreaked havoc on the Philippine economy.

Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), inflation this year peaked in August at 4.9 percent, just before the Covid-19 case surge. In September, inflation averaged 4.8 percent, the second highest rate for the year.

The increase in inflation, Albert said, is not only being felt in the Philippines but in other parts of the globe, with the rise in oil prices and logistics issues that are making various food and non-food commodities expensive.

“Last year, hardly anyone was spending. Now that the restrictions in people movements are relatively less compared to hard lockdowns, people are spending and traveling and, as such, there is a bottleneck with very high demand,” Albert said.

“And this causes inflation in the short term. The strained supply lines due to Covid paired with an increase in demand we are seeing now would be one of the main reasons for inflation at the moment,” he added.

Employment

A NUMBER of economists, statisticians and analysts interviewed by the BusinessMirror believe the country’s employment numbers would tell the story of 2021.

Many of them consider that while GDP is the economic indica-

“THE government may express their optimism about the GDP, that it meets or even exceeds the target. But in terms of stats that matter more, we have nothing to be proud of. We have to translate the growth to a better life for most, if not all, Pinoys.

That remains to be a challenge.”—Ateneo Center for Research and Development Associate Director Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes

tor of the economy, the struggles and triumphs of this year would best be told by how they are able to earn a living amid all the hardships during the year.

Ateneo Eagle Watch Senior Fellow Leonardo A. Lanzona Jr. told the BusinessMirror that unlike GDP, unemployment “cannot be influenced by transitory government expenditures and reflects more the structural features of the economy.”

Based on the latest data from the PSA, unemployed Filipinos reached 3.504 million in October 2021. This was 309,000 less than the 3.813 million recorded in October 2020 and 751,000 less than the 4.255 million in September 2021.

Underemployment also improved in October 2021. PSA’s data showed those looking for additional sources of income reached 7.044 million, almost twice the unemployment figures, in October. This is also higher than the 5.747 million recorded in October 2020 and the 6.183 million in September 2021.

“As most of our people only have labor as their asset, this indicator represents the level of welfare and distribution in the economy,” Lanzona told the Business­Mirror.

Former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Dante B. Canlas told the BusinessMirror that unemployment continued to decrease because the country’s economy was already recovering.

Canlas, however, said underemployment remains a problem for the economy and highlights the low wages that plague work-

ers nationwide. “Declining unemployment rate signals that the recovery is gaining strength. Rising underemployment rate suggests that employment at low wages is persisting.”

Former Labor Undersecretary Rene Ofreneo, meanwhile, said the surge in “informal and precarious employment” told the story of Filipinos in 2021. Many Filipinos, he said, were working less than 40 hours a week, reducing their incomes in the process.

Ofreneo is referring to what is called visibly underemployed, which the PSA defined as those people who are working for less than 40 hours during the reference period and want additional hours of work.

There is also what is called invisible underemployment, which also increased. The invisibly underemployed Filipinos are those working full-time, around 40 hours per week, but were still looking for additional work or additional hours of working.

Based on the October Labor Force Survey (LFS), of the 7.044 million underemployed Filipinos, majority or 4.708 million were visibly underemployed and 2.337 million were invisibly underemployed.

The number of those classified as part of the visibly underemployed increased by 1.103 million in October compared to the same period last year, while those in invisible underemployment increased 194,000 year on year.

However, compared to September, there was a surge in the invisibly underemployed at 569,000 among those in invisible underemployment, while the increase for visible underemployment was only 293,000. “[Among] economic sectors, the policy incongruence in the agricultural sector is reflected in the surge in agricultural imports amidst cries of small farmers across the archipelago of falling prices, rising cost of inputs (e.g., urea doubling from P1,000 to over P2,000) and farm bankruptcies,” Ofreneo said in an email. “Magkakaugnay ang labor precarity, informality at poverty.”

De La Salle University economist Maria Ella Oplas told the BusinessMirror, however, that while these are valid concerns raised by other economists when it comes to employment, what was striking Continued on A3

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2021 in numbers: A yearender report Continued from A2

for her was the increase in employment among the younger and older Filipinos.

This was reported by the BusinessMirror as early as May 2021 when National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa said the uptick in the Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) in March was mainly due to Filipinos 15 to 24 year olds and those 65 and over who joined and rejoined the labor force.(Story here: https://businessmirror.com. ph /2021/05/07/seniors-undergrads-boost-labors-ranks/)

At that time, the LFPR of those aged 15 to 24 years old increased to 40.1 percent, while the total LFPR for those above 65 years old increased to 36.4 percent. There were 8.04 million young Filipinos and 2.29 million seniors in the labor force in March 2021.

Oplas said this only means that due to the hardships experienced by families this year, all members of the family are willing to pitch in and do their part in earning a living. She said even her own students found ways to help their parents.

She said her students decided to find part-time jobs such as accepting art commissions or undergoing internships with pay just to contribute to their family’s incomes.

“Everyone wants to be able to economically contribute despite what’s happening to the economy.

I think that is the essence of resilience, seeing one’s value and taking action to make sure that it’s maximized,” Oplas said.

“Others might see it as a distraction from their studies but for me, it’s okay. It will give them the much needed experience while contributing to the economy,” she added.

RESIDENTS sit next to damaged homes due to Typhoon Odette in Surigao City, December 20, 2021. ERWIN MASCARIÑAS/GREENPEACE VIA AP

Inflation and poverty

PART of the story of 2021 is the inflation and poverty experienced by Filipino households.

In an email to the BusinessMirror, University of the Philippines Professor Emeritus Epictetus Patalinghug said inflation and poverty both increased this year.

These are, therefore, important indicators that would shed light on how Filipinos lived this year.

Inflation is particularly important since the Philippines is reliant on imports not only to produce exports but also for other commodities such as food and fuel. The country is considered a net food and oil importer.

Patalinghug also said the high prices in the global economy impact the country through other technological means. He said consumer purchases have shifted online through mobile phones. Many of these products are imported.

Further, Canlas said part of the increase in inflation was the exchange rate, which allows global inflation to affect the Philippines. “This indicates the passthrough from global inflation, such as that stemming from energy prices. Inflation tells us if it’s time to taper easy money as a stimulus,” Canlas said.

In terms of poverty, the firstsemester poverty data for this year showed poverty incidence increased to 23.7 percent in 2021, higher than the 21.1 percent posted in 2018. This translated to 26.137 million poor Filipinos, a 3.9-million increase from the 22.262 million Filipinos recorded in 2018.

Part of the reason for this is the P1,860 increase in the per capita income threshold to P14,498 in 2021 from P12,638. With this, the PSA estimated the income gap, which measures the average amount of income required by the poor in order to get out of poverty expressed in relation to the poverty thresholds.

“The income gap was estimated at 27 percent in the first semester of 2021, that is, on average, a poor family with five members needs an additional monthly income of about P3,262 to move out

“[AMONG] economic sectors, the policy incongruence in the agricultural sector is reflected in the surge in agricultural imports amidst cries of small farmers across the archipelago of falling prices, rising cost of inputs (e.g., urea doubling from P1,000 to over P2,000) and farm bankruptcies.

Magkakaugnay ang labor precarity, informality at poverty.”— Former Labor Undersecretary Rene Ofreneo

of poverty in the first semester of 2021,” the PSA said in a report.

Albert said he initially estimated, through a simulation, that poverty would increase by 3 million this year. He expects poverty to decline in the second half of the year due to the increased economic activities.

However, he lamented that efforts must be exerted to improve the country’s poverty data, particularly in disaggregating by regions and provinces. Albert said, nonetheless, that poverty in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) decreased.

“It is interesting that BARMM has reduced its poverty incidence.

[This is] likely because of all the resources made available to it by the national government and development partners,” he stressed.

Ofreneo said it is worth noting that poverty could worsen given Typhoon Odette. Based on the Christmas Day report from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the typhoon has displaced 596,599 Filipinos; killed 367 residents; injured 732 Filipinos; and 62 more are still missing.

Some 269 cities and municipalities experienced power outage and interruption in Mimaropa; Regions 6 to 11; Caraga; and BARMM.

Power has been restored in only 150 cities and municipalities. A total of 371 cities and municipalities also experienced telecommunication interruptions in the affected regions and only 114 of these areas have seen their services restored.

Further, Typhoon Odette has interrupted water supply in four cities and municipalities. Only one city/municipality has seen its water services restored.

The estimated cost of damaged houses is pegged at P29.21 million, covering 371,188 damaged homes.

Of this number, some 243,303 were partially damaged and 127,885 were totally damaged. Infrastructure damages have reached P3.999 billion covering 205 facilities such as churches, government buildings, health facilities and roads, among others.

Ofreneo said, combined with the challenges of the labor market, this could spell problems for Filipinos living in the affected regions. “The path taken by Odette [is a concern]. It seems informal [employment] and poverty belt ang Visayas-Mindanao,” Ofreneo stressed.

As for former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Romulo L. Neri, he said Typhoon Odette is a concern as well as the new variant, Omicron, because these are “potentially disruptive” to the country’s economic recovery, especially for 2022.

Given the high prices and also the increase in the ranks of the poor, inequality could worsen, if not worsened already. Ateneo Center for Research and Development (ACERD) Associate Director Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes said the country was already treading a “K” shaped recovery.

The K-shaped recovery indicates an economic recovery path that will also see a wider inequality in society. The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Unescap) already warned about this earlier in the year stating that countries must avoid this growth path by providing social safety nets.

In March, Unescap said that despite a reasonably strong rebound expected in 2021, a “Kshaped recovery” is likely, with

nos may have continued to feel the slump. This is particularly the case of those affected by the typhoon.

“The government may express their optimism about the GDP, that it meets or even exceeds the target.

But in terms of stats that matter more, we have nothing to be proud of. We have to translate the growth to a better life for most, if not all, Pinoys. That remains to be a challenge,” Peña-Reyes said.

“MY indicator is the vaccination rate of the population for Covid. Strange? But for me it makes the most sense. Widespread infection rate simply leads to movement restrictions which in turn translate to reduced economic activity. High vaccination rate makes that unlikely for 2022, which is good.”—Former University of the Philippines School of Economics Dean Ramon Clarete

poorer countries and more vulnerable groups marginalized in the post-pandemic recovery and transition period.

However, Peña-Reyes said it was good news that GDP was recovering but the Philippines continues to struggle with low foreign direct investments (FDIs) and exhibit lackluster competitiveness ranking performance. He added that the first-semester poverty data was also not promising given the increase in both the poverty incidence and the number of poor Filipinos.

“Narrow, shallow and hollow growth led to a fragile economy.

Fragile pa rin. Still far from being inclusive growth. Add to that the digital divide that threatens to exclude even more people,” Peña-Reyes said. “It might be a Kshaped recovery where some industries boom while others drop even more.”

Peña-Reyes said the worsening of poverty will also lead to long-term or “scarring effects” that may be felt for years to come.

The impact of this scarring may complicate the country’s ability to attract foreign investments that create more employment opportunities.

Further, he said that while some households may have been able to engage in “revenge spending” and used their pent up demand, the “vast majority” of Filipi-

Vaccination and mobility

FORMER University of the Philippines School of Economics Dean Ramon Clarete said the primary indicator for him this year was the country’s vaccination rate as it provides an anchor for every good thing that Filipinos hope to come their way next year.

Based on the December 21 report shared by Malacañang, 102.995 million doses have already been administered. This is composed of 56.51 million for first doses and 41.58 million for second doses.

A total of 3.7 million were administered as single doses for the vaccine brand, Janssen. Some 1.2 million doses were administered as booster shots. The country delivered an average of 1.34 million jabs per day.

The data also showed that 60.212 million Filipinos have received at least one dose, translating to 78.06 percent of the target population. The fully vaccinated Filipinos, meanwhile, have reached 45.28 million as of December 21.

This translated to 58.71 percent of the target population.

The Department of Health (DOH) also recently announced that all adult Filipinos or 18 years old and above are eligible to receive a single-dose Covid-19 booster shot at least three months after the administration of the second dose of AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, Sinovac or Sputnik vaccine. Those who received Janssen shots are eligible to get their booster shots at least two months after the dose was administered.

“My indicator is the vaccination rate of the population for Covid. Strange? But for me it makes the most sense. Widespread infection rate simply leads to movement

restrictions which in turn translate to reduced economic activity.

High vaccination rate makes that unlikely for 2022, which is good,” Clarete said.

“Infection rates are low, eliminating economic lockdowns in whatever form. That also frees up public resources from flattening the Covid infection rate for other public goods,” he added.

Action for Economic Reforms (AER) Coordinator Filomeno Sta. Ana II and Unionbank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion agreed and said indicators that focus on how well the country is able to contain the spread of Covid-19 would be crucial, particularly for 2022.

Sta. Ana said it is therefore critical that the government exert efforts to increase testing, improve contact tracing, and provide adequate and capacitated human resources.

For Asuncion, mobility data is also a good indicator to consider this year because of the impact it will have on the economy’s future performance. He said poverty and unemployment are not important, but are highly dependent on the reopening and recovery of the economy.

Sta. Ana and Asuncion said these indicators would be crucial in ensuring that this economic recovery continues in 2022 and beyond.

“There is uncertainty, especially considering that the virus continues to mutate. While cases are currently down, this might be the calm before the storm. Omicron is battering many countries,” Sta. Ana said.

Knowing the past provides value and insight for future action, in this case for 2022. The economic indicators are just some of the numbers that matter for a country of at least 109 million.

Numbers are numbers but for many of the country’s experts, they would only be meaningful if they help improve the lives of all Filipinos. Some indicators may highlight the difficulties this past year but can still be used as guides to improve Filipinos’ well-being.

With that, we leave our dear readers this question: What would be the most important indicator that would define 2021 for you?

2021 Broader Look A4 Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022

BusinessMirror

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FIRMS RAISE FUNDS YEARENDER: CORPORATES

DESPITE COVID HEADWINDS T

By VG Cabuag

HE Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) has a lot to be thankful for this year. For one, it did not have to contend with the extreme volatility in prices that it saw in 2020, which triggered the three-tier circuit breaker a number of times. The circuit-breaker system allows the PSE to halt trading when market prices fall at certain levels.

The market, however, continued to face headwinds as the benchmark PSE index fell to the 6,000-point level several times this year. The main index managed to regain its footing and is now back at the 7,000-point level.

The benchmark’s bottom this year was 6,164.89 points, while the highest was 7,441.67 points.

With the main index still at the 7,100-point level during the holidays, a return to the 8,000-point level is unlikely, at least for this year.

Despite this, the PSE is hopeful particularly after it reached the elusive P200-billion mark in terms of funds raised via the exchange. It even managed to post record numbers due to a slew of deals, such as the P48.6-billion initial public offering (IPO) of Monde Nissin Corp. and a number of real-estate investment trust (REIT) listings.

