BusinessMirror January 19, 2024

Recto: Tax reforms vital to debt, deficit tack

By Cai U. Ordinario

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WORLD | A15

2.7 MILLION ZIMBABWEANS NEED FOOD AID AS EL NIÑO COMPOUNDS CRISIS, SAYS WFP

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EDUCING the deficit and making the country less dependent on debt can only become a reality if crucial legislative reforms are undertaken, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).

In a speech before senior staff of legislators on Thursday, Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said these reforms include Package 3 of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) or Real Property

Valuation Reform (RPVAR) and the VAT on Digital Service Providers (DSP).

The list also includes the Rationalization of the Mining Fiscal Regime; the Single-Use Plastic (SUP) Bags Tax Act; and Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy (CREATE MORE).

“You already know the drill.

None of these crucial measures will come to fruition without your help and backing,” Recto said.

"These reforms will not only fi-

nance development but will reduce the deficit and our dependence on debt.”

Recto said the DOF is currently improving its proposals and expressed his intent to visit the Senate soon to personally discuss the reforms with Senators.

However, Recto acknowledged the Philippines’ strong economic performance, which he said has regained its momentum from the downturn brought about by the pandemic.

As of the third quarter of 2023, the Philippines grew by 5.9 per-

cent, making it the fastest-growing and strongest among major economies in Asia.

The country outpaced Vietnam (5.3 percent), Indonesia and China (4.9 percent), Malaysia (3.3), and Singapore (0.7 percent).

Furthermore, the inflation rate has been decelerating and unemployment numbers have reached record-low levels, while external accounts remain robust.

The Secretary said the government has a reliable flow of See “Recto,” A2

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Friday, January 19, 2024 Vol. 19 No. 96

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 26 pages | 7 days a week

‘GIG TRIPPING’, ‘SET JETTING’ TRAVEL TRENDS FOR ‘24–PTAA

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

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TAX COMPLIANCE DRIVE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr., accompanied by deputy commissioners and revenue officers, conducted an inspection of establishments in a mall in Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City. This initiative is part of the BIR's Nationwide Tax Compliance Verification Drive (TCVD) carried out on Thursday, January 18, 2024. The campaign is meant to enlighten taxpayers on existing laws, rules and regulations, fostering an environment conducive to voluntary compliance and contributing to the overall economic development of the nation. NONOY LACZA

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By Andrea E. San Juan

@andreasanjuan

HE Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Macroeconomic Research Office (Amro) sees a weaker momentum for the Philippines, but notes that it will still post the highest growth in the Asean region in 2024.

In a briefing on Thursday, Amro Chief Economist Hoe Ee Khor said the Philippines is expected to post a 6.3-percent growth, a downgrade by the think tank from its 6.5-percent forecast in October 2023.

Amro also noted that the Philippines would post slower growth in

ANT to watch Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Tokyo, Singapore, or Sydney? There’s a travel package for that.

In an interview with select reporters, Rowena V. Coloma, member of the Board of Trustees of the Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) said, “‘Gig Tripping’ is one of the major trends in the travel industry this year. If you want to watch a concert of bands or artists abroad, especially if they’re not performing here, you can book a package tour for that.”

For instance, her travel agency, Travel Specialist Ventures, has sold package tours for Swift’s concerts in Singapore on March 2-9 for a minimum of US$1,000 per person, which includes a three-day/two-night hotel stay, tours, and a General Admission ticket. “We had a great response, especially from [Swift’s] young fans,” said Coloma, as she noted that this isn’t just a trend in the Philippines, “but all over the world.”

Coloma spoke on the sidelines of a news conference on

Thursday announcing PTAA’s major event this year, the 31st Travel Tour Expo, and the 9th International Travel Trade Expo 2024, which will be held on February 2-4, 2024 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay.

According to TTE chair Patria Chiong, “We hope to see an increase in sales by 20 percent this year.” PTAA, however, declined to reveal last year's sales, only saying it had a total foot traffic of 91,300.

She said exhibitors will offer discounts “from 50 percent and up” on package tours. Favorite destinations of local tourists, which will likely see swift takeups at the TTE are Boracay, Bohol, Palawan, and Siargao. For international travel, first-time local travelers choose Hong Kong, Thailand, and Singapore, but Filipinos who have more financial resources are opting for Europe.

Last year, for instance, many Filipinos traveled to Switzerland because they wanted to visit the places shown in the popular Korean drama series Crash Landing on You. According to Coloma, this is called “Set Jetting,” which will continue to be a major travel trend See “Gig,” A2

See “Amro,” A2

‘Budget gap goal doable if rice subsidies junked’

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HE country’s budget deficit target could be attained by 2028 if the government removes billions of pesos worth of rice subsidies that “accomplish little” in improving production and nutrition, according to the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).

In a discussion paper, PIDS researchers led by Senior Research Fellow Roehlano M. Briones said the government spends P30 to P40 billion annually in terms of subsidies to support producers, expand domestic supply, and keep down consumer prices, especially for rice.

However, the researchers said Food and Nutr ition Research Institute

(FNRI) data showed Filipino households need to spend an additional P20.7 or P21 everyday to be able to afford a nutritious diet. The recommended diet costs P68.2 per day but households were only spending P47.5 on average.

“The subsidies accomplish little in terms of outcomes such as faster improvements in nutrient intake of households. The added financial burden is, however, substantial—about P30 to P40 billion per year, which the government can itself ill afford in an era of fiscal imbalance,” the PIDS researchers said.

See “Budget,” A2

THAI ENVOY AT ROTARY Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary H.E. Tull Traisorat of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Thailand to the Philippines receives a warm welcome from Rotary Club of Manila (RCM) President Rafael “Raffy” Alunan during the RCM’s 24th weekly meeting held at Manila Polo Club in Makati City. NONOY LACZA

PESO exchange rates n US 56.0150 n japan 0.3781 n UK 71.0270 n HK 7.1621 n CHINA 7.7836 n singapore 41.6623 n australia 36.6898 n EU 60.9723 n KOREA 0.0417 n SAUDI arabia 14.9357 Source: BSP (January 18, 2024)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Friday, January 19, 2024

ERC lifts halt in collection of FIT-All as fund declines

By Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

HE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has lifted the suspension on the collection of the Feed-in Tariff Allowance (FIT-All). This means that consumers will resume paying the FIT-All rate of P0.0364 per kilowatt hour (kWh) that will be reflected in their February electricity bills.

The FIT-All is a uniform charge imposed on all on-grid electricity consumers, and is a component of the electricity bill that ensures the development and promotion of re-

Gig…

Continued from A1

this year. “They want to visit film locations of movies [or streaming series]. An example is a tour of London in a speed boat, as in the James

newable energy (RE) in the country.

It may be recalled that, more than a year ago, the ERC ordered the temporary suspension of the collection in December 2022 until Bond films,” she added.

This shows the weak peso has not been an obstacle for Filipinos wanting to travel abroad, according to PTAA President Evangeline T. Manotok. “With regards to outbound travel, the Japanese Yen has also been quite low, so it evens out [our weak peso]. Also with the

January 2024, given the healthy state of the FIT-All Fund and to alleviate the burden of Filipinos amid the rising costs of electricity in 2022.

As the Commission re-evaluated the balance of the FIT-All Fund as of January 5 this year, inclusive of the Cost Recovery Revenue (CRR) collections in November 2023, the ERC found that the projected FIT-All Fund would be in deficit in the February 2024 customer monthly billing. As such, the ERC resolved to approve and adopt the lifting of the suspension and to resume the collection of the FIT-All charges.

In August 2022, the Commission approved the implementation of the FIT-All rate at P0.0364/kWh. However, in November of the same year, the ERC directed collection agents to temporarily suspend the collection of FIT-All for a period of three months from December 2022 until February 2023 billing months.

Considering the rising level of inflation and cost of living affecting millions of Filipino households, the Commission reevaluated the FIT-All Fund balance and determined its healthy status, which can sufficiently cover the FIT-All payment requirements. Thus, in February 2023, the Commission extended the temporary suspension of in the FIT-All collection for a period of six months, starting March 2023 until August 2023 billing. After this, the Commission further extended the temporary suspension.

The suspension, as adopted in the ERC Resolution No. 01, Series of 2024 issued on January 16, 2024, was decided upon by the Commission due to the looming deficit in the projected FIT-All Fund.

euro,” which averaged about P58 in 2019 but is now trading at P60.90, she told the BusinessMirror. The peso is currently trading around P55.85:$1, compared to P51.77:$1, pre-pandemic.

Also, she said, “I think the Filipinos were able to save during the pandemic so they are now making

[foreign] travel a priority.” Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed Filipinos spent an estimated US$4,741 million on their travels abroad from January to September 2023, up 43.6 percent from the same period in 2022.

‘Upgrades,’ too

Meanwhile, another major trend this year are “Upgrades,” said Coloma. “People want upgrades in hotels, air cabins, and they want to eat in Michelinstarred restaurants, but at less cost. So these are value-formoney packages, where travelers want to get more, but it has to be within their budget.”

Part of this trend are travelers “just wanting to satisfy their desires. So they choose a destination where they can just sleep, or go food tripping, or shopping.”

TTE features more than 200 exhibitors with 702 booths that include airlines, domestic and international travel agencies and tour operators, hotels and resorts, cruise lines and shipping companies, merchandisers, among others. As of January 14, there are 68 registered sellers for the International TTE coming from Australia, the United States, Asia, the United Arab Emirates, and Europe, while registered buyers are about 220. PTAA has 550 members across the Philippines.

Recto…

Continued from A1

revenues, while its current National Government debt-to-GDP and deficit-to-GDP ratios are within the parameters of the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF).

The briefing was conducted to help lawmakers’ senior staff get a better grasp of the DOF's priority bills and clarify any misconceptions they may have before sessions begin in Congress.

Resource persons from the DOF’s offices and attached agencies discussed the priority bills’ salient features, fiscal impact, and target legislative timeline.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Budget…

Continued from A1

“The projected deficit in 2024 might be lowered by 4 percent if this spending were avoided, hastening attainment of the deficit target of 3 percent of GDP by 2028,” they added.

The high food costs nationwide have caused Filipinos to underspend on certain food that are crucial to good nutrition, while overspending for rice.

Given the current conditions, the team estimated that while most Filipino households can afford adequate levels of energy and protein by 2030, this will not be the case for Vitamin A. “By food group, households were [currently] underspending for fats and oils, milk and milk products, eggs, fruits, and vegetables. Meanwhile there is overspending for meat, fish, and nuts, and starchy staples (mostly rice),” the researchers said.

High food costs, the PIDS researchers said, prompted the government to implement “unprecedented policies” including “bloating” the Department of Agriculture budget, imposing rice price ceilings for rice, and selling rice through Kadiwa stores at P25 per kilogram of rice.

However, the authors said, consistent income growth could address this by allowing more households to afford food—including nutritious food that does not only involve rice consumption—nationwide.

The researchers said lower inflation will also help achieve food affordability for most of the population with regard to energy and protein.

“The interrelationships at general equilibrium imply that the two are connected – rapid economic expansion overall is accompanied by slower but still sustained growth of agriculture, and therefore easing up of food prices,” the researchers said.

PIDS said the study found that maintaining current economic trends will not be enough to ensure food affordability and adequate nutrient intake for all Filipinos by 2030.

However, it lays out two promising paths to a more nourishing future—one is paved with productivity-driven progress and the other is built on strategic rethinking of food subsidies.

The paper employed scenario analysis considering the interconnectedness of different sectors within the Philippine economy, including production, consump-

Amro…

Continued from A1

2023 to 5.6, from its initial forecast of 5.9 percent, due to the country’s “weak” export performance.

“We also shaded down growth for the Philippines this year from 6.5 to 6.3, but it’s still one of the highest growth[s] in the region. One reason why growth is somewhat weaker in Q4 could also be that interest rates are relatively higher,” Khor said.

“The Philippine economy has held up very well despite high inflation and interest rates, and it’s much less dependent on exports than other countries in the region. Nevertheless, still affected by weak exports last year,” he also noted.

Moving forward, Khor said the country needs to keep rates “relatively tight” in order to make sure that inflation goes down.

“We agree with the BSP [Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas] view that the rates should remain tight until inflation is down to within target,” Khor noted.

Amro projects the country’s inflation rate to slow to 3.6 percent in 2024, which it said is within “inflation target band, but is above the midpoint.” Khor noted, however, that the country’s inflation rate still depends on whether the US Federal Reserve would cut rates by the middle of the year.

“I think by the end of this year, we expect, much closer to the band, and also it depends what happens in the US, if Fed starts to cut by middle of this year, maybe it would be good for the PHL . . . as long as the economy is doing strongly, we don’t see the urgency for BSP to cut rates.”

Regional outlook

In a statement on Thursday, Amro

tion, and trade.

The most promising outlook emerges on investing in broad-based productivity across the entire food system. This approach fosters economic growth, leading to lower food prices, improved household income, and a greatly enhanced nutrient intake for a sizable portion of the population.

“Investing in general services like research and development and infrastructure is an effective strategy for achieving affordable diets,” the authors said. “Long-term government investment in these areas, especially in agriculture, is seen as a more efficient approach to enhancing food affordability and dietary quality,” they continued.

They caution that relying solely on existing economic trends will leave many Filipinos struggling to afford nutritious food by 2030.

According to them, the costs for both producers and consumers are expected to rise moving forward in this scenario.

It indicates that while most households could secure sufficient calories, Vitamin A deficiencies might persist. This highlights a potential nutritional gap despite adequate energy intake.

Targeted interventions

Meanwhile, while the study acknowledges the limited effectiveness of simply subsidizing rice, it also recognizes the potential value of targeted interventions.

By strategically focusing on vulnerable groups or key commodities, carefully designed subsidy programs can offer a valuable tool for supporting those most at risk.

However, the authors emphasize the importance of moving beyond a singular focus on rice and adopting a more nuanced approach that tackles food affordability holistically.

“Despite the lower price of rice in a Subsidy scenario, about 45 percent of calorie availability of Filipinos already obtained from non-cereal sources, hence policies that focus on just the key staple may be insufficient to make a serious dent in the size of total calorie intake,” expounded the authors.

“Adopting a transformative agenda that prioritizes broad-based productivity enhancements alongside targeted interventions holds the key to ensuring a future where nutritious food is accessible and affordable for all Filipinos,” the authors stressed.

They emphasize that prioritizing productivity and embracing a holistic approach can help the Philippines take decisive steps towards achieving its ambitious goal of ending hunger by 2030. Cai U. Ordinario

said it maintained its 2024 growth forecast of 4.5 percent for the Asean+3 region in its January quarterly update of the Asean+3 Regional Economic Outlook (AREO).

For the full-year growth in 2023, the think tank said the Asean+3 region is expected to end the year with a 4.4-percent growth, slightly higher than last October’s projection of 4.3 percent, owing to the higher growth of China.

“The upward revision reflects the higher growth of 5.2 percent for China, up from last quarter’s forecast of 5.0 percent,” Amro said in its statement.

Stabilizing industrial and services activities in the Chinese economy, it noted, are helping to provide additional momentum to the region in 2024, alongside “gradual improvement” in exports to other key markets.

Meanwhile, on the inf lation forecast, price increase rates in the Asean+3 region—excluding Lao PDR and Myanmar—are expected to moderate to 2.6 percent this year from an estimated 2.8 percent for 2023, Amro noted.

However, Amro said, “upside risks to inflation remain salient, and core inflation continues to be high in many economies.”

Khor explained, “Spiking global commodity prices remains the key risk to growth, but there are several other wildcards. We still cannot rule out a US recession, for one.”

“The lead-up to the US election in late 2024 could also exacerbate policy uncertainty and volatility in financial markets,” he added.

Amro noted that a recession in the US and Euro area this year could “potentially slash” the region’s GDP growth by half. It also noted, “The negative impact on the region’s growth would be amplified if the momentum in China’s economic recovery weakens in tandem.”

Friday, January 19, 2024

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

Lawmakers to Beijing: PHL not a vassal state

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

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House senior deput y speaker on Thursday defended President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. from China’s criticism over the Philippine leader’s congratulatory message to newly elected Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, saying the gesture aligns with the Philippines’ diplomatic principles and commitment to positive international relations.

Deputy Speaker Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr. emphasized that as the elected leader of a sovereign nation, Marcos has the prerogative to foster amicable relations and congratulate global leaders without deviating from established foreign policies.

The lawmaker from the third district of Pampanga clarified that extending goodwill to Taiwan does not signify a departure from the Philippines’ diplomatic ties with China.

Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, for his part, rejected the notion of the Philippines being a vassal state to China.

Barbers asserted the count r y ’s i nd e p e nd e nc e , s t at i n g that they would not be treated as subjects and emphasizing the right to express opinions without interference.

“We are not your subjects, and our country is not a vassal state that owes allegiance to China. Do not treat us like one, not even in your wildest dreams and imagination,” said Barbers.

Barbers slammed any attempt to curtail their sovereignty and urged against undermining the competence of the nation’s leader.

He affirmed the Philippines’ commitment to international diplomatic norms and maintaining friendly relations with all nations while safeguarding the nation’s freedom, independence, and rights.

“Make no mistake about it; we will fight to keep our freedom, independence, and rights as a sovereign nation. Whoever threatens our free existence, we shall fight against and resist to the last man,” Barbers stressed.

Addressing concerns raised by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Gonzales stressed the Philippines’ commitment to mutual respect and understanding with China.

He rejected the notion that acknowledging the leadership of neighboring countries equates to “playing with fire,” as suggested by the foreign ministry.

“The Philippines values its diplomatic relationship with China and remains committed to mutual respect and understanding. However, it’s imperative to clarify that fostering friendly ties with neighboring countries and acknowledging their leadership does not equate to ‘playing with fire,’ as the foreign ministry put it,” he said.

Gonzales further highlighted the profound people-to-people relations between the Philippines and Taiwan underscored by the significant number of Filipino citizens contributing to Taiwan’s society and economy.

“Our connections go beyond diplomatic formalities. They are rooted in the shared aspirations and hard work of our people,” he said. “ W hile we appreciate constructive dialogue, it’s crucial to approach international discourse with respect. Suggestions that undermine the competence of our nation’s leader are neither productive nor reflective of the mutual respect that should anchor our bilatera l relations,” Gonzales stressed addressing his message to China.

He reiterated the Philippines’ adherence to international diplomatic norms and its commitment to maintaining cordial relations with all nations, including both China and Taiwan.

Yamsuan reminds policemen on ‘proper use’ of soon-to-be-acquired bodycams

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lawmaker on Thursday urged the Philippine National Police to ensure the integrity of video recordings in body-worn cameras (bodycams) used in law enforcement operations following the allocation of P807.3 million for the procurement of 22,000 such gadgets.

To ensure that this planned massive procurement of bodycams is put to good use, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan said the PNP should properly train its technical personnel tasked with taking custody of the recordings in these devices to preserve their integrity as pieces of evidence.

Yamsuan said the PNP should also ensure that its uniformed personnel undergo regular training and continuing education on police operational procedures and the protocols on the use of bodycams to prevent allegations of misconduct, violations of privacy, and other irregularities when conducting their operations.

“We in Congress want to institutionalize the use of bodycams to protect both our citizens and our police officers from abuse and false accusations. The use of body cams will also help maintain trust in police operations,” said Yamsuan, a member of the House Committee on Public Order and Safety.

“However, the PNP should make sure that bodycam recordings remain unedited and untampered [with]. Police officers should also be well versed in police operational procedures, especially evidence gathering, which requires their continuing education and training. Both of these will ensure the effective use of body cams in building airtight cases against suspected criminals,” Yamsuan added.

In a recent statement, the PNP chief, Maj. Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. said the national police intend to acquire about 22,000 body cameras this year. He said the procurement is part of the PNP’s ongoing efforts to keep the Philippines’ ranking as the third safest country in Southeast Asia, as recognized in the Gallup Law and Order Index for 2023.

Yamsuan pointed out that while bodycams are now widely used to help deter inappropriate police behavior and protect crime suspects from abuses, there have been cases in other countries of law enforcement officers editing or deleting footage from such devices.

“If that happens here, then the funds we allocated to procure these bodycams would just go to waste. That’s why it is very important for bodycam recordings to be protected from any form of tampering.

Isn’t it better that we are not just the third safest country, but the number one safest in Southeast Asia?” he said.

Yamsuan pointed out that in the 2024 General Appropriations Act. the allocation for the PNP’s education and training component is P1.26 billion, up by about 7.6 percent from P1.17 billion in 2023.

He urged Acorda to allot a portion of this P1.26 billion allocation to the training of technical personnel who will secure and file bodycam recordings.

In May last year, the House Public Order and Safety Committee tackled several bills seeking to institutionalize the use by police officers of body-worn cameras during law enforcement operations.

The measures were referred to the Subcommittee on Police Operations for further action. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

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DND chief: PHL aims to explore oil-rich sea amid China tension T

he Philippines is building defense alliances with the US and other security partners to help pave the way for resource exploration in the oil-andgas-rich South China Sea (SCS), the nation’s top defense official said, amid heightened tensions with Beijing.

“I really do think it’s quite urgent that we start now,” Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said in an interview with Bloomberg News on Wednesday in his office in Manila. While he declined to provide details, Teodoro, 59, said that resource exploration is “part of the package” of the Philippines’ strategy in fighting for its territory.

His comments suggest that energy exploration could well be the next flashpoint in the territorial disputes in SCS where Beijing has laid a sweeping claim opposed by countries, including the Philippines and rejected by an international tribunal in 2016.

The Philippines, which imports almost all its fuel requirements, has been trying to start energy exploration in its territorial waters as a key local gas field nears depletion.

T hat bid had been largely foiled by the maritime dispute

w it h C hina, whic h rout inely deploys ships in the contested waters. Beijing’s agenda in the SCS may a lso be spur red by energ y interests, according to Teodoro.

“This could mean that they really want total domination and control over ever ything from free passage to resources, or they want to bear hug the Philippines to make them the sole joint venture partner in the exploration or exploitation of resources in this area,” Teodoro said. “Their legal position is untenable and has been rejected by the whole world,” he said.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. had lately stepped up a push to end the deadlock in negotiations in SCS resource exploration, almost a year since he met Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and agreed to jointly pursue discussions.

Since that January 2023 meeting in Beijing, relations between the two neighbors have become rocky, marked by increasingly dangerous encounters at the sea.

The Philippines will not allow any joint exploration that doesn’t recognize the nation’s right to exclusively exploit these resources, the defense chief said. “Our role really is to secure the territorial

integrity and sovereignty of the Philippines and to protect as much as we can the peaceful and unimpeded exploitation by Filipinos and legally allowable entities,” said Teodoro, a lawyer by training and a one-time presidential contender.

In the face of a “more aggressive” China, the Southeast Asian nation is also planning “more robust” military activities with the US and its allies, Teodoro said, describing his nation’s alliance with America as “extremely strong.” In early 2023, the Philippines agreed to expand American access to military bases near Taiwan and the SCS. The Philippines is also expanding ties with “other allies and likeminded countries,” including Australia, Japan, the UK and Canada.

As the US heads into a crucial election in November, Teodoro hopes that Washington’s defense strategy in the Indo-Pacific will not waver.

“A lot has been invested already on both sides,” he said, referring to the US and Philippine engagements. Ensuring security in the Indo-Pacific and rights of passage in the vital trade route benefits not only the US and its allies but the entire global

economy, according to the defense minister.

Tensions escalated in recent months as Philippines and Chinese ships faced off in the contested waters. Teodoro said that what worries him the most about the dispute is “the possibility of a miscalculation or a conflict.”

“You’re dealing with a country without any openness, with opaqueness, with unpredictability, with no external indicators to show what its next move will be,” he said of China. As a result, countries like the Philippines have to be prepared all the time, which Teodoro said has kept him busy “hardening and building up our alliances” in line with Marcos’s foreign policy stance.

Deeper Philippines-US defense ties have drawn criticism from China, with its top diplomat warning Manila last month against colluding with “malicious external forces.”

China is hoping to meet halfway with the Philippines, Beijing’s envoy to Manila Huang Xilian separately said at an event late Wednesday in Manila. Foreign affairs officials from both countries also met in Shanghai on Wednesday and agreed to better manage the SCS. Bloomberg News

Survey result affirms public support for govt initiatives in WPS, Año says

By Rex Anthony Naval

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he recent Pulse Asia survey, which showed that 79 percent of respondents believe the Philippines should work with the US and other allies amid continuing tensions in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), is a strong indication that Filipinos support government initiatives in resolving the issue, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said on Thursday.

“We appreciate the trust and confidence our countrymen place in our strategic alliances and diplomatic efforts,” he said in a statement.

The survey Año was referring to was commissioned by international think-tank Stratbase Institute and released during their “Fortifying Cyber Cooperation Towards

Digital Security” forum held last Tuesday, January 16, 2024.

“We thank the public for their support underscoring the significance of fostering international partnerships. This affirmation not only reinforces the correctness of our position but also highlights the shared commitment to safeguarding our nation’s interests in the global arena,” he added.

The respondents, who were given the option to choose three countries or organizations, also highlighted the importance of collaboration with Australia and Japan, both garnering 43 percent and 42 percent support, respectively.

This reinforces the shared values and commitment to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and the commitment to a rules-based international order.

“We take note of the public’s suggestions on measures the administration can undertake to assert the country’s rights in the WPS. A substantial 67 percent emphasize the importance of strengthening our external defense capabilities, especially the Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard. Additionally, 56 percent advocate for reinforcing alliances through joint patrols and military exercises with like-minded countries, echoing the need for a collaborative approach,” Año, who is also head of the National Security Council, said.

The Pulse Asia survey also stressed the urgency to address the situation by establishing a stronger military presence in the WPS as suggested by 52 percent of respondents.

The call for improving inter-agency cooperation in maritime security is also

echoed by another 52 percent.

Meanwhile, a majority or 52 percent of respondents believe that the Marcos administration can fulfill its promise of protecting the WPS against illegal and aggressive actions by other states.

Año said this confidence reflects the public’s trust in the administration’s commitment to safeguarding the country’s territorial integrity and maritime interests.

He added that the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea remains dedicated to upholding the nation’s sovereignty and territorial rights.

“We will continue working towards peaceful and diplomatic solutions, reinforcing alliances with like- minded nations, and ensuring the safety and security of our maritime domain,” Año stressed.

NSA claps back at Canadian govt’s travel advisory to Mindanao

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hile it recognizes the right of the Canadian government to safeguard its citizens abroad, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año on Thursday believes the January 10 travel advisory issued by Canada for several Mindanao provinces does not reflect the real security situation.

The Canadian travel advisory raised concerns about crime, terrorism, civil unrest, and kidnapping in specific areas chiefly in Mindanao categorizing them as “avoid all travel” and “avoid non-essential travel.”

“While we appreciate their con-

cern for the safety and security of Canadian citizens, we wish to express our disagreement with the basis and scope of the advisory,” Año said.

He added the peace situation in the Philippines, especially in Mindanao, has greatly improved as reflected in the improved ranking of the country in the Global Terrorism Index from being part of the top 10 countries affected by terrorism a few years back to rank 18 last year.

The Philippines also ranked 115th in the Global Peace Index in 2023 scoring six points for positive

change.

“It is crucial to highlight that the Philippines has implemented comprehensive measures to enhance peace and security in Mindanao.

The government has been unrelenting in resolving the root causes of violence and rebellion, together with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, created under the Bangsamoro Organic Act,” Año pointed out.

He added the implementation of the Bangsamoro Organic Act, decommissioning efforts, and other socioeconomic development and

political initiatives have significantly reduced violent incidents in Mindanao.

This significant reduction in incidents signifies successful law enforcement operations contributing to a safer and more stable environment in Mindanao.

He added that they are also open to inviting representatives from the Canadian government to engage in a constructive dialogue with the Philippine authorities to better understand the context and nuances of the security situation.

Rex Anthony Naval

Police officer implicated in Camilon case sacked

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he Philippine National Police (PNP) on Thursday announced that the police officer implicated in the disappearance of beauty pageant contestant, Catherine Camilon, has been booted out of the service as of January 16 this year.

PNP Police Regional Office (PRO) 4A commander Brig. Gen. Paul Kenneth Lucas identified the dismissed officer, who is now under restrictive custody, as Maj. Allan De Castro, reportedly the victim’s boyfriend.

PRO-4A is also known as the

police command tasked to secure the Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, and Quezon (Calabarzon) provinces.

“I would like to announce the dismissal of Police Maj. Allan Avena De Castro from the PNP service effective January 16, 2024 signed by me, following an extensive investigation conducted by our Regional Internal Affairs Service (RIAS) 4A,” Lucas said in a statement.

The case against De Castro arose from allegations of conduct unbecoming of a police officer that was proven after a series of inves-

tigations that revealed evidence of an extramarital affair between the respondent and the victim.

“His dismissal from the service underscores the commitment of the command in maintaining the highest standards of conduct and integrity within our ranks. This reflects our dedication to transparency, accountability, and upholding the principles of justice,” Lucas stressed.

He added De Castro’s dismissal is an independent administrative action and is separate from the ongoing criminal investigation related to the disappearance of

Camilon.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group -Calabarzon earlier filed a case of kidnapping against De Castro, Jeffrey Magpantay and two “John Does” before the Batangas Provincial Prosecutor’s Office, which held three preliminary investigations in December.

Camilon was last seen alive inside a Lemery mall last October.

During her last call with her family, the victim said she was in Bauan and headed for a meeting in Batangas City. Rex Anthony Naval

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Economy

Friday, January 19, 2024

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

NEA and PHL space agency ink accord to boost govt’s electrification program

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

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HE National Electrification Administration (NEA) and the Philippine Space Agency (PSA) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will aid the government in its electrification program.

“The partnership with PSA allows the use of satellite technology and data to identify unserved and underserved to aid NEA in its implementation of accelerated electrification plan,” said NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda during the MOA signing held Thursday.

B ased on the recently released

2023-2032 National Total Electrification Roadmap (NTER), the Department of Energy, in consultation with the NEA, National Power Corporation (NPC), and concerned distribution utilities (DUs), initially identified 407 areas, of which, 285 are unserved comprising of 20,103 households, while 122 are underserved with a total of

around 20,207 households.

These far-flung or remote areas have the presence of economic activities that require the much-needed electricity services.

The facilities of PSA can help NEA verify and monitor areas that have already been energized and those that need to be

Romualdez underscores positive response for MIF in WEF meeting

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PEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, leading the Philippine delegation to the 2024 World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting, expressed gratitude for the overwhelmingly positive response from both local and foreign investors towards the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF).

During the “Breakfast Interaction with the Philippine Delegation to the 2024 WEF” held at the Belvedere Hotel in Davos, Switzerland, Romualdez underscored the significance of the constructive feedback and interest received regarding the MIF. The delegation’s engagement with

executives and representatives from prominent international business and interest groups provided a platform to showcase the potential of the sovereign wealth fund (SWF), said Romualdez on Wednesday (Switzerland time).

“I am heartened and thankful for the interest we have received from both local and foreign investors who have recognized this as the most opportune time to invest in the MIF,” said Romualdez.

“We are extremely optimistic about the continued growth of the Philippine economy and the potential of the MIF and

look forward to a fruitful partnership with our investors as we build a better, brighter future for our countrymen,” he added.

Romualdez acknowledged that like the rest of the world, the Philippines has experienced challenges in the past few years, principally caused by the coronavirus pandemic that hit local industries hard.

“However, we are indeed quite fortunate to have a President determined to revive the country’s economy. In the past two years, I have seen him assemble a team of highly competent technocrats and civil servants, earn the confidence of the business community, and continue to engage relevant stakeholders to achieve economic growth and the agenda for prosperity,” Romualdez added.

Acknowledging the challenges posed by the global pandemic, Romualdez commended Marcos for assembling a competent team and engaging stakeholders, resulting in the Philippines experiencing a 5.9 percent GDP expansion in the third quarter of 2023, with forecasts predicting a 6.2 percent growth in the fourth quarter.

“There is much promise that beyond the country’s economic recovery, there is also room for tremendous growth. We have been looking at ways of sustaining this momentum, and one of the key factors lies in finding innovative solutions and improving existing ideas to address long-standing issues,” Romualdez said.

