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Local investor ties up with a Chinese firm for a $1-B iron ore mineral extraction venture in Zambo Sibugay

MZMC President and CEO Leonardo Fernandez (third from left), outgoing National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon (fourth from left) and Chairman Ninchy Lin of Shenzhou Investor Corp. (second from left) are seen at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the groundbreaking of the Mount Zynai Industrial Park on June 19, 2022.

“W

By Manuel T. Cayon

E are now smelting.” Thus declared Davao City investor Leonardo A. Fernandez in announcing to the world that his iron ore venture in Zamboanga Sibugay will not only be extracting rich iron ore deposits, but his company, Mt. Zynai Mining Co. (MZMC), will smelt these ores into final steel products for Philippine use.

This will be the country’s first smelting activity, an important ingredient in any country’s industrial dream, and it will happen four years from its inauguration on June 17, along with 100 hectares of land for an envisioned industrial park in Diplahan town.

“This is important for our industrialization, because this smelting plant will bring several benefits from now. We can bring down the volume of steel imports and cost of construction, we can generate 1,000 factories around

our smelting plant, we can generate 20,000 jobs,” he told reporters the night before the MZMC inaugurated the projects. This will also be the site of an industrial park some 52 kilometers southwest of Pagadian City.

The industrial park will host the smelting plant and other accessory facilities and will cover the 50 hectares of the park. The remaining 50 hectares will be allocated to outsiders in other mining-related ventures.

The construction of the smelt-

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 54.4910

ing plant and the industrial park would cost $1 billion.

China tieup

FERNANDEZ said they bought from China two drilling machines, each costing $200,000, to conduct further geological and metallurgical studies to determine a more proximate estimate of the deposit, although his partner from Shenzhou Investor Corp. has initially evaluated the area in Bayog to be “very big.” Bayog is in the central portion of the Zamboanga Peninsula north of Diplahan. Bayog is described to be part of the socalled iron ore corridor.

The drilling will also determine the kind of iron ore deposit, as well as the other minerals present in the area.

The company expects the corridor to have a volume of as much as 500 million metric tons to allow the MZMC to design its smelting plant of 3-million-metric-ton production capacity each year.

At this capacity, it could cut down nearly half of the annual importation of steel billets from China, which charges $24 per ton.

Each ship carries 50,000 metric tons of these steel billets.

Mindanao has its own steel processor, Steel Asia, located in Barangay Mahayag in Davao City, but he said Steel Asia and the rest of the nine other steel processors are importing a total of seven million metric tons of the billets. Steel Asia processes these billets into deformed bars to supply the needs of Mindanao, he said.

“Even our National Steel Corp. is importing these billets as well as recycling the iron to process them into deformed bars,” he said. “But we never had our own smelting plant. This time, my company extracts the ore and we will process them into billets and other steel products in our smelting products.”

“My target is to kill this dependence on steel from China and to bring down the cost of construction in the Philippines,” he added.

“Even if we can cut down the importation by only half, it would already create an impact on local prices of steel products, and that would be a huge benefit to the country’s economy,” Fernandez, president and CEO of MZMC, said.

At the initial phase of commercial production, the MZMC would produce 1.5 million metric tons and double that in two years.

‘Coal factor’

ALL this would be made possible by MZMC’s partnership with the Chinese firm, whose chairman, Ninchy Lin, assured Fernandez that Shenzhou Investor Corp. would allow MZMC to sell wholly to the Philippines all the steel that would be produced by the smelting plant.

Fernandez said earlier that their agreement was on 60-40 terms, the bigger percentage going to the Philippine market. When pressed for further comment, Lin reiterated that all that would be produced by MZMC may be sold in the Philippines “because we know that the Philippines is really in need of steel.”

Fernandez said his operation would also involve coal mining.

Why? “Because coal would be important to our electricity requirement and these areas—Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga del Norte—have rich deposits of coal.”

He added: “That is why many of the farm areas here have no lot titles because of the rich mineral deposit in these areas.

“This place is really blessed with a lot of minerals and many have not been mined,” he said.

Fernandez’s MZMC acquired on February 3 the right to explore and develop the 2,637-hectare MPSA (Mineral Production Sharing Agreement) No. 349-2010-IX located in Midsalip, Zamboanga del Sur, and Siayan, Zamboanga del Norte, from Czarstone Mining Corp, also a Filipino-owned mining company.

The MZMC also negotiated with the Subanen tribe to mine the iron ore in Bayog, which would cover some 15,000 hectares.

A separate mining operation was being negotiated also with the Subanen tribe in Diplahan, Zamboanga Sibugay, this time to extract coal in a patch of land measuring 2,000 hectares.

“The said acquisition ensures a steady supply of raw materials for the steel mill and smelting plant at the industrial park,” he said. Processing of iron ore will be done at the industrial park to be established inside a park complex in Barangay Santa Cruz, Diplahan.

The municipality of Diplahan is the field operations office of the mining company.

This month, Palafox Associates and Architecture will start the planning of its industrial park and the smelting plant.

n JAPAN 0.4038 n UK 66.8169 n HK 6.9420 n CHINA 8.1332 n SINGAPORE 39.1965 n AUSTRALIA 37.5770 n EU 57.3518 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.5224

Source: BSP (June 24, 2022)

NewsSaturday BusinessMirror

A2 Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Airport chaos: European travel runs into pandemic cutbacks

By Kelvin Chan & Mike Corder

L

The Associated Press

ONDON—Got European travel plans this summer? Don’t forget to pack your passport, sunscreen and plenty of patience.

Liz Morgan arrived at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport 4 1/2 hours before her flight to Athens, finding the line for security snaking out of the terminal and into a big tent along a road before doubling back inside the main building.

“There’s elderly people in the queues, there’s kids, babies. No water, no nothing. No signage, no one helping, no toilets,” said Morgan, who is from Australia and had tried to save time Monday by checking in online and taking only a carry-on bag.

People “couldn’t get to the toilet because if you go out of the queue, you lost your spot,” she said.

After two years of pandemic restrictions, travel demand has roared back, but airlines and airports that slashed jobs during the depths of the Covid-19 crisis are struggling to keep up.

With the busy summer tour-

ism season underway in Europe, passengers are encountering chaotic scenes at airports, including lengthy delays, canceled flights and headaches over lost luggage.

Schiphol, the Netherlands’ busiest airport, is trimming flights, saying there are thousands of airline seats per day above the capacity that security staff can handle.

Dutch carrier KLM apologized for stranding passengers there this month.

London’s Gatwick and Heathrow airports are asking airlines to cap their flight numbers. Discount carrier easyJet is scrapping thousands of summer flights to avoid last-minute cancellations and in response to caps at Gatwick and Schiphol. North American airlines wrote to Ireland’s transport chief demanding urgent action to tackle “significant delays” at Dublin’s airport.

TRAVELERS wait in long lines to check in and board flights at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, Netherlands, Tuesday, June 21, 2022. AP

Nearly 2,000 flights from major continental European airports were canceled one week this month, with Schiphol accounting for nearly 9 percent, according to data from aviation consultancy Cirium. A further 376 flights were canceled from UK airports, with Heathrow accounting for 28 percent, Cirium said.

It’s a similar story in the United States, where airlines canceled thousands of flights over two days last week because of bad weather just as crowds of summer tourists grow.

Bitten by the travel bug

“IN the vast majority of cases, people are traveling,” said Julia Lo Bue-Said, CEO of the Advantage Travel Group, which represents about 350 UK travel agents.

But airports are suffering from staff shortages, and it’s taking a lot longer to process security clearances for newly hired workers, she said.

“They’re all creating bottlenecks in the system,” and it also means “when things go wrong, that they’re going drastically wrong,” she said.

The Biden administration scrapping Covid-19 tests for people entering the US is giving an extra boost to pent-up demand for transatlantic travel. Bue-Said said travel agents her group represents reported a jump in US bookings after the requirement was dropped this month.