PSE data showed that funds raised at the exchange reached P234.48 billion, which includes the P2.7-billion IPO of Solar Philippines Nueva Ecija Corp. (SPNEC), the last listing for the year; the P1.45-billion stock rights offer of Philippine Estates Corp.; and the P6-billion follow-on offering of EEI Corp. Total funds raised this year eclipsed the P228.33 billion recorded in 2012.

Last year, capital raised at the PSE reached only P103.76 billion.

In contrast, Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. (PDEx), the operator of the fixed-income market, had an ordinary year. Listings at the PDEx reached only P211.59 billion, including Areit Inc.’s P3billion listing. Funds raised this year fell 45 percent from last year’s P387.83 billion even as companies scrambled to raise funds to retire their expensive loans after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas slashed interest rates.

The year 2021 was also a year of mammoth bond offerings and REIT listings. Notable bond offerings include the P30-billion bond listing of San Miguel Corp. in July and P18-billion paper by its unit, Petron Corp., in October, the P10billion paper by Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. in August, and the P12-billion debt by its unit Aboitiz Power Corp. in December.

4 REIT listings

THERE were also four REIT listings this year. DDPM Reit Inc., the firm sponsored by Edgar J. Sia II’s DoubleDragon Corp., fired the first salvo via its P13.37-billion IPO. Filinvest Reit Corp. followed in August with its P11.43-billion listing.

The Gokongweis’ RL Commercial Reit Inc. and Andrew Tan’s Mreit Inc., meanwhile, vied for the status of the country’s biggest REIT. Megaworld Corp. touted its sponsored firm Mreit as the country’s biggest REIT during the early part of its campaign, but in the end, it decided to include only a number of its assets.

RL Commercial Reit emerged as the largest REIT with its P21.5billion IPO, bigger than Mreit’s

“CURRENT vaccination rates and the drop in Covid numbers tell us the pandemic will soon be behind us and we can look forward to better times.”—David Leechiu, Leechiu Property Consultants CEO

P13.59-billion listing.

The number of REIT listings may grow as demand for office spaces rises, according to Leechiu Property Consultants. The business-process outsourcing sector would need some 224,000 square meters of space over the next six months, according to its projections, though vacancies across Metro Manila are still on doubledigit rates.

“Current vaccination rates and the drop in Covid numbers tell us the pandemic will soon be behind us and we can look forward to better times,” David Leechiu, the company’s CEO, said.

Snags

ASIDE from the IPO of Monde Nissin, Medilines Distributors Inc.’s listing also received a lot of attention. Medilines’ IPO got under way in December and its final price reached P2.30 per share or just 6 percent lower than its indicative price of P2.45 apiece.

As the Omicron variant caused Covid-19 cases to rise exponentially during its opening day of trade, Medilines’ shares fell by 30 percent. Price declines on the opening day are not common, as underwriters usually have a stabilization fund to defend the stock during heavy selling, mainly to save face.

PNB Capital Corp. had been blamed for purportedly not doing enough to prevent the price drop.

“I am sure regulators did their due diligence on Medilines, but I hope that in the future, the PSE will require all IPOs raising P1 billion and above to have a stabilization fund. Never again should a stock debut with a loss of 30 percent or close at the floor price,” Nicky Franco, vice president for research at Abacus Securities Corp., said in his letter to the company’s clients.

Many expected SPNEC to suffer the same fate that befell Medilines. SPNEC shares opened lower during its debut and remained down for most of the sessions but it managed to eke out a P0.01 gain.

Medilines is led by Virgilio B. Villar, the younger brother of former senator Manuel B. Villar, the country’s richest man.

The weakness of Medilines, which is not part of the former senator’s business group, has affected

THE Philippine Stock Exchange headquarters in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. MICHAEL EDWARDS | DREAMSTIME.COM

other Villar firms. It also affected Lucio Co’s The Keepers Holdings Inc., which houses the businessman’s liquor distribution business, and to some extent, DDMP Reit.

Before the holidays, Medilines shares closed at P1.30 apiece, lower than its IPO price of P2.30.

The Keepers closed at P1.34 apiece from its listing price of P1.50, while DDMP settled at P1.79 apiece from P2.25.

Sustainability

AS the pandemic rages on, the PSE and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are urging listed firms to adopt sustainability practices.

“It is more important than ever that sustainability issues, particularly sustainability reporting, should be pursued during the pandemic. The sustainability reporting requirement of the commission provided an impetus for publicly listed companies to measure their economic, environmental and social issues and impacts,” the SEC said.

The agency, however, has yet to conduct a study or analysis establishing direct correlation between the pandemic and increased sustainability efforts.

“Our existing data shows a very high compliance rate for sustainability reporting in the Philip-

pines in 2019 and 2020, the years covering the pandemic,” it said.

Data shows that for 2019 and 2020 sustainability reporting, the compliance rate is at 90.77 percent and 93 percent, respectively.

The SEC is not bent on expanding its rule on mandatory submission of sustainability reports on nonlisted companies, but said it is keen on making the rule mandatory for public companies starting next year and possibly expanding it to other institutions.

“The SEC is optimistic that companies will continue to improve their ESG initiatives and SR after the pandemic. In fact, there was already a growing interest in

ESG reporting among institutional investors even prior to the pandemic, which is expected to rise in the years to come,” it said.

With the pandemic still expected to affect the world by 2022, sustainability of a company’s operations is expected to become a recurring theme among regulators.

“The SEC is continuously working towards its goal of developing the capital markets. Creating a socially conscious and free market that regulates itself is embedded in our state policy. The vision embodied in this state policy is the pillar of our short-term and long-term visions for sustainability reporting in the Philippines.”

2021 Broader Look BusinessMirror

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A5

YEARENDER: POWER

REOPENING OF ECONOMY

STRAINS POWER SUPPLY

D

By Lenie Lectura

EMAND for power recovered swiftly and returned to prepandemic levels this year.

However, supply constraints including the Malampaya gas restrictions, prolonged power plant outages and oil price hikes made it difficult for the local energy sector to keep pace with the surge in demand.

All these developments resulted in elevated electricity prices.

“The demand in 2021 already surpassed the peak in 2019. Energy consumption by the end of this year will also surpass the highest, which was recorded in 2019,” Robinson Descanzo, Chief Operating Officer of the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP), said in an interview.

Latest data from IEMOP showed that system peak demand this year increased by 2.25 percent to 13,752 megawatts (MW) from 13,450MW in 2019.

“With the opening of the economy, demand is also picking up,” IEMOP chief corporate strategy and communications officer Isidro Cacho said.

IEMOP, operator of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) in Luzon and the Vi-

sayas, said the electricity bought from the market was pegged at a higher price effective settlement spot price (ESSP) of P6.43 per kilowatt hour (kWh) from P3.41 per kWh in September due to thin supply margins brought about by the maintenance and forced outages of several power-generation companies. The plant outages include gas-fired power plants affected by the Malampaya shutdown from October 2 to 25.

Power demand in the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) franchise area reached a peak of 7,808MW this year, 3 percent higher than the pre-pandemic peak of 7,614MW. “In general, Meralco generation costs in 2021 gradually increased mainly due to higher fuel prices, for both Malampaya gas and coal; use of alternative fuel by

the gas plants due to persistent reduction in Malampaya supply; and higher WESM charges, as a result of higher demand and plant outages,” he said in a separate interview.

Meralco’s generation costs make up the bulk of an electricity bill.

Aboitiz Power Corp. President Emmanuel Rubio said 2021 was a good year for the power sector.

“The year 2021 was definitely a good year. We’ve witnessed a significant improvement in energy demand as the economy continued to pick up in 2021 and we’re excited to see how that can rebound even further,” he said in an interview.

Apart from increasing power demand, the power industry had to deal with issues involving supply and reserves that eventually led to power outages last May 31 and from June 1 to 3 this year, despite government assurance that there was sufficient supply.

Rotational brownouts

THE Department of Energy (DOE) said the lack of power reserves was one of the factors that caused the rotational brownouts in Luzon. It blamed the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) for its supposed failure to comply with its franchise requirement to secure “firm” contracts for ancillary services (AS).

However, the NGCP maintained that the power reserve could only be procured if there is sufficient supply of power. If power generation companies (gencos) do not provide the supply, then it cannot procure reserves.

DREAMSTIME.COM

MALAMPAYA Deep Water Gas to Power facility in Palawan. The Malampaya gas field accounts for 30 percent of Luzon’s power generation, servicing around 20 percent of national demand. WWW.SHELL.COM

The ERC also looked into the possible collusion by gencos whose facilities were on extended shutdown— including those that performed unplanned maintenance that led to the rotational brownouts.

Lawyer Ronald Dylan Concepcion, who represented NGCP during the Senate Committee on Energy hearing, said the grid operator could not contract more firm AS reserves because of lack of supply.

More importantly, he pointed out that AS is not a remedy for the lack of supply. “AS is an excess of generation plants. From my personal knowledge, there is no available capacity right now to be contracted for AS.”

Probe of offline plants

THE Energy Regulatory Commis-

sion (ERC), meanwhile, launched a probe on the power plants that went offline. The rotational brownouts were blamed on 17 gencos found to have breached their plant outage allowance for the year. At the end of its probe, six gencos were penalized.

The ERC also looked into the possible collusion by gencos whose facilities were on extended shutdown—including those that performed unplanned maintenance that led to the rotational brownouts.

The Philippine Independent

Power Producers Association Inc. (Pippa) insisted that its members are not involved in any price fixing and that they will not deliberately go on shutdown. The group stressed that it makes no sense to intentionally put a plant in outage because it would then have to buy at high prices to fulfill its contracted commitments.

“It is a disincentive for us.

As much as possible, we want the plants to keep on running,” said Pippa President Anne Montelibano.

Consumer advocacy group Laban Konsyumer Inc. (LKI) noted that consumers have yet to experience cheap power rates.

“We always bear in mind that the statutory least cost of power that consumers should pay has not been achieved. The country had remained one of the countries in the region with the most expensive retail electricity rate,” said LKI President Victor Dimagiba.

In August, Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research noted that the Malampaya gas depletion is already driving up consumer electricity prices and causing rotational power outages, while noting that “a complete stoppage without replacements in place would prove to be highly damaging for businesses and end-users alike.”

The Malampaya gas field accounts for 30 percent of Luzon’s power generation, servicing around 20 percent of national demand.

2021 Broader Look BusinessMirror

A6 Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022

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YEARENDER: AGRICULTURE

Diseases, supply snags hit PHL food system as pandemic challenges farm, fisheries sector

BALINTAWAK Market in Quezon City, known as a bagsakan of agricultural produce coming from the North. NONIE REYES

T

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

HE year 2021 will go down in history as one of the most challenging years for the agriculture sector. While it displayed resiliency at the start of the pandemic, the local farm sector eventually wobbled due to the economic impact of the pandemic and supply chain problems.

Official government data would attest to this. The value of agricultural production at constant 2018 prices declined by 2.6 percent in the third quarter to P406.674 billion from last year’s P417.727 billion. This caused agricultural output in January to November to contract by 2.5 percent year-on-year.

This was in stark contrast to the sector’s performance last year, when it posted an increment of 0.7 percent in the third quarter. Output in the January to November last year fell by only 0.2 percent.

The 2.5-percent contraction in agricultural output this year was largely due to the poor performance of the livestock sector, which continues to grapple with African swine fever (ASF). Filipinos welcomed the new year with “golden pork” as prices skyrocketed to beyond P400 per kilogram, from the usual average of P240-P250 per kg. The fatal hog disease created a pork supply deficit of about 400,000 metric tons (MT), which was later on raised to 651,000 MT. The supply shortfall forced the government to lower tariff rates on

pork imports and expand the minimum access volume (MAV) program for the meat product. The supply problem was not only observed in the pork sector but also in other food industries, such as meat processing and even broiler chicken.

Importing meat products to plug the shortfall in pork was not exactly a walk in the park due to the global shipping and logistics problems which hampered the flow of goods to the Philippines. Food manufacturers who depend on imported raw materials, such as meat processors, were left scrambling for raw material supply abroad as they faced a confluence of problems: lack of containers and vessels which resulted in record freight costs as well as limited raw material supply due to border closures.

The broiler sector was not spared from supply problems as frozen inventories consisting of imports and locally produced chicken went through to the roof.

It did not help that demand for restaurant food was tepid as major Philippine cities were placed under lockdown twice this year.

Crops subsector

WHILE the crops subsector fared better than the livestock and poultry subsectors, it also had its fair share of challenges this year. For one, rice production is on track to again hit a new record. However, industry players said the record harvest and the increase in imports resulted in a supply glut which pulled down farm-gate prices.

Worse, farmers are now being burdened by higher farm inputs, such as fertilizers. Fertilizer prices have doubled to P2,000 per 50-kilogram bag today.

“We are experiencing failure today due to lack of reliable data.

The importation tack of the government is destroying the prices of the producers who cannot recover now from high input costs,” Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. President Danilo V. Fausto told the BusinessMirror in an interview.

“It’s about time for 2022 to change that mindset and the government must try to help the farmers recover their expenses by allowing them more leeway in pricing,” he added.

Elias Jose Inciong, chief of the United Broiler Raisers Association (Ubra), had this to say about the status of the poultry sector this year and its future prospects: it’s a mess and will even get messier.

This “mess,” Inciong pointed out, stemmed from the current policies of the government that are “skewed towards importation,” making it more difficult for them to compete.

“There would be a major configuration of the industry because the producers would in all likelihood move towards a hybrid type of operations. They will produce

and import at the same time—as what is happening now with major corporations,” he told the BusinessMirror in an interview.

“Importers [say] some of their colleagues have already ventured into local production since we do not know what will happen abroad given the threats of climate change and problems in the movement of goods,” he added.

Inciong explained that food producers like broiler raisers are facing an unprecedented confluence of events today: unpredictable market demand amid the Covid-19 pandemic and record-high production costs due to the tightness in the supply of raw materials.

“Normally, a farm-gate price of P85 per kilogram to P90 per kilogram will not be a major headache for producers, but this is no longer true because of the high costs of production,” he said.

“If you have a full-scale commercial operation wherein you buy everything from raw materials to day-old chicks, your break-even cost would be at P95 per kilogram,” he added.

Despite the easing of mobility and quarantine restrictions by the government, Inciong pointed out that producers have taken a conservative stance when it comes to their production plans. Recent price movements indicate that chicken supply may still outpace demand, an indication of the low purchasing power of consumers and weak food demand, according to Inciong.

“Demand is a major problem really. People are being cautious and conservative. But apparently, consumers right now are more conservative than producers and importers,” he added.

Fishers face woes

AS the world deliberates on curbing illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUUF), Filipino fishermen continue to face the struggle of competing with uninvited visitors in the country’s territorial waters.