“One of these solutions, developed by

the country’s Legislative and Executive branches, is the establishment of its first-ever sovereign wealth fund. Called the Maharlika Investment Fund, or the MIF, it is envisioned as an investment vehicle for government programs and projects aimed at promoting the country’s growth and social development,” Romualdez added.

The establishment of the MIF in 2023 was highlighted by Romualdez as a Legislative and Executive effort to create a sovereign wealth fund, envisioned as a strategic investment vehicle for government programs and projects.

Emphasizing the MIF’s stability, profitability, and lack of political influence, Romualdez outlined its focus on key sectors such as infrastructure, oil and gas, power, mineral processing, tourism, transportation, and aviation.

He added that the fund would make strategic and profitable investments in key sectors to obtain optimal returns and financial gain from these investments.

Several potential sectors have been identified, including infrastructure, oil, gas, and power, mineral processing, tourism, transportation, and aviation.

As a former banker, Romualdez drew from global experience, stating that over 70 countries with sovereign wealth funds have seen a 90 percent success rate. He expressed the Philippines’ intention to integrate best practices while remaining responsive to national development needs.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

energized.

“These tools will not only help in identification but also with the installation monitoring of customers. This will allow NEA to take a more modernized approach with its electrification program thereby ensuring its methodic and proper implementation,” added Almeda.

For PSA’s part, Director General Joel Marciano Jr. said satellite-based technology could help identify potential household connections and locations. “With these insights on hand, NEA can verify and monitor efforts to energize the country,” he said.

NEA oversees all 121 electric cooperatives in the country.

‘We have to fix our house first,’ PBBM tells Marina

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ACED with poor investor interests due to inefficient and costly operations, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the country’s maritime industry should undergo “standardization” to boost its international competitiveness.

During the presentation of the Maritime Industry Authority’s (Marina) proposed Maritime Industry Development Plan 2028 (MIDP 2028), the Chief Executive attributed many of the issues in the local shipping industry to obsolete rules and operations as well as its lack of a unified system.

“So let’s standardize our practices so that we will be the same with our international counterparts. We have to fix our house first. Because we have to compete and in order to do that we should have an even playing field and then we should gain an advantage,” he added.

He gave the instruction to the Marina after it discussed the problems of the local maritime industry like inefficient vessels since it allows 20-year old passenger ships to operate, and 25-year old vessels to haul freight.

The agency also raised the issue of domestic ships being required to pay excise tax on fuel, while those, which travel internationally are not subjected such a

requirement.

It noted both factors make local shipping more expensive compared to those from abroad.

Marina is currently embarking on its initiative to modernize the local shipping industry through its MIDP 2028.

Marina administrator Sonia Malaluan said the plan would focus on building “a strong and reliable Philippine Merchant Fleet, addressing the sea requirements of the country in support of the national development agenda.”

It will include the modernization and expansion of the Philippine domestic shipping, promotion and expansion of the Philippine overseas shipping, modernization of the Philippine shipbuilding and ship repair industry and promotion of highly skilled Filipino and competitive maritime workforce.

Marcos said Marina should first implement the standardization before implementing the said reforms.

“Let’s standardize and also prioritize in terms of the immediacy of some of these,” he said.

In a social media post, Marcos said the MIDP 2028 is still being finalized.

Samuel P. Medenilla

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

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Friday, January 19, 2024

BI vows renewed crackdown amid 9G visa scandal; four lawyers fired

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By Joel R. San Juan | @jrsanjuan1573 and Butch Fernandez | @butchfBM

HE Bureau of Immigration (BI) said it has relieved four immigration lawyers assigned to its Legal Division’s Visa Task Force last month pending their investigation for possible involvement in the issuance of hundreds of prearranged employment (9G) visas to foreign nationals petitioned by fake companies.

BI spokesman Dana Sandoval, in a text message, also confirmed that the visa task force has already been abolished in a bid to stop the illegal activity of issuing visas to fake corporations.

Sandoval said if it would be established after investigation that the lawyers have direct participation in the issuance of 9G visas to fake companies, the agency would recommend the filing of criminal charges against them before the Department of Justice.

“We are not closing our doors to

other personnel, whether employees or not, who might also be involved,” Sandoval said.

BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco, on the other hand, said the agency filed a recommendation to DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla as early as November of last year for the cancellation of the visas obtained by the foreign nationals through fake corporations.

“Last November, we recommended to the SOJ (Secretary of Justice) the cancellation of the visas of these aliens,

as well as the issuance of ‘show cause’ orders against those who were involved in the application,” Tansingco said.

“We also recommended the issuance of show cause orders against 4 BI lawyers and the abolition of the Legal Division’s visa task force,” he added.

He also noted that the agency issued last December an advisory suspending the acceptance of applications of companies with single proprietorship petitioning for issuance of 9G visas.

Tansingco said the agency is keen on auditing visas issued within the last five years.

The BI chief disclosed that more than 400 foreign nationals have been blacklisted by the agency in November for being petitioned by fake companies following an audit conducted by the its Verification and Compliance Division (VCD).

However, he believes that the number could be just the tip of the iceberg as more are expected to be blacklisted after the VCD concludes its audit.

“Once we discovered the scheme, we immediately informed the DOJ who approved our recommendations,” Tansingco said.

“As such, we have reorganized the visa-issuance procedures from top to bottom, including the procedures in accepting, reviewing, assessing, up until the issuing of the visas,” Tansingco noted.

However, at a news briefing last

Tuesday, Remulla expressed alarm over the continued illegal issuance of 9G visas to fake corporations, which he said unjustifiably benefited thousands of foreign nationals.

Remulla directly implicated the BI’s legal department in the anomaly as he said that its lawyers knowingly issued 9G visas to these fake corporations without counterchecking with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) their documents.

Remulla also issued a challenge to Tansingco to immediately put an end to the said illegal activity, calling it as an affront to our sovereignty.”

Senators weigh in on 9G scandal

AFTER no less than the DOJ revealed an operation to issue employment visas to foreigners to hundreds of fake firms, senators weighed in and called for a swift and thorough investigation.

“The issuance of the 9G visas is alarming and poses peace and order threats,” said Senator Grace Poe, chair of the Public Services committee.

“The DOJ must get to the bottom of this illegal scheme,” she stressed, and punishing erring immigration personnel and other individuals who made the entry of the foreigners possible.

“We have witnessed how crimes related to POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators) continue to bring problems to our peace and order,” Poe

pointed out noting “these nefarious activities will remain unabated if personnel from no less than the BI will keep the gates open to illegal foreigners.

Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros also expressed alarm over the BI’s issuance of work visas to fake corporations, which allowed entry to thousands of foreigners.

“This is a national security risk.

Hindi natin alam baka mga sindikato at kriminal na ang mga nakapasok sa bansa. We also have information that these work visas are…what foreign nationals use to work for POGOs. Sisiyasatin namin ito sa susunod na hearing,” Hontiveros vowed.

“I (support the) DOJ directive that orders the BI to stop granting work visas requested by fake companies. Isang mahalagang hakbang ito para matigil ang mga kababalaghan sa ahensya,” the senator added.

The senator, who led a series of hearings on the corruption scandal in the BI known as the “pastillas scam,” said that the agency should do more to clean up its ranks.

“Mag-aapat na taon na mula noong unang naisiwalat ang pastillas scam sa BI. Why does it seem like nothing has changed? Kailan pa ba tuluyang maiayos ang BI? Ilang Senate hearings pa ang kailangan? It is disappointing that the agency is front and center of this issue once again,” Hontiveros concluded.

Salceda notes comparisons on Charter-change proposals

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N economist-lawmaker voiced his concern on Thursday over the perceived limited economic impact of the Senate’s version of the proposed Charter change (Cha-cha).

In a news briefing, House Committee on Ways and Means Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda said the Senate’s proposal is projected to contribute only a modest 3.1 percent boost to the economy.

In contrast, the House version of Cha-cha, Salceda said, is anticipated to yield a more substantial 14.3 percent impact on the economy.

“The House proposal under RBH 2 unlocks more potential growth as the Philippines’ agriculture, land, and natural resources sectors are heavily undercapitalized and require significant foreign technical and technological inputs,” said Salceda.

Salceda highlighted the importance of a robust and impactful Charter change, emphasizing that a 3.1 percent economic impact may not be sufficient to address the challenges faced by the country.

He argued that a more ambitious approach, such as the 14 percent impact projected by the House version, would be better suited to stimulate economic growth and development.

The Senate is putting forward Resolution of Both Houses 6, an alternative proposal that seeks to modify ownership regulations in pivotal sectors, emphasizing the need for substantial Filipino capital. The proposed amendments target public utilities, basic educational institutions, and advertising.

The proposed amendment suggests a stringent ownership requirement for

public utilities, stipulating that they can only be owned by citizens or corporations with a minimum of 60 percent Filipino capital, unless provided by law.

This move aligns with the constitutional mandate outlined in Article XII, Section 11, which emphasizes the importance of fostering economic activities that benefit the Filipino people.

The Senate’s alternative proposal addresses the ownership of educational institutions, specifically emphasizing that only basic educational institutions can be owned solely by citizens or corporations with a significant 60 percent Filipino capital.

Furthermore, the administration of these educational institutions is to be carried out by citizens, unless otherwise provided by law. This proposal draws inspiration from Article XIV,

Section 4, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution, reflecting a commitment to prioritizing Filipino stakeholders in the education sector.

To safeguard the local advertising industry, the Senate’s alternative proposal recommends that advertising businesses should be owned by citizens or corporations with a substantial 70 percent Filipino capital, unless otherwise provided by law. This proposed amendment aligns with Article XVI, Section 11, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution, which underscores the significance of promoting Filipino interests in critical economic activities.

Despite different versions, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said that the Philippine Senate and the House Representatives are now in sync in efforts to introduce constitutional reforms

to create a framework that will be conducive to fostering a competitive, inclusive, and robust economic environment.

“These reforms, one of which is to allow more flexibility on the entry of foreign direct investments in the country, provide long-term economic viability for many of our industries and will enable us to better adapt to the everevolving global landscape. Said reforms are not just timely but also long overdue, and I am honored to witness this process unfold,” Romualdez said.

Both houses of Congress agreed that the proposed Charter change aims to amend economic provisions in the constitution with the goal of fostering a more business-friendly environment, attracting foreign investments, and boosting economic activities.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

Romualdez sends out invites for WEF Roundtable in Manila on March 18, 19

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PEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Thursday said the Philippines extended an invitation to the global business community to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Roundtable to be held in Manila in March 2024.

This event, hosted by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., aims to showcase the Philippines as a premier destination for foreign investments, said Romualdez.

The invitation was formally presented during the “Learning from Asean” session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting’s live panel discussion featuring Speaker Romualdez, Pham Minh Chinh (Prime Minister of Vietnam), Srettha Thavisin (Prime

Minister of Thailand), and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Geneva).

“I see an Asean Parliament like the EU; I aspire for that. That has been an aspiration of the Asean ever since its inception,” Romualdez said when asked how he sees the Southeast Asian bloc five or ten years from now.

“And to see the seeds of that, we invite you to Manila this March 18 and 19. Manila and the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will be hosting the World Economic Forum CEO Round Table. You will get a glimpse of our aspiration for an Asean Parliament,” Romualdez added.

The WEF Country Roundtable in the Philippines, slated to be an exclu-

sive in-person gathering, is expected to take place at the Malacañang Presidential compound in Manila. More than 50 representatives from local and international companies and organizations, with a focus on foreign funds and investment companies eyeing opportunities related to the Maharlika Investment Fund, are anticipated to attend.

Romualdez said the event would be a great opportunity to bring together representatives from the public and private sectors.

“As such, CEOs from international and Filipino corporations will be able to share experiences and discuss government initiatives and areas of collaboration with international and local government officials,” Romualdez said.

Legal framework

SPEAKER Romualdez revealed the Philippines’ plan to propose a legal framework to Asean governing artificial intelligence when it assumes the regional bloc’s chairmanship in 2026.

“We’d like to give as a gift to Asean a legal framework. Digitization, even in our economic policy, is very, very much right up there as a priority,” Romualdez said.

“Alongside that is cybersecurity and the concomitant concerns and issues of generative artificial intelligence, a field that needs a lot of support and regulation. We feel that in Asean, we can capitalize on and optimize these developments, but within a framework of regulatory support for this,” he said.

Romualdez said such a framework is especially important for the Philippines, noting that with the increasing use of AI, the country’s thriving business process outsourcing sector is now facing a severe threat.

“It’s a very vulnerable sector in a very, very bright industry today, but we see that a transformation of personnel and upskilling of these personnel to a level to support generative AI will likely be a very, very logical direction to take,” Romualdez said.

“It is incumbent upon us in Congress to come up with a legal framework that will not just fit the Philippines but will be very, very appropriate for Asean,” he added.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

Imitation, counterfeit perfumes flood PHL market, group reports

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HE toxic watchdog group BAN Toxics on Thursday warned the public against buying perfumes or fragrances, saying fake products have recently been spotted in the market.

The group said these products are usually imitation and counterfeit perfumes and fragrances that expose its users to health risks associated with harmful chemicals in these products.

In a recent market monitoring effort, the group documented vendors peddling cheap imitated perfumes and

fragrances priced between P50 to P180.

These counterfeit perfumes closely mimic the packaging and labels of wellknown brands, making them appealing to consumers, the group said.

Perfume and beauty products rank second as the most counterfeited goods in the Philippines next to apparel in 2022, according to the total reports and complaints received by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines.

Thony Dizon, toxics campaigner of BAN Toxics, emphasized the risks associated with purchasing cosmetic

products with fragrances lacking proper authorization, stating that “buying perfume and fragrances that have not undergone proper authorization is not only too risky but may expose consumers to harmful substances lurking in the products.”

According to information sourced from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) Skin Deep® Cosmetic Database, the term “fragrance” on the label of cosmetics products conceals an undisclosed mixture of various scent chemicals and ingredients of 3,163

known chemicals, such as phthalates, octoxynols, and nonoxynols.

Phthalates, commonly used as solvents and stabilizers in perfumes, are identified as potent hormone disruptors linked to birth defects in baby boys. Octoxynols and nonoxynols can break down into persistent hormone disruptors as well.

Potential hazards may arise from ingredients prohibited in cosmetic products or from contamination by heavy metals. The use of substandard and possibly adulterated cosmetic

products may lead to adverse reactions, such as skin irritation, itchiness, anaphylactic shock, and organ failure.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued health advisories against using unauthorized cosmetic products such as perfumes, cautioning consumers against purchasing and using them.

The agency emphasized that products bypassing the notification process prevent its ability to guarantee their quality and safety, potentially exposing consumers to health risks.

“As part of our safe cosmetics cam-

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Makati City receives five electric cars from Hyundai

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

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O enhance public safety response and embrace sustainable mobility, five Hyundai IONIQ 5 electric cars were turned over to Makati City’s Public Safety Department (PSD).

The vehicles will be strategically deployed across various key areas of the city, ensuring rapid response times in emergency situations.

“As a city, we recognize our critical role in addressing environmental concerns. By introducing electric vehicles into our public safety fleet, we not only enhance our emergency response capabilities but also contribute to reducing air pollution and our overall environmental impact,” Mayor Abigail Binay said during the event held at Makati City Hall Quadrangle on Thursday.

Each two-wheel drive vehicle features a 58-kWh lithium-ion battery pack that can charge from 10 to 80 percent in just 18 minutes, along with a powerful motor that delivers up to 350 Nm of torque and a maximum power of 170 ps.

Three charging stations at Makati City Hall, one in Palanan Barangay Hall, and one in Guadalupe Viejo Barangay Hall complement the IONIQ 5’s capabilities.

Dong Wook Lee, president of Hyundai Motor Philippines Inc. (HMPH), said Hyundai IONIQ 5 units will enhance PSD’s capabilities, allowing them to address incidents swiftly and effectively.

“We look forward to being a part and playing a role in Makati’s journey of transforming into a smart city. The IONIQ 5 is the most suitable partner to their commitment of adapting to the modern needs of Makatizens,” he said.

Lee said the five vehicles also come with five years of preventive maintenance service, including parts and labor, wall box chargers, 220v cord chargers, fire extinguishers, training and orientation for drivers, and 24/7 roadside assistance for one year.

Also present during the event were Vice Mayor Monique Lagdameo, Makati Rep. Luis Campos, Rep. Kid Peña, City Administrator Atty. Claro Certeza, City Legal Officer and PSD Head Atty. Michael Camiña, Ambassador Lee SangHwa of the Republic of Korea to the Philippines, Cecil Capacete, HMPH Managing Director, Jae Ha Ryu, HMPH Directing Coordinator for Sales and Dealer Development, Young Uk Ko, HMPH Directing Coordinator for Aftersales, and other HMPH officials.

Since 2016, Binay has been inte g rat ing innovat ion and sustainability into the city ’s operations to transform Makati into a smart city.

In 2022, Makati signed an agreement with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to establish a smart transportation system featuring a fleet of electric buses.

Last year, the city was recognized as the sole finalist from the Philippines and the Asia Pacific during the World Smart City Awards for its smart meters and sensors.

paign, we’re committed to monitoring and reporting the unauthorized sale of unregistered and unnotified personal care products in both on-site and online markets. To protect human health and the environment from chemical exposure is our advocacy,” Dizon added.

In a letter sent to the FDA, BAN Toxics urged the agency to conduct Post Marketing Surveillance and testing on imitation and counterfeit perfumes and fragrances. Because of the dangers to the public, the group called for the issuance of public health advisories and stringent enforcement actions to protect consumers from undisclosed health-damaging chemicals in fragrance products.

Jonathan L. Mayuga

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Two years after invasion, West still seeking way to send frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

By Fatima Hussein

W

The Associated Press

ASHINGTON—It’s been nearly two years since the United States and its allies froze hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian foreign holdings in retaliation for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

That roughly $300 billion in Russian Central Bank money has been sitting untapped as the war grinds on, while officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of sending the money to Ukraine.

The idea of using Russia’s frozen assets is gaining new traction lately as continued allied funding for Ukraine becomes more uncertain and the US Congress is in a stalemate over providing more support. But there are tradeoffs since the weaponization of global finance could harm the US dollar’s standing as the world’s dominant currency.

At this week’s World Economic Forum meetings in Davos, Switzerland, U krainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for a “strong” decision this year for the frozen assets in Western banks to “be directed towards defense against the Russian war and for reconstruction” of Ukraine.

“Putin loves money above all,” he said. “The more billions he and his oligarchs, friends and accomplices lose, the more likely he will regret starting this war.”

Biden administration officials who previously dismissed the idea as legally cumbersome are showing growing openness to the idea.

Penny Pritzker, the US special representative for Ukraine’s economic recovery, said at the Davos forum that the US and Group of Seven allies are still looking for an adequate legal framework to pursue the plan.

“Get all the lawyers and all the various governments and all the parties really to come together to sort that through,” she said. “It’s hard, it’s complicated, it’s difficult, and we need to work.”

Administration officials caution that even if a legal way can be found to transfer the frozen dollars to Ukraine, the war-torn nation has immediate needs for funds that must be met by other means since US assistance to Ukraine’s military has ground to a halt.

Bipartisan legislation circulating in Washington called the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act would use assets confiscated from the Russian Central Bank and other sovereign assets for Ukraine.

A senior official who spoke on condition of anonymity to relay internal discussions said the administration was generally supportive of legislation to give the US more f lexibility in making sure Russia pays for the damage it has caused and is in “active conversations” with allies on how best to do that.

But even if legislation were enacted, Nicholas Mulder, a sanctions expert at Cornell University, cautioned that seizing frozen assets could have the unintended effect of undermining efforts to ensure longer-term funding for Ukraine.

“Right now it is being advanced

by Washington as a substitute rather than a complement to long-term Western support for Ukraine,” he said. “If the assets are transferred, these funds too

will run out sooner or later. But by that time Western leaders will have ceased to make any political case for supporting Ukraine, and getting support back up will be much harder.”

The US announced at the start of Russia’s invasion that America and its allies had blocked access to more than $600 billion that Russia held outside its borders— including roughly $300 billion in funds belonging to Russia’s Central Bank. Since then, the US and its allies have continued to impose rounds of targeted sanctions against companies and the wealthy elite with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The World Bank’s latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in March 2023, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $411 billion over the next 10 years, which includes needs for public and private funds.

Since the war began in February 2022, the United States has given Ukraine roughly $111 billion in weapons, equipment, humanitarian assistance and other aid. Other countries also have provided Ukraine with substantial support—the UK announced a $3 billion assistance package on Friday.

At the White House, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young this month told a group of reporters that while the possibility of seizing Russian assets is being studied, it would not have an immediate impact on Ukraine’s financial needs.

“That does not absolve the need to provide funding now,” Young said. “That is a future benefit to Kyiv I think we should look at and take seriously.”

Sergey Aleksashenko, a former Russian Central Banker who is now a member of the Russian Antiwar Committee with other dissidents, said that while he strongly believes Russia should be forced to compensate Ukraine, “I do not believe that there is any way to confiscate assets of the Russian Central Bank without a court deciding on the matter.”

“Because if there is no legal basis to confiscate Russian assets, and if it is done by the decision of the administration, that means that there is no rule of law in the US and there is no protection of private property.”

He said an administrative decision to confiscate Russia’s as-

sets could prompt nations like China—the biggest holder of US Treasuries—to determine that it is not safe to keep its reserves in US dollars.

There are some efforts under way to seize Russian funds and those of sanctioned oligarchs under limited circumstances. Last May, the Justice Department announced that it had transferred $5.4 million seized from Russian tycoon Konstantin Malofeyev to a State Department fund for rebuilding Ukraine.

And in December, Germany’s federal prosecutor filed a motion for asset forfeiture concerning more than 720 million euros ($789 million) deposited by a Russian financial institution in a Frankfurt bank account because of a suspected attempt to violate embargo regulations.

Belgium, which is holding the rotating presidency of the European Union bloc for the next six months, is now leading the talks on whether to seize Russia’s assets.

Belgium is also the country where most frozen Russian assets under sanctions are being held.

The country is collecting taxes on the assets. Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said in October that 1.7 billion euros ($1.8 billion) in tax collections was already available and that the money would be used to buy military equipment, humanitarian aid and help with the rebuilding of the war-torn country.

But EU countries are worried that going further by confiscating the assets could pave the way for serious legal problems and could also destabilize the financial system.

De Croo said this week he is hearing “a lot of prudence” when the issue of seizing assets is raised.

“It’s crucial that we stay within a legal framework,” he said.

Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, cautioned that if Ukraine’s immediate needs aren’t met, “no amount of seized Russian assets is unfortunately going to compensate for what may happen.”

“And by then it is going to be very overwhelming.”

The Associated Press writers Ellen Knickmeyer, Lisa Mascaro, Seung Min Kim, Zeke Miller and Aamer Madhani in Washington and Sam Petrequin in Brussels and Jamey Keaton in Davos contributed to this report.

Singapore Transport minister resigns after biggest graft probe since 1986

By Low De Wei, Philip J. Heijmans & Faris Mokhtar

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I NG A POR E ’ S Tr a n s por t Minister S. Iswaran resigned after being charged with corruption in the biggest political scandal in almost four decades, which has cast a pall on the citystate known for clean governance.

Pr ime Minister L ee Hsien Loong accepted Iswaran’s resignation as a cabinet minister and lawmaker, according to a statement from Lee’s office. Iswaran, who’s out on bail, rejected the 27 charges against him, including allegedly obtaining tickets to musicals and soccer matches in London.

“I am determined to uphold the integrity of the party and the government, and our reputation for honesty and incorruptibility,” Lee said in the statement, referring to the ruling People’s Action Party.

“Singaporeans expect no less.”

Iswaran, 61, is the first key minister to get embroiled in a graft

probe since 1986. He and property tycoon Ong Beng Seng were arrested in July in a case that’s challenged Singapore’s reputation for clean governance at a time when Lee is seeking to step aside after almost two decades of leading the country.

“I reject the allegations in the charges and will now focus on clearing my name,” Iswaran wrote in his resignation letter to Lee that was made public after the charges were announced.

T he for mer politician was slapped with an array of charges that spanned from 2015 to May 2023. They included two counts of corruption, 24 counts of obtaining “valuable things” from someone he had business dealings with as a public servant, and one for obstructing justice. If convicted, he faces fines and a possible jail term.

“This is not just a legal battle for Iswaran and the public prosecutor,” said Eugene Tan, a law professor at Singapore Management University. “There is now a

political battle for the government to renew trust and confidence to the voters that they have an upright system.”

Lee, 71, plans to hand over the reins to his deputy Lawrence Wong

by November in a long-telegraphed succession.

The corruption scandal is one in a series of controversies that had sent shockwaves through the PAP, which had two lawmakers unexpectedly resigning over an affair. In September, the son of former premier Goh Chok Tong was among four people charged for false trading offenses.

West End musicals

ISWAR AN and Ong would have interacted over the years, with the minister’s roles in trade and transport intersecting with t he pro p e r t y t yco on k now n for helping bring the Formula One Grand Prix to Singapore.

Iswaran has long championed the Singapore F1 night race in his various capacities.

The charges include favors the former minister allegedly obtained from Ong such as tickets to musicals on the West End from Kinky Boots and Book of Mormon to Waitress. He also allegedly obtained tickets to UK soccer matches, took a f light on Ong’s private jet, a S$4,738 ($3,527) stay for one night at the Four Seasons Doha and tickets to the F1 in Singapore.

The Attorney General’s Chambers said it will decide on Ong and others after the case against Iswaran has been completed.

Ong’s spokesperson declined to comment.

Iswaran said he will return his salary and allowances since July.

His pay was slashed to S$8,500 a month, marking an 82 percent cut from a starting salary of S$46,750 in Singapore, where government leaders are among the best paid in the world to avoid corruption. With assistance from Chanyaporn Chanjaroen, Aradhana Aravindan, Natalie Choy, Michael Sin and Shamim Adam/Bloomberg

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

News BusinessMirror

Friday, January 19, 2024

Türkiye extends e-visa to eligible Filipinos

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome

S

@maloutalosig

ELECT Philippine passport holders holding valid visas from the US and Europe may now enjoy less-hassle travel to Türkiye by applying for visas online, the Turkish Airlines announced Wednesday.

Filipino expatriates living in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, such as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and

Oman may also enter Türkiye by applying for an electronic visa (e-visa).

Erdogan decree

QUOTING a presidential decree by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan that was issued on December 23, 2023, the Türkiye flag carrier said nationals from the UAE, Oman, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia – may enter Türkiye without visas.

Tourists from these four GCC countries may stay for a maximum of 90 days in Türkiye

without visas.

“Nationals of Algeria, Egypt, India, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Palestine, Philippines and Yemen holding a valid visa or valid residence permit from one of the Schengen countries, USA, UK or Ireland can apply for the e-visa,” the Turkish Airlines added.

The Turkish Airlines applauded Erdogan’s visa exemption rule and e-visa privileges to promote tourism and cultural exchanges between Türkiye and countries covered.

Turkish e-visa

INSTEAD of applying at the Turkish Embassy in Manila, select Philippine passport holders can apply for a tourist visa at the website: www.evisa.gov.tr.

To be eligible for a tourist visa, the Philippine passport holder must also have in possession a valid visa or residence permit from the US, Schengen member countries, United Kingdom or Ireland.

OFWs from GCC member states may also be

eligible to apply for Turkish e-visa.

According to the website, e-visa applicants should be ready with their credit or debit cards (Mastercard, Visa or UnionPay) as these are the only mode of payment acceptable.

E-visas for select Philippine passport holders is only valid for single entry, up to a maximum of 30 days.

However, these selected Philippine passport holders are not eligible to apply for a visa upon arrival at Turkish airports or ports.

A9

According to Turkish Airlines, transit passengers who chose to travel anywhere around the world using the Istanbul Airport as a stopover can discover Istanbul “free of charge.” If the layover time is within six to 24 hours, passengers can go on a guided city tour. If the layover time at Istanbul Airport is 20 hours or more, the transit passenger can explore Istanbul at their own pace with complimentary accommodation at their partner hotels.

“Turkish Airlines’ transit passengers are eligible to unlock two destinations with one flight ticket, as the national flag carrier offers two layover services, free hotel stay and free city tour, to explore the city of Istanbul when in transit,” it said.

BusinessMirror

A10 A6 Friday, January 19, 2024

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

1NNOVATION INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL CONSULTANCY INC. Unit 9a3 9/f Ety Building., 484 Quintin Paredes St., Barangay 289, Binondo, City Of Manila WANG, RUICHENG Chinese Consultant 1.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

XU, JIAYING Chinese Consultant

2.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

ZENG, HUIRONG Chinese Consultant

3.

Brief Job Description: Working with the clients to understand their needs.

LI, KAOCUN Chinese Customer Service Representative

4.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

WANG, JIAJIAN Chinese Customer Service Representative

5.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

YAO, SHUCAI Chinese Customer Service Representative

6.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

AI, ZHIYANG Chinese Customer Service Representative

7.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

8.

Brief Job Description: Perform simple to moderate transactional buying activities for a specific assigned country/ies, region or area, which includes (but not limited to) the following: managing the purchase order process to completion and maintaining price information in the system.

PHASEE, SUPATTRA Intercompany Buyer Analyst (Thai) 9.

Brief Job Description: Perform simple to moderate transactional buying activities for a specific assigned country/ies, region or area, which includes (but not limited to) the following: managing the purchase order process to completion and maintaining price information in the system.

ZHANG, WENLONG Mandarin Customer Service Officer 13.

14.

15.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering or Finance. For roles that require non-English language, candidate must have completed at least 2-year course related to any of these fields.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

16.

LI, XIAOZHI Monogram General Operator 10.

Brief Job Description: A person who partakes for the design conceptualization up to the actual implementation of the designs to various garments using simple to latest and critical sewing machinery.

17.

18.

11.

Brief Job Description: This position has a key role to support the document support requirements of the German/Austrian Offices.

19.

12.

Brief Job Description: Ensures the performance of GBS specific procedures and controls for the Management Accounting processes (Value Flow Management, Product Accounting and Closing activities) within the agreed activity split and service level for more complex Legal Entities and Stakeholders.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, etc., to deliver software solutions.

MARTON, TAMAS Assistant Manager, FP&A Operations 20.

27.

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Partner with In-market Finance and Regional team on productivity and strategic project. Support the FP&A team, coach and coordinate them.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record in the area of Financial Accounting/Reporting, and/ or Financial Controlling experience is strongly preferred.

YUAN, SHU-JI Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative 21.

Brief Job Description: Identify and assess customers need to achieve satisfaction.

28.

29.

30.

22.

Brief Job Description: Assist with drafting business plans, sales pitches, presentations, reference material, and other documents.

31.

GAO, XIA Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 23.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

LIU, QINAN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

32.

33.

24.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

SI, QI Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

34.

25.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

GUOFENG, ZHOU Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

35.

26.

Brief Job Description: Correcting errors and organizing the information in a manner that will optimize swift and accurate capturing.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Perform retouching and manipulation of images.

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

Brief Job Description: Liaising with clients to determine their requirements, timescale and budget.

NGUYEN THI NHAT LE Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer 36.

Brief Job Description: Liaising with clients to determine their requirements, timescale and budget.

DU BUU HONG Chinese Speaking Program Designer 37.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, etc., to deliver software solutions.

LI, JIAHENG Chinese Speaking Program Designer 38.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

LI, SHU Chinese Speaking Program Designer 39.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, Technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

ROSDIANA Chinese Speaking Program Designer 40.

Brief Job Description: Testing and deploying programs and systems, verify and deploy programs and systems.

SHEN, JIACHENG Chinese Speaking Program Designer 41.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

HOANG, VAN HUNG Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

MICHEAL LIAN FEI CHEE Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

LE VAN ANH Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

ZOU, GUICAI Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

ZHANG, BINGLIN Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin language.

Basic Qualification: Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Strong organization and project management skills.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

WU, HAOMING Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

DYNAMIC STUDIO TECHNOLOGY INC. 5th To 8th/f & 10th/f Platinum Tower Building, Aseana Ave. Cor. Fuentes Street, Baclaran, City Of Parañaque DONG, RUIXIN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

WANG, ZIZHAN Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Correcting errors and organizing the information in a manner that will optimize swift and accurate capturing.

LAUK SI Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION HAN ZIN AUNG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DIGICHROM INC. Unit 2001-a, 2602 & 2603 20/f & 26/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

BAYER BUSINESS SERVICES PHILIPPINES, INC. 6th Floor Science Hub Tower 1, Campus Avenue Corner Turin Street, Mckinleyhill Cyberpark, Pinagsama, City Of Taguig

ANGELET RAQUES, MARC Management Accounting Operations - Team Leader

No.

DIAGEO ASIA PACIFIC SHARED SERVICES CENTRE LIMITED, INC. 10th Floor, Commerce & Industry Plaza Bldg., Mckinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

Basic Qualification: University degree in Business Administration with majors in Accounting or Controlling or equivalent education. 5 plus years of relevant experience in the areas of Management Accounting, Financial Accounting or Controlling.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, etc., to deliver software solutions.

XU, JIN Chinese Speaking Program Designer

B&M GLOBAL SERVICES MANILA, INC. (B&M SUPPORT CENTRE) 8th Floor Bgc Corporate Center, 11th Ave. Cor. 30th St. Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

SEYFANG, NINA CARINA Bilingual Document Analyst II

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, etc., to deliver software solutions.

MA, XIAOFEI Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Technical skills, qualifications and experience. Bachelor’s Degree from a reputable university. Significant experience in a similar role and industry is an advantage.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, and technicians to deliver software solutions.

JIANG, KUN Chinese Speaking Program Designer

ARISE AND GAIN MERCHANDISE CORP. 65, Road 20, Bahay Toro, Quezon City Basic Qualification: Experience as monogram general operator is an edge. Solid knowledge of image editing and digital sketching software, like Photoshop, In design and Adobe Illustrator. Ability to collaborate and meet deadlines.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

DANG, QUOC PHUONG Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering or Finance. For roles that require non-English language, candidate must have completed at least 2-year course related to any of these fields.

Brief Job Description: Generate new customer leads through various channels.

CHI, YUNYUN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin language.

CRONYX INC. 6-12, 15-19/f Royal Peak Tower A, 485 Quirino Avenue, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

Brief Job Description: Opens customer records by updating account information.

ZHANG, CHUNQIU Sales Chinese Officer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

CREAVALUE PRIME SERVICES INC. Unit 1501 Park Triangle Corporate Plaza, 32nd Street Corner 11th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least college level and fluency in Mandarin language.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

BLUE NIGHT LIVING SERVICES INC. Block 1 Lot 2-a, 3rd Floor Afpovai, Western Bicutan, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

3M SERVICE CENTER APAC, INC. 17th, 18th, 19th Floors, Bonifacio Stop Overcorporate Center, 31st Street Cor., 2nd Avenue, E-square Information Technology Park, Bgc, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig LAOJANATAMKUL, RANTIYAKORN Intercompany Buyer Analyst (Thai)

No.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

WEN, WEIHAN Chinese Speaking Program Designer 42.

Brief Job Description: Documents all aspects of software, for ongoing maintenance and revisions.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With experience in computer aided design.

Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

ECHOTECH SERVICES INC. 18/f Philamlife Tower, 8767 Paseo De Roxas, Bel-air, City Of Makati TIAN, YINGLING Bilingual Operations Manager 43.

Brief Job Description: Contribute operations information and recommendations to strategic plans and reviews.

44.

Brief Job Description: Support the assigned lead in the entire life cycle of compensation activities ranging from compensation benchmarking, budgeting, increase and bonus cycles.

Basic Qualification: Excellent in bilingual languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Executive MBA holder. With a previous work experience in recruitment and talent acquisition industry.

DENG, WANGBAO Mandarin Marketing Specialist 59.

45.

Brief Job Description: Leads the implementation and maintenance of a corporate strategy for the company. Providing the frameworks and policies to ensure effective strategy planning processes across FBP in line with group and BU strategy.

60.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, major in Finance graduate.

Duly appointed by the Board of the Company’s Directors.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

46.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and in Bahasa languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

47.

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking.

Brief Job Description: Manage large amount of incoming calls.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

61.

PAN, QIAN Purchasing Manager For Procurement Certification Dept (Globe Wireless Project) 48.

Brief Job Description: Manage the procurement business of material/ service demand to payment end-to-end. Responsible for formulating, maintaining, and standardizing the implementation of the procurement strategy of the materials.

62.

JIANG, JUNWEI Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 49.

Brief Job Description: Gather data and capture the information into databases.

NI, ZHIYONG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 50.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

DODI Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer 51.

Brief Job Description: Liaising with clients to determine their requirements, timescale and budget.

JULYANA Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer 52.

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

TSAI, CHING-I Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer 53.

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

ZHU, HAIRUI Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer 54.

Brief Job Description: Liaising with clients to determine their requirements, timescale and budget.

HUANG, XIANGSONG Chinese Speaking Program Designer 55.

Brief Job Description: Testing and deploying programs and systems, verify and deploy programs and systems.

HUI, WU Chinese Speaking Program Designer 56.

Brief Job Description: Testing and deploying programs and systems, verify and deploy programs and systems.

LI, JIA Chinese Speaking Program Designer 57.

Brief Job Description: Testing and deploying programs and systems, verify and deploy programs and systems.

MU, ZHIHONG Chinese Speaking Program Designer 58.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, etc., to deliver software solutions.

No.

CHEN, ZHIPING Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 63.

64.

65.

66.

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

67.

68.

69.

70.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

YANG, JIALU Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 71.

72.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

ZENG, ZHIQIN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate Brief Job Description: Collating and maintaining client information.

HO THI PHUONG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 73.

Brief Job Description: Gathering invoices, statements, reports, personal details, documents and information from employees, other departments and clients.

HY MINH THUY Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 74.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

LI, HAOMING Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 75.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

YAN CHIN THAN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With experience in computer aided design.

Good in verbal and written communication.

Brief Job Description: End to end partner management from opening to closing sales.

XU, WEI Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With experience in computer aided design.

Good in verbal and written communication.

Brief Job Description: End to end partner management from opening to closing sales.

WONG KEAN HONG Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With experience in computer aided design.

Good in verbal and written communication.

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

WEI, DANDAN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: End-to-end partner management from opening to closing sales.

THAM TUONG MINH Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communications skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: End-to-end partner management from opening to closing sales.

SUN, FENG Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience and good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Identify and maintain new business opportunities and existing partners.

PHAN, VAN THAI Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods and good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Your primary function is to help the company and its Chinese clients generate more income for the company.

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

LIANG, ZHIHAO Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 76.

Brief Job Description: Scanning through information to identify pertinent information.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION WAI YAN MOE Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: College graduate. Fluent in Chinese-Mandarin language. Knowledgeable in computer applications.

77.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

78.

Basic Qualification: Good communication skills and experience in a related field.

79.

80.

81.

82.

83.

84.

85.

86.

87.

88.

89.

90.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

TAO, HONGLIN Chinese Speaking Program Designer 91.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc. to deliver software solutions

NGUYEN DUC DUNG Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc. to deliver software solutions

LE HUU CHUNG Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

HOANG THI NUONG Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

DANG THI THUY NGAN Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc. to deliver software solutions.

CUI, XIAOJUN Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

BUI THI THANH XUAN Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

ZHANG, WENZUO Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

WANG, WUJIE Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

LUONG THI MEN Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Planning concepts by studying relevant information and materials.

DONG, DAYONG Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into relevant databases.

CHUONG PHAT QUYEN Chinese Speaking Graphic Designer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Entering and updating information into communication and written.

YU, TONG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: Good communication skills and experience in a related field.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Gathering invoices, statements, reports, personal details, documents and information from employees, other departments and clients.

XIE, DONGYANG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: Good communication skills and experience in a related field.

NEO INCORPORATED North Tower Centrum Bldg., Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City, Baclaran, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

INFOVINE INC. 9/f Y Tower, Moa Complex, Coral Way Drive Cor. Macapagal, Barangay 76, Pasay City

Brief Job Description: Your primary function is to help the company and its Chinese clients generate more income for the company.

PARVARDEGARI, MORTEZA Strategic And Facilitation Officer

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES PHILS. INC. 53/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor., V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati Basic Qualification: Must have a bachelor’s degree in IT/Computer Science or any other related courses. Preferably with master’s degree is an advantage. Highly proficient in Chinese and English languages.

Brief Job Description: Your primary function is to help the company and its Chinese clients generate more income for the company.

KAVOUSI, ALI Strategic And Facilitation Officer

GIGA INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT INC. 2/f Lipam’s Building, 40 Presidents Avenue, B. F. Homes, City Of Parañaque ZHOU, BINGAN Chinese Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Utilize marketing to help track, manage and properly distribute each individual lead. Create effective and engaging website content through collaboration with stakeholders.

ALMASI HASHYANI, ELNAZ Strategic And Facilitation Officer

GAO SHOU TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT, INC. 52/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati NG KAH CHUN Malaysian Customer Service Representative

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

JDB MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTANCY CORP. 107 T & D House, Magallanes St. 069, Barangay 655, Intramuros, City Of Manila

FONTERRA BRANDS PHILS. INC. Unit 1 24/f Ore Central, 9th Ave. Cor. 31st St. Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig TAN PEI SONG President And General Manager

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

A11

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

INNOVATORS MEDIA MARKETERS INC. 16/f Tower 6789, 6789 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

ERNST & YOUNG GLOBAL SERVICES (PHILIPPINES) INC. 14th, 15th (unit A & D), 16th Floors, Cyber Sigma Building, Lawton Avenue Mckinley West, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig NAGI, GAGANDEEP SINGH Assistant Director - Talent

No.

Friday, January 19, 2024

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

TENG YEW KEN Chinese Speaking Program Designer 92.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conducts store visits to monitor the implementation of trade marketing initiatives.

WANG, ZHENQIANG Chinese Speaking Program Designer

Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

93.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION 1331 Pearl Plaza Bldg., 133 Quirino Ave., Tambo, City Of Parañaque

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

94.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with other IT specialists, technicians, etc., to deliver software solutions.

BAO, HONGQING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods. Good in verbal and written communication.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months of work experience. Good in verbal communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

A12 A6 Friday, January 19, 2024

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

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96.

97.

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102.

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105.

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107.

108.

109.

110.

111.

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113.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION CHEN, WENLONG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

DANG, HUAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

DENG, JIANAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

FU, LIXING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HE, YEHENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HUANG, TIAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

KONG, WEIZE Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LI, YUMAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LI, YUTAO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LIU, HUIFENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

PAN, YAWEI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

SHI, JINYONG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

WEI, YUSHENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

ZHANG, JUNMAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

ZHANG, QI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

ABDEEN MOHAMMED ABDEEN MOHAMMED Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HOSSAIN, NUR Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

YADAV, HEMANT KUMAR Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

ZAMAN, MUHAMMAD Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

No.

114.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

115.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

116.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

117.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

118.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

119.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

120.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

121.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

122.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

123.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

124.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

125.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

126.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

127.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

128.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

129.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

130.

131.

132.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION JONY Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

EDMUND YII KAN XI Malaysian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

TOH SOON ANN Malaysian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

AIK HNIN Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

EI THAE PHYU Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services

HNIN MYAT LIN Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

KYAW THU HA Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

MIN AUNG SOE Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

MYA PWINT PHYU Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

MYINT MYINT AYE Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

MYINTG SOE NAING Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

NAY MIN Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

OHNMAR THIN Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

WIN NAING Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

YAN CHAE CHAN Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

YOON PO PO Myanmari Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

PANYAWORAPHONG, KANYARAT Thai Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

BUI THI LIEN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

CHENH HENH DAU Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

No.

133.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

134.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

135.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

136.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

137.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

138.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

139.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

140.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

141.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

142.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

143.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

144.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

145.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

146.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

147.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

148.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

149.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

150.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

151.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION DAU DUC ANH Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

DINH, THI THANH Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

DO, THI THUY Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

DOAN, SY CU Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HO PHUC LUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HOANG VAN HOA Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

HOANG VAN SAO Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

HOANG, NHO QUY Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LE PHU DUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

LE VAN NGUYEN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LE VAN TRUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

NGUYEN CHUNG NAM Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

NGUYEN THI HA Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

NGUYEN THI PHUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

NGUYEN, THI PHUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

NGUYEN, THI TRANG LINH Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

NGUYEN, THI VAN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

PHAM THI HIEN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

PHAN VAN DONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

152.

153.

154.

155.

156.

157.

158.

159.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

THONG CAI PHUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

TIN CHIEU TAI Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

TRAN DANG HUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

VI DINH XOAN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

VI KIM THU Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

VO XUAN QUYEN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

VONG KIM PHUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

VU, THI HAI YEN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and database services.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

160.

Brief Job Description: Primary responsibility is to oversee day to day operations, which can include negotiating contracts with vendors or prospective employees.

166.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

HE, BIANQI Project Manager 167.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

168.

Brief Job Description: Provide customer service in assisting clients with their inquiries about the company’s AdminPlus services via inbound & outbound calls, secure messages and click to chat.

NGUYEN DUC THANH Technical Superintendent 169.

Brief Job Description: Monitor ship performance in relation to consumption of oil and lube.

SHI, DONGYING Marketing Director 170.

Brief Job Description: To give strategic guidance and direction to the board to ensure that the company achieves its mission and objectives.

161.

Brief Job Description: Support representative.

RAZAKHAN, MOHAMED SHALYKHAN Associate Vice President 171.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

162.

Brief Job Description: Perform regular audit on corporate documents in order to ensure that all documents are properly submitted to other department.

LI, NANYU Mandarin Marketing Associate 163.

Brief Job Description: Helps to create proposals and presentations in Mandarin language, conducts market research to identify new opportunities.

LIU, WENHAO Mandarin Marketing Associate 164.

Brief Job Description: Helps to create proposals and presentations in Mandarin language, conducts market research to identify new opportunities.

QI, HEPING Mandarin Marketing Associate 165.

Brief Job Description: Helps to create proposals and presentations in Mandarin language, conducts market research to identify new opportunities.

Basic Qualification: Must have a total maritime experience of at least 12 years or more than 2 years of shore experience as technical superintendent.

Basic Qualification: Knowledge in English, Mandarin, Fukien and other Chinese languages to communicate and negotiating both clients and supplier for faster transaction.

Brief Job Description: Managing the resource allocation, budget management and performance measurement. Strong business acumen and a strategic mindset. Analyze data, trends, and performance metrics to inform decision-making.

Adept at stakeholder management and engagement.

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

YAN, WENJING Mandarin Speaking Area Sales Manager 172.

Basic Qualification: Any nationality with excellent verbal communication skills specially in Mandarin & English languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Any nationality with excellent verbal communication skills specially in Mandarin & English languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SAP PHILIPPINES, INC. 27/f Nac Tower, 32nd St., Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

178.

Basic Qualification: Thorough and extensive fluency in Mandarin language and characters.

Brief Job Description: Process Mandarin interactive software in terms of developing and upgrading its systematic functions.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

UPAPA HOLDINGS CORP. Unit 1819, One Park Drive,, 9th Ave Corner 11th Drive Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig Basic Qualification: Knowledge of Microsoft Windows 7/8/8.1/10 and Microsoft office suites and office 365.

SU, ZHONGJIE Multilingual Service Desk Analyst 179.

Brief Job Description: Ability to effectively prioritize and handle multiple tasks simultaneously.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

VICCI BUSINESS CONSULTANCY CORP. 44/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati CHAN KAM KENG Customer Relation Representative (Mandarin Translation) 180.

Brief Job Description: Handles service support calls, emails and chats from inquiry of a client and/or customers through Mandarin to English language translation.

Basic Qualification: Thorough and extensive fluency in Mandarin language and characters.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. 28/f Techzone Condo Corp., 213 Buendia Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

LEE, WONJUN Bilingual Support Service 181.

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technologies programs and projects.

HU, JUNJI Chinese Language Marketing Staff 182.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

BAYU PRATAMA Indonesian Language Marketing Staff

183.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

EKA SAPUTRA WIRANTARA Indonesian Language Marketing Staff 184.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

ERVANDI Indonesian Language Marketing Staff 185.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for business unit strategy, forecasting, and providing recommendations processes.

KEANURIEF KRISTIAN Indonesian Language Marketing Staff 186.

YU, JIAXIANG Mandarin Speaking Area Sales Manager 173.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for business unit strategy, forecasting, and providing recommendations processes.

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

174.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for warehouse management, inventory control, monitoring, and processing.

Basic Qualification: Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and able to organize their work using tools.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TECHMAVE SERVICES INC. 11/f Liberty Plaza Bldg., 102 H.v. Dela Costa St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

TURAEV, ODILJON Mandarin Speaking Customer Relation Representative 175.

Brief Job Description: Handles service support calls, emails and chats from inquiry of a client and/or customers through Mandarin to English language translation.

CHEN, NAWEN Mandarin System And Support Specialist 176.

Brief Job Description: Process Mandarin interactive software in terms of developing and upgrading its systematic functions.

Basic Qualification: Thorough and extensive fluency in Mandarin language and characters.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Thorough and extensive fluency in Mandarin language and characters.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

VALDI MAULANA Indonesian Language Marketing Staff 188.

CHEN, FEI Mandarin Speaking Warehouse Manager

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

PRANTINUS L TOBING Indonesian Language Marketing Staff

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 187.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Any nationality with excellent verbal communication skills specially in Mandarin & English languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in English and Korean languages.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Thorough and extensive fluency in Mandarin language and characters.

HUANG, CHIEH-HSUN Mandarin System And Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With minimum of 15 years of experience in BPO, IT and Digital transformation industry. With experience in service and program management. Experience in handling Telecom, support and IT. With knowledge and involvement in analysis of business requirements.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

Brief Job Description: Process Mandarin interactive software in terms of developing and upgrading its systematic functions.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

TECHDYNAMICS OPC Unit 10-b Six Neo Building, 5th Ave. Cor. 26th St. Fort Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Basic Qualification: Any nationality with excellent verbal communication skills specially in Mandarin & English languages.

177.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English languages both verbal and written.

S-W TRADING CORP. Unit 101, #393 Mindanao Ave. 6, Talipapa, Quezon City

HUANG, JINCHENG Mandarin Document Controller

Basic Qualification: College graduate. With previous work experience in a related field. Fluent in English and French languages, and with superior customer service skills.

TATA CONSULTANCY SERVICES (PHILIPPINES) INC. 8th-12th, 14th & 15th Floor, Panorama Tower, 34th Street Corner Lane A, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

PRIMUS@KNOWLEDGE SPECIALISTS, INCORPORATED 3rd Flr. Oac Bldg., San Miguel Ave., Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

KAMANGA, JOEL Foreign Recall Support Representative

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

TAT SING INTERNATIONAL LOGISTICS CORPORATION 10/f Unit 1019 State Centre Condo, 333 Juan Luna St., Barangay 287, Binondo, City Of Manila

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With at least 5 years of work experience in managing trading logistic company. Must know how to speak and write Japanese and English languages.

Basic Qualification: Economics graduate. With executive management experience, strong leadership, strategic thinking and good communication skills.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION DUAN, DONGJIE Mandarin System And Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

SYNERGY OCEAN MARITIME INC. 27/f Tower 1, Insular Life Corporate Center Filinvest Corporate City, Alabang, City Of Muntinlupa

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Brief Job Description: Lead strategic planning and execution across diverse sectors. Oversee day-to-day operations and ensure compliance. Represent the company in external relations.

LAMERE KPOUPIEKO, ALI GB Adminplus Member Specialist

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Engineering diploma holder.

With at least 6 years of functional experience and a minimum experience in the end-to-end architectural design for hybrid solution.

Fluent in English language.

No.

SUN LIFE FINANCIAL ASIA SERVICES LIMITED 4th Flr. Sunlife Centre, 5th Ave. Cor. Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

SPIDTREX HOLDINGS CORP. Unit 203 2/f The Asia Tower, 125 Paseo De Roxas Cor. Benavidez St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good verbal and written communication skills.

Brief Job Description: Act as an advisor to the customer to lead them towards the next step of IT-Services by providing a holistic advice and guidance focusing either on an application/ solution, an industry or a technology.

A13

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

MEHEUST, GUILLAUME JULIEN NICOLAS Services Planning Senior Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

PLA MATELS (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION Unit A Kingston Tower, Building B2 L1 Acacia Avenue, Mbp, Alabang, City Of Muntinlupa

OTA, KOSUKE General Manager

No.

Friday, January 19, 2024

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

TRUONG, MY DINH Vietnamese Language Marketing Staff 189.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking in Bahasa language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient speaking in Vietnamese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

*Date Generated: Jan 18, 2024 Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE National Capital Region located at DOLE-NCR Building, 967 Maligaya St., Malate Manila, within 30 days after this publication.

Please inform DOLE National Capital Region if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

TheWorld BusinessMirror

A14 Friday, January 19, 2024

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

No ‘genuine security’ for Israel without a pathway to Palestinian state–Blinken

By Jamey Keaten

D

The Associated Press

AVOS, Switzerland—US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Israel cannot achieve “genuine security” without a pathway to a Palestinian state, insisting such a move could help unify the Middle East and isolate Israel’s top rival: Iran.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, Blinken said the view of leaders in the Arab and Muslim world have changed on Israel and the creation of a Palestinian state would help Israel integrate in the region.

“The problem is getting from here to there, and of course, it requires very difficult, challenging decisions. It requires a mindset that is open to that perspective,” Blinken said.

The Biden administration has been at pains to navigate between longtime US support for Israel and growing concerns that too many Palestinian civilians have been killed or injured in Israel’s war against Hamas militants since their deadly October 7 rampage in Israel.

Blinken reiterated the need for a “pathway to a Palestinian state” and said Israel would not “get genuine security absent that.”

His comments came as Iran’s foreign minister graced the same hallways of the glitzy event in the

Alpine snows: Hossein Amirabdollahian warned that fighting could intensify in the region if Israel doesn’t end its campaign.

“Today, we are witnessing genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, this means that war is ongoing, so there is possibility of extension,” Amirabdollahian said in a separate Q&A session. He didn’t meet with Blinken.

The top Iranian diplomat also acknowledged a missile strike Tuesday on Pakistan, calling it part of a fight against “terrorism,” and said Iran targeted Israeli sites in Iraq this week—moves that threaten to further ignite violence in the Middle East. The governments of Pakistan and Iraq both criticized the action directed by Tehran.

“We do respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan—also that of Iraq—but we don’t allow our security to be compromised and played with,” Amirabdollahian said through a translator.

With a barrage of attacks in recent days heightening fears of

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken gestures during his speech at the Annual Meeting of World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Wednesday, January 17, 2024. The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum is taking place in Davos from January 15 until January 19, 2024. AP/MARKUS SCHREIBER

a broader war in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, said on a Davos panel Tuesday that the kingdom agreed “regional peace includes peace for Israel.” He said Saudi Arabia “certainly” would recognize Israel as part of a larger political agreement.

“But that can only happen through peace for the Palestinians, through a Palestinian state,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a right-wing government that is opposed to Palestinian statehood, and Netanyahu himself recently said that his actions over the years prevented the formation of such a state.

Mohammad Mustafa, chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund who is believed to be a candidate for a future leadership position in the Palestinian Authority, said the international community has

to “move fast and boldly to stop this aggression.”

He says the first step is getting food, water, medicine and other aid into Gaza to prevent hunger from causing more deaths, then pivot to what he calls the root problem: occupation.

“Occupation cannot continue,” he said. “No people will accept to be oppressed the way Palestinian people have been oppressed.”

The leaders of France, Argentina and Spain also spoke on a busy second day of the elite gathering, where heads of state mingle with corporate executives, activists and more.

“Do not let yourselves be intimidated by the political caste and by the parasites who live off the state,” new Argentine President Javier Milei, said in a fiery speech addressing the world’s business class. “You are social benefactors, you are heroes.”

Milei, a libertarian economist who was sworn in last month and promised changes to drastically reduce both Argentina’s budget deficit and inflation of over 200 percent seen last year, warned that political and economic leaders were “opening the doors to socialism” in what is a threat to the Western world.

Argentine native Pope Francis went the other way—urging business leaders to not be guided by profit alone but by high ethical standards because national governments cannot regulate the global economy for the common good.

In a letter to Davos organizers, the pope said wars worldwide show the need to tackle what he called the root causes of conflicts: economic injustices, hunger and exploitation of natural resources.

Davos attendees are taking up other weighty issues, such as artificial intelligence and climate change, with International Monetary Fund head Kristalina Georgieva saying she’s “sick and tired” of hearing people say climate funding is too expensive.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres didn’t hold back either: “Let me be very clear—the phaseout of fossil fuels is essential and inevitable.”

He cited scientists’ recent findings that last year was the hottest on record and warned that “droughts, storms, fires and floods are pummeling countries and communities.”

To combat those effects, Colombian President Gustavo Petro called for an “American pact” on developing clean energy sources, which also would help ease the economic disparities between North and South America.

Meanwhile, Blinken, who met

at Davos with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and others, was asked in a conversation with New York Times columnist Tom Friedman whether Jewish lives matter more than Palestinian lives. He responded, “No, period.”

“What we’re seeing every single day in Gaza is gut-wrenching,” he said.

To ease that suffering, the US is pushing to get more humanitarian assistance to Palestinians and press Israel to ensure it minimizes civilian casualties, said Blinken, whose return home was delayed after a mechanical issue grounded his plane and the US Air Force had to bring over another aircraft from Brussels to ferry him home.

South Africa has formally accused Israel of genocide against Palestinians at the top UN court, and Israel has responded by calling its war a legitimate defense and saying Hamas is guilty of genocide in its attack that triggered the war.

Fra nce, a long w it h Qat a r, helped mediate an agreement to ship medicine into Gaza for dozens of hostages held by Hamas. The shipment was en route Wednesday, when French leader Emmanuel Macron spoke about both conflict and innovation at Davos.

He said Europe’s top priority is “to ensure that Russia cannot and must not win in Ukraine” and called it a “critical emergency” to build a common framework to regulate deepfakes and AI at large amid upcoming elections.

AP writers Courtney Bonnell in London; Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran; Nicole Winfield in Rome; Almudena Calatrava in Buenos Aires; Sibi Arasu in Bengaluru, India; and Joseph Wilson in Barcelona, Spain; Ciaran Giles in Madrid; and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed.

UN says Palestinians dying in hospitals as 60,000 wounded overwhelm doctors US military launches another barrage of missiles against Houthi in Yemen

By Edith M. Lederer The Associated Press

U

N ITED NATIONS —Palestinians are dying ever y day in Gaza’s overwhelmed remaining hospitals which can’t deal with the tens of thousands people hurt in Israeli’s military offensive, a UN health emergenc y exper t said Wednesday, while a doctor with the International Rescue Committee called the situation in Gaza’s hospitals the most extreme she had ever seen.

The two health professionals, who recently left Gaza after weeks working in hospitals there, described overwhelmed doctors trying to save the lives of thousands of wounded people amid collapsing hospitals that have turned into impromptu refugee camps.

The World Health Organization’s Sean Casey, who left Gaza recently after five weeks of trying to get more staff and supplies to the territory’s 16 partially functioning hospitals, told a UN news conference that he saw “a really horrifying situation in the hospitals” as the health system collapsed day by day.

Al-Shifa Hospital, once Gaza’s leading hospital with 700 beds, has been reduced to treating only emergency trauma victims, and is filled with thousands of people who have fled their homes and are now living in operating rooms, corridors and stairs, he said.

“Literally five or six doctors or nurses” are seeing hundreds of patients a day, Casey said, most with life-threatening injuries, and there were “so many patients on the floor you could barely move without stepping on somebody’s hands or feet.”

The Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza estimates that 60,000 people have been

wounded, with hundreds more wounded per day.

Since Israel declared war against Hamas following its surprise attacks into the country’s south on October 7, it has repeatedly accused the Islamic militant group of using Gaza’s hospitals as cover for military activities. It singled out Al-Shifa in Gaza City, saying Hamas had hidden command centers and bunkers underneath the hospital’s sprawling grounds. In late November, the Israeli military unveiled what it claimed was a Hamas military facility under the hospital.

Casey said he was able to reach Al-Shifa three times with deliveries of medical supplies, fuel and food, but once it took 12 days because of Israeli refusals, mainly for security or operational reasons.

At Al-Ahli Hospital, also in Gaza City, the situation was also dire, he said.

“I saw patients who were lying on church pews, basically waiting to die in a hospital that had no fuel, no power, no water, very little in the way of medical supplies and only a handful of staff remaining to take care of them,” he said.

Last week, Casey said, he visited the Nasser medical complex, the main hospital in Khan Younis, which is at 200 percent of its bed capacity with only 30 percent of its staff, so “patients are everywhere, in the corridors, on the floor.”

“I went to the burn unit where there was one physician caring for 100 burn patients,” he said.

Even in Rafah in the south near the Egyptian border, where Israel has urged Gazans to move, Casey said the population has skyrocketed from 270,000 a few weeks ago to almost a million, and the city doesn’t have the health facilities to deal with the massive influx of displaced people.

Gaza historically had a strong health system with 36 hospitals, 25,000 health workers and many specialists, he said, but 85 percent of the territory’s 2.3 million people are now displaced, and that includes health workers, doctors, nurses, surgeons and administrative staff.

Casey said many of these medical professionals are in shelters, under plastic sheeting on streets in Rafah, and not in hospitals. One hospital director told him his plastic surgeon couldn’t do surgery because he was out collecting sticks to burn as firewood to cook food for his family.

What’s needed first and foremost to help the tens of thousands of injured Gazans and people with health issues is a ceasefire and the safety and security that would bring, Casey said, but that’s not enough.

“It’s really the overall package,” he said, saying medical supplies first need to overcome obstacles and inspections and get into Gaza, and then they need to get to the hospitals where they’re needed.

But without health workers, medical supplies, and fuel to run the generators at hospitals and health facilities, “you can’t do the surgeries, you can’t provide the postoperative care,” he said.

Casey said the World Health Organization is trying to mobilize international emergency medical teams to support Gaza’s hospitals and provide care. It has also supported the establishment of several field hospitals over the last six weeks or so, he said.

“The numbers of medical evacuations going outside of the Gaza Strip is very limited,” he said. “We know that there are thousands of people who would benefit from higher-level care that can no longer be provided within the Gaza Strip,” including cancer patients and people with complex

injuries.

“People are dying every day,” Casey said. “I’ve seen children full of shrapnel dying on the floor because there are not the supplies in the emergency department, and the health care workers...to care for them.”

Speaking at another press briefing, Dr. Seema Jilani, a pediatrician and the International Rescue Committee’s senior technical advisor for emergency health, said she just went to Gaza for two weeks in collaboration with Medical Aid for Palestinians and what she saw was “harrowing, and scenes out of nightmares.”

Jilani, who previously worked in hotspots including Afghanistan, Iraq and Lebanon, said “In my experience of working in conflict zones around the world, this is the most extreme situation I have seen in terms of scale, severity of injuries, number of children that have suffered that have nothing to do with any of this.”

Jilani worked in the emergency room at Al-Aksa Hospital in Deir al-Balah, the only hospital in the middle area of Gaza.

On her first day, she said, she tried to save an approximately 1-year-old boy whose right arm and right leg had been blown off, without any of the necessary medication.

Next to him was a dying man with “flies ... already feasting on him,” she said.

Jilani said she treated children with injuries from traumatic amputations to extreme burns, sometimes seeing the smoke from nearby Israeli bombings. “And one day a bullet did indeed go through the intensive care unit.”

After she left, Jilani said, the hospital ran out of fuel and the lights went out.

She doesn’t know how the babies she treated are doing, or whether they were evacuated.

By Tara Copp & Lolita C. Baldor The Associated Press

W

ASHINGTON—The US military fired another wave of ship- and submarine-launched missile strikes against Houthi-controlled sites Wednesday, US Central Command said, marking the fourth time in days it has directly targeted the group in Yemen as violence that ignited in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war continues to spill over in the Middle East.

The strikes were launched from the Red Sea and hit 14 missiles that the command deemed an “imminent threat.” The strikes followed an official announcement Wednesday that the US has put the Houthis back on its list of specially designated global terrorists. The sanctions that come with the formal designation are meant to sever violent extremist groups from their sources of financing.