For American travelers to Europe, the dollar strengthening against the euro and the pound is also a factor, because it makes paying for hotels and restaurants more affordable.

At Heathrow, a sea of unclaimed luggage blanketed the floor of a terminal last week. The airport blamed technical glitches with the baggage system and asked airlines to cut 10 percent of flights at two terminals Monday, affecting about 5,000 passengers.

“A number of passengers” may have traveled without their luggage, the airport said.

When cookbook writer Marlena Spieler flew back to London from Stockholm this month, it took her three hours to get through passport control.

Spieler, 73, spent at least another hour and a half trying to find her luggage in the baggage area, which “was a madhouse, with piles

of suitcases everywhere.”

She almost gave up, before spotting her bag on a carousel.

She’s got another trip planned to Greece in a few weeks but is apprehensive about going to the airport again.

“Frankly, I am frightened for my well being. Am I strong enough to withstand this?” Spieler said by email.

5 hours before boarding time

IN Sweden, lines for security at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport have been so long this summer that many passengers have been arriving more than five hours before boarding time.

So many are showing up early that officials are turning away travelers arriving more than three hours before their flight to ease congestion.

Despite some improvements, the line to one of the checkpoints stretched more than 100 meters Monday.

Four young German women, nervous about missing their flight to Hamburg while waiting to check their bags, asked other passengers if they could skip to the front of the line. Once there, they bought fast-track passes to avoid the long security queue.

Lina Wiele, 19, said she hadn’t seen quite the same level of chaos at other airports, “not like that, I guess,” before rushing to the fasttrack lane.

Thousands of pilots, cabin crew, baggage handlers and other aviation industry workers were laid off during the pandemic, and now there’s not enough of them to cope with the travel rebound.

“Some airlines are struggling because I think they were hoping to recover staffing levels quicker than they’ve able to do,” said Willie Walsh, head of the International Air Transport Association.

No work-from-home setup here

THE post-pandemic staff shortage is not unique to the airline industry, Walsh said at the airline trade group’s annual meeting this week in Qatar.

“What makes it difficult for us is that many of the jobs cannot be operated remotely, so airlines have not been able to offer the same flexibility for their workforce as other companies,” he said. “Pilots have to be present to operate the aircraft, cabin crew have to be present, we

have to have people loading bags and assisting passengers.”

Laid-off aviation workers “have found new jobs with higher wages, with more stable contracts,” said Joost van Doesburg of the FNV union, which represent most staff at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport. “And now everybody wants to travel again,” but workers don’t want airport jobs.

The CEO of budget airline Ryanair, Europe’s biggest carrier, warned that flight delays and cancellations would continue “right throughout the summer.” Passengers should expect a “less-thansatisfactory experience,” Michael O’Leary told Sky News.

Some European airports haven’t seen big problems yet but are bracing. Prague’s Vaclav Havel international airport expects passenger numbers to swell next week and into July, “when we might experience a lack of staffers, especially at the security checks,” spokeswoman Klara Diviskova said.

The airport is still short of “dozens of staffers” despite launching a hiring campaign at the start of the year, she said.

Labor strife also is causing problems.

In Belgium, Brussels Airlines said a three-day strike starting Thursday will force the cancellation of about 315 flights and affect some 40,000 passengers.

Two days of strikes hit Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport this month, one by security staff and another by airport personnel who say salaries aren’t keeping pace with inflation. A quarter of flights were canceled the second day. Some Air France pilots are threatening a strike Saturday, warning that crew fatigue is threatening flight security, while airport personnel vow another salary-related strike July 1.

Still, the airport problems are unlikely to put people off flying, said Jan Bezdek, spokesman for Czech travel agency CK Fischer, which has sold more holiday packages so far this year than before the pandemic.

“What we can see is that people can’t stand waiting to travel after the pandemic,” Bezdek said.

“Any problems at airports can hardly change that.”

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

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BBM optimistic PHL could hurdle pandemic challenge

P

R E S I D E N T- e l e c t F e r d i n a n d “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday expressed confidence that the country can survive and recover from severe economic devastation caused by the still lingering Covid-19 pandemic with the help and full support of the people.

“Malakas po ang loob ko sa ating kinabukasan, kahit po marami po tayong nakikita na hahadlang sa ninanais nating pagandahin ang Pilipinas. Malakas po ang loob ko na magsabi na meron pa rin tayong maliwanag at magandang kinabukasan at nasasabi ko po yun dahil nasa likod ko ang lahat ng Pilipino,” Marcos Jr. said in his speech during the 10th Cityhood Anniversary of Bacoor.

He explained that his optimism stems from the full support he is receiving from majority of Filipinos who voted him overwhelmingly into office.

“Nasa likod ko ang lahat ng ating mga kababayan, lahat ng nagmamahal sa Pilipinas at narinig po ang tinig ninyong lahat na magkaisa, ang tinig ninyong lahat na ipagbuklod natin ang galing ng Pilipino, yan po ang gagawin natin,” BBM added.

BBM likewise highlighted the Filipinos’ innate ability to face all forms of challenges and emerge victorious at the end.

“Sa galing ng Pilipino, sa sipag ng Pilipino, makikita po natin, aahon ulit tayo, gaganda po ang ating kabuhayan sa tulong po ninyo,” he added.

This, as he appealed to all Filipinos to continue the movement of unity that they had started during the campaign that

he said will lead everyone to a better life.

“Ipagpatuloy po natin ang sinimulan ninyo, nung kampanya, ang taong bayan na ang namuno sa pagkakaisa, ipagpatuloy po natin yan, at ako po ay nandito inyong abang lingkod,” BBM continued.

“Marami po ang kailangan natin gawin, ngunit sa tulong ninyo, sa pagkakaisa ninyo, sa ating pangarap na pagandahin ulit ang buhay ng Pilipino, itong ating pangarap na maging mas maayos, mas mapayapa, at mas maganda ang ating buhay ay magiging totoo kapag tayo ay nagkaisa,” BBM stressed.

The president-elect also said that there are individuals and groups who are already coming to him to extend their help for the country.

“Marami pong gustong tumulong sa atin, marami po akong nakita at nakausap ngayon na mga Pilipino, na ngayon ay lumalapit at nagsasabi na nais nilang tumulong” Marcos Jr. pointed out.

The Bacoor 10th Cityhood Anniversary is Marcos Jr.’s first public appearance since he was proclaimed by Congress as the 17th President of the Philippines.

During his speech, Marcos Jr. thanked the people of Cavite for the overwhelming votes the BBM-Sara UniTeam received during last May 9 national elections.

“Nung natanggap ko ang imbitasyon galing sa inyong butihing mayor, ay sinabi ko, siguro naman karapat-dapat na ang una kong pag labas bilang President-elect, ay mag punta ako at magpasalamat sa mga taga-Bacoor at sa mga taga-Cavite,” BBM stressed.

DOE chief Cusi withdraws libel cases vs 7 media outfits over Malampaya stories

E

By Lenie Lectura

NERGY Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi on Friday, June 24, 2022, executed an affidavit of desistance with the Taguig City’s Prosecutor Office to withdraw the separate libel and cyber libel complaints filed last November against seven news organizations, including the BusinessMirror that published stories about the Malampaya deal.

“Despite the hurt feelings and damage done to my name, a deeper reflection on what has transpired has led to the realization that the many interactions with the respondents have undeniably resulted in the forging of valued friendships and professional relationships. The filing of cases was precisely brought about by the hurt feelings from unverified actions or words,” Cusi said in his affidavit of desistance.

The announcement of the

affidavit of desistance filing was posted in the Department of Energy (DOE) website.

The DOE news statement quoted Cusi as adding, “However, in the interest of preser ving what can be saved from these valued relationships, I am therefore executing this affidavit of desistance to move for ward from the unfortunate events by sparing ever yone from the rigors of prosecuting and defending criminal cases.”