The government has repeatedly called out the presence of foreign vessels, such as Chinese maritime militia vessels, fishing in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) this year. The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has been emphasizing that these activities are considered IUUF, which the World Trade Organization (WTO) member-countries have vowed to fight through a ministerial decision.

“These foreign vessels have no clearance from the Philippine government or any existing fisheries cooperation agreements with the country that allow them to conduct any fishing operations,” the BFAR, an attached agency, said earlier this year.

The threat of IUUF to the Philippine fisheries sector has been more drastic than ever, with experts pointing out that these activities are fast depleting the country’s rich food supply from the WPS. “The Department of Agriculture through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources [DABFAR] looks at the ‘West Philippine Sea issue’ in general terms, that is, in the area of illegal, unregulated, unreported fishing activities by poachers—be they from China, Taiwan and Vietnam—and their ‘illegal presence’ wherever in the Philippine exclusive economic zone [EEZ], or simply within our country’s territorial waters,” Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar earlier declared.

“Meanwhile, we will continue to exert efforts to achieve food security through marine or capture fisheries, and sustained support to small, artisanal fisherfolk and their families,” Dar added.

The Philippines has been one of the front-runners in pushing for the immediate conclusion of the negotiations on fisheries subsidies deal at the WTO amid threats of IUUF and declining global fish stocks.

“The Philippines stands together with other WTO member-countries who are committed to deliver an outcome in the fisheries subsidy negotiations ahead of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12) in December this year,” Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said. “This will only be possible if there is solid political will and diplomatic flexibility in the negotiations.”

Meanwhile, the Philippines also opened its annual round of galunggong importation this year to address supply shortfall as the government implements a three-month moratorium on key fishing grounds to allow restocking of fishes. As always, the importation tack amounting to 60,000 metric tons (MT) was opposed by industry stakeholders who noted that the allowed volume by the DA is more than the estimated shortfall of the country.

Fisheries output in the third quarter alone declined by 0.4 percent, while January-to-September production contracted 0.5 percent year-on-year. Industry sources are noting that the decline may continue in the fourth-quarter performance as the fisheries sector posted a P2.5-billion loss due to Typhoon Odette.

2021 Broader Look BusinessMirror

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A7

YEARENDER: OIL

‘Prudence shields motorists from oil price hikes’

By Lenie Lectura

T

HE power of choice proved to be very helpful for motorists—public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers in particular—during the 10 consecutive weeks of oil price hikes that started August 31 of this year.

“THERE is nothing to hide as the retail trade is competitive. The oil industry should unbundle prices. Consumers’ need to know is a universal and fundamental right.”—Victor Dimagiba, president of consumer advocacy group Laban Konsyumer Inc.

increases,” Abad said last week.

Since the oil industry is deregulated there is not much that the DOE could do to bring prices down. That’s why it asked Congress to amend the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998, which authorizes the DOE to merely monitor the international and domestic price movements of petroleum products.

The agency had also wanted to suspend excise taxes on petroleum products. However, this could only be done through an executive order by the President, thus a new legislation is needed.

An amendment to the Oil Deregulation Law, meanwhile, could provide a framework for the government to intervene and address sudden prolonged oil price spikes, require unbundling of the cost of retail products to determine their true and the passed-on cost.

The DOE already issued a policy on unbundling, wherein oil firms are required to itemize their cost of petroleum products to determine if these can be lowered. However, oil firms secured restraining orders for the implementation of the 2019 circular.

“There is nothing to hide as the retail trade is competitive. The oil industry should unbundle prices. Consumers’ need to know is a universal and fundamental right,” said Victor Dimagiba, president of consumer advocacy group Laban Konsyumer Inc.

Aware that every centavo counts, motorists carefully planned their trips. They grabbed the best deals that shielded them from the continued escalating oil prices. They were strongly encouraged to exercise their power of choice in the selection of liquid fuel retail outlets that offer lower prices.

Oil firms offered price discounts—as much as P3 per liter— on top of existing promos like vaccination and loyalty incentives.

“The power of choice is definitely a very helpful tool for motorists. They became prudent and cautious. As a result, oil firms became more competitive than ever. They launched their respective promos and marketing strategies to lure more motorists and retain loyal ones,” Department of Energy (DOE) Director for Oil Management Bureau Rino Abad said in an interview.

During those weeks, gasoline prices rose by a total of P9.50 per liter, diesel by P9.10 per liter and kerosene by P8.60 per liter. The figures were based on the weekly price adjustments that were announced by the oil companies.

Meanwhile, Abad said the aggregate price increases for gasoline from January to December 20 of this year stood at P17.30 per liter; P14.40 for diesel; and P11.69 for kerosene.

Since the country is a net oil importer, any spike in world oil prices affects local pump prices. The DOE explained that the spikes were mainly brought about by the supply restrictions of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the United States’ sanctions against Iran and Venezuela.

Buy back Petron?

Weak peso

IN addition to the developments in the global market, a weak peso also contributed to the spikes.

The price increases were temporarily halted in November. Oil firms implemented price rollbacks for diesel for five straight weeks for a total of P5.40 per liter. The price of gasoline, which also went down for five weeks, was reduced by P6.25 per liter. Kerosene price cuts for six consecutive weeks resulted in a total price drop of P5.55 per liter.

The DOE observed that OPEC’s decision to increase output stoked the release of crude oil stock from the US strategic petroleum reserves, which eventually augmented crude oil supply, and the surging Covid cases in China and Europe, which resulted in the reintroductions of lockdowns, were among the reasons for the shift in petroleum prices.

These successive price cuts, which lasted until December 13, calmed motorists who have been agonizing over relentless price increases.

However, the relief was shortlived as oil firms announced a fresh round of oil price increases for December 14, followed by another round of spike last December 21.

The shift was brought about by the pronouncement of OPEC that it does not expect the Omicron variant to slow oil demand. “OPEC released its price assessment that they will maintain current oil production plan despite Omicron. The market reacted. Now, we are back to price

HEAVY traffic on Edsa. BERNARD TESTA

SOME lawmakers had even proposed to again place the country’s lone oil refiner, Petron Corp., under government control to address spiraling oil prices.

Petron President Ramon S. Ang said the government could buy back the refiner through a five-year installment payment scheme.

“Anytime po, puwede ko pa ipautang [I can lend it to them] in over five years to pay. I swear, if gusto ng gobyerno bilhin, pagawan n’yo na ng [if the government really wants to buy it, they can do the] valuation,” Ang told lawmakers last month during a House committee on ways and means hearing.

The business tycoon even went on to say that if motorists want cheaper fuel prices, they should buy from new oil players because Petron, Shell and Caltex can’t afford to compete with them as their petroleum products are cheaper by at least P10.

The disparity was attributed to the new players’ “very efficient operations,” Ang said. Previously, Ang expressed concern over the rampant oil smuggling activities in the country.

“Hindi ko na pwedeng sabihin pa bakit sila ganun ka-efficient. Kayo na ho nakakaalam noon. Kasi sinabi ko naman sa inyo, napaka­galing nila [I can’t keep asking why are they so efficient.

You know the reason]. Everybody puts up their own port somewhere.

So [there is so much] imported oil and diesel all over the country, nobody can monitor them. So, therefore, they are very efficient. [As a result, their] selling price is very low.

That’s why [they can grab our] market share,” said Ang. Whatever unresolved issues there are between oil firms and the government, it is ultimately the public that will reap the benefits, if any at all.

“There is no doubt that consumers will patronize the seller that sells the cheapest. That is the one good thing that came out of this,” Abad concluded.

2021 Broader Look A8 Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022

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Hope and recoil for OFWs in 2021 YEARENDER: FOREIGN AFFAIRS

A COAST Guard serviceman holds placards directing overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and non-OFWs to their designated areas upon arrival in the country on January 13, 2021, at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. NONIE REYES

I

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome

T was supposed to be a year marking the start of return to normalcy, or whatever “normalcy” meant. For millions of Filipinos dependent on the economies of padala—it meant return of dollars and more food on the table from the depressing first year of the pandemic.

As soon as Covid-19 vaccines became available in developed countries, hopes rose again among and for the 10 million Filipinos working overseas. With more people vaccinated, governments lifted lockdowns and businesses resumed. Slowly, countries opened their borders and welcomed expatriate workers anew. Records from the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) showed that for the first nine months of 2021, an average of 70,000 OFWs were deployed every month despite the pandemic.

Around 57 percent of these new hires this year are seafarers, as crew change became more regular for cargo, transport and petroleum vessels. The cruise industry likewise got reinvigorated as fully vaccinated passengers were allowed to travel again to the Americas, Asia and Europe. This is almost the same rate as the prepandemic level. In 2019, Filipinos made up 30 percent of the crew in cruise ships around the world. The rest of Filipino migrants who left this year are land-based workers, but the numbers are, the POEA said, still low compared to prepandemic levels averaging almost 92,000

people every month.

Meanwhile, across the globe, demand for health-care workers, especially nurses, have gone up.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), however, still won’t allow all Filipino nurses— earning an average of P20,000P35,000 monthly locally—to be recruited abroad to North America, Asia, the Middle East and Europe: job markets with insanely attractive monthly salaries ranging from P100,000-P500,000 plus insurance and accommodation benefits.

PHL nurses in demand

INDEED, and not surprisingly, demand for Filipino nurses is unprecedented amid continuing challenges of the pandemic, especially in the US, the United Kingdom, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. So much so that the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) finally allowed the increase of the annual cap for nurses deployment twice—from 5,000 to 6,500 and then in November to 7,000. Still, a nurses group insisted the higher ceiling is not enough and demanded to be freed from the shackles of

state-imposed travel restriction.

If this trend continues until the end of this year, around 840,000 Filipinos may have left the country to seek greener pastures. Whether this number offset the 1.5 million Filipinos who were repatriated since the pandemic began remains to be seen.

At the macro level, keeping these OFWs and Filipino migrants abroad meant better fiscal position for the Philippine government.

An economist estimated that the deficit in the Philippines’ balance of payments position can climb to positive territory, with a surplus of $353 million (P17 billion), thanks to the remittances from OFWs who usually send more money to their families during holidays.

Economics of travel curbs, repatriation

AGAIN, whether this economic gain can offset the more than P11.4 billion released this year to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Department of Foreign Affairs to repatriate OFWs stranded in countries affected by the bimonthly changes in IATF travel restrictions remains to be seen.

When Covid-19 cases ebbed in countries, the Philippines opened its borders slowly from arriving international passengers, only to be closed again even for OFWs and balikbayans on fresh surges in cases.

When the Delta variant was discovered in India, the IATF stopped flights coming from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Then, the more transmissible Omicron variant happened, with flights from South Africa suspended, as well as those from European

countries hosting big numbers of OFWs, including the Netherlands, France and Italy. Every time the IATF announces new countries under its red list, OFW and balikbayan travelers are forced to change or cancel their travel plans—already complicated with different vaccination and quarantine requirements from one destination to another.

The DFA and Philippine embassies and consulates would have to mount repatriation flights to rescue OFWs stranded in airports, caught by the dizzying plethora of travel and health protocols. Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr., who is so accessible to OFWs because of his hyperactive Twitter account, has repeatedly said the DFA won’t spare any effort or cost to bring home any distressed OFW. Aside from the cost of flights or stranded OFWs, the government is also paying for the hotel quarantine of all OFWs and their testing. If they live in the provinces, OWWA is also mandated to bring them home.

As thousands of Filipinos apply for work overseas, the demand for passport application—both new and renewal—has likewise increased. By the middle of the year, it had become almost impossible for anyone trying to get an online appointment for passport application in any of the DFA consular offices. DFA Undersecretary Brigido Dulay Jr. attributed this to increasing demand for travel compounded by the IATF restriction limiting the number of people inside the building where photos and the biometrics of passport applicants are being taken.

In 2019, before the pandemic, the DFA processed 4 million passport applications. In 2020,

FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr., who is so accessible to OFWs because of his hyperactive Twitter account, has repeatedly said the DFA won’t spare any effort or cost to bring home any distressed OFW. AP/OLIVIER MATTHYS

the DFA only released 1.7 million passports. As expected, an industry of “passport fixers” made a glorious comeback—sophisticated yet socially distant and harder to track down—by servicing desperate passport applicants in their online appointment. Then, the contracted courier service of DFA failed to deliver the passports of more than 4,000 applicants. As if Lemony Snicket’s series is trying a catchup, the DFA’s online passport tracker was exposed to potential data privacy breach.

Migration expert Emmanuel Geslani said many OFWs have lost opportunities to work abroad from the passport fiasco. “Given that the entire country is now at low risk from Covid infection, we should open the DFA consular offices for walk-in applicants to accommodate our OFWs,” he said.

2022 outlook

GESLANI said recruitment industries are expecting an upward trend in 2022. The Middle East

North Africa (MENA) region, for one, appears to have sustained very low cases. With the rise in crude oil prices from a low of $40 per barrel to $80 in the last quarter of 2020, he believes that traditional expatlabor-dependent countries of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE will prime their economies with big infrastructure projects. Technology-driven companies, as well as the health sector, now the biggest gainers during the pandemic, will continue to attract foreign skilled laborers.

While the prospects for the 2022 labor market vary from country to country, the only constant remains—making Filipinos safe and protected wherever they are in the world. President Duterte is now trying to create a legacy for this special segment in society who gave him a landslide victory in 2016. As of this writing, a landmark bill is now at his desk for signing that will create a department solely dedicated to OFWs. The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) will merge all the government agencies engaged in OFW concerns from the POEA to specialized offices of the DFA, DOLE, the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Commission on Filipinos Overseas.

OWWA, meanwhile, will no longer be an attached agency of the DOLE but of the DMW.

While Congress explicitly said the state will not promote overseas employment as a means to achieve economic growth, this very act rightly made it so. After all, we are a migrant people—intrinsic in our nature to always travel as an archipelagic nation. Our new normal, at the risk of being too simplistic, is just a mask with a passport and luggage on hand.

2021 Broader Look BusinessMirror

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A9

YEARENDER: LABOR

In ‘toughest’ times yet, DOLE labors to keep jobs, help displaced workers

OUTBOUND seafarers wait to get their vaccination jabs against Covid-19 at the Bonifacio High Street Mega Vaccination Hub, July 7, 2021, in Taguig City. NONIE REYES

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By Samuel P. Medenilla

ORKERS may have had the “toughest” time this year as business disruptions brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic continued to plague their livelihood, job security and opportunities.

However, the gradual reopening of businesses amid the decreasing infection count by the end of the year, as well as the rising number of fully vaccinated individuals in previous months, has led to optimism among labor officials that it may finally mean the start of a much-awaited recovery for the country’s workforce.

With the said improvements, the government is now eyeing to keep the country’s unemployment rate to just 7 percent by 2022.