“Forces conducted strikes on 14 Iranbacked Houthi missiles that were loaded to be fired in Houthi controlled areas in Yemen,” Central Command said in a statement posted on X late Wednesday. “These missiles on launch rails presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and US Navy ships in the region and could have been fired at any time, prompting US forces to exercise their inherent right and obligation to defend themselves.”

Despite the sanctions and military strikes, including a large-scale operation Friday carried out by US and British warships and warplanes that hit more than 60 targets across Yemen, the Houthis are continuing their harassment campaign of commercial and military ships. The latest incident occurred Wednesday when a one-way attack drone was

launched from a Houthi-controlled area in Yemen and struck the Marshall Islands-flagged, US-owned and -operated M/V Genco Picardy in the Gulf of Aden.

The US has also strongly warned Iran to cease providing weapons to the Houthis. On Thursday a US raid on a dhow intercepted ballistic missile parts the US said Iran was shipping to Yemen. Two US Navy SEALs remain unaccounted for after one was knocked off the vessel by a wave during the seizure and the second followed the overcome SEAL into the water.

On Wednesday, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said the US would continue to take military action to prevent further attacks.

“They are exploiting this situation to conduct attacks against the ships and vessels from more than 50 countries ... around the world.

And so we’re going to continue to work with our partners in the region to prevent those attacks or deter those attacks in the future,” Ryder said.

There have been several incidents since the Friday joint operations. The Houthis fired an anti-ship cruise missile toward a US Navy destroyer over the weekend, but the ship shot it down. The Houthis then struck a USowned ship in the Gulf of Aden on Monday and a Malta-flagged bulk carrier in the Red Sea on Tuesday. In response Tuesday, the US struck four anti-ship ballistic missiles that were prepared to launch and presented an imminent threat to merchant and US Navy ships in the region.

The Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani and Ellen Knickmeyer contributed from Washington.

TheWorld BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Friday, January 19, 2024 A15

2.7 million Zimbabweans need food aid as El Niño compounds crisis, says WFP

By Farai Mutsaka

H

The Associated Press

ARARE, Zimbabwe—The UN World Food Program said Wednesday that it was working with Zimbabwe’s government and aid agencies to provide food to 2.7 million rural people in the country as the El Niño weather phenomenon contributes to a drought crisis in southern Africa.

Food shortages putting nearly 20 percent of Zimbabwe’s population at r isk of hunger have been caused by poor harvests in drought-ravaged areas where people rely on sm a l lscale farming to eat. El Niño is expected to compound that by

causing below-average rainfall again this year, said Francesca Erdelmann, WFP country director for Zimbabwe.

El Niño is a natural and recurring weather phenomenon that warms parts of the Pacific, affecting weather patterns around the

A WOMAN walks along a path in a deserted field in Zvimba, rural Zimbabwe on June, 26, 2021.

The UN’s World Food Program says it is combining forces with aid agencies and the Zimbabwean government to provide food to 2.7 million rural people in the country as the El Nino weather phenomenon contributes to a looming drought crisis across southern Africa. AP/TSVANGIRAYI MUKWAZHI

world. It has different impacts in different regions.

When rains fail or come late, it has a significant impact, Erdelmann told a news conference.

A cholera outbreak in Zambia has caused more than 400 deaths and infected 10,000

By Noel Sichalwe The Associated Press

L

USAKA, Zambia—Zambia is reeling from a major cholera outbreak that has killed more than 400 people and infected more than 10,000, leading authorities to order schools across the country to remain shut after the end-ofyear holidays.

A large soccer stadium in the capital city has been converted into a treatment facility.

The Zambian government is embarking on a mass vaccination program and says it’s providing clean water—2.4 million liters a day—to communities that are affected across the southern African nation.

The national disaster management agency has been mobilized.

Cholera is an acute diarrhea infection caused by a bacteria that is typically spread via contaminated food or water. The disease is strongly linked to poverty and inadequate access to clean water.

The outbreak in Zambia began in October and 412 people have died and 10,413 cases have been recorded, according to the latest count on Wednesday from the Zambia Public Health Institute, the government body that deals with health emergencies.

The Health Ministry says cholera has been detected in nearly half of the country’s districts and nine out of 10 provinces, and the nation of about 20 million people has been recording more than 400 cases a day.

“This outbreak continues to pose a threat to the health security of the nation,” Health Minister Sylvia Masebo said, outlining it was

PEOPLE walk down a waterlogged road in Lusaka, Zambia on Friday, January 12, 2024. The country is reeling from a major cholera outbreak that has killed more than 400 people and infected more than 10,000, leading authorities to order schools across the country to remain shut after the end-of-year holidays. AP

a nationwide problem.

The United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, called the fatality rate of around 4 percent in the three-month outbreak “a devastatingly high number.” When treated, cholera typically has a death rate of less than 1 percent.

There have been recent cholera outbreaks in other southern African nations including Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. More than 200,000 cases and over 3,000 deaths have been reported in southern Africa since the start of 2023, UNICEF said.

Malawi had its worst cholera outbreak in decades in 2023. Last year, the World Health Organization reported that about 30 countries globally, also including Nigeria and Uganda in Africa, suffered serious outbreaks in the last few years.

Cholera barely affects countries in the

developed world and can be easily treated but can be quickly fatal if not treated.

More than half—229—of the victims in the Zambian outbreak died before being admitted to a health facility, the public health institute said.

Zambia has had several major cholera outbreaks since the 1970s but this one is the worst for 20 years in terms of the caseload, according to Dr. Mazyanga Mazaba, the director of public health policy and communication at the public health institute.

The cholera bacteria can also survive longer in warmer weather and unusually heavy rains and storms in southern Africa have contributed to recent outbreaks, experts say.

WHO said last year that while poverty and conflict remain the main drivers for cholera, climate change has contributed to

January to March is referred to as the lean season in Zimbabwe, when rural households run out of food while waiting for the next harvest. the disease’s upsurge in many places across the globe since 2021 by making storms wetter and more frequent. A cyclone sparked a spiraling cholera outbreak in Mozambique last year.

Heavy rains and flash flooding in Zambia have converted some neighborhoods into soggy or waterlogged areas.

The Zambian government announced in early January that schools—which were meant to open for the year on January 8— will only open on January 29. Parents and children were urged to make use of education programs on public TV and radio, a situation that had echoes of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The education minister ordered schools to be cleaned and inspected.

Zambia’s Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit was mobilized and it was delivering large water tanks and trucking in clean water to some neighborhoods daily.

Granulated chlorine to treat water was also being provided, it said.

The majority of cases are in the capital, Lusaka, where a 60,000-seat national soccer stadium has been converted into a treatment center and is dealing with around 500 patients at any one time, the health minister said.

She said Zambia had received around 1.4 million doses of the oral cholera vaccine from the WHO and expected more than 200,000 more to arrive soon. Zambian government officials, including Masebo, took a vaccine publicly to encourage others to also do so.

Health experts have previously warned that the numerous cholera outbreaks globally have strained the supply of vaccines, which are mostly distributed to poor countries through an international body run by the UN and partners. Vaccines alliance Gavi predicted that the vaccine shortage could last until 2025.

Russian missiles hit apartment buildings in latest deadly strikes on civilian areas

By Illia Novikov

The Associated Press

K

YIV, Ukraine—Russia fired two missiles at Kharkiv during the night, hitting apartment buildings and a medical center and injuring 17 people in the city in northeastern Ukraine, officials said Wednesday, in Moscow’s latest strikes on civilian areas in the almost two-year war.

The S-300 missiles landed after dark Tuesday, Kharkiv regional Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram.

Normally surface-to-air missiles, the S-300s have been adapted by Russia to hit targets on the ground and are cheaper to make than ballistic or cruise missiles.

However, they are inaccurate and have a shorter range, analysts say.

Both sides are looking to replenish their weapons stockpiles as fighting along the 1,500-kilometer (930-mile) front line

is largely bogged down during winter and the war’s focus turns to long-range missile, drone and artillery strikes.

Russia’s recently intensified aerial attacks sharply increased civilian casualties in December, with more than 100 Ukrainians killed and nearly 500 injured, according to the United Nations.

U k r a i n i a n P r e s i d e n t Vo l o d y m y r Zelenskyy has been making a diplomatic push for Kyiv’s Western allies to keep supplying weaponry. He recently visited the three Baltic countries and on Tuesday attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Ukraine has accomplished a lot more than might be obvious on the battlefield at the moment, Blinken said Wednesday in Davos. Kyiv’s forces last year clawed back about half of the territory lost to Russia after the full-scale invasion in February

2022 and have forced the Russian navy to pull back from the Ukrainian coast in the Black Sea, he noted.

“The strategic picture looks...very different than maybe the day-in and day- out picture” on the battlefield, he said.

N e v e r t h e l e s s , U k r a i n e re m a i n s outnumbered and outgunned by its bigger neighbor. “This is a ferocious fight and Russia does have tremendous resources that it brings to it,” Blinken said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, also in Davos, took note of comments about “war fatigue” in the West.

“Yes, we are tired” from fighting Russia, he said in English, but added: “No matter how tired or exhausted we will be, we will keep defending our country.”

Ukraine’s priority this year is air power, Kuleba said, “because the one who controls the skies will define when and how the war will end.”

US-made F-16 warplanes pledged by Western allies are “on their way,” he said.

Also in Davos, French President Emmanuel Macron urged the European Union to intensify its support for Kyiv, saying the top priority is “to ensure that Russia cannot and must not win in Ukraine.”

At a two-day meeting of NATO’s top brass in Brussels, the alliance was working on plans for military exercises later this year—the biggest in Europe since the Cold War. The head of the NATO Military Committee, Adm. Rob Bauer, said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rationale for the war was his fear of democracy, not any security threat from NATO or Ukraine.

“If people in Ukraine can have democratic rights, then people in Russia will soon crave them too,” he said.

The attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s secondlargest city, struck 20 residential buildings and a medical center, authorities said.

More than 60 percent of Zimbabwe’s 15 million people live in rural areas. Their life is increasingly affected by a cycle of drought and floods aggravated by climate change.

Dry spells are becoming longer and more severe. For decades, Zimbabwe’s rainy season reliably ran from October to March. It has become erratic in recent years, sometimes starting only in December and ending sooner.

Once an exporter of food, Zimbabwe has relied heavily on assistance from donors to feed its people in recent years. Agricultural production also fell sharply after the seizures of white-owned farms under former President Robert Mugabe starting in 2000 but had begun to recover.

The United States Agency for International Development, the US government’s foreign aid agency, has estimated through its Famine Early Warning Systems Network that 20 million people in south-

ern Africa will need food relief between January and March. Many people in the areas of highest concern such as Zimbabwe, southern Malawi, parts of Mozambique and southern Madagascar will be unable to feed themselves into early 2025 due to El Niño, USAID said.

Erdelmann said WFP had received a donation of $11 million from USAID. Zimbabwe’s government says the country has grain reserves to last until October, but it has acknowledged that many people who failed to harvest enough grain and are too poor to buy food from markets are in dire need of assistance.

Staple food prices are spiking across the region, USAID said, further impacting people’s ability to feed themselves.

Zimbabwe has already acknowledged feeling the effects of El Niño in other sectors after 100 elephants died in a drought-stricken wildlife park late last year.

Pakistan’s retaliatory airstrikes on Iran after Tehran attack kills at least 7 people

By Munir Ahmed & Jon Gambrell

The Associated Press

I

SLAMABAD—Pakistan’s air force launched retaliatory airstrikes early Thursday on Iran allegedly targeting militant positions, an attack that killed at least seven people and further raised tensions between the neighboring nations.

The strikes in Sistan and Baluchestan province follow Iran’s attack Tuesday on Pakistani soil that killed two children in the southwestern Baluchistan province.

The strikes imperil diplomatic relations between the two neighbors, as Iran and nuclear-armed Pakistan have long regarded each other with suspicion over militant attacks.

The attacks also raised the threat of violence spreading in Middle East unsettled by Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Iran also staged airstrikes late Monday in Iraq and Syria over an Islamic State-claimed suicide bombing that killed over 90 people earlier this month. Iraq has recalled its ambassador from Iran for consultations.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry described their attack as “a series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes.”

“This morning’s action was taken in light of credible intelligence of impending large scale terrorist activities,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “This action is a manifestation of Pakistan’s unflinching resolve to protect and defend its national security against all threats.”

Several insurgent groups operate in Iran and Pakistan, including the Jaish al-Adl Sunni separatist group that was targeted by Tehran in its own strike. They all have a common goal of an independent Baluchistan for ethnic Baluch areas in Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, as well as Iran’s neighboring Sistan and Baluchestan provinces, have faced a lowlevel insurgency by Baluch nationalists for more than two decades.

Pakistan named its operation “Marg Bar Sarmachar.” In Iranian Farsi, “marg bar” means “death to”—and is a famous saying in Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution used to refer to both the United States and Israel. In the local Baluch language, “sarmachar” means guerrilla and is used by the militants operating in the crossborder region.

A deputy governor of Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan province, Ali Reza Marhamati, gave the casualty figures from Thursday’s strike in a telephone

interview, saying the dead included three women and four children near the town of Saravan along the border in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan province. He added that the dead were not Iranian citizens and acknowledged a separate blast near Saravan as well.

HalVash, an advocacy group for the Baluch people, shared images online that appeared to show the remains of the munitions used in the attack. It said a number of homes had been struck in Saravan. It shared videos showing a mudwalled building destroyed and smoke rising over the strike immediately after.

Thursday’s development came a day after Pakistan recalled its ambassador to Tehran because of Tuesday’s strikes by Iran inside Pakistan’s southwestern Baluchistan province. Iran claimed it targeted bases for a militant Sunni separatist group. It drew strong condemnation from Pakistan, which denounced the attack as a “blatant violation” of its airspace and said it killed two children.

Iranian state television, quoting an anonymous official after the strike, said Tehran strongly condemned the attack and “demanded an immediate explanation” from Pakistan.

The risk of escalation remained Thursday as Iran’s military will begin a planned annual air defense drill from its port of Chabahar near Pakistan all across the south of the country to Iraq. The drill, Velayat 1402, will include live fire from aircraft, drones and air defense systems.

Iran and Pakistan share a 900-kilometer (560-mile), largely lawless border in which smugglers and militants freely pass between the two nations. The route is also key to global opium shipments coming out of Afghanistan.

For both Iran and Pakistan, the crossborder attacks renew questions about the preparedness of their own militaries, particularly their radar and air defense systems.

For Pakistan, such systems are crucial as tensions always remain at a low boil with India, their nuclear-armed rival.

Their equipment has long been deployed along the frontier, rather than its border with Iran. For Iran, it relies on those systems against potential strikes by its main enemy, the US. China, a crucial partner in both countries, had urged restraint. Beijing is a key regional player and has a major Belt and Road development in Gwadar port in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province.

Gambrell reported from Jerusalem.

Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

A16 Friday, January 19, 2024 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

editorial

WHO appeals for $1.5 billion to protect vulnerable people

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he World Health Organization (WHO), the leading international body responsible for public health, on Monday launched an appeal for $1.5 billion to protect the health of the most vulnerable populations in 41 emergencies around the globe. The appeal covers the emergencies that demand the highest level of response from WHO this year, with the aim to reach over 87 million people.

It is being issued in a context of complex emergencies cutting across crises of conflict, climate change and economic instability, which continue to fuel displacement, hunger, and inequality.

In times of crisis, marginalized communities and vulnerable populations are often the hardest hit, lacking access to adequate healthcare, sanitation, and essential services. The WHO appeal seeks to bridge this gap by prioritizing the health needs of those who are most susceptible to the adverse effects of emergencies such as conflict, natural disasters, and disease outbreaks.

The appeal also underscores the importance of taking a holistic approach to emergency response. It recognizes that health emergencies are not isolated events but interconnected challenges that require a comprehensive strategy.

By addressing the root causes of these emergencies, such as social inequalities, poverty, and political instability, the world health body aims to build resilient health systems that can effectively manage and mitigate future crises.

“For those facing emergencies, disruptions to essential health services often mean the difference between life and death. From mothers giving birth during conflict, to aid to young children in drought-affected regions, to those receiving cancer treatment or dialysis, health care saves lives. Health-care services are also critical for breaking the cycle that too often leaves communities in a perilous state and reliant on yet more emergency assistance,” said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

He said support in 2024 will enable life-saving health care, distribution of critical health supplies and equipment, along with maintenance of essential health services to ensure continuous care. The funding allows direct access to health care for communities in hard-to-reach areas, in partnerships with local organizations, and effective response to monitor, share information and document outbreaks and attacks on health workers. Other important actions include maintenance of existing health-care systems and building resilience against future threats.

The WHO appeal notes the positive value of funding to supporting people with humanitarian needs. Every dollar invested in WHO delivers a return on investment of at least $35.

The funding would go to the African Region, with $334 million; the Eastern Mediterranean Region, with $705 million; the European region, with $183 million; the Western Pacific Region, with $15.2 million; the South-East Asia Region, with $49 million; and the Americas Region, with $131 million.

“With the support of donors, we will save lives, meet critical health needs for the most vulnerable, and help communities emerge from crises with a greater ability to tackle future health threats. WHO appreciates all support received in 2023, which allowed us to assist millions of people. As we enter 2024, the solidarity and support of the international community is needed more than ever,” said Dr. Tedros.

This is a critical step toward ensuring the right to health for the most vulnerable people in the world. The initiative demonstrates WHO’s unwavering commitment to emergency response, prevention, and preparedness. It also highlights the importance of international solidarity and cooperation in addressing global health challenges.

To meet this ambitious goal, it is essential for governments, philanthropic organizations, and individuals to come forward and contribute generously to this cause. Supporting the World Health Organization is not just a matter of humanitarian assistance; it is an investment in our collective well-being and a demonstration of our shared responsibility to protect the most vulnerable among us. Together, we can build a more resilient and healthier world for all.

Strengthening our specialty care centers Sonny M. Angara

Better Days

S

ince assuming the chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Finance in 2019, we have been committed towards strengthening our public health care system. Providing access to quality health care to all, particularly to our disadvantaged countrymen, is one of the most important responsibilities of the government.

Every year when we tackle the proposed national budget, we are faced with never ending requests for funding for our health care facilities, including the specialized care centers. Specialty hospitals such as the Lung Center of the Philippines, the Philippine Heart Center (PHC), and the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) perform critical, life-saving work for Filipinos who are suffering from respiratory and renal diseases. As one of the proponents of the Universal Health Care Law, providing affordable, if not free

medical care for all has been one of our priorities, and as such we continuously provide support to our health care facilities through our interventions in the national budget and in our personal capacity.

Under the 2024 General Appropriations Act, we sustained our support to the Lung Center of the Philippines as the country’s preeminent institution for the treatment of lung diseases. In particular, we augmented the Lung Center’s budget to help it attain its goal of becoming the first hospital in the country to perform a

Reading Marco Garrido

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Joselito T. Sescon

EAGLE WATCH

U

rban restructuring in developing countries through “globalization of cities in the South” is the intermediate economic background of Marco Garrido’s (2019) more than a decade long ethnographical study of Manila communities made up of urban poor settlements and proximate middle-class gated subdivisions.

The built up of these two intersperse metropolitan communities started in 1960s but it was only beginning in the 1990s and towards the turn of the century that widespread middle class walled enclaves defined sharp spatial boundaries. To quote Garrido, “The interspersion of the urban poor and middle class in slums and enclaves drives boundary imposition with the housing divide becoming a salient class divide.” Decades of spatially bounded dynamic interactions between the two communities emerge a socio-economic relationship of a stigmatized poor and the siege mentality of the middle class.

Garrido’s social class rigors of analysis explain the ensuing politics of the two classes clarifying the electoral struggle of the middle class-led EDSA Dos overthrowing Estrada in January 2001 and the following backlash of the pro-Estrada urban poor contingent in the protest march of EDSA Tres in May 2001. The social class-based analysis partly explained how Macapagal-Arroyo survived the Hello-Garci scandal, and

then the election of Noynoy Aquino as president in 2010. The analysis continue to explain into why Duterte won in 2016 garnering the electoral support from both classes. It was a protest against political dysfunction but with tangential reasons coming from their own differentiated social class circumstances.

(Just to remind ourselves that the study covers only Metro Manila.)

What makes the social class analysis and politics in Metro Manila compelling is that Garrido’s study carefully constructed the theoretical basis of the class divide physically represented by imposed spatial boundaries and then reaffirmed by decades of social interactions of unequal relationships. Garrido let the stories of the citizens inside the two communities define their views and feelings, affirming the subtle or not impositions of the class division in between them.

This is by far the most systematic sociological analysis of current Philippine politics, and possibly applicable to other developing countries with

successful human lung transplant.

We initially provided funding for this purpose in 2022, and for 2024, we increased the maintenance and other operating expenses and capital outlay allocations for the Lung Center to bring this goal to fruition.

Once it is able to perform a successful human lung transplant, the hospital notes that the barrier for its inclusion among the world-class thoracic surgical centers will be removed.

The Lung Center has the distinction of having provided complete treatment for the most number of lung cancer patients among all health institutions in the country. This starts from diagnosis to surgery to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, including endobronchial brachytherapy. We want the hospital to continue its work in detecting and treating lung cancer patients. As it is with any disease, early detection is key to successful treatments and saving lives. This is why we also augmented the budget of the Lung Center for the implementation of the early detection of lung cancer. Once detected, patients will undergo surgical activities to be followed by radiotherapy

or chemotherapy.

Another leading cause of death in the Philippines is chronic kidney disease. Individuals afflicted with this ailment have to undergo a lifetime of hemodialysis treatments unless they are among the lucky few who are eligible for a kidney transplant.

Considering that a significant number of patients with chronic kidney disease go to the NKTI to seek treatment, we made it a point to also increase funding for the hospital in order for it to serve all who approach it continuously and to accommodate even more in the future.

While the dialysis sessions of the patients are covered by PhilHealth for one year, the patients still have to pay for the other expenses such as the dialyzer, which is a disposable tool used to remove excess wastes and fluids from the blood; the erythropoietin, which stimulates red blood cell production; and other maintenance medicines. The additional funds we provided for NKTI is intended to cover all the patients’ expenses when they go in for dialysis sessions.

See “Angara,” A17

large number of urban poor settlements amidst a moderately growing middle class such as Brazil. This is better than the patchwork and topdown analysis of systematic disinformation and miseducation of the less educated poor supposed to be without capabilities to discern, and the civilsociety groups heroic but failed efforts to help and transform them. The failure of current political analysis to recognize two to three decades of social class division in the major urban city, their sentiments and politics, led only to inappropriate messages that further reaffirmed the unequal relationship. Let me quote Garrido’s critical analysis: “It really is amazing. Manileños have such a highly refined nose for class—it steers a thousand daily interactions, which, in their aggregate, give the city its shape—and yet largely blind to the way social class shapes their politics. They reach instead for the usual rubrics: political dynasties, political bosses, patronage, palakasan, or plain old corruption. These frameworks are not so much irrelevant as insufficient particularly in Manila.

Our picture of Philippine politics will never be complete without a sociological account of social class.”

The quote above for me is probably what makes up the conclusion of the wonderful book, no doubt a great contribution to Philippine studies and the “Global South” that scholars will have to deal with. As an economist, I have to get pass through what is now clearly understood social class dynamics and politics in current Metro Manila, thanks to Garrido. I have to reflect what had happened and what could happen

on the basis of the continuing transformation of the economy towards bad or good outcomes.

Developing countries in the Global South that failed to fully industrialize and create corresponding urban industrial jobs depict an economic transformation from largely agricultural toward services, half of which are lowproductivity, low-wage, and irregular or casual jobs. In comparison are successful industrial East-Asian economies that include China, currently in the process of completing their economy’s full transformation. Contrary to usual paeans paid to liberal market reforms, the state and political leadership in partnership with the private sector played a pivotal role in the successful economic transformation of China following the same successful East-Asian countries’ route.

Social class formations and their attendant politics are normal dynamics in a changing society and economy.

What is crucial is a political leadership that forge a working coalition among different social class interests taking on the challenges and opportunities offered by the changing global economic and geopolitical environment.

The associated goal of transformation is to lessen inequality by spreading out opportunities for social and economic mobility diffusing tension from social class conflict of interests.

Mr. Joselito T. Sescon is Assistant Professor at the Department of Economics of Ateneo de Manila University. “The Patchwork City: Class, Space, and Politics in Metro Manila” by Marco Garrido, Associate Professor, University of Chicago, is reprinted and available at the Ateneo de Manila University Press.

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Anita Roddick: Working-class background is an asset

Opinion BusinessMirror

From healing to writing to meaning

meeting, which was always diplomatic.

As I moved from place to place, the term began to vary. In Ticao Island, the term “naabyan” was common. The problem with this term was that when you went to other places, “abyan” referred to a friend or guide. And going back to the island,

ture soon—sympathetic magic.

Attributed to James George Frazer of the book The Golden Bough, sympathetic magic operated on contagion and similarity.

Voodoo dolls and other fetishes are examples.

This intellectual/academic struggle reached a fever pitch when I dreamt of a dead person only to see the same image the next day when I was on my way to a field site. In that village, I would meet a very powerful healer who would give me an amulet: in dark places I would bite it and all my fears would go away. Or, on some days, I would be gifted with a vision of phantasm.

This was not anymore in the realm of the enchanted beings; I was already entering the terrifying. Was I becoming a believer? A convert?

Was I the next Carlos Castaneda?

the “Agta” was a term for dark beings more violent than the encantos who were always “white” or mestizo.

Theories were present in all of these undertakings. I was conscious of the framework with which I was viewing the rituals and the belief system. I was keen about terms used for the rites and the beliefs because I was focusing on cognition. Magic entered the pic-

Feel free to smile or smirk at this point.

In Colin Braga’s paper, “Carlos Castaneda: The Uses and Abuses of Ethnomethodology and Emic Studies,” the literary theoretician asks this terrible question: Was Castaneda a shaman or a charlatan?

Can one believe in sorcery and still be acknowledged as an ethnographer or cultural anthropologist?

Tito Genova Valiente

annotations

F

ascinated early on with a local healing ritual called “pagbawi” (literally “to get back” or “to recover”), I have, through the years, never stopped trying to understand the process.

I

t’s not capital, a business degree, connections or name that is essential in launching a business. It is work ethic—and if you got that because of your working-class background, it is even more powerful.

In these days of start-ups, crowdfunding campaigns and venture capitalists, it is so easy to hide one’s lowincome background and overlook a key component of business success— your ability to work hard through and through. One international company, however, reminds us that working hard from the ground up remains the key to success. That’s exactly what propelled The Body Shop, a British cosmetics, skin care and perfume company founded by Anita Roddick in 1976, to global recognition.

“If I have had a shitload of money, and if I had a business education, if I had gone to a business school, I wouldn’t be here,” said Roddick in one interview.

Her background was that of a typical immigrant from Italy. She was born on October 23,1942 to Gilda and Donny Perilli who ran a café in Littlehampton, West Sussex, England. Like most children of immigrants, Anita and her siblings were made to work at the café before and after school and also on weekends.

She described her regular days as working at 5 a.m. in the café and then closing it at 9 p.m., which was later than any other shop in the area.

That’s the training she had in business—focused involvement, hard work, dedication and the concept of the enterprise as a form of survival.

In an interview with Vermont Business Magazine, Roddick said: “Our house had a powerful work ethic and no leisure at all. We never took a holiday.”

Anita married Gordon Roddick in 1970, and they put up a bed-andbreakfast hotel and restaurant as their business. They sold these in 1976 because Gordon decided to pursue a dream: to ride a horse from Buenos Aires, Argentina to New York.

That left Anita and the kids in England—what a progressive marriage!

Anita started The Body Shop because she needed a livelihood to support her family. Money was an issue—her husband had to borrow 4,000 GBP from a bank to finance the opening of the first The Body Shop branch in Brighton in 1976.

She had a vision. She wanted to offer customers a back-to-nature

Angara . . .

continued from A16

In order for the NKTI to serve even more patients, we also increased the allocation for medical assistance to indigent patients and financed the cost for the conversion of clinics and existing old and dilapidated rooms to patient rooms.

We also funded the request of the NKTI to put up a peritoneal dialysis warehouse for simulation and skills laboratory training center. This will serve as a training laboratory for peritoneal dialysis, which is an alternative treatment of hemodialysis for kidney failure.

For the PHC, which is recognized as the country’s leading cardiovascular care center, we introduced a number of interventions aimed at improving the systems and processes of the institution for the overall benefit of its patients. This includes the long overdue upgrading of its digital cardiac MRI that will not only allow

cosmetic range: all-natural skin care and hair products as well as perfumes formulated by an herbalist that are cruelty-free and environment-friendly (she encouraged use of reusable containers). Her personal assistant, Karen Bishop, said in an interview in 1997 that when Anita started The Body Shop, “she looked through people’s bathroom cabinets to see what kind of products they bought.” That’s how involved she was.

Employees said that Anita would not stop talking about her products’ stories to customers when she was in the shop. She did a lot of networking; she would check the shops, the delivery trucks and how the goods were being transported. She was the face and the voice of the company that required her presence in media interviews and spearheaded alliances and partnerships with communities and various causes. She was, by all accounts, the spider in the middle of the web that was spinning magic in British business.

Roddick was also ahead of her time. She introduced refillable bottles, launched campaigns with Greenpeace, strengthened the company’s social activism when other corporate giants were focused on profits and profits alone, and gave back to the communities. Her company cared about social issues and the environment. She incorporated running a business with social activism, and it worked.

Her business grew by leaps and bounds, first with a few branches opened by friends who bought the products from them. Franchising followed. They went public in 1984, and in 2006, The Body Shop agreed to a £652.3 million takeover by L’Oréal.

Roddick died in 2007, but her social activism and entrepreneurial skills remain legendary. Today, The Body Shop has 3,000 stores across 65 countries. If you think your workingclass background is something to be ashamed of in your business or profession, think again. It didn’t stop Anita Roddick. Instead, it fueled her.

That very same background probably gives you the work ethic that will equip you to take on the challenges of running a business. the accommodation of more patients, but will also provide doctors with an accurate diagnosis prior to a surgical procedure and the degree of recovery after surgery. Funds were also provided for PHC to procure two new heart lung machines and a cardiac telemetry monitoring system.

The needs of our health facilities will never end but for as long as we are able to do something to help, we will continue to do so. It is the government’s obligation to provide for the medical requirements of our people, particularly to those who have less in life. We want to avoid the situation where individuals would outright skip seeking medical help because they have no means to do so.

Senator Sonny Angara has been in public service for 19 years—9 years as Representative of the Lone District of Aurora, and 10 as Senator. He has authored, co-authored, and sponsored more than 330 laws. He is currently serving his second term in the Senate.

E-mail: sensonnyangara@yahoo.com| Facebook, Twitter & Instagram: @sonnyangara

Friday, January 19, 2024 A17

When I began looking at the practice (which I would pluralize later), the actors in the rituals were the “encantos,” the enchanted beings.

My image of them, culled through fieldwork, was so detailed I even discovered a cosmogony that would explain them. Where did they come from? How were these beings created? Were they made by the same God who made the heavens and the Angels?

The origin myth said thus: One day, God announced He would bless all creatures. When the people heard the summon, they rushed to the place where the bendicion (blessing) would be given. But not everyone was listening. Some were busy gambling; others were doing something else.

When God finally gave the blessing, those who were not there were marked as “different.” They became the first encantos.

As if to prove the veracity of this origin tale, my informants spoke of their common experience: in the Mass, when the priest was about to make the final blessing, the encantos who also attended Masses, would rush outside. This explained why during that moment, however crowded the church may be, the air would get cooler. Some had left already.

I held on to this story for many years. Many elements entered the description of the ritual. One important point was being enchanted did not mean being possessed. The latter was the work of the devil and required exorcism. To conduct the “pagbawi” one needed to negotiate with the unseen beings. There were specialists who could conduct the

According to Braga: “Looked at from a Western positivist and scientist perspective, the shamanic techniques and powers Castaneda claims to have acquired surpass the category of the natural and the credible, verging on the supernatural and the mystical.”

In the old approach to fieldwork, we were instructed that it was not necessary to believe in the phenomenon if one would like to describe it aptly. There was an act called “bracketing,” where the field investigator suspended his disbelief and apprehended whatever was “out there.”

One could bring in here the practice of value-free sociology and/or anthropology. There was no need to include your value in order to document a value system of an ethnolinguistic community, not your own.

What a futile struggle. Flash forward and here I am savoring this book Autoethnography. The authors of the introductory book—Tony E. Adams, Stacy Holman Jones, and Carolyn Ellis—write: “In autoethnography, ‘proximity, not objectivity, becomes an epistemological point of departure and return.”

With this newfound approach, there is “the impulse to create ground-level, intimate, and close-up perspectives on experience.”

Flashback: I was talking to a healer who was seated in front of me while my sister would recall later how the healer sat beside her, telling her how she reminded her of his daughter who was held hostage for three days by the Prince of the Encantos.

In my old report, I negated this story because my report came across as fiction. Presently, I am embracing not only polyphonic voices but celebrating parallel universes, where the story of a healer appearing in two realities happened. This would be autoethnographic: “the epistemic (claims to knowledge) and the aesthetic (practices of imaginative, creative…) are kindred. Engaged.

E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

The economics of conflicting medical assessments in seafarers’ disability claims Dennis Gorecho

Pinoy Marino Rights

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urisprudence on labor claims, including those involving Filipino seafarers, can be influenced by the interface of law and economics.

In his separate opinion in the case of Teodoro Bunayog v. Foscon Shipmgt Inc., (GR 253480, April 25, 2023), Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen gave an economic analysis of conflicting medical assessments for seafarer’s disability claims.

Leonen noted that the seafarer’s employment contract is strictly regulated by the government due to the unaccounted consequences that the contracts produce, mostly in the form of work-related risks and injuries.

In economics, these are referred to as “externalities,” which are unintended effects or consequences of an activity that affects the parties but are not reflected and imposed as a cost.

In employing seafarers, the manning agency and the shipping company, which have control over the ship, bear the burden of complying with safety regulations.

Imposing a liability induces the employers and the injured seafarers to be burdened with the cost of the harm when they fail to take precautions.

This process of “internalization” means that the consequences and

costs are accounted for and are attributed to the party who causes the harm.

The occupational hazards are internalized through a claim of damages paid by the employer. Seafarers are compensated for the injuries they suffered.

Leonen underscored that the law intervenes to achieve “allocative efficiency,” which means that both parties reach a mutually beneficial agreement.

“Allocative efficiency” concerns the satisfaction of individual preferences where an optimal market is producing goods that consumers are willing to pay. It increases only if it makes an individual better off and no one worse off. It compels the law to help the parties achieve their goals as fully as possible.

Optimum allocative distribution of resources presupposes that both parties are able to bargain on equal footing. The one who causes the damage should bear the cost of the damage.

Leonen said that the seafarer, however, is already at an economically disadvantaged position.

The externalities between the

parties, such as the seafarer’s workrelated disability, are not taken into account, and thus, the company escapes the cost of the damage.

The allocative efficiency will not be optimal since it leaves the seafarer worse off, even though the externality is caused by the company.

While labor tribunals should assess the inherent merits of both the company-designated physician’s findings and the seafarer’s physician’s findings in case of conflict, Leonen noted that it is also equally true that the seafarer would not have the same resources that the company does.

The company is in a position to retain physicians of caliber, and would be able to afford subjecting the seafarer to repeat medical evaluation.

The seafarer, on the other hand, may only be able to afford a one-time medical examination with a physician of a lesser caliber.

Leonen pointed out that the unfortunate consequence of this works to place the evidence of both the seafarer and the employer at equal footing, weighing both medical assessments as if they were equal.

In this situation, the companydesignated physician’s findings would always appear to be more credible, since this would be the same physician that would be able to examine the seafarer repeatedly from the time of their repatriation until the end of their treatment.

To achieve optimal allocative efficiency, the courts must balance the allocation of resources between the parties.

The first phase of the externality is internalized when, in conflicting medical assessments, the contract

between the parties requires the mandatory referral to a third actor.

The party who refuses to submit to the mandatory referral must bear the cost of the damage.

When the seafarer unreasonably refuses to submit to the mandatory referral, the company-designated physician’s findings should be binding on the parties.

The employer should be given a reasonable period of time within which to act on the request for referral to a third doctor, just as the seafarer should be given a reasonable period of time within which to attach a substantial medical abstract to their request for referral to a third doctor.

However, when it is the employer that unreasonably refuses the seafarer’s request for a third doctor, the medical evaluation that must prevail is the assessment grounded on scientific basis, that is, based on the actual medical records of the seafarer.

The Labor Code affirms preferential treatment of labor in declaring that all doubts in the implementation and interpretation of labor laws must be resolved in favor of labor.

Leonen opined that there is no complication in favoring the seafarer when their medical condition has sufficient medical basis, since any damage the company will bear, that is, the cost of total and permanent disability benefits, has already been accounted for when the parties entered into the employment contract.

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

A18 Friday, January 19, 2024

DMW, DOT EYE RETURNING OFWS TO FILL IN LABOR GAP

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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HE government is now eyeing returning overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to help address the country’s labor shortage in tourism under a new program of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Department of Tourism (DOT).

Both agencies signed a new agreement for the implementation of their Balik Bayani sa Turismo (BBT) program, which will provide returning OFWs and their families free tourismrelated skills development and enhancement training.

The training will cover culinary tourism, farm tourism, homestay operations and tour guiding.

Under the program, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) will provide scholarship grants for qualified OFWs and their family members who want to become tourism frontliners and service providers or tourism enterprise owners.

It also allows DOT to include OFWs with extensive experience in language skills or in tourism-related activities in its pool of experts.

DM W Of f icer -i n- C h a rge Hans Leo J. Cacdac welcomed

the initiative since it will expand the reintegration program.

“No OFW does not want to return home for good. Everyone has plans for their families and communities. That’s why this partnership with the DOT is a huge help for our OFWs to come home with their families while having a sustainable source of income in the local tourism sector,” he said.

Those who will complete the training can seek local employment in tourism establishments or start their own tourism-related businesses.

DOT Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said the addition of OFWs in the tourism sector will help boost its competitiveness.

“We are counting on our partnership with the DMW because the returning OFWs are so much valued in the tourism industries because of their experience and expertise,” Frasco said.

Last year, the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association (HSMA) reported a shortage of workers in local hotels and resorts as their occupancy increases following the lifting of pandemic restrictions.

DOT has partnered with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to conduct special job fairs to address the labor shortage.

Experts: Chacha won’t bring in needed investments in PHL

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HARTER change will not solve the country’s problems in terms of attracting the investments it needs to boost economic growth, according to a local economist and Ibon Foundation Inc. In a recent interview with BusinessMirror, Ateneo de Manila University Economics Department Chairperson Alvin P. Ang said Charter change is no longer necessary.

He said, however, he was initially in favor of Charter change for the country. But this was merely to send a message to investors that the country was serious about reforms.

“Noon talaga tingin ko importante yun. Kasi [Before, I really deemed it important, precisely] to send a message. ‘Yun lang yun eh [That was just it]. To send a message that we are serious. [But] in reality, in itself, it will not bring foreign investments,” Ang said.

Ang, however, said what is crucial is the full implementation of the Anti-Red Tape Authority

(ARTA) Law to improve the ease of doing business nationwide. “[What we really need is] full implementation [of] ARTA. That’s it. If you can do that. Because for example, in Vietnam, in Thailand, our neighbors they also don’t offer full ownership of land, right? But how come they get the foreign investors?

So, the difference is the governance,” Ang explained, partly in Filipino.

‘Stranded’ development

MEANWHILE, Ibon said Charter change will only continue the country’s decades-old “stranded” development that “left millions of Filipinos struggling amid a jobs crisis.”

If the aim of amending the charter, Ibon said, is to attract more foreign investment, these invest-

ments have not helped develop the Philippines and only gave it “fleeting short-term gains.”

Ibon said based on data it obtained, the annual foreign investment inflows have increased significantly since the early 1980s.

Foreign investments amounted to $10.6 billion in 2021-2022, or 2.7 percent of GDP from $187 million or 0.5 percent of GDP in 1980-1984; and $8.56 billion or 2.5 percent of GDP in 2015-2019.

Ibon said total approved investments have gone into foreigndominated manufacturing or 52 percent of approved manufacturing investment in 2011-2022 rather than domestic agriculture and Filipino industries.

However, Ibon said the manufacturing sector posted its smallest GDP share in 75 years at 17.6 percent for the first three quarters of 2023. This is the lowest since the 16.3 percent in 1949.

“There has also been a conspicuously large decline in the sector’s employment to its lowest in 20 years. Meanwhile, the GDP share of agriculture is at its lowest in history at 8.4 percent,” Ibon said.

Ibon added that the Philippines’

net FDI of $6.5 billion in the first 10 months of 2023 was down by 18 percent from the same period the year before. The research group said this is barely half the recent peak of $12 billion in 2021.

Further, Ibon said the context of pushing for Charter change is outdated given the rise of protectionism and investment regulation.

Global growth is expected to slow for a third consecutive year to 2.4 percent in 2024, with global growth in 2020-24 marking the slowest half-decade of growth in 30 years.

Ibon added that international trade is also losing its steam as a growth driver with global trade growth weakening to 0.6 percent in 2023. Global investment growth is likewise expected to remain tepid.

“Amid this global economic downturn, many countries have already reevaluated and backtracked on investment liberalization. According to the United Nations Council for Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD) Investment Policy Hub, over 60 governments have terminated 405 international investment agreements (IIAs), as of March 2023,” Ibon said.

MAP: Ownership caps, industry limits must top constitutional reforms

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

W

HILE it has yet to release a “position” on Charter change,the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) said amendments to the Constitution should revolve around ownership caps and industry limitations to address the issues that hamper the country’s competitiveness.

Asked which fronts of the 1987 Constitution should be amended, MAP President Rene D. Almendras said, “There are many things— ownership caps, limits, industry limitations,” and explained that the country needs to open up because the other countries have done so.

He stressed, though, that while MAP is in favor of amending the Constitution “along the lines of economic reform,” he cannot say yet whether the business group is “fully supportive” of the Senate version as MAP has yet to see what the Senate would propose.

“We have spoken in the past that we are supporting the changes which are economic in nature because we think that that can make a difference as far as attracting foreign investors into the country. But beyond that, I’m sorry we’re not ready to make a statement on that,” Almendras told reporters on the sidelines of MAP’s General Membership Meeting on Thursday.

Foreign chambers including the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (AmCham) have supported the “removal of foreign equity restrictions” from the Constitution.

On Monday, AmCham Executive Director Ebb Hinchliffe told the BusinessMirror, “AmCham has and will continue to support the removal of foreign equity restrictions in its Constitution,” noting that the Philippines is “one of very

few countries that have placed investment restrictions in its Constitution.”

Removing the restrictions from the Constitution, he noted, will send the “right signal” to investors and provide the government flexibility to adjust policies as needed and to take advantage of economic opportunities.

Article 12, Section 10 of the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines states: “The Congress shall, upon recommendation of the economic and planning agency, when the national interest dictates, reserve to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens, or such higher percentage as Congress may prescribe, certain areas of investments.”

Under this section, the Constitution emphasized that “the State shall give preference to qualified Filipinos.”

Weighing the barriers that ownership and “ease of doing business” provides to investors, the MAP head explained that “It depends on the industry. There are industries that don’t need ownership but really need ease of doing [business] a lot more. I think for the local businessmen—which we also in the MAP are now focusing on -- ease of doing business is very important. Because they can own property, they can own everything.”

In his speech at the regular meeting, Almendras said as one of MAP’s top concerns for 2024, “We will push for vital policy reforms, through executive or legislative action, that will eliminate corruption, improve the ease of doing business, ensure food security through agricultural productivity, and sustain an enabling business environment for local and foreign investors.”

He said this as MAP aspires “to attract greater and more diverse job-creating investments for more Filipinos to be gainfully employed.”

PHILIPPINE Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Teresita Lazaro and Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Nong Rong co-chaired the 8th Philippines-China Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea in Shanghai. Wednesday. PHOTOS COURTESY OF PHILIPPINE DFA, CHINESE MFA

China, PHL hold high-level talks

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome @maloutalosig

T

WO days after the controversial congratulatory message of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to pro-independence Taiwanese president-elect, China and the Philippines went ahead with the scheduled high-level dialogue on defusing tension in the West Philippine Sea. The Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Teresita Lazaro and Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Nong Rong co-chaired the 8th Philippines-China Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea in Shanghai, China, Wednesday.

Both sides have been holding bilateral dialogues on the South China Sea dispute for the past few years, and President Marcos Jr. and President Xi Jinping agreed last November to re-convene this mechanism as soon as possible.

However, the Chinese side did not let slide again the tweet of President Marcos Jr. congratulating Taiwanese president-elect Lai Chingte for his election victory. Earlier, the Chinese Foreign Ministry had summoned Philippine Ambassador

Jaime FlorCruz in Beijing, while in Manila, Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian also protested the congratulatory message to the DFA. “China made stern representations to the Philippines on Taiwanrelated issues, demanding that the Philippines earnestly abide by the one-China principle and immediately stop its wrong words and deeds on Taiwan-related issues,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The DFA did not mention that the Taiwan issue was discussed in the meeting in its separate press release. But the Chinese Foreign Ministry said the Philippine’s response to the Taiwan problem was a reiteration of Manila’s “adherence to the One-China policy” and that they “will continue to implement it effectively.”

Chinese Ambassador

AT the New Year party for Philippine media Wednesday night, Chinese Ambassador Huang also mentioned the “erroneous Taiwanrelated remarks made by the Philippine side following the elections in China’s Taiwan region,” referring to the controversial tweet of President Marcos Jr.

“The Taiwan question is China’s internal affairs and lies at the core of China’s core interests. The one-China principle is the political premise on which China establishes and develops relations with the Philippines,” Huang said.

He urged the Philippine government to “handle Taiwan-related issues prudently” as he expressed hope that the Philippines will “steer a right course” to bring the bilateral relations between Manila and Beijing “back on the right track as soon as possible.”

Managing bilateral dispute in SCS

THE Philippine DFA said both diplomatic officials had “frank and productive discussions to deescalate” the tension in the South China Sea. One of the sticky points during the meeting was the Philippine occupation of Ayungin Shoal (international name: Second Thomas Shoal, Chinese name: Ren’ai Reef) using the grounded Philippine Navy warship BRP Sierra Madre.

Both countries held their ground on their claim that neither side had the right over the outcrop.

“Both sides agreed to calmly

deal with incidents, if any, through diplomacy. They also agreed that continuous dialogue is important to keep peace and stability at sea,” the DFA said.

Beijing and Manila have also agreed to “improve the maritime communication mechanism” in the South China Sea. The communication involves between foreign ministries and coast guards of both countries.

“The Philippines and China agreed to initiate talks on possible academic exchanges on marine scientific research between Filipino and Chinese scientists,” the DFA said.

China’s MFA stressed that consensus reached between the two sides “should be fully implemented.

“Both sides reiterated that disputes in the South China Sea are not the entirety of bilateral relations and believe that maintaining communication and dialogue is crucial to maintaining maritime peace and stability,” the MFA said.

Aside from the foreign ministries, representatives from China’s national defense, natural resources, ecological environment, transportation, agriculture, and coast guard attended the bilateral consultation dialogue.

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Friday, January 19, 2024

B1

Tycoons set sights on joint PLDT may allot lower capex for bid for MRT-3 operations this year—exec

By Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

B

ycoons Manuel V. Pangilinan and Ramon S. Ang may team up to bid for the privatization of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3).

On Thursday, Pangilinan told reporters that he may initiate discussions with Ang for a possible joint bid to redevelop, operate and maintain the railway system.

“I think it might be good for us to reach out to SMC [San Miguel Corp.] and see what we can do. Why not a joint bid instead? There are ongoing discussions in other areas with them, partnerships,” said Pangilinan on Thursday. “It is a possibility.”

Pangilinan’s Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), together with Sumitomo Corp., submitted an unsolicited proposal but the government did not consider this because, according to the transportation department, it prefers a solicited bidding.

Ang, when sought for comment, said he is willing to partner with

Pangilinan. “Yes, I will join MVP,” he said via text message.

The previous administration awarded Ang’s group the original proponent status.

The transportation department said the government is pursuing the solicited route, similar to the ongoing procedure for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

“Remember what we did for NAIA? We processed the unsolicited as if there was no solicited and we processed the solicited as if there was no unsolicited. Then we elevated them both to the ICC [Investment Coordination Committee] and to the Neda Board, then that decision on how to move forward will be made,” Transportation Undersecretary Timothy Batan said.

BusinessMirror file photo

Batan said the Department of Transportation (DOTr) is now coordinating with the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center for guidance on how to move forward with multiple unsolicited proposals: One from the past administration and the second during the current government.

Also, the agency is considering to “bundle” the operation and management (O&M) contracts for MRT-3 and Light Rail Transit Line

2 (LRT-2). “What we can say is that we have been working on a solicited… We will bundle MRT-3 and LRT-2,” Batan said.

“We probably would participate in that. I guess it depends eventually on the terms of reference for the bid that the government will draft. In principle because we submitted an unsolicited proposal and the government has decided to bid it out, we will likely participate depending on the terms,” Pangilinan said.

CLI seeks nod for preferred share sale

By VG Cabuag @villygc

R

egional property developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI) has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) its registration statement for the issuance of P5-billion perpetual preferred shares, which it will list on the Philippine Stock Exchange.

The company said it will offer 3 million shares at P1,000 apiece as its base offer and an additional 2 million in shares as its oversubscription option.

Yield for the series A-1 preferred shares will be based on the fouryear BVAL (Bloomberg Valuation Service) and the series A2 will be

Discover profit plunges

D

iscover Financial Services posted a 62-percent drop in fourth-quarter profit as the company continued to grapple with the fallout from compliance and risk-management lapses that led to the resignation of its chief executive officer last year.

Net income for the three months ended December 31 totaled $388 million, or $1.54 a share, the Riverwoods, Illinois-based credit-card lender said Wednesday in a statement. That missed the $2.52 average estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey.

Shares of Discover tumbled 5.5 percent to $102.80 in extended trading at 4:54 p.m. in New York.

The stock had dropped 3.3 percent this year through the close of regular trading.

“Employee compensation and professional fees were up due to investments in compliance and risk management,” the company said in the statement. Bloomberg News

on the seven-year BVAL. Proceeds of the offer will reach P4.96 billion, after fees, commissions and expenses.

“The net proceeds of the offer shall be used to partially finance project development or capital expenditures of the Issuer’s various projects; and for general corporate purposes,” the company said.

Assuming it raised the full P5 billion, CLI said it will spend some 85 percent of the proceeds for its project development and capital expenditures.

Some of the projects include Casa Mira Homes Butuan Mirani Steps Danao in Cebu, Velmiro Heights Consolacion also in Cebu, Casa Mira Towers Palawan Expan-

sion, Casa Mira Homes Davao and Velmiro Heights Davao. All these projects are expected to be completed between 2028 and 2029.

BPI Capital Corp. and China Bank Capital Corp. have been appointed as the joint issue managers, joint lead underwriters and joint bookrunners for the offer.

BPI Capital, Chinabank Capital, PNB Capital and Investment Corp. and RCBC Capital Corp. have been appointed as joint underwriters and joint bookrunners for the offer.

CLI had said its income in January to September 2023 rose 28 percent to P3 billion from the P2.4 billion recorded in the same period last year.

It saw a double-digit revenue

growth across all of its business segments, pushing its gross revenues to P13.27 billion, up by 19 percent from the previous year’s P11.1 billion.

“We are very pleased with our performance (in 2023), achieving double-digit profit expansions in the last three quarters despite the headwinds of inflation and higher interest rates in the country. This underscores CLI’s commitment to providing value to shareholders and affirms the sustainability of our growth trajectory,” CLI Chairman and CEO Jose Soberano III said.

Across segments, CLI’s real estate unit continued to be the primary driver of the company’s revenue, the company said.

usinessman Manuel V. Pangilinan said telco giant Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) is likely to set aside a lower capital expenditure (capex) for this year.

“In terms of fresh capex, most likely, yes, it will be lower this year compared to last year. We are getting a better idea of what is the carryover capex from the issues related to 2022.

It is likely to be overall lower than in 2023,” said Pangilinan.

The phone giant has earmarked a capex of P80 to P85 billion last year.

He also said the search for the next PLDT president is still ongoing. “We just started. It is ongoing now; it is a bit new. Too early to say who the candidates could be at this stage. It is a wide search. At this stage, I cannot tell you how many. Hopefully, before the year ends, we can find the right person.”

Former PLDT President Alfredo Panlilio retired last year “due to health reasons,” prompting Pangilinan to lead the phone giant pending a suitable replacement.

“The problem with the industry has always been growth. It is also getting tougher and tougher to realize growth across the board: home; enterprise is a bit better; wireless,” commented Pangilinan when asked for this year’s challenges and how the company will address these.

Meanwhile, Pangilinan has been honored by the Catholic Church with the highest papal award for the laity.

During a Mass at the Manila Cathedral – Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on Wednesday, Manila

Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula, on behalf of Pope Francis, conferred the Cross Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice upon Pangilinan and eight other recipients.

The award, which translates to “For Church and Pope”, is an honor given by the Pope to the laity for their service to the Catholic Church. First instituted by Pope Leo XIII in 1888, the gold medal features the images of the Apostles Peter and Paul.

“You are sent to look for many opportunities to do good for others and to make more of our brothers and sisters feel God’s care, compassion, healing and love through you,” Cardinal Advincula said during the awarding.

Pangilinan, a long-time supporter and member of the Board of Trustees of Caritas Manila, the leading social service arm of the Archdiocese of Manila which implements various charitable programs nationwide, said he would continue to support other philanthropic organizations on top of the various foundations he leads.

“I think that the work Caritas Manila does, and our foundations, is really to be not too self-interested, and to be mindful of others. After all, what are we here on Earth for except to benefit humanity,” Pangilinan said in a television interview.

Pangilinan also sits as chairman of the One Meralco Foundation, the corporate social development arm of Meralco, which is dedicated to spreading the light to underserved communities across the country. Lenie Lectura

Boeing wins order for Max jets from Akasa

‘Close persistent gaps in education, infra’

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

C

onglomer ate Aya la Corp. said there are “persistent gaps to close” in several sectors in the Philippines, including education, health and agriculture.

Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, chairman of the conglomerate, said Ayala recognizes education as a “critical sector” that would need support to ensure that the Philippines would have the talent base that would take it “several levels higher.”

Zobel said Ayala will dedicate capital for education and will partner with the Yuchengco Group through iPeople.

“On education, we have seen a creeping learning challenge affecting young Filipinos. The World Bank and other reputable institutions have reported that the Philippines performs below [its] potential in literacy, mathematics, and science,” he said during the Management Association of the Philippines’s (MAP) General Membership Meeting held in Taguig City on Thursday.

“We note the tremendous contributions of various groups, such as Philippine Business for Education along this front.”

An aircraft operated by Akasa Air prepares to land at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai, India, on Monday, July 3, 2023. Bloomberg News

BusinessMirror file photo

Zobel also said gaps in the Philippine healthcare sector were exposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There is still a ‘beds and heads’ challenge in that we require not only more hospital capacity, but perhaps most impor tant ly, a significantly higher number of healthcare practitioners and allied personnel.”

To improve access to healthcare, he said the full implementation of the Universal Healthcare law will be “critical.”

As for the country’s farm sector, Zobel said it remains “extremely challenged” due to persistent structural issues.

He called on the private sector to participate “more meaningfully” in this space, as he pointed out that “a

strong agriculture sector can generate excellent economic returns and equity for our farmers and guarantee proper nutrition and food security.”

Zobel also noted that addressing the gaps in infrastructure will be crucial if the Philippines aims to be a “truly attractive place for capital.”

“We hope that our strengthened PPP framework will continue to provide a viable and fair way to encourage the private sector to help close these gaps.”

As of 2022, the Ayala chief said the Philippines “attracted the least amount of FDI among Asean’s six largest economies, at $9.2 billion.”

Singapore was the top FDI recipient, cornering $141 billion, followed by Indonesia with $22 billion and Vietnam with $18 billion.

B

oeing Co. won an order for 150 Max jets from India’s newest airline, in a rare spot of good news for the US planemaker since a piece of fuselage blew off an Alaska Airlines flight almost two weeks ago.

Akasa Air, which began flying commercially less than two years ago, made a firm purchase for the 737 Max 10 and Max 8-200 planes to be delivered through 2032, the carrier announced at the Wings India air show Thursday. The order doesn’t include the Max 9 variant involved in the January 5 Alaska Airlines incident, when a door plug panel blew off shortly after takeoff.

Akasa’s total order book now stands at 226 aircraft, bolstering its domestic and international expansion plans, according to the statement. The airline, which currently operates a fleet of 22 Max jets, will “continue to rely primarily on sale

and leaseback financing” for its new order, Chief Financial Officer Ankur Goel said.

The Alaska Air near-disaster has sparked a crisis of confidence in Boeing. While no one died, and the plane returned safely, the incident has renewed focus on the manufacturing giant’s safety record and quality control. US regulators ordered the grounding of Max 9 aircraft and Boeing shares have slumped 22 percent this year on concern the increased scrutiny could slow plane deliveries.

The Akasa Air deal adds to a wave of orders from Indian carriers last year, betting on the surge in air travel demand from the country’s growing middle-class as budget airlines offer cheap ticket prices. IndiGo, India’s biggest airline, and Air India Ltd. have placed record deals for more than 900 aircraft with Boeing and Airbus SE. Bloomberg News

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Friday, January 19, 2024

Exec: Megawide plans IPO for property developer unit

R

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

eal estate firm PH1 World Developers Inc., a unit of Megawide Construction Corp., may be ready to go public by 2026, the company’s chairman said.

Edgar B. Saavedra, the company’s chairman, president and CEO, said by next year or by 2026, PH1 will be a much bigger company than its sister firm.

In terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, PH1 could grow to as much as P3 billion in two years and P4 billion to P5 billion by 2026, Saavedra said.

Megawide’s EBITDA, in comparison, is just between P2 billion to P3

billion, Saavedra said.

“Our business model today is normally we do JV [joint venture] with landowners so it won’t be too heavy on capital. But when we do our IPO [initial public offering], it will change because fundraising is easier.”

Right now, PH 1 has around five projects, all within Metro Manila or nearby provinces. The company will launch a project in Trece Martires in Cavite this weekend.

Saavedra said they target to

Saavedra also noted the resilience of the housing sector even during the pandemic.

“The residential (market) remains to be more resilient, even during pandemics, especially if you look at the affordable segment market.”

PH1’s income last year grew by more than eight times to P66.77 million from the previous year’s P7.9 million.

Revenues, which mostly come from real estate sales, was at P599.77 million, up by almost double from the previous year’s P311.42 million.

The company is involved in selling residential condominium units under its The Hive project located at San Isidro Street, Ortigas Avenue Extension in Taytay, Rizal which consists of Towers A, B, C and D. Construction of Towers A, B and C are completed as of December 31, 2022, while the construction of Tower D is 98 percent completed as of end-2022.

launch two vertical, high-rise or medium rise projects every year.

“When we launch, our mediumrise construction are big, a minimum of five to 10 towers,” he said.

“By 2026, we already have eight to 10 (projects) and your order book is at already 10 years. The inventory, meanwhile, we’re looking at P200 billion in 10 years. (We) have P200 billion (worth of projects) to sell in the next 10 years.”

Megawide acquired PH1 from its parent Citicore Holdings Investments Inc. for P5.2 billion.

Saavedra said the acquisition of PH1 will position Megawide in the affordable housing market, while enhancing the company’s operation results.

“In comparison to the construction business, if you do a development, you get a higher top line, and higher percentage in bottom line,” he said.

MUTUAL FUNDS

January 18, 2024

NAV

One Year Three Year

per share

Five Year

Y-T-D

Return*

Return

Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a

213.8

-3.23%

-2.41%

-4.19%

-0.28%

1.4782

3.24%

3.67%

0.02%

1.75%

0.37%

ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.976

-4.42%

-2.08%

-6.21%

-2.17%

Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7029 -0.61%

-4.56%

-5.8% n.a

First Metro Consumer Fund, Inc. -a

-6.08% n.a

1.29%

-3.34%

1.02%

ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a

0.6337

-9.52%

-5.25%

First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund, Inc. -a 4.6773-5.61% -2.27%

1.45%

-0.25%

First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.7037-5.87% -2.74% n.a n.a MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

85.12

PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 43.702

-5.29%

-2.71%

-3.48% n.a

1.84%

Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

454.19

-3.24%

-2.83%

-0.28%

1.53%

Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a

1.217

-0.73%

0.84%

-1.5% n.a

0.97%

Philequity Fund, Inc. -a

-3.13%

-1%

-2.38%

1.52%

Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.88 -3.33%

-1.72%

-3.27% n.a

1.51%

Philequity PSE Index Fund, Inc. -a

4.5899

-4.32%

-1.86%

-2.7%

1.41%

1.76%

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

764.07

-4.44%

-2.03%

-2.77%

1.4%

1.81%

Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.6872

-5.17%

-1.86%

-5.26% n.a

0.22%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.4208

-0.24%

34.2204

7.3%

-6.11%

-6.94% n.a -3.48%

-2.35%

-4.28%

-2.34%

-3.06% n.a

United Fund, Inc. -a

0.61%

1.49%

-2.2%

-3.11%

1.68% 1.82%

Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) COL Equity Index Unitized Mutual Fund, Inc. -a 1.074-4.64% n.a n.a n.a

1.74%

COL Strategic Growth Equity Unitized Mutual Fund, Inc. -a,2 1.0101 n.a n.a n.a n.a 0.54% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a

1.0193

-9.4%

-2.88% n.a n.a

0.03%

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

927.68

-4.45% n.a n.a n.a

1.82%

Exchange Traded Fund (shares) First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 103.8158-3.87%-1.62%

-2.46%

2.09%

1.84%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

-15.73%

-15.92%

-4.14%

Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.6534

$0.7764

11.45%

-1.1%

-2.02%

-5.55%

7.13% n.a

-0.51%

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.2047

2.51%

-1.57%

-0.74%

0.47%

-0.41%

ATRAM Unicapital Diversified Growth Fund, Inc. -a,41.5061

0.43%

-3.78%

-2.63%

-1.44%

-0.3%

First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.5104

-4.16%

-1.78%

-1.04%

-0.74%

0.55%

First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.1924

-4.85%

-1.32% n.a n.a

1.05% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a

0.54%

1.62%

PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a

3.5799

-0.31%

-2.11%

-0.13%

0.75%

0.68%

Philam Fund, Inc. -a

15.6585

-0.76%

1.9522

-2.82%

-3.17%

-0.85%

0.43%

0.61%

Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a

2.046

-1.03%

-1.09%

-0.87%

1.27%

0.89%

-1.28%

-1.65%

-1.94%

0.18%

-0.99% n.a

0.39%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.4291 Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.9078

-2%

-0.49%

0.3%

0.99%

0.62%

Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a 0.94520.5%

-2.78% n.a n.a

0.52%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a 0.8565-3.49%

-3.69% n.a n.a

1.11%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a 0.837-4.26%

-3.9% n.a n.a

1.38%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03279 PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $0.871

-9.72%

0.58%

-5.54%

-1.54%

0.1%

-10.26%

-1.82%

-1.27%

-4.82%

-1.26%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.2563

6.85%

-2.53%

4.28%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a $1.0295

2.54%

-4.28%

0.92% n.a

2.81%

-0.83% -1.1%

Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 390.99

3.22%

1.74%

2.58%

2.27%

0.13%

ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.9118

1.43%

0.17%

0.58%

0.08%

0.15%

Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.3376

2.87%

1.24%

2.29%

3.78%

0.37%

Ekklesia Mutual Fund, Inc. -a 2.2795

3.32%

-0.25%

1.3%

1.49%

-0.29%

First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 2.4521

1.7%

0.03%

1.98%

Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a

-2.54%

2.05%

1.03%

-0.22%

4.2886

1.91%

1.24%

Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a

1.3811

4.16%

1.49%

3.18%

1.83%

0.58%

Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

4.0351

3.31%

0.41%

2.51%

1.76%

0.02%

Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a

2.59%

0.34%

2.95% n.a

0.07%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.0504

3.3051

3.93%

1.07%

3.32%

2.29%

Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

3.22%

0.31%

2.47%

1.65%

-0.19%

1.7661

-0.21%

-0.23%

Corporate Debt Vehicle (units) ATRAM Unitized Corporate Debt Vehicle, Inc. -a,3

1.0112 n.a n.a n.a n.a

0.36%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $495.71

2.91%

0.81%

ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є214.13

1.8%

-0.82%

1.99%

2.54%

0.09% 0.07%

0.12%

0.84%

-6.51%

-1.76%

First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0248 3.77%

-1.94%

-0.08% n.a

PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc. -b $0.8549

-0.73%

-3.82%

-3.05%

-0.29%

Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$2.2853

4.19%

-3.19%

0.84%

1.83%

-1.49%

1.58%

-0.68%

1.33%

1.6%

0.16%

0.05%

-4.91%

-0.97%

0.4%

-2.83%

First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.1102 3.28%

1.93% n.a n.a

0.16%

Sun Life Prosperity Peso Starter Fund, Inc. -a 1.37782.84%

2.44%

ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.03651.44%

Philequity Dollar Income Fund, Inc. -a $0.0610083

-7.69%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $2.7535

0.1%

-0.6% -0.4%

Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 137.07

2.8%

1.81%

2.5% 2.02%

2.06%

0.15% 2.05%

0.15%

Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 104.84

4.17% n.a n.a n.a

0.25%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0997

2.67%

1.46%

1.57% n.a

0.2%

Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund, Inc. -a 42.9912-1.41% n.a n.a n.a Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a 1.4685

15.15%

-0.28%

8.07% n.a n.a

-0.05% 0.9999 n.a n.a n.a n.a

0.02%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (Units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund, Inc. -a $0.7925-3.29%

-7.15% n.a n.a

a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago.