Besides the BusinessMirror, the respondents were ABS-CBN Corporation, BusinessWorld Publishing, GMA News Media, Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation, Philstar Global Corporation, and Rappler.

The BusinessMirror staff that Cusi sued were the company’s president Benjamin Ramos, editor-in-chief Lourdes Molina-Fernandez, and reporters Lenie Lectura and Samuel P. Medenilla.

Malacañang terminates existence of First Cavite Industrial Estate

By Samuel P. Medenilla

P

resident D u t e r t e h a s approved the abolition of the First Cavite Industrial Estate Inc. (FCIEI).

Duterte issued Memorandum Order (MO) No. 62 on Thursday, phasing out the developer of the property of National Development Company (NDC) in Dasmariñas, Cavite since the former’s continued operations are no longer “costefficient” for the government.

The 32-year-old FCIEI already completed its original purpose as early as 1995, but NDC decided to keep it to develop other properties. However the said plan did not materialize.

In 2015, the government decided in principle that FCIEI will be abolished once its liabilities with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) would be settled.

Upon the effectivity of MO 62,

the assets of FCIEI will be liquidated to settle its outstanding liabilities.

Its unpaid liabilities will be absorbed by its parent company, NDC. A te c h n ic a l work i ng g roup (T WG) composed by represent at i ve s f rom t he G o ve r n a nce C om m i s s ion for go ve r n me nt owned and -controlled corporations (GCG), NDC and the PEZA will be created to oversee the liquidation process.

The TWG will also be tasked with the transfer of the remaining functions of FCIEI to concerned agencies as well as submit to the Office of the President (OP) a quarterly report on the disposition of the assets of said corporation.

Its first report is scheduled to be submitted to the OP 30 days from the effectivity of MO 62 once it is published in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

BusinessMirror

Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Lopez defends DTI’s power to set SRP on goods amid rising inflation

By Andrea E. San Juan

T

HE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the law allows the agency to set suggested retail prices.

In a news statement issued on Friday, the DTI stressed that Executive Order No. 913 vests the Trade Secretary with the power and authority to promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions and intent of “trade and industry laws.”

The law, the Republic Act No. 7581 or the Price Act, as amended, authorizes the Trade Secretary to issue, from time to time, suggested reasonable retail prices for any or all basic necessities and prime commodities (BNPC) under the agency’s jurisdiction.

The trade department, in a news statement, emphasized to the public that the manufacturers, distributors, and retailers themselves set and submit the suggested retail price (SRP) of their products.

For its part, the DTI is tasked to verify the reasonableness of proposed price adjustments.

Moreover, the agency requires the submission of supporting documents pursuant to Department Administrative Order No 17-09, or the Guidelines on the Implementation of SRP of the BNPC under the Jurisdiction of DTI. Further, the DTI also conducts independent research to validate the data submitted by the manufacturers.

“Clearly, the DTI approved and published SRP is but a reiteration of the supporting documents provided by manufacturers/producers,” the statement read.

However, the trade department noted that it also takes into account relevant market factors in adjusting the suggested retail prices to avoid profiteering.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said, “When manufacturers/pro-

ducers submit their proposed SRP, they are bound to comply with the same and are estopped from selling at higher prices.”

Lopez added, “In fact, manufacturers/producers are fully aware that the primary function of the SRP Bulletin is to inform and guide the public and keep them from deceitful or unconscionable transactions.”

The outgoing trade chief pointed out “any drastic deviation from the SRP is against public policy.”

In addition, Lopez said, manufacturers/producers are not allowed to abandon their representations and submissions.

In fact, two weeks ago, DTI Undersecretary for Consumer Protection Group (CPG) Ruth B. Castelo explained that some manufacturers have already submitted justifications for price adjustment requests.

However, she said the DTI has to rely on month-on-month and week-onweek prices of raw materials, which

the agency will rely on in terms of computing price adjustments.

In approving price-increase requests from manufacturers, the consumers’ capacity to pay will also be considered. Castelo, two weeks ago, stressed the need to strike the balance between maintaining the product quality for the consumers and, at the same time, taking into consideration the welfare of the manufacturers who are also bearing the brunt of the supply chain crisis, since their livelihood also depends on the products they are selling.

The DTI undersecretar y emphasized that the price has to be reasonable for both manufacturers and consumers.

In a televised interview two weeks ago, Castelo said that three manufacturers have already sought permission for a price increase— makers of Pinoy tasty and Pinoy pandesal, detergent bars and one brand of canned sardines.

Duterte expected to attend Baste’s mayoral inauguration

By Manuel T. Cayon

D

AVAO CI T Y—President Duterte would also attend to his youngest son’s inauguration in his first term as mayor of this city.

The City Police Office disclosed this, citing the official program to be followed during the mayoral inauguration of Sebastian “Baste” Duterte. Baste would serve his first term as mayor, after his one term as vice mayor here. He has been the acting mayor this year after his sister, Vice Presidentelect Sara Duterte, went on leave to focus on her election campaign with tandem, President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. Bot h Ma rcos a nd President Duterte attended Sara Duterte’s inauguration here last Sunday but whose attendance was kept under wraps until the inauguration day.

There was no official announcement yet also, on President Duterte’s attendance.

The Davao City Police Office (DCPO) announced on Friday the initial program of activities and its security measures for the upcoming mayoral inauguration of ‘Baste’ on Monday. He would be sworn into office by Judge Loida Posadas-Kahulugan in the Sangguniang Panlungsod session hall at 2:55 p.m. and he would proceed to give his speech outside the City Hall Building.

DCPO spokesman, Maj. Ma. Teresita Gaspan, said the prohibited objects during the Vice Presidential oath-taking here would also apply during the inauguration on Monday. These objects include jackets, backpacks, pointed objects, and alcoholic drinks.

“Our restrictions will continue.

There will still be entry points in San Pedro. We will still conduct inspections over each person and what they brought,” Gaspan said.

The same security operations template implemented during the Vice Presidential oathtaking on Sunday would also be applied to the upcoming event. “Our concept of operation for this is still threetiered. The inner layer will cover the actual event where the oath-taking will take place. Then, in the middle layer we have placed police officers and other security counterparts, and at the outer layer we have those who will manage traffic and conduct checkpoints.”

However, there would be no bar r icade and on ly traf f ic re routing as the police said that

the event would be like any other day, “where people are free to come and go in the City Hall area provided that each attendee has

been subject to thorough inspection beforehand.”

The police would scatter 900 personnel from the City Police Office,

city government, Davao City Public Safety and Security Command Center, Central 911, Task Force Davao, and the Army,” Gaspan said.

News BusinessMirror

Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Duterte ends China oil talks, leaving any restart to BBM

O

utgoing Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ended talks with China on oil exploration in the disputed South China Sea, his top envoy said, posing a challenge for incoming leader Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. if he wishes to restart discussions.

“We got as far as it is constitutionally possible to go,’” said Foreign Affairs Secretar y Teodoro Locsin, whose term ends with Duterte on June 30. “One step forward from where we stood on the edge of the abyss is a drop into constitutional crisis,” China and the Philippines have been trying to strike a deal on energy resources in the contested waters since signing an initial agreement in November 2018. However Philippine oil driller PXP Energy Corp. said in April that it had been ordered by

the government to halt activities in the South China Sea. Sea tensions between the two nations have also risen in the past weeks, with the Philippines’ protesting Beijing’s presence in the disputed area, as well as accusing China of illegal fishing and shadowing of Filipinos’ boats.

Marcos Jr. has said his incoming government will work with China, describing ties between the two nations as “advantageous.” But he has also said he will not compromise Philippine sovereignty. Bloomberg News

Boracay’s restored wetland transferred to DENR, LGU

By Roderick L. Abad

T

Contributor

IMELY to the celebration of Environment Month this June, the Aboitiz Group has turned over the rehabilitated Wetland No. 4 to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) as part of its commitment to preserve and protect biodiversity and surroundings on Boracay Island.

Now known as the Balabag Wetland Park, the one-hectare lagoon area in Barangay Balabag has been transformed into a linear urban park.

“The Aboitiz Group’s contribution to Boracay’s rehabilitation is part of our commitment to co-create safe, empowered, and sustainable communities.

As sustainability is a major part of our Great Transfor mation into the Philippines’ first techglomerate, we will continue to do our part to uplift and bring focus to environmentally and socially impactful initiatives for

all our stakeholders,” said Sabin M. Aboitiz, president and CEO of Aboitiz Group.

This initiative has been made possible in partnership with key national government agencies led by the DENR Region 6, the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), Department of Public Works and Highways, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, and the Department of Tourism.

A ccord i ng to A boit i z , t he group hopes that the park “continues to promote education for the community on the protection, conser vation, enhancement, and rehabilitation of Boracay’s natural ecosystems.”

For DENR Acting Secretary Jim Sampulna, it is a proof of a not her “successf u l wet l a nd rehabi litation” in the worldrenowned island popular for its white sand beach.

“My heartfelt thanks and gratitude to Aboitiz Equity Ventures for being our partner in the rehabilitation and transformation of Wetland No. 4 into an urban lin-

ear park, which now serves as the center of the wetland ecotourism circuit of Boracay,” he said.

“May the Balabag Wetland Park serve as a success story as we capitalize on nature-based solutions such as wetland conservation and rehabilitation in our localities for a greener, more sustainable, and resilient approach to building back better,” Sampulna added.

BMB Officer-in- Charge Director Natividad Y. Bernardino lauded the partnership under their “Adopt-A-Wetland ” program. She said: “From being a ‘waste receptacle,’ Wetland No. 4 has now been transformed into a lagoon with a linear park, attracting tourists and locals right in the middle of Boracay’s commercial area.”

Wetland No. 4 underwent rehabilitation in 2018 and since then the Aboitiz Group has aimed to conceptualize and deploy nature-based solutions to create a functional public space out of the wetland area.

With its low-impact designs, the Balabag Wetland Park has become a rec reat ion a l s pot .

This eco-tourism also has transformed as an educational and experiential space that promotes

awareness on the importance of wetlands and creating opportunities for collaboration and partnerships among the local community, students, and even tourists.

T hroughout its rehabi litation, several improvements have been noted in the wetland area, one of which is the return of endemic species of plants and wild migratory birds, installation of aerators that maintain the water quality of the lagoon, and the planting of endemic trees and plants along the lagoon’s perimeter boardwalk that rebuild its biodiversity.

Also constructed in the Balabag Wetland Park is a plaza that serves as both a flood management measure and an attraction site for tourists and locals alike.

What’s more, it hosts an activity area for community events and educational signages have been placed around the park to add to the experience.

The Aboitiz Group hopes that through the partnership project, it has been able to contribute to the government’s mission of imparting the value of environmental protection and the continued preservation of Philippine wetlands to the greater community.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Modern farming technologies hike farmers’ rice yield–DA-PhilRice

T

he R ice Compet it ive ness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) Seed Prog ram, through its technolog y demonstration project dubbed as “Pa l aySi k at a n,” cont inues to showcase the benefits of using recommended rice varieties and modern farm technologies in select areas of the country.

Farmer Orlando B. Cruz, 58, from Guiguinto, Bulacan, harvested 9.6 tons per hectare and earned P84,800 by planting NSIC Rc 436 he received from the RCEF Seed Program of the Department of Agriculture-PhilRice. His farm also served as one of the PalaySikatan technology demonstration sites of the municipality.

Since the program continuously educates rice farmers about modern technologies, Mang Orlando seizes this opportunity to enhance his farming knowledge, which is helping him increase his yield and income.

“We want farmers to personally experience the technologies and practices that we introduced. Because they do it themselves, they can witness and prove its efficiency.

We are here to provide technical assistance from seed to seed,” RCEF Seed Program Field Operations and Monitoring Head Rizal Corales said.

Currently in its third year, PalaySikatan through DA-PhilRice features modern inbred rice varieties coupled with integrated crop management practices and technologies in the major rice farm operations including crop establishment, pest and nutrient management, and harvest operations.

Among the nationally recommended rice varieties being promoted include NSIC Rc 222, Rc 216, and Rc 402 for the 2021 wet season to 2023 dry season. Location-specific varieties are also being cultivated in the techno demo, each varying according to the region and province where the site has been established.

“The seeds we are promoting are already pre-identified based on its adaptability in the area. When we say ‘national recommended varieties,’ these are suited anywhere in the country and anytime of the year,” Corales explained.

The program also strongly recommend the adoption of seeding rate for inbred rice, which is 40 kilograms per hectare (kg/ha) when transplanted, or 60-80 kg/ ha when direct-seeded.

PalaySikatan farmer-co-operators are also encouraged to use nutrient diagnostic tools like the Minus-one Element Technique, a simple and practical diagnostic tool in assessing soil nutrient limitations in actual field conditions. It analyzes the main nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, including the trace elements: copper, zinc, and sulfur, and provides more accurate fertilizer recommendations by determining the right element, amount and time of application.

Farm machines like seeders, spreaders, and transplanters for crop establishment, and combine harvester for harvesting are also strongly showcased in PalaySikatan.

Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr. signs the legal framework for the Complementary Pathways (CPath) Program for Rohingyas. DFA-OPCD Photo by Maria Vanessa Ubac

DFA chief inks legal framework affirming PHL’s global pledge on refugee protection

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ecretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. signed on Wednesday, June 22, 2022 the Legal Framework for the Complementary Pathways (CPath) program for Rohingyas, which will allow the Philippines to accept Roh ing ya ref ugees to enter the country and avail themselves of tertiary education training here.

The CPath program aims to provide an educational pathway to eligible beneficiaries, utilize a comprehensive approach by engaging relevant government agencies and private institutions, and promote durable solutions by helping beneficiaries achieve self-reliance. “ This initiative concretizes the country’s pledge at the first Global Refugee Forum in 2019 to explore complementary pathways for admitting refugees and President Rodrigo Duterte’s emphasis on protection for those fleeing for safety,” Locsin said.

Locsin congratulated the Department of Justice for shepherding the program and getting it off the ground. He also thanked the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for its support for the Philippine government in this initiative and in the area of protection of persons of concern in general, including in the Inter-Agenc y Steer ing Committee (IASC) on refugees,

statelessness and persons of concern and the Emergency Transit Mechanism (ETM).

The CPath program is another testament to the country’s leadership in humanitarian and statelessness ef for ts, hav ing been a State Party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol. The Philippines is also the first country in Southeast Asia to have acceded to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, which will entered into force on Friday, June 2022, a DFA news statement read.

T he Philippines’ launch of the National Action Plan to End Statelessness in November 2017, which contains concrete action points for the government to implement until the year 2024, bolsters the UNHCR’s 10-year campaign to end statelessness through the Global Action Plan to End Statelessness.

Other milestones this year that fortify the country’s commitment to advance the protection of persons of concern include the adoption of the Foundling Recognition and Protection Act and President Duterte’s signing of Executive Order No. 163 in February which institutionalizes the access to protection services in the Philippines by refugees, stateless persons and asylum seekers.

TheWorld

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Corn piles up outside silos as key Brazil region reaps record crop

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orn is stacking up outside of Brazilian silos at the fastest rate in years after the country’s biggest-producing region harvests a bumper crop.

Warehouses are still full of soybeans, which are reaped only a few months before the corn.

In Mato Grosso, soy production was also huge this season and sales have been slower than usual, leaving the warehouses with no room to receive the corn, according to Cleiton Gauer, super intendent at IME A , Mato

FDA bans Juul e-cigarettes tied to teen vaping surge

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ASHINGTON—US health regulators on Thursday ordered Juul to pull its electronic cigarettes from the market, the latest blow to the embattled company widely blamed for sparking a national surge in teen vaping.