Rising trend

THE long period of on-and-off lockdowns since the onset of the pandemic finally caught up with many companies in the last quarter of 2020, and continued throughout the first half of the year.

Data from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) showed that the number of permanently displaced workers, as reported by their employers, started to soar by October 2020 at 67,609.

It reached its peak the following month to 94,711, before dropping to 50,232 in December 2020 and 25,226 in January 2021.

By February, it rose again to 46,518 and continued to stay at over 36,000 until June, even when quarantine restrictions were eased during the period.

This was attributed by Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique R. Tutay to the big number of firms, employing huge work forces, that

decided to finally shut down their operations.

“We surmise these are medium to large companies that folded due to prolonged uncertainties,” Tutay told the BusinessMirror in a Viber message.

Easing of restrictions

THINGS were finally starting to turn around in July, when the number of unemployed finally dropped to 28,526. Then the government decided to impose another round of lockdowns in Metro Manila in August to arrest the spread of the more infectious Delta variant, first reported in India.

However, the number of unemployed never reached the same level from the last quarter of 2020 despite the resurgence of Covid-19 cases.

From August to November, the number of permanently displaced workers hovered only between 25,000 and 30,000.

Likewise, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) noted that the employment rate rose from 91.6 percent in August to 92.6 percent in October.

This, as the government finally started piloting its Alert Level System (ALS), which focused on granular lockdowns instead of largescale restrictions of its previous community quarantine scheme, and started making bigger gains in its vaccination drive.

Poor quality

FORMER dean of University of the

Philippines-School of Labor and Industrial Relations (UP-SOLAIR) Rene E. Ofreneo voiced his concern over the rise in unemployment in October, which reached 16.1 percent—the highest since April’s 17.2 percent.

“The underemployed, those working at less than 40 hours a week, the unpaid family workers and those ‘with jobs but not at work’ have been increasing. So the total unemployment is going down, but the economy is not creating good quality jobs,” Ofreneo noted.

He urged the government to step up its measures in attracting “good quality investments” during the pandemic if it wants to address the issue.

The former labor undersecretary said this initiative could be even more challenging after Typhoon Odette (international code name: Rai) devastated six regions in the country.

NERS

IN May, the government launched its National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS) to address the pandemic’s impact on the country’s work force.

The NERS task force, headed by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and co-chaired by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), consolidated all government programs which provided support to both employers and their workers.

The programs include loans to struggling companies as well as employment facilitation, skills training, upskilling and retooling of displaced workers.

As of December, DOLE reported the NERS programs benefited 2.08 million workers and 129,000 establishments.

NERS also has a component wherein the government partnered

with the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop) to generate a million jobs before the end of the year.

However, due to the additional Covid-related lockdowns in previous months, Tutay said only 60 percent of the said target was met as of this month.

Job creation

LABOR and Employment Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said he will prioritize employment facilitation before he ends his term in 2022.

“With respect to the local employment situation, the prospect is very good, especially considering almost every worker is now vaccinated [against Covid-19],” Bello said.

As of December 24, 2021, the Department of Health (DOH) reported that 18.3 million of the frontliners in essential sectors (A4 category) got their first dose of Covid-19 jabs and another 15.3 million are already fully vaccinated.

Tutay said this is around 75 to 80 percent of the workers in this category.

Worker participation

THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) stressed the need for the government to consult the labor sector in implementing NERS to ensure its success.

TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay wondered aloud, with dismay, why the labor sector is no longer getting any updates about NERS from the government.

“We don’t see and feel the presence of NERS. We don’t know its status. Where is it and how is it doing,” Tanjusay said.

He noted without such consultation, many of the government’s Covid-19 responses ended up being “trial and error” schemes.

To note, TUCP and other labor groups voiced their opposition to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging In-

fectious Diseases’ (IATF) position, which requires vaccination for onsite workers.

They called for the suspension or scrapping of what they called an “anti-labor” policy.

Mixed improvement

MEANWHILE, for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) observed a mixed improvement in their deployment.

For sea-based OFWs, POEA observed their deployment is now back to prepandemic levels at 40,000 per month.

The same could not be said of land-based sector workers, who currently face several challenges, including travel restrictions abroad, as well as the country’s existing deployment cap for healthcare workers (HCWs).

It reported the agency was able to deploy an average of over 30,000 landbased OFWs per month this year.

This is still way below the average 126,413 monthly deployment figures in 2019, when POEA sent 1.51 million land-based OFWs abroad.

POEA limited the number of HCWs who can be deployed this year to just 7,000, to ensure the country will have a sufficient workforce for its Covid-19 response. A similar 7,000 cap will take effect by 2022.

The deployment cap does not apply to HCWs with existing employment contracts abroad, those deployed under government-togovernment arrangement and to the United Kingdom.

Deployment ban

WHILE the government did not impose any deployment ban on other countries directly because of the growing Covid-19 presence abroad, it did suspend sending OFWs to some countries due to security and welfare issues.

Among the countries affected by the deployment suspensions this

year are Israel due to the conflict in the Gaza Strip, Myanmar due to the successful coup there earlier this year, and Afghanistan after the Taliban took over its government.

In the case of Oman, the deployment restriction stems from the decision of the Omani government to stop allowing the entry of OFWs.

In the case of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the government imposed a deployment ban twice to the Middle East country: on the issue of protocols and who will pay for the quarantine accommodation of OFWs, and the P4.6 billion worth of claims of thousands of 9,000 displaced Filipino construction workers.

Priority issues

BELLO said addressing the unpaid claims of the displaced construction workers in Saudi Arabia would be among the issues he will try to resolve during the last few remaining months of his term.

The matter is expected to be raised at the next meeting between labor officials and their Saudi counterparts.

Bello’s other priorities include the completion of the first-ever OFW Hospital in Pampanga, as well as making more “democratic” the decision-making in the International Labor Organization (ILO), the UN’s labor arm where he leads the government group.

Last, Bello said part of his agenda for 2022 is to continue to push for the granting of wage subsidy to pandemic-affected establishments, which, he noted, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III supports.

“We need to bring back workers who lost their jobs, but we also have to understand the situation of our employers that they might be able to bring back all of their original workers, so we may need to subsidize 60 percent [of the wages of the said workers],” Bello said.

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DENR juggles dual mandate of prese YEARENDER: DENR

IN this April 15, 2021, file photo, excavators are seen working on the controversial beach nourishment project of the DENR and the DPWH on Manila Bay. NONIE REYES

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By Jonathan L. Mayuga

HE year 2021 was a challenging year for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), as the pandemic compounded its difficult role of balancing seemingly conflicting mandates to protect and conserve the environment, while promoting the exploitation of the country’s natural wealth.

The DENR was tasked, for one, to take the lead in rehabilitating the world-renowned Boracay Island, Manila Bay, and water bodies in typhoon-devastated areas. The agency chairs or cochairs the various interagency task forces created

by Malacañang.

Below are some of the highlights of the DENR’s activities in the past 12 months.

Solid waste

AFTER aggressively campaigning for the enforcement of the Clean Water Act in Manila Bay in 2019 and 2020, the DENR started 2021 with an aggressive campaign to address the perennial garbage problem in the next two years, promising to close down all 300 illegally operating open dumpsites and replacing them with engineered sanitary landfills.

The DENR acknowledges that there are currently only 189 landfills in operation in 399 local government units (LGUs) across the country.

This number is deemed insufficient, considering that Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid

Waste Management Act of 2000, the law mandating the closure of open dumpsites and establishment of engineered sanitary landfills, took effect more than two decades ago.

Before the end of January, the DENR announced that it was able to close 38 open dumps in one day, confident that the DENR Regional Offices will be able to beat the agency’s self-imposed deadline, with open dumps in Bataan, Pampanga and Tanza, Cavite, being shut simultaneously.

Helping LGUs

TO help address the garbage problem at the municipal level, the DENR distributed to the LGU of San Fernando City, Pampanga, and the towns of Apalit, Candaba, Guagua and Magalang shreddercomposter equipment, which can process one to two tons of compost materials within 24 hours.

By May, a total of 131 LGUs within the Manila Bay region received similar shredder-composter equipment.

Meanwhile, to build enough sanitary landfills to replace the

open dumpsites, the DENR announced a plan to tap the Green Financing Program (GFP) of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) to fill the financing gap in the establishment of some 300 sanitary landfills across the country.

As of this writing, the DENR has yet to come up with its final 2021 accomplishment in addressing the garbage woes, which is tied to the herculean task of rehabilitating Manila Bay under the P47-billion, 7-year “Battle for Manila Bay” rehabilitation program launched in 2019.

The DENR has been stepping up the evaluation of the 10-yearold solid waste management plans of LGUs. As of December 22, 2021, the DENR has approved 1,171 such plans, or 68 percent of its target nationwide.

Fifty-one of these were approved during the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC)-led en banc meetings on November 24 and December 7.

Water quality improvement

AMONG the objectives is to improve the water quality in Manila Bay, targeting to reduce the fecal coliform and other water pollutants to make the water body “swimmable” once more.

As of February 8, 2021, based on water samples obtained and tested from 21 stations surrounding the Manila Bay, lower fecal coliform from the annual average of 7.16 million most probable number per 100 milliliters (mpn/100ml) in 2020, to only 4.87 million mpn/100ml were recorded.

Fecal coliform level in the waters near the controversial beach nourishment project of the DENR and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)

PROTESTERS shout slogans during a rally to protest the Mining Philippines 2018 Annual International Conference Tuesday, September 18, 2018, in Manila. The protesters are calling for responsible mining and demanding accountability from mining firms and the government for the disastrous effects on mining communities. AP/BULLIT MARQUEZ

that saw the birth of the “dolomite beach” has dropped from 2.2 million mpn/100ml on January 4 to 523,000 mpn/100 ml on February 8, based on the average count from three monitoring stations.

However, this “significant” drop in fecal coliform still does not make Manila Bay safe for bathing or swimming, or other activities.

The standard coliform level for coastal waters, which is deemed safe for swimming and other similar recreational activities, is at only P100 mph/100ml.

Fish pens, cages

IN September, weeks after appealing to LGUs in the Manila Bay area to regulate fish pens and fish cage operations, DENR started to dismantle what it calls “illegal struc-

tures” in the part of Cavite.

The DENR believes that fish cages and fish pens are to be blamed for contributing to the garbage that ails Manila Bay—referring to bamboo poles, nets, and styrofoam materials used in fish cages and fish pens.

The following month, the DENR issued a policy banning the transport of bamboo poles in the Cavite area that are intended for fish pens and fish cages.

The DENR said it intends to clear Manila Bay of all illegal structures, including fish traps or baklad, oyster and mussel farms that make use of bamboo poles, nets, and styrofoam, too.

Flood-prevention measures

ALSO in February, the DENR simul-

taneously launched river-dredging activities to prevent flooding along the banks of the Cagayan River, Bicol River, Marikina River, Tullahan River and Pasig River.

For the rehabilitation of the Pasig and Tullahan Rivers, the DENR partnered with San Miguel Corp., using its vast financial resources, to extract thousands of tons of silt and garbage.

Also in February, the DENR simultaneously conducted massive bamboo planting activities to prevent soil erosion on select rivers, including the Cagayan River, the country’s largest and longest river, which became heavily silted due to soil erosion over the years.

In March, the DENR also launched simultaneous activities to clear Pasig River and Laguna de

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erving, exploiting natural resources

Bay of water hyacinth, an invasive alien species that prevents the free flow of water—something essential in keeping the water bodies healthy.

The DENR said it is tapping small fishermen to also boost their income.

Mining moratorium lifted

IN April of 2021, President Duterte signed Executive Order (EO) 130 lifting a moratorium in the processing of new mining projects put in place in 2012 by former President Benigno Aquino III’s EO 79.

Duterte’s order amended Section 4 of EO 79 on the Grant of Mineral Agreements Pending New Legislation, thereby allowing the DENR and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to proceed with the processing of new mining project applications.

Duterte ordered the DENR to strictly implement mines safety and environment policies, and ensure strict implementation of and compliance with recommended measures from the Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC), another interagency body which

the DENR cochairs, involving all mining operations, including other pertinent laws, rules and regulations, and terms and conditions of mineral agreements.

The MGB is expected to craft the implementing rules and regulations of the new order that would focus principally on the grant of new mining permits and declaration of new mining areas as “mineral reservations.”

Pros and cons

ENVIRONMENTAL groups, however, believe that the order will

open the floodgates to more environmentally destructive mining projects, which betrays the “legacy” of the late Gina Lopez. The latter’s short stint as DENR Secretary saw the agency recommending the closure or suspension of 26 operating mines, the cancellation of 79 inactive Mineral Production Sharing Agreements (MPSAs) near watersheds, and the ban on open-pit mining method. Of the three policies, only the open-pit mining ban remained until December, when it was finally lifted.

True enough, MGB Director

Wilfredo G. Moncano said that with the lifting of the moratorium on new mining projects, the agency is eyeing the grant of new mining projects that could generate additional revenues and boost the economy within the next five years.

The MGB chief said at least 100 new mining projects are currently in the pipeline, which can generate additional revenue of P20 billion in the form of excise tax and another P1 billion in annual revenue in the form of royalty tax.

These new mining projects can gen-

erate at least 42,000 new jobs in the mining sector, which currently employs around 230,000 persons.

The heated debate between, on one hand, environmentalists alarmed by the impact of liberalized mining at a time marked by more violent storms; and on the other, the economists looking to tap the mineral wealth to boost an economy pushed to recession by a pandemic, reflects the sometimes contradictory inclinations in an agency with a dual mandate as DENR. How long it can keep the balancing act is anyone’s guess.

4 NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR A HEALTHIER ENVIRONMENT IN 2022

By Viniece Jennings Agnes Scott College

W

HEN many people think of New Year’s resolutions, they brainstorm ways to improve themselves for the year ahead. What if we expanded those aspirations to include resolutions that benefit our communities, society and the planet, too?

It might not be a typical approach, but it can broaden your horizons to show ways you can also be of service to others.

Here are four popular New Year’s resolutions with a twist for improving your relationship with nature in 2022 and beyond.

1

Exercise more consideration for how your actions impact the environment. We each have an environmental ethic reflecting how we value, manage and ultimately relate to nature. Balancing the scales of reciprocity between us and nature

—how much we give and take— can improve this relationship in many ways. Whether it’s our addiction to one-use plastics that pile up in landfills or fossil fuels that warm the planet, a mishandled relationship with nature is not doing us or the Earth any favors.

In 2022, we can all take more responsibility for how our actions exacerbate environmental problems.

We can also encourage governments and businesses to make it easier for people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds to protect the environment. This includes making recycled goods affordable and reliable public transportation widely accessible.

Check out the US Environmental Protection Agency’s resources describing some very simple ways to reduce waste at home, work, in our communities and during the holidays.

