MRT 3 to refile petition for fare adjustment–DOTr

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

Assistant Secretary for Railways and MRT 3 Officer-in-Charge Jorjette Aquino, the management is asking for an P2.29 increase in minimum fare to P13.29 and 21-centavo hike per kilometer charge to P1.29.

Currently, the MRT 3 charges P11 as boarding fare and P1 for every kilometer traveled. The present minimum fare is set at P13 and the maximum is at P28.

Apart from these, the BSP said it has begun its studies on incorporating climate change into monetary policy. In June 2022, the BSP released the first empirical attempt to quantify the impact of temperature shocks in the Philippine setting.

mum fare of P13 and a maximum of P33 for SVCs; while fares for SJT shall range from P15 to P35.

Strategy. In leading by example, we have also made it a point to invest some of our FX reserves in green assets,” Medalla said in a speech on Monday.

T his, after the original petition was “deferred” due to “infirmities in complying with the requirements and procedure,” Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Cesar

Continued from A1 obligations under the contract, as well to review standards of performance or lack thereof vis-a-vis any claims for payment and/or any other engagement. Further, the DOT reserves the right to take all other

Chavez said.

He noted that it has been “eight years” since the MRT 3 last had a fare adjustment. A ccording to Transportation action against acts deemed inimical to the interest of Philippine tourism.” She stressed that DDB was under contract to submit “original materials.” DDB has yet to issue a statement in response as of press time.

D OT’s move to cancel an advertising contract is not without precedent. In 2017, the DOT under

T he government last month announced the fare adjustments to the fares on the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2. A ccording to the memorandum, Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC), the operator of LRT 1, was allowed to charge a minimum of P13 and a maximum of P35 for stored value cards (SVCs) and a minimum of P15 and a maximum of P35 for single journey tickets (SJTs).

Meanwhile, Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA), which operates LRT 2, was allowed to charge a mini- then Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo likewise terminated the contract of McCann Philippines because an ad it produced, featuring a blind tourist enjoying different Philippine destinations, was found to have “glaring similarities” to a South African tourism ad in 2014. (See, “DOT stops airing of McCann’s ‘Sights” as unofficial tourism ad

I n explaining the approval of the rate adjustments, the DOTr said the LRTA’s deficit for 2023 is projected to be less than P8.5 billion, noting that it has been operating at a loss and relying on government subsidies for its operations and maintenance, as reflected in its financial performance in 2022 when it incurred a deficit of about P7 billion.

L RT 1 last implemented a fare increase in 2015.

O n the part of LRMC, its fare deficit vis-à-vis the notional fare prescribed in its concession agreement with the government is P1.46 billion. As of January 2023, LRMC’s actual fare is 50 percent behind the notional fares, a gap that “will exponentially increase.” reaps praises,” in the BusinessMirror , June 15, 2017.)

Since 2016, LRMC has filed four petitions for a rate increase. But these were all deferred.

Nancy to DOT: Di na natuto

FOR her part, Senator Nancy Binay, chairman of the chamber’s Committee on Tourism, put the blame squarely on DOT’s lap: “This is not the first time that DOT and its agencies drew flak from netizens because of some creative lapses. There should be accountability because the people’s money are being spent by the DOT to pay the ad agencies.” S he added, “The DOT should also be more discerning and critical on pegs, concepts, storyboards, and drafts that ad agencies present to them. There were lapses, too, on the part of the client.”

Maybe the DOT could consider a “return to the ‘Fun’ because there’s a problem with ‘Love’ right now,” said Binay. The lawmaker, along with stakeholder associations, have long been urging Frasco not to change the still-popular “It’s More Fun in the Philippines,” and only tweak it to reflect current post-pandemic realities and preferences of travelers.

TOR of project bid

MEANWHILE , an insider told the BusinessMirror that among the options DOT officials discussed Sunday was the cancellation of the DDB’s contract, but allowing the advertising firm to still be paid for the “materials and activations” it already delivered.

Under the bid’s terms of reference (TOR) for the project “Consulting Services of an Agency for Philippine Tourism Branding,” the winning bidder has to accomplish several milestones to be fully paid: “Upon submission of the market research and initial presentation of the proposed tourism branding campaign, all within the first month of the contract duration [10 percent of contract price]; Upon submission and approval of campaign concept and timelines [10 percent]; Upon submission and approval of all storyboards for AVPs/TVCs/ other media materials [30 percent]; Upon submission and acceptance of all completed creative materials [40 percent]; and Upon acceptance of the Terminal Report all within the end of contract duration [10 percent].”

Based on these milestones, the DOT can estimate how much exactly it will pay DDB for its materials and services, said government sources. In its news statement, DOT did not say if the project will be rebid or awarded to the other shortlisted bidder, on record, IPG Mediabrands Philippines Inc. Under usual government procedures, it may take another three to four months for a project to be rebid.

T he BSP is also conducting another empirical study on the long-term effect of temperature shocks on output growth as well as on inflation. Output includes other economic activities such as crop production, livestock, fishing, manufacturing, services, real investment, and labor productivity in heat-exposed industries.

I n 2020, the central bank also included environmental, social, and governance (ESG) scores to screen tactical investments. The BSP said it is currently working to become a signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment.