2 - Launch date is October 6, 2023.

-1.27%

c - Listed in the PSE.

3 - Launch date is May 25, 2023.

4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last May 21, 2020 (formerly, ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc.) “While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www.

pifa.com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU.”

January 18, 2024

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK COMMERCE BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE VANTAGE

483,500 626,387,955 14,538 356,942,097 1,809,525 1,494,014 144,481,863.50 78,639 181,648 367,837.50 681,745 6,127,431 7,612,645 383,510 131,480 45,900 5,500 2,243,181 1,721,250 302,760

3,355.00 60,254,414 65,998,673 898,620 1,117,015.00 12,026,494.50 70,800 17,591.50 -78,540 -1,377,276 -3,449,860 242,460 1,440,750 -

INDUSTRIAL ACEN CORP 4.07 4.08 4.08 4.2 4.04 4.08 10,575,000 43,309,900 ALSONS CONS 0.53 0.57 0.54 0.57 0.52 0.53 597,000 318,400 ALTERNERGY HLDG 0.7 0.73 0.75 0.75 0.7 0.73 2,137,000 1,509,220 ABOITIZ POWER 38 38.05 38 38.05 37.9 38 1,751,800 66,563,225 RASLAG 1.17 1.21 1.22 1.22 1.2 1.2 85,000 102,560 BASIC ENERGY 0.187 0.19 0.192 0.192 0.187 0.19 430,000 80,890 FIRST GEN 17.8 17.82 17.62 17.9 17.62 17.8 490,100 8,723,308 FIRST PHIL HLDG 63.5 63.95 64.5 64.5 63.9 63.95 62,830 4,020,748 MERALCO 372.2 374 374.2 374.8 371.4 374 104,990 39,187,294 MANILA WATER 18.26 18.3 18.6 18.78 18.24 18.26 1,333,700 24,517,832 PETRON 3.4 3.44 3.38 3.44 3.38 3.44 420,000 1,431,370 PETROENERGY 4.31 4.47 4.37 4.47 4.37 4.47 790,000 3,452,400 PHX PETROLEUM 4.51 4.89 4.52 4.89 4.52 4.89 12,000 54,610 REPOWER ENERGY 7.82 7.86 7.88 7.88 7.83 7.86 21,300 167,461 SEMIRARA MINING 31.1 31.25 31.65 31.85 31.05 31.25 1,536,500 48,169,935 SYNERGY GRID 7.55 7.57 7.65 7.65 7.5 7.55 2,013,400 15,203,266 SHELL PILIPINAS 10.76 10.8 10.96 10.96 10.8 10.8 13,400 145,970 SPC POWER 7.15 7.16 7.18 7.18 7.02 7.15 14,900 106,472 SP NEW ENERGY 1.21 1.22 1.2 1.22 1.17 1.22 17,681,000 21,319,660 AGRINURTURE 0.66 0.68 0.7 0.7 0.66 0.68 4,234,000 2,871,810 AXELUM 2.04 2.05 2.13 2.13 2.05 2.05 251,000 522,840 CENTURY FOOD 33.8 34 34.3 35.3 33.7 34 2,715,300 92,840,925 DEL MONTE 6.1 6.12 6.23 6.23 6.12 6.12 18,800 116,177 DNL INDUS 6.5 6.51 6.51 6.55 6.48 6.51 417,900 2,724,864 EMPERADOR 20.95 21.1 20.95 21.1 20.9 21.1 137,800 2,893,810 SMC FOODANDBEV 48.8 49 49.5 49.5 48.7 49 51,700 2,532,920 FIGARO COFFEE 0.63 0.64 0.64 0.64 0.63 0.63 1,073,000 676,020 FRUITAS HLDG 0.83 0.84 0.85 0.85 0.82 0.83 2,036,000 1,683,290 GINEBRA 162.8 164 164 166 160.8 164 2,530 414,293 JOLLIBEE 260.2 261 261 261.6 258.4 261 1,043,260 271,317,898 KEEPERS HLDG 1.44 1.45 1.44 1.45 1.44 1.45 105,000 151,710 MAXS GROUP 3.23 3.25 3.28 3.28 3.22 3.23 233,000 752,150 MG HLDG 0.098 0.109 0.098 0.098 0.098 0.098 20,000 1,960 MONDE NISSIN 8.06 8.1 8.09 8.33 8.02 8.1 1,418,300 11,486,841 SHAKEYS PIZZA 10.1 10.12 10.1 10.1 10.08 10.1 46,500 469,632 ROXAS AND CO 0.435 0.45 0.445 0.445 0.435 0.435 180,000 79,900 RFM CORP 2.97 2.98 2.99 2.99 2.97 2.97 50,000 148,800 ROXAS HLDG 0.52 0.61 0.57 0.57 0.51 0.51 50,000 26,800 SWIFT FOODS 0.058 0.064 0.062 0.062 0.062 0.062 10,000 620 UNIV ROBINA 113.4 113.5 117.6 117.6 113.1 113.5 2,888,600 329,728,212 VICTORIAS 3 3.1 3 3 3 3 20,000 60,000 CONCRETE A 43 57.95 43 43 43 43 800 34,400 CEMEX HLDG 0.91 0.93 0.95 0.95 0.9 0.9 348,000 318,570 EC VULCAN CORP 0.66 0.69 0.7 0.7 0.66 0.69 289,000 192,370 EEI CORP 6.15 6.18 6.26 6.26 6.05 6.18 387,100 2,380,908 MEGAWIDE 3.26 3.29 3.31 3.33 3.23 3.3 254,000 832,540 CROWN ASIA 1.58 1.59 1.57 1.59 1.57 1.59 186,000 295,260 LMG CORP 2.38 3.38 2.38 2.38 2.38 2.38 5,000 11,900 MABUHAY VINYL 5.54 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6 5,000 28,000 PRYCE CORP 5.21 5.23 5.25 5.25 5.21 5.23 31,900 166,804 CONCEPCION 13.64 14.48 14.48 14.48 14.48 14.48 700 10,136 GREENERGY 0.242 0.243 0.24 0.245 0.239 0.243 30,280,000 7,369,540 INTEGRATED MICR 2.53 2.55 2.56 2.57 2.5 2.54 217,000 551,770 IONICS 1.04 1.05 1.07 1.07 1.02 1.05 803,000 833,490 SFA SEMICON 2.28 2.38 2.36 2.39 2.26 2.38 571,000 1,345,470 CIRTEK HLDG 1.78 1.81 1.82 1.82 1.78 1.81 559,000 998,180

-2,446,220 137,100 456,605 36,000 30,080 1,998,300 -325,338 -11,762,848 4,767,012 -51,600 3,417,340 -12,242,055 -1,863,239 -54,800 -19,332 11,765,970 58,780 48,040 -2,832,480 -62,200 -954,426 1,228,200 -2,268,265 -6,300 72,100 -205,000 50,190,572 -700,220 1,960 -1,816,963 410,060 -74,530 -620 -211,890,398 -105,400 196,800 -991,540 -225,820.00 3,150 -236,000 53,400

ABACORE CAPITAL AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP PRIME MEDIA SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP TOP FRONTIER ZEUS HLDG

63,820 8,852,880 -78,840 -7,706,760 -447,680 -3,669,294 -6,785,240 -36,007,945 4,300 -8,600 2,839,329 5,900,785 -1,517,373 -

HOLDING & FRIMS

33.55 135.8 6.9 107.3 31.45 8.7 55.2 8.71 18.7 53.1 23.1 71.8 44.25 1.23 2.57 2.7 1,013 177 2,550 0.77

1.03 676 48.55 11.58 11.52 0.395 0.38 0.38 4.85 10.16 5.5 618 3.34 38.75 0.395 4.28 9.06 2.65 0.94 873 121.9 98.05 0.078

33.75 135.9 6.94 109.8 31.5 8.78 55.25 8.83 18.74 55 23.5 72 44.3 1.25 2.58 2.71 1,200 177.5 2,700 0.8

1.04 680 48.8 11.6 11.96 0.415 0.39 0.415 4.86 10.18 5.59 618.5 3.78 38.9 0.425 4.4 9.1 2.69 0.99 874 122 100 0.086

33.55 136 6.94 108.9 31.4 8.52 55.5 8.85 18.7 55 23 72.2 44.75 1.32 2.57 2.7 1,100 176 2,550 0.8

1.03 680 48.85 11.56 11.96 0.4 0.38 0.38 4.92 10.32 5.59 628 3.41 40 0.43 4.3 9.07 2.68 0.99 872 123.5 98.05 0.086

33.6 137.4 6.94 109.8 31.6 8.78 55.5 8.85 18.76 55 23.45 72.2 44.75 1.32 2.59 2.7 1,100 177 2,550 0.8

1.03 682.5 48.95 11.64 11.96 0.4 0.38 0.38 4.92 10.32 5.59 628 3.41 40.5 0.43 4.3 9.14 2.68 0.99 877 123.5 98.05 0.086

33.5 135.4 6.9 105.9 31.4 8.52 54.8 8.71 18.7 53.1 23 71.75 44.2 1.25 2.57 2.7 1,100 176 2,550 0.77

1.01 671.5 48.25 11.56 11.96 0.4 0.38 0.38 4.75 10.12 5.59 611 3.32 38.7 0.395 4.3 9.05 2.65 0.99 868 121.6 98.05 0.086

33.5 135.8 6.9 109.8 31.45 8.75 55.25 8.71 18.76 53.1 23.45 71.8 44.3 1.25 2.58 2.7 1,100 177 2,550 0.77

1.03 676 48.8 11.6 11.96 0.4 0.38 0.38 4.86 10.18 5.59 618.5 3.32 38.75 0.425 4.3 9.1 2.65 0.99 873 121.9 98.05 0.086

14,400 4,608,290 2,100 3,292,150 57,600 170,800 2,621,410 8,900 9,700 6,920 29,600 85,270 171,200 305,000 51,000 17,000 5 12,680 675 393,000

2,324,000 244,460 696,000 1,698,600 2,900 10,000 720,000 50,000 463,000 4,181,600 300 214,680 450,000 1,800,400 40,000 22,000 1,130,200 13,000 22,000 224,970 61,750 300 120,000

2,387,970 165,390,920 33,880,655 19,693,382 34,684 4,000 273,600 19,000 2,219,820 42,587,802 1,677 132,542,365 1,501,380 70,268,500 16,450 94,600 10,280,442 34,590 21,780 196,403,595 7,558,356 29,415 10,320

ARTHALAND CORP 0.415 0.425 0.425 0.425 0.415 0.415 90,000 37,450 ANCHOR LAND 4.93 6.49 4.89 6.49 4.89 6.49 3,200 17,858 AYALA LAND 31.55 31.7 32.35 32.7 31.55 31.55 18,685,800 597,019,150 AYALA LAND LOG 1.71 1.72 1.72 1.72 1.71 1.72 254,000 436,370 ARANETA PROP 1.09 1.1 1.06 1.11 1.05 1.1 4,306,000 4,644,560 AREIT RT 34.05 34.1 34 34.15 33.95 34.1 561,500 19,110,100 A BROWN 0.65 0.66 0.66 0.66 0.66 0.66 9,000 5,940 CITYLAND DEVT 0.69 0.71 0.72 0.72 0.71 0.71 19,000 13,660 CROWN EQUITIES 0.066 0.071 0.066 0.071 0.065 0.071 2,040,000 133,670 CEB LANDMASTERS 2.6 2.61 2.65 2.65 2.61 2.62 151,000 396,650 CENTURY PROP 0.27 0.275 0.275 0.28 0.27 0.275 230,000 62,550 CITICORE RT 2.68 2.69 2.67 2.68 2.66 2.68 2,973,000 7,944,460 DOUBLEDRAGON 7.7 7.8 7.78 7.8 7.7 7.8 40,700 316,903 DDMP RT 1.25 1.26 1.25 1.26 1.24 1.25 1,187,000 1,480,820 DM WENCESLAO 5.8 5.99 5.96 5.99 5.9 5.99 8,000 47,425 EMPIRE EAST 0.121 0.123 0.123 0.123 0.121 0.121 2,210,000 270,340 EVER GOTESCO 0.275 0.285 0.275 0.285 0.275 0.285 170,000 48,250 FILINVEST RT 3.07 3.1 3.1 3.1 3.05 3.1 436,000 1,342,350 FILINVEST LAND 0.67 0.68 0.69 0.69 0.67 0.68 2,535,000 1,722,480 GLOBAL ESTATE 0.84 0.89 0.84 0.84 0.84 0.84 24,000 20,160 8990 HLDG 8.6 8.9 8.98 9 8.7 8.7 15,000 133,340 GOLDEN MV 847 880 849 880 847 880 120 104,960 PHIL INFRADEV 0.52 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.55 15,000 8,250 CITY AND LAND 0.75 0.77 0.75 0.77 0.75 0.77 60,000 45,520 MEGAWORLD 1.97 1.98 1.96 1.99 1.96 1.98 10,783,000 21,326,610 MRC ALLIED 1.28 1.31 1.35 1.35 1.29 1.29 941,000 1,222,930 MREIT RT 13.9 13.92 13.6 13.92 13.6 13.9 1,844,300 25,460,858 PHIL ESTATES 0.325 0.34 0.325 0.325 0.325 0.325 30,000 9,750 PREMIERE RT 1.52 1.55 1.55 1.55 1.52 1.52 279,000 426,950 PRIMEX CORP 2.33 2.38 2.33 2.33 2.33 2.33 1,000 2,330 RL COMM RT 5.12 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.07 5.2 1,627,600 8,352,754 ROBINSONS LAND 15.96 15.98 16 16.06 15.8 15.98 2,293,700 36,559,188 PHIL REALTY 0.138 0.155 0.132 0.155 0.132 0.155 2,580,000 371,140 ROCKWELL 1.39 1.44 1.43 1.45 1.43 1.45 2,000 2,880 SHANG PROP 3.9 3.92 3.9 3.93 3.9 3.9 175,000 683,660 STA LUCIA LAND 3.4 3.41 3.41 3.41 3.41 3.41 3,000 10,230 SM PRIME HLDG 32.65 32.7 33.75 33.75 32.6 32.65 4,655,200 152,566,955 VISTAMALLS 2.3 2.31 2.3 2.31 2.3 2.31 23,000 52,920 SUNTRUST RESORT 0.78 0.83 0.77 0.77 0.77 0.77 3,000 2,310 VISTA LAND 1.77 1.78 1.78 1.78 1.75 1.77 2,100,000 3,700,060 VISTAREIT RT 1.72 1.74 1.74 1.74 1.72 1.72 263,000 455,390

SERVICES ABS CBN 4.91 4.92 5.11 5.36 4.81 4.91 1,275,400 6,318,716 GMA NETWORK 8.88 8.89 8.9 8.9 8.86 8.89 162,000 1,438,639 MANILA BULLETIN 0.201 0.233 0.21 0.21 0.21 0.21 80,000 16,800 GLOBE TELECOM 1,727 1,740 1,749 1,774 1,726 1,727 30,545 52,983,805 PLDT 1,259 1,260 1,287 1,287 1,260 1,260 56,910 71,976,855 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.013 0.014 0.013 0.014 0.013 0.013 15,900,000 212,400 CONVERGE 8.6 8.62 8.81 8.94 8.56 8.6 2,411,100 21,070,671 DFNN INC 3.06 3.19 3.1 3.21 3.1 3.2 329,000 1,054,920 DITO CME HLDG 2.43 2.45 2.47 2.48 2.4 2.43 3,112,000 7,575,700 NOW CORP 1.16 1.19 1.18 1.19 1.16 1.19 350,000 407,760 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.132 0.133 0.133 0.133 0.132 0.132 1,440,000 190,680 ASIAN TERMINALS 16.1 16.4 16.1 16.4 16.1 16.4 400 6,470 CHELSEA 1.46 1.51 1.47 1.52 1.46 1.51 340,000 506,520 CEBU AIR 32.75 32.8 33.6 33.75 32.55 32.75 174,000 5,738,615 INTL CONTAINER 246 247.8 250 251.8 245.2 247.8 702,760 174,088,014 LBC EXPRESS 17 18.06 18.1 18.1 15.02 15.02 1,700 25,862 MACROASIA 4.12 4.13 4.15 4.22 4.11 4.13 1,219,000 5,053,960 METROALLIANCE A 0.415 0.44 0.44 0.44 0.44 0.44 300,000 132,000 HARBOR STAR 0.85 0.86 0.87 0.87 0.86 0.86 56,000 48,480 ACESITE HOTEL 1.8 1.86 1.88 1.88 1.8 1.8 130,000 234,900 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.063 0.064 0.063 0.065 0.063 0.063 4,890,000 314,070 WATERFRONT 0.385 0.405 0.385 0.385 0.385 0.385 60,000 23,100 IPEOPLE 7.1 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 5,300 38,955 STI HLDG 0.52 0.53 0.52 0.54 0.52 0.53 2,705,000 1,424,460 BELLE CORP 1.15 1.17 1.16 1.17 1.15 1.17 268,000 310,540 BLOOMBERRY 9.95 9.96 9.74 9.95 9.62 9.95 6,866,100 68,240,106 PACIFIC ONLINE 4.1 4.12 3.94 4.2 3.94 4.1 10,093,000 40,899,390 PH RESORTS GRP 0.82 0.83 0.84 0.84 0.81 0.82 1,498,000 1,235,350 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.66 0.67 0.65 0.67 0.64 0.67 5,982,000 3,928,850 DIGIPLUS 7.51 7.54 7.7 7.75 7.51 7.51 3,378,100 25,632,103 PHILWEB 1.86 1.9 1.93 1.94 1.86 1.92 64,000 121,310 ALLDAY 0.16 0.161 0.16 0.161 0.16 0.161 1,800,000 289,080 ALLHOME 1.12 1.13 1.13 1.16 1.12 1.13 1,508,000 1,711,510 METRO RETAIL 1.26 1.27 1.27 1.27 1.27 1.27 40,000 50,800 PUREGOLD 28.2 28.25 28.05 28.3 27.85 28.2 1,721,400 48,445,125 ROBINSONS RTL 36.35 36.4 37.9 37.9 36.2 36.4 2,193,500 80,470,280 PHIL SEVEN CORP 76 76.2 77 78.5 76.2 76.2 86,670 6,764,485 SSI GROUP 2.65 2.66 2.66 2.66 2.64 2.65 387,000 1,025,150 UPSON INTL CORP 1.31 1.41 1.41 1.49 1.4 1.4 97,000 136,520 WILCON DEPOT 21.55 21.6 22.5 22.5 21.5 21.6 1,053,900 23,246,885 MEDILINES 0.305 0.31 0.32 0.32 0.305 0.305 200,000 61,500 PAXYS 1.21 1.28 1.21 1.21 1.21 1.21 20,000 24,200 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.172 0.173 0.172 0.175 0.172 0.172 1,020,000 176,190 SBS PHIL CORP 4.23 4.47 4.44 4.44 4.23 4.23 8,000 34,470

MINING & OIL APEX MINING 2.84 2.85 2.85 2.89 2.84 2.84 2,163,000 6,184,590 ATLAS MINING 3.3 3.39 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.3 6,000 19,800 BENGUET A 4.72 4.74 4.74 4.74 4.74 4.74 10,000 47,400 CENTURY PEAK 3.11 3.26 3.26 3.26 3.26 3.26 3,000 9,780 FERRONICKEL 2.02 2.04 2.06 2.06 2.02 2.04 440,000 898,150 GEOGRACE 0.037 0.044 0.034 0.044 0.034 0.044 4,800,000 183,000 LEPANTO A 0.075 0.076 0.075 0.075 0.075 0.075 1,200,000 90,000 LEPANTO B 0.075 0.078 0.077 0.077 0.075 0.075 640,000 48,800 MANILA MINING B 0.0043 0.0044 0.0045 0.0046 0.0043 0.0043 13,000,000 58,200 MARCVENTURES 0.85 0.87 0.9 0.9 0.85 0.87 1,818,000 1,577,900 NICKEL ASIA 4.64 4.69 4.78 4.78 4.59 4.69 9,349,000 43,633,780 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.62 0.65 0.62 0.65 0.62 0.65 37,000 22,970 PX MINING 3.18 3.19 3.18 3.2 3.17 3.18 486,000 1,548,820 UNITED PARAGON 0.0039 0.0044 0.0044 0.0044 0.0044 0.0044 1,000,000 4,400 ORNTL PETROL A 0.0081 0.0082 0.0081 0.0082 0.0081 0.0082 9,000,000 73,600 PHILODRILL 0.0077 0.0079 0.0077 0.0077 0.0077 0.0077 3,000,000 23,100

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF B 99.1 101 100 100 100 100 500 50,000 ACEN PREF B 1,070 1,075 1,070 1,075 1,070 1,070 620 664,100 AC PREF AR 2,482 2,506 2,484 2,490 2,482 2,482 220 546,560 ALCO PREF D 453 499 499 499 499 499 5,980 2,984,020 AC PREF B2R 492 494 494 494 494 494 10 4,940 BRN PREF A 97.5 98 98 98 98 98 200 19,600 CEB PREF 33.95 34.9 34.05 34.1 34 34 2,400 81,665 DD PREF 94.75 95 95 95 94.75 95 20,720 1,968,250 EEI PREF A 91.05 100 100 100 100 100 10 1,000 JFC PREF B 925 948 948 948 948 948 10 9,480 MWIDE PREF 4 96 97 96 96 96 96 20 1,920 PCOR PREF 3A 991 994.5 990 990 990 990 350 346,500 PCOR PREF 3B 990 998.5 995 995 995 995 220 218,900 PCOR PREF 4A 971 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 230 230,000 PCOR PREF 4B 971 997 997 997 997 997 80 79,760 SMC PREF 2F 72.4 73 72.35 72.4 72.35 72.4 2,480 179,527 SMC PREF 2I 70.95 72.75 72.75 72.75 72.75 72.75 50 3,637.50 SMC PREF 2J 69.6 74 69.4 69.6 69.4 69.6 16,700 1,160,980 SMC PREF 2K 70 71 70 70 70 70 2,000 140,000 SMC PREF 2L 78 78.5 78 78 78 78 20,000 1,560,000 SMC PREF 2O 78.05 78.1 78 78.1 78 78.05 8,200 639,793.50 TECH PREF B2D 48.35 48.5 48.5 48.5 48.5 48.5 900 43,650

11,990 -126,254,530 3,390 -2,552,725 -694,490 6,200 61,500 -42,750.00 -171,910 -6,150 0 2,473,220 286,000 -1,836,122 -2,753,340 12,161,404 -1,430 -10,230 -21,346,600 -34,650 -141,390 -21,920,525 -29,884,535 -6,098,434 -1,701,300 -146,000 -2,374,855 16,644,488 -24,052 1,899,360 404,260 -68,010 63,086,111 8,200 100,620 1,842,806 37,200 128,650 102,750 1,989,515 -42,713,490 1,716,120 2,660 -28,330 -6,652,250 24,080.00 2,870 -607,730 98,300 4,400 35,000 -1,639,120 446,500 -642,700 -546,560 -631,992.50 -

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS

Sun Life Prosperity World Income Fund, Inc. -a,1

1 - Launch date is August 22, 2023.

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

PROPERTY

1.62%

1.74%

-4.91%

-4.31%

0.6%

0.15%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8665-4.71% 3.1373

1.04%

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ABS HLDG PDR 4.81 5 4.85 4.85 4.81 4.81 18,000 86,740 GMA HLDG PDR 8.23 8.98 8.14 8.14 8.14 8.14 84,000 683,760

-

TECH WARRANT

-

WARRANTS

0.295

0.3

-

-

-

-

-

-

SMALL, MEDIUM & EMERGING

0.77 0.77 0.74 0.74 103,000 76,310 0.068 0.069 0.068 0.069 100,000 6,890 1.01 1.03 1.01 1.02 177,000 178,990 0.275 0.275 0.26 0.275 260,000 70,900

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

104.2 104.2 103 103 21,020 2,169,929 307,756

CTS GLOBAL LFM PROP MERRYMART XURPAS

FIRST METRO ETF

0.74 0.064 1.01 0.26 102.9

0.76 0.068 1.02 0.275 103

-

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

Create law investment to generate 100k+ jobs

By Reine Juvierre S.Alberto

T

HE P1.1-trillion worth of approved investments under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (Create) law is expected to generate more than a hundred thousand jobs, the Department of Finance (DOF) announced last Wednesday.

According to the DOF, it has approved a total of 932 projects across various priority sectors of the government from August 2021 to December 2023. These projects would lead to “102,304 expected jobs for the Filipino people,” read a statement issued by the DOF. Of the approved applications, the DOF said the Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) greenlit 51 with P843.9-billion worth of investment capital and 33,278 jobs. The Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), meanwhile, approved the remaining 881 projects with a total committed investment capital of P207 billion.

These are expected to generate 69,026 jobs, the DOF added.

“This underscores the employability of the country’s workforce in high-quality jobs that will contribute to long-term economic growth,” the DOF earlier said.

(See https://businessmirror. com.ph/2024/01/05/create-lawlures-p1-t-capital-investment/) The Create law (Republic Act 11534) was enacted two years ago to provide tax relief measures for businesses by way of reduction in corporate income taxes (CIT) and redesigned fiscal incentives system to attract investments and create jobs.

The law reduced the regular CIT rate by 10 percentage points, from 30 to 20 percent, for domestic corporations with a taxable income of P5 million and below, and with total assets of not more than P100 million.

On January 8, the Board of Investments pressed the inconsistencies between the Create law and its implementing rules and regulations, the VAT on importations and local purchases of goods and services, and the congressional oversight committee on the Create Law. (See: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/01/09/boipressed-on-gaps-between-create-law-and-its-irr/) The national government aims to amend the Create law to encourage more investments in the country. One of the major reforms in the proposed Create to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy, or “Create MORE,” is the streamlining of the state’s tax refund system for registered business enterprises, according to the DOF.

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Friday, January 19, 2024

B3

Pag-Ibig premium hike to draw ₧38B

T

By Samuel P. Medenilla

@sam_medenilla

HE Home Development Mutual (Pag-IBIG) Fund expects to earn an additional P38 billion from its scheduled premium hike next month, according to a top official of the government financial institution (GFI).

In a television interview last Thursday, Pag-IBIG Member Services Cluster Deputy CEO Alexander Hilario G. Aguilar disclosed the addi-

tional collection from members once the GFI doubles the monthly fund salary contribution of their members from P5,000 to P10,000 by February.

Under the existing set up, the monthly average contribution of the Pag-IBIG members is capped at P100.

“The additional 38 billion [pesos] we will accumulate with the increase will strengthen and double the PagIBIG Fund’s capability to extend housing loans to its members,” Aguilar said partly in Filipino.

He said the premium hike will help in the implementation of the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pamilyang Pilipino program (4P) of the Marcos administration, which aims to build six million housing units by 2028.

Likewise, additional premium will double benefits of Pag-IBIG members including their the maturity benefit

Petnet eyes overseas Filipino students

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio

P

ETNET Inc. announced on January 16 it has expanded its partnership with Washington, DC, United States-headquartered Convera USA LLC. to introduce a new suite of services targeting Filipino university students abroad.

PETNET President and CEO Adrian T. Ocampo said the suite allows users to send tuition payments from the Philippines to more than 900 education institutions outside the country’s borders. Ocampo added the platform, called “Convera GlobalPay for Students,” provide consumers another option for payment via online or interbank transfers.

He notes the platform is the first service in the country that allows students, parents and sponsors to pay partner universities and education providers worldwide in Philippine peso.

“By directly remitting the payment to their chosen place of study, our service eliminates friction in the process caused

by intermediaries that deduct conversion fees from your payments by giving you the opportunity to pay in Philippine peso,” Ocampo said.

The platform targets 22,709 Filipino students studying abroad as tallied by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The majority of them are studying in Canada and Australia, according to Ocampo.

Ocampo said they remain bullish on the partnership as the number of Filipino students moving abroad for their studies is expected to increase by 13 percent in the next five years.

“We want to make sure that our institution supports this growth, making Filipinos globally competitive through education. With strong support both from private and government, [we are] proud to enable these young potentials who seek additional educational foundations outside the country,” he said.

According to Convera Global Director of Product Nicola Bennett, adding a peso banking option allows “education providers to accept payments from the Philippines with ease.”

“The Philippines is becoming one of the top source countries of students studying abroad and we recognise that institutions need to cater to the growing demand by providing a seamless payment experience for their students, so they can concentrate on their studies,” Bennett added. “We look forward to this significant and strategic collaboration to serve payers from the Philippines and evolve our offering together.”

PETNET Forex Solutions Executive Vice President Dennis Catubay was quoted in a statement as saying that they recognize “the importance of simplifying payment procedures, especially for our Filipino community.”

“With Convera, we are taking a significant step towards achieving this goal,” Catubay said.

He added the firm, which is majority owned by City Savings Bank Inc. and Union Properties Inc., also plans to “strengthen our cross-border payment facility and enable our customers to seamlessly send payments to their suppliers abroad faster and more costefficiently.”

Go backs PhilHealth fee hike suspension

S

ENATOR Christopher Lawrence T. Go has expressed his support for the proposed suspension of the increase in PhilHealth premiums for the year 2024. This aligns with the sentiments of Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa, who has urged President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to reconsider the scheduled premium hike, Go said through a statement.

Acknowledging the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and other global crises on the national economy, Go empathized with Filipinos who are still grappling with financial difficulties, the statement read.

“Bagama’t lifted na ang ‘State of Public Health Emergency’ dahil sa Covid-19 pandemic, hanggang ngayon ay ramdam pa ng mga kababayan natin ang epekto nito sa ating ekonomiya. Para sa kanila, ang bawat piso ay mahalaga. Pambili pa nila ito ng bigas at ulam,” the Senator said, highlighting the importance of every peso for struggling families.

“Marami pa rin tayong mga kababayan ang nahihirapan sa

kanilang hanap-buhay. Huwag na nating dagdagan pa ang bigat ng hirap na kanilang dinadala,” added the solon.

Go, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, also emphasized the need for Philippine Health Insurance Corp. to ensure that they are able to deliver their services even without the premium hike while addressing systemic problems in the organization.

“Sabi ng DOH, sapat pa naman ang pondo ng PhilHealth upang patuloy na makapagbigay ng maayos na serbisyo sa mga miyembro nito,” he said.

“Bilang chair ng Senate Committee on Health, panawagan ko naman sa pamunuan ng PhilHealth ay tuluyang sugpuin ang mga anomalya sa ahensya, pagbutihin ang serbisyo nito at siguraduhing bawat piso sa pondo ng taumbayan ay nagagamit para sa mga Pilipino,” Go added, calling for responsible fiscal management and transparency in the agency.

At the height of the pandemic, Go also called for the deferment of the premium hike and urged the na-

tional government to initially shoulder the necessary funding to implement the Universal Health Care Law, while the majority of Filipinos are still overcoming the adverse effects of the Covid-19 crisis on their livelihoods and the overall economy.

The proposed suspension is under careful consideration by President Marcos, as confirmed by Communications Secretary Cheloy Velicaria- Garafil. The recommendation comes on the heels of Herbosa’s statement that PhilHealth is financially stable enough to continue providing benefits without the need for immediate rate hikes.

This consideration follows the President’s directive in 2023 to suspend the increase of PhilHealth’s premium rate and income ceiling in response to the socioeconomic challenges of the pandemic.

The Universal Healthcare Law mandates incremental increases in the PhilHealth contribution rate, but the proposed suspension represents a responsive measure to the current economic climate.

in 20 years, which will be increased from P87,000 to P174,000; and their average loans from P22,000 to P44,000.

Several groups representing overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) backed the premium hike since they said doing so will improve Pag-IBIG benefits.

A statement issued on January 17 read that Pag-IBIG Fund’s new monthly rates were initially approved by its Board of Trustees in 2019, after obtaining the concurrence of stakeholders to implement a scheduled increase in 2021. During that time, the agency saw the increase necessary as it projected that the amount of loans disbursed will eventually outpace the total collections from both loan pay-

ments and members’ savings.

“However, due to the difficulties brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 and 2022, the Pag-IBIG Fund Board deferred the increase of the agency’s savings rates. The agency again deferred the implementation of the increase in 2023, following the request of the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) to provide the business community with time to further recover from the continuing financial challenges due to the health crisis.” (See https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/01/17/ pag-ibig-members-to-gain-morebenefits-under-new-rates-starting-february-2024/)

Taking the road less traveled

A

S I was looking for materials to start the new year, I thought I’d revisit the poem “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost.

The phrase “road less traveled” comes from this 1916-published poem. It reflects upon the choices and decisions we make in life and the impact these choices have on our future. I thought this resonates with associations, too.

For associations, the “road less traveled” may not be a physical path, but a metaphorical one. Associations, whether industry, professional, community-based, or special-interest groups, often find themselves at a crossroads where they must choose between the well-worn path and the less-traveled albeit unique one.

Associations, like any other organizations, face the temptation to follow conventional wisdom. They may adopt tried-and-true practices, conform to industry standards, and avoid deviating from established norms. However, it’s on the road less traveled that associations often find the seeds of innovation. To break new ground, associations must be willing to explore unconventional ideas, methodologies, and strategies.

These ideas may challenge the status quo but can lead to groundbreaking developments such as: 1. Fostering creativity. When associations venture down the lesstraveled path, they open themselves up to fresh perspectives and novel ideas. Encouraging members to think creatively can lead to innovative solutions, pushing the organization forward.

2. Differentiation. Associations that choose the road less traveled can stand out in a crowded marketplace. Unconventional approaches help distinguish them from their competitors and attract a diverse membership base.

The road less traveled also represents a commitment to diversity and inclusivity. Associations that take this route recognize the value of a broad range of perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds within their membership and leadership. They understand that a diverse approach can enrich the association’s culture and foster a deeper sense of belonging among members, as follows:

Association World Octavio Peralta 1. Inclusive decision making.

Associations that value diversity ensure that decision-making processes include voices from various backgrounds. This not only reflects a commitment to fairness, but also leads to better decisions that benefit the entire membership.

2. Innovative problem solving.

A diverse membership provides associations with a broader array of solutions to challenges. Different perspectives and approaches can lead to more innovative problem-solving strategies.

Choosing the road less traveled is not without its challenges. Associations may face resistance from those who prefer the status quo, and there may be uncertainties and risks along the way. However, with careful planning and a dedicated commitment to the journey, these obstacles can be overcome through: 1. Effective leadership. Strong, visionary leadership is essential for associations embarking on the lesstraveled path. Leaders must be able to communicate their vision, inspire trust, and guide the association toward its goals.

2. Risk management. Associations should be prepared to manage risks and uncertainties. A well thought-out risk management strategy can help mitigate potential setbacks.

The road less traveled represents a commitment to innovation, diversity, and inclusivity. It is in navigating this unique road that associations discover their true potential and make a lasting impact on their members. So, when presented with the choice, remember that the road less traveled can lead to greater success and fulfillment for associations and their members.

Octavio Peralta is founder and volunteer CEO of the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives, the “association of associations.”

E-mail: bobby@pcaae.org.

Dollar dominance triggering intervention fears across major markets in Asia

I

NVESTORS are dusting off intervention playbooks once again as a resurgent dollar raises the specter of fresh efforts from officials to protect their currencies.

Taiwan’s central bank issued a rare statement this week to calm investors after global funds slashed their holdings of the island’s stocks and the local currency swooned. A South Korean official told reporters Wednesday the won’s weakness is excessive, while China’s central bank ramped up support for its currency through its daily fixing. Speculation is growing that the yen will be next.

“More intervention across markets is a legitimate concern,” said Kyle Rodda, an analyst at Capital.com Inc. in Melbourne. “Policymakers might have wiped their brows, thinking their job was done last year, but a stronger dollar means currency concern is creeping up again—and traders’ positions

may compound the volatility.”

Bloomberg’s dollar gauge has jumped about 2 percent this year, with the currency strengthening against all of its major peers, as investors wound back bets on Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts. While the greenback’s advance hasn’t yet been as prolonged as last year, the recent spike higher is a reality check to those investors betting on dollar weakness and for the authorities hoping for a respite.

The risks are particularly evident in Asia, home to the world’s two worst-performing major currencies against the greenback.

The yen has slumped more than 4 percent this year, triggering fears about imminent intervention as it nears the 150-per-dollar level. The won has slumped to the lowest since November, while Taiwan’s dollar has fallen about 1.5 percent this week alone.

“We expect the Bank of Korea and the People’s Bank of China to smooth market volatility,” said Lemon Zhang, a strategist at Barclays Bank Plc in Singapore. Korea’s central bank may act more aggressively, meaning dollar-won may end up trading in a wide range, she said.

Nations with weak current-account and fiscal deficits, such as India and Indonesia, may struggle to prop up their currencies should the dollar continue to strengthen, according to KB Kookmin Bank.

Those with more firepower, such as South Korea and Japan, are likely to be more proactive, said Moon Junghiu, an economist at the lender in Seoul. “In terms of volatility, the won has been the most dramatic lately,” making it one of the most vulnerable currencies to intervention, Moon said.

Bloomberg News

The risks of a strong dollar are particularly evident in Asia, home to the world’s two worstperforming major currencies against the greenback. CREDIT: Bloomberg

B4

Relationships

Friday, January 19, 2024 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

BusinessMirror

Brave beginnings

www.businessmirror.com.ph

TODAY’S HOROSCOPE

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Shawn Johnson, 32; Drea de Matteo, 52; Katey Sagal, 70; Dolly Parton, 78.

CHRISTINA APPLEGATE walked up the Emmys stage with a cane, assisted by awards ceremony host Anthony Anderson. AP

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: A positive change is heading in your direction. Trust your instincts and make moves that will position you to achieve what’s meaningful to you. You can secure your home and personal situation if you follow your plans. Don’t let anyone get in your way; take the plunge and do things your way. Don’t stop until you are happy with the results you achieve. It’s your life. Your numbers are 6, 11, 22, 29, 31, 35, 59.

C

HRISTINA APPLEGATE’S appearance at the Primetime Emmy Awards on Tuesday (Monday evening in the US) was quite moving. Battling multiple sclerosis (MS) since 2021—although doctors have said she might have been experiencing initial symptoms even before then—she bravely walked up to the Emmys stage with a cane, assisted by awards ceremony host Anthony Anderson.

Her trademark wit still intact, Applegate responded to the rousing applause and standing ovation by her fellow actors with, “Oh my God, you’re totally shaming me with disability by standing up.

It’s fine...Body not by Ozempic!” (The anti-diabetes drug Ozempic has become a favorite weight-loss pill of many Americans, including Hollywood celebrities.

Like most MS patients, the talented actor has gained weight due the steroids she has to take to manage her condition, thus the dig at her extra poundage.)

Applegate last appeared in a Netflix dark comedy, Dead to Me, where she plays real-estate agent Jen Harding who has lost her husband to a hit-and-run accident, and is striving to get to the bottom of the incident determined to find the perpetrator. The series depicts her growing friendship (and increasing co-dependency) with artist and New-Agey character Judy Hale (Linda Cardellini), who Jen met at a grief support group, and is supposedly grieving over a fiance who died from a heart attack. The revelations in the course of the series’ brief lifetime threatens the two women’s friendship, but eventually the bond between them is strengthened by their common grief and empathy, before reaching its heartwrenching, although satisfying, conclusion.

It was during the filming of the series’ third season that Applegate received her MS diagnosis, further halting the filming (although the Covid-19 pandemic

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Keep an open mind, but don’t let anyone talk you into something that isn’t feasible. Trust in what’s tangible, not what someone suggests. Protecting your name and reputation will help deter someone from stealing your identity or taking advantage of you. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Set high standards. You can beat the odds and score big if you put everything you’ve got into what you want to achieve. The sky is the limit, and every move you make will get you one step closer to victory. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Take nothing for granted and share only what’s necessary.

Someone will use your words against you when you least expect them. Be a good listener, and you’ll gain insight into something that can help you reverse a situation that doesn’t make you happy. ★★★

had already intervened before then) because the actor had to undergo treatment. In an interview with Vanity Fair last year, she said she might have to quit acting altogether: “I can’t imagine going to set right now. This is a progressive disease, I don’t know if I’m going to get worse...” although she added that she was still open to do voiceovers. Aside from Applegate, other actors suffering the disease, where one’s immune system attacks the brain and spiral cord, include Jamie Lynn Sigler, who we last saw playing Tony Soprano’s daughter Meadow in The Sopranos, and Selma Blair (Legally Blonde, Hellboy).

Always known for her comedic acting (Married with Children, The Anchorman, Samantha Who, Bad Moms), Applegate has been admired for her ability to deal with her current affliction (she is also a breast cancer survivor) with a positive and honest attitude. Maybe with enough time and treatment, we’ll see her again in another funny feature or series.

■■■ ALSO admirable is Alexie Mae Caimoso Brooks, who has just won as Miss Iloilo, and hopes to represent

the province of palanggas at the next Miss Universe Philippines competition. Estranged from both her mother—an overseas Filipino worker in Lebanon— and her American father, Brooks said she was often bullied as a child because of her dark complexion and curly hair. Raised in poverty, she said in recent media interviews, “At times I didn’t have lunch going to school. I remember that we didn’t have money to buy rice.”

Brooks had been living with her Lola Basing in the second-class municipality of Leon, who worked as a vegetable vendor to be able to support her granddaughter’s education. “We have a pwesto sa supermarket. Every Friday sa gabi after my school, I would go there and help my grandma,” said the stunning beauty queen who stands at 5’8.”

Always dreaming of representing Iloilo and the Philippines on the world stage, Brooks worked hard at school, and also became a student athlete competing in high jump and long jump events in local

SEE “BEGINNINGS,” B5

to ensure they have the means to survive and thrive. For Aileen and other survivors who underwent dressmaking training, it came in the form of sewing machines.

“After the dressmaking training, we received sewing machines from World Vision to help us start our business. I’m now earning income and able to help my husband with our daily expenses,” she shared.

She was also a part of the organization’s

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Give a shoutout to someone you appreciate and respect.

What you get in return will change how you move forward. It’s time to stretch your awareness and contemplate using your skills, knowledge and experience to gain recognition and respect. ★★★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Spend time honing your skills or making plans with someone you love. Keep a budget in mind, and don’t commit to anything that might put you in debt or tempt you to indulge. Take care of your responsibilities before moving on to fun and games. ★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Take the lead and do what makes sense. Your practical nature will lead to more significant opportunities that allow you to explore something of interest. Networking functions will give you a broad spectrum of what’s possible. ★★★★★

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t give up when you need to give your all. Research, find out what’s going on and deal with anything standing between you and your objective. Anger isn’t the answer, but intelligence can help you navigate confusing situations. ★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): If you don’t like something, initiate a change. Take control to avoid letting someone else decide for you. Research your options, put your plan in place and don’t stop until you are satisfied with the results. ★★★

Stories of resilience from Yolanda survivors NATURAL disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons leave lasting effects on people. But it is also during these moments when stories of bravery, resilience and support emerge. This was the case for the Yolanda survivors.

Ten years ago, Super Typhoon Yolanda, internationally known as Haiyan, devastated the Philippines in November 2013. But a decade later, we see Aileen and other members of her community in Leyte—all beneficiaries of World Vision’s livelihood and disaster preparedness programs—are now able to get back on their feet.

“With the help of donors and supporters in the country and abroad, World Vision was able to provide aid to more than 1.6 million people from 2013-2019,” said Rommel Fuerte, World Vision executive director.

Food, shelter, livelihood, health and nutrition, disaster preparedness, and educational assistance were provided by the organization during its relief, recovery, and rehabilitation phase.

Aside from providing them with their essential needs, World Vision extended help

community savings group, which enabled her to achieve her dream of owning a house which she thought was impossible.

“For 13 years, we didn’t have our own house, we were just renting. But I saved and persevered. Now we have our own home,” she says. Meanwhile, in another community where farming is their main source of livelihood, Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) was introduced by World Vision. CSA is an

approach that guides farmers to manage their crops through sustainable methods to help them adapt to climate change.

Lanie, who was one of the participants in the training on CSA said, “That was helpful for me because I learned about plants that help absorb water, and plants that can provide shade to other crops. We also learned different concoctions—organic pesticides and organic foliar.” Their demo farm now produces organic vegetables such as eggplants and string beans.

Aileen and Lanie are just a few of the people that World Vision has assisted and whose lives and communities are thriving 10 years after Super Typhoon Yolanda badly hit Central Visayas.

“After a decade, we have gone a long way in ensuring that we continue to innovate our humanitarian response, collaborate with partners, and help build resilient communities where children thrive and live full lives,” said Fuerte.

For donations and updates, visit the World Vision website at www.worldvision. org.ph.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Keep close tabs on your money. Don’t invite outside interference into your life. Someone will be happy to cause problems for you if you give them the chance. Concentrate on relationships and looking and feeling your best. ★★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Follow your instincts. Make domestic changes that add to your comfort and decrease stress. Stay on top of matters that deal with institutions. Leave nothing to chance or in someone else’s hands. Speak the truth, act succinctly and put the past behind you. ★★★★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Think before committing time, skills or money. Understand implications and be aware of hidden costs.

You can help, but don’t take on more than you can handle. Concentrate on what’s near and dear to you first before spending elsewhere. ★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Put your best foot forward and make your dream a reality.

You have plenty to gain if you follow your plans and apply your skills. Don’t let anyone deter you from reaching your goal using underhandedness to lower your chance of success. ★★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are aggressive, quick-witted and industrious.You are playful and courageous.

‘lives on the edge’ BY JOHN EWBANK

The Universal Crossword • Edited by David Steinberg/Anna Gundlach/Jared Goudsmit/Andrian Johnson ACROSS 1 Banking conveniences, briefly 5 Not on the road 11 Suitcase-checking org.

14 Where Baghdad is 15 Cowgirl’s shout 16 Center of a wheel 17 Discounted transport cost 19 Org. concerned with carbon emissions 20 Welcome at the door 21 Attempt 22 Help in a heist, e.g.

23 Three-part military command sequence 27 Wirehaired terrier, informally 30 ___ to riches 31 Really stands out 32 Vibed with 34 Many September babies 36 Before, in verse 37 Dwells...or the borders of 17-, 23-, 47- and 58-Across?

39 Name within “Danielle” 40 Persian victor at Thermopylae 42 Guard dog’s warning

43 Send forth 44 Baby’s first word, maybe 45 Madison Ave. bigwigs 47 Singer dubbed “The Queen of Country” 51 Book after Joel 52 Medical care grp.

53 Shout frequently heard in the UK parliament 57 Word after “Red” or “White,” in sports 58 Vinyl shop 61 Counterpart of post62 2010s dance craze 63 Like the Joker or the Riddler 64 The “S” of iOS: Abbr.

65 Risks getting a ticket, say 66 Not admit DOWN 1 What haughty people put on 2 Peach or beech 3 Constructed 4 Water pistol emissions 5 “Yes, captain!”

6 ___ Talks 7 Like most NFL offensive linemen 8 Catherine of Schitt’s Creek

9 “Bloody” English queen 10 Lamb’s mother 11 Most significant sporting event 12 Faster than Mach 1 13 Ease off 18 Tech news site 22 Many miles off 24 West Wing workers 25 ___ ex machina 26 Certain med. scans 27 Glasses, slangily 28 One forms in response to a lifedefining event 29 Fancy spots to watch a 34-Down production 33 Band’s show 34 “La Traviata” composer 35 Takes a chair 37 Paper quantity 38 “Dagnabbit!”

41 December 25 43 Applied, as pressure 46 Cupid’s Greek counterpart 47 Speaks scratchily 48 Miserly 49 One may introduce the maid of

honor speech 50 “I love Mondays,” said ___ ever 54 Symbol of peace 55 ___ Brockovich” 56 Depend (on) 58 ICU workers 59 “Far out!”

60 “I come from ___ Moines. Somebody had to.” (Bill Bryson)

Solution to today’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Show BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • Friday, January 19, 2024

CHEATERS

‘Boy Swallows Universe’: Deal with that!

F

IRST, there was the book by Trent Dalton, which was described as a semiautobiographical novel. It became the fastestselling novel in Australian history, which, according to releases, has sold more than a million copies worldwide. In 2021, the book was adapted for a stage production that also became the bestselling show in Queensland Theatre’s history.

There is a small-town fame to such an achievement but instead of diminishing the gravitas of the book, that piece of theater news seems consistent with the breadth of the narrative—it is a small-town remembrance of a rite of passage and we are all the more graced with its intimacy and magic.

John Colee, a scriptwriter and novelist, in his review in The Age, says: “Welcome to the weird and wonderful universe of Trent Dalton, whose first work of fiction is, without exaggeration, the best Australian novel I have read in more than a decade.”

Now, there is this film adaptation of that novel, Boy Swallows Universe, and, yes, we need to deal with the title as we become involved in its obsession with characters both colorful and violent that we forget there are stars and moonbeams in this story of a boy and his universe of personas.

Our lead is Eli. He has a profound, almost pure, crush on a star newscaster, Caitlyn Spies. As with any romantic tale, Eli gets to see Caitlyn not out of love but out of necessity and for his own redemption. How’s that for nobility?

Eli lives with his mother Frankie, who also lives with his stepfather Lyle. To complete the family photo is Gus, Eli’s older brother who is mute but, at certain scenes, appears to be ready to speak.

Nobody knows what is wrong with him and that is an understatement that applies as well to the town/city of Darra, a backwater economy in a land of prosperity.

The first episode with a puzzling title, “Boy Smells Rat,” has a driving lesson at the core of that wonderful day. Here we get to know another major character named Slim. When Lyle leaves for his work, he asks Slim to look after the boys. That is how strong the bond is between Lyle and Slim, and the latter with the boys. The second episode, titled “Boy Gets Chop,” alerts us to what this fairy tale is not about. It is not all froth and nostalgia. Eli confronts real, gritty enemies.

He is faced with realities that are unforgiving. But the familial is given first an airing and this is when Lyle, playing the stepfather, brings Eli and Gus to his workplace. He shows them his station. There on his working table, we are introduced to the first job of Lyle—he works in a factory where artificial hands and limbs and other appendages are constructed.

In the second episode, Eli meets Tytus Broz, the owner of the factory where Lyle works. Tytus, a huge, roly-poly of a man, is seemingly obsessed with the hands of men. Hands become grim metaphors and towards the end, something is chopped and the glee in us is not literary but magically, abhorrently real.

Like any mythical stories, Boy Swallows Universe is also filled with tasks and challenges. In the third episode, “Run, Boy, Run,” the mother is the protective

one. But this tale is so relentless and without mercy.

Frankie is jailed and the stepfather is kidnapped.

Eli, our reluctant hero, like a wilder Hansel, traces the paths from the woods into other woods to look for his stepfather and what he thought to be some treasures hidden in their home, or anywhere. Eli then looks for Gus and when they meet, he discovers Gus has undergone a change. What is that is one of the mysteries in the universe of Eli and anyone who enters the portal of magic where boys are brave and mothers are all about love.

Almost like listening to Campbell’s monomyth, Eli is guided by an ex-con who is their nanny, Slim.

In his journey, we also meet his and Gus’s book-lover absentee-father. As if that is not enough, we sense a parallel universe, where the two brothers are children once more in their old car, as it careens into the vast spaces of an expanding galaxy.

There are two actors who have become their characters; they are unrecognizable. One is Simon Baker, as the father, and Travis Fimmel, the former Calvin Klein model who plays Lyle, grim and dirty and almost a loser. Lee Tiger Halley as Gus is the foil to the prodigious Eli of Felix Cameron. Phoebe Tonkin as Frances Bell is tough, and Bryan Brown is a credible fount of wisdom as Slim, the boy’s “nanny.”

The direction of the series is attributed to the following: Jocelyn Moorhouse, Kim Mordaunt, and Bharat Nalluri. The writing credits include John Collee and Trent Dalton, the author of the book.

According to press releases, Boy Swallows Universe had 3.8 million viewers watching it in the first four days of its release. This should interest us to follow the series and read the book. I believe the popularity of the film is as much a celebration of reading as it is about the power of moving images.

The series streams on Netflix. n

2023 MMFF Best Picture ‘Firefly’ lights up international cinemas; GMA warns about fake auditions Global Pinoys and other movie enthusiasts abroad are in for a bright treat to start the year, as the highlyacclaimed Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) Best Picture winner Firefly hits cinemas in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and California, USA, this January.

GMA Pictures and GMA Public Affairs are poised to further take on the global stage as they present Firefly to international audiences in the UAE beginning January 18.

For moviegoers in Dubai, they can catch Firefly at Reel Cinema Dubai Mall, Novo Dragon Mart, Novo Megaplex IBN, Vox Burjuman Center, Vox City Center

Beginnings...

Continued on B4 and international competitions. Her achievement in sports enabled her to land a scholarship at the National University, where she is pursuing a business admistration degree, and worked as a fashion model on the side. A member of the national team, Brooks’ last international competition was at last year’s Southeast Asian Games where she represented the country in hepthathlon. Hopefully, this won’t be the last and we’ll see her at the Miss Universe stage, which will not just be a win for the country but also another fitting tribute to her Lola Basing.

Applegate’s and Brooks’ courage in facing the bad hands dealt them hopefully provides inspiration to those similarly afflicted, or to anyone who has a tough time dealing with life’s curveballs in general.

It’s time to drop the “kawawa naman ako” attitude, but instead pivot to “babangon ako.” Here’s to more brave beginnings to a new year. n

Deira, and Star Al Ghurair Center. There will also be a showing at Star Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi, Novo Manar in Rak, Star Grand Mall in Ajman, and Star Al Ain Cineplex in Al Ain. Viewers had a special advance screening of Firefly on January 17, a day before its official release in UAE cinemas. It was held at the Star Cinemas, Al Ghurair Centre, at 7:30 pm. Aside from the Middle East, Firefly continues its international tour to reach moviegoers in the US, as the film joins the Metro Manila International Film Festival in Los Angeles, California, from January 30 to February 2. The US screening of Firefly will be held at TCL Chinese 6 theaters on January 30 (5:55 pm) and February 1 (3 pm), and at the DGA Film Complex on February 2 (12 pm).

In the Philippines, Firefly emerged as the powerful underdog at the 49th MMFF Gabi ng Parangal held last December 27, besting nine other entries and taking home three highly-coveted major awards, including the Best Picture nod.

GMA Public Affairs senior AVP and Firefly creator Angeli Atienza won in the Best Screenplay category, while Sparkle child star Euwenn Mikaell took home the Best Child Actor plum. Led by esteemed director Zig Dulay, Firefly intertwines hopes, dreams and family, as it tells the story of Tonton and his journey to finding the mystical island of fireflies based on his mother’s bedtime stories.

The film features a distinguished cast, top-billed by award-winning actress Alessandra de Rossi who was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the 49th MMFF for her role as Elay, Tonton’s mother.

Joining Alessandra are Dingdong Dantes and Epy Quizon, who were both nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Completing the stellar cast are Ysabel Ortega, Miguel Tanfelix, Cherry Pie Picache, Yayo Aguila, Kokoy de Santos, and Max Collins.

Aside from the UAE and Los Angeles, California, Firefly is also expected to be made available in other parts of the US and Asia soon.

For ticket inquiries and reservations for the US screening, visit tinyurl.com/msdftrrd.

Meanwhile, the GMA Entertainment Group has issued a warning of individuals who have been posting about the fake audition for Encantadia Chronicles: Sang’gre. In a statement released to the media, GMA warns: “These scammers are wrongfully using the name of GMA Network to ask for money and/or solicit private photos and information.

“The public is hereby advised that there is no ongoing audition for the upcoming series. Victims of these fake auditions are also encouraged to report to the authorities. All official announcements are posted on GMA’s official social-media accounts.”

YEARS ago, this starlet claimed that her then-boyfriend hit her. Now, it turns out the the reason that he did is because he caught her cheating on him. The starlet cheated on her then-boyfriend with a famous actor. It was just a fling and it’s wrong to hit anyone but it was not unprovoked. Years later, it turns out that the starlet and the famous actor have been having interludes even when they were involved with other people. This would happen so often that they became friends and the starlet became close to the actor’s family. While she is not the reason for the break up of his relationship, she’s sworn in a long line of women with whom he’s cheated on. As for her ex, let’s just say they will never ever be friends.

DISCREET

THE actress has been keeping quiet about her ex despite being criticized for her behavior. According to sources, if she does talk about her ex, her revelations would be explosive.

One, he is allegedly a heavy drinker, who would drink even during the day. Two, he would allegedly drive even when under the influence of alcohol. Three, he would allegedly regularly hit her and even their children as he has anger management issues, whether drunk or sober. The actress is trying her best to be discreet for the sake of her kids.

She’s received support from so many people in the industry because it’s an open secret that her ex-husband’s likes to drink and can’t control himself when he’s had too much to drink.

FAKE INJURY

REMEMBER how years ago, the actress had an injury that caused her to be hospitalized? People wondered why she had to stay in the hospital for a long time when the injury seemed to be minor. According to the grapevine, the actress reportedly had a miscarriage at the time but of course, she had to think of a different reason to tell the public. The actress had a boyfriend at the time but the guy who got her pregnant was someone else and he also had a girlfriend, another actress. So did their respective partners find out about what happened? They eventually did.

FAKE AMOUNT

HOW true is the rumor that the money being contested by the actress in a lawsuit is, well, not a lot of money. The actress claims she lost a big sum of money to someone. Everyone wondered how she earned such a big amount? Simple. She exaggerated the amount to the person who interviewed her.

There is no way she would have earned that amount. She did have a good run when she was younger but there isn’t any way she made that much money.

Following review, Business Insider stands by reports on wife of ex-Harvard president’s critic

NEW YORK—Business Insider’s top executive and parent company said on Sunday they were satisfied with the fairness and accuracy of stories that made plagiarism accusations against a former MIT professor who is married to a prominent critic of former Harvard president Claudine Gay. “We stand by Business Insider and its newsroom,” said a spokesman for Axel Springer, the German media company that owns the publication.

The company had said it would look into the stories about Neri Oxman, a prominent designer, following complaints by her husband, Bill Ackman, a Harvard graduate and CEO of the Pershing Square investment firm. He publicly campaigned against Gay, who resigned earlier this month following criticism of her answers at a congressional hearing on antisemitism and charges that her academic writing contained examples of improperly credited work.

With its stories, Business Insider raised both the idea of hypocrisy and the possibility that academic dishonesty is widespread, even among the nation’s most prominent scholars.Ackman’s response, and the pressure that a well-connected person placed on the corporate owners of a journalism outlet, raised questions about the outlet’s independence.

Business Insider and Axel Springer’s “liability just goes up and up and up,” Ackman said Sunday in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “This is what they consider fair, accurate and welldocumented reporting with appropriate timing. Incredible.”

Business Insider’s first article, on January 4, noted that Ackman had seized on revelations about Gay’s work to back his efforts against her—but that the organization’s journalists “found a similar pattern of plagiarism” by Oxman. A second piece, published the next day, said Oxman had stolen sentences and paragraphs from Wikipedia, fellow scholars and technical documents in a 2010 doctoral dissertation at M.I.T. Ackman complained that it was a low blow to attack someone’s family in such a manner and said Business Insider reporters gave him less than two hours to respond to the accusations. He suggested an editor there was an anti-Zionist.

Oxman was born in Israel.

The business leader reached out in protest to board members at both Business Insider and Axel Springer. That led to Axel Springer telling The New York Times that questions had been raised about the motivation behind the articles and the reporting process, and the company promised to conduct a review.

On Sunday, Business Insider CEO Barbara Peng issued a statement saying “there was no unfair bias or personal, political and/or religious motivation in pursuit of the story.” AP

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Friday, January 19, 2024

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PROPAK PHILIPPINES ALL SET FOR 4TH EDITION THIS MONTH

THE prime movers of ProPak Philippines 4th Edition are, standing from left to right, Bobby Candelaria, President, Production and Operations Management Association of the Philippines; Dr. Alex Sultan, PhD, President, Halal International Chamber of Commerce and Industries of the Philippines Inc.; Engr.

Higinio Porte Jr., President, Philippine Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, and Evangeline Orejola, President, Chamber of Herbal Industries of the Philippines. Seated from left to right are Atty.

Dominador Buhain Jr., Chairman and Past President, Philippine Printing Technical Foundation; Rungphech Chitanuwat, Country General Manager, Informa Markets Philippines; Julieta Austria, President, Philippine Association of Food Technologists Inc., and Maria Liza Sandina David, Program Management Office, Department of Trade and Industry–One Town, One Product (OTOP).

T

HE 4th International Processing and Packaging Trade Event for the Philippines (ProPak Philippines) is set to kick off 2024 with the biggest processing and packaging trade show in the country. It will roll out from January 31 to February 2, 2024 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.

In its 4th edition, ProPak Philippines remains steadfast in its commitment to serve as an ideal platform for highlighting market trends, hosting industry networking and investments, showcasing innovations and latest products, and facilitating technical workshops and seminars offering sustainable and best processing and packaging solutions for local and international enterprises.

Since its launch in 2019, ProPak Philippines has established itself as an annual trade event that facilitates connection between international suppliers and local and regional buyers who are looking for the latest business solutions for processing and packaging. It gathers local and international brands and companies to present innovative solutions to the requirements of food, drink, pharmaceutical, and other related industries.

“ProPak is a brand that has established itself for almost three decades now through its series of events across Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. We are proud to bring the trade event to the country for the 4th time, with the commitment

to make it as significant as its counterparts, namely, ProPak Asia in Bangkok, ProPak China, ProPak India, ProPak Vietnam, and ProPak MENA covering the Middle East and North Africa,” said Rungphech “Rose” Chitanuwat, Country General Manager of Informa Markets in the Philippines, the organizer of ProPak Philippines.

In 2024, ProPak Philippines will continue to recognize the efforts of exhibitors that share the same sustainability goals as the trade event. The Sustainable Booth Design Awards add more excitement by encouraging creativity and resourcefulness among its trade participants.

Among the participating exhibitors is the Philippine Alliance for Recycling and Material Sustainability (PARMS) booth that will showcase recycled and sustainable materials.

The trade event is also retaining its Sustainability Square, an interactive exhibitor zone where guests can learn more about the packaging industry and related processing sectors. To complement the area, every part of the exhibition is designed to meet corresponding and applicable SDG Goals (i.e. SDG 4 for seminars and conferences). Moreover, other sustainable practices will be observed: seminar rooms will use LED walls and projectors as backdrops, onsite registrations and surveys will be facilitated through QR codes instead of paper, and traditional plastic badge holders will not be used.

ProPak Philippines 2024 promises to be

bigger and better as most industries and businesses go full swing after rebounding from the impact of the global pandemic.

First, the trade event is diversifying into other sectors beyond food and beverage. Second, it continues to gain greater support from public and private sectors. And third, the brand reinforces its reputation among targeted visitors and businesses, who have expressed satisfaction in the previous editions.

In its previous edition, ProPak Philippines gathered around 190 local and international brands and companies in a vast exhibition area (about 5,500 square meters). Over 8,000 attendees (mostly decision makers) from local and regional businesses graced the three-day trade event.

The upcoming edition will occupy three halls (from two halls in 2023), going back to its pre-pandemic trade show scale in 2020. More than 200 exhibitors are expected, attracting an estimated number of attendees reaching over 10,000.

Moreover, the 4th ProPak Philippines is introducing an additional highlight. The Ingredients Pavilion will put the spotlight on the newest innovations, cutting-edge processing techniques, and trends pertaining to ingredients in food, pharmaceutical, and related industries.

Lastly, ProPak Philippines 2024 will facilitate over 40 seminar and workshop sessions throughout its three-day run with the goal of further helping and guiding MSMEs and entrepreneurs. Those learning activities will cover interesting and insightful topics involving various industries, to be moderated and facilitated by more than 30 resource speakers.

Most seminars will be accessible for free.

Among those sessions to be watched out for will be facilitated or moderated by the AIP-Institute of Packaging, the Department of Science and Technology, Philippine Board of Investments, Philippine Printing Technical Foundation, Produc tion and Operations Management Association of the Philippines, Philippine Association of Food Technologists Inc., the Halal International Chamber of Commerce and Industries of the Philippines, and the University of the Philippines—Institute for Small-scale Industries among others.

For visitor inquiries, contact Informa Markets representative: Danah F. Castillo through danah. francisco@informa.com or +63 2 8581 1921

Toughest Phone HONOR X9b 5G arrives with smashing price of P16,999 only

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EADING smart devices provider in the country, HONOR Philippines officially launched the toughest phone, HONOR X9b 5G, in the market for only P16,999! The latest addition to its acclaimed X Series line-up was seen to have combined exceptional display quality, expansive photography capabilities and enhanced battery and hardware performance, the HONOR X9b 5G sets a new benchmark for mid-range smartphones in the industry.

“We are very excited to finally introduce the HONOR X9b 5G, the toughest phone that embodies our commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation and delivering an exceptional user experience,” said HONOR Philippines Vice President Stephen Cheng. “From the exceptional display and powerful camera system to the impressive durability and outstanding hardware performance, the HONOR X9b 5G truly represents our dedication to creating a new intelligent world for everyone.”

Showcasing an industr y-leading drop resistance and durability, the HONOR X9b 5G’s display incorporates the HONOR Ultra-Bounce Anti-Drop technology. Certified by SGS’s Five Star Overall Drop Resistance, the HONOR Ultra-Bounce Anti-Drop Display utilizes advanced cushioning technology using newly developed materials, which increases the shock absorption capacity by up to 1.2 times, ensuring utmost durability even when subject to drops from a height of 1.5 meters and all angles.

Equipped with a remarkable 6.78-inch AMOLED Curved Display, the HONOR X9b 5G supports 1.5K ultra-clear resolution, 100 percent DCI-P3 color gamut and up to 1.07 billion colors, offering ultra-clear visuals with sharp details and vibrant colors. As a testament to HONOR’s commitment to human-centric technology, the HONOR X9b 5G offers an array of eye protection features, including 1920Hz PWM Dimming, Low Blue Light, Dynamic

Dimming, and Circadian Night Display, cater to the needs of today’s always-on generation who spend long hours in front of screens.

The HONOR X9b 5G boasts a triple camera system consisting of a 108MP Ultra-Clear Camera, a 5MP Ultra-Wide Camera, and a 2MP Macro Camera. The 108MP Ultra-Clear Camera comes with a large 1/1.67-inch sensor and a large f/1.75 aperture, allowing it to capture more light and produce images with vivid clarity. The camera also offers high optical quality with 3X zoom and an outstanding motion capture engine, ensuring the HONOR X9b 5G produces clear snapshots with fascinating detail.

In addition to the main camera, the 5MP UltraWide Camera offers a 110° field of view, perfect for capturing expansive landscapes, group shots, or architectural marvels. The HONOR X9b 5G also features a 2MP Macro Camera with 4cm minimum focus length, enabling users to capture close-up shots with stunning clarity and sharp details.

The HONOR X9b 5G comes with a durable and long-lasting 5800mAh battery that can power the device for three days on a single charge, providing users with reliable performance and a worry-free experience. Additionally, the battery exhibits

superb durability, maintaining 80 percent of its capacity after undergoing 1,000 charge cycles, making it one of the most robust device batteries in the market.

Powered by the Qualcomm® Snapdragon® 6 Gen 1 Mobile Platform, the HONOR X9b 5G delivers excellent flagship capabilities with a 35% increase in GPU performance and a 40 perent increase in CPU efficiency, always enabling seamless productivity and entertainment. Running the latest MagicOS 7.2 based on Android 13, the HONOR X9b 5G provides access to a range of upgraded and customized features, such as the HONOR Docs Suite, enabling a more intelligent and convenient experience of remote working.

The HONOR X9b 5G boasts a sleek and modern aesthetic design with meticulous craftsmanship and exquisite detail and is available for only P16,999 in three colorways – Sunrise Orange, Emerald Green, and Midnight Black.

Pre-order is until today, January 19, 2024 where you can get a FREE HONOR Gift Box and HONOR Choice X5 Earbuds worth Php 4,000 at select HONOR Experience and Partner Store or online via Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok Shop.

Good news for HONOR Fans! You can get your own HONOR X9b 5G with Home Credit and Skyro for 0 percent interest! Also for Globe Postpaid Subscribers, you can apply or upgrade with GPlan 1299 to enjoy an Unli All-net Calls and Text and 8GB All-access Data for a one-time cash out of P3,300 only! Get it online or head over now to any Globe physical store!

For more information and announcements, you may visit HONOR’s website www.hihonor.com or social media platforms: Facebook (Facebook. com/HonorPhilippines) , Instagram (Instagram. com/honorph/) and TikTok Shop: (Tiktok.com/@ honorphilippines). To check out HONOR’s complete list of retail stores, go to https://www.hihonor. com/ph/retailers/.

MR.DIY Embraces Spirit of Sinulog 2024 with Exclusive Promotions, Festive Activities

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R.DIY, the go-to family store for everyday needs, is thrilled to join in the festivities of Sinulog 2024 with an array of exciting promotions and activities. Embracing the spirit of Sinulog, MR.DIY aims to enhance the celebration experience for its valued customers.

From January 15 to 21, 2024, MR.DIY presents the Sinulog Pa-Premyo promotion. Customers stand a chance to win a mystery prize when they spend a minimum of P700 at any of the 15 participating stores across Cebu City. The participating stores include Elizabeth Mall, Primeway Plaza, 7Arts Building, Gaisano Country Mall, Super Metro Colon, Ayala Center Cebu, APM Centrale, Paseo Arcenas, Citymall Bacaiso, Springwood District, JAL Commercial Building, Ayala Malls Central Bloc, Jakosalem Cebu, Gmall Cebu, and Guadalupe Commercial Building.

To further immerse customers in the Sinulog experience, MR.DIY has set up Mini Stores in key Sinulog activity areas at Fuente Osmeña Circle and Plaza Independencia. Here, customers can find their essential “budol needs” to ensure they are well-

equipped for the Sinulog festivities.

MR.DIY extends an invitation to all to capture the spirit of Sinulog 2024 at their expansive Eco-Bag Photo Booth situated at Plaza Independencia. Drawing inspiration from their Eco-Bag, MR.DIY has reimagined their photobooth on a grand scale, adorned with vivid neon lights that highlight the iconic everyday essentials found in MR.DIY Stores. Immerse yourself in the lively neon lights, creating enduring memories against this festive backdrop.

MR.DIY takes pride in being the family store that offers Great Value and Great Quality, ensuring that customers find everything they need for their daily lives. This Sinulog, let MR.DIY be your companion in celebrating the festivities with exciting promotions and a memorable shopping experience.

To know more about the upcoming Sinulog deals, head to MR.DIY’s official website at www.mrdiy.com/ ph or follow /mrdiyPH on Facebook, and @mrdiy. philippines on Instagram and TikTok. You can also check out MR.DIY’s stores nationwide here : https:// www.mrdiy.com/ph/storelocator.

MEDICAL EQUIPMENT DONATION. Aboitiz Power Corporation (AboitizPower) and local partner Davao

Oriental Electric Cooperative (DORECO) turned over medical equipment for the communities of Davao. Amongst the supplies given were blood pressure monitoring devices, medical manikins, and spineboards. AboitizPower Wholesale Vice President Angeli Parcia thanked DORECO for the opportunity to become a catalyst for positive change in the province, citing the initiative as “going beyond providing reliable electricity to help advance the overall well-being of its host communities.” The donation was received by DORECO Board President Emma Conception Visto and General Manager Engr. Boy Hernaez (1st and 2nd from left) from AboitizPower South Mindanao Account Officer William Pana (3rd from left) and CSR Specialist Wilma Desengaño (1st from right).

10 Ways to Enjoy the Newly Opened CYAN Modern Kitchen

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YAN Modern Kitchen opened 2024 with a plethora of flavors. From Hong Kong inspired dishes, authentic, Indian cuisine, curated charcuterie boards, to an interactive grilling station, the innovative open kitchen is one to explore and enjoy when at Lanson Place Mall of Asia, Manila.

Led by Executive Chef Kristine Oro, CYAN Modern Kitchen promises to redefine the art of dining. The open kitchen holds a contemporary structure and interior with its floor-to-ceiling windows, designed to make diners enjoy the best ambiance, company, and views at Lanson Place.

Make your moment happen, discover these 10 ways to enjoy dining at CYAN Modern Kitchen.

1. Daily Breakfast, Lunch, and PreDinner Cocktail Buffet

CYAN Modern Kitchen doesn’t just serve meals; it crafts daily experiences. Start your day with a sumptuous breakfast, savour a delightful lunch, and unwind with a pre-dinner cocktail buffet. Prices start at P1,500 net per person.

2. Oriental Dishes

Be transported to the bustling streets of Hong Kong with the aromatic Hong Kong style noodle soup. Experience an array of appetizing dishes with Japanese favorites with freshly made sushi, temaki, uramaki, and nigiri to name a few. Embracing the essence of Oriental cuisine, CYAN Modern Kitchen’s menu is a celebration diverse tastes, meticulous preparation, and a nod to culinary heritage.

3. Specialty Oven-Baked Pizzas

THE homemade pizza presents selections exclusive to Cyan Modern Kitchen, articulated by the genius of their chefs crafted with the finest ingredients; each pizza is a culinary masterpiece, offering a perfect blend of crispness and delightful toppings.

liver sauce, or have some house-marinated meats and seafood from the grilling station as skilled chefs prepare them to perfection hot of the grill, offering a feast for both the eyes and the palate.

6. Dark Chocolate Mousse /Matcha Pâte à Choux

INDULGE your sweet tooth with exquisite desserts.

The Dark Chocolate Mousse and Matcha Pâte à Choux are divine creations that bring a charming conclusion to your dining experience.

7. Affogato for your Afternoon Coffee

ELEVATE your coffee experience with a fancy afternoon delight that combines the boldness of espresso with the sweetness of ice cream, promising a moment of pure indulgence. Get cup-full of happiness from the dessert section, our dedicated team will gladly prepare one for you.

8. Celebrate Your Moments with Friends and Family

CELEBRATE life’s special moments at Lanson Place.

CYAN Modern Kitchen is perfect for intimate gatherings with friends and family with its spacious dining hall and quality buffet selections. You can also schedule your private meetings and get-togethers for a stylish productive afternoon as a la carte menus are available.

9. Filipino Selection and an All-Filipino Culinary Team

CYAN Modern Kitchen takes pride in its roots, boasting an All-Filipino Culinary Team serving up a regular cycle of local Filipino dishes made available so there is something reminiscent to look forward to every day. Expect a culinary symphony that harmonises local expertise with global flavours.

10. Manila Bay Sunset

4. Indian Buffet Selection

AT the main dining hall, diners have front-row seats to the magnificent Mount Samat on a clear day and the sunset Manila Bay is best known for. Meanwhile, its private room holds a view of the MOA Eye and has the best seats for the evening fireworks hosted by SM by the Bay.

5. Carving and Grilling Station

Explore the CYAN Modern Kitchen today open from 6 am to 11 pm daily. Reserve your spot now through Lanson Place Mall of Asia, Manila’s web site, or send an email to fb.lpmn@lansonplace.com.

INDULGE in the rich tastes of CYAN Modern Kitchen’s Chicken Makhani in the Indian buffet section. With menu that captures the essence of traditional Indian cuisine. We recommend also trying shrimp curry and original naan with chickpea curry.

FOR an interactive dining experience, try out the Carving and Grilling station. Choose from mouthwatering beef or lamb, porchetta with homemade

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

Sports BusinessMirror

Friday, January 19, 2024 B7

Freestyle skier Rabe picked PHL flag bearer in Gangwon Games

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NOVAK DJOKOVIC points to a spectator during his second round match against Alexei Popyrin as Emma Raducanu serves to Wang Yafan. AP

Too many balls, too many risks?

By Howard Fendrich

Djokovic dares heckler: Say that to my face!

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ELBOURNE, Australia— Already sick and tired in another early round slog, Novak Djokovic unloaded on a heckler who crossed the line at the Australian Open.

Defending champion Djokovic angrily challenged the spectator to “say that to my face” and gestured to the man to come down onto the Rod Laver Arena court, the venue for 10 of his record 24 Grand Slam titles.

He then went on a roll, winning three straight games from 2-2 in the fourth set before finishing off Alexei Popyrin, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (4) 6-3.

The 36-year-old Serb then turned to the crowd again and yelled, pumping his fist to celebrate the victory.

Asked later what triggered his rage, Djokovic responded: “I mean, you don’t want to know.”

“I was tolerating it for most of the match. At one point I had enough,” he said. “He didn’t have the courage to come down. That’s what I was asking him: ‘If you have courage, if you’re such a tough man, tough guy, come down and tell it to my face.’”

That didn’t happen. Djokovic didn’t ask for the man to be removed.

Stadium security didn’t intervene.

Djokovic moved on to the third round, still simmering a little bit about the episode.

“I’m not going to sit and say ‘it’s all good.’ It’s not good,” he said. “Of course, it upsets me. I’m frustrated.

I don’t want to be experiencing that, but I have to accept it as it is.

“Sometimes I don’t tolerate when somebody crosses the line. That’s it.”

Djokovic has been dealing with a sore wrist and said after his opening match—a four-hour, four-set win over 18-year-old qualifier Dino Prizmic—that he hasn’t been well. He was struggling against Popyrin, who is ranked 43rd.

So, was it the kind of spark that he needed?

“Look, I don’t want to be in those types of situations. Yeah, I was flat I guess emotionally. Game-wise I was quite flat,” he said. “Maybe that was needed for me to be shaken up a bit and start to find the kind of intensity that I needed to have all match.”

Last year’s losing finalist, Stefanos Tsitsipas, also had a tough time against an Aussie with the crowd behind him on an adjacent court. AP

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The Associated Press

N the run-up to the Australian Open, defending champion Novak Djokovic’s right wrist was sore—hardly ideal for a tennis player who swings his racket primarily with that arm.

Cam Norrie, the tournament’s 19th-seeded man, has been dealing with wrist pain, too. As has Brenda Fruhvirtova, one of a trio of 16-year-olds who reached the second round of the women’s bracket at Melbourne Park.

Djokovic, Norrie and Fruhvirtova were not prepared to blame the everchanging types of tennis balls used year-round at the sport’s highest levels, but they weren’t necessarily ready to absolve that issue completely, either.

For a while now, some players have wondered aloud whether their wrists, elbows, shoulders and other body parts involved in propelling rackets to strike shots at speeds regularly topping 100 mph (150 kph) are at greater risk because of a constant need to adjust to projectiles that are heavier or lighter, slower or speedier, fluffier or more consistent than the ones they were hitting a week or two or three earlier.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) tours are finally ready to look into the matter, announcing right before this week’s start of the year’s first Grand Slam tournament they are conducting “a strategic review” of tennis balls, although they don’t envision any

changes before 2025.

“I hope they can figure it out.

Seems pretty far away,” 2016 Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic said. “It seems like they’re kind of kicking the can down the road.”

Taylor Fritz, a 26-year-old from California who was the highestseeded American man in Melbourne at No. 12, is among those harboring concerns. He said when the ATP asks male players at the end of each season what they think can be improved about the sport, he always mentions the fluctuations among the fuzzy tennis balls.

“When I was younger...[I] didn’t get injured too easily. I’ve been really feeling it,” Fritz said.

“It’s not so much like the specific ball that injures us. In some cases it is. But it’s more just: You get used to one, and then when you change to something that’s a bit heavier, your wrist or your elbow or whatever is taking the force,” he explained.

“Everyone is different. Everyone hits the ball different—grips, all that stuff.

Whatever is taking the force is now not trained to take that. It’s been trained to take maybe a lighter ball. So it’s just all the switching; it causes problems.”

According to the WTA, most injuries on its tour over the past four years are to the foot (17 percent) or thigh (13 percent). Wrist or shoulder injuries follow and account for a combined 18.5 percent.

Ten brands of tennis balls—and 19 distinct types—were used across the WTA in 2023. A similar number of brands popped up around the ATP. Imagine the National Basketball Association (NBA) using that many

kinds of basketballs...or the NHL using that many kinds of pucks...or the National Football League (NFL) using that many kinds of footballs... or Major League Baseball using that many kinds of baseballs during one of their seasons...or FIFA using that many kinds of soccer balls during one World Cup. They don’t, of course; each sticks to one brand.

“I just try and play with what I’m given,” British tennis player Katie Boulter said. “It does change week by week.”

One significant difference between tennis and some other sports is that surfaces change, prompting ball changes. The Australian Open is contested on hard courts, the US Open is on another sort of hard courts, the French Open is on clay, Wimbledon is on grass.

By Josef Ramos

ANGWON, South Korea— Freestyle skier Laetaz Amihan Rabe was in awe and extremely surprised when she learned that she’ll be the Philippines’ flag bearer during the parade of athletes in Friday’s opening ceremony for the fourth Winter Youth Olympic Games.

“Her initial reaction when I passed the message that she’s the flag-bearer were her super big eyes, her jaw dropping,” Amihan’s father Ric said.

“She’s astounded and she asked how it is to wave best.”

Ric is originally from Cotabato City while his wife Aileen’s from Malolos. They’re been living for a long time in Geneva where their Youth Olympian daughter was born.

Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino—who arrived here on Wednesday night with his secretarygeneral Atty. Wharton Chan—said Rabe was the best choice for the flag-bearing chores because her event comes later in the games.

“Her event comes a few days later so she will be very able and available for the flag-bearing chores,” said Tolentino, who along with Chan and chef de mission Ada Milby, will be in the International Olympic Committee

PETER GROSECLOSE chills with his fellow athletes at the Gangneung Ice Arena on Thursday morning. POC Photo

Malixi bounces back but Australian Harris unbeatable up front

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IANNE MALIXI birdied the last two holes to rescue a two-over 75 and move to joint 12th but young local star Amelia Harris all but wrapped up the Australian Amateur championship with a searing 68 in the third round at the Yarra Yarra Golf Club in Victoria Thursday.

The 15-year-old Harris dominated the par-73 course she calls home with two eagles as she broke off a tie with Japanese Aina Fujimoto to storm to a commanding six-stroke lead over Mamika Shinchi, also from Japan, with a nine-under 210 aggregate over two courses heading to the final 18 holes of the host country’s national championship.

Shinchi took the challenger’s role as Fujimoto faltered with a 76, posting a threebirdie, one-bogey round for a 71 and

No one’s in control

Import Rahlir Jefferson and his TNT teammates couldn’t control the rebound against Magnolia players during their Philippine Basketball Association Commissioners Cup game at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Wednesday night. Magnolia won, 109-94. PHOTO BY RUDY ESPERAS

PSC, PDRCI renew partnership

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PHILIPPINE Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Richard Bachmann shakes hands with Atty. Roger Nicandro. With them are (from left) Atty. Charlie Ho, PSC commissioner Matthew “Fritz” Gaston, Atty. Victor Lazatin and Atty. Arleo Magtibay.

HE Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) renewed its partnership with the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center Inc. (PDRCI) to strengthen the sports agency’s pursuit of fair and efficient sports arbitration in the country.

PSC chairman Richard Bachmann and PDRCI Acting President Atty.

Rogelio Nicandro signed the memorandum of agreement (MOA) on Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

“Since 2021, our collaboration with PDRCI has helped the PSC in carrying out our mandate in fostering a culture of fairness and accountability within our national

Family stands for the opening ceremony to be held simultaneously at the Gangneung Oval and PyeongChang Dome.

The 14-year-old Switzerlandbased Filipino will be by her lonesome during the parade of athletes because Peter Groseclose, 16, will be competing in the 1,500 meters in short track of speed skating on Saturday while crosscountry skier Avery Balbanida is arriving on January 25 because his event comes close to the end of the month.

The Rabes set foot on the Youth Athlete’s Village on Friday morning after an 18-hour flight from Switzerland.

Rabe’s first event is on Wednesday in women’s slopestyle and later on January 28 in big air at the Welli Hilli Park Ski Resort in Hoengseong.

Groseclose has a busy schedule— he again competes on Sunday in the 1,000 meters and on Monday in the 500 meters.

Balbanida is expected to arrive with his father Voltaire for his competition from January 29 to 30 at the Alpensia Biathlon Center.

Tolentino, Chan along with Philippine chef de mission Ada Milby will be on hand for the opening ceremony.

sports associations,” Bachmann said. “By renewing our partnership, we are reinforcing our dedication to providing athletes and stakeholders with a reliable and efficient avenue for dispute resolution.”

The agreement aims to institutionalize and implement a sports Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) policy especially for national sports associations (NSAs) to ensure fast and cost-effective resolution of sports-related disputes using flexible rule-guided procedure.

“We firmly believe this is beneficial to our athletes, the NSAs and all other stakeholders in Philippine sports,” PDRCI Executive

a 216 even as Aussie Eunseo Choi matched par 73 to seize solo third at 217.

Fujimoto actually bounced back from a five-over card after 11 holes with two birdies in the last six holes but her 40-36 round dropped her to fourth at 218.

Malixi, whose campaign is sponsored by the International Container Terminal Services Inc., encountered setbacks early coming off a disastrous 78 at Yarra Yarra Wednesday after an impressive 70 at Keysborough course as the surviving field returned to the exacting layout for the final two rounds. She dropped two strokes on the par-3, 191-yard No. 3 and bogeyed Nos. 11 and 12.

But the 16-year-old Filipina, who struck from behind in the final round to snare the Australian Master of the Amateurs title last week, showcased her competitive spirit by birdieing the last two holes as she salvaged a 38-37 and poised herself for at least a Top 10 finish with a 223 total, 13 strokes off the pace.

Director Atty. Arleo Magtibay Jr. said.

“As we provide a venue where disputes may be settled amicably and expeditiously, our athletes and officials may focus more on their training and competitions and bring glory to the country,” he added.

The PSC previously approved a policy that requires and directs NSAs to submit an Arbitration Provision to the PSC as part of their Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws and pursuant to Section 181 of Republic Act No. 11232 or the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines.

Further collaboration in all activities highlighting the benefits of ADR, including webinars, seminars, lectures and other information dissemination and training activities, were also committed by both agencies.

Motoring BusinessMirror

Henry Ford Awards Best Motoring Section 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 2011 Hall of Fame

B8 Friday, January 19, 2024

Editor: Tet Andolong • www.businessmirror.com.ph

GAC MOTOR PHILIPPINES INAUGURATES ALABANG DEALERSHIP

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Story by Randy S. Peregrino

AC MOTOR Philippines not only ended 2023 by previewing the M8 and M6 Pro but also celebrated a momentous milestone on its dealership expansion front by inaugurating GAC MOTOR Alabang.

Also, the official distributor of GAC vehicles in the country successfully expanded its dealership network by opening 20 dealer outlets in strategic locations nationwide.

Operated by AUTO iCON, the newly-opened dealership is situated at the car dealership hub a long A labang-Zapote in Filinvest, Alabang. GAC MOTOR Alabang is the first showroom in the Philippines that complies w ith GAC ’s globa l show room standards, ensuring a consistent and visually appealing experience for all its customers. The showroom can display up to four vehicles, providing customers with a comprehensive showcase of the brand’s exceptional lineup. The dealership is also a fully outfitted 3S facility and may provide full operational support for sales, service and spare parts for all GAC Motor vehicles.

Moreover, GAC MOTOR Alabang offers a service area featuring six car bays equipped with diagnostic systems for after-sales services. Additionally, the facility houses a well-stocked warehouse with genuine parts and tools, ensuring swift and efficient service for all GAC MOTOR vehicle owners. In addition, all vehicles sold by the dealer are covered by a 5-year warranty, 24-hour Emergency Roadside Assistance, free Preventive Maintenance Service (PMS) on the first 5,000 kilometers, and other value-adding, pro-customer programs.

“We have a solid trust in AUTO iCON, and we believe that with

our partnership and support for each other, they shall continue to contribute greatly to the stellar growth of the GAC MOTOR brand in the country,” said Astara Philippines Managing Director Raoul Picello.

The inauguration event occurred in the presence of executives from GAC International (China), its local distributor Astara Philippines and dealer partner AUTO iCON. Also attended were esteemed bank partners of GAC MOTOR Philippines and other VIP guests. They were also treated to an exclusive preview of two highly anticipated MPV models, the M8 and M6 Pro, which are set to debut in early 2024. These new Multi-Purpose Vehicles (MPVs) are the first instalment of six vehicles the company plans to launch in the coming year.

Meanwhile, dealer principal AUTO iCON is an established lead ing premium auto g roup south of Metro Manila, offering nine distinct automotive brands.

The company is guided by its apparent mission to provide freedom of movement for all through distinctive, appealing, affordable, and sustainable mobility solutions. After merging with Autospectrum Corp. (established in October 2003), Automotive Icon Inc. cemented its ground as the new multi-brand car dealer

Geely sees methanol as the cure

THE newly-inaugurated GAC MOTOR Alabang dealership in Alabang GAC MOTOR PHILIPPINES

(FROM left) AUTO iCON General Sales Manager Destry Lanchaona, GAC Motor International Calvin Cheng, Astara Philippines CFO Adolfo Careaga, GAC Motor Philippines Brand Head Franz Decloedt, Astara Philippines Managing Director Raoul Picello, AUTO iCON President Dexter Co, GAC Motor International Sam Chu, AUTO iCON VP Operations/Sales Chris Bofill, and GAC Motor International Edward Su. GAC MOTOR PHILIPPINES

choice, offering zero tailpipe emissions and around one-third the carbon footprint over their lifespan than conventional ICE vehicles.

“So, what are the options?

Methanol

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HE clock is ticking fast.

On February 1, all jeepneys that are not “consolidated” are deemed “colorum” aka disenfranchised. To be considered “consolidated,” as per the LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatoy Board), every jeepney must be registered to a cooperative by January 31. Otherwise, the unregistered jeepney will be apprehended when seen plying its route beginning February 1.

Chaos in the air?

I suggest that our government officials hold more studies and dialogues with jeepney groups to

find a win-win solution for this colossal conundrum. Otherwise, we may have an impending transport crisis of gargantuan proportions that we might all regret in the end.

Geely goes big

KATH Maramba sends me Geely’s thorough discourse on methanol for a carbon neutral future. Here: “In 2020, more than 50 countries around the world signed an agreement to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

“In the automotive world, the current consensus is that battery electric vehicles are the best

“ THE idea of ‘green fuels’ is gaining some traction, and one such fuel is methanol, which Geely Group has been investing in heavily since 2005.

“Geely’s work with the production of ‘green methanol’ takes us back to 2015 when they invested in a little-known Icelandic company called Carbon Recycling International (CRI). Based just outside of Reykjavik, CRI had been looking at ways to make productive use of the naturally produced carbon dioxide created by the island’s volcanic activity. “ T he success of t h i s pro gram impressed Geely enough to bring the technology back to China where they constructed the country’s first carbon dioxide-to-methanol recycling plant in Anyang.

“However, rather than using

volcanic activity to generate carbon dioxide, Geely instead looked to tackle the more prominent issue of carbon emissions from heavy industry, with a view to preventing them from entering the atmosphere at the source.

Impressive

“WITH carbon capture technology, Geely can take that waste carbon dioxide from heavy industry before it enters the atmosphere and repurpose it as a different, cleaner burning fuel: methanol.

“The results are impressive.

W hile efforts by automakers across the world to reduce the carbon footprints of their cars have reduced CO2 emissions for passenger cars, the average amount across Europe per car was still 116.3 grams per kilometer from well to wheel in 2022. By contrast, the previous generation non-hybrid Geely Emgrand M100, Geely’s methanol-powered passenger car, emits just 46 grams per kilometer of CO2 kilometer from well to wheel.

“The group employs more than 50,000 people, operates 12 plants,

five global R&D centers in Hangzhou, Ningbo, Gothenburg, Coventry and Frankfurt. The Group also boasts four global design studios in Shanghai, Gothenburg, Milan, and Coventry respectively with over 1000 members of staff in total. Geely Automobile Holdings, a subsidiary company holding controlling stakes in Geely Auto, Lynk & Co, and Zeekr has been listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange since 2005.

Emgrand

“IN 2022, the brands under Geely Auto Group management sold over 1.68 million units, with new energy vehicle sales increasing 48.3 percent, and exports growing 38 percent.

“Geely’s efforts with the methanol-powered Emgrand continue to evolve and the latest version, built in the brand’s Guiyang factory, has just begun service in the fleet.

“The new model introduces hybrid technology for the first time, with the Emgrand M100 Hybrid capable of running on pure electric energy at low speeds and using both electric and methanol

last September 2022 and formed “AUTO iCON.” As the new Auto group in the Philippine market dealing with nine car brands, the company’s strength lies in the breadth of its iconic brand portfolio. “ We at A sta ra Phi l ippines wholeheartedly congratulate and extend our appreciation to AUTO iCON on the opening of GAC MOTOR Alabang. We are driven by our mutual commitment to deliver exceptional vehicles and outstanding customer service to all. The comprehensive facility of our new dealership in Alabang serves as a key stepping stone in our drive to deliver the GAC MOTOR brand promise of excellence to the Filipinos, giving them a fully-equipped facility in the southern part of Metro Manila,” said GAC MOTOR Philippines Brand Head Franz Decloedt. power when needed for a combined 264hp. What’s more, the Emgrand runs on 100 percent methanol rather than a blend of methanol and petrol as seen in some cases.

“So while methanol as a fuel is not the singular answer to the planet’s energy challenges, it undoubtedly has a promising part to play. The proven f lexibility, measurable success, and genuine real-world use cases demonstrated by Geely’s investments in Guiyang and beyond are just a snapshot of the potential of this renewable fuel and there’s much more still to come.”

PEE STOP Brennan Ramos says the latest BMW lineup will be unveiled on Friday, January 19, at the Karrera Showroom at 10 a.m. in Corporate Woods Ave. Alabang, Muntinlupa City…The much-awaited Lexus Cup tees off on January 22 at its traditional home, Sta. Elena. One of its celebrated guests is Danny Isla, the founding Lexus president, who left his new home that is New Zealand in time for the event. Cheers!