Tips from the website include turning off or unplugging lights during the day, reusing packaging materials and using online billing services instead of paper mail.

2

Lose the weight of social injustice—it harms nature, too.

The perils of social injustice stress multiple aspects of society. Racism and inequality can lead to health disparities, and they also have consequences for the natural environment.

A recent study described how practices such as redlining and residential segregation led to unequal access to nature, excess pollution and biodiversity loss. These practices brought in highways and industries that harm environmental quality in marginalized communities. They also left neighborhoods with fewer parks and trees that provide cooling in summer and benefit the planet.

Perpetuating social ills like systemic racism and inequitable resource allocation is detrimental to the environment, marginalized people and society as a whole.

To help turn this around, you can speak out in your community. Join groups that are trying to promote environmental protection and social

justice and are bringing nature back to communities. Call your city, state and Congressional leaders to urge them to take action. Also, refer to the Green 2.0 report’s section on making diversity initiatives successful for concrete ways that you can actualize this in your place of work.

3

Learn something new about nature and how to reduce harm to the environment and yourself. Clean air, water and soil are fundamental for our survival, but research shows many people lack basic environmental and health literacy to know how to protect themselves.

In 2022, get to know your own impact on the environment. Read more and start exploring ways to preserve the integrity of your area’s natural resources.

For example, find out where you can stay abreast of local land-use decisions that impact the environment and your overall community.

You can also support local educators and encourage them to

bring the environment into lessons.

Environmental issues overlap many other subjects, from history to health.

This website (https://naaee.org/ourwork/programs/environmental-literacyframework ) includes a framework and materials for educators to help students expand their environmental literacy.

Staying plugged in with media that discuss the latest research can enhance awareness. You can also try tying environmental facts and knowledge into your game night and team-building activities.

4

Spend more time with family and friends in nature. Studies show that spending time in nature, including urban green spaces, can improve your relationship with nature and with others.

Time in nature can increase social cohesion. Throughout the pandemic, many people discovered the outdoors as a place to decompress and reduce stress. Spending more time outdoors can encourage social interactions that benefit health, buffer emotional distress

and encourage use of these spaces, which can help protect them for the future.

There are some tools that outline best practices to enhance parks and recreation near you (https://www.nrpa. org/publications-research/best-practiceresources/). Also, there are ways to make outdoor environments more inclusive for families in diverse communities (https://www.theatlantic.com/sponsored/ rei-2018/five-ways-to-make-the-outdoorsmore-inclusive/3019/).

Collectively, thinking about our relationship with nature and finding ways to protect the environment can help us be better stewards of the planet.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/4-new-yearsresolutions-for-a-healthier-environmentin-2022-172277. The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.

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YEARENDER: COURTS

In ‘finest hour’ in contagion, SC moves to shield Filipinos vs threats of EJKs, rights abuse, Covid risks T

By Joel R. San Juan

HE year 2021 saw a number of major decisions and measures issued by the Supreme Court that were intended to shield the people against what some groups alleged as governmentsanctioned killings, red-tagging and other forms of human-rights abuses.

A FARMERS group holds slogans during a rally calling for agrarian reform programs and the junking of the anti-terror bill on June 10, 2020, in Manila. Once signed into law, the new anti-terrorism legislation, which allows the detention of suspects for up to 24 days without warrants and relaxes human-right safeguards, is “very worrying” said UN Human Rights official Ravina Shamdasani. AP/AARON FAVILA

“IN this age of innovation, creative solutions are widely available to enhance existing judicial processes. As Chief Justice, with the support of my colleagues, I intend to take advantage of the best technology available to make court services better and more efficient.”—Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo. BERNARD TESTA

It has also refused to let its guard down against the continued threat of Covid-19 to the well-being not only of magistrates, court officials and personnel but the entire population as well. This it did by coming out with decisions upholding the government’s discretion on how to address the Covid-19 pandemic.

Just a few weeks ago, the Court issued a decision on the 37 petitions assailing the constitutionality of the controversial AntiTerrorism Act of 2020 (ATA) by declaring almost all of its provisions “not unconstitutional” except for specific portions of two provisions.

In a vote of 12-3, the Court struck down as unconstitutional the the qualifier to the proviso in Section 4 of RA 11479 which states “…which are not intended to cause death or serious physical harm to a person, to endanger a person’s life, or to create a serious risk to public safety.”

The Court held that such proviso was “overbroad and violative of freedom of expression.”

Also declared unconstitutional was the second method for designating terrorists in Section 25 Paragraph 2 of RA 11479 which states: “Request for designations

by other jurisdictions or supranational jurisdictions may be adopted by the Anti-Terrorism Council after determination that the proposed designee meets the criteria for designation of UNSCR (United Nations Security Council Resolution) No. 1373.”

Over 30 groups had petitioned the SC to nullify the law for being unconstitutional, saying it tends to curtail the people’s basic rights, have claimed partial victory with the Court’s decision.

They called it an affirmation of the “inherent dangers posed to civil liberties by the language of the qualifier to the proviso.”

The Court has yet to release a copy of its entire decision to the public, prompting the government and other petitioners to withhold their comments.

Enough powers

IN dismissing the petitions seeking to declare null and void President Duterte’s unilateral decision to withdraw from the Rome Statutes of the International Criminal Court last March, the SC stressed that the Judiciary has enough powers to protect human rights, contrary to the claim of the petitioners.

Thus, the mounting calls for the Court to come up with measures to address extrajudicial killings (EJK) and red-tagging of lawyers and human-rights advocates did not fall on deaf ears.

In July, the SC promulgated the rules on the long-delayed use of body-worn cameras in implementing arrest and search warrants.

The SC, in its unanimous full court resolution, explained that the Constitution “guarantees that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty and property without due process of law; and mandates the right of the people against unreasonable searches and seizures.”

It noted that “there are increasing reports of civilian deaths resulting from the execution of warrants issued by trial courts, the causes and conditions surrounding such deaths being widely disputed.”

The SC said the rules were issued under its power “to promulgate rules concerning the protection and enforcement of constitutional rights, pleading, practice and procedure in all courts.”

Video factor

UNDER the rules, pieces of evidence obtained by law enforcers who did not use body-worn cameras or alternative devices—which can record both video and audio, in the service of search warrants— would be considered “inadmissible for the prosecution of the offense for which the search warrant was applied.”

However, in the service of arrest warrant, “failure to observe the requirement of using bodyworn cameras or alternative recording devices shall not render the arrest unlawful or render the evidence obtained inadmissible since the facts surrounding the arrest may be proved by the testimonies of the arresting officers, the person arrested, and other wit-

nesses to the arrest.”

It added that a law enforcer “who fails, without reasonable grounds, to use body-worn cameras or alternative recording devices, or intentionally interferes with the body-worn cameras’ ability to accurately capture audio and video recordings of the arrest, or otherwise manipulates such recording during or after the arrest, may be liable for contempt of court.”

Meanwhile, concerned over the increasing number of killings, threats, harassments and red tagging committed against lawyers and judges, the Court also released this year comprehensive measures to address the problem following calls from different lawyer groups.

Initially, the SC said it has requested all lower courts, as well as the various law-enforcement offices, to furnish it with relevant information to shed light on the number and context of each and every threat or killing of a lawyer or judge in the past 10 years.

“We are too aware that everything the Court stands for must bend its arc toward ensuring that all its officers can fairly and equitably dispense their duties within the legal system, unbridled by the constant fear that such exercise may exact the highest cost,” the SC magistrates said.

“In this light, the Court condemns in the strongest sense every instance where a lawyer is threatened or killed, and where a judge is threatened and unfairly labeled. We do not and will not tolerate such acts that only perverse justice, defeat the rule of law, undermine the most basic of constitutional principle, and speculate on the worth of human lives,” the magistrates added.

Facing Covid threat

HOWEVER, the Court’s actions this year were not only intended to safeguard the public’s right to

life, liberty and property, but also to help the government control the Covid-19 pandemic.

In July 2021, the Court dismissed a petition for a writ of kalikasan seeking to stop the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) from cutting trees at the Nayong Pilipino to give way for the establishment of a mega vaccination site for Covid-19.

The Court said the petition failed to enumerate the environmental laws violated or threatened to be violated, and the environmental damage of such magnitude as to put at risk the life, health or property of inhabitants in two or more cities or provinces to warrant the issuance of a writ of kalikasan.

The Court also denied the petition seeking to stop the government from purchasing and allowing the emergency use of Chinese-manufactured anti-Covid-19 vaccine Sinovac.

It held that President Duterte has been granted the discretion under Republic Act 11494 (Bayanihan to Recover as One Act) on how to address the pandemic brought about by the spread of Covid-19.

The law, according to the Court, paved the way for the President to exercise powers that are necessary and proper to undertake and implement Covid-19 response and recovery interventions.

“In the case of Sinovac vaccine, while many doubt its efficacy, it is not within the office of this Court to issue an order compelling the government to conduct further tests before the same can be distributed to the Filipino people,” the Court declared.

“Extraordinary times that present an invisible threat to the health of individuals, unbeknown to humanity, require an immediate, exceptional response from the government. This exceptional response must of course be in line

with the guidelines and actions undertaken by an international central authority which, in this case, is the WHO (World Health Organization) and trusted international agencies,” the SC said.

In line with this, Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo said he would lead the Judiciary in implementing technology-driven programs for court processes for the next five years as the country continues to battle Covid-19 and to make the Judiciary more accessible to the public.

Gesmundo, who will serve as head of the Judiciary until 2026, explained that he would be endorsing to the en banc the approval of the Strategic Plan for 2021-2026, which includes making technology-based improvements.

The Strategic Plan would be founded on four guiding principles, namely: that the Filipino people deserve a Judiciary possessed with competence, integrity, probity and independence; the Judiciary must provide equal access to justice real time; public confidence in the Judiciary is dependent on transparency and accountability; and technology must be the platform on which the basic court systems and processes run.

While the Court, he said, had already embraced videoconference hearings even before Covid-19 struck, and its use was further accelerated during the pandemic, it brought to the fore the quest for a holistic digital transformation.

“In this age of innovation, creative solutions are widely available to enhance existing judicial processes. As Chief Justice, with the support of my colleagues, I intend to take advantage of the best technology available to make court services better and more efficient,” the Chief Justice said.

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DIGITAL SHIFT YEARENDER: TELECOMMUNICATIONS

NATANAEL ALFREDO NEMANITA GINTING | DREAMSTIME.COM

ALLOWS TELCOS TO SUSTAIN GROWTH

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By Lorenz S. Marasigan

HE telecommunications industry will continue to reap the benefits of the accelerated digital transformation initiatives in the Philippines next year, as evidenced by the sustained rise in demand for connectivity and digital solutions on all fronts—from consumers and businesses to governments.

The year 2021 was a year of sustained growth for telco players, characterized by the continued pursuit of innovation due to the increasing demand in the pandemic for more Internet-based solutions that are now driving the industry to greater heights.

All three telcos recorded strong top-line growth as an offshoot of the pandemic-driven digitalization. Globe recorded P113.6 billion in revenues in January to September, while PLDT netted P143.9 billion during the same period. Barely a year since its foray, Dito Telecommunity is on track to end 2021 with as much as P2.3 billion in revenues.

“Though we are challenged by the continuing health crisis, along

with heightened industry competition and catastrophic weather, we remain resilient and have successfully delivered our commitment to keeping everyone connected.

Our relentless pursuit for customer-centricity grounds us and has earned us continued growth despite all the challenges,” PLDT President Alfredo S. Panlilio said.

Dito Chief Administrative Officer Adel B. Tamano said 2021 was the year Dito made the impossible, possible: Dito, he explained, was able to attract 5 million subscribers in 500 areas in the country in just eight months.

“For me this is the headline point of answer for those people who are saying we have not been earning,” he said.

Globe President Ernest L. Cu, meanwhile, said 2021 is a year when Globe started to transition from being a telecommunications provider into a digital solutions platform, which focuses on innovation to drive the digital economy.

“Building on the strength of Globe’s core business, the company is transforming into a digital solutions group by exploring adjacencies that leverage on its assets, expertise and strategic partnerships. These adjacencies include healthtech, fintech, adtech, logistics tech and e-commerce, among others, consisting of investments into companies, majority of which are housed under 917Ventures and Kickstart,” he said.

Sanguine outlook

RIDING on the momentum built in 2021, all three telco executives painted a rosy outlook for 2022.

Panlilio said both consumers and businesses will drive the demand for digital solutions next year, thus telcos will continue to see growth in their businesses.

“We see continued demand for connectivity in 2022 as hybrid work setup will remain, and focus on digitalizing business operations is seen as a more sustainable route,” Panlilio said.

For his part, Tamano said Dito will be more aggressive next year,

given that 2021 proved that there is a demand for a third telco operator.

“It is obvious that there is a market for our service. Now that the economy is opening and we’re able to also start moving into different markets because we will have more commercial areas, I think the future looks bright. We will have some new products, promos and initiatives for 2022,” he said.

Dito is expected to more than double its employees to 2,000 next year, and expand its coverage to 75 percent of the population, adding about 350 more cities and municipalities to its coverage area.

Cu, meanwhile, noted that apart from telco infrastructure builds, the company will focus on developing more digital solutions, particularly in the financial technology space. GCash, its mobile wallet platform, recorded tremendous growth in both transaction volume and user base this year.

“But, apart from fintech, companies in healthtech, fintech, adtech, logistics tech and e-commerce will also benefit from the increase in digital adoption among more Filipinos, resulting in more customers and transaction volumes, and investments,” he said

Typhoon damage

MEANWHILE, just as the year of robust growth was ending, the

“IT is obvious that there is a market for our service. Now that the economy is opening and we’re able to also start moving into different markets because we will have more commercial areas, I think the future looks bright. We will have some new products, promos and initiatives for 2022.”—Dito Chief Administrative Officer Adel B. Tamano

telco sector was dealt a heavy challenge as Typhoon Odette knocked down its systems in the South.

Globe reported that 40 of its towers in the Visayas and Mindanao were damaged by the typhoon.

PLDT, on the other hand, said “as of December 23, the impact is a combination of loss of commercial power, downed fiber and radio transmission lines and collapsed infra. Though we are still in the process of quantifying the infra impact.”

Dito’s towers were largely unscathed, but some of its aerial fiber lines were damaged.

PLDT reported that as of December 29, it has restored around 98 percent of wireless services in Mindanao, with Surigao del Norte, Siargao, and Dinagat Islands remaining to be fully restored.

It added that for the Visayas, 91 percent of wireless service is up overall, while restoration efforts for fixed-line services is still at 64 percent.

“We continue to work to have the rest of our customers connected as soon as possible, hopefully as access roads are slowly cleared, and commercial power availability stabilizes,” PLDT said.