On green investments, former BSP Governor Felipe M. Medalla said the central bank has invested some of the country’s foreign reserves on green assets. I n the report, BSP said these are part of the efforts on impact investing such as those done in green bonds. The BSP was also one of the early investors in the green bond funds of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

“ We take an active role in promoting sustainable finance through our 11-point Sustainable Central Banking

BSP chief...

B SP said the report covered the initiatives under financial supervision, preliminary work in the areas of monetary policy and operations (i.e., reserve management and credit operations), and projects and activities in support operations (e.g., risk management, currency production, technology and innovation development, building and maintenance, and procurement).

It also features the participation of the BSP in national and international conversations on sustainable finance, as well as its initiatives in the pipeline and future plans in pursuing the sustainability agenda. T hese include the development of a taxonomy, grant of regulatory incentives to promote financing to sustainable projects and investments, and enhancements to stress testing guidelines, prudential reports, and disclosure requirements.

T he BSP will also build up initiatives promoting inclusive green finance as it recognizes the benefits to vulnerable sectors such as the micro, small, and medium enterprises in line with the interrelated objectives of promoting sustainable finance, digitalization, and financial inclusion. Cai U. Ordinario

Continued from A1

“Naalala niyo ba yung finals ng NBA— noong Hunyo? Ang pakiramdam ko para tayong Denver Nuggets. Diba ang galing nila, lalo na si Nikola Jokic? Pero sa game 2 p arang natsambahan sila ng Miami Heat. Kaya sabi siguro ni Coach Michael Malone sa Nuggets, ‘sana galingan pa natin para hindi tayo matsambahan!’ Sana sa BSP rin, galingan pa natin para hindi tayo matsambahan!” Remolona said.

[Do you recall the NBA finals in June? I feel like we’re the Denver Nuggets. Weren’t they great, espcially Nokila Jokic? But in Game 2, the Miami Heat stole the thunder from them. Coach Michael Malone must have told the Nuggets, ‘let’s all do better, so this won’t happen again!’ So, also, here in BSP, I hope we all do better so that we don’t lose by chance].

R emolona ended his speech by quoting the BSP hymn: Ang layunin mo ay sadyang wagas/ Antas ng buhay ay iyong itaas/ Sa kaunlarang di magwawakas.

Meanwhile, his predecessor, Felipe M. Medalla said BSP was “very very fortunate to have him [Remolona] here.” In a previous press chat, Medalla told reporters that he and Remolona rarely had differences in voting when it came to central bank matters.

I n his speech, Medalla provided highlights of his one-year stint as BSP Governor, the culmination of a total of 12 years serving the central bank. Before becoming Governor, Medalla was part of the Monetary Board for

Continued from A1

B ased on the latest Production Index and Net Sales Index or the Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries, the Volume of Production Index (VoPI) grew 8.2 percent in April 2023.

T his rate is faster than the annual increase of 3.4 percent in the previous month. In April 2022, however, VoPI recorded a contraction of 1.3 percent.

T he faster annual growth of VoPI in April 2023 was mainly brought about by the higher annual rates

11 years. “As Covid-19 lingered and workfrom-home arrangements continued, we managed to ensure the uninterrupted supply of money across our country, kept the banking system strong and stable, made our financial system even more inclusive, battled record-high inflation—by the way, at the rate it’s going, 18 straight months of above-target inflation, three months longer than the previous record—and helped provide stability to our economy. We did these together!” Medalla said. A key highlight of his term was that the BSP raised the policy rates by a total of 350 basis points (bps), on top of the 75 bps already taken before he became Governor. These rate hikes eventually made the BSP one of, if not the most aggressive central bank in terms of monetary policy. Medalla said the BSP also sold foreign exchange, a measure previously frowned upon by multilateral institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, foreign exchange intervention (FXI) has since been accepted and “become standard language in the IMF.” T he turnover ceremonies, which were not open to the public, coincided with the 30th anniversary of the BSP. It was attended by the economic team including Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno and National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan. Cai U. Ordinario in the same top three industry divisions that contributed to the increase in the annual growth of the Value of Production Index during the period.

T hese were the manufacture of food products, 14.7 percent from 4.3 percent in the previous month; transport equipment, 38 percent from 26.3 percent in the past month; and other non-metallic mineral products, 15.7 percent from 2.9 percent in March 2023.

Continued from A18

The NCR Regional Wage Board will increase the P570 daily minimum wage by P40 to P610 on July 16. This, IBON said, is “P490 short of the P1,100 minimum wage petition of the Unity for Wage Increase Now! (UWIN), P710 less than the Makabayan bloc’s proposed P750 wage increase, and P110 shy of Senator Miguel Zubiri’s P150 wage increase bid.”

I BON added that the resulting wage is still much less than the family living wage (FLW) of P1,160 for a family of five to live decently in NCR as of May 2023. There is still a wage gap of P550 and the new wage is still barely half or just 53 percent of the FLW in the NCR. T he wage hike, it said, “is the first and only one under the Marcos Jr. administration in any of the country’s 17 regions. In contrast, the Duterte administration had 11 wage hikes, Noynoy Aquino gave 17 hikes, and Arroyo 9 hikes in their respective first years in office. This highlights the current government’s insensitivity to millions of workers and their families struggling with the rising cost of living.” B utch Fernandez

• Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug