BusinessMirror July 05, 2023

End-May PHL debt hits ₧14T

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

AWEAKER peso and fresh borrowings both from local and foreign markets drove the Philippines’s outstanding debt past the P14-trillion mark, hitting a new record high for the country, Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) data showed.

Latest BTr data showed that the country’s outstanding debt as of end-May stood at P14.096 trillion, P185 billion higher than the P13.911-trillion recorded debt stock in end-April.

On a yearly basis, the country’s debt stock was P1.601 trillion higher than the P12.495-trillion debt level recorded by the country in May 2022.

The country’s debt has grown by P676 billion since end-December 2022 when it was estimated at P13.42 trillion.

The latest debt figure is already 96.35 percent of the anticipated P14.63-trillion outstanding debt

of the national government by the end of the year.

Treasury data showed that 68 percent of the country’s outstanding debt was domestic, which was estimated at P9.588 trillion as of end-May. The amount was 1.4 percent higher than the P9.457-trillion domestic debt recorded in end-April.

The remaining 32 percent of the national government’s debt was external. The country’s external debt as of end-May reached P4.508 trillion from P4.453 trillion in end-April.

See “Debt,” A2

D.O.T. BID OUT P550-M PROJECTS FOR REBRANDING CAMPAIGN

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo @akosistellaBM

Special to the BusinessMirror

THE Department of Tourism (DOT) bid out this year some P550 million worth of projects, mostly in support for its updated branding development and campaign.

Documents from the DOT website showed the campaign consisted of three major components: the development of the new slogan for P50 million, the actual production of creative materials for P250 million, and the international media placements for another P250 million. The bid for the new tourism slogan was won by DDB Philippines Inc., which recently came under fire for having used foreign stock footage to depict Philippine scenes in a launch video. Its contract has

since been terminated.  (See, “Despite fiasco, ad agency of DOT could still get paid,” in the BusinessMirror, July 4, 2023.)

This developed as Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda underscored the power of the “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” tourism slogan in attracting international travelers to the country. In an interview over ANC’s Headstart on Tuesday, he said total inbound visitors from 2012 to 2017, and 20192020, prior to the pandemic, reached some 33.4 million, for a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.6 percent. “The “fun” slogan was used from 2012 to 2022.

P1.27B for branding budget IN comparison, “WOW Philippines” which was used from

See “DOT,” A2

ALOCAL labor group has joined international calls for the public disclosure of the details of supply chain agreement provision of the proposed Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF).

Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) was among the 14 groups which made the demand, after IPEF Trade ministers made a “substantial conclusion” in their meeting in Detroit, Michigan on the said provision.

The provision is expected to “increase resilience, efficiency, productivity, sustainability, transparency, diversification, security,

fairness, and inclusivity of their supply chain.”

“Yet since the Parties continue to withhold the text, we are prevented from assessing these claims and seeking to influence the final outcomes to ensure those benefits are real, and not a repeat of the trade agreements designed to benefit the powerful states and transnational corporations,” the two-page joint statement read.

The group urged the IPEF Trade ministers to release the document agreed in Detroit before it undergoes legal scrubbing, and signed.

See “IPEF,” A2

NORTHERN FRONTIER General Andres Centino, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, third from left, and Filipino soldiers salute during flag-raising ceremonies on June 29, 2023, on Mavulis Island in Batanes province in northern Philippines. Centino checked on troops on the island, which lies at the country's northernmost tip nearest Taiwan. EZRA ACAYAN/POOL PHOTOS VIA AP

Marcos tells DOJ to probe smuggling of farm products

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

Debt. . .

Continued from A1

However, Treasury data showed that in US dollar terms, the national government’s external debt in end-May was at $80.156 billion, slightly lower than the $80.244 billion recorded in end-April.

The higher external debt in Philippine Peso terms was caused by the weakening of the currency against the US dollar.

“I have just given instructions to the DOJ [Department of Justice] and the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] to initiate an investigation into the hoarding, smuggling [and] price fixing of agricultural commodities,” Marcos said in a video statement on Tuesday.   He noted this was in line with a memorandum sent to him by Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo containing the “substantial evidence” uncovered by the Committee on Agriculture and Food

on the activities of the onion cartel, which is supposedly operating through the Philippine VIEVA Group of Companies Inc. (PVGCI).

The memorandum included an “Onion Matrix” containing the list of vegetable importers and owners of cold storage facilities, who were purportedly part of the cartel.

“The findings they came through is sufficient ground for us to initiate an investigation into what amounts to economic sabotage,” Marcos said.

He said he wants the people behind the cartel to be held accountable if they are found to be liable after the probe.

The House of Representative launched the investigation in response to the surge in onion prices starting in July and hitting 87 percent inflation by December 2022.

During the hearing, the Department of Agriculture Bureau of Plant Industry reported there was only a modest onion supply shortage of approximately 7.56 percent last year.

This prompted the Committee led by Quimbo to suspect the rise in onion prices was caused by “price-fixing through manipulation of stocks, leveraging control over cold storage facilities.”

The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said Quimbo reported to the President that PVGCI, and its majority stakeholder, Lilia/Lea Cruz, were implicated “in cartel operations, including coordination of stock withdrawals and price-fixing at various stages.”

Quimbo urged the President to dismantle the cartel through the DOJ, NBI and the Philippine Competition Commission.

DOT. . .

Continued from A1

2002 to 2010, the country attracted a total of 20.84 million international visitors during the period, at a CAGR of 5.8 percent.

While Salceda acknowledged that the success of a country’s tourism strategy depends on several factors such as Attractions, Accessibility, Amenities, Available Packages, Activities, and Ancillary Services, the ‘Fun’ slogan “appears to have made a difference in the country’s tourism program. The power of the ‘Fun’ slogan was that viral memes could be generated by Filipinos about scenes from the country. Even when the slogan and scenes were made fun of, the intrinsic genius of the slogan was that making fun of the country also proved the slogan’s point.”

The lawmaker also said under the General Appropriations Act for 2023, the DOT received a P1.27-billion budget for the Branding Campaign Program, “which shall be used for its promotional campaign activities.” He also noted that the Senate inserted a provision that these funds could not be used to change the tourism slogan, which President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. vetoed “obviously by the DOT, to allow them to rebrand.”

Consultancy services

MEANWHILE , DOT bidding documents showed the enhanced branding campaign consisted of three main components. The market research and formulation of the new slogan including its launch fall under “Consulting Services of an Agency for Philippine Tourism Branding” (DOT-SBACREI No. 2023-008), which amounted to P50 million for a period of six months.

Another project is for “Consulting Services for the Integrated Marketing Campaign for the Rebranding of the Philippine Tourism Brand” (DOT-SBACREI No. 2023-008) with a budget of P250 million. This covers the actual production of radio/TV commercials, social media posts, podcasts, music videos, TV show, and the like, based on the approved branding. Target audience will be those in “Top Markets” such as South Korea, United States (including overseas Filipino communities in North America), Canada, China, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Malaysia, Germany; as well as “Emerging Markets” like Western Europe (France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria), the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Southeast Asia.

The DOT did not say if this project has already been awarded, but only DDB Philippines and IPG Mediabrands Philippines Inc. were asked to bid for it, having been the two shortlisted bidders also for the Tourism Rebranding consulting services project.

Another project is for an “International Media Planning, Media Buying, and Placements Agency” (DOTSBAC-REI No. 2023-005), to handle the advertising and rollout of the new tourism campaign using materials produced by the winning agency for the Integrated Marketing Campaign. Shortlisted bidders for this media placement project, worth P250 million, are IPG Mediabrands Philippines Inc. and Touch XDA Inc. In  her press briefing at the launch of the “Love” slogan last week, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said this project had already been awarded, but did not say to which company.

Treasury data showed that for the month of May the average foreign exchange rate of Philippine Peso versus the US dollar was P56.241, compared to the P55.497 average in April.

Treasury data showed that P2.036 trillion of the national government’s outstanding debt was in the form of loans while P12.060 trillion were borrowed through debt securities.

IPEF. . .

Continued from A1

Among the details they want to be disclosed are the operation and composition of accompanying “bodies in the sectors” to be included in the IPEF.

“The rush towards implementation needs to be tempered by the transparency, inclusivity, fairness and collaborative approach that you say is a hallmark of the outcome,” the group said.

They also demanded that similar transparency be given in other aspects of the agreement including digital trade and climate change.

Aside from SENTRO, the joint statement was endorsed by AID/WATCH (Australia), Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network (AFTINET), CFMEU Construction & General Division (Australia), Community and Public Sector Union SPSF Group (Australia), Electrical Trade Union (Australia), Focus on Global South, International Grail Justice and Trade Network, New South Wales Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Australia), Public Citizens (US), Trade Justice Education Fund (United States), Trade Justice Pilipinas (The Philippines), Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania (Australia).

IPEF is an economic initiative spearheaded by the US President Joe Biden and has 14 members namely, India, Japan, South Korea, US, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Samuel P. Medenilla

Senators weigh in on 9-dash-line in ‘Barbie’

SENATORS weighed in on Tuesday on calls to ban the cinema exhibition of the movie “Barbie” for showing an image of the 9-dash line map that China has been using—amid objections by other claimants—to illustrate its claim over most of the South China Sea.

Two senators, Jinggoy Estrada and Francis Tolentino, asked the Movie Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) to ban the movie for abetting Beijing’s infringement on Philippine sovereignty.

However, Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros, one of the most vocal in denouncing Beijing’s “bullying” in the past, pointed out that the movie is a work of fiction, and thus, a ban might not be appropriate.

Tolentino stressed that if the invalidated 9-dash line was indeed depicted in the movie ‘Barbie,’ then it is incumbent upon the MTRCB to ban the same as it denigrates Philippine sovereignty.

“Dapat lang ipagbawal ang pelikulang ‘Barbie’ dahil ang pinakita nitong 9-dash line ay salungat sa katotohan at ipinawalang bisa na ng arbitral ruling noong 2016. [It’s but right to ban ‘Barbie’ because the 9-dash line it features is a lie that has been invalidated by the arbitral ruling of 2026].”

Estrada recalled that “this is not a first as there had been similar cases in the past such as the movies titled ‘Uncharted’ and ‘Abominable’ that have been pulled out from Philippine cinemas because of a brief glimpse of the unilaterally declared nine-dash line of China.”

He added: “If the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) in the past banned commercial screenings of these movies, I wouldn’t be surprised if the agency will take similar action especially since the production behind the film ‘Barbie’ is facing a similar issue,” Estrada said, speaking in Filipino.

Hontiveros, however, said: “The movie is fiction, and so is the nine-dash line. At the minimum, our cinemas should include an explicit disclaimer that the nine-dash line is a figment of China’s imagination.”

Estrada said: “It may be a work of fiction but still, this is a very sensitive issue. It is contrary to our national interest and China has no historic rights in the waters within the nine-dash line. No less than the Arbitral Tribunal already held in 2016 that this infamous line has no legal basis.

“We fought long and hard for this. And it’s but right that we assert our rights on issues of sovereignty. We expect that MTRCB can hand down a decision on this soon,” he added. Butch Fernandez

FOLLOWING a congressional probe that revealed the existence of a cartel allegedly responsible for the onion price spike last year, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has ordered an investigation into the smuggling of onion and other agricultural products.

DENR LAUNCHES FIRST-EVER SERVICES ON WHEELS Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga (rightmost, front) and DENR Caraga Regional Executive Director Nonito Tamayo (leftmost, front) lead the ribboncutting ceremony to inaugurate the DENR Services on Wheels on Friday, June 23, 2023, coinciding with the launching of Project TRANSFORM in Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte. The DENR Services on Wheels is the innovative mechanism of DENR to bring its services closer to the locals of Surigao del Norte. The vehicle will roam around the province bringing personnel from the DENR, Environmental Management Bureau, and Mines and Geosciences Bureau Caraga personnel to provide the agency’s essential services such as the applications for Environmental Compliance Certificate, Permit to Operate, Tree Cutting in Alienable and Disposable Lands, Transport of Forest Products, Hazardous Waste Generator Registration, Waste Water Discharge Permit, Geohazard Assessment and Mapping, and Certification for Land Status. PHOTO COURTESY OF DENR

HOUSE Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Rep.

Joey Sarte Salceda on Tuesday said the conversation on Philippine tourism should focus on ways forward, as he revealed he might not join calls for Tourism

Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco to quit her post amid the controversies involving the “Love the Philippines” tourism campaign.

Salceda said once the controversy about this “rebranding” effort passes, the government would still need to fix the country’s airports, accommodations and accessibility.

“I asked her to fire the consultant. She did. I asked her to correct mistakes and investigate internally. She did. I asked her to be more inclusive with destinations featured. She did. When we resume session in Congress, we will seek facts. She is open. We can disagree without malice,” Salceda said.

“I will criticize openly, as needed. That’s my job as a legislator and a representative of my people. But after heated discussions, we must remain focused on solving problems. So, no, I will not join calls for her to resign. Certainly

PBBM set to issue order lifting Covid public health emergency–DOH chief

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

“We’re heading [to the lifting] soon,” he added.

He noted the IATF no longer has any reservation with the lifting after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced last week it has granted a certificate of product registration (CPR) for Pfizer’s bivalent Covid-19 vaccines, Comirnaty Original/Omicron B.A.4-5.

The CPR will allow the bivalent vaccine to be sold locally.

said the government’s existing monovalent vaccines could still be used as booster shots.

OVER 75,000 smokers in the Philippines, along with 18.5 million smokers worldwide across nearly 70 countries, have completely quit smoking and switched to heated tobacco, which has been scientifically proven to be a much better option.

Since its launch in June 2020, PMFTC Inc., the local affiliate of Philip Morris International Inc., has been dedicated to creating a smoke-free Philippines. Within just three years, an estimated 75,000 Filipinos have successfully quit smoking cigarettes by adopting IQOS, a device that heats tobacco instead of burning it.

IQOS, introduced by PMFTC, uses the patented HeatControl technology to heat tobaccofilled sticks called HEETS, releasing a water-based aerosol without any smoke or ash. This innovative device has gained popularity among adult smokers who are seeking a healthier alternative.

Dave Gomez, the communication director of PMFTC, expressed optimism about the increasing number of adult smokers quitting cigarettes

not when a lot of it is premised on speculation. I focused on facts in my criticisms. I want to focus on facts on the solutions,” he said.

Salceda also vowed to help Frasco.

“I am asking everyone to help her. I would like to summon the collective intellect, energy, and innovativeness of the brightest minds in advertising and promotions to help the DOT,” he added.

“Albay will help her. I offer to her my personal experience as former Governor of Albay, when we grew foreign tourist arrivals by 4,700 percent, and became the country’s rising tourism star.

Albay has 1.32 tourists per resident, pre-pandemic, higher than the 0.57 per resident number nationally. It’s one of the best—if not the best, pound-for-pound,” Salceda added.

Salceda was a highly commended governor who was given the first Tourism Star award by the Department of Tourism in 2015 for his efforts to make Albay a leading tourist destination. Salceda was also recently given the Special Grand Tourism Award by the Manila Overseas Press Club.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

as the company continues to innovate and expand its presence in the Philippines.

“If only all the 16 million Filipino smokers who don’t quit would switch to heated tobacco products, imagine the significant reduction in smoking-related diseases in the country,” Gomez said.

Last year, PMFTC introduced a more affordable device called BONDS by IQOS, providing even more options for smokers looking to switch to a better alternative.

To celebrate its 3rd anniversary, PMFTC launched IQOS Together.X, a series of exclusive events for IQOS CLUB members in the Philippines. These events included a craft-beverage journey and a special tasting menu prepared by the renowned team of TOYO Eatery.

The culminating event of IQOS Together.X took place at The Yuchengco Museum, where the 2021-2022 winners of the Philippine Art Awards were exhibited. The night was filled with signature offerings from The Moment Catering and attended by over 150 IQOS CLUB members.

In a news briefing in Malacañang on Tuesday, Health Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa disclosed the President is now just waiting for the official recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for the

said lifting.

“I think he [President Marcos’]...instruction to me is really to recover from Covid and be able to get back the economy because we’ve lost a lot in the economy from the restrictions,” Herbosa said.

Herbosa said they are also in talks with the Covid-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) to secure 2 million Covid-19 bivalent vaccines, which will be allocated for the poor.

The DOH earlier expressed concern over the lifting, saying it could affect the emergency use authorization (EUA) for Covid-19 jabs.

However, even without the public health emergency, Herbosa

House bill grants decent pay and benefits to civilian personnel in uniformed offices

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

LAWMAKERS are pushing for the passage of a bill ensuring the security of tenure of civilian employees in the country’s law enforcement and related agencies as well as provide them with decent pay and the same benefits enjoyed by uniformed personnel and other government workers.

Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan, a former assistant secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and Camarines Sur 2nd District Rep. LRay Villafuerte recently filed House Bill 7981 or the proposed Magna Carta for Non-Uniformed Personnel (NUP) that stands to benefit civilian employees in the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and all other uniformed agencies.

“Non-uniformed personnel work as partners in protecting the lives of the Filipino people. Their jobs are as valuable as their uniformed counterparts. Hence, this bill seeks to improve the social and economic well-being of all NUP as well as to ensure that their rights are protected,” Yamsuan and Villafuerte said in filing the proposed Magna Carta.

“It also aims to help professionalize our public safety workforce, boost employee morale and ensure accountability and responsiveness of our institutions,” they added.

The Magna Carta also covers NUP in the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Department of National Defense (DND), Bureau of Fire Protection

MAYOR Jeannie Sandoval on Monday delivered her first State of the City Address, which focused on the positive change her administration brought to the residents and businesses in Malabon. Her presentation included testimonies from Malabueños on how the quality of life improved during Sandoval’s first year in office.

Under Mayor Jeannie’s administration, the local government of Malabon focused on addressing core issues, which included the provision of affordable hous -

(BFP), Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA).

“Our NUP in the PNP, AFP and other uniformed agencies often work long hours without being justly compensated for such efforts, and are at times exposed to high-risk working conditions, but lack the benefits, job security and social protection they deserve,” said Yamsuan, who is also a member of the Committee on Public Order and Safety in the House of Representatives.

Yamsuan said that thousands of NUP in the police, military and other uniformed agencies have been left behind when it comes to receiving salaries commensurate to their skills, especially after the increase in the base pay of soldiers, police officers and other uniformed personnel in 2018.

Under HB 7981, Villafuerte and Yamsuan proposed that the salary scales of NUP be the same as that of uniformed personnel.  Salaries of NUP should also be comparably equal to those paid in other occupations or professions requiring equivalent or similar qualifications, training and abilities regardless of rank positions, they said.

The basic monthly salary of NUP, including the lowest rank, should ensure that this provides the employee a reasonable and decent standard of living, and shall exclude the subsistence allowance, cost of living allowance, and all other benefits provided under existing laws, the bill stated.

Benefits such as overtime pay, night differential pay, longevity pay, laundry allowance of P1,000 per month for those required to

ing, provision of jobs, as well as investment in infrastructure to improve the delivery of social and financial services.

From Mayor Jeannie’s speech, some of the key accomplishments made in behalf of the residents of Malabon include employment for 11,924 jobseekers, 1,380 affordable housing units provided, 57,000 family recipients of the Malabon Ahon Blue Card, 6,000 recipients of the cash for work program, and 46,000 recipients of quality health care.

Mayor Jeannie is expected

The country was placed under public health emergency by former President Rodrigo R. Duterte through Proclamation No. 922, which he issued in 2020 to allow government agencies and local government units to “utilize appropriate resources to implement urgent and critical measures” to prevent loss of life during the pandemic.

The proclamation will remain in effect until lifted by the President.

The national public health emergency is different from the state of national calamity due to the pandemic, which ended last December, after Marcos decided to no longer renew the latter to show the situation in the country is returning to normal.

wear uniforms; subsidy of one sack of rice per month or its monetary equivalent; quarters allowance for those forced to stay in their workplaces; and a clothing allowance of P6,000 per year for all NUP are provided under the bill.

The bill also grants all NUP hazard allowance equivalent to at least 25 percent of the monthly basic pay for workers receiving salary grade 19 and below, and 5 percent for workers with salary grade 20 and above, along with a subsistence allowance equivalent to three meals a day.

HB 7981 also entitles all NUP to vacation and sick leaves, study leaves, maternity and paternity leaves, mandatory leave of five days with full pay, separation benefits and scholarship privileges for their dependents.

They are also entitled to compensation when injured in the line of duty and free hospitalization when they become ill in the performance of their official duties as provided under the bill.

All NUPs are assured of security of tenure under the measure, which provides that their services cannot be terminated except for just cause and after due process. If found by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to have been unjustly dismissed, the bill states that the NUP shall be entitled to reinstatement without loss of seniority rights, and to his/her back wages with interest, along with all other benefits.

Under the bill, the concerned uniformed agencies are mandated to shoulder the continuous training of their respective NUP to sustain the professionalization of the non-uniformed ranks.

to continue to build on the important work her administration has achieved. During her speech, the first woman mayor of Malabon emphasized “the accomplishments we have achieved is a concerted effort.”

She called for unity, and the need for everyone to “work together in order the build a better city for all Malabueños.”

Laying down the foundation for a progressive Malabon, the city is poised for economic growth under Mayor Jeannie’s leadership.

THE Mt. Inayawan Range Natural Park (MIRNP), a protected area (PA) situated in the province of Lanao del Norte, has been declared the 53rd Asean Heritage Park (AHP) and the 11th PA in the Philippines to earn such distinction. The MIRNP was launched as an AHP during the 64th Araw ng Lanao del Norte celebration on June 28.

MIRNP is known as the “last forest bastion” in the province for being the only primary remaining and largest rainforest dominated by dipterocarp species and containing high diversity of flora and fauna. It is the primary water source of surrounding and nearby communities and municipalities. It is home to the indigenous people of Maranao.

“Mt. Inayawan’s forests and biodiversity are still intact; hence it is now an AHP. This will give the Maranao people an increased sense of deep pride and responsibility to further protect and preserve it,” Ismail C. Ambola, incumbent MIRNP park superintendent said in a statement.

Some of the endemic species found in MIRNP are the endangered Pinsker’s hawk eagle (Nisaetus pinskeri), the critically endangered Philippine eagle, the vulnerable tree species Magkono (Xanthostemon verdugonianus), and the Philippine flying lemur (Cynocephalus volans)

“We commend the support of all stakeholders, particularly the Provincial Government of Lanao del Norte and the local government of Nunungan in the participatory governance of the Park contributing to its sustainable PA management,” Dr. Arvin C. Diesmos, senior director of the Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), secretariat of the AHP Programme, said for his part.

“The distinction of Mt. Inayawan Range Natural Park as an Asean Heritage Park is a great honor,” said Lanao del Norte Governor Imelda Dimaporo “Together, let us stand as guardians of nature, protectors of our heritage, and advocates for a greener and healthier planet,” she added.

Dr. Theresa Mundita Lim, ACB executive director, lauded and welc omed MIRNP to the growing network of AHP.

She expressed ACB’s readiness to support the park’s conservation efforts and to help ensure the effective and efficient management of this new AHP. Since its establishment in 1984, the AHP Programme has declared 55 PAs as part of the AHP network. These heritage sites are biologically rich parks and nature reserves that serve as models of effective PA management and conservation.

Jonathan L. Mayuga

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. may soon be coming out with a new issuance to officially lift the Covid-19 national public health emergency in the Philippines, according to the Department of Health (DOH).

‘Last forest bastion’: Lanao del Norte’s Mt. Inayawan is 53rd Asean Heritage Park

DA to farmers: Sustain planting of crops despite El Niño threat

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) renewed its call to farmers on Tuesday to sustain their planting of crops despite a looming El Niño threat.

The DA statement came on the heels of reports that some farmers have ceased to plant amid reports of a severe drought that might only destroy crops, notably rice.

DA Director U-Nichols Manalo for Field Operations said farmers might have no reason to stop planting since “higher or normal rainfall is still expected this month, which is suitable for planting.”

The DA, he added, will also conduct mapping to identify areas that run the risk of being highly affected by a possible draught and not to increase production.

The DA is also asking the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for funds to conduct cloud seeding on three sites in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The agency will also distribute plant resistant seeds such as mangoes, and peanuts. Fertilizers, and other interventions are also included.

On July 3, the DA said that it has started implementing measures to

mitigate the effects of the looming El Niño phenomenon or dry spell on farm production.

The DA’s action plan as of May 2023 includes preparatory activities from prepositioning of seed reserves, planting materials, crop diversification and water management.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said the El Niño phenomenon is characterized by unusually warmer than average sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific.

Below normal rains are expected,

Workers urge Sen. Zubiri to stand firm on ₧150 legislated wage hike proposal

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

proposed P1,161 per day minimum wage to provide workers a decent living amid rising cost of living.

“

which can cause dry spells and droughts in several areas of the country.

Manalo said that, “right now the rainfall is way below-normal, [but] we are saying that this is a meteorological forecast, [and] we at the DA are looking at the actual ground situation or assessment on the condition there below.”

The DA identified at least 19 areas in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas and Rizal that are vulnerable to drought, 10 of which are tagged very high to high risk, while nine others are under moderate risk. Raadee S.

Sausa

No need for Boracay-like takeover of Siargao Island–DENR official

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is not keen on recommending a government takeover and closure of Siargao Island to tourism to pave the way for a massive rehabilitation similar to what was imposed during the rehabilitation of the worldrenowned Boracay Island during the Duterte administration.

“If we are going to close Siargao Island to tourism, the people will suffer enormously. Tourism is their bread and butter,” Nonito Tamayo, DENR Caraga regional executive director told the BusinessMirror

Tamayo added that even DENR Secretary Maria Antonia YuloLoyzaga is not in favor of a government takeover of Siargao Island,

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

AGROUP has warned of a looming liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) shortage if the Department of Energy (DOE) will not extend the deadline for securing a permit to operate from the agency. The Federation of Affordable Independent Refillers and Resellers of LPG (FAIRR-LPG) is urging the DOE to extend the deadline to secure the License to Operate (LTO) from July 6 to December

Tamayo noted.

“After 3 years of pandemic and the devastation of typhoon Odette, it is time for the people to recover from several years of economic setbacks. Closing the island to tourists will definitely hurt them more,” Tamayo said.

As for the reported water pollution in certain areas around Siargao, Tamayo said the situation is manageable.

“All we need to do is to strictly enforce the environmental laws,” said Tamayo.

In Dapa, where illegal settlers have occupied coastal areas, at least 100 families would have to be relocated.

“We will closely coordinate with the concerned local government

31, 2023. T he LTO is mandated under RA 11592 or the LPG Industry Regulation Act of 2021.

FAIRR-LPG is a group of LPG refilling plant owners, dealers and other LPG players.

FAIRR-LPG President F elipe Galang said if there would be no extension then this may result in LPG shortage not because there is lack of supply but for the reason that no one will attempt to sell without a license. The stiff penalty for non-compliance also discourages them to sell, he added.

units [LGUs] for the relocation of these communities, particularly in Dapa.  It’s the only area where poor water quality was detected,” he said.

He noted that close to 1,000 tourism-related establishments on Siargao Island, or close to half of the total number of businesses operating on the island, have no environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

To address the problem, he said the DENR would conduct a massive information campaign and ensure compliance by erring business establishments.

Tamayo said he is recommending the reestablishment of a satellite office of the DENR on the island so that the tourism-related establishments will be able to apply for an

T he fine starts at P5,000 per day for LPG distributors that operate without permits and up to P1 million for non-compliance with the design, permits and protocols for the transport of LPG tanks.

According to the group, 90 percent of the existing LPG sellers in the country are non-compliant for various reasons, such as the voluminous requirements prior to the release of the LTO. F or LPG refilling plant owners and dealers, Galang said they are required to produce at least 32 and 33 documents, respectively. FAIRR-LPG asked the DOE to

ECC and receive technical support.

The DENR office on the island was closed as a result of the government rationalization plan several years back. This limited the DENR’s presence on the island for years, resulting in violations of various environmental laws, particularly the Clean Water Act.

“In the meantime, we will mobilize our DENR Services on Wheels on the island. We will bring the DENR closer to the people,” he said.

THE coalition of the country’s biggest labor groups called on Senate President Juan Miguel F. Zubiri to stand firm on the original amount of his proposed legislated wage hike.

T his after Zubiri said in a television interview on Tuesday he will reduce the amount of the increase in his Senate Bill (SB) 2002 from P150 to just P100 to secure the support of more senators for the legislation.

“With due respect, the Coalition contends that the Senator’s voluntary retreat was made prematurely and without debate with his fellow senators, particularly considering the Senate Labor Committee’s previous approval of a higher, nationwide P150 increase,” the Nagkaisa coalition said in a news statement.

Open mind

THE statement stressed the importance of preserving the original amount proposed under SB 2002 to augment the insufficient wage rates in the regions, including the National Capital Region (NCR), which just recently enjoyed a P40 wage hike.

Last Friday, the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region (RTWPB-NCR) Wage Order (WO) NCR24, raised the minimum wage rates within its jurisdiction from P573 to P610, which is currently the highest nationwide.

D espite the new wage adjustment, labor groups maintained it is still way below their

The Nagkaisa urges Senator Zubiri and his colleagues to approach this issue with open minds, considering the dire realities faced by the average Filipino worker and their family across the nation,” the coalition said.

Mixed reaction

THE Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) opposed the current amount of the legislated wage increase for being “too high.”

It also expressed concern in the involvement of Congress in wage adjustments, which it said, can lead to wage negotiations to be “muddled with politics.”

For its part, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) reiterated in a television interview that it has no objection to the pending legislated increase.

However, Labor Secretary Bienvenido E. Laguesma said the regional wage boards are already able to provide responsive increases in their respective jurisdictions.

The regional tripartite wage and productivity boards face the difficult task of balancing the [demands of workers] with the ability of investors, especially those in the MSME [micro, small, and medium enterprises] [to pay],” Laguesma said. (See related story at (https://businessmirror. com.ph/2023/07/04/zubiri-eyes%e2%82%a7100-in-legislated-dailywage-hike-for-p140-total/)

114 farmers from Tarlac, Nueva Ecija get EPs, CLOAs from DAR

Jonathan L. Mayuga

Known as the surfing capital of the Philippines, Siargao is a tourism magnet. The island also hosts the fourth largest Protected Area in the Philippines called Siargao Island Protected Landscape and Seascape (SIPLAS).

trim the number of requirements, saying some of these are redundant, while others are unnecessary and impractical.

The FAIRR-LPG also asked the DOE that Galang be allowed to participate in the policy-making decisions of the agency in the implementation of the provisions of RA 11592. For the DOE’s part, the agency said the law does not provide an extension.

“Still, the DOE has requested for a legal opinion for an extension. The legal opinion, hopefully, will be released by the DOELegal Office soon,” the agency said.

THE Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) recently announced the distribution of emancipation patents (EPs) and certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) to farmers from Tarlac and Nueva Ecija provinces.

A total of 114 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARB) received their EPs and CLOAs from the two provinces, comprising 131 land titles covering 78.2903 hectares of land.

Atty. Luis Meinrado C. Pañgulayan, MNSA, CESO I, DAR Undersecretary for Policy, Planning and Research Office led the distribution of two EPs and 129 CLOAs to the 114 ARBs a simple ceremony held at the Tarlac Capitol Function Hall, San Vicente, Tarlac City.

Nelia C. Leonardo, 52 years old, and her sister Maria Theresa Carlos, 37 years old from Lourdes, Cabanatuan City were emotional upon receiving the EP. The EP is named after their mother, Marianita A. Carlos, who died in 2017.

“We waited so long for this title, seven decades, thank you to the DAR,” Leonardo said.

Leonardo disclosed that her father, Sergio Carlos, was one of the farmers and tenants of Spouses Ignacio and Marina Gonzales, and has been cultivating the parcels of land even before World War II, and the said parcel of land has been subject to a court proceeding up to the Supreme Court.

During the event, Pañgulayan announced that the President would sign into law the New Agrarian Emancipation Act on July 7, Friday, a remarkable event representing a significant step forward in implementing the agrarian reform program.

“President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., through the DAR, wants to give the farmers true freedom from poverty and loans, this milestone in conferring land ownership also ensures longterm security for the beneficiaries,“ he said.

Pañgulayan added that future ARBs would be awarded lands free with the balances of unpaid obligations of ARBs to landowners to be assumed by the Land Bank of the Philippines. Jonathan

L. Mayuga

Pascual invites Dutch high-tech, semicon companies to set up shop in Philippines

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

I n his speech during the Philippines-Netherlands Sectoral Roundtable, which focused on semiconductors, automotive, and integrated circuit (IC) design on June 30,2023, Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual told Dutch companies that the Philippines is enhancing its participation in the global value chain of electronics, specifically in research and development and production of wafer technology.  He underscored that the Netherlands and the Philippines share “mutual interests” in the semiconductor and high-tech sectors as both nations recognize the importance of these in driving innovation, job creation, and economic growth.

Multi-specialty

THE construction of a proposed medical specialty center in Clark, Pampanga, which is part of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s commitment in his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) last year, is set to finally start this month.

D uring a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, the Department of Health (DOH) informed Marcos the ground breaking for the Clark Multi-Specialty Center (CMSC) is scheduled for July 17, or a week before the Chief Executive’s next SONA.

The CMSC was originally the Philippine Heart Center (PHC) Annex, which was constructed in Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga under Executive Order (EO) No. 19.

However, Health Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa said the plan for the PHC Clark was expanded and is now expected to feature similar specialty facilities located in the North Triangle in Quezon City.

“It will just be like what we have in the North Triangle of Quezon City, wherein you have all the different specialties, and [this time] it will be in that corridor in Clark. That will cover Central and Northern Luzon cases of heart, lung, kidney, and even cancer,” Herbosa said.

T he facility will initially operate as a general hospital before it develops into a specialty medical hub, he added.

A side from the CMSC, the health chief said the government has already built more specialty medical facilities outside of Metro Manila, including the Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC) Heart, Lung, and Kidney Center, and Davao City’s Southern Philippines Medical Center that also houses specialty services.

Herbosa noted the initiatives are in line with the provisions of the Sin Tax Law.

Many of these places that have been built through the sin tax money. [We] now have eye centers, dermatology centers, cancer centers but it’s not getting the news. But the services are now available to people outside Metro Manila,” he said.

ber of engineers and robust workforce, having a nearly competitive integrated circuit (IC) design engineers and experience in FinFET technology.”

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the DTI defined FinFET technology as a “type of field-effect transistor [(FET] that has a thin vertical fin instead of being completely planar.”

Th e technology’s applications include home computers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, wearables, high-end networks, and automotive, among others.

the competitiveness of the semiconductor and electronics sector.

O n top of this, he said several semiconductor and electronics manufacturing services companies have received government support to help craft their digital transformation road maps.

tion Act to ease restrictions on foreign ownership of certain businesses in the Philippines.”

O n the other hand, the DTI noted, Dutch companies present at the roundtable expressed their “satisfaction with the exciting developments unfolding in the country.”

of the major high-tech firms are located, the DTI said.

A ccording to Pascual, “one of the critical reasons why semiconductor investments are gaining traction is the rapid pace of innovation and the increasing complexity of semiconductor technology.”

A s the world moves towards a “more interconnected and datadriven world,” he said the demand for high-performance and energy-efficient semiconductors continue to soar.

This, Pascual noted, presents a “compelling investment opportunity” for those who understand the longterm potential of the said industry.

A s he encouraged Dutch firms to invest in the Philippines, Pascual highlighted the country’s “vast num-

Further, Pascual told the Dutch firms that the Philippines offers businesses “one-of-a-kind opportunity to reduce costs while maximizing value-add to effectively service worldwide clients.”

“Such benefits are possible because of the Philippines’ vast pool of trained workforce, competitive business environment, strategic market access, and strong government backing,” the trade chief pointed out.

Moreover, Pascual highlighted that the Philippines attracts investors by offering tax and other incentives.

The trade chief also stressed that President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is “committed” to support the advancement of the digital transformation of Philippine-based companies to foster

Pascual emphasized that semiconductors have fast-tracked technical development in all sectors. With this, he said the semiconductor business has a “bright future” as it tries to keep up with the increasing demand of a “more technologically advanced and networked” world.

T he trade chief also shared with the Dutch companies that there currently proposed laws on e-commerce and digital transactions, and the electric power industry, among others.

O n the key reforms, he said, “We have relaxed the restrictions on foreign ownership, providing increased opportunities for international investors. Our Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act [CREATE] offers foreign investors more attractive and rationalized incentives. We have also amended the Public Services Act, Foreign Investments Act, and Retail Trade Liberaliza -

A ccording to DTI, Charles Smit, Chairman of Holland Semiconductors and Van Endhoven of High Tech NL, encouraged the “sustained” engagement and collaboration between the semiconductor and hightech sectors of the two countries.

The Philippines’ trade department, meanwhile, said there will be an upcoming Dutch trade mission to the Philippines in October 2023, led by Business Connect and the Dutch Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (DCCP) in coordination with the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC), which DTI said is contributing to the objective of the two nations.

The roundtable meeting between the two countries was organized by the PTIC in Brussels, Belgium, in partnership with Briskr and Noviotech Campus in order to gather Dutch semiconductor and high-tech sectors in the Nijmegen and Eindhoven areas where most

DTI added that the Noviotech Campus serves as the Health and High-Tech hub in the Netherlands where chip companies work closely. It is home to over 70 companies, providing jobs to over 3,400 people in the high-tech and health sectors.  L ike other Dutch excellence centers, Noviotech follows the “triple-helix” approach where government, business, and academia join hands to drive the sector’s future, said the trade department.  D TI said the meeting was also attended by Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation Inc. (SEIPI) President Danilo C. Lachica who delivered a presentation on the role of semiconductor in automotive, health care, and digital industries, IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) President Jack Madrid who discussed high value strategic services and available opportunities in the Philippines, as well as Department of Energy (DOE) Assistant Secretary Mylene Capongcol who also discussed DOE’s key initiatives toward the use of sustainable energy in the semiconductor sector.

UN special envoy leads training on unlawful death investigation

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

THE Department of Justice (DOJ) and United Nations Joint Program (UNJP) on Technical Cooperation and Capacity Building for Human Rights in the Philippines have started a five-day technical training on the Minnesota Protocol on the investigation of potentially unlawful deaths.

Th is was announced on Tuesday by DOJ spokesman Jose Dominic

Clavano who said that the training is being headed by Dr. Morris TidballBinz, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings.

Tidball-Binz specializes in forensic science, human rights and humanitarian action.

The training is being conducted to further strengthen domestic accountability mechanisms to address human rights violations and abuses leading to increased accountability and justice and redress of victims.

It is a very welcome develop -

ment for our law enforcement agencies as the level of skill of our forensic pathologists are not at par with the international standards,” Clavano said.

“ So we are hoping with the expertise of the team of Dr. TidballBinz, we will be able to reach that international standard and we will be able to deal with cases like this with more competence and with more professionalism,” it added.

A mong the participants in the training are senior level officials

with significant involvement in investigations of potentially unlawful deaths from the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, Commission on Human Rights, and representatives from the civil society organizations.

The Minnesota Protocol on the investigation of potentially unlawful deaths, which was signed in 2016, is today’s golden standard for the investigation and prevention of potentially unlawful deaths.

Senators hit latest China ship ‘incident’ within WPS

MAJORITY and minority senators denounced the latest reported incident of aggression by China naval militia within the West Philippine Sea.

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada promptly deplored initial reports even as “we have yet to receive confirmation” from Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) or the Department of National Defense (DND) regarding the June 30 incident where China Coast Guard vessels allegedly shadowed elements of the PCG.

“ Nonetheless, I am deeply concerned about the reported acts of aggression against the PCG vessels as this violates our sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as endangers the safety and security of our maritime forces,” the lawmaker lamented on Tuesday.

He said “these repeated provocations by Chinese vessels are unac-

ceptable and violate international laws and norms.”

E strada continued: “Our government has the sovereign right to enforce our laws and protect our marine resources within our territorial waters and any interference from foreign entities is a direct affront to our national interests.”

He then urged relevant agencies “to pursue all available legal and diplomatic avenues to address this issue and seek appropriate remedies,” reminding them “diplomatic channels should be utilized to convey our strong condemnation and demand for an immediate halt to these aggressive actions.”

Moreover, the senator stressed “the protection of our national interests and the safety of our PCG personnel are of paramount importance. We must not tolerate acts that

threaten our national security and undermine our sovereignty.”

I n a separate statement, Senator Risa Hontiveros deplored the recent incident involving Chinese Coast Guard pursuing PCG ships.

China is reckless and irresponsible. Her continued attempts to illegally occupy our territories only demonstrate her complete disrespect of international law,” said the deputy minority leader.

Hontiveros reiterated her suggestion last week to elevate the issue to the United Nations, using as anchor the 2016 arbitral ruling that favored Manila in its complaints about Beijing’s “excessive” claims in the South China Sea.

“ This is why it is crucial that the Philippine government raise the West Philippine Sea issue to the UN General Assembly,” she added,

airing hopes that “the Senate can tackle my resolution regarding this as soon as session resumes, as we need the support of the wider international community to stop China’s unbridled aggression.”

Hontiveros added: “If the Chinese authoritarian regime truly wants to be the regional leader, she should act responsibly by deescalating tensions in the region, instead of fanning the flames by engaging in these rash actions outside her territorial sea.”

Clavano said “awareness, effective use and implementation of the Minnesota Protocol is an effective way of ensuring that all cases of potentially unlawful deaths are effectively investigated, including for the prevention of extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions.”

A side from Tidball-Binz, other experts present in the training are  Dr. Stephen Cordner, and Atty. Kingsley Abbott.

The training will end on July 7.

PHL beauty products

Market to hit $4.7B in ‘26

Continued from A20

“ This has witnessed the changes in hairstyle trends, and more inclination toward enhancing physical appearance to get celebrity looks,” the market research firm noted. This, it said, encourages consumers in the Philippines to prefer beauty parlors and hair salon services for getting a desired look.

In terms of distribution channel, the report noted that hypermarket/supermarket was the “prominent” distribution channel in 2018. This may be attributed to Filipino consumers’ preference for scanning beauty and personal care products of different types and brands, with store associates assisting consumers in gathering product knowledge to choose the right product.

PHL has widest gap between genders in STEM-related jobs

Continued from A20

T he drop in representation between graduation and joining the workforce has been stable at around 11 percent from the 2017 graduating batch, but it spiked to 14 percent in 2021, LinkedIn noted.

M eanwhile, on the second trend it highlighted, LinkedIn data showed that in countries where the decline in female representation from graduation to joining the STEM workforce is less significant, the disparity between men and women in STEM jobs tends to be minor.

“ The average drop off in female representation between graduation and entering the STEM workforce in Singapore [8 percent], India [4 percent], and Italy

[10 percent] are smaller, which results in negligible gender gaps in STEM jobs at 15 percent, 5 percent, and 12 percent respectively,” LinkedIn said.

M eanwhile, LinkedIn data showed countries like the Philippines, at 14 percent; Australia, at 17 percent; and the US at 20 percent showed “higher dips” in female representation post-graduation, resulting in wider gender gaps in STEM employment at 22 percent, 21 percent, and 22 percent, respectively.

W ith this, the network platform said the Global Gender Gap Report and LinkedIn’s data showed that “systematic change is needed to make workplaces more fair and equal to future-proof women’s careers and be more resilient to

labor market uncertainty.”

A s STEM roles are among the “fastestgrowing and most in-demand,” LinkedIn said professionals will likely be more resilient to economic pressures.

“ With the increasing importance of STEM to the global economy, it is imperative to take steps toward leveling the playing field for women to ensure they will benefit from industry advancements,” it added.

F or his part, Atul Harkisanka, Head of Emerging Markets and Country Manager for the Philippines of LinkedIn, said that while action is already being taken to close the gender gap, he said there is a need to “go further and faster to level the playing field.”

“ Enabling more women to enter and advance in rapidly growing sectors such as

Butch Fernandez

At the same time, she said, “while pursuing political and diplomatic means to resolve this dispute, our defense establishment should simultaneously come up with alternate means to resupply our troops in Ayungin Shoal in order to secure them from harassment and interdiction by the Chinese.”

STEM will help make them more resilient to external economic shocks,” Harkisanka said.

L inkedIn data showed that women tend to stay in STEM if they have role models to look up to. “Organizations can create mentoring and training programs for women in STEM, where they can support women to stay in the workforce and further their careers, but also provide invaluable guidance and support networks, facilitating a path towards leadership roles through the influence of inspiring role models. Inclusive hiring practices, visibility of women in top jobs, and upskilling and career growth opportunities for women, particularly in high-growth and high-earning sectors like STEM, will help correct this worrying trend, but we need to act now,” he added.

However, the report said the trend is pointing to the online stores as the new preferred distribution channel. Online platforms, it said, “are becoming a popular medium for the purchase of beauty and personal care products among the Filipinos.” The study showed that the online stores segment is expected to register “significant growth rate.”

In particular, the preference for online stores can be traced to “time-saving features and the facility of home delivery provided by these channels.”

Online stores segment is expected to grow at a highest CAGR of 6.4 percent during the forecast period,” the report said.

According to the market research firm, the key players profiled in the Philippines beauty and personal care market analysis include L’Oréal, Shiseido Company Limited, Coty Inc., Estée Lauder Companies Inc., Unilever, Beiersdorf AG, Olay, Kao Corporation, Johnson & Johnson services Inc. and LVMH. T he report emphasized that the players in the market have adopted new product launches as their key developmental strategy to expand their market share, increase profitability, and remain competitive in the market.

MANILA is encouraging Dutch high-tech and semiconductor firms to set up shop in the Philippines, according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

med center to break ground in Clark

Xi’s metal curbs risk backfiring as G-7 seeks China alternative

By Bloomberg News

CHINA’S decision to control the export of two key metals showed it has some power to retaliate against moves by the US, Japan and Europe to cut Beijing off from advanced technology. But it also risks backfiring.

The new export licensing system unveiled late Monday highlighted China’s dominant position in global production of gallium and germanium, which are used to make chips, electric cars and telecommunications equipment. The announcement—just days before US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visits Beijing—appears timed to give China leverage as it pushes the White House to remove export controls that risk hobbling the nation’s development.

Yet the measure is a double-edged sword, and may simply accelerate efforts by those countries to reduce dependence on the world’s second-biggest economy. If Beijing did at some point restrict shipments and cut supply to other nations, prices would likely rise and make it more economical to boost output in Japan, Canada, the US or elsewhere.

“It ’s part of the tit-for-tat the PRC is playing with the US and its allies,” said Ja Ian Chong, an associate professor of political science at the National University of Singapore. He was referring to the country’s formal name, the People’s Republic of China. “There may be some initial shock to the markets and firms but over time, should these restrictions persist, markets and firms adjust.”

The move underscores the dilemma facing President Xi Jinping as he seeks to counter US efforts to prevent China from accessing the chips needed to dominate technology like artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Any reciprocal actions only give the US and Europe more ammunition to push for derisking, something Xi’s government has sought to counter.

China’s previous efforts to restrict the sale of rare earths have only diminished its market share as other countries work to secure supplies of the metals that aren’t controlled by China.

China first introduced an export licensing system for rare earths in the 1990s while also gradually ramping up taxes, squeezing companies in Japan and elsewhere that relied on Chinese supplies. But the big shift happened in 2010, when Beijing temporary halted exports to Japan in reaction to a

collision between a Chinese fishing boat and the Japanese coast guard near islands claimed by both countries.

T hat incident set off a race to find alternative supplies from China. Output in Australia and the US subsequently increased, pushing China’s share of mining output down to 70 percent of global supply in 2022 from a peak of 98 percent in 2010, according to the US Geological Survey.

China c urrently accounts for about 94 percent of the world’s gallium production, according to the UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre. Still, the metals aren’t particularly rare or difficult to find, though China’s kept them cheap and they can be relatively high-cost to extract.

“Imposing export restrictions risks reducing market dominance,” researchers from Eurasia Group including Anna Ashton wrote in a note. “If implemented as is, China’s new export mineral restrictions could offer fresh impetus for foreign manufacturers to shift production out of China, accelerating the trend of supply chain diversification.”

China said the new licensing system for exports of gallium and germanium, along with their chemical compounds, was aimed at protecting national security—the same justification given by the US and it allies for their export controls.

But China arguably has more to lose than the US, particularly as its mounting economic challenges raise questions about whether it will ever take over as the world’s biggest economy.

B eijing’s most effective tool to sanction others is to cut off access to its huge market, or limit exports of strategically important goods. But this further drives the decoupling from China that Beijing wants to avoid, as it would undermine its stated goals of ensuring the nation is dominant in new technologies and essential in global supply chains.

At the moment, however, the growing ideological struggle between the US and China is taking precedence over globalization, Morris Chang, the founder of chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., said at an industry event in Taipei on Tuesday.

“R ight now national security and technology and economic leadership take priority over globalization,” he said. “The relations between US and China are more about competition than collaboration.” With assistance from Rebecca Choong Wilkins and Betty Hou/Bloomberg

Saudi, Russia cut oil supply again in bid to boost prices

The decision gave a slight boost to oil prices Monday and comes after the Saudis announced a large cut in output for July at the latest meeting of the Opec+ coalition of oil producers—raising concerns that gasoline prices for US drivers could start ticking up.

The Saudi Energy Ministry said it would extend July’s cut of 1 million barrels per day through August to support “the stability and balance of oil markets.” That will keep the Gulf nation’s output at 9 million barrels per day.

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said his country will cut production by an additional 500,000 barrels a day in August, according to Russian news reports.

The voluntary reductions come on top of earlier cuts that the Opec oil cartel, led by Saudi Arabia, and allied producers, led by

Russia, agreed to extend through next year.

But they have given little lasting boost to oil prices, helping US drivers fill their tanks more affordably during the busy summer travel season and providing consumers worldwide some relief from inflation.

The average price for a gallon of gas in the US is $3.53, according to car club AAA, down $1.28 per gallon from last year.

Benchmark US crude picked up 77 cents Monday to $71.41 a barrel, while international standard Brent crude gained 70 cents to $76.11. Both later erased some of those gains.

US crude has been depressed for some time and rose above $70 per barrel for the first time in five weeks Friday.

That the Saudis felt another cut was necessary underlines the

uncertain outlook for fuel demand in the months ahead even as travel picks up. The US, for example, saw an all-time high in airline passengers on Friday during the Fourth of July weekend.

But there are concerns about economic weakness in the US and Europe, while China’s rebound from Covid-19 restrictions has not been as strong as many had hoped.

The Saudis need sustained high oil revenue to fund ambitious development projects aimed at diversifying the country’s economy, while Russia is looking to pad its profits to pay

for its war against Ukraine.

Western sanctions mean Moscow is forced to sell its oil at a discount to countries like China and India. Its estimated export revenue fell by $1.4 billion to $13.3 billion in May, down 36 percent from a year ago, the International Energy Agency said in a report last month.

Combined with earlier cuts, Russia’s output in August will be reduced by 1 million barrels a day. But Rystad Energy said in June that Moscow only dropped production by 400,000 barrels in May, instead of the promised half-million.

US to curb China’s access to cloud services like Amazon, WSJ says

By Edwin Chan

THE US is preparing to curtail Chinese companies’ access to cloud computing services including Amazon.com Inc.’s and Microsoft Corp.’s, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Washington is considering requiring cloud providers to seek government permission before serving Chinese firms that employ such platforms to train AI

models, the Journal reported. Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services are the global leaders in the business of providing Internet computing to enterprises, and compete in China with the likes of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. through local, stateaffiliated datacenter partners.

T he Biden administration plans to tighten export controls announced in October to restrict sales of some artificial intelligence chips to China, seeking to contain its rival’s development of a

technology considered key to the country’s geopolitical and economic future. Part of the measures under discussion included restricting cloud access for Chinese AI developers, which was first reported by the Journal last week. Under the br oader Commerce Department proposal, expected in July, the US would revise export controls to make it harder to sell some chips to China without a license. The move is aimed in part at Nvidia Corp.’s A800 chip, which

the US-based company designed after the earlier controls were announced. The product’s configuration comes just within those limits.

The US and China are escalating their technological conflict. On Monday, Beijing slapped controls on the export of metals critical to the chip, EV and defense industries, showing it has some power to retaliate against moves by the US, Japan and Europe to cut Beijing off from advanced technology. Bloomberg News

UN nuclear chief to give final report on release of treated radioactive water

By Mari Yamaguchi Associated Press

TOKYO—The head of the UN nuclear agency is in Japan to meet with government leaders Tuesday and to see final preparations for the release of treated radioactive wastewater into the sea from the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant, on a visit Japan hopes will give credibility to the contentious plan.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Mariano Grossi will meet with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida later Tuesday to submit IAEA’s final report on the water release. All of IAEA’s interim evaluations have been positive and the final report is expected to say that the water sampling, testing, and monitoring plans involved in the release are adequate and fulfill international requirements.

The treated radioactive water, stored in about 1,000 tanks that are nearing their 1.37 million ton capacity, must be removed to prevent accidental leaks and to make room for the plant’s decommissioning.

Japanese regulators finished their final safety inspection of the equipment last Friday and the plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings is expected

to receive a permit for discharging the water in about a week. It could do so anytime afterward, though the start date is still undecided amid concerns and protests.

South Korea, China, and some Pacific Island nations oppose the water release because of safety concerns and political reasons.

Local fishing groups are worried their reputation will be damaged even if their catch is uncontami -

nated, and others like local water and beach businesses and tourism outfits are concerned.

Japan has sought support from the IAEA to gain credibility for the plan and assurances that its safety measures meet international standards. The IAEA has made several trips to Japan since early 2022 but acknowledges it can’t make decisions for the Japanese government, including

stopping the wastewater release.

Grossi on Tuesday will also meet with heads of Japanese ministries and nuclear agency relevant to the water release. He later will visit the Fukushima plant, which was damaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011, during his four-day visit.

To ease concerns overseas, Grossi is expected to visit South Korea, New Zealand and the Cook Islands after his visit to Japan.

Japan’s government and TEPCO say the treated but still slightly radioactive water will be diluted to levels safer than international standards and will be released gradually into the ocean over decades, making it harmless to people and marine life.

Some scientists say the impact of long-term, low-dose exposure to radionuclides is unknown. Others say the release plan is safe, but call for more transparency in sampling and monitoring of the release.

The government says questionable documents have been circulated, including one alleging that Japan pressured the IAEA to remove negative information from its final report.

Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and other officials have denied them.

LONDON—Saudi Arabia and Russia are extending cuts to the amount of oil they pump to the world in a bid to prop up prices, showing how two of the world’s largest oil producers are scrambling to boost income from the fossil fuel even as demand has weakened with the economy.

A PHOTOGRAPHER takes pictures of the Khurais oil field during a tour for journalists, 150 kilometers east-northeast of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2021. Saudi Arabia and Russia are extending cuts to the amount of oil they pump to the world to

INTERNATIONAL Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Mariano Grossi shakes hands with Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi before their meeting at the Iikura guesthouse in Tokyo on Tuesday, July 4, 2023. The head of the UN nuclear agency is in Japan to meet with government leaders Tuesday and to see final preparations for the release of treated radioactive wastewater into the sea from the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant, on a visit Japan hopes will give credibility to the contentious plan. NOZOMU ENDO/KYODO NEWS VIA AP

20 KODO (PHILIPPINES) INC.

Bldg. 1, Panorama Compound 5, Blk 3, Lot 5, Laguna Technopark Annex, Poblacion, City of Biñan, Laguna

21 LITTLE V MOBILE TECH INC.

Unit-Lower Basement, Andenson Building 3, National Road, Parian, City of Calamba, Laguna

22 MATSUDA SANGYO (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION

Lot 1, Blk. 4, People’s Technology Complex, Maduya, Carmona, Cavite

KOTANI, AKIKAZU Treasurer

Brief Job Description:

Manage and support function of company’s financial and sales operation

WU, YUBING Chinese Assistant Manager

Brief Job Description:

Maintaining overall Management style that follows company best practices

NIIDE, KAZUKI Assistant Manager - Sales Control Section

Brief Job Description: Establish and maintains good relationship with existing and prospective clients, oversee the day- to-day warehouse operation and collection

Basic Qualification: Must have experience relative to the job

Salary Range: Php60,000Php89,999

Basic Qualification: Degree in Business Management or Related field, 1-2 years of experience

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: With background on precious metal industry, can communicate in English and Japanese language

Salary Range: Php90,000Php149,999

23 METRO DRUG, INC.

Sta. Rosa Estate, Macabling, City of Santa Rosa, Laguna

24 MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY OPERA-

COHRS, KEVIN Commercial Engagement & Transformation Manager

Brief Job Description: Responsible for the SP2027 Roll-out in the Philippines and work on customer and client -oriented projects to improve MDI’S service levels

Basic Qualification: Must have master’s degree from a business school

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

The World Russia says it foiled drone attack on Moscow by Kyiv

By The Associated Press

RUSSIAN air defenses on Tuesday foiled a Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow that prompted authorities to briefly close one of the city’s international airports, officials said, as a Western analysis said Russia has managed to slow Kyiv’s recently launched counteroffensive.

equipment and personnel and claimed that the last few days of fighting have been particularly “fruitful.”

He provided no evidence for his claim and it was not possible to independently verify it.

The Ukrainians are up against minefields, anti-tank ditches and other obstacles, as well as layered defensive lines reportedly up to 20 kilometers (12 miles) deep in some places as they attempt to dislodge Russian occupiers.

The UK Defense Ministry said Tuesday the Kremlin’s forces have “refined (their) tactics aimed at slowing Ukrainian armored counteroffensive operations in southern Ukraine.”

Moscow has placed emphasis on using anti-tank mines to slow the onslaught, the assessment said, leaving the attackers at the mercy of Russian drones, helicopters and artillery.

“Although Russia has achieved some success with this approach in the early stages of Ukraine’s counteroffensive, its forces continue to suffer from key weaknesses, especially overstretched units and a shortage of artillery munitions,” the assessment said.

The drone attack, which follows previous similar raids on the Russian capital, was the first known assault on the Russian capital since an abortive mutiny launched 11 days ago by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. His Wagner troops marched on Moscow in the biggest—though short-lived— challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin in more than two decades of his rule.

Authorities in Ukraine, which generally avoid commenting on attacks on Russian soil, didn’t say whether it launched the drone raid.

The Russian Defense Ministry said four of the five drones were downed by air defenses on the outskirts of Moscow and the fifth was jammed by electronic warfare means and forced down. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobya -

nin said there were no casualties or damage.

The drone attack prompted authorities to temporarily restrict flights at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport and divert flights to two other Moscow main airports. Vnukovo is about 15 kilometers (9 miles) southwest of Moscow.

In May, two daring drone attacks jolted the Russian capital, in what appeared to be Kyiv’s deepest strikes into Russia. The raid came as Ukrainian forces have continued probing Russian defenses in the south and the east of their country in the initial stages of a counteroffensive.

Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, charged that the military was currently focusing on destroying Russian

Western analysts say the counteroffensive, even if it prospers, won’t end the war that started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia, meanwhile, has continued its missile and drone barrage deep behind the front line.

Oleksandr Lysenko, mayor of the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine, said that three people were killed and 21 others were injured in a Russian drone strike Monday that damaged two apartment buildings. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack also damaged the regional headquarters of the Security Service of Ukraine, the country’s main intelligence agency. He argued that the country needs more air defense systems to help fend off Russian raids.

Gunman opens fire at random on Philadelphia streets, killing 4

PHILADELPHIA—A gun -

man wearing a bulletproof vest opened fire on the streets of Philadelphia on Monday night, seemingly at a random, killing four people and wounding two boys in the latest outbreak of gun violence in the United States, police said.

The shootings took place over several city blocks in the southwestern neighborhood of Kingsessing. Responding officers chased the suspect as he continued to fire, and he was arrested in an alley after surrendering, Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said at a news conference.

No connection was immediately known between the victims and the shooter.

“At this point all we know is that this person decided to leave their home and target individuals,” Outlaw said.

He had a bulletproof vest, an “AR-type rifle,” multiple magazines, a handgun and a police scanner, she said.

Officers were flagged down at about 8:30 p.m., and multiple calls of shots fired came in from Kingsessing. Police found some gunshot victims, and as they were attending to them, they heard more gunfire, Outlaw said.

The suspected shooter was identified as a 40-year-old man. A second person was also taken into

custody that may have returned fire at the suspect, but police did not know whether there was a connection between the two people, Outlaw said.

The chief said dozens of shell casings were found across an eightblock area.

“You can see there are several scenes out here,” Outlaw said.

“We’re canvassing the area to get as much as we can, to identify witnesses, to identify where cameras are located and to do everything to figure out the why,” Outlaw said.

Three of the dead were 20 to 59 years old, while the fourth, who had not yet been identified, was estimated to be between 16 and 21. All were male. The two hospitalized victims are boys, ages 2 and 13. They were in stable condition, Outlaw said.

The shooting occurred a day after gunfire erupted at a holiday

weekend block party in Baltimore, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the southwest, killing two people and wounding 28 others. The wounded in that shooting ranged in age from 13 to 32, with more than half minors, according to officials.

The Philadelphia violence is the country’s 29th mass killing in 2023, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University, the highest on record by this time in the year.

The numbers people killed in such events is also the highest by this time in the year. There have been more than 550 mass killings since 2006, according to the database, in which at least 2,900 people have died and at least 2,000 people have been injured. AP

A UKRAINIAN soldier prepares a drone on the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine on Saturday, July 1, 2023. AP/LIBKOS

PHILADELPHIA police stand at the intersection of 56th Street and Kingsessing Avenue after multiple people were shot in Southwest Philadelphia, late Monday, July 3, 2023. YONG KIM/THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER VIA AP

*Date Generated: Jul 4, 2023

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.

The World

Wednesday,

Israel launches biggest military operation in West Bank in years; 8 Palestinians dead

By Nasser Nasser & Josef Federman The Associated Press

JENIN,West Bank—Israel on Monday launched its most intense military operation in the occupied West Bank in nearly two decades, carrying out a series of drone strikes and sending hundreds of troops on an open-ended mission into a militant stronghold. At least eight Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded.

The crackdown was reminiscent of Israeli military tactics during the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s and came at a time of growing domestic pressure for a tough response to recent attacks on Israeli settlers, including a shooting last month that killed four Israelis. The operation took place in the Jenin refugee camp—an area in the northern West Bank that has long been known as a bastion of militants. The fighting, which began shortly after midnight, continued past nightfall.

Throughout the day, black smoke rose from the crowded streets of the camp, a densely populated neighborhood that is home to some 14,000 people, while exchanges of fire rang out and drones could be heard buzzing overhead. Military bulldozers plowed through narrow streets, damaging buildings as they cleared the way for Israeli forces.

“There are bulldozers destroying the streets, snipers are inside and on roofs of houses, drones are hitting houses and Palestinians are killed in the streets,” said Jamal Huweil, a political activist in the camp, predicting the operation would fail. The military blocked traffic in and out of Jenin, and the city resembled a ghost town. Streets were empty as armored Israeli vehicles patrolled.

Piles of burning tires and garbage containers littered traffic circles. Power and water supplies were knocked out in the camp.

Palestinian youths occasionally threw stones at army vehicles before darting away.

With the sound of shooting and explosions in the background, at least 10 ambulances rushed to the overwhelmed local hospital as relatives checked to see if loved ones were inside. One ambulance arrived with a

bullet hole in front.

The Palestinians and three Arab countries with normalized ties with Israel – Jordan, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates – condemned the incursion, as did the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Late Monday, the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank held an emergency meeting and said it was halting its already limited contacts with Israel. Leaders said a freeze on security coordination would remain in place, and they vowed to step up activity against Israel in the United Nations and international bodies. They also planned to minimize contacts with the United States.

Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was unswayed.

“In recent months, Jenin has turned into a safe haven for terrorism. We are putting an end to this,” he said. He said the troops were destroying militant command centers and confiscating weapons supplies and factories. He claimed the operation was taking place with “minimum harm to civilians.”

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the chief military spokesman, said there were a total of about 10 airstrikes—most of them aimed at keeping gunmen away from ground troops. He accused militants of operating next to a United Nations building and storing weapons inside of a mosque.

He said Israel launched the operation because some 50 attacks over the past year had emanated from Jenin.

Neither the prime minister nor Hagari gave any indication when the operation would end.

UN Mideast envoy Tor Wennesland

warned that the escalation in the West Bank was “very dangerous.”

Asked about the Israeli drone attacks on residential areas, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said: “Attacks on heavily populated areas are violations of international humanitarian law.”

Lynn Hastings, the UN humanitarian coordinator in the Palestinian areas, said on Twitter that she was “alarmed by scale of Israeli forces operation” and noted the airstrikes in a densely populated refugee camp. She said the UN was mobilizing humanitarian aid.

UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said many camp residents were in need of food, drinking water and milk powder.

Late Monday, hundreds of Palestinians left the camp to flee the fighting. The Israeli army said it was allowing people who wanted to leave to do so. The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service said as many as 3,000 people had left by midnight, and they expected the exodus to continue.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said at least eight Palestinians were killed and 50 people were wounded—10 critically. The dead were identified as young men and Palestinian youths, including a 16-year-old boy and two 17-year-olds.

Separately, a 21-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli fire near the West Bank city of Ramallah, the ministry said.

The Jenin camp and an adjacent town of the same name have been a flashpoint since Israeli-Palestinian violence began escalating in spring 2022.

UK had hottest June since records began in 1884, with climate change a factor

By Sylvia Hui

The Associated Press

LONDON—The UK sweltered through its hottest June since records began in 1884, the country’s weather agency said Monday, adding that human-induced climate change means such unusual heat will become more frequent in the next few decades.

The average temperature for June in the UK hit 15.8 degrees Celsius (60.4 Fahrenheit)— 0.9C hotter than the joint previous record of 14.9 C in 1940 and 1976, according to the Met Office’s provisional figures. Meteorologists say that thanks to climate change, the chance of beating the previous joint record has at least doubled since the 1940s.

“Alongside natural variability, the background warming of the Earth’s atmosphere due to human-induced climate change has driven up the possibility of reaching record high temperatures,” said Paul Davies at the Met Office. “By the 2050s, the chance of surpassing the previous record of 14.9 C could be as high as around 50 percent, or every other year.”

weather agency said Monday, July 3, 2023, adding that human-induced climate change means such unusual heat will become more frequent in the next few decades. The average temperature for June in the UK hit 15.8 degrees Celcius (Fahrenheit)—0.9C hotter than the joint previous record of 14.9C in 1940 and 1976, according to the Met Office’s provisional figures. AP/KIRSTY WIGGLESWORTH

Large areas of the country, from the Orkney Islands in northern Scotland to Cornwall in southwest England, set regional high temperature records last

month, with many experiencing mean temperatures that were 2.5 C more than average.

The highest temperature recorded last

Israel says it has stepped up activity because the Palestinian Authority is too weak to maintain quiet. It also accuses its archenemy Iran of funding militant groups involved in the fighting.

Palestinians reject such claims, saying the violence is a natural response to 56 years of occupation, including stepped-up settlement construction by Israel’s government and increased violence by Jewish settlers.

Jenin was a major friction point in the last Palestinian uprising.

In 2002, days after a Palestinian suicide bombing during a large Passover gathering killed 30 people, Israeli troops launched a massive operation in the camp. For eight days and nights, they fought militants street by street, using armored bulldozers to destroy rows of homes, many of which had been booby-trapped.

Monday’s raid came two weeks after another violent confrontation in Jenin that included the shooting death of a 15-year-old girl and after the military said a pair of rockets were fired from the area last week.

But there also may have been political considerations at play. Leading members of Netanyahu’s far-right government, which is dominated by West Bank settlers and their supporters, have called for a broader military response to the ongoing violence in the area, particularly after the June 20 shooting that killed four people in the Jewish settlement of Eli.

“Proud of our heroes on all fronts and this morning especially of our soldiers operating in Jenin,” tweeted National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, an ultranationalist

month was 32.2 C—much higher than typical maximum temperatures, which hover around the low 20s for this time of year, the weather agency said.

Fisheries experts say that the hot weather has contributed to the deaths of thousands of fish in canals and rivers. Thunderstorms, pollution and other factors also contributed to the deaths, the Environment Agency said.

“Environment Agency fisheries teams have been responding round the clock to numerous reports of dead or distressed fish across the country,” said the agency’s fisheries manager, Graeme Storey. Met Office scientists have said that 2022 was the hottest year on record for the UK, with an annual mean temperature of 10.03 C, or 0.89 C higher than the 19912020 average. Other European countries including France and Spain saw similar record highs last year.

Since records began over a century ago, all of the 10 annual highest temperature records in the UK have occurred from 2003, the scientists added, clearly demonstrating how global warming has affected British climate.

Taiwan presidential bet vows to maintain peace with China

By Cindy Wang & Betty Hou

ATOP contender to be Taiwan’s next leader has pledged to keep the peace with China and roll back an extension of mandatory military service that has been one of President Tsai Ingwen’s main achievements since taking office seven years ago.

“I will ensure stability and peace across the strait before I cut military service back to four months,” said Hou Yu-ih, the opposition Kuomintang’s candidate for the election early next year.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party was forced to extend the military service to one-year because it’s made cross-strait relations very tense and

dangerous, the current mayor of New Taipei City added in an interview run by local broadcaster TVBS late Monday.

Tsai’s government announced late last year it was extending compulsory military service to one year from four months, signaling to Washington and Beijing it is serious about defending itself. China has pledged to someday bring Taiwan under its control, by force if necessary. The Biden administration has stepped up weapons sales to Taiwan so that it can defend itself.

Hou said on Monday for the first time that he accepted the tacit understanding between China and the KMT known as the “1992 consensus” that there is just “one China.” He added that he rejects the “one country, two systems” formulation

that Beijing has said could be used as its model for running Taiwan.

Beijing has refused to hold talks with Tsai since she took office because she doesn’t accept that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to “one China.”

That was the position of her predecessor, Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT, who saw ties flourish with Beijing, including an unprecedented meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2015.

He also pledged to delay phasing out three nuclear plants and restart a fourth one to ensure stable electricity supplies. Vice President Lai Ching-te, the ruling DPP’s presidential candidate, said in May that the government was considering keeping nuclear power

plants on standby in case of emergencies, signaling a loosening of policy to phase out the energy source.

The island has been seeking to cut coal consumption, putting pressure on the government to build out gas-powered generation and offshore wind to avoid power shortages. A r ecent poll indicates that the race to win the election in January 2024 remains close. The DPP’s Lai was picked by 36.5 percent of respondents in a survey released on June 20 by Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation, a non-profit, independent think tank. Taiwan People’s Party candidate Ko Wen-je scored 29.1 percent and the KMT’s Hou got 20.4 percent. Bloomberg News

who recently called for Israel to kill thousands of militants if necessary.

“Praying for their success.”

Israeli military experts said they expected the operation to wrap up within a day or two. Prolonged violence and heavy casualties would risk attracting increased international criticism and drawing militants from the Gaza Strip or even Lebanon into the fighting.

Islamic Jihad, a militant group with a large presence in Jenin, threatened to launch attacks from its Gaza Strip stronghold if the fighting dragged on.

Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group also made threats, saying the Palestinians have “many alternatives and means that will make the enemy regret its acts.” Hezbollah fought a month-long war against Israel in 2006.

More than 130 Palestinians have been killed this year in the West Bank, part of more than a yearlong spike in violence that has seen some of the worst bloodshed in the area in nearly two decades.

Israel says the raids are meant to beat back militants. The Palestinians say such violence is inevitable in the absence of any political process with Israel and increased West Bank settlement construction and violence by extremist settlers.

Israel says most of those killed have been militants, but stone-throwing youths protesting the incursions and people uninvolved in confrontations have also died.

Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek those territories for their hopedfor independent state.

South Korea cuts growth projection on chips slump; sees weaker prices

By Hooyeon Kim

SOUTH KOREA trimmed its growth outlook for 2023, citing uncertainties over momentum in China and the US, the world’s two largest economies.

The finance ministry now sees gross domestic product expanding 1.4 percent this year, down from a 1.6 percent forecast in December, according to its mid-year outlook Tuesday. The economy is projected to rebound next year with growth of 2.4 percent, the statement indicated.

Government analysts also lowered their inflation outlook. They forecast the pace of consumer price gains will ease to 3.3 percent by the end of 2023, from an earlier estimate of 3.5 percent, before softening further into next year.

Separate data Tuesday showed inflation cooled in June for a fifth straight month to 2.7 percent, advancing at the slowest pace since September 2021, according to the statistics office. The Bank of Korea warned, though, that inflation is set to heat up again this year.

The ministry’s lower growth projections come after a sluggish first half when export demand dropped amid a weaker-thanexpected recovery in China’s economy and a global slowdown.

Government analysts see South Korea rebounding in 2024, led by an improvement in world demand for chips and a sustained pace of private consumption.

The growth projections are largely in line with the BOK’s view, but the finance ministry is more optimistic that inflation will cool, as global commodity prices fall and inflationary pressure eases in the service sector.

While South Korea posted its first trade surplus in 16 months in June, data showed chip exports extended a decline along with shipments to China, Korea’s biggest trading partner.

To support economic momentum, the government said it will prepare measures to back local exporters, with a goal for them to secure $35 billion in overseas orders this year. The ministry also said it will refrain from raising utility fees this year as part of efforts to ease the costof-living crunch for consumers.

The ministry reiterated its plan to reduce bond issuance by about 30 trillion won ($23 billion) in the second half, and plans to issue up to $2.7 billion in foreign exchange stabilization bonds.

Additional forecasts from the statement:

 Private consumption is set for a gradual recovery this year, rising 2.5 percent, aided by an increase in outdoor activities, robust jobs growth and improvement in consumer sentiment.

 Facilities investment is seen falling 1.2 percent this year due to the chip industry slowdown, before rebounding in 2024.

 Construction investment forecast to rise 0.6 percent this year, before slowing to 0.2 percent in 2024.

 The labor market will remain tight, with expansion of face-toface service jobs, and in health and welfare industries.

A WOMAN sunbathes near the River Thames in front of a view of the City of London, on June 17, 2022. The UK sweltered through its hottest June since records began in 1884, the country’s

Modi uses speech to Russia-China-led group to swipe at Pakistan, no mention of Ukraine

By Ashok Sharma & Krutika Pathi The Associated Press

In his opening speech to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the group should not hesitate to criticize countries that are “using terrorism as an instrument of its state policy.”

“Terrorism poses a threat to regional peace and we need to take up a joint fight,” Modi said without naming Pakistan. India regularly accuses Pakistan of training and arming insurgent groups, a charge Islamabad denies.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping also addressed the daylong

By Paul Wiseman, Mark Stevenson &Tom Krisher

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON—To President Donald Trump, America’s trade relationship with Mexico was intolerable. He seethed over the US trade deficit and the shuttered factories in America’s heartland.

“No longer,’’ he vowed six years ago, “are we going to allow other countries to break the rules, to steal our jobs and drain our wealth.”

So Trump pressured Mexico and Canada to replace their mutual pact with one more to his liking. After a couple of years of negotiations, he got what he wanted. Out was the North American Free Trade Agreement. In was the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

The USMCA, which Trump hailed as “the fairest, most balanced and beneficial trade agreement we have ever signed,” will reach its third anniversary Saturday. The trade pact hasn’t proved to be the economic bonanza Trump boasted it would be. It couldn’t have been, given that trade makes up less than a third of America’s $26 trillion economy.

Yet while the deal’s overall impact has been slight, it has nevertheless been helping workers on the ground. It’s just that the beneficiaries have so far been mostly in Mexico. Novel provisions of the pact have enhanced the ability of long-exploited Mexican workers to form unions and secure better wages and working conditions.

Trade officials and experts predict, though, that the benefits will also flow, in time, to US workers, who no longer must compete with severely underpaid Mexican laborers without real bargaining power.

“US workers win when workers in other countries have the same rights,’’ said Cathy Feingold, director of the AFL-CIO’s international department.

Thea Lee, a deputy undersecretary at the US Labor Department, suggested that the pact and Mexico’s reforms haven’t been around long enough to yield measurable help to American workers yet. “We’re going to see the positive results first for Mexican workers because Mexico is undergoing a massive, comprehensive, ambitious labor market reform,” she said.

In some ways, the USMCA as a whole has fallen short of Trump’s promises.

Take the trade deficit with Mexico.

Despite Trump’s insistence that the USMCA would pull more manufacturing back to

virtual summit.

Modi also warned of global challenges to food, fuel and fertilizer supplies. Trade in all three has been disrupted by Russia’s 14-month-long war in Ukraine, but SCO members have largely avoided direct mention of the war.

Putin is participating in his first multilateral summit since an armed rebellion rattled Russia, at one of the few international grouping in which he enjoys warm relations with most members.

For Putin, the summit presents an opportunity to show he is in control after a short-lived insur -

rection by Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.

In his speech, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Sharif denounced terrorism and defended his country’s role in the fight against it.

“While the sacrifices made by Pakistan in fighting terrorism are without parallel, this scourge continues to plague our region

signatures and authentication; and protects companies from having to disclose in-house source codes and algorithms.

and remains a serious obstacle to the maintenance of peace and stability,” Sharif said. Sharif also hailed the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor, a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, saying it could be a “game-changer for connectivity, stability, peace and prosperity in the region.”

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a security grouping founded by Russia and China to counter Western alliances from East Asia to the Indian Ocean. The group includes the four Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, all former Soviet republics in which Russian influence runs deep. Pakistan became a member in 2017, and Iran, which is set to join on Tuesday. Belarus is also in line for membership.

The United Nations SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres said in a message to the summit that it was taking place amid growing global challenges and risks. “But at a time when the world needs to work together, divisions are growing, and geopolitical tensions are rising.”

“These differences have been aggravated by several factors: diverging approaches to global crises; contrasting views on nontraditional security threats; and, of course, the consequences of Covid-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” he said.

This year’s event is hosted by India, which became a member in 2017. It’s the latest venue for Prime Minister Narendra Modi

to showcase the country’s growing global clout.

Days after his return from a highprofile visit to the United States, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday had a telephone conversation with Putin about the recent developments in Russia, India’s External Affairs Ministry said. Modi reiterated calls for dialogue and diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine, ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said.

India has avoided condemning Russia for its war on Ukraine and abstained from voting on U.N. resolutions against Russia. SCO meeting usually focus on issues like security and economic cooperation, fighting terrorism and drug trafficking, tackling climate change and the situation in Afghanistan.

When SCO foreign ministers met in India last month, Russia’s war in Ukraine barely featured in their public remarks but the fallout for developing countries on food and fuel security remains a concern for members of the group, analysts say.

The Associated Press Writer Munir Ahmed contributed from Islamabad, Pakistan.

the United States, the gap between what America sells and what it buys from Mexico keeps widening: It has surged from the $64 billion gap in 2016 that so irritated Trump to a record $139 billion last year.

The former president also predicted that exports of US auto parts to Mexico would rise by $23 billion. They have increased since 2020—but only by about $8 billion.

“I don’t expect that we’re ever going to be able to say that (the USMCA) accomplished very much,’’ said Alan Dierdorff, a professor emeritus of economics and public policy at the University of Michigan. “I don’t think it hurt much. But I don’t think it helped much.’’

Trump said the pact would create 76,000 auto industry jobs. Since January 2020, vehicle and parts manufacturers have actually added nearly 90,000 jobs. And North American commerce has flourished.

America’s trade with Canada and Mexico— exports plus imports—reached a record $1.78 trillion last year. That was up 27 percent from 2019 and was above a 20 percent gain in trade with China over the same period.

But it’s hard to tease out which economic gains can be credited to the USMCA and which happened for a variety of unrelated reasons.

That is especially true in light of the unusual economic tumult of the past three years: A devastating pandemic, followed by severe labor shortages and supply chain backlogs and a resurgence of rampant inflation.

Also complicating any effort to calculate the USMCA’s impact is President Joe Biden’s own aggressive efforts to rejuvenate American industry with trillions of dollars in infrastructure spending and subsidies.

For all of Trump’s bombast, the USMCA actually left in place much of the pact it replaced. NAFTA erased most of the import taxes that the United States, Mexico and Canada imposed on each other’s goods. It created a duty-free regional bloc meant to compete with the European Union and China. That structure remains mostly in place.

“It’s still pretty much the same as NAFTA,” Dierdorff said.

Still, some substantive changes have occurred. When NAFTA took effect in 1994, for instance, the Internet, e-commerce and smartphones weren’t part of everyday business. The new pact updated North American trade rules for the digital age.

The USMCA, for instance, bars the United States, Mexico and Canada from hitting each other with import taxes on music, software, games and other products sold electronically; allows the cross-border use of electronic

Given how it modernized North American trade, the“USMCA is a marked improvement,’’said Neil Herrington, the US Chamber of Commerce’s senior vice president for the Americas.

Perhaps the most consequential changes the pact wrought were designed to reverse one of NAFTA’s unhappy byproducts for Americans: The old deal incentivized companies to close factories in the United States, ship production to lower-wage Mexico, then export goods back into the United States—duty free.

The USMCA sought to make it harder for autos and auto parts to enjoy tariff-free treatment. To qualify, 75 percent of a car and its parts had to come from North America, up from 62.5 percent under NAFTA. That meant more content had to come from higher-wage North American workers, not imported cheaply from China or elsewhere. And at least 40 percent of vehicles would have to originate in places where workers earn at least $16 an hour—that is, the United States and Canada, not Mexico.

But those so-called automotive rules of origin stumbled out of the gate. Enforcement was delayed as customs officials faced supply chain backlogs at the height of the Covid crisis.

“Border officials were worried about clearing cargo in ports and getting rid of congestion,’’ said Daniel Ujczo, senior counsel at the law firm Thompson Hine in Columbus, Ohio. “They didn’t have a ton of time to deal with USMCA.’’’

Even after the auto rules took effect, the United States was slapped down for the way it tried to enforce them. A USMCA trade court, in a case brought by Mexico and Canada, found that Washington was applying the rules more strictly than was allowed.

The United States has achieved more success in using the deal to pressure Mexican employers to comply with their country’s labor reforms. Workers there can now vote freely and fairly on joining unions, approving contracts and choosing union leaders. In the past, pro-company unions in Mexico signed contracts behind workers’ backs. Strikes were rare, wages stayed low and union leaders got rich.

The USMCA armed the United States, Mexican workers and union activists with a new weapon: The “Rapid Response Labor Mechanism.” This allows the US government to crack down on individual factories in Mexico—by, for example, suspending tariff exemptions for their products – if they violate Mexican labor law.

Stevenson reported from Mexico City, Krisher from Detroit.

By Cara Anna & Nicolas Garriga

The Associated Press

NANTERRE, France—

Crowds gathered at town halls across France Monday to show solidarity with local governments targeted in six nights of violence touched off by the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old in suburban Paris.

The unrest, which appeared to be easing on Sunday night, was driven by a mainly teenage backlash in the suburbs and urban housing projects against a French state that many young people with immigrant roots say routinely discriminates against them. In all, 99 town halls have been attacked in the violence, the Interior Ministry said, including a weekend attempt to ram the home of one mayor and apparently set it afire.

In the municipality of l’Hay-lesLes Roses in the southern suburbs of Paris, hundreds of people gathered Monday to support Mayor Vincent Jeanbrun, whose wife and one of his young children were injured when a car set afire by rioters rammed into his home early Sunday while they slept.

It was an unusually personal attack that authorities said would be prosecuted as an attempted homicide, and it prompted an outpouring of support for local governments in many towns where the city hall is often literally central to public life.

“We saw the real face of the rioters, that of assassins,” Jeanbrun said in an emotional speech. France and “democracy itself” were being attacked in days of rioting. “This won’t last last,” the mayor said, adding that the “silent majority” is speaking out to say “Stop. This is enough!” The crowd responded with the chant “Enough!”

President Emmanuel Macron made a surprise visit to a northern Paris district reportedly to thank security officials for their

work, according to French media reports. Video showed Macron and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin entering the building in the 17th district where a specialized night brigade is headquartered.

There has been little in the way of organized protests beyond a march last week for Nahel, the 17-year-old French man of Algerian descent who was killed last Tuesday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre by a white police officer. Instead, the anger has manifested in young people targeting police, with both sides using increasingly aggressive tactics.

The average age of the 3,354 people arrested over the past week was 17, the interior minister said. But the problem of discrimination strikes all ages, according to Ahmed Djamai, a 58-year-old born in Nanterre who attended a solidarity gathering Monday at the town hall.

Djamai said police stopped him not long ago and demanded a residence permit, even though he neither has nor needs one as a French citizen. He said the problem won’t go away even as the violence subsides.

“Our second, third and fourthgeneration children face the same problem when they go out to get a job, when they go to prestigious universities,” he said. “They’re not accepted. So even now, the problem is social, but it’s also one of identity. It goes much deeper than that.”

President Macron was meeting Tuesday with mayors of 220 towns from across the country which were hit by violence. Across France, 34 buildings— many of them linked to the government—were attacked from Sunday into Monday, along with 297 vehicles.

Macron last week blamed social media for the spread of the unrest and called on parents to take responsibility for their teenagers.

Justice Minister Eric DupondMoretti told France Inter radio

that parents who abdicated that responsibility, “either through disinterest or deliberately,” would be prosecuted.

The anger has descended into attacks against symbols of the state, widespread arson and nighttime looting. The interior minister said during a visit to a town in central France that he’s been proven right to put 45,000 police on the streets in recent nights— and did so again Monday night. But he added that police “can’t educate children in the place of their parents.”

“We know all too well that this violence penalizes first and foremost the children, the people and the families of our neighborhoods and all of the residents of our city,” Nanterre Mayor Patrick Jarry said. “We want justice to be done for Nahel and for the appeal by the family and notably by his grandmother for an end to the violence and destruction to be heard and respected.”

In all, according to the Interior Ministry, there were 157 arrests overnight out of a total of 3,354 since last Tuesday, and two law enforcement stations were attacked, among other damage.

The interior minister said children as young as 12 or 13 had been detained for attacking law enforcement and setting fires.

In the Paris suburb of Clichysous-Bois, where a fire also struck the town hall, residents over the weekend said anger had simmered for years and many said the government had done little to help them.

“Young people are afraid to die by the hands of police. They are hopeless. They are bored and they need something to distract them so they don’t hang out in the streets,” said Samba Seck, 39.

France. Lori Hinnant contributed from Paris.

NEW DELHI—India’s prime minister on Tuesday took a veiled swipe at rival neighbor Pakistan and avoided mentioning the war in Ukraine while addressing a group of Asian countries led by China and Russia.

INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi hugs Russian President Vladimir Putin before their meeting in New Delhi, India on October 5, 2018. Putin participated on Tuesday, July 4, 2023, for a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a security grouping founded by Russia and China to counter Western alliances from East Asia to the Indian Ocean. This year’s event is hosted by India, which became a member in 2017. It’s the latest avenue for Modi to showcase the country’s growing global clout. AP/MANISH SWARUP

Oleg Cetinic and Alex Turnbull contributed from L’Hay-les-Roses, France. Jade Le Deley contributed from Clichysous-Bois,

Crowds across France show solidarity at town halls targeted in rioting following police shooting

North American trade pact on 3rd anniversary: Optimism is rising for US and Mexican workers

Editor: Angel R. Calso

Irrigation plays a critical role in PHL’s food security

THe national government has spent billions of pesos to irrigate more farmlands in its bid to beef up the country’s rice supply. The state raised its expenditures for irrigation facilities following the 2008 rice crisis, when export bans limited the global supply of the staple. The government realized then that it could not always rely on the international market to plug the perennial shortfall in domestic rice output.

From P4.4 billion in 2005, the budget allocated for irrigation jumped to nearly P12.8 billion, according to data from the Department of Agriculture and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA). Starting in 2009, the government set aside more funds for irrigation to raise rice production and reduce the country’s food imports. Amounts earmarked for irrigation have been consistently above P10 billion following the 2008 crisis.

Despite the billions of pesos poured into irrigation, it took two administrations to significantly expand the irrigated land area in the Philippines. Data from the NIA and the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed the country’s irrigated land area breached the 2-million-hectare mark in 2021, from the 1.73 million hectares recorded in 2015. As of the end of the term of former President Duterte, the irrigated land area in the Philippines reached 2.042 million hectares.

According to NIA, the Duterte administration was able to expand the country’s irrigated land area by 311,265 hectares. (See, “NIA: Projects expanded PHL’s irrigated areas,” in the BusinessMirror, June 2, 2022) From 2016 to 2021, NIA claimed that irrigation development averaged at 51,877.5 hectares, faster than the 31,865.16 hectares recorded during the Aquino administration, covering the years 2010 to 2015, based on historical data. The NIA said the expansion from 2016 to 2021 was the highest in its history.

However, there are still more than 1 million hectares of irrigable land that do not have access to irrigation. To irrigate the 3.128 million hectares of total irrigable area nationwide, the Marcos administration’s irrigation development must expand by around 200,000 hectares annually, from now until 2028. It may be a tall order, based on the experience of the Duterte administration, but it has to be done if the government is really serious about ensuring the country’s food security.

For one, the country’s rice output in 2020 came from 1.36 million hectares of farms that continue to rely on rainfall for irrigation. These rainfed farms produced 4.52 million metric tons of palay equivalent to more than 3 million tons of milled rice. The yield of farms that relied on rainfall averaged 3.3 metric ton, lower than the national average of 4 MT.

If these rice farms had access to irrigation, our agricultural production would significantly improve. Enabling farmers to have access to postharvest facilities will allow them to earn more and encourage them to stay in agriculture and not turn to construction work to feed their families. More importantly, higher domestic output would mean less reliance on imports and fewer dollar reserves flowing out of the government’s coffers.

Hong Kong goes after activists with bounties, lifelong pursuit

By Kari Lindberg

The first rewards to be issued in relation to security crimes were announced, along with arrest warrants, by chief superintendent Steve Li at a news conference Monday. They apply to former lawmakers Nathan Law, Dennis Kwok, and Ted Hui, lawyer Kevin Yam as well as activists Finn Lau, Anna Kwok, Elmer Yuan and unionist Mung Siu-tat.

Lee said at a regular press briefing in the city Tuesday the arrest warrants sent a “strong message” that acts endangering national security “won’t be tolerated.”

“I also want to tell the criminals that the only way to manage the destiny of being an abscondee, who will be pursued for life, is to surrender,” he added, encouraging friends and family members of the eight to provide information to the police.

All those targeted are currently residing in countries such as the US, UK, Canada and Australia—

nations whose governments have publicly condemned the Beijingdrafted national security law. None of the people Hong Kong named as suspects are likely to return, making their prospect of arrest in the territory close to zero.

Hong Kong authorities could try to persuade other jurisdictions to hand over the individuals. The UK government has previously alerted people in Britain named in a Hong Kong national security case to avoid traveling to countries that have extradition treaties with the Chinese territory.

Thailand has bowed to pressure from the Chinese Communist Party to deport Uyghurs to China, while Beijing has been accused of pressuring Turkey to do the same.

Chinese authorities have also apparently kidnapped individuals living overseas: Hong Kong bookseller Gui Minhai was snatched from his home

in Thailand in 2015, before resurfacing in China.

The bounties will likely add to concerns a the crackdown on rights under the China-imposed legislation is diminishing Hong Kong’s rule of law, which for decades has been a foundational pillar of its standing as an international financial center. The UK last year withdrew its top judges from the city’s Court of Final Appeal over such concerns.  US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller called on Hong Kong to withdraw the bounties, saying the NSL threatened the “fundamental freedoms of people all over the world.” Australia’s government said in a statement the rewards showed the “corrosive effects” of the NSL on the rule of law in Hong Kong.

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly asked the Hong Kong government to stop targeting those who “stand up for freedom and democracy.”

The Hong Kong government said Monday that even after fleeing the city the eight activists had continued to commit offenses under the security law, which asserts global jurisdiction for cases involving terrorism, secession, subversion and collusion with foreign powers. Those

offenses carry sentences as long as life in prison.

“The fugitives should not have any delusion that they could evade their legal liabilities by absconding from Hong Kong,” a government spokesperson said in a statement. The authorities also warned Hong Kong residents that funding the eight activists could violate the national security law.

Many of the wanted individuals have remained active on social media since leaving the Chinese territory. A Hong Kong student was arrested by security police earlier this year over a series of pro-independence comments she allegedly posted on social media while studying in Japan, local media including the South China Morning Post reported, showing the long-arm of security legislation. Some 260 individuals, between the ages of 15 to 90, have been arrested for acts endangering national security in the past three years, Li, the police official, said Monday. He added that two-thirds of those had been charged. That figure includes arrests under the colonial sedition law that has been revived by security police. with assistance from Ka Ho Cheuk, Ellen milligan and Jon Herskovitz / bloomberg

A year of fighting between Israel and the Palestinians just escalated. Is this an uprising?

By Tia Goldenberg | The Associated Press

TeL AVIV, Israel—Airstrikes targeting Palestinian militants in a crowded residential area. Armored bulldozers plowing through narrow streets, crushing cars and piling up debris. Protesters burning tires. A mounting death toll.

Israel’s large-scale military raid into the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank on Monday had undeniable similarities with the second Palestinian uprising of the early 2000s—a period that claimed thousands of lives.

But the current fighting is also different from those intense years of violence. It’s more limited in scope, with Israeli military operations focused on several strongholds of Palestinian militants.

It’s also a symptom of a conflict with no foreseeable end. The Palestinian leadership is weakened, and the Israeli government has been accelerating the expansion of settlements that have eroded any chance of Palestinian statehood.

What is an intifada?

T HE word that means “shaking off” in Arabic was coined to describe an uprising against Israel’s military occupation that erupted in 1987. It ended in 1993 with an agreement of mutual recognition between Israel and the Palestine Liberation

Organization.

What became known as the first intifada was marked by widespread Palestinian protests and a fierce Israeli response. In the second uprising, which began in 2000, Palestinian militants carried out deadly suicide bombings on buses and at restaurants and hotels, eliciting crushing Israeli military reprisals.

The second uprising pitted Palestinian militant groups against a far more powerful Israeli military. Over 4,000 people died, including vast numbers of civilians. Roughly three times as many Palestinians as Israelis were killed.

Israeli crackdowns upended Palestinian lives, including placing tight restrictions on movement that choked the fledgling economy. For Israelis, especially during the frequent bombings of the second intifada, stepping onto a bus or going out to a restaurant was terrifying.

Those events were initially fueled by widespread participation. Many Palestinians in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem—

areas captured by Israel in 1967 and claimed by the Palestinians for their state—joined in the protests.

The protests were also driven by the Palestinian leaders, including President Yasser Arafat, whom Israel accused of encouraging and abetting militants. The intifada petered out after Arafat died in 2004 and the current Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, took power.

What is happening now?

IN the spring of 2022, a spate of Palestinian attacks against Israelis prompted Israel to launch nearnightly raids into Palestinian areas of the West Bank.

Israel said the raids were meant to stamp out militant networks. But Palestinian attacks have continued, and the death toll on both sides has risen, making last year one of the deadliest for Palestinians in the West Bank since the second intifada.

The violence has only intensified since Israel’s current far-right government, which is made up of hardline ultranationalist settlement supporters, took power late last year.

The Palestinian death toll this year in the West Bank and east Jerusalem stands at more than 135, according to a tally by The Associated Press, nearly matching the death toll for all of 2022. Hundreds

of Palestinians have been arrested. Some 24 people have been killed in Palestinian attacks against Israelis.

Similarities and differences

THE region has not seen such a sustained cycle of violence since the second uprising, which lasted about five years. More recent periods of bloodshed have not lasted this long or involved such a strong show of force by the military.

The tactics seen Monday, with airstrikes, armored bulldozers and a brigade of troops, were a mainstay of the second uprising.

But analysts say that’s where the similarities end.

For one, a month-long Israeli operation in 2002 that was seen as the peak of the fighting during the second intifada involved an intense clampdown on most cities in the West Bank. Israel’s raids over the last year have been smaller in scale. Israel’s targets are also more limited to local armed groups and militant cells.

Other differences, analysts say, include the weakened Palestinian leadership and the lack of popular participation. While protests have erupted in response to the raids, they have not engulfed the entire West Bank.

“Intifada is a people’s uprising.

Hong Kong’s Chief executive John Lee pledged a lifetime of police pursuit for eight democracy activists who fled abroad to evade national security charges, one day after authorities put a HK$1,000,000 ($127,650) bounty on each.

France’s Macron weakened by crisis over teen killed by police

By Sylvie Corbet

The Associated Press

PARIS—Even in normal times

Emmanuel Macron needed allies’ help governing France.

To get some things done he worked with the traditional right. The center-left helped the French president accomplish others. The challenge was bigger than any a French leader had faced in more than two decades: He had to convince politicians across the country’s national assembly to support even a minor domestic project.

Now, governing his alreadypolarized country has gotten close to impossible for Macron because a suburban police officer stopped a yellow Class A Mercedes and fired one fatal shot into the 17-year-old driver’s chest, setting off six days of tumult across the country.

Macron’s centrist Renaissance party and its close allies had merely 251 seats out of 577 after Macron won his second five-year term last year with 58 percent of the votes in a runoff with far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Macron dreamed big despite the close victory. His first big goal was raising the retirement age from 62 to 64, which he had to force through parliament. He then hoped to re-industrialize France, improve working conditions and finalize a new immigration bill. Abroad, Macron championed European sovereignty and independence in fields ranging from the economy and energy to defense.

But all that has had to fall by the wayside.

Macron shortened a visit to a European summit in Brussels last week for a crisis meeting with his government. This week, he called a last-minute delay in a visit to Germany that had been meant to show the strength of the binationational friendship despite disputes on energy, defense and the economy, among other issues.

The changes in his agenda echo another uncomfortable situation for the French leader three months ago, when the planned state visit of King Charles III to France was postponed due to violent protests against the pension changes.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was watching France’s situation with concern.

“I hope very much, and I am convinced, that the French president will find ways for this situation to improve quickly,” he told ARD television. “I don’t expect France to become unstable, even if the pictures are of course very depressing.” The US, the UK and China were among those that called on citizens to exercise caution when traveling to France.

Last month, after a climate summit, Kenya’s president William Ruto praised Macron’s deep involvement. “You have run this like Kenyans do...like a marathon,” he told Macron.

The question now for Macron is whether he can marshal enough endurance to face the political situ-

continued from A18

It’s a society that fights,” said Amir Avivi, president and founder of Israel Defense and Security Forum, a hawkish group of former military commanders. Avivi, who served as a battalion commander in the northern West Bank during the 2002 operation, claimed that the current fighting is dominated by militant groups that are funded by Israel’s archenemy, Iran.

Ziyad Abu Zayad, a Palestinian analyst and former Cabinet minister, said the fighting is best described as “waves” of Palestinian anger, not an uprising.

“The problem is not security, but rather political. And as long as there

The US, the UK and China were among those that called on citizens to exercise caution when traveling to France.

ation at home.

“The problem is that he still has four more years ahead,” said Luc Rouban, a senior researcher at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS).

He noted that Macron has faced a succession of protests and street unrest, starting with the yellow vest movement against social injustice that broke out in 2018.

An increasing proportion of the population “rejects institutions” as part of a broader criticism of “a social order that involves inequalities, that is...basically quite hypocritical, with school in particular not allowing people to succeed as it once did,” Rouban said.

Schools, city halls, police stations and other public institutions have been attacked.

Macron “doesn’t have much leeway except for distributing subsidies,” which is also difficult because of France’s heavy debt burden, Rouban said.

Last month, Macron hosted the global summit on climate and finance that brought over 50 heads of state and government and leaders of international organizations in the French capital, highlighting his international leadership.

Macron then traveled to Marseille last week to promote government efforts to inject billions into schools, housing and security and improve lives of residents of low-income neighborhoods in France’s second largest city.

Macron is to meet Tuesday at the presidential palace with the mayors of over 220 towns and cities that have been concerned by incidents and damages in recent days.

Le Pen appears to be the one coming out of the situation in a stronger position, Rouban said. She keeps positioning herself as the main political opposition to Macron, and continues her strategy of scrubbing the image of her far-right National Rally party, he said.

“These appalling events bring our leaders back to reality,” Le Pen said last week in a video posted on a social media account. “I intend to stick to our line of conduct, which is to do nothing to prevent or challenge the action of the legitimate authorities in charge of public order.”

On Paris’ Champs-Elysées Monday, workers were preparing Bastille Day festivities, setting up seating and barriers for crowds expected to attend the traditional military parade on July 14th with guest of honor Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India.

Another major deadline is looming: next year’s Olympics in Paris, suburbs and other French cities. Organizers and authorities promise the Games will be safe. AP Writers Geir Moulson in Berlin and Christopher Bodeen in Beijing contributed to the story.

is no political solution, these waves will continue,” he said. “People, mainly young people, want to live in freedom and dignity. They see no future for themselves, and they only see oppression from the occupation.”

What happens next?

THERE is no end in sight to the fighting. The military raids have tended to fuel more attacks that prompt even more raids. As attacks against Israelis have mounted, including one that killed four settlers last month, government members have called for a harsher response. They have also intensively advanced settlement building, further dimming hopes for a negotiated solution to the conflict. Associated Press writers Julia Frankel and Josef Federman contributed to this report from Jerusalem.

Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza

MAKE SENSE

There is virtually no livelihood and employment aspect that Covid-19 has not disrupted, and our poor countrymen were disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Millions of minimum wage earners and contract workers that lost their jobs became poorer because of the long lockdowns. Thanks to the decision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to lift restrictions earlier than expected, the people got their livelihood back. But, just as they are starting to recoup their income losses, some wise lawmakers are trying to find a new way to push poor Filipinos deeper into poverty.

I’m talking about their plan to impose new taxes on so-called “junk food” and increase the existing tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. These so-called junk foods that lawmakers are eyeing for additional taxes are everyday fare for the majority of Filipinos—these are the instant noodles, candies and snacks or “chichiriyas” like banana chips and peanuts, among others, that millions of school children eat, because they cannot afford to have burgers or sandwiches for their baon

The pejorative term “junk food” is used to describe foods that lack nutrients, vitamins and minerals. In other words, more junk than food. That’s why we have a law that seeks to “protect and promote the right of health of the people and instill health consciousness among them.” Republic Act No. 8976, otherwise known as the Food Fortification Act of 2000, requires our manufacturers of snack foods and “chichiriyas” to fortify their products with vitamins and other nutrients. In fact, even prior to the enactment of RA 8976, I had the mami instant noodle fortified with iron when I handled its marketing years back. So, are these foods still considered “junk” under the proposed legislation? We have seen this movie before. Our legislators used the term “sin products” when they filed the bill seeking to impose a levy on cigarettes and alcoholic drinks. It was their

strategy to soften public resistance and tame opposition to the Sin Tax Law. Now they are calling the poor people’s snacks and “chichiriyas” junk foods in their desire to pass a “junk food tax,” which is a huge additional burden to the poor.

A BusinessMirror front-page news story on June 30 featured the appeal of the Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines, which asked the government to reconsider the proposals to impose new taxes on “junk food” and increase the existing tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. They said now is “not the right time” to introduce additional taxes on products primarily consumed by middle- and lower-class households because the country is still recovering from the pandemic and a prolonged period of high inflation. They explained that the proposal would affect micro and small enterprises that rely on selling these products as a source of income.

“While we recognize the need for the government to boost revenues and support initiatives to improve the health and well-being of Filipinos, we recommend careful reassessment of any proposal to impose additional taxes that will be inflationary for Filipino consumers and discriminatory to certain businesses,” the JFC said in a statement. The signatories include the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the

We don’t know how much additional revenue can the government generate from taxing the poor people’s snacks. But we know that it is losing over P250 billion in potential revenues due to smuggling. If this illicit trade is properly addressed, the government could increase the market share of local businesses in the economy to the tune of trillions of pesos. Imagine the additional revenues that it can generate. Is this not a better solution for the government to adopt? If we can stop smuggling, we can definitely raise more funds while protecting local businesses at the same time.

Philippines, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines Inc., Korean Chamber of Commerce Philippines and the Philippine Association of Multinational Companies Regional Headquarters Inc.

The proposed junk food tax will adversely affect small enterprises with limited capital. Imposing additional taxes on their products will inevitably strain their capacity to continue operations and grow their businesses. This will result in massive layoffs, or, worse, the closure of these small businesses.

On the other hand, more than 1 million sari-sari stores will also be affected. Higher prices will mean fewer products sold because the poor customers that buy softdrinks, candies and “chichirya” only have limited purchasing power.

In our discussions with former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile during our “Dito sa Bayan ni Juan” radio/TV program, we examined the issue on the proposed levy on junk food. Enrile, who is a Harvard University Master’s degree holder in Taxation, wondered why the proponents don’t realize that a higher tax on snack foods will kill local industries and may encourage smuggling.

Thai opposition party struggles to take power after stunning election victory

The Associated Press

By Jintamas Saksornchai & Grant Peck |

BANGKOK—Thailand’s new Parliament convened Monday nearly two months after a progressive opposition party won a stunning election victory, but there was still no clear sign that its leader will be able to become prime minister and end nine years of military-dominated rule.

To form a government, a party must have the backing of a combined majority of the elected House of Representatives and the military-appointed Senate, which represents the country’s traditional conservative ruling class.

The Move Forward Party’s unexpected election victory alarmed the ruling establishment, which regards it as a threat to the status quo and the monarchy. Some senators have already announced their opposition to party leader Pita Limjaroenrat, a 42-year-old Harvard-educated businessman.

Pita has formed an eight-party coalition holding 312 seats in the 500-seat lower house, which leaves it short of an overall majority without the support of a significant number of the 250 senators.

The election results showed that Move Forward’s progressive agenda resonated with a public weary of nine years of military-controlled rule under Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who as army commander seized power in a 2014 coup and returned as prime minister after a 2019 general election.

But what made Move Forward popular with many voters was what alarmed royalist conservatives.

Aside from Move Forward’s problems with the Senate and Pheu Thai, there are serious fears that Pita and his party will be blocked by legal challenges, a fate that has brought down previous parties that ran afoul of the conservative establishment.

I countered that there’s a precedent for this. When government raised the taxes on cigarettes and liquor, the problem of smuggling worsened. Now, about 70 percent of the cigarettes being consumed in the country are smuggled. Imagine the revenue losses of the government because of this illicit trade. When will we ever learn?

I take my hat off to BIR Commissioner Romeo “Jun” Lumagui Jr. for issuing Revenue Memorandum Circular 72-2023 exempting from VAT a total of 59 medicines for cancer, hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, mental illness, tuberculosis, and kidney disease. Excellent Taxpayers Service is one of the pillars of Commissioner Lumagui’s administration. This includes the issuance of circulars that would make the lives of Filipinos financially easier. He aims to make the BIR an agency that is not merely goal-oriented, but also service-oriented. Unlike some lawmakers who want to push poor Filipinos deeper into poverty, the BIR chief has a heart for the masses. We don’t know how much additional revenue can the government generate from taxing the poor people’s snacks. But we know that it is losing over P250 billion in potential revenues due to smuggling. If this illicit trade is properly addressed, the government could increase the market share of local businesses in the economy to the tune of trillions of pesos. Imagine the additional revenues that it can generate. Is this not a better solution for the government to adopt? If we can stop smuggling, we can definitely raise more funds while protecting local businesses at the same time.

It would do well for our legislators to find other ways to generate additional revenues for the government, instead of putting additional burden on the poor with the proposed junk food tax.

Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza is the chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries and Fight Illicit Trade; a broad-based, multisectoral movement intended to protect consumers, safeguard government revenues and shield legitimate industries from the ill effects of smuggling.

insist that Move Forward make the speaker’s post part of Pheu Thai’s share of the pie, he said.

The party pledged to reform many powerful institutions, including the monarchy and the military, which retain power and influence under a constitution written during Prayuth’s administration.

While the threats from Move Forward’s ideological foes are clear, what was less expected are the tensions between it and the biggest partner in its coalition, the Pheu Thai party.

Pheu Thai and its predecessor parties have won all national elections since 2001 until this past May. It is the latest in a string of parties linked to former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by a military coup in 2006.

Royalist power holders have harbored enmity toward Thaksin—a billionaire populist now in exile—for a long time. Prayuth’s 2014 coup ousted a government formed by Thaksin’s sister, Yingluck Shinawatra.

Move Forward and Pheu Thai have been squabbling over which will get the post of House speaker, which is supposed to be chosen by Parliament on Tuesday.

“The position of the House speaker is essential because he will determine the agenda of Parliament, and

so therefore the degree of political transformation,” said Tyrell Haberkorn, a Thai studies scholar at the University of Wisconsin.

The two parties announced a compromise after a meeting on Monday. The coalition will nominate Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, a veteran leader of the Prachachat Party, to be House speaker, and Move Forward and Pheu Thai will each have one deputy speaker. Pita said the decision was reached to strengthen unity among the coalition’s allies to support his bid to be prime minister.

Attachak Sattayanurak, a professor of history at Chiang Mai University in northern Thailand, suggested that the apparent distrust between the two parties is potentially the biggest threat to Pita’s possible prime ministership.

Pheu Thai leaders, almost as a matter of pride, could not be seen as ceding too much to their Move Forward partner, he said.

“The feelings of people in the Pheu Thai party, that it used to be a heavyweight, that had won many elections and was able to be an agenda setter,” drove many of them to

However, if Pheu Thai fails to show an unbreakable bond with Move Forward, it “reduces the power of the group that calls itself a democracy bloc” and gives the senators and their conservative allies “more grounds not to choose Pita,” Attachak said.

Aside from Move Forward’s problems with the Senate and Pheu Thai, there are serious fears that Pita and his party will be blocked by legal challenges, a fate that has brought down previous parties that ran afoul of the conservative establishment.

Several Thaksin-backed governments and a party that was Move Forward’s predecessor were victims of rulings by the Election Commission and the National Anti-Corruption Commission, both nominally independent agencies that are often seen as favoring the ruling elite, along with the Constitutional Court. Pita has been accused of violating a constitutional prohibition on politicians holding shares in a media company. The media company is no longer operating, and Pita says the shares are part of his father’s estate and don’t belong to him. The prospect that he could be banned from politics and even jailed for what is widely seen at most as a minor technical violation has triggered fears that the political instability that has wracked Thailand on and off since 2006 could return with a vengeance.

The snacks and ‘chichiriyas’ that poor Filipinos consume are fortified with vitamins and other nutrients

DOTr prefers 15, not 25 yrs in Naia O&M concession

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

PHL BEAUTY PRODUCTS MARKET TO HIT $4.7B IN ‘26

By Andrea San Juan

specialty stores in the Philippines.

I n a chance interview, Transportation Undersecretary Roberto Lim told reporters that the agency will move forward with both the solicited and unsolicited proposals for the development of Naia.

However, the final call on which

project will be implemented will be made by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), which he said is expected to come up with a decision “this month.”

Well, their [consortium’s] offer is 25 years and the basic pro -

posal of the government that’s been submitted to the Neda is for 15-year period. It’s different, it’s a different case study,” he said.

“In DOTr, we believe 15 years is a more appropriate term that gives us flexibility.”

L ast month, the Manila International Airport Consortium (Miac) submitted an updated unsolicited “Naia Masterplan” proposal to the DOTr, offering to spend P267 billion in exchange for a 25-year concession.

M iac comprises six of the Philippines’ largest conglomerates: Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp., Alliance GlobalInfracorp Development Inc., Filinvest Development Corp., and JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corp.

T he consortium’s proposal is currently under evaluation.

“ We have to consider that our strategy in the department is to have a multi-airport strategy for the GCR [Greater Capital Region], so we envisage over time with the forecasted demand year-on-ear will have Naia as one airport, you have two other airports proposed

to develop new airport complexes… to serve the greater capital region,” Lim said.

He was referring to the development of the Bulacan and Sangley airports.

H ence, a 15-year concession would be “a better option,” Lim explained.

But you know we have also incorporated in our proposal an option to extend it by another 10 years in the event circumstances warrant. That’s how we are approaching. So 15 years with an option to extend it to 10. Let’s say the projects [were somewhat delayed], and we need to already service the forecasted demand earlier; then the government should have its flexibility to make decisions needed to serve the riding public,” Lim said.

He noted that the option for extension will be triggered by the demand.

“ Naia as we envisage it, maybe has a theoretical limit of 62 million passengers per annum, so if we are already hitting 70, and we need to invest more in Naia because the two other airports are behind schedule, then we should trigger that,” he said.

THE Philippines’s beauty and personal care market is seen to reach US$4.7 billion by 2026, according to global market research firm Allied Market Research.

A ccording to the global market research firm in its report published on July 3, 2023, titled, “Philippines Beauty & Personal Care Market by Product Type, Gender, End Use, Nature, And Distribution Channel: Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2019-2026,” the country’s beauty and personal care market size was valued at $3.3 billion in 2018, and is projected to reach $4.7 billion by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8 percent from 2019 to 2026.

T his market covers beauty and personal care products, which are used for maintaining personal hygiene and enhancing one’s physical appearance. In particular, the research firm noted, these products include sun care, skin care, hair care products, toiletries, and fragrances.

A s to these products’ accessibility, the market research firm said they are available to end users through various distribution channels such as supermarkets/ hypermarkets, online stores, and

Meanwhile, on the basis of end use, the research firm noted that the market is segregated into commercial and household.

In terms of product type, the skin care segment accounted for the largest share in the Philippine market and is expected to retain its “dominance” throughout the forecast period, which is from 2019 to 2026, according to the report.

T he skin care segment’s maximum share in the Philippine market five years ago may be attributable to the “rise in influence of celebrities on young consumers in the Philippines through social media.”

Moreover, the report underscored the increase in the trend of using skin care products such as face masks, facial cleansers, and facial moisturizers among Filipinos.

End users

BY end user, the market research firm said the household segment held a “significant” share in the global market in 2018. However, it noted, the commercial segment is expected to garner a “considerable” share due to the “rising social media and celebrity influence on Filipinos.”

Continued on A5

CEREMONIAL FIRST SERVE First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos makes the ceremonial first serve for the Volleyball Nations League Week 3 on Tuesday night at the SM MOA Arena in Pasay City. With the First Lady are (from left) Philippine National Volleyball Federation president Ramon Suzara, Malacañang Senior Deputy Executive Secretary Hubert Guevara, Pasay City Mayor Imelda Calixto Robiano (partly hidden), Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino and Volley World CEO Finn Taylo. NONIE REYES

PHL has widest gap between genders in STEM-related jobs

THE Philippines has the widest employment gap between men and women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in the Asia Pacific region, according to major professional network platform LinkedIn.

New data from LinkedIn—some of which was published recently in the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report 2023— revealed that women continue to be “significantly underrepresented” in STEM roles globally, making up 29 percent of the STEM workforce, with 8 in 10 leadership roles filled by men.

L inkedIn data showed that the widest STEM gender gap in APAC

is in the Philippines, along with the United States and the United Kingdom, at 22 percent.

“ In the Philippines, women comprised 58.8 percent of the workforce in non-STEM fields but only 36.3 percent in the STEM workforce,” LinkedIn said in a statement on Tuesday.

I n the Asia Pacific region, gender gaps in STEM employment were also seen in Australia, at 21 percent; Singapore, 15 percent; and India with the smallest gap at 5 percent.

LinkedIn showed data highlighting two trends, noting that women in STEM are graduating but not staying in the field. In addition, it said the lack of female role models in the field

contributes to the drop off of women working in the STEM industry.

T he first trend highlighted that while women graduate globally with STEM degrees, fewer are entering the STEM workforce.  I n fact, LinkedIn data showed the “sharpest drop in female representation (7 percentage points) happens between graduation and entering the STEM workforce, which only decreases as they start climbing the leadership ladder.”  I n the Philippines, women comprised 4 out of 10 or 41 percent of STEM graduates in 2017, but only slightly more than 3 out of 10 or 36.6 percent were in the STEM workforce a year later.

THE Department of Transportation (DOTr)

“believes” that a 15year concession—instead of 25 years—is “more appropriate” for the expansion, operations, and maintenance of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), a ranking government official said on Tuesday.

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Wednesday, July 5, 2023

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MPTC unit submits unsolicited proposal to LGU

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

MPT Mobility Corp., the digital ventures arm of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), has submitted a P2.5-billion unsolicited proposal to an undisclosed local government unit (LGU) to deploy its smart mobility solutions in its locality.

“We propose to invest P2.5 billion. It is the result of a comprehensive study of the target city and only after many months of collaborative discussions, research and analysis,” Leo Gonzales, the AVP of MPT Mobility, said.

He deferred the announcement of the specific LGU, but noted that it may be implemented under a 15-

year concession or a joint venture with the local government.

“We call our services ‘Smart Urban Mobility Solutions,’ which are integrated and interconnected, systems tailor-fit to the needs of the target city and may include: advanced traffic management solutions, areabased monitoring and enforcement capabilities, smart command center,

smart parking systems, efficient public transportation and fleet management solutions, peak-hour congestion pricing solutions, and roadside assistance support.”

He said the group partnered with Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd. (STE) to develop the smart solutions.

“We’re really taking it seriously to tailor fit the solution. There is no monetary cost to the government for this.”

A crucial component of the entire project, Gonzales said, is the support and willingness of the LGU to enact the needed local policies and ordinances to ensure that project components work to their fullest.

“The contract period will vary depending on the systems and solutions that the LGU and MPT Mobility to decide to pursue,” he said.

MPTC is a subsidiary of conglomerate Metro Pacific Investments

Corp. (MPIC). MPIC reported last March that its core net income for 2022 reached P14.2 billion, up 15 percent from the previous year’s P12.3 billion on the strong recovery of toll road traffic and the growth in power consumption.

Revenues for the year rose 28 percent to P519.5 billion from the previous P406 billion.

Attributable income rose 4 percent to P10.5 billion from the previous year’s P10.1 billion, despite lower nonrecurring income in 2022 compared to 2021.

Power accounted for P12.4 billion or 65 percent of net operating income, toll roads contributed P5.7 billion or 30 percent, water contributed P2.7 billion or 14 percent and the other businesses, mainly light rail, healthcare, agribusiness, real estate and fuel storage incurred a loss of P1.8 billion.

Tender offer price for MPIC shares raised

THE consortium that wants to take Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) private has increased its tender offer price for the stocks owned by its shareholders to P5.20 per share, saying it was its “best and final offer.”

The company earlier made an offer of P4.63 per share, based on its submitted bid last April.

The improved price represents a premium of 37 percent over the oneyear volume weighted average price of P3.80 per share and a premium of 57 centavos over the earlier offer price. If successful, the tender would result in MPIC’s delisting from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) as its public ownership will fall below the 20 percent minimum required by regulators.

“We regard this new offer as the best and final price the bidders are able to deliver to MPIC’s minority shareholders,” Christopher H. Young, executive director of First Pacific, said.

“Due to the transaction timetable, approvals and regulatory requirements of the entire process across multiple jurisdictions, there will be no further opportunity to adjust the price.”

To comply with the voluntary delisting rules, a PSE-accredited independent financial advisor was appointed by the bidders and produced a report with a valuation range of P3.37 to P5.10 per MPIC common share.

“Following a period of consultation in the wake of the earlier tender offer announcement, the bidders feel that the raised tender offer price pro-

Filipino students all set for Shell global contest

AFTER their long preparation, select Filipino students will represent the country at the Shell Eco-marathon (SEM) in Lombok, Indonesia where they will showcase their capability in creating energy-efficient vehicles that reduce emissions and promote sustainability.

Running from July 4 to 9, this global competition challenges student teams to design, build and test energy-efficient vehicles.

After winning the special Travel Safety Award in the 2022 edition of this contest, PUP Hygears of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) comes back with a vengeance with its entry, Luna IV, vying for the Battery Electric Prototype category.

This improved vehicle aims to lessen the amount of waste produced during the fabrication process by reusing and repurposing the materials used for its version last year.

“The difference in this Luna IV from Luna III is only just the increased height and width. Also we reshaped Luna IV for a more enhanced aerodynamics,” Princess Nicole Palma, a third year mechanical engineering and aesthetics team member of PUP Hygears, told reporters during their recent send-off in Makati.

The other Philippine representative is University of Perpetual Help System DALTA’s ALTAS Valor, which is joining the Urban Concept Internal Combustion category.

Like PUP Hygears, this team is not new to the competition as it already represented the country in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

ALTAS Valor’s vehicle dubbed AVALON is an automatic engine powered by Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). It has a carbon fiber body with enhanced stock parts and an aluminum chassis.

According to team manager Jacob Moises Torres, a third year mechanical engineering student, they are using the same vehicle they had four years ago.

“We upgrade the technology and, then, the transmission or the CVT,” he said. Roderick L. Abad

vides an improved path to minority shareholders to exit their positions at a sizeable premium to market price.”

MPIC shareholders will vote on the delisting application at a special stockholders meeting, which will take place in early August.

The tender offer period is expected to begin shortly after approval is obtained and is expected to last 20 business days from the commencement date. The dates of the tender offer period will be disclosed by the bidders in the Tender Offer report to be published after obtaining MPIC shareholder approval of the delisting.

“The purpose of the MPIC shareholder vote for delisting is for the tender offer process to begin, a decision completely separate from a decision to participate in the tender offer. A

shareholder voting in favor of delisting still has the choice to tender or abstain from tendering,” the company said.

Broker Col Financial Group Inc. said the tender offer price represents a steep 48 percent discount in its net asset value estimate for MPIC and a 41 percent discount in its fair value estimate for the stock.

“Furthermore, the tender offer price is just at a 4 percent premium to the market value of MPI’s 47 percent stake in MER [Manila Electric Co.] of P5 per share. As such, from a valuation perspective, we deem the tender offer price of P5.20 per share to be too low. Nevertheless, for shareholders who could not afford to risk their investment getting delisted, we advise either selling in the market or subscribing to the tender,” it said. VG Cabuag

Pinoy coconut exporters earn $6.9M in Thai trade fair

By Andrea E. San Juan

THE participation of Philippine coconut exporters in THAIFEX-Anuga Asia 2023 generated $6.90 million in initial export sales during the five-day trade exhibition held from May 23 to 27, 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand.

Trade Promotion Group (TPG)

Officer-in-Charge Assistant Secretary Glenn G. Peñaranda said the country’s participation in THAIFEXAnuga Asia served as a “gateway to expanding horizons and enhancing the nation’s standing as a dependable and premium source of coconut products.”

Through the support of the International Trade Centre (ITC), under its ARISE Plus Philippines Project, Peñaranda said Philippine coconut exporters were able to showcase its “high-value” coconut products.

Meanwhile, he noted that the Department of Trade and IndustryExporting Marketing Bureau (DTIEMB) and ITC would also work together for the Anuga Germany participation in October 2023.

“Aside from support to trade fair participation, the assistance also includes capacity building initiatives which aim to enable our exporters to better seize market access opportunities and facilitate business linkages with international markets, particularly in the EU,” Peñaranda noted.

The DTI-EMB and the ITC, in coordination with Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC)-Bangkok and Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Organization Inc. (PHILFOODEX) organized the participation under the Coconut Philippines Pavilion.

The initiative is part of the implementation of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan (CFIDP) and the ARISE Plus Philippines project.

Nine coconut exporters and two industry associations showcased their high-value coconut products.

The export marketing arm of DTI said the participating companies were AG Pacific Nutriceuticals Corporation, Ahya Coco Organic Food Manufacturing Corp., Amazing Foods Corp., Amparitas Food Products Manufacturing, Cocoplus Aquarian Development Corporation, Dignity Products & Services Inc., Pasciolco Agri Ventures, Wellness Care International Corporation, Vegetari Vegetarian Products.

Representatives from industry associations, namely, Virgin Coconut Oil Producers and Traders Association of the Philippines Inc. and United Coconut Association of the Philippines Inc. were also present in the fair, DTI-EMB noted.

According to the trade department’s export marketing arm, the THAIFEX participation has been considered a “substantial” platform for establishing linkages and increasing the understanding of exhibitors on the demands, and distribution routes that will impact the coconut industry.

Moreover, it said the international trade show has provided a “brandnew” perspective on the future of Asia’s food and beverage trends that businesses should look ahead.

The exhibitors emphasized that the participation was not just about showcasing the products and services but also about “unlocking a world of international insights and opportunities as it provided quality buyers and potential leads for them.Aside from participating in the expo, DTI said the delegation conducted market scanning and store visits in Talaad Thai, the largest wholesale market for the trade of agricultural goods in the Asean region and the Big C Supercenter, which is one of the biggest supermarket chains in Thailand.”  THAIFEX-Anuga Asia 2023 is one of the most significant food and beverage trade events in Asia.

In 2022, Thailand ranked 8th largest trading partner of the Philippines, 6th export market, and 7th import supplier.

Tour provider: Tourism sector can still do wonder to win visitors’ love for PHL

By Roderick L. Abad @rodrik_28 Contributor

T his, however, has failed to bring cheers to the tourism industry per se, as it drew flak from critics, much more the bashers who poked fun at it on social media.

The controversy continues as it recently made headlines, following reports that the creators of the campaign video to promote the “Pearl of the Orient” as a holiday destination admitted its use of stock footage clips from other countries.

Amid all the issues confronting the entire industry, Dennis Plaza, owner of Juanderer Travels, is hopeful that these, in turn, will work wonders for a sectoral change that will win back the affection of both local and foreign tourists.

“When it comes to nature or attractions, the Philippines is really beautiful. But it’s not just applicable to the right market who have the money and willing to spend,” he told reporters in a recent online interview.

According to him, the country still has a lot more work to do in order for guests here and from anywhere else in the world to come and visit its majestic islands for the first time after getting stuck at their homes during lockdown periods at the height of the Covid-19 crisis to sample the manifold must-see places, culture, tradition, food and hospitality of the people.

With the many “lovable” things about the Philippines, he is certain that they will have more reasons to return again-and-again like in the previous years or decades.

Unexpected journey

A TRAVELER himself, Plaza could not imagine that his penchant for exploring different places would bring him to where he is at present—an entrepreneur who owns a destination management company (DMC). His entity, Juanderer Travels, a

brand name and registered as JTH Travel And Tours, traces back its roots from Davao City in 2013 when he started organizing the tours of their circle of friends, mostly going to Surigao.

“I realized that you can get discounts from suppliers, especially like hotels [wherein] you [get to] have a special rate. So why not do it as a business?” he recalled.

Two years after, Plaza moved to Manila and kept on organizing tours—this time opening up new destinations to North Luzon, including Baguio, Ilocos, Sagada and Sorsogon. Serious of his newfound opportunity, he registered the business Juanderer Travels in the Philippines.

Since his start-up was still at its infancy stage during the time, he could not resist to accept the chance to work in Phuket, Thailand in 2016.

He got hired by an events and DMC there, where he handled its business development.

Working in an events and destination field, he established a strong network with suppliers like hotels and attraction centers. This led him to bring and register Juanderer Travels to Thailand in 2018.

The take off of his business based in Cainta, Rizal and Bangkok with a satellite office in Phuket, however, was halted by the pandemic in 2020 when mobility of the people was restricted due to rapid spread of Covid-19. Unlike other entities in their category, Juanderer Travels still operated and paid taxes despite the owner’s zero income declaration.

“I used the time of the pandemic for marketing and planning for our reopening. I did not stop posting on Facebook. I put up a web site,” said Plaza, who also serves as the firm’s current managing director (MD).

“Thankfully, Thailand was the first country to reopen in late 2021.”

With its business resumption,

the agency started expanding tours to Europe and other parts of Asia like Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam. Its registration in Thailand also got renewed this year.

“Until today, the business is doing good. While I’m very eager to continue my business, I still work because I don’t know what will happen in the future,” shared the enterprising overseas Filipino worker, who has been living solo in Bangkok for many years now since he has no immediate family to support anymore.

Business as usual

GIVEN its dual locations, the travel agency brings tourists mostly from the Philippines to Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket in Thailand and the rest of the above cited destinations abroad. For the domestic market, its local tours include Baguio, Boracay, Cebu, Ilocos, Sagada and Siargao.

“Ninety percent of our clients are Filipinos. They really love to travel,” Plaza said of their clients, who are mostly first-time travelers. “They

have a 90-percent chance to hurdle the immigration process.”

Overall tour averages two to three times a week for a group of seven people. He noted: “It’s like 15 to 20 groups in a month [across all our offered locations].”

Location-wise, Bangkok accounts for 70 percent of the “go-to” places of their guests, the Philippines at 20 percent, and the rest is anywhere in their other covered destinations here and abroad.

“Other nationalities like for solo backpackers, they want Siargao, Boracay or Cebu—the  beaches and seas,” Plaza added.

Challenges

ENVISIONED to become a multinational travel management leader in Thailand and the Philippines, Juanderer Travels seeks to cater also to other nationalities in their journey to global destinations through its proven and trusted services to its growing market.

“So the target and direction of

the company is tourists from like Western [countries] and Americans going to Thailand,” he revealed. With his desire to promote further his native country to foreign travelers, he conceded that “it’s hard to promote the Philippines” due to various challenges being faced by travel agencies like them.

Instead of backpackers or nomads, Plaza suggested the local tourism industry to focus more on enticing corporate clients for the meetings, incentives, conference and exhibits (MICE) sector. He described them as the “right market” who have the money and willingness to spend.

To encourage them to go here, he said that tourism infrastructures and facilities, which are lacking today, must be expanded and improved further. These include ample fleet of luxurious cars and other service vehicles, as well as cruise ships or yachts fit to the requirements of top executives who will spend a business and leisure trips anywhere in the country.

The travel agency owner also pointed out the slow process of application and low approval rate of visa and other travel documents in the country. For instance, a small group tour, comprised of 17 Vietnamese and five Indians, recently booked by Juanderer Travels for June 7 was canceled due to denied visas of the latter nationalities.

Adding to this problem is the lack of direct flights from abroad to various local destinations, not to mention, concerns on unreasonable offloading immigration incidents, delayed and canceled flights due to a spate of airport outages.

While the Philippines’ main selling point is its natural and scenic attractions, the downside would be the distance between tourist destinations that cost a lot of travel time for the visitors due to the country’s geography that is archipelagic. What’s more, he hinted the need for more “immersion” of visitors to the country’s culture and traditions, plus the initiative to develop potential tourist sites.

“We recently had seven Thais and three Chinese going to Manila only. So the challenge there was they were brought to Luneta and Intramuros. They enjoyed it. But obviously, these places are not that very Instagrammable. Unlike in Bangkok, they have many attractions. Apart from the temples, they also converted their canals and even train stations into a night markets,” Plaza stressed.

“These are the systems or strategies the Philippines should do to win more tourists, especially the corporate accounts and incentive markets,” he added.

Mekeni Food Corp. brings Halal hotdog, tocino and longanisa to Qatar

HOMEGROWN food manufacturer Mekeni Food Corporation is marking this year with another milestone as it brings its hotdog, tocino, and longanisa products to Qatar.

Mekeni will be offering Halal Picnic Hotdog, Chicken Tocino, and Chicken Longanisa at Asian stores across the country beginning in this month as announced by Mekeni during the Philippine Independence Day Celebration in Doha, Qatar.

“To offer Halal products in Qatar has been on our export plan for quite a while now, and we are fortunate to fulfill it this year through partnerships with local manufacturers,” said Mekeni AVP for HR and Exports Marilou Uy.

Mekeni President Pruds S. Garcia said one reason Mekeni intends to bring its products to the Gulf country is the sheer number of Filipinos there. According to Qatar

there is a huge potential because the market is already there. As a former overseas Filipino worker [OFW] in Saudi Arabia, I still vividly recall how overseas Filipinos miss home, especially the food. This is why we worked this plan out until it is realized,” said Garcia. He continued, “When the borders were closed during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, we realized that we are in a position to bring our kababayans closer to home. Being with their families is different, but we are hopeful our products can somehow fill the void of missing home.”

Garcia added that they are optimistic that the Filipino community will be delighted to see and taste their products again, just like when Mekeni products were launched in the US.

Another reason behind this export move, according to Garcia, is Mekeni’s desire for the world to

have a taste of #TimplangAtin.“We are hopeful that Qatar locals will also like and patronize our hotdog, tocino, and longanisa, not only because they are Halal but also because these are formulated following world-class standards and with different taste preferences in mind,” he said.

Mekeni soft-launched its export business as early as 2011 when it first shipped products to Dubai. This and its international food safety and quality awards jumpstarted its global journey.Aside from Qatar, Mekeni products are also available in the US, the UAE, Canada, Australia, Bahrain, Brunei, The Netherlands, and New Zealand.

“We are very pleased and grateful to forge reliable partnerships that help increase Mekeni’s footprint across the globe, and we look forward to bringing more products here and beyond,” said Garcia.

AS A timely response to revenge tourism that has been happening worldwide—with almost all borders across the globe having opened anew to accept foreign visitors postpandemic—the Department of Tourism (DOT) has launched its latest campaign slogan, “Love the Philippines,” showcasing the manifold endearing offerings of this island-nation.

Visa Center, the Gulf country is home to approximately 250,000 Filipinos. “From a business perspective,

DENNIS Plaza (left), owner and managing director of Juanderer Travels, is shown with a colleague in the travel and tours industry in the Philippine booth during a tourism expo abroad.

MEkENI Food Corp. (Mekeni) President and CEO Prudencio Garcia (seated, left) and Hassan alkhiyami, CEO, alwatania International Holdings (alwatania) sign a commercial agreement for the processing, distribution and marketing of Mekeni meat products in Doha, Qatar. Witnessing the signing are: (from left) Gaith al khayatt, General Manager Doha National Food Industries, Wll (DNFI); leigh Castillo, Manager, Corporate Communications, Mekeni; Marilou Olalia-Uy, aVP for HR and Exports, Mekeni; aravind kumar, Trade Marketing Manager, Qatar National Import and Export, Wll ; Tojo Thomas, Retail Manager, QNIE; Moutaz korjo, Commercial Director, QNIE; ahmad alkhattan, Marketing Manager, DNFI. alwatania is the holding company of both DNFI and QNIE.

Govt makes partial award of reissued Treasury bonds

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

The national government settled for a partial award during Tuesday’s tender of Treasury bonds (T-bonds) as investors continued to seek higher yields, snapping over two consecutive months of full awards.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) made a partial award of the reissued T-bonds, borrowing P23.586 billion from the domestic market, or about 78.62 percent of its P30 billion offering.

The average rate for the reissued government security, which had a remaining life of 9 years and 2 months, was capped by the Treasury at 6.562 percent. The rate was higher than the 6.329 percent secondary market

benchmark level for a debt paper with the same maturity. With the partial award, the Treasury snapped its 10 weeks straight of full awards for the auction of Tbonds. The last time the Treasury made a partial award for its T-bonds tender was on April 18, when it raised P19.475 billion out of the P25 billion intended amount.

Tuesday’s auction saw investors’ asking rates ranging from a low of

6.4 percent to a high of 6.595 percent. The tender was oversubscribed by 1.8 times with total offers reaching P52.8 billion.

The partial award for T-bonds on Tuesday came on the heels of the Treasury’s partial award for Treasury bills (T-bills) last Monday wherein the national government only raised P9.2 billion out of its P15-billion target.

Like last month, the national gov-

BIR starts search for local ‘buwis masters’

IN line with the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) tax awareness campaign, a nationwide “Search for the Philippines’ Brightest Buwis Masters (PBBM)” of 2023 is being conducted, which is open to all college students.

The competition will start at the Regional Level to be conducted by 22 BIR Regional Offices from June 26 to July 7. The 22 Regional Champions will then compete at the National Level (Championship Round) to be held on July 28 at the BIR National Office.

The restaurant business operation of Shanzhen ha iwei Food Corp. (Shanzhen), a registered corporation under Revenue District Office No. 47- east Makati, located at Salcedo One St. Legaspi Village, Barangay San Lorenzo, Makati City, was padlocked along with its four branches.

ernment’s auctions of debt papers are being challenged by rising rates.

For this month, the national government plans to borrow P180 billion from the domestic market next month from the auction of T-bills and T-bonds.

Broken down, the Treasury said it plans to raise P60 billion from Tbills across four auctions and P120 billion from T-bonds across four auctions as well.

State auditors flag ‘lapses’ in BOC import tags

STAT e auditors flagged the Bureau of Customs’ (BOC) “inappropriate tagging” of imports worth P42.068 billion that resulted in unnecessary inspections of certain shipments while other goods were not subjected to mandatory physical inspection.

The Commission on Audit’s (COA) annual report on the BOC showed that there may have been lapses in the bureau’s e l ectronicto-Mobile or e 2 M system classification of some 48,903 import entries.

“The inappropriate tagging in the e 2 M system of 48,093 consumption entries worth P42.068 billion affected the Bureau’s efforts in fulfilling its revenue generation, border protection, and trade facilitation mandate,” the COA said in its audit report on BOC for 2022, which was published recently on its website.

The COA report indicated that the e 2 M system has built-in parameters or criteria that are necessary in classifying the processing of imported goods as part of the selectivity system of the BOC’s Risk Management Office (RMO).

The bureau’s RMO, the COA report noted, uses four colors or lanes: green for shipments that are released without further inspection; yellow for goods that require documentary check only; orange

for shipments that require nonintrusive examination or if found to be suspicious be subjected to physical examination; and red for imports that require X-ray scanning and physical examination.

The COA said its audit team (AT) found deficiencies in the implementation of the selectivity system after it evaluated the e 2 M system and conducted interviews with concerned BOC personnel.

First, the audit report showed that 2,416 import entries worth P3.558 billion were released “without 100 percent physical inspection.”

The audit report explained that the concerned import entries were “inappropriately” tagged as “green, yellow or orange.” The audit report pointed out that based on the criteria set by the BOC, the concerned shipments should have been tagged as “red” and therefore should have undergone mandatory physical inspection.

The COA said the release of the concerned shipments without 100 percent physical inspection may have allowed the entry of prohibited goods and misdeclared or undervalued shipments in the country.

“The reason why 100 percent physical inspection was required for imports as prescribed in the fixed criteria, is that the same are

considered high-risk,” the COA’s annual audit report read.

“Tagging the said importations under the ‘red’ lane category is vital for the Bureau to monitor and perform the required inspection of goods to ensure that no prohibited importations were allowed to enter the country and that duties and taxes were paid correctly,” it added.

The COA said the BOC management has agreed to require the RMO chief to “review” the consumption entries that were “inappropriately” tagged as green, yellow, or orange. The BOC management has also agreed to explain the non-compliance with its fixed criteria regarding its selectivity system to the AT, according to COA.

Furthermore, the AT also found that 45,677 import entries worth P38.51 billion should have been tagged as green or yellow lane and should have not undergone inspect ion by the BOC.

Instead, the COA report showed, they were “unnecessarily” subjected to inspection, scanning and “stringent” process of cargo clearance procedures by the BOC since they were tagged as yellow, orange or red in the e 2 M system.

The audit report showed that 26,029 of import entries with a total assessed duties and taxes

Finance professional skills of the future

AS a finance professional, it is essential to stay ahead of the curve and constantly adapt to the dynamic landscape of the finance industry. I recently had the privilege of being invited as a resource person to participate in a comprehensive review of a financial management curriculum in a prestigious university in the Philippines. This insightful discussion provided an opportunity for me to share valuable insights and recommendations on how to enhance the curriculum and equip future finance professionals for success. As a result of the insightful discussion, here are three of the key suggestions as significant areas of focus:

Personal finance

PR OMIN e N T finance advocates such as e f ren LI. Cruz, Randall Tiongson, and Chinkee Tan have long emphasized the importance of incorporating personal finance into the financial management curriculum. It is time for schools to recognize the significance of personal finance and

make it a mandatory subject. Understanding the principles of personal finance, including budgeting, saving, investing, and debt management, are crucial for individuals to help them make informed decisions about their own finances. Integrating personal finance as a mandatory subject will allow students to possess valuable life skills that can help them establish a solid foundation for their future financial well-being.

Design thinking

IN today’s increasingly dynamic and fast-paced business environment, finance professionals need to embrace design thinking. This skill allows individuals to approach problem-

solving with creativity, adaptability, and a focus on user-centric solutions. embracing design thinking principles empowers finance professionals to develop innovative strategies, improve customer experience, and drive sustainable growth for organizations.

Ethical use of artificial intelligence

W I T h the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, it is vital for finance professionals to have a comprehensive understanding about the ethical uses of AI. Dominic “Doc” Ligot, founder of CirroLytix and a board trustee of the Analytics and Artificial Intelligence Association of the Philippines, has been a champion in advocating for expanded understanding and ethical use of AI. I highly encourage readers to explore his YouTube series entitled “AI for Lunch” to gain an in-depth understanding about this topic. Adapting the responsible and ethical implementation of AI in financial processes has a good im-

The participants will face challenging rounds of tax-related quizzes and examinations designed to assess their knowledge of the tax laws, specifically pertaining to Income Tax, Value-Added Tax and Percentage Tax, as well as the BIR’s registration requirements.

The Top 3 Grand Winners of the BIR National Tax Quiz (Grand Champion, 1st Runner-up and 2nd Runner-up) will be declared as the “Philippines’ Brightest Buwis Masters (PBBM)” of 2023. They will receive Plaques of Recognition and cash prizes while their respective college/ university will receive a trophy.

“Through this competition, we hope to get the interest of the youth sector in taxation considering that they are our future taxpayers,” Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr. said in a statement.

“Results of the Regional Investigation Division’s surveillance conducted in February showed that the said establishment failed to register one of its branches, failed to issue registered receipts/invoices and understated its sales by more than 30 percent, in clear violation of Section 115 of the NIRC of 1997, as amended,” the BIR said.

Section 115(b) of the NIRC of 1997, as amended, as implemented through Revenue Memorandum Order 3-2009, authorizes the BIR to suspend or close the business operations of a taxpayer for a period of not less than five days for failure to: register; issue VAT official receipts or sales invoices; file VAT returns; or understatement of taxable sales/ receipts by 30 percent or more of correct taxable sales or receipts for the taxable quarter.

value of P30.353 billion should have been tagged as green instead of yellow, orange, and red.

Meanwhile, 18,195 import entries with an assessed duties and taxes worth P7.667 billion should have been green or yellow instead of orange, according to the audit report.

Lastly, 1,453 import entries with total assessed duties and taxes of P489.7 million should have been in the yellow lane and not in the orange and red lanes.

The COA explained that the misclassification of import entries could have caused delays in the movement of goods and “contributed” to additional costs to importers.

“Unnecessary inspection/scanning and stringent process of cargo clearance procedures for low risk shipments impedes the movement of cargoes and contributed to additional costs (e.g. arrastre, wharfage and demurrage charges) to importers due to time delays and does not support the achievement of BOC’s mandate on trade facilitation,” the COA report read.

The COA report indicated that the BOC management agreed to direct the RMO chief to also review the above-mentioned import entries and provide explanation for the inappropriate tagging.

Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

pact on the finance industry; professionals can enhance efficiency, mitigate risks, and safeguard consumer trust.

Finance professionals must evolve with the times and equip themselves with the skills of the future to thrive in the industry. Incorporating personal finance education, fostering design thinking disciplines, and making ethics central in the use of AI are essential steps in preparing for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. By embracing these skills, finance professionals can navigate the complexities of the financial landscape, drive innovation, and make a positive and meaningful impact in their organizations and society.

James Patrick Bonus is the Deputy Country Manager & Chief Finance Officer of FinScore, a fintech firm providing alternative data-based consumer credit scoring and identity verification solutions for financial institutions. Japs is also a regular subject matter resource speaker for the Bankers Institute of the Philippines and other organizations through Acepoint.ph Training Consultancy Services.

The details about the competition are contained in Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) 64-2023 and 67-2023 posted at the BIR Website (www.bir.gov.ph).

BIR padlocks restaurant

Me A NW hILe, BIR Division Chief Zeus Gamaliel Mendoza and Asst. Division Chief Jesse Alcaraz said the bureau temporarily closed a Chinese restaurant and its four branches last June 29 for violating Section 115 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) of 1997, as amended.

“Procedural due process was duly given to the said taxpayer by BIR Revenue Region (RR) 8A- Makati City, headed by Regional Director Florante R. Aninag, thru the issuance of a 48-hour Notice to explain the violations, and another 5-day VAT Compliance Notice to rectify the tax payment, but said taxpayer failed to comply with the said notices.”

The closure order was signed by Deputy Commissioner Maridur Rosario after the said establishments failed to comply with the requirements specified in the 5-Day VAT Compliance Notice under Section 115 of the NIRC of 1997, as amended.

The closure was implemented under the supervision of Regional Director Florante Aninag of RR 8AMakati City pursuant to the “Oplan Kandado” Program of the BIR.

China forex regulator’s funds may reach $1.5T

Ch I NA’ S foreign exchange regulator controls investment funds with overseas assets worth at least $1.5 trillion, some three times larger than those under the country’s flagship sovereign wealth fund.

That’s according to Zoe Zongyuan Liu, the author of “Sovereign Funds: how the Communist Party of China Finances Its Global Ambitions.” The book argues there should be greater focus on China’s State Administration of Foreign exchange, or SAFe, in assessments of China’s geo-economic strategy.

SAFe S director is Pan Gongsheng, who this month was made the Communist Party chief of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and is widely seen as next in line to become its governor—a move that brings further attention to the agency’s governance of foreign exchange market activity. Liu said Pan has had a “clear track record” of supporting the diversification of foreign exchange reserves management.

SAF e is formally under the PBOC’s control, though its director is ranked as a vice-minister in China’s government, giving the body some autonomy.

The agency made $1.5 trillion in contributions to vehicles such as the Silk Road Fund, the China-LAC Industrial Cooperation Investment Fund and the China-Africa Fund for Industrial Cooperation between 2007 and 2020, according to Liu’s research. Its assets under management are likely much larger due to rising market values since then, she added.

The funds, which are shrouded in secrecy, were set up as SAFe worked to diversify its foreign exchange holdings away from US government securities. They also help Beijing shape the global economic environment by allowing it to take stakes in companies in strategic sectors.

By acting at the firm level to take equity stakes, Beijing can “secure access to the overseas markets, resources, and technologies necessary to propel its economy,” Liu said. The SAFe - administered funds are larger than the overseas assets held by China’s flagship sovereign wealth fund, the China Investment Corporation. The CIC’s funds total between $365-460 billion, according to Liu, who added that estimates of China’s sovereign wealth holdings often overlook the CIC’s large domestic holdings in Chinese banks.

SAFe s fund investments could explain why China’s official reserve holdings have remained stable at around $3 trillion in recent years, despite China running a large trade surplus. The full value of those funds is not reflected in China’s reporting of its foreign exchange reserves, as only liquid assets count toward that total.

SAFe s move to establish overseas investment funds was partly due to an intergovernmental rivalry with China’s Ministry of Finance. That ministry was seen as having more sway over the CIC when it was established in 2007, according to Liu.

The SAFe - administered funds have focused on advanced economies such as the United Kingdom, along with industrial sectors, according to Liu. The SAFe -backed Silk Road Fund helped finance China’s Sinochem when it acquired a large stake in Italian tire-maker Pirelli & C. SpA, for example.

As the US and european governments become more wary of Chinese state-backed investment, SAFe funds have been making inroads elsewhere. The Silk Road Fund invested $12.4 billion to acquire a stake in Aramco Oil Pipelines Co. in 2021, and has taken stakes in Indonesian pharmaceutical firms. Bloomberg News

James Patrick Q. Bonus

IUSED to have a colleague who prided himself about having empowered his team. When some of us asked what he meant, he said that he had delegated most of his work to them and that he was free to focus on the more important things. After a few months, most of his team either resigned or went to another department.

Most people think that empowerment is the same as delegation. The truth is that delegation is only a small part of empowerment. It goes beyond assignments and tasks and significantly takes more time to develop in a team.

As a people manager, you do not empower your team by merely providing authority on a set of responsibilities. A key indicator of an empowered team is one where they take responsibility for the results of their work, and their willingness to do more for the team.

Numerous studies have shown that empowerment helps in enhancing creativity and how teams deal with different coworkers. Empowering leaders create an environment where their teams willingly exert discretionary effort for tasks and assignments that are outside their scope of work. An empowered employee sees assignments and tasks as opportunities to grow and improve their processes and workflows. This means that empowered employees are more involved and find new and better ways of working. An empowering leader helps their team feel a sense of safety, which then helps their team to take calculated risks and explore innovative ways in doing their work.

However, note that some employees perceive

empowerment as an indicator that their leader is indecisive, or that their leader is passing on work that they should be doing.

Others believe that their leader is avoiding the burden of taking responsibility for the entire team by passing accountability to team members. And based on my experience, it is possible that some leaders hide behind delegation as a subterfuge for empowerment to disguise their incompetence and avoid responsibility.

Empowerment is not giving tasks and responsibilities to team members and allowing them to fend for themselves. But, it also is not barking out orders, providing specific step by step process, and leaving their team to do as they are told.

Empowerment entails more involvement on the part of the people manager to help their team understand what needs to be done, but also giving them the space to achieve the team’s goal in their own way.

An empowering manager checks in frequently without disrupting the flow of work of their team members. Some managers are like helicopters who swoop in and out inconsistently that their team finds themselves interrupted in their work. Or, worse, they only come in when there is something wrong but stays out of sight for most of the time. Of course, there will be times when a manager does this, like in a crisis. But if it is done too often, it can lead to team members feeling they are not fully trusted. Managers need to deal with their team members differently because not everyone responds to the same approach. That is why it is important for people managers to get to know their team members well so they will know when to pull back or when to push.

Empowerment is creating an environment where team members can make mistakes and are encouraged to take risks to further improve how they do their work. It is creating a culture where strategic risk-taking and innovation are synonymous to exponential growth and development. It is providing your team a safe space where they can experiment on the best way they could do their work. This does not mean that they can do whatever they want. It just means freedom to choose the best way they know how

in order to achieve the team’s goals. In a previous organization, I asked two of my programmers to develop customized learning platforms for two of our clients. Since the clients were in a hurry, my developers worked for one client each even if some of the requested features were similar. After two weeks, I reviewed their work and discovered that each of them understood the needs of their respective clients. I asked them to present to the team how they designed their learning platforms so that others could learn from their work. During the presentation, both of them complimented each other and they discovered tips to improve their learning platforms. This just means that people managers need to provide a clear vision of where they want their team to be and provide opportunities for their team to learn from each other. The key is to ensure that the goals are clear, and everybody is headed in the same direction. One thing often overlooked in empowering teams is accountability. Team members need to understand that much as they are empowered, they also need to take responsibility for their actions. And even if you are ultimately accountable, they need to understand the concept of shared accountability. When they accept to do the work, they need to know that they are jointly responsible for the outcome. That is why it is important for you to know your team because their interests and motivations can help you in identifying projects and tasks where they excel. Your role is to coach them to think critically and make decisions on their own. Your most significant role in empowering your team is establishing a culture where everyone is free to suggest and implement ideas, challenge objectives when necessary, and where they can go to you for guidance when confronted with something unfamiliar. Your team needs to understand that they can make decisions on their own, but if they fail, you fail with them. Shared responsibility on the part of the manager means that since you are asking them to do their best, you are also saying that you will always have their backs. Like what Harvey Specter in Suits would say, “Loyalty is a two-way street. If I am asking it from you, then you are getting it from me.” n

POPE FRANCIS INVITES ARTISTS TO THE SISTINE CHAPEL AS THE VATICAN SEEKS A NEW CULTURAL DIALOGUE

VATICAN CITY—Pope Francis praised artists on Friday as true visionaries who can see, dream and invent as he welcomed 200 artists, filmmakers and writers into the Sistine Chapel to mark the 50th anniversary of the Vatican Museums’ contemporary art collection.

Francis acknowledged that some in the crowd— there was Andres Serrano, of Piss Christ fame— sometimes use confrontation to make people think. But he said their aim was to find harmony and beauty.

“You want to reveal reality also in its contradictions and in those things that it is more comfortable and convenient to keep hidden,” Francis said. “Like the biblical prophets, you confront things that at times are uncomfortable; you criticize today’s false myths and new idols, its empty talk, the ploys of consumerism, the schemes of power.”

Pope Paul VI first invited artists into the Sistine Chapel in 1964 in hopes of renewing the friendship between the Catholic Church and artists that, in past centuries, had resulted in such masterpieces as Michelangelo’s frescoed chapel itself.

That audience helped give birth, in 1973 with a concert conducted by Leonard Bernstein, to the inauguration of the Vatican Museums’ Modern

and Contemporary Art collection. The collection, the youngest in the museum, is marking its 50th anniversary this year with an exhibit of some of its most recent acquisitions, including by artists invited to Friday’s audience.

In recent years, the Vatican has sought to relaunch the Holy See’s engagement with contemporary culture, participating in the Venice art and architecture biennales and, in the future, literary festivals.

In the audience Friday were such figures as author Jhumpa Lahiri; director Abel Ferrara, whose recent film Padre Pio pays homage to the Italian saint; contemporary artist Anselm Kiefer and Italian actor Silvio Orlando, whose portrayal of a fictional Vatican secretary of state in The Young Pope and The New Pope made him seem perfectly at home in the Apostolic Palace. Serrano, for his part, said he was surprised to have even been invited and thrilled when he went up to greet Francis at the end of the audience. He said he introduced himself in Spanish, asked Francis for a blessing, and the Argentine pope playfully slapped his wrist and gave him a thumbs up.

Serrano’s 1987 photograph Piss Christ has caused controversy ever since it was first exhibited, given the

image depicts a crucifix submerged in urine.

Speaking to reporters after the audience, Serrano said he understood his invitation was evidence “that the church understands that I am a Christian artist and I am not a blasphemous artist. I am just an artist.”

“If Piss Christ disturbs you, maybe you should think about what it symbolizes. And what it symbolizes is a very horrific and painful and tragic and inhuman way for a human being to die. And that’s how they crucified Christ,” he said.

Bishop Paul Tighe, the No. 2 in the Vatican’s culture and education ministry, said the inclusion of even provocative artists was evidence of the Vatican’s desire to enter into dialogue with contemporary culture.

“We’re ready for a conversation,” Tighe said. “We want to hear and talk with, meet with, dialog with artists, because we think artists have perspectives and ways of seeing the world that we need to take account of.”

Asked in particular about Serrano, Tighe added: “I think we all just have to work on the presumption of good faith of the artist who is trying to say something, challenge something, and may sometimes have to resort to strong measures to waken us up.” AP

FOR a country hailed as the center of biodiversity and blessed with an abundance of fresh tropical fruits and vegetables, it is ironic that the Philippines has been grappling with the issue of undernutrition as far as we can remember. And we’re not just talking about the millions of children whose limited food choices at home have left them emaciated and small for their age. Even adults suffer from nutrient deficiencies too.

“While poverty is often thought to be the cause of micronutrient deficiencies, it’s also due to Filipinos’ overdependence on rice and lack of diversity in their diets,” said Maricar M. Esculto, RND, MD, head of nutrition and dietetics department of the top hospital in the Philippines, Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed, www.makatimed.net.ph).

“Adults who think they can get by with a cup of instant noodle soup for lunch and a fastfood burger, fries and soda for dinner every day are not getting the adequate vitamins and minerals needed for the human body to function optimally.”

At least 30 vitamins and minerals allow our body to do what it is supposed to do on the regular: digest food, repair injuries, flush out toxins, convert what we eat and drink into energy, and the like. “Without these vitamins and minerals, you disrupt your body’s metabolism, experience weakness, and increase your risk of disease,” Esculto pointed out.

“A blood test can confirm if you are indeed lacking in specific nutrients. But also, be aware of symptoms you can see and feel. As soon as you can identify your particular nutrient deficiency, you can address it with a simple tweak in your diet.”

This Nutrition Month, MakatiMed cites Filipinos’ most common nutrition deficiencies and the simple ways to correct them:

n IRON—helps make hemoglobin that transports oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. Esculto says it also makes myoglobin, which supplies our muscles with oxygen. The recommended nutrient intake (RNI) per day of iron for the average adult male is 12mg. For adult women who have their period, it can be as high as 28mg. Luckily, accessible foods like beef, liver, beans, legumes, fortified cereals, whole and fortified grain products are rich sources of iron.

“A lack of iron could lead to anemia, a condition wherein the body doesn’t produce enough red blood cells. Note the fatigue, pale skin and lips, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, lightheadedness, and cold hands and feet.

Women with anemia may experience premature delivery or maternal mortality,” shared Esculto.

n VITAMIN C—found in many of our fruits and vegetables strengthens our immune system. A potent antioxidant, it may aid in slowing the aging process, too. “A severe deficiency in Vitamin C makes us vulnerable to a host of diseases. Expect your skin to be dry and bruise easily, your gums to bleed, your joints to ache, your wounds to heal slowly, and your energy levels to nosedive,” noted Esculto.

Since the body does not produce or store Vitamin C, consuming it daily is a must. The RNI per day for adult males is 70mg and 60mg for adult females. Local favorites papaya, guava, calamansi, pineapple, and the nutrient-dense malunggay or moringa are all packed with Vitamin C.

Often associated with bone and teeth health, calcium is also responsible for muscle contraction, transporting blood throughout the body, and helping nerves send messages to the brain and other body parts. “Nails that are brittle and bones that fracture easily are not the only symptoms of hypocalcemia or severe deficiency in calcium. Muscle cramps and spasm, numbness in the hands, feet, and face, and even depression, hallucinations, and confusion or memory loss have been observed among those with low levels of calcium,” explained Esculto.

Don’t like milk? Turn to cheese, yogurt, sardines, beans, lentils, nuts and leafy green vegetables like kale and spinach to get your daily dose of calcium. The average adult, male or female, needs 750-800mg of calcium a day.

n IODINE—helps produce thyroid hormones, which are responsible for our growth and development, the optimum function of our brain and nervous system, modulation of the female reproductive system, and keeping our body temperature normal. “Goiter, or the swelling of the neck, results from a lack of iodine in the diet. So do maternal-related conditions like prenatal death and infant mortality. Pregnant women who lack adequate iodine in their system put their babies at risk for hearing impairment, cleft palate, and mental retardation,” said Esculto.

Seafood is an excellent source of iodine. So are dried fish and fresh seaweeds. Since 1995, government has taken steps to address iodine deficiency and its effects. Republic Act No. 8172, or the ASIN Law, aims to put an end to disorders caused by iodine deficiency by mandating all salt producers and manufacturers to iodize their products.

PHOTO BY ANNIE SPRATT ON UNSPLASH

These four nutrients are lacking in most Filipinos’ diets

PhilHealth appoints one of its VPs as spokesperson

SM, DMIRIE Foundations Inc. MOA on medical missions

AMEMORANDUM Agreement (MOA) between SM Foundation, Inc. and DMIRIE Foundation, Inc. was recently signed to fomalize a partnership in the conduct of medical and dental missions throughout the country.

DMIRIE’s undertakings include preparation of gift packs for patients based on target beneficiaries finalized with SM Foundation; provision of snacks for patients waiting for consultation and those who have undergone tests. They will also provide unlimited coffee to patients as well as medical mission volunteers. Aside from gift packs, patients are given Bibles in the Pilipino language.

SM Foundation is responsible for the provision of medicines and medical supplies for use during the activity. Volunteer doctors, dentists, nurses, nutritionists are gathered by the SMFI in cooperation with LGUs and other partners of the two foundations. The mobile clinic of SMFI will also be used in the conduct of X-rays and ECGs for patients.

As stipulated in the MOA, SM Foundation and DMIRIE Foundation will assign their respective personnel to coordinate regularly schedule of the medical missions. The MOA provided that SM Foundation should inform DMIRIE Foundation in writing at least a

month before a scheduled medical mission.

Meals of DMIRIE personnel and volunteers for the medical mission will be provided by SM Foundation

DMIRIE Foundation, Inc. is the CSR arm established and supported by DMI, Medical Supply Company, Inc., the company behind MX3 products. It was incorporated in 2003 as a charity organization which extends support to

the indigent, marginalized and povertystricken individuals and communities. As posted on its website DMIRIE Foundation’s main purpose and core goal are to serve and help the needy, show compassion, and share the word of God. It programs are discipleship, scholarship, health and wellness assistance, burial assistance, feeding, livelihood and infrastructural support and services.

Taking pride in the workplace of Newport World Resorts

Taking one crucial step at a time, she plans to equip all employees with workshops on diversity and inclusion, beginning with its leaders. “We believe they are the key to building a culture of belonging by making the employees feel welcome, respected, and valued by defining, setting the tone, and rewarding the culture we want to foster.”

In the workplace, it matters to have an HR representative from the queer community so that all the company’s policies meet the needs of LGBTQIA+ employees. Championing the voice of his community in the workplace is England Alano, the HR Director for Talent Acquisition, Culture & Engagement.

PHILHEALTH announced that effective July 3, 2023, the agency’s new spokesperson is Albert Francis E. Domingo MD, Msc. He is a Vice President at the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). He oversees the primary care policy, in addition to serving as the Head Executive Staff of the Chairperson of the Board of Directors.

Dr. Domingo is a physician and health systems specialist who graduated from the University of the Philippines and later on from the University of Edinburgh where he was a Chevening Scholar of the United Kingdom. He has 15 years of public health experience at country and international levels, having worked with the World Health Organization, Asian Development Bank and the United States Agency for International Development.

Dr. Domingo is familiar with health system interactions with non-communicable diseases, sexual and reproductive health, TB, HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and emergency response (COVID-19) in complex devolved settings. He is well versed with the market systems approaches to health, which includes private sector engagement. He is also familiar with general principles of law and jurisprudence.

Dr. Domingo previously directed communication and disease prevention and control at the Department of Health (Philippines), where he also supported the Officer-in-Charge Secretary of Health for legal, regulatory and management concerns. He has also functioned as senior technical staff at the Health Finance Policy Sector of PhilHealth.

Consistent with his passion and advocacy for health, he is also a licensed group fitness instructor.

Microfinance NGO ASA Philippines Foundation raises P5 billion from PHL‘s first-ever gender bonds issuance

ASA Philippines Foundation, Inc. (ASA), the country’s leading microfinance non-government organization, successfully raised P5 billion from the issuance of five-year fixed rate corporate notes. The proceeds of the issue will be used for working capital purposes to expand ASA’s lending business, which wholly targets women as principal borrowers to empower them and achieve financial inclusion for the vulnerable, indigent female sector.

Due to the intended beneficiaries, the corporate notes issuance was appropriately classified as a Gender Bond, the first of its kind in the country. The classification was certified by social bond second-party opinion provider DNV (made possible through the technical assistance provided by the Asian Development Bank) and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

be inclusive, especially for underserved women in the country,” according to Carel D. Halog, Executive Vice President of the Treasury and Investment Banking Sector of LANDBANK. “The participation of LANDBANK, BDO Capital, and other partners to this transaction is a testament of our collective confidence in the capabilities of the Filipina to uplift the lives of Filipino families.”

IN a colorful celebration of love, diversity, and inclusivity, Pride Month takes center stage every June, with the vibrant energy of the LGBTQIA+ community and its allies worldwide. The annual commemoration is a powerful reminder of the progress made toward fostering a more inclusive society. As the world celebrates, Newport World Resorts beamed with pride, hosting events and initiatives that honor diversity, promote awareness, and foster a sense of unity.

A slew of festivities filled the property, beginning with the first-ever Manila Pride Ball held at KAO Manila, where some of the country’s top drag performers and celebrities gathered at the glamorous ball-themed party. While thousands of theatergoers witnessed the colorful curtain call of the hit Filipino musical Ang Huling El Bimbo in every show performed this June, showcasing the Pride flag and a beautiful message of inclusivity through song lyrics.

Apart from events held across the property, Newport World Resorts provided a platform for its LGBTQIA+ employees to have their voices and stories heard. The two sessions of “Thrillax Talks.” the newest speaking engagement platform for employees. One session opened important conversations on SOGIE and another heard the inspiring fatherhood joy of a single gay dad. Through dialogue and sharing of experiences, ideas, and insights, colleagues had the opportunity to foster understanding and empathy for not only members of the LGBTQIA+ but everyone throughout the organization.

As the leader of these initiatives, Chief HR Officer Terri Llamas shares that, “Our goal is to ensure that our employees feel

like they can be their authentic selves and make them feel valued regardless of their background, identity, or beliefs.”

Beyond Pride Month, Newport World Resorts ensures that inclusivity is championed all year round. Building an inclusive workplace is a long road ahead, and Newport World Resorts takes the right steps forward through its programs and benefits. Over the years, policies have been revised and new ones have been created in order to provide a safe environment for LGBTQIA+ employees and to extend them the same benefits as all other employees.

In 2022, Newport World Resorts partnered with a new group life insurance provider, Etiqa, that allows the enrollment of common-law partners, regardless of sexual orientation. Having 4,700 employees, the company also understands that each has different needs and priorities.

For example, HMOs have limitations, wherein one cannot enroll non-immediate family members. To give them more flexibility in their options, the Choices program was implemented, allowing the conversion of unused benefits into points.

Moving forward, Newport World Resorts continuously expands its world by tapping into every talent pool possible. Using competency-based hiring and performance management, the focus will be on the individual’s knowledge, behaviors, attitudes, and skills demonstrated to fulfill the role instead of identity or gender. According to Llamas, “We choose to see the potential and talent in others. We have employees from LGBTQIA+ and various backgrounds such as solo parents, those coming from the province, and high school graduates.”

“As a member of the LGBTQIA+, I am honored to be given the trust to handle the company’s culture and employer branding. I have never felt that my SOGIE has limited my career growth. My career has been continuously progressing and I’m grateful to the company for the opportunities given to grow professionally, regardless of my SOGIE.”

Aside from performing a job that is tough enough, he had to emerge stronger from the ill judgment thrown towards the initiatives for inclusivity. With these, he hopes in the future to have an engaged group that will bring LGBTQIA+ employees together. “I wish to have a sense of community through all yearround initiatives that will bring awareness and help create a more inclusive and accepting world for everyone.”

It is crucial to infuse the workplace with the spirit of inclusivity that goes beyond Pride Month. Newport World Resorts takes pride in its sincerest initiatives to go beyond performative efforts and actively advocates for and supports its LGBTQIA+ talents, as well as people of all backgrounds. An inclusive workplace is where everyone can advance in their careers, and work as their true selves.

A larger than life experience awaits at Newport World Resorts. Become a Thrillmaker today, you know you want to. For more information on For more information on Newport World Resorts’ “A World of Career Opportunities” Career Fair 2023, visit www.newportworldresorts.com and follow @NWRCareers and @ NWREmployeeEvents on Facebook, @ newportworldresorts on LinkedIn and Instagram, and @nwresorts on Twitter.

visit

Jointly arranged by BDO Capital & Investment Corporation (BDO Capital) and the Investment Banking Group of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK), the notes will be issued on July 5. The issuance comes at an opportune time as ASA rebounds from the challenging economic environment over the past three years that affected not only the organization but also the entire world.

“We at BDO Capital and LANDBANK are extremely proud to be a part of this landmark issue that combines excellent corporate credit and a noble social cause,” said Eduardo V. Francisco, President of BDO Capital & Investment Corporation. “ASA’s mission to touch and uplift the indigent female population deeply resonates with us, especially as we fulfill our responsibility to a wide array of stakeholders. We thank ASA for their trust, and we are rooting for them to succeed in their mandate.”

“The issuance demonstrates LANDBANK’s steadfast commitment to advance gender equality and women empowerment. Sustainable growth should

Meanwhile, ASA Philippines President and CEO Kamrul H. Tarafder expressed his profound gratitude towards the institutions that made the issue possible. “We have witnessed firsthand the hard work and dedication of BDO Capital and LANDBANK in seeing this transaction through. On behalf of our borrowers and members, whom we affectionately call Nanays, we thank them profusely for spearheading this transaction.” Tarafder then added, “We must admit, however, that raising these funds is only the first step, and our work here is not over. We are excited to expand our operations and help as many more Nanays as we can to make us worthy of the ASA brand and the Gender Bond certification granted to us. We started working on lowering our fees substantially to provide maximum benefit to the poor, and we hope that this will set an example not just for the microfinance NGO sector, but also for the private sector in general.”

ASA Philippines Foundation, Inc. is a non-stock, nonprofit organization registered with the SEC on July 9, 2004 to provide access to financial and economic facilities, social, and other developmental opportunities to disadvantaged sectors. These include the small, cottage, and microentrepreneurial poor of the community, empowering them through self-employment and economic upliftment. ASA Philippines also conducts microfinance operations pursuant to R.A. 10693 (An Act Strengthening Nongovernment Organizations (NGOs) Engaged in Microfinance Operations for the Poor).

DR. Albert Domingo, PhilHealth’s new spokesman

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and sign up for an Epic Membership or download the Newport World Resorts Mobile App for free at the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

WITNESSING the MOA signing were, from left, DMIRIE Foundation, Inc. Executive Director Melanie Arcillas; SM Foundation, Inc. Executive Director for Health and Wellness Connie Angeles; and DMI, Medical Supply Co. Inc. Regional Account Executive Manager 1 Mercy Franco, Rean May Inventor, Mrketing Head and Jerry de Lara, Program Coordination of DMIRIE Foundation during the MOA signing.

‘TRAVEL: WE'RE BACK IN FULL COLOR.’ Travel Innovators Inc.. headed by Vice-President, Ma. Paz Alberto who also chairs the 10th Travel Madness Expo (TME), led the opening ceremonies of one of the biggest travel events in the country on June 30, 2023. The 10th TME, held at Halls 1 to 4 of SMX Convention Center, offered different travel destinations both local and international at discounted prices. Joining Alberto (7th from left) during the ribbon-cutting event were, from left: Dusit Thani Hotel ManagerMICHAEL KEMPF; JNTO’s Makoto Watanabe; Yam Batac of PLDT; Information and Communication Technology Assistant Secretary PHILP VARILLA; Brayn Bryan Sansolis of PAL; Atty Carmelo Arcilla of Cvil Aeronautics Board; Jen Lacerna of BPI; Bong Velasquez of Saber; Arlene Tena of Cebu Pacific; Peter Eric Pardo, Chief of Staff of Pasay City Mayor Emy Calixto Rubiano; Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Carlos Sorreta; Wallace Minn-Gan Chow of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office and Jetro Nicolas Lozada of Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.

Establishing a meaningful partnership with Sta. Lucia Mall

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

Now in its 24th year of operating in the mall, The French Baker, which opened their branch in April 1999, is the longest staying tenant of the property developer.

Johnlu Koa, founder and CEO, The French Baker, decided to open a branch in Sta. Lucia Mall because there was an opportunity to build and expand the brand in the Marikina and Taytay areas.

“In the early 90s the mall was alone in serving the Marikina and Taytay areas. Meanwhile, The French Baker was just five years old. Sta. Lucia had a lot of similarities with the other major malls,” Koa told the BusinessMirror

Koa didn’t think twice about putting up a branch in Sta. Lucia as the management because it provided attractive terms to ensure the iconic brand will have a productive stay in the mall. “Sta. Lucia offered a prime corner lease space at the ground floor by the grand indoor fountain that made dining indoor alfresco an attraction

to mall shoppers. It also offered reasonable lease rent,” Koa said.

Koa made the right decision to put up a branch in Sta. Lucia Mall as it became the biggest nearby residential everyday go-to mall for entertainment, supermarket and department store shopping in the eastern part of Metro Manila.

“Shoppers come in relaxed and casual wear that is appropriate at the mall. Retail shops that appeal to local tastes invariably keep local shoppers frequently coming back. A fresh-bakery café such as The French Baker completes their shopping experience,” Koa said.

Meanwhile, National BookStore, which opened its Sta. Lucia branch in July 2021, wanted to establish a presence in Santa Lucia Mall because it has been a go-to shopping and recreation destination for residents of Rizal, Pasig, and Marikina for many years.

In an interview with the National Bookstore president Adrian Ramos, he said the prominent bookstore founded by Socorro Ramos also aims to extend its market coverage of its range of books and school and office supplies to be as accessible to as many Filipinos as possible, and having a branch in Sta. Lucia Mall is a great opportunity the Ramos family wanted

to maximize. “And in the more than two decades since we opened our Sta. Lucia Mall branch in 2002, we are glad to have served countless Laking National customers,” he said.

During the challenging times, Ramos commended the Sta. Lucia Mall management because it extended a helping hand to National Bookstore to overcome the challenges brought by the pandemic through its rental concessions. “And as we move on from the pandemic, we are excited to explore additional activities, events, and opportunities to re-engage customers and

bring customers back to our Sta. Lucia Mall branch,” Ramos noted.

Ramos said one major reason why shoppers continue to patronize Sta. Lucia Mall is because of the presence of an exciting variety of establishments, fun activities and events, and its prime location, intersecting three cities and one municipality. Moreover, the integration of the Light Rail Transit 2 has made the mall even more accessible to shoppers from other areas. “National Book Store is looking forward to welcoming more Filipino families to our Sta. Lucia Mall

branch, especially this coming back to school season,” he said.

Developing the capability of the tenants

T O e nsure their businesses will be sustainable, Rose Santos-Mantolino, Leasing manager of Sta. Lucia Mall, explained to the BusinessMirror that the real estate developer helps in building and developing the capabilities of its tenants through relocation, zoning, and promotion. Meanwhile, the Lease Administration office will focus on relocating the tenants to determine the area which is beneficial and accessible to their target market.

Santos-Mantolino added Santa Lucia Mall will also create a marketable zoning area, which can increase tenant profitability and promotion through the help of the advertising and promotion department. Meanwhile, the two departments will take charge of increasing the mall and its tenant’s market reach by creating marketing promotion on social media, creating various activities consistently such as major events Mr. and Ms. Sexy Body, Generation East that will help increase the mall’s foot traffic, create social media interaction, reach a wider market, increase market engagement, and profitability.

To be continued

Su M MER b rings life to the tedium of a person’s daily routine. Everything about this season speaks outdoors—trips to the beach, getting in touch with nature, afternoon picnics, and outdoor camping. It signals t he perfect time to bring out the fashionable summer clothes in your closet, hang out with friends, binge on in-season fruits, and bask in vibrant days knowing there are fewer possibilities of rain ruining the day.

I n tropical countries like the Philippines, there are only two seasons, the wet, which is filled with rainy days and cold nights, and the dry, which is summer. Travelers around the world visit the country in April and May to maximize getaways to pristine beaches and experience all the unique archipelagic offerings. For locals, it is the best time to book a s ummer trip for the whole family.

By Roderick L. Abad

DAMOSA Land, Inc. (DLI) has tied up with Imperial Homes Corp. (IHC) for a joint development of a groundbreaking sustainable and resilient community in Panabo City, Davao, which is set to be launched in the first quarter of 2024.

Per the Memorandum of Agreement signed recently by DLI President Ricardo Lagdameo and IHC Group of Companies President Emma M. Imperial, the new project will combine the expertise of both companies to bring an advantageous midmarket housing with beneficial cuttingedge technologies.

Witnessing the ceremonial rite were Engr. Edison Palpallatoc, chief operating officer of Connovate Philippines Inc.; and Atty. Nicolas Banga, chief legal officer of the Anflo Group of Companies.

The horizontal project will be strategically located in a 5-hectare enclave nestled within the growing community next to the Anflo Industrial Estate. It will have a

total of 549 housing units.

DLI owns the land and the development while IHC will develop and build modern-designed housing units with solar net metered solutions using the resilient Danish construction technology of Connovate to assure future homeowners zero electricity bills.

This will be the first-of-its-kind residential project in Mindanao to have sunpowered dwellings built with eco-friendly and disaster-proof construction technology—setting new milestones in the industry and upgrading Filipinos’ home and living standards while mitigating the ensuing climate change and housing backlog issues.

Redefining the home experience while changing the region’s real-estate landscape, this latest project revitalizes the partnership of IHC Group and DLI, which started in 2019, as the former supplies its Connovate building technology to DLI’s Ameria, a residential project in Agriya, particularly for the Magnolia and Acacia model houses.

This year, in light of easing travel restrictions, access to the outdoors is beginning to c ome up again. Local and international travels have opened, destinations are getting filled with guests, restaurants are experiencing long queues, and beaches are flooded with tourists—making fun summer memories every b it possible.

Camella’s Take Your Best Splash Photography Contest 2023

C A MELLA s piced up summer through a photography contest for professionals and hobbyists. The “Take Your Best Splash” photography contest allowed participants to showcase t heir passion for photography and the fun that comes along with shooting these images within their Camella community of choice.

Splash photography, a feature in the contest, is a way of capturing and documenting natural or artificial water movements, ranging from waterfalls, dewdrops in plants, rain droplets, to capturing splashes of someone using the pool, children playing in puddles, or fur ba

bies enjoying a sprinkler shower to cool down.

lloY D BiS q uera from Tagum City, Davao snagged a relaxing getaway for two to Boracay as the winner in the professional category. with him were Camella Tagum Marketing

to capture a blissful summer getaway. It is an excellent opportunity to convey different stories and emotions through photographs.

All communities of Camella in 47 provinces and 149 key cities and municipalities nationwide opened their gates and amenity areas to w elcome the participants of “Take Your Best Splash” photography contest.

Besting other entries were hobbyist Mart Juden Baradas from Bacolod City, who brought home a brand new GoPro Hero 11, while Llyod Bisquera from Tagum City, Davao snagged a relaxing getaway for two to the Island Paradise of Boracay as the winner in the professional category. Judging this splash photography contest

were multi-awarded photographer Cris Magsino of Vertical Design; Tough Cookie Designs C hief Operating Officer Sid Estrella; and Ar. Frances Francisco, Concept Development officer for Vista Estates.

C amella aspires to go beyond building houses to shelter the Filipino families. Part of the company mission is to establish strong communities that have positive impact on their homeowners› way of life. Camella allows families to live their dream lives by settling in neighborhoods where nature›s tranquility and city-living convenience abound. Learn more about the communities of Camella nationwide. Visit www.camella.com.ph a nd follow @CamellaOfficial.

Part 1

Sta. Lucia Mall’s partnership with its tenants, especially The French Baker, National Bookstore, Kenny Rogers and Pizza Hut speaks highly of how the property developer takes care of its tenants to enable them to grow for the long haul.

h o B BY iS T Mart Juden Baradas from Bacolod City bested other participants to win a brand new GoPro hero 11. handing over the prize was angelika Jainga of Camella Bacolod Marketing Team.

S Ta. lucia Mall has been the go-to mall in the eastern part of Metro Manila

The french Baker naTional Book Store

The winning entry for the Camella “Take Your Best Splash Photo Contest” hobbyist Category, taken at Camella Bacolod South.

Team, lyra liza Mahinay, Mona Chrislene Tiempo and Mary Grace rojas.

The winning entry for the Camella “Take Your Best Splash Photo Contest” Professional Category, taken at Camella Tagum.

B8 | Wednesday, July 5, 2023

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

Editor: Jun Lomibao

EJ’S MISSION: BEAT MONDO, WIN GOLD

By Josef Ramos

NOW that a ticket to his second Olympics is secured, Ernest John “EJ” Obiena leveled up on his mission: beat Armand Duplantis and win gold in Paris.

I want to win the Olympics— that’s all in my mind right now,” said Obiena, who cleared the Olympic qualifying height of 5.82 meters at the Diamond League Bauhaus-Galan

ITALY pulled off a reverse sweep against rival Brazil, 23-25, 2520, 25-15, 25-21, to shore up its playoff hopes in the crucial Week 3 of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) men’s tournament Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The world No. 4 Italians unleashed a searing 6-2 closeout in the fourth set highlighted by Daniele Lavia’s ace to break free from a 19-all deadlock and cap a thrilling reversal in front of a sizeable enthusiastic Filipino fans.

Italy improved to a 6-3 wonlost record to tie Brazil at fourth place in the final preliminary leg of the 16-team VNL organized by the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and Volleyball World.

Spiker Yuri Romano led from front with 20 points on 16 hits and four aces as the Italians avenged their tough 19-25, 26-28,18-25, 20-25 loss to world No. 1 Poland last week in the Netherlands to boost their chances for a top 8 finish.

O nly the top eight teams will qualify in the final round of the VNL, backed by Ganten, Gerflor, Mikasa, Mizuno, Senoh and Stake. com as global sponsors, from July 19 to 24 in Poland.

A lessandro Michieletto chipped in 17 points, Gianluca Galassi towered

Meet in Stockholm on Sunday.

B ut winning gold means Obiena has to topple Duplantis, the world and Olympic champion and world record holder.

Obiena broke the 6.0-meter barrier last month in Norway, but that height is still below Duplantis world standard of 6.12 meters.

Obiena accomplished his goal of qualifying for Paris early in the yearlong window and now only has the gold medal in his mind.

We’re no longer chasing points in the

Badminton body all set to revive stalled grassroots effort in provinces

qualification system and no more ranking positions that I have to go through,” Obiena said. “I just wanted to qualify first in the first place, and now we can plan our approach for the Paris Olympics.”

Obiena wants redemption in Paris after winding up in 11th place in his Olympic debut in Tokyo.

H e has a year and one month to do just that.

Obiena and legendary coach Vitaly Petrov flew from Sweden to Sotteville in France for the Meeting International de Sotteville.

Obiena will compete in the Asian championships in Bangkok from July 12 to 16 with less pressure and with the bragging rights that he has raised the bar as a continental record holder.

“ There’s the Asian championships and the Asian Games that I need to compete in, too,” he said.

The Hangzhou 20th Asian Games are from September 23 to October 8.

O biena clinched silver behind Duplantis at the Diamond League’s Bauhaus-Galan Meet with the Swede superstar winning

Italians get back at Brazilians in men’s VNL Week 3 opener

ERNEST JOHN “EJ” OBIENA can now focus on raising the bar even higher.

the gold medal with 6.05.

N orway’s Pal Haugen Lillefosse settled for the bronze with 5.72 meters.

“ There are still a lot of things to learn,” Obiena said. “I have to work so hard.” Obiena thus became the first Filipino to qualify for next year’s July 26-August 12 Paris Games. He made 5.81 meters in 2019 for his first Olympics in Tokyo 2020.

with 12 points on four blocks while

Lavia added 10 points in a scattered attack for Italy, which is out for redemption this time around after its top-seed finish last year went to waste in a semifinal exit.

We’re very happy for this win. We need this in the standings. After losing the first set, we played well and won the next three. We’re very happy. It’s very important for our qualification,” said Romano, whose thunderous kill gave Italy a 20-19 lead in the clincher.

R anged against a fierce rival that already beat them thrice in Olympic gold medal encounters, the Italians dropped a close opening salvo, 23-25, but retaliated with a bang punctuated by a 25-15 third-set dominance to take a 2-1 upperhand.

Brazil, the 2021 champion, would not go down easily the same way in the fourth set in a bid to force a decider until Romano and Galassi joined hands with a string of hammering attacks. Lavia then iced the deal with a sweet service ace.

Henrique Dantas Nobrega Honorato paced with 15 points while Ricardo Lucarelli Souza and Flavio Resende Gualberto had 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Brazilians, who could not follow up their massive 25-20, 26-24, 19-25, 25-23 upset of reigning champion France last week.

UST QPav to host 2 PBA on Tour exhibition games

UNIVERSITY of Santo

Tomas (UST) will host four Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) on Tour preseason exhibition games o at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion Arena on Wednesday.

N orthport Batang Pier and

DEPUTY House Speaker Robbie

Puno, the new president of the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP), remembers the first world class fight he ever saw on television.

He also recalls distinctly, but not with much fondness, his first taste of what getting hit feels like.

The very first fight I saw on TV was Muhammad Ali versus Oscar Bonavena,” said Puno, referring to the December 7, 1970, heavyweight bout between Ali, who was coming out of a three-and-a-half-year suspension from boxing for draft evasion, and a hard-punching brawler from Argentina, who had gone the full distance against Joe Frazier in two previous fights. Ali won the fight via a 15th round technical knockout. “

I’ve loved watching Ali since,”

NLEX Road Warriors clash at 5 p.m., Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and Meralco Bolts take the court at 7:30 p.m.

O n-air broadcast will be done by Cignal TV through the PBA Rush and One Sports channels.

T he UST Salinggawi Dance

Troupe and UST Yellow Jackets will perform in between games and during half time. Tickets will be available starting from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the ground floor of Gate B of the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion— Patron P450, Lower Box P350 and

General Admission P250. P roceeds of the event will be donated to the program for Thomasian Student-Athletes. The games will be open to the general public. Strict adherence to the campus health protocols will be expected from attendees.

Italy takes on Canada next while Brazil tangles with the Netherlands on Thursday of the VNL that also has PLDT, Rebisco, Akari and the PSC as major sponsors with support from Fitbar, Instax Fujifilm, Fitness First, Pasay City, Taguig City, Diamond Hotel, Maynilad, Peugeot, SM MOA Arena, The Look and The Moment Group with Cignal, Inquirer Group, RMN, DOOH, One Sports, One Sports+ and Mega Mobile as media partners.

ABAP boxers, coaches welcome new leader in Baguio City camp

said Puno, who took over the ABAP reins last May after the untimely passing of longtime secretary-general and later president Ed Picson.

“And, of course, I’ve also been a fan of our very own Manny Pacquiao,” he added, having long followed the rise and reign of the eight-time world boxing champion.

The erstwhile federation vice president was formally introduced to the national boxers at the ABAP’s training facility in Baguio City last Saturday, with ABAP chairman and former president Ricky Vargas, Tokyo Olympics silver medalists Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio, and national coach Pat Gaspi taking turns in welcoming the five-term Antipolo First District representative.

Obiena a model of focus, discipline

first Filipino to barge into the 2020 Tokyo Olympics that was held in 2021 in lieu of the pandemic.

Obiena, now 27, finished 11th in Tokyo, but only after his focus got distracted by an indiscretion of a rules official as Obiena was about to plunge to action.

But that is all water under the bridge now, so to speak.  Moving on, he has reaped one wonder after another, practically putting the Philippines on the world sporting map through his extraordinary exploits.

Just last Monday (PHL time), the Tondo-born pole vault sensation, who has been Italy-based for nearly a decade now, cleared 5.82 meters in the Bauhas Galan Games in Sweden to qualify for the Paris Olympics a year from now.

Th at is a feat that bears watching as even the likes of Hidilyn Diaz has yet to achieve.

A lthough already a gallant weightlifting winner in Tokyo as she ended the Philippines’ near-century gold medal drought, Diaz can only join Obiena in Paris by conquering qualifying event/s.

OK, a bit of trivia.

The Olympics and the Masters are similar in that they require stern requirements before one could play there.

W hile the Olympics can admit only qualifiers, the Masters golf will need to send letters of invitation to the participants.

So strict are the Masters officials in Augusta, Georgia, that even the Masters defending champion cannot show up without getting invited himself—in black and white.

B ack to Obiena.

T he kid’s focus, determination and resilience are simply awesome.

A mid adversity—remember his energy-draining row with officials of his own mother association a while back?—he remains just as unflappable as a captain whose ship is in distress.

THE Philippine Badminton Association (PBAD) announced the revival of its grassroots program after an extended hiatus.

I n line with the vision of chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, PBAD is committed to nurturing young badminton talents in the Philippines and ultimately producing a Filipino badminton Olympian. The initial grassroots program will be implemented in ten provinces across the country through local tournaments for different age groups.

We are delighted to revive our grassroots program and provide aspiring young athletes with the necessary training and support to excel in badminton,” said PBAD head of development Melvin Nubla. “Through this initiative, we aim to discover and develop the next generation of Filipino badminton champions who will proudly carry our nation’s flag on the international stage.”

A ligned with international standards and drawing inspiration from successful badminton nations such as Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and others, PBAD will also introduce a juniors ranking system.

Th is is on top of the Philippine National Ranking System which is currently being set up and can be seen on the PBAD website.

The program will commence this August in Pampanga, a province renowned for its vibrant sports community and passion for badminton.

“PBAD extends its gratitude to the local government of Pampanga for their invaluable support and partnership in hosting the inaugural phase of the program,” said PBAD secretary-general Christopher Quimpo.

P BAD is thrilled to collaborate with FMKD Inc. in implementing the grassroots program. This partnership brings together the expertise and resources of both organizations, guaranteeing the program’s success in nurturing young talent and fostering a love for badminton at the grassroots level. FMKD, Inc. is here to help PBAD provide a world-class experience to all JRS participants across all legs and ensure that the JRS program becomes a solid grassroots platform for recruiting new players for their junior team,” said Marvin Salazar, Vice Chairman of FMKD Inc. “We believe that players in other regions are just as competitive as the players in Metro Manila. The talent is out there; we just need to reach out and tap into it,”   PBAD welcomed support from private organizations and companies that share the vision of promoting and advancing badminton in the Philippines. Interested parties can reach out to fmkd.inc@gmail. com or +639985508455 to explore collaboration opportunities and contribute to the growth of the grassroots program.

“

Recognizing the significance of identifying and developing talent from an early age, PBAD aims to cultivate future champions who will proudly represent the Philippines on the international stage with this program,” said MVP Sports Foundation executive director Jude Turcuato.

P BAD will be sending delegates as well to the upcoming Badminton Asia Juniors Championship happening at Yogyakarta, Indonesia from July 7 to 16.

“ There is no time to relax,” said Obiena after hurdling the Olympic qualifier in Stockholm this week, coming after making it to the elite 6-meter club in world pole vault in Norway last month.

H e is simply consumed by his passion to achieve more—a trait worth emulating by anyone also aspiring for greatness.

“ I focus on getting better each day and I just have to continue what I’m doing,” he told the Inquirer’s June Navarro. “The preparation and training never stop.”

W ith his Spartan discipline, Obiena’s Olympic gold seems within reach.  We can only wish him well.

THAT’S IT The dream for Gilas coach Chot Reyes, indeed, is also to nail an Olympic berth to Paris 2024.  That might happen if he beats two of three foes (Italy, Dominican Republic and Angola) in his Group phase in the Fiba World Basketball Cup next month in Manila.  Not bad to aim for the moon.  It’s free, to begin with.

BRAZIL’S Henrique Honorato(8), Gualberto Flavio(23) and Moreira Felipe(23) put up a defensive wall against Italy’s Yuri Romano. ROY DOMINGO

ASSOCIATION of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines president Deputy House Speaker Robbie Puno and chairman Ricky Vargas and MVP Sports Foundation officials Jude Turcuato, Maita David and Art Aro pose with the national boxing team.