For its part, Globe said restored sites in thee Visayas are nearly at 70 percent.

“While in Mindanao and Palawan, more areas are seeing significant restoration progress. Globe, through the help of local government units, has made it possible to hasten restoration efforts across different provinces hit by Typhoon Odette,” the company said.

Furthermore, Dito has “installed microwave links in priority areas while work is done on the affected aerial fiber cables, and is continuing work throughout the holidays,” Dito Chief Technology Officer Rodolfo Santiago said.

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YEARENDER: DEFENSE

Not even Covid-19 pandemic could totally derail AFP’s momentum for modernization

THE Philippine Navy’s naval assets, on display during Fleet Review on waters off Bataan, December 16, 2020, the first ever in recent years for the Philippine military, which was joined by more than 60 air and sea assets. PHILIPPINE NAVY

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By Rene Acosta

IGHT at the onset of Covid-19, the military had accepted the fact that its modernization procurements, especially those involving big-ticket items, would have to be put on hold, if not delayed, as the funds would have to be reallocated for the country’s pandemic response.

Three of these projects, as Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana later admitted, were the acquisition of six offshore patrol vessels and two corvettes for the Navy, and multirole aircraft for the Air Force, which should complement the FA-50s and two frigates in the military arsenal.

However, as it turned out, none of the big procurements would be dropped. Months into the end of the administration, President Duterte allotted P30 billion for the six patrol vessels and another fund of more than P3 billion as downpayment for the two corvettes.

The ‘legacy’

THE Commander in Chief also approved the funding for 32 Black Hawk helicopters in the amount of P32 billion, as the military moved to add to its inventory of 15 S-70i utility helicopters that were previously delivered by the same Polish company.

The decision of Duterte to pursue the three big-ticket items would leave him the legacy of being the President who modernized the least equipped army in the region, albeit the level achieved was still under the military’s capability upgrade program that runs up to 2028.

When Duterte decided to improve the capability of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), he did not only bestow it with assets and equipment, but made sure it would pack with force and power.

On the morale and welfare side, he doubled the salary of soldiers and even policemen.

Duterte rolled out his program in the military by acquiring two brand-new frigates from South Korea, which ushered the birth of a multidimensional warfare capability not only for the Philippine Navy, but also even for the whole AFP. While the capability for surface, air, land, submarine and electronic warfare is already the

US National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien (right) and Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. pose in between precision-guided ammunitions and other defense articles during a turnover ceremony at the Department of Foreign Affairs in Pasay City on November 23, 2020. ELOISA LOPEZ/POOL PHOTO VIA AP

norm for years in today’s modern navies, even for most of the armies in Southeast Asia, the Navy’s capability is still drawn to World War II until the arrival of the frigates.

1st missile weapon system

U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim (third from left) and Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (third from right) are briefed on the features of the ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Vehicles during its turnover Tuesday, March 13, 2018, at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City. Six drones were acquired by the Philippine Air Force from the United States for $13.76 million and will be used for counter-terrorism, security operations, maritime patrol and disaster response operations, especially in assessing extent of damage caused by disasters and calamities and locating victims and survivors. AP/BULLIT MARQUEZ

TWO months ago, the Navy took its delivery of French-made Mistral 3 surface-to-air missiles for its two frigates, marking the first time the military would get hold of such a weapon. The two ships would also be equipped with South Koreanmade C-Star missiles.

The Philippine Air Force is also slated to take deliveries of three batteries of Spyder ground-to-air defense system from Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense System. The Spyder system is designed to take down aircraft, including fighter planes, drones and missiles.

Israel has previously supplied Spike-ER missiles for the Navy’s multipurpose attack craft and unmanned aerial systems for the Air Force, including the two types of

Hermes drones. It has also previously improved the capabilities of FA-50 fighter jets.

More modern weapons

DUTERTE has procured Brazilianmade Super Tucano close-support aircraft, 16 units of Black Hawk helicopters; C-130 and C-295 planes and even US ScanEagle unmanned aerial systems for the Air Force.

Some of these assets showed their capabilities during the exercise “AJEX-Dagit.”

The Commander in Chief also acquired more than $18 million worth of weapon systems by way of a donation from the United States, which officials said would be used in the counterterrorism campaign in Mindanao, although these weapons have the ability to be used as defense against the fortified bases of China in the West Philippine Sea. The armaments included MK82 bombs, tube-launched bunkerbusting missiles, target-acquisition

systems and support equipment.

In July this year, and months before Lorenzana admitted that the procurement contracts for the six offshore patrol vessels, corvettes and multi-role fighter aircraft would be delayed by pandemic-induced budgetary constraints, the defense chief declared that Duterte is already 90 percent complete in accomplishing his modernization goals under his six-year term.

But with the decision to pursue the additional warships and Black Hawk projects, Duterte may have realized the six-year goal for the military, which is also choosing between US F-16 fighter jets and Swedish-made Gripen for its multirole aircraft.

The Air Force is already awaiting delivery of its six T-129 ATAK Helicopters manufactured by Turkey, giving the military more teeth in its ongoing internal security operations, as the aircraft is well within the category of a “full-

blooded” attack helicopter.

In early December, Lorenzana said the Air Force is also acquiring the Russian-made Mi-17 heavy-lift helicopter, with the procurement money expected to be released soon.

On the side, the Navy is also speeding up the acquisition of a pair of submarines, possibly the French-made Scorpene class, but which may already fall in the third part of the modernization program.

Next year, and before Duterte leaves office, the Army will have its new artilleries and 155 howitzers, as disclosed by Armed Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Andres Centino.

Its Armor Division will also have its first new light tanks from Israel.

The Army was eyed earlier to also have the first batteries of the Indian-made supersonic Brahmos Missile, though this may have been deferred to the third and last phase of the modernization program.

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A15

YEARENDER: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

House leaders tout role in providing the best ‘weapon’ to fight Covid in 2021 and 2022

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte delivers his final State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives in Quezon City on July 26, 2021. LISA MARIE DAVID/POOL PHOTO VIA AP

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By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

ESCRIBING 2022 as “a crucial year for our country,” leaders of the House of Representatives are one in saying that the economic measures they approved as well as the P5.024-trillion proposed national budget they passed are the key potent weapons government could use to deal with the economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the government is trying to finish its fight against the spread of Covid-19, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco said that the bills they passed this year would help the country navigate, and even emerge stronger from the contagion.

Passage of the proposed P5.024-trillion General Appropriations Act for next year capped the chamber’s month-long effort to craft policies needed to shepherd the country towards recovery from the Covid-19 crisis.

“This budget offers hope, opportunity and economic security for our kababayans as we tread on the path to recovery in 2022,” Velasco said.

The Speaker said the spending plan provided Congress the “single greatest opportunity” to shape the country’s priority for next year as Covid-19 drags on.

The ratified national budget for fiscal year 2022 includes a P50-billion fund for booster shots and another P50 billion for health workers’ special risk allowance (SRA).

The 2022 national budget also includes P32 billion for state universities and colleges to help these prepare for the resumption of faceto-face classes.

“This is our harvest of legislation for 2021 so far,” Velasco said.

The House adjourned its session to go on a one-month legislative break for the holidays. Regular sessions will resume on January 17, 2022.

As of December 14, the House approved 133 Republic Acts and expected more measures will be signed into law by President Duterte before the year ends, including the proposed 2022 General Appropriations Act. The chamber also approved 930 measures on third reading, and adopted 266 resolutions.

Velasco said the House leadership was also proud to have “instituted reforms, revised plans, and implemented programs to ensure the health and safety of everyone as we keep the legislative mill running.”

“IF there is one thing that the pandemic has shown us, it is that we are stronger than we knew. We are more capable than we realized. We have seen that there is more that unites us than divides us. We have seen that our legislative work is vital to our pandemic response.”—House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco AP/AARON FAVILA

The Speaker pointed out, “If there is one thing that the pandemic has shown us, it is that we are stronger than we knew.

“We are more capable than we realized. We have seen that there is more that unites us than divides us. We have seen that our legislative work is vital to our pandemic response.”

Crucial reforms

HOUSE Economic Recovery Cluster Co-Chairman and Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda said the passage

of amendments to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, the Foreign Investments Act (FIA), and the Public Service Act are “crucial reforms” to boost the country’s bid for more foreign direct investments.

The amendments to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act and the Foreign Investments Act measures are now awaiting the President’s signature, while the Public Service Act is now pending before the bicameral conference committee.

“There are three key elements to the decision to invest: the con-

straints, the risks and the potentials.

On constraints, the questions are: “Is the door open in the first place?

What can keep the investor from investing more?” On risks: How secure is the investment? What can keep the investment from making a return? Finally, on potential: What’s in it for the investor? Does the upside or the margin justify the investment?” said Salceda.

“We addressed the upside with the CREATE Law, but we still need to address constraints through the liberalization bills,” said Salceda,

who chairs the House Ways and Means committee.

Under the amended FIA, foreign professionals will now be encouraged to come to the country to share their knowledge, expertise, skills and technical know-how and allow Filipinos to broaden and enhance their competitiveness in both domestic and international labor markets.

The bill also allowed start-ups and start-up enablers endorsed by lead host agencies pursuant to RA 11337 to be funded by foreigners with a minimum capital of P100,000 to encourage investments that will pioneer in the country.

Deputy Speaker for Trade and Industry Wes Gatchalian and Marikina Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo both expressed a conviction that the recent ratification of the bill amending the Retail Trade Liberalization (RTL) Act will help the country’s economic recovery amid the pandemic as it could bring more foreign investments.

The approved RTL amendments lower this paid-up capital threshold substantially, and now allow foreign retail investors to participate in the local retail market with a P25-million paid-up investment, and a minimum requirement of P10 million per store.

Meanwhile, the bill amending the 85-year-old Public Services Act provides a clearer definition of the terms “public services” and “public utilities” in the existing law.

In the 1987 Constitution, only corporations that are at least 60 percent owned by Filipinos shall be given the franchise, certificate and authorization to operate as a public utility.

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YEARENDER: SENATE

Rich harvest of reforms, a riveting investigation of a pandemic fund mess mark Senate’s 2021 record

SENATORS wear masks as they pose during the opening of the 2nd regular session of the 18th Congress on July 27, 2020, in Manila.

JOSEPH VIDAL/SENATE PUBLIC RELATIONS AND INFORMATION BUREAU VIA AP

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By Butch Fernandez

HE Philippine Senate spent much of 2021 passing a slew of liberalization reforms pushed by the Executive, but its record in public consciousness was more associated with the riveting inquiries in aid of legislation that it conducted.

Top of mind is the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s marathon investigation into the misuse of P42 billion in pandemic response fund, particularly the role of top supplier Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. in cornering a chunk of the contracts despite being a start-up corporation with paid-up capital of only P625,000.

Up until just before Christmas, the Blue Ribbon panel was conducting hearings in order to provide the nation a full picture of the Pharmally mess which seemed to snare President Duterte himself because of the undue influence that Pharmally appeared to wield.

Chaired by Senator Richard Gordon, Blue Ribbon probers grilled in several hearings Duterte’s former economic adviser Michael Yang, a controversial Davao businessman and major donor to his 2016 presidential campaign.

In several hearings, Senate probers tried to make Yang admit he is the key funder of Pharmally—which could not have shelled out billions needed to procure the supplies it delivered to the government, mostly face masks and shields.

he devoted several of his weekly public addresses from the Palace to lambasting the senator, calling him a hypocrite, crook and a cheap politician out to use the Blue Ribbon to project himself for his reelection bid.

Gordon, however, was undaunted and said the Senate investigation, which has landed three Pharmally executives in detention for contempt, will continue into the new year.

An initial committee report that Gordon circulated has obtained several members’ signatures, paving the way for its submission for plenary consideration of its findings that may require remedial legislation.

Liberalization bills

“WITH the easing lockdown, we expect our economy to improve further in the last quarter of the year. This indicates that economic activities have started to pick up.”—Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III ROUELLE UMALI/POOL PHOTO VIA AP

Yang, however, insisted he gave them no funds and only introduced them to Chinese suppliers.

His claim was contradicted by an admission by Pharmally executive Huang Tzu Yen that Yang had at some point lent money to the company, through the firm’s director Linconn Ong, a former translator.

Blue Ribbon chairman Gordon’s quizzing of Yang so incensed President Duterte that

WHEN not conducting hearings on raging public issues, senators were deliberating on key reform measures that the Executive deemed crucial to economic recovery from the record recession caused by the pandemic.

Topping the reforms is the trio of amendatory bills meant to liberalize an economy seen as shackled by a constitutional restriction on foreign equity ownership. These bills are: an amendment to the over 80-year-old Public Service Act, the amendments to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act of 1991 and the Foreign Investment Act. The Senate passed all three in the last quarter.

Undaunted by the crippling Covid pandemic, senators stayed committed to deliver on their legislative tasks, now more vital to promote the well-being of the Filipinos amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to Senate President

Vicente C. Sotto III, while the ongoing pandemic has yet to have a clear end in sight, there are a lot of reasons to remain hopeful.

Sotto said the Senate made sure, through various legislation, that the economy would bounce back to its prepandemic status.

“With the easing lockdown, we expect our economy to improve further in the last quarter of the year,” the Senate leader said, noting: “This indicates that economic activities have started to pick up.”

Sotto pointed to “the aggressive vaccination rollout drive and the willingness of our people to get vaccinated” as key factors on the road to recovery. “With more of us being vaccinated and receiving booster shots, we know that our situation is likely to improve in the days to come,” Sotto said.

The upper chamber adjourned its session on December 16, 2021, to go on a month-long Christmas break, to resume session on January 17, 2022.

economy,” he added.

The Department of Health (DOH), though a focus of the Blue Ribbon investigation for its questioned act of transferring P42 billion of its pandemic funds in 2020 to a controversial Procurement Service of the Budget department, was also granted assistance through Republic Act 11525. The law provides for a procurement process for the vaccine and its administration.

“Your Senate also filed bills that shall assist farmers and create jobs. Senate Bill No. (SBN) 1927 or Cash Assistance for Filipino Farmers Act of 2020 has been passed by both Houses. In addition, Senate Bill 1590 or Trabaho sa Oras ng Pandemya Act is now pending in the committee. This bill shall create jobs for skilled and unskilled workers in government offices or any government projects in infrastructure, flood control, historic sites, and others,” Sotto added.

2022 budget

THE Senate leader also highlighted the approval on final reading of the Department of Migrant Workers Act which, he believed, was a well-deserved Christmas gift for overseas Filipino workers who are considered the nation’s modernday and economic heroes.

Before it went on a break, the Senate also approved on final reading SBN 2395 or the SIM Card Registration Act which sought to eradicate criminal activities aided by mobile phone, Internet or other electronic communication devices; SBN 1411 or the Expanded Solo Parents Welfare Bill aimed at providing further protection to solo parents; and SBN 2239 or the Va-

SOTTO said the Senate’s accomplishments for the year included the approval of the P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022, which the chamber ratified and adopted before it went on a break.

He said frontline agencies, namely, the Department of Education (DepEd), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Department of Health (DOH), received the top budget allocations.

“Overall, Congress prioritized health budget to ease the limitations brought about by the lockdown and this will consequently redound to the opening of the

Department of Migrant Workers

porized Nicotine and Non-Nicotine Products Regulation Act which sought to regulate the importation, manufacture, sale, packaging, distribution, use and consumption of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

Nine bills were already enacted into law during the first half of the Third Regular Session of the 18th Congress, namely, Republic Act (RA) 11572 (Philippine Energy Research and Policy Institute), RA 11573 (Confirmation of Imperfect Titles), RA 11576 (Judiciary Reorganization), RA 11589 (Bureau of Fire Protection Modernization Act of 2020), RA 11590 (Taxing Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations), RA 11591 SBN-2408 2022 (Fixing the Last Day of Registration of Voters for the 2022 National and Local Elections), RA 11592 (Liquefied Petroleum Gas Act), RA 11593 (Resetting the First Regular Elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) and RA 11594 (Amending the Revised Penal Code).

Sotto thanked the people for being with the Senate “throughout its little and big steps, whether in paths rough or smooth or those unpaved.”

Sotto, who is running for vice president in the May 2022 polls alongside Sen. Panfilo Lacson under the Partido Reporma, made a heartfelt expression of gratitude to Filipinos on the eve of a new year.

“To all our countrymen, whatever their religion, wherever they are in the world, thank you for listening and trusting the Senate. The pandemic may still seem far from over but rest assured that your Senate is unceasing in doing its share in finding hope amid this pandemic.”

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A17

YEARENDER: HEALTH

DOH spends most of 2021 tweaking pandemic response, parrying criticism

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By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

HILE drawbacks are nearly inevitable when it comes to the Covid-19 pandemic response—a similar scenario in other countries during a global health crisis—the Department of Health (DOH) remained unfazed toward the yearend, vowing to do even better in fighting an unseen enemy that has upended entire countries and systems, forever changing the way people live.

The DOH said, amid continuing brickbats for some missteps in pandemic response, that it will always choose “to burn the midnight oil” and learn from the deficiencies to “continue serving the best for our fellowmen.”

Two years into the Covid-19 pandemic and with its extreme uncertainty, the DOH said that the continued support and improvement in the country’s healthcare system capacity are as important as detection and prevention. Balancing both among its priorities, the agency claimed, resulted in success in managing “our facilities amid the surges we have experienced.”

The DOH, despite the challenges, vowed to continue to improve its response strategies from each lesson and feedback it encounters.

“But despite these challenges, it served as driving forces of the Department to improve its ways in handling the pandemic as well as the issues arising from and surrounding it,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said.

Vergeire, who has been the agency’s daily face and voice in briefings the past two years, recalled that at the start of the pandemic when very “limited” resources and information were available, “the DOH wrestled to carry out appropriate interventions to slow down the spread of the virus.”

“Bit by bit, the Department had to quickly cope with the emerging situation and new information at hand to provide a timely response,” Vergeire told the BusinessMirror.

Expert groups

VERGEIRE noted that the health department is backed with reputable expert groups, providing “scientific and evidence-based” recommendations on how the country can effectively and efficiently respond to Covid-19, as well as provide timely, appropriate and accurate interventions against the pandemic that is always centered on what is best for the health and safety of the Filipino people.

“The Department also strictly coordinates with its regional counterparts and local government units to ensure that existing Covid-19 and vaccination strategies are properly and efficiently implemented. This, with an end in view of impeding the community transmission of Covid-19 and doubling the number of fully vaccinated individuals to achieve population protection,” the DOH official said.

DOH budget

OF the P73.99 billion for Covid-19 response for 2022, the Department of Budget and Management approved only P19.68 billion.

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III earlier said that the 73-percent budget slash for the agency’s Covid-19 response next year would affect the allocations for the allowances and benefits for health workers, including hazard

pay, special risk allowance, and meals, among others.

While the DOH was able to augment the resources of the local health facilities, Vergeire said that the increased demand in vaccination as well as its coverage, and the continued challenge of managing control of Covid-19 infections in the country had made 2021 even harder. This, while also managing other health-related programs such as for immunization, infectious and non-infectious diseases, nutrition, reproductive health, etc.

Additionally, she said that over the past year, they were able to see positive results from implementing the Prevent, Detect, Isolate, Treat and Reintegrate (PDITR) strategies in localities through the expansion of hospitals, laboratories and diagnostic methods, active case finding in local government units, reinforcement of public health protocols and safety measures in establishments and other public settings, increased testing capacity, and continuous coordination with Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID) Living CPG for Covid-19 on expanding and updating the list of Covid-19 drugs and medicines.

“Hence, the Department ensures that these will be maintained and continued to be improved,” she stressed.

As the Department repeatedly emphasized, the Covid-19 interventions remain the same but continue to be improved over time.

While the year ahead might be uncertain for the majority of us, the DOH assures that it will continue to serve the Filipino people, not only in combating the pandemic but at the same time improving and intensifying other health programs for a safer and healthier Pilipinas this 2022 and towards the realization of Universal Health Care (UHC).

Biosurveillance efforts

VERGEIRE also said that the satellite facilities of the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) in the Visayas and Mindanao may open as early as January 2022 to strengthen the biosurveillance capacity of the country.

Currently, Vergeire said they are just finishing the preparatory activities before the facilities become operational.

Earlier, Vergeire said logistical limitations remain a challenge for regions in the Visayas and Mindanao to send their samples to Manila to detect variants.

The PGC can process at least 750 samples per week.

The expansions are expected to double the output as both facilities in the Visayas and Mindanao may run at least 350 samples each.

“We continuously learn from our pandemic response. With the emergence of more transmissible variants to repeated spikes in our Covid-19 cases while we are addressing the challenges of accessing other healthcare programs,

TO accommodate workers who are unable to get their vaccination during regular working hours, the local government of Taguig City launched the Taguig Bakuna Nights at BGC High Street Mega Vaccination Hub in Fort Bonifacio Wednesday night July 14, 2021.

The operation ran until midnight, with the city providing small entertainment for waiting vaccinees. The city plans to expand its operations to 24 hours to accommodate more people. NONIE REYES

the DOH is continuously working towards a more coordinated and collaborative health systems delivery that will help the nation fully realize the promises of UHC,” Vergeire said, stressing that the DOH equally balances its priorities for the nation’s Covid-19 response.

Moreover, with the continuous threat of emerging variants, the DOH reiterated the significance of the country’s biosurveillance.

“We were able to detect variants of concern such as Delta and Omicron variants, as well as helped us determine the reasons for clustering and unusual spikes in certain areas which allowed us to employ quick interventions as necessary to contain the spread of the virus,” she said.

Vaccination program

IN addition to this, DOH underscores the ongoing Covid-19 vaccination program which yielded positive results reflected in the numbers of Covid-19 cases and admission/hospitalization rate.

Since March of 2021, the DOH realized the value and efforts of the LGUs in making vaccination against Covid-19 more accessible to their constituents, as well as their support in echoing vaccination advocacies.

With the stability of the vaccine supply, the DOH doubled efforts in vaccine information

caravans to “increase vaccine willingness and uptake among our fellowmen.”

“Not just in 2021, but two years into the pandemic, our response put more value to the whole-of-society, the whole-ofgovernment approach. We cannot beat Covid-19 alone. The government needs everyone to work together to help in our Covid-19 response,” Vergeire said.

She added: “Our Bayanihan Bakunahan also highlights the importance of a whole-of-society, whole-of-government approach.

We engaged the private sector, civil society organizations, and even medical organizations to help boost our vaccine coverage during this event. We could not have achieved our milestones without the help of everyone.”

The country hit a milestone on December 16, after the 100 millionth dose of Covid-19 vaccine was administered.

The National Covid-19 Vaccination Operations Center reported that the country has administered a total of 100,019,137, with over 43 million individuals or 55.78 percent of the target population fully vaccinated.

“This gargantuan milestone is a huge turnaround from the scarcity of vaccine supplies we have once faced at the beginning of our vaccination program. This

sparks hope that we can continue to march forward in this pandemic,” Duque said.

Duque said they owe this achievement to the people who have endeavored together to bring these vaccines to even the farthest barangays—from the Vaccine Cluster to the healthcare and local government unit workers, and volunteers—all selflessly working towards protecting more Filipinos from Covid-19.

Remain vigilant

THE DOH relentlessly reminds the public to remain vigilant and noncomplacent as the country further fights the pandemic by launching several health campaigns which stimulate behavioral change that will help reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission in public settings such as workplaces, malls, public markets, etc.

“Aside from this, we enjoin Filipinos to avoid 3C’s or the Closed spaces, Crowded places, and CloseContact settings, especially those with poor air circulation and ventilation. With this, the public is urged to BIDA Solusyon + (wearing of face masks, frequent handwashing, maintaining physical distancing, and getting vaccinated against Covid-19) or be part of the solution to prevent infection as well as risks of experiencing severe disease, hospitalization, and death,” Ver-

geire stressed.

Moreover, the DOH likewise urged Filipinos to habitually check the veracity of every information on the Covid-19 virus, its variants, and vaccines, in order to decrease the prevalence of mis- and disinformation seen on social media and other platforms and channels.

The Department, in 2021, partnered with social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google to fight fake news on Covid-19 and vaccines circulating on the Internet.

Furthermore, the DOH called on the national government agencies, LGUs and the private sector for stricter implementation of the PDITR strategies and safety measures in workplaces and other establishments, reinforce minimum health protocols, and intensify active case finding to strengthen our Covid-19 response.

“Finally, while the DOH works on increasing the vaccination coverage of the country, it once again emphasizes the importance of getting vaccinated and booster shots after the primary series amid the threats of variants. With this, we call on all senior citizens and persons with comorbidities who remain unvaccinated to choose to be protected against Covid-19 by getting vaccinated,” Vergeire emphasized.

2021 Broader Look A18 Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022

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PAULUS RUSYANTO | DREAMSTIME.COM

MOVING FORWARD: Educational opportunities in the post-pandemic times

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By Dr. Carl Balita

HE education sector must face 2022 with greater optimism in anticipation of the end of the pandemic, coupled with the hard lessons learned through it, and guided by the collective vision for a matatag, maginhawa, at panatag na buhay (strongly rooted, comfortable and secure life) in 2040.

The strongly rooted life will be evidenced by the Filipino family that is together with members able to have time with friends living a balanced work-life and volunteering in the service of communities. A comfortable life shall be that which is free from hunger and poverty, living in and owning a secured home, having good transportation facilities, and able to travel and have a vacation. A secure life is envisioned as that of having enough resources for the day-to-day needs, unexpected expenses and savings; enjoying peace and security, and living a long healthy life towards a comfortable retirement.

By 2040, the Philippines is a prosperous middle-class society where no one is poor. People live long and healthy lives and are smart and innovative. The country is a high-trust society where families thrive in vibrant, culturally diverse, and resilient communities.

The Ambisyon 2040 began in 2015 derived from the long-term visioning process guided by an Advisory Committee composed of government, private sector, academe, and civil society and participated in by more than 300 citizens with some 10,000 inputs through a national survey.

The bold Ambisyon 2040 needs an engaged education sector to achieve it. Those who will be born in 2022 will enter legal age by then, and we may still have the time to engage in an educational revolution before they enter our educational system six years from now, and to benefit the learners these days.

There were and are ongoing disruptions giving birth to new and emerging demands that offer opportunities for education to supply. Here are some anticipated, and envisioned, changes (or wish list) that lead to potentials for education to embrace and optimize.

These changes are also anchored on the attainment of the envisioned future for the Philippines and in making Filipinos as global citizens of the future and beyond.

Digitalization and Digital Transformation

GOVERNMENT will be forced to completely migrate to digitalization if it is serious in providing for efficient public service and if it is committed in curtailing corruption. Taxation, for example, may need to be digitalized to simplify the complex processes and to reduce human contact that breeds corruption. If the private sector is able to digitally transform, there is no excuse for government not to do the same.

In the private sector, e-commerce is accelerated by the pandemic and adaptive business processes that have made businesses survive and thrive. E-commerce is bound to stay and even level up to proportions and innovations beyond our current imagination.

Cryptocurrency and blockchain infrastructure enable wider crypto economy, making virtual items exchangeable for real economic value.

IT, KPO and Next-Gen Electronics

The IT-KPO that grew as a $27-bil-

lion industry in 2020 (from $9 billion in 2010) is an emerging goldmine of the country. From the voice-based business-process-outsourcing (BPO) services, it has the potential to transform as the global hub of excellence in knowledgeprocess-outsourcing (KPO) if only we can transform into the areas of artificial intelligence, robotics and animation, game and software development, cloud technology and information management.

There is an inevitable pursuit of the metaverse, a virtual-reality space in which users can interact in a computer-generated environment and other uses. It is an interface of platforms on the Internet that have built interactive worlds complete with virtual entertainment, socializations and businesses. Crypto-metaverses are immersive virtual worlds with immense social and financial potentials.

These, and many more, may sound Greek to many but these are emerging realities that education should be able to comprehend and optimize, if it wants to be part of the future.

Entrepreneurial MSMEs

GOVERNMENT will need to provide for more incubation hubs for micro-enterprises, especially those in technology start-up, social entrepreneurship, and sustainable enterprises. The micro-enterprises (89% of all businesses) will benefit from a Commission on Micro-enterprises which will ensure access to funding (money), mentorship, and market; entrepreneurship mindset and instructions; integrated government and non-government assistance, and tax incentives and reliefs.

Entrepreneurial MSMEs include the creative and knowledge industries, which have become a brand of Filipino products and services. A basic law for creative industries is imperative, and such should incentivize educational institutions that shall level up on these.

Education needs to cultivate entrepreneurial thinking and financial literacy in the early formative years. The incubation hubs may be the academic institutions linked with government agencies

and industries that could offer learnings in a more contextualized authentic setting. Outcomes of education must be co-created by the “village” which is needed to “educate a child.”

MSMEs generate 62% of jobs.

Education can contribute to the employability of its graduates for the productivity of these MSMEs, to the entrepreneurial graduates who will engage in business, and to the partnership it may forge with MSMEs for them to benefit from research and development, which is the strength of the academe.

Agricultural Revolution

THERE is no need to overstate the issues and concerns of the agricultural sector which output increased only by 20% over the span of 10 years. There is a need to enable industrial farming, which may prompt government to revisit the Land Use Law. The Science and Technology that proved effective among the countries that have trained in our land (and from whom we import our agricultural supplies these days), is the same technology that we could learn to apply. The agricultural budgetary support needs to increase from the usual 3% to 8% of our GDP if we are serious in achieving food sufficiency.

Appreciation of agriculture as a viable career among our young people may benefit from productive agro-processing and other value adding agri-preneurial ventures in the value chain. Accelerated rural development will entice young people to be most productive as purpose-driven generation in their provinces.

Universal Health Care

RA 11223 was passed prior to the onset of the pandemic. It is anchored on a vision for better health outcomes for Filipinos. It will pose a challenge on building public capacity to care, enjoining the essential participation of the private sector, and on building the confidence on the Department of Health to orchestrate the ambitious whole-ofgovernment and whole-of-system people-centered approach. With issues on the supply-side readiness, financial constraints, and sustain-

ability, the education sector may see opportunities for relevant institutions alongside inter-government cooperation.

The availability of the critical human resource, the primary care provider, rests upon the ability of the academe to provide for the competent graduates through its curricula, which may need to pivot towards greater relevance.

The UHC to be successful needs empowered people and communities, which the academe may take as its role.

Professionalized Governance

THE growing number of young voters (estimated at 52% below 40 years of age by Comelec, with 5 million voting for the first time), and the powerful social media that inform people real-time, there is a pressure to professionalize governance. There is an emerging clamor for rules-based, science-based, and value-based governance. The technocrats in government may need to emerge from the academe, with values and research-based competencies.

The Ambisyon 2040 can only be achieved through an empowered citizenry capable of “reviewing” candidates, in the same way that the electorate may have learned from reviewing even their small online purchases. The educational sector may need to take a pro-active role, not in influencing decision making, but in developing critical thinking that would enable its learners to discern biased misinformation in the digital space.

Critical Thinking

THE academe may need to engage its learners into deep thinking to make a stand on many issues and dilemma in a globalized world.

It includes the issues of climate change and environmental protection versus the God-given Philippine wealth of more than $1 trillion worth of mineral reserves, equivalent to Saudi Arabia’s oil. We should also engage conversation on the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) that we may need to attract to infuse new capital, technology, and best practices versus the competition that it may impose upon our local industries, which

may have difficulty to match up.

There is also a dichotomy between the global preference for Filipino knowledge workers who are offered irresistible salaries and benefits overseas versus our need for their expertise and services to propel our own growth. Our perceived need to break down the local oligopolies by opening industries to foreign competitions that threaten many comfort zones. Our need to optimize trade with China, but with ambivalent paranoia because of its disrespect to the Arbitral Tribunal ruling, which is in our favor.

The need for multilateral cooperation with the democracies of the world for various national interests, but with reservations on how ordinary Juan Dela Cruz could benefit from those. The need for a credible National Security Policy with our resources barely available to protect our territorial seas as an archipelago, at least for our food security.

Education has the power to transform young learners to become global citizens who are capable of co-creating a society we collectively choose to deserve. The Ambisyon 2040, if achieved, may not be enjoyed by many of us anymore. But surely, it will benefit our children and our children’s children in a country that is the only one we own.

No Filipino should lose faith, for as long as we believe in the Almighty. No Filipino should give up on love, for as long as there is reason to live. No Filipino should lose hope, for as long as there is education.

Dr. Carl Balita is a Doctor of Education, a licensed teacher, registered nurse and midwife. He is a member of the Board of the Philippine Franchise Association and Chairman for Basic Education of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He is a multi-awarded entrepreneur and media personality, author, university professor, and trainor. He is a BusinessMirror columnist, on leave after filing his certificate of candidacy for senator.

This paper was presented during the Oathtaking and Investiture Ceremony of the Commission on Accreditation for Local Colleges and Universities.

Rizal Remembered BusinessMirror

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Saturday-Sunday, January 1-2, 2022 A19

THE Rizal, the Filipino Scientist statue on the grounds of the DOST in Bicutan, Taguig City. The first large 3D-printed monument in the country was designed by sculptor Prof. Manuel Sicat of the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts. It was inaugurated on December 30, the 125th year of Rizal’s martyrdom. DOST

Dr. Jose Rizal: A top Filipino scientist P

By Lyn B. Resurreccion

HILIPPINE National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal is known for his martyrdom, for his books Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo and for founding the secret organization La Liga Filipina.

His name has been attached to countless paintings, books, sculptures, movies, roads, towns, cities, ships, bridges, buildings, currency and even bodies of water in the Philippines and in many countries around the world.

As a scientist? Less is known about that aspect of Rizal’s life, Science Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña and Undersecretary Rowena Cristina L. Guevara said at an online news conference early this week.

To acknowledge and to emulate him as a scientist, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) inaugurated the 3D-printed 12.5-feet Rizal, the Filipino Scientist statue on its grounds in Bicutan, Taguig City, on December 30, the 125th anniversary of his martyrdom.

The first large 3D-printed monument in the country was designed to last long and was built to withstand 330-kph typhoons and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes.

“Through this project, I hope we will be able to see another aspect of Rizal’s life,” de la Peña said in Filipino during the online news conference early this week announcing the inauguration of the statue.

De la Peña and Guevara agreed that the 3D-printed monument will serve as a tribute to Rizal’s “prolific contribution” to the country, especially in the field of science.

“As a scientist, Rizal contributed samples of animals, plants and insects to museums in Europe.

Even his exile in Dapitan proved his abilities as an expert surveyor [perito agrimensor] and an engineer by providing a working water system in the province,” Guevara said at the same news conference.

“He is honored as an ophthalmologist, a scientist, a naturalist

PROF. Manuel Sicat of the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, who designed the Rizal, the Filipino Scientist statue. SCREENSHOT

and an engineer—accomplishments that are almost unheard of in the 1800s,” Guevara added.

De la Peña expressed a wish that Rizal’s expertise and life as a scientist would provide lessons and serve as inspiration so people could give attention to science and technology at this time and in the future.

World-class technology

THE 3D-printed statue was designed by sculptor Prof. Manuel Sicat of the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, using the world-class technology of Advanced Manufacturing Center (Amcen) of the DOST with the help of the department’s scientists and engineers.

The research and building of the statue and its platform cost P12.09 million, Guevara said.

De la Peña quipped that if Rizal were still alive, maybe he would go to Amcen and create products using its 3D technology.

“Rizal is naturally creative. I am sure he will be happy to experiment using our new technology,” he said in Filipino.

“What is a more fitting way than to use advanced technology such as 3D printing in honoring his life and legacy, and in keeping his memory alive in our hearts and in our minds,” de la Peña said.

Guevara said in using 3Dprinting technology from the topof-the-line advanced manufacturing facility and state-of-the-art prototyping laboratory of DOSTAmcen, “we can tell the story of Rizal in a more creative medium.”

She added that the strength of the monument outlines the DOST’s capability to produce sturdy structures from 3D-printing technology that can withstand supertyphoons and earthquakes.

“This is how the outputs of R&D [research and development] enabled the harmony of science and the arts,” she said.

She noted that Rizal himself became famous with a sculpture titled, The Triumph of Science Over Death, a gift to his friend Ferdinand Blumentritt.

open for students’ field trips, and could even be a tourism magnet for the DOST, de la Peña said.

As part of the commemoration, Dr. Marietta Sumagaysay, executive director of the National Research Council of the Philippines, said in a video message at the event that a series of webinars will be held by the different DOST agencies until March 2022.

Building of the first 3-D printed monument in PHL

Concept: Human side of Rizal

IN a video, Sicat said his 2-feet clay model sculpture was 3D-scanned and printed to create a new art form to build the 12.5-feet statue.

He explained that the sculpture showed the human side of Rizal.

There are children playing around and interacting with him and showing the national hero’s various contributions to science and technology (S&T) in the country.

His right hand is extended to a child, as if giving knowledge to the next generation, while his left hand is extending to an empty space, symbolizing the possibilities of how S&T could be used.

At the ground level is the irrigation system that Rizal made with the use of bamboo.

At his right, a child is holding a flying lizard, symbolizing the one that was named in his honor after he discovered it in Dapitan City in Zamboanga.

Sicat said the sculpture did not only feature Rizal’s contributions in S&T, but also gives the message that knowledge in S&T should be disseminated to the people.

“With this aim, the DOST

THE original The Triumph of Science Over Death clay sculpture by National Hero Dr. José Rizal is on display at Rizal Shrine, Fort Santiago. It was Rizal’s gift to his friend Ferdinand Blumentritt. The image is slightly cropped at the top, which should have included the fire of the torch. MOONRIVERS/ WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/CC BY-SA 4.0

would like to extend to the people Rizal’s services in S&T,” Sicat said in Filipino.

Consulted historians, scientists

GUEVARA said the DOST consulted the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), national scientists and historians to check if using the theme of Rizal as a scientist is correct historically.

Sicat’s concept was later approved by the group.

At the same time, Guevara explained that the DOST’s theme, “Rizal: The Filipino Scientist,” jibed with the NHCP’s “Rizal for Science, Truth and Life” as its theme for the 125th year of his martyrdom.

The Instagrammable statue is

ENGR. Robert Dizon, executive director of Metals Industry Research and Development Center of the DOST, said the construction of the Rizal monument posed some challenges.

He said from the 2-feet clay model of Sicat, they had the big challenge of how to scale it up to 12.5 feet high and which, as some contractors said, would take six months using traditional methods.

To hasten the process that started in October and was projected to be ready by December 30, they used the 3D scanner to scale it up and several 3D printers of Amcen for the different segments of the statue.

At the same time, they had to consider that it also has to withstand both strong typhoons and earthquakes.

In selecting the materials, Dizon said metal was not used because of its very prohibitive cost.

Limited to the use of polymers, such as plastics or resins, Dizon said they needed to get the best material “that could withstand outdoor environments, including UV rays, moisture from rain and humidity” to which it will be exposed 24 hours a day.

His team decided to use acrylonitrile styrene acrylate (ASA) resin—which is resistant to UV rays, heat and cold, and chemicals, waterproof and is machinable.

The BusinessMirror’s Internet search said that ASA is commonly used for outdoor and automotive applications due to its strong weather and color fade resistance, among others. It is also used in exterior siding, automotive side mirror housings, signage, marine

applications and other consumer electronics.

Dizon explained that the project is not just a statue-construction activity. “It is an R&D undertaking on the suitability of ASA for use on outdoor monuments,” he said.

“After the unveiling we will be observing and monitoring some of the parameters for at least six months, only then can we conclude that it is a good material for an outdoor monument,” he added.

If some parts degrade or get damaged, Dizon said they can easily print 3D replacement parts or segments.

3D-printed houses, bridges

GUEVARA and de la Peña said that the 3D technology that produced the sturdy Rizal statue will be used in the making or repair of bridges and buildings damaged by disasters.

“The monument is just the beginning of what can be done with 3D printing. But [the other uses] are still under research,” Guevara said partly in Filipino.

De la Peña said R&D is ongoing in Bataan State University to build 3D-printed housing.

With the 3D-printing technology from DOST-Amcen, Guevara said “we can broaden our creative boundaries and think of more ways to engage in projects that promote pride in our country and continuously inspire the next generation to fight for our country, just like Rizal,” she said.

De la Peña and Dizon said Rizal spouted many ideas to and about the youth, including “Ang kabataan ay pag-asa ng bayan [The youth is the hope of the nation].”

“We hope this statue will inspire the new generation of young scientists to aim high and reach their dreams and help contribute to nation building,” Dizon said.

The Science chief said he hopes to see many Filipinos, especially among the youth, taking up natural science courses and inventing and innovating devices for people’s daily use.

“I hope the youth will see the importance of science and technology, like in the importance that Dr. Jose Rizal gave to it,” de la Peña said.

AMID A HARVEST OF AWARDS, YOUR SUPPORT COUNTS MOST

T

HE pandemic tested the media industry, forcing newsrooms around the world to overhaul the way they do their job while following strict health protocols in order to survive a deadly infection.

The BusinessMirror, the country’s premier national business daily, was tested like everyone else, and survived, even continuing to live up to its promise to provide a broader look at today’s business.

In November 2021, the business broadsheet was recognized as the “Business News Source of the Year” for 2020 by the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (Ejap), the country’s premier organization of business reporters, editors and wire agencies. It was a 4-peat for BM, having gotten the same honors for the years 2017, 2018 and 2019.

And, as in the past Ejap awards, it also swept half of the individual categories, with its seasoned reporters adjudged as best in their respective coverages.

Earlier in 2021, the BusinessMirror was given the Pro Patria Award by the Rotary Club of Manila, for “its commitment of valuable resources for the protection of free expression and its resilience in disseminating fair and truthful information resulting in an informed and enlightened citizenry.”

It was just the latest recognition from the prestigious Rotary Club, which named it “Business Newspaper of the Year” for 2018-2019, and again in 2020. In all, it has received six top

Rotary journalism awards in its short 16-year existence.

The BusinessMirror has also consistently reaped top awards in the Brightleaf Journalism Awards for Agriculture and the Philippine Agricultural Journalists-San Miguel Corp. (PAJ-SMC) Binhi Awards, also for the best in agriculture journalism.

The BusinessMirror was also repeatedly adjudged the leading daily in biotechnology journalism, a recognition bestowed by the Jose G. Burgos Jr. Biotechnology Journalism Awards.

The “broader look” mantra also drew recognition from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) which named the BusinessMirror, at its first awards rites in 2018, as the inaugural “Data Champion.”

In the first “Bantog Science for the People” awards for media from the Department of Science and Technology, the BusinessMirror got the top award for the Institution category for Print; and the grand prize in the individual category for science journalist Stephanie Tumampos.

In 2018, Environment Reporter Jonathan Mayuga received the Luntiang Aligato award from the Climate Reality Project, a nonprofit organization founded by Nobel Laureate and former US Vice President Al Gore.

The Broader Look at biodiversity was also recognized. It was named among the Asean Champions of

Biodiversity, for the Media Category, by the Asean Centre for Biodiversity.

The Broader Look also extended to the paper’s corporate social responsibility. It organized and staged the first-ever recognition rites for the best of the Philippines’s friends in the world, with the “MISSION PHILIPPINES: The BusinessMirror Envoys & Expats Awards.” The initiative won a Gold Anvil in 2019.

Distinguished institutions in government have also repeatedly recognized the BusinessMirror’s role in spreading the word about the work they do—information that shines a light on good governance and committed public service to uplift people’s hopes. Most notably, these are the Social Security System and Pag-IBIG Fund.

Sixteen years, two of them in a pandemic, have tested the promise of a Broader Look. But they are also a measure of the unstinting support of friends—advertisers and news sources alike—and readers who continue to believe in that promise.

THANK YOU, EVERYONE. YOUR LOVE AND SUPPORT IS OUR MOST IMPORTANT TROPHY.

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