The action is part of a sweeping effort by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to bring scientific scrutiny to the multibillion-dollar vaping industry after years of regulatory delays.

The FDA said Juul must stop selling its vaping device and its tobacco and menthol flavored cartridges. Those already on the market must be removed. Consumers aren’t restricted from having or using Juul’s products, the agency said.

To stay on the market, companies must show that their e-cigarettes benefit public health. In practice, that means proving that adult smokers who use them are likely to quit or reduce their smoking, while teens are unlikely to get hooked on them.

The FDA noted that some of the biggest sellers like Juul may have played a “disproportionate” role in the rise in teen vaping. The agency said Thursday that Juul’s application didn’t have enough evidence to show that marketing its products “would be appropriate for the protection of the public health.”

Juul said it disagrees with the FDA’s findings and will seek to put the ban on hold while the company considers its options, including a possible appeal and talking with regulators.

In a statement, the FDA said Juul’s application left regulators with significant questions and didn’t include enough information to evaluate any potential risks.

The agency said the company’s research included “insufficient and conflicting data” about things like potentially harmful chemicals leaching from Juul’s cartridges.

“Without the data needed to determine relevant health risks, the FDA is issuing these marketing denial orders.” Michele Mital, acting director of the FDA’s tobacco center, said in the statement.

Joe Murillo, Juul’s chief regulatory officer, said in the company’s statement that Juul submitted enough information and data to address all issues raised by regulators. He noted that the company’s application, submitted more than two years ago, included comparisons to combustible cigarettes and other products.

He said it also included information on potential harmful effects of the company’s products.

Since last fall, the FDA has given the OK to tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes from R.J. Reynolds, Logic and other companies.

But industry players and anti-tobacco advocates have complained that those products account for just a tiny percent of the $6 billion vaping market in the US. The agency said Thursday that people who use Juul products or smokers who want to move away from cigarettes and cigars could switch to the FDA-authorized e-cigarettes. AP

Grosso’s rural economy institute.

While it’s not unusual for crops to be stored in the open when indoor capacity fills up, it hasn’t been seen at such a scale for at least the past two years. But as Mato Grosso’s huge corn harvest gets pace, farmers and traders have been especially short of room.

The pileup threatens to add

further pressure to corn and soy prices that are already slumping in Chicago futures markets amid promising weather in the US growing areas. Corn sank Thursday to the lowest level since before Russia invaded Ukraine, while soybeans touched the lowest level since January with edible oil supply picking up and a broader commodities malaise.

The slide in crop futures offers a glimmer of optimism that food inf lation may be tempered in coming months, even as prices remain historically high.

At the end of May, around 11 million tons of soybeans in the state were still on farmers’ hands, compared with 5.5 million tons a year earlier, according to Daniele

Siqueira, an analyst at AgRural consultancy firm. This month, soy sales have accelerated on a weaker real, improving demand and the pressure to get the oilseed out of the bins, she said.

Another reason for the lack of room is how fast the harvest is happening in Mato Grosso. On June 17, reaping was 27percent complete, compared to 4 percent a year earlier and the five-year average of 14 percent, according to Imea. The state is expected to collect 39 million tons of corn, rising 20 percent from past season. That’s about a third of Brazil’s production that may also reach a record at 115.2 million this season, according to Brazil’s national company Conab.

Bloomberg News

Covid vaccines prevented 20-M deaths in first year, study finds

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ovid vaccines that were developed in record time saved an estimated 20 million lives in the first year of the rollout, more than half of them in wealthier countries, according to the first study of its kind to quantify the impact.

W hile more than 7 million deaths were likely averted in cou nt r ies covered by Cova x , the World Health Organization ( W HO) - b a c k e d d i s t r i b ut i o n program, the research nonetheless highlights the devastation caused by uneven access. About one in five lives lost due to Covid in poorer countries could have been prevented if WHO targets had been reached, data published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal show.

Vaccines from companies including Pfizer Inc., Moderna Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc have slashed hospitalizations and deaths, with more than 12 billion doses administered across the planet. But vast parts of the world struggled to get access to shots last year after richer countries raced ahead in purchasing supplies, and concerning new variants, delivery snags

and hesitancy have complicated efforts to protect people from the fast-spreading virus.

The global vaccination effort is “a remarkable achievement, and it’s fundamentally changed how the pandemic has progressed,” Oliver Watson, an Imperial College London researcher who coauthored the study, said in an interview. “But we need to learn how we can do better next time because there will be a next pandemic.”

Despite swift deployment, more than 3.5 million Covid deaths have been reported since the first vaccine dose was given in December 2020, the report found. The analysis of records and total excess mortality from each country is the first to estimate the number of deaths averted worldwide, although other research has assessed the vaccines’ impact in specific regions.

High- and upper-middle income countries accounted for the greatest number of deaths prevented— more than 12 million. Another 599,300 deaths could have been averted if the target of vaccinating 40 percent of the population in each country with two or more doses by the end of 2021 had been

hit, the data show.

More than three-quarters of the deaths averted were due to direct protection against severe illness provided by vaccines. The remaining deaths were prevented indirectly from the reduced viral spread and lower burden on health systems, which improved access to medical care.

More could have been done to extend the benefits of vaccines to a wider number of people, according to a commentary in the same journal. Inequitable distribution of inoculations has increased the risk that new variants will emerge, potentially with the ability to evade vaccine immunity and spark yet another wave of deaths, Alison Galvani of the Yale University School of Public Health wrote.

Logistics hurdles, hesitancy and misinformation in both rich and poor countries have hampered the rollout of shots, she said.

The rapid development and d ist r ibut ion of vacc i nes h a s been “an extraordinar y global health feat,” she said. “Nonetheless, millions of additional lives could be saved by more equitable distribution.” Bloomberg News

HK’s jumbo mystery deepens as restaurant may be afloat

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ong Kong’s famed Jumbo Floating Restaurant may still be afloat after all.

The imperial palace-shaped vessel capsized but didn’t sink, a representative for the vessel’s owner, Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises Ltd., said Friday. Days earlier, the company announced that adverse weather caused the restaurant to capsize and that recovery efforts were “extremely difficult” because of water depths of 1,000 meters. The representative declined to comment further on the situation, including what will happen next.

Both Jumbo and its accompanying tugboat were still in the waters off Xisha Islands—also known as Paracel Islands—in the South China Sea, Hong Kong’s Marine Department said late Thursday.

The revelation became the latest twist in the saga involving the unprofitable landmark, which had been a familiar sight in Aberdeen harbor in southern Hong Kong for four decades. Its owner, a unit of Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd., towed away the vessel on June 14 after attempts to donate the restaurant to an amusement park collapsed. The company wouldn’t disclose where it was headed but the SCMP reported Jumbo was being towed to Cambodia.

Opened by Macau casino mogul Stanley Ho in 1976, Jumbo drew visitors including Queen Elizabeth II and Tom Cruise during its heyday, while featuring in a number of films, according to the restaurant’s website.

But its attraction waned in recent years, and the pandemic forced it to suspend

operations. The restaurant had accumulated losses of HK$100 million ($12.7 million) since 2013, its owner said last month.

Then the owner of the ship issued a statement earlier this week that despite efforts to rescue the vessel, Jumbo had capsized on Sunday.

News of the tragic fate of such a well-known attraction, even one that was losing money, tapped into the city’s downbeat mood. Expats and locals alike are leaving in droves as seemingly endless travel restrictions and Beijing’s tightened grip undermine Hong Kong’s future as an international financial center. The lack of visitors has affected companies reliant on tourism spending, with another icon—the Star Ferry—also warning of financial trouble.

Bloomberg News

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

TheWorld BusinessMirror

Russians advance on war’s front line in eastern Ukraine

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YIV, Ukraine—The Russian military extended its grip on territory in eastern Ukraine as it seeks to cut supply lines and encircle frontline Ukrainian forces, while the Ukrainian military announced Thursday the arrival of powerful US multiple-launch rocket systems it hopes will offer a battlefield advantage.

Hanna Sylivon, 76, stands outside her house destroyed by attacks in Chernihiv, Ukraine on Sunday, June 19, 2022. AP

Ukrainian forces w ithdrew from some areas near the city of Lysychansk to avoid being surrounded as Russians sent in reinforcements and concentrated their firepower in the area, Britain’s Defense Ministry said. The city is located in Luhansk province, a major battlefield in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine.

Ukraine’s General Staff said Russian forces took control of the villages of Loskutivka and RaiOleksandrivka, and were trying to capture Syrotyne, a settlement outside the province’s administrative center, Sievierodonetsk.

Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai told The Associated Press that the Russians were “burning everything out” in their offensive to encircle Ukraine’s fighters.

“The Russians are advancing without trying to spare the ammunition or troops, and they aren’t running out of either,” Haidai said.

“They have an edge in heavy artillery and the number of troops.”

After repeated requests to its Western allies for heavier weaponry to counter Russia’s edge in firepower, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said a response had arrived in the form of the medium-range American rocket launchers.

“Summer will be hot for Russian occupiers. And the last one for some of them,” Reznikov tweeted, thanking the US for “these powerful tools.”

A US defense official confirmed Wednesday that all four of the promised High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS, were in the hands of Ukrainian forces but said it was not clear if they have been used yet.

The US approved providing the precision-guided systems at the end of May, and once they were in the region, Ukraine’s forces needed about three weeks of training to operate them. The rockets can travel about 70 kilometers.

The US will send an addition $450 million in military aid to

Ukraine, including four more of the medium-range rocket systems, ammunition and other supplies, US officials announced Thursday.

Analysts said the advanced systems would give Ukrainian forces greater precision in hitting Russian targets. Mykola Sunhurovsky of the Razumkov Center, a Kyiv-based think tank, said the HIMARS have a longer range, more precision and higher rate of fire compared with similar Soviet-designed systems that Russia and Ukraine have used during the four-month war.

In the Luhansk region, Ukrainians remain in control of part of the territory, “defying the Russians and causing their fury and desire to burn it to the ground,” Haidai said.

For weeks, Russian forces have pummeled Sievierodonetsk with artillery and air raids, and fought the Ukrainian army house-tohouse. Ukrainian forces remain holed up with about 500 civilians at the Azot chemical plant, the only part of the city still under Ukrainian control.

Haidai said the Ukrainian soldiers warded off the city’s seizure from the plant’s sprawling underground structures, but he noted that “the shelling has intensified, and even concrete shelters can’t withstand the bombardment.” The Russians were using their entire arsenal—heavy artillery, tanks and aircraft—he said.

Lysychansk, located on a steep river bank facing Sievierodonetsk, also is under a relentless Russian artillery barrage. At least one civilian died and three others were wounded in the past day as the Russians concentrated more than 100 multiple rocket launchers to “pummel entire blocks,” the governor said.

The British Defense Ministry said Russian forces had likely advanced more than 5 kilometers toward the southern approaches of Lysychansk since Sunday.

“Some Ukrainian units have withdrawn, probably to avoid being encircled,” the statement said.

“Russia’s improved performance in this sector is likely a result of recent unit reinforcement and heavy concentration of fire.”

Ukraine’s military said the Russians were also moving to overtake the hills overlooking a highway linking Lysychansk with Bakhmut, to the southwest, in an attempt to cut the supply lines of Ukrainian forces.

Haidai said the Bakhmut-Lysychansk highway wasn’t used because of heavy Russian shelling. Ukrainian forces are receiving supplies via an alternative route.

Following a botched attempt to capture Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, in the early stage of the invasion on February 24, Russian forces shifted focus to the Donbas region, where the Ukrainian forces have fought Moscow-backed separatists since 2014.

The Russian military controls about 95 percent of Luhansk province and about half of neighboring Donetsk province, the two areas that make up the Donbas.

Other developments:

European Union leaders meeting in Brussels have made Ukraine a candidate for membership in the 27-nation bloc, along with Moldova, in a historic boost that binds them closer to the West than Russia.

The countries’ admission to the EU will likely take years, though.

In the case of Ukraine, that’s both because of the war and the reforms the Ukrainian government must make to conform with European standards.

A Ukrainian politician and TV personality said an online fundraising pitch aimed at helping Ukraine buy three offensive drones has raised $10.4 million in 24 hours.

Serhiy Prytula credited “amazing” support among Ukrainians after his charitable foundation made the appeal for $15 million a day earlier for the purchase of the Bayraktar drones like those that Ukrainian forces have already used to defend against Russian invaders.

He tweeted: “4,6m $ to go. The People’s Bayraktar project is al-

ready a nationwide crowdfunding.

Let’s turn it into international!”

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said Thursday that her country offered its expertise to help protect Ukraine’s ports and the safe passage of vessels for the export of Ukrainian grain.

Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of wheat, corn and sunflower oil. Russia’s invasion and blockade of Ukraine’s ports have halted much of that flow and left millions of tons of grain stuck in silos, endangering food supplies to many developing countries, especially in Africa.

“It’s urgent that action is taken within the next month ahead of the new harvest, and we’re determined to work with our allies to deliver this,” Truss said at news conference with her Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, during a visit to Ankara to discuss ways to end the blockade.

Turkey wants to gather the United Nations, Russia and Ukraine to organize a UN plan that would allow the safe shipment of agricultural products from Ukrainian ports. Cavusoglu said a possible deal might set up a “safe zone” just outside of Ukraine’s territorial waters. AP President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that Russia has destroyed more than 2,000 schools and other educational institutions during the war.

In a video address to students and faculty at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, Zelenskyy said that in areas where Russian troops have made quick advances, “civilians are shot, refugees are killed right on the streets, people are tortured and raped, including minors – girls and boys.’

Zelenskyy also voiced disappointment that Israel hadn’t joined Western-led sanctions against Russia or provided Ukraine with military aid to give its forces a boost in the war.

Israel relies on good ties with Russia for security coordination in Syria, where Russia has troops and where Israel carries out frequent strikes against enemy targets. It has sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Senate approves landmark gun violence bill, House passage next

W

ASHINGTON—The US Senate easily approved a bipartisan gun violence bill Thursday that seemed unthinkable a month ago, setting up final approval of what will be Congress’ most farreaching response in decades to the nation’s run of brutal mass shootings.

After years of GOP procedural delays that derailed Democratic efforts to curb firearms, Democrats and 15 Republicans decided that congressional inaction was untenable after last month’s rampages in New York and Texas. It took weeks of closed-door talks but bargainers from both parties emerged with a compromise embodying incremental but impactful movement to curb bloodshed that has come to regularly shock— yet no longer surprise—the nation.

The $13 billion measure would toughen background checks for the youngest gun buyers, keep firearms from more domestic violence offenders and help states put in place red flag laws that make it easier for authorities to take weapons from people adjudged dangerous. It would also fund local programs for school safety, mental health and violence prevention.

The election-year package fell far short of more robust gun restrictions Democrats have sought and Republicans have thwarted for years, including bans on the assault-type weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines used in the slayings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas.

Yet the accord let leaders of both parties declare victory and demonstrate to voters that they know how to compromise and make government work, while also leaving room for each side to appeal to its core supporters.

“This is not a cure-all for the all the ways gun violence affects our nation,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat-New York, whose party has made gun restrictions a goal for decades. “But it is a long overdue step in the right direction.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Republican-Kentucky., in a nod to the Second Amendment right to bear arms that drives many conservative voters, said “the American people want their constitutional rights protected and their kids to be safe in school.”

He said “they want both of those things at once, and that is just what the bill before the Senate will have accomplished.”

The day proved bittersweet for advocates of curtailing gun violence.

Underscoring the enduring potency of conservative clout, the rightleaning Supreme Court issued a decision expanding the right of Americans to carry arms in public by striking down a New York law requiring people to prove a need for carrying a weapon before they get a license to do so.

McConnell hailed the justices’ decision and Senate passage of the guns bill as “complementary victories that will make our country freer and safer at the same time.”

The Senate vote on final passage was 65-33. A cluster of House Democrats who watched the vote in the chamber’s rear included Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Georgia, whose 17-year old son was shot to death in 2012 by a man complaining his music was too loud.

In the key roll call hours earlier, senators voted 65-34 to end a filibuster by conservative GOP senators. That was five more than the 60-vote threshold needed. The House planned to vote on the measure Friday and approval seemed certain.

On both votes, 15 Senate Republicans joined all 50 Democrats, including their two allied independents, in backing the legislation.

Yet the votes highlighted the risks Republicans face by defying the party’s pro-gun voters and firearms groups like the National Rifle Association. Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Todd Young of Indiana were the only two of the 15 up for reelection this fall.

Of the rest, four are retiring and eight don’t face voters until 2026.

Tellingly, GOP senators voting “no” included potential 2024 presidential contenders like Ted Cruz of Texas, Josh Hawley of Missouri and Tim Scott of South Carolina. Some of the party’s most conservative members voted “no” as well, including Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Mike Lee of Utah.

While the Senate measure was a clear breakthrough, the outlook for continued congressional movement on gun curbs is dim.

Less than one-third of the Senate’s 50 GOP senators backed the measure and solid Republican opposition is certain in the House. Top House Republicans urged a “no” vote in an email from the No. 2 GOP leader, Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, that called the bill “an effort to slowly chip away at law-abiding citizens’ 2nd Amendment rights.”

Both chambers—now narrowly controlled by Democrats—could well be run by the GOP after November’s midterm elections.

In a statement, President Joe Biden said Uvalde residents told him when he visited that Washington had to act. “Our kids in schools and our communities will be safer because of this legislation. I call on Congress to finish the job and get this bill to my desk,” Biden said.

Senate action came one month after a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde. Just days before that, a white man was accused of being motivated by racism as he killed 10 Black grocery shoppers in Buffalo.

Both shooters were 18 years old, a youthful profile shared by many mass shooters, and the close timing of the two slaughters and victims with whom many could identify stirred a demand by voters for action, lawmakers of both parties said.

The talks were led by Sens. Chris Murphy, Democrat-Connecticut, Kyrsten Sinema, Democrat-Ariona., John Cornyn, Republican-Texas, and Thom Tillis, Republican-North Carolina. Murphy represented Newtown, Connecticut, when an assailant killed 20 students and six staffers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, while Cornyn has been involved in past gun talks following mass shootings in his state and is close to McConnell.

Murphy said the measure would save thousands of lives and was a chance to “prove to a weary American public that democracy is not so broken that it is unable to rise to the moment.”

“I don’t believe in doing nothing in the face of what we saw in Uvalde” and elsewhere, Cornyn said.

The bill would make the local juvenile records of people age 18 to 20 available during required federal background checks when they attempt to buy guns. Those examinations, currently limited to three days, would last up to a maximum of 10 days to give federal and local officials time to search records.

People convicted of domestic abuse who are current or former romantic partners of the victim would be prohibited from acquiring firearms, closing the so-called “boyfriend loophole.”

That ban currently only applies to people married to, living with or who have had children with the victim. The compromise bill would extend that to those considered to have had “a continuing serious relationship.”

There would be money to help states enforce red flag laws and for other states without them that for violence prevention programs. Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have such laws. AP

OurTime BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Caraga reports 83.5% vax rate among elderly

By Alexander Lopez

that 3,373,400 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the region.

Meanwhile, 18 new Covid-19 infections were recorded in Caraga Region from June 12 to 18, the regional health office said Monday.

Of the total cases, the DOH13 said Agusan del Norte logged three, one each in Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur; Butuan City with eight, and Bislig and Tandag with one, and Surigao City with two cases.

“As of Monday, the region has 21 remaining active Covid-19 cases,” DOH-13 said.

With the new infections, the total cumulative number of Covid-19 cases in the region now stands at 58,989 since March 2020.

The region also logged 15 new recoveries last week, bringing the total number of recoveries to 56,755.

The death toll from the virus stood at 2,213 as no Covid-19 fatalities were reported in the past week.

In terms of vaccination, DOH13 said 1,624,511 individuals in the region are fully immunized as of Monday, or 71.6 percent of the total number of targets for inoculation in the region.

A total of 3,392,979 Covid-19 vaccines were also administered in the region, with 216,368 individuals given their booster shots. PNA

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UTUAN CITY—Caraga Region has recorded an 83.5-percent rate in the vaccination of senior citizens in the area.

In a report Tuesday, the Department of Health–Caraga (DOH-13) said 340,752 Covid-19 vaccines have been administered to senior citizens as of June 12.

“Of the total number, 173,056 senior citizens in Caraga are already fully vaccinated,” DOH-13 said.

The same report also indicated that 357,659 individuals under the A4 (frontline personnel in essential sectors) have been fully vaccinated during the period.

Fully vaccinated individuals from ROAP (rest of adult population) have also reached 269,348; ROPP (rest of pediatric population aged 12 to 17); and 218,269 in A5 (indigenous population).

Some 213,731 individuals from A3 (persons with comorbidities) were also fully vaccinated in the same period, as well as the 54,949 from the A1 category (frontline health workers).

All over the region, a total of 1,618,551 individuals are fully vaccinated as of June 12, DOH-13 said. The number represents 71.3 percent of the total target population for vaccination in the region.

Latest DOH-13 data showed

Editor: Angel R. Calso • Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Negros Occidental’s Covid vax rate among elderly remains low

By Nanette Guadalquiver

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ACOLOD CITY—The province of Negros Occidental still has a long way to go to reach its target Covid-19 vaccination coverage rate among the senior citizens, or the A2 category, despite an intensified campaign this month.

Of the 15,000 target vaccinees in the above 60 age group, only 718 individuals so far have availed themselves of the vaccines since the eightday Provincial Vaccination Days started earlier this month.

Provincial administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said on Wednesday that despite the offer of incentives to barangay health workers to convince the unvaccinated senior citizens to avail themselves of the vaccines, the numbers remain low.

“We will just keep on trying, we won’t lose anything if we continue doing it. However, it will just take time to downgrade our alert level in the entire Negros Occidental if we fail to convince them,” he told reporters.

Diaz said since getting vaccinated against Covid-19 is a voluntary act, they cannot force people to be inoculated.

“Our principle is to have the vaccines available where it is needed. We cannot impose; we cannot compel the vaccination of 70 percent of our

A SENIOR citizen in Ilog town of Negros Occidental gets vaccinated against Covid-19 earlier this June. Provincial administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, that there is a low vaccination turnout, particularly among the senior citizens. PHOTO COURTESY OF ILOG MUNICIPAL HEALTH OFFICE

population and all those in the A2 category. We just have to convince people and make them understand that it is better if they are vaccinated,” he added.

The Provincial Health Office has scheduled a Covid-19 vaccination blitz on June 2 and 3, June 9 and

10, June 16 and 17, and June 21 and 22 to boost the coverage rate among the Negrenses, particularly the senior citizens.

As of June 20, data from the Department of Health-Western Visayas (DOH-6) showed that Negros Occidental has fully vaccinated 136,165

individuals or 50.51 percent of the target 269,602 vaccinees.

Some 138,614 elderly persons, or 51.41 percent, have also availed themselves of the first dose, the second-lowest coverage rate in Western Visayas, next only to Antique. PNA

Gunman kills 3 senior citizens over potluck dinner at Alabama church

By Jay Reeves and Kim Chandler

mer pastor said. The suspect, Robert Findlay Smith, was charged with capital murder Friday, the Jefferson County district attorney announced.

The baffling violence in a wealthy suburb of Birmingham stunned a community known for its familycentered lifestyle. It also deepened the unease in a nation still reeling from recent slaughter wrought by gunmen who attacked a Texas school, a New York grocery store and another church in California.

“Why would a guy who’s been around for a while suddenly decide he would go to a supper and kill somebody?” said the Rev. Doug Carpenter, St. Stephen’s pastor for

The Associated Press

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ESTAVIA HILLS, Ala.—The 70-year-old visitor had previously attended some services at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church before police say he showed up for a potluck dinner, pulled out a handgun and fatally shot three of the elderly participants, one of whom died in his wife’s arms as she whispered words of love in his ear.

Church members were spared further violence Thursday evening when one of them rushed the gunman, struck him with a chair and held him until police arrived, a for-

three decades before he retired in 2005. “It doesn’t make sense.”

All three shooting victims were members attending a monthly dinner at the church, said Carpenter, who still attends Sunday services there but wasn’t present Thursday night. A Facebook post referred to the gathering as a “Boomers Potluck.”

Carpenter said one victim’s wife and other witnesses recounted what had happened. They said a man who introduced himself only as “Mr. Smith” sat at a table by himself—as he’d done while visiting a previous church dinner.

“People tried to speak to him and he was kind of distant and very much

‘Cluster of geniuses’ phenomenon

By Nick Tayag

MY SIXTY-ZEN’S WORTH

‘A

MADEUS” is one of the films I would bring with me to a deserted island. In the closing scene of that film, we see the jealous Antonio Salieri being pushed on a wheelchair through a group of mad men and then he loudly declares: “Mediocrities everywhere. I am the patron saint of mediocrity. I absolve you. I absolve you all,” as if to encourage others to find glory in inadequacy and ordinariness when excellence is out of reach.

This is the scene that came to mind when I learned the meaning of the polysyllabic word “kakistocracy.” It comes from the Greek kakistos, which means “worst.” The word was coined as early as the seventeenth century to describe a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens.

Lately, the term has floated up on

social media buzz, coming mostly from political commentators and academicians who have been lamenting the questionable quality of the leaders the voters have put on the seats of power.

Here’s the gist of what they are griping about, using basketball for analogy. In the last elections, what we had was a shallow pool of draftees to start with, and on draft day, we did not even choose the most talented and capable.

Instead, we chose a batch of second-rate players who probably should be playing in a lower development league.

That, folks, is more or less the summary of what I am hearing from these hecklers at the sidelines.

The painful truth is that we have been sending clowns to our legislative houses for the longest time. We have allowed ourselves to be entertained by leaders

who have been “ampao,” all sound and promises signifying nothing.

No substance, no brave new ideas, and most vitally, no moral center.

Perhaps there is hope. All we need is to wait. Our country’s time will come.

What makes me say this? Maybe for wanting to cling on to something or anything at this point, let me share a piece of matter that borders on the religious or mystical.

As I was leafing through an old pocket book entitled “Companions Along The Way” authored by Ruth Montgomery, I came across a passage where she mentions a “cluster phenomenon” that occurs at certain periods in human history, which is characterized by an explosion or blossoming of geniuses or great persons.

Here’s what the writer says: “At infrequent periods in history, several geniuses, transcendent, talented will appear, and often they will know or be drawn to each other, and they will change the course of history.” She identifies such clusters as da Vinci and Verrocchio with Michelangelo and Raphael. In music there was Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn and Schubert, Brahms, Liszt, and Schumann. In

a loner,” Carpenter told The Associated Press by telephone.

At Thursday’s dinner, church member Walter Bartlett Rainey invited the visitor to join his table, Carpenter said, but the man declined. He said Rainey’s wife noticed the visitor wasn’t eating.

“Linda Rainey said he didn’t have any food and she offered to fix a plate for him, and he turned that down,” said Carpenter.

Soon afterward, Carpenter said, the man drew his gun and opened fire—shooting Walter Rainey and two other church members. Carpenter said another member, a man in his 70s, grabbed a chair and the philosophical field, there was Voltaire, Rousseau and Diderot.

Intriguing isn’t it? But come to think of it, I myself can pinpoint other clusters.

There was a time in Greece when we had Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Sophocles, Aeschylus, Epictetus, Pericles, not to mention Thales, Pythagoras, Euclid, Archimedes and many more.

In ancient India, there were Gautama Buddha, Jina, Zoroaster, and other founders of great religions living within the same historical period. In China, we can point to a cluster of Confucius, Lao Tzu, Mencius and others, all spouting their words of wisdom within the same span of time.

America had its own cluster of great people in the persons of the country’s founding fathers who not only wrote the guiding documents of the United States of America but also later on were elected as the country’s first line of presidents.

In contemporary arts, we had the Impressionists. In cinema we had the golden age of Ozu, Muzoguchi and Kurosawa who dominated and elevated Japanese cinema.

Then in the ’60s, the French New Wave filmmakers sparked the emergence of modern cinema.

In the late 1800s, we had something like a cluster of greatness in a grouping of indios and illus-

charged the gunman.

“He hit him with a folding chair, wrestling him to the ground, took the gun from him and hit him in the head with his own gun,” Carpenter said.

Church members held the suspect until police arrived, police Capt.

Shane Ware said. A police mugshot showed Smith with a blackened left eye and cuts to his nose and forehead.

“The person that subdued the suspect, in my opinion, was a hero,” Ware told a news conference Friday, saying that act was “extremely critical in saving lives.”

Rainey, 84, died at the scene. His wife of six decades wasn’t harmed. trados in Spain, which included Rizal, del Pilar, Lopez Jaena, the Luna brothers, Ponce, and others.

They were the members of the so-called Propaganda Movement who bravely pushed for political reforms in these islands.

We could have had actually a good cluster of geniuses in the ’70s if not for martial law. They were young, brave leaders who were at the forefront of the anti-dictatorship movement. Many never made it past their 40s. Voltaire Garcia, Edgar Jopson, Liliosa Hilao, Archimedes Trajano, Emmanuel Lacaba, Juan Escandor, Ishmael Quimpo Jr., Lorena Barros, Nelia Sanchez, Crispin Tagamolila, Evelio Javier are just a few of the more than 3,000 potential leaders who perished in that dark period.

Those who survived ended up broken in mind and spirit.

It left a vacuum in our country’s natural succession of leadership, a big hole that was filled up by a mediocre generation that mainly consists of descendants of traditional political dynasties and an infusion of popular yet politically immature celebrities. The bar has gotten lower and lower ever since.

Who knows what would have happened if they were allowed by fate to hold the reins of power when their natural time came? Arguably, a few would have sold out or been co-opted by the system. But

“We are all grateful that she was spared and that he died in her arms while she murmured words of comfort and love into his ears,” Rainey’s family said in a statement.

Police said Sarah Yeager, 75, of Pelham, died soon afterward at a hospital, and an 84-year-old woman died Friday.

Police didn’t release her name, citing the family’s request for privacy.

Ware said Smith and the three victims were all white. He said police are investigating what motivated the suspect, who occasionally attended services at the church. Authorities executed a search warrant Friday at Smith’s home, less than 3 miles (5 kilometers) away. knowing some of them personally, I believe with leaders like them, our nation would now have become more politically and economically progressive and prosperous.

In her book, Ruth Montgomery says that according to ancient mystics, these clusters of geniuses and great men were actually groups of souls who were interconnected in previous lifetimes who have returned to take birth again at approximately the same time, and into circumstances that will permit them to continue working out their “group karmic” mission to intervene in human affairs to catapult it to the next level.

While I would not go so far as to be mystical about it, I am inclined to believe there is a great Creative Force or a higher power that seems to want the best for the human species or genus.

“Genus” is as bland as any of those taxonomic Latin terms we learned in school. But if you insert an “i,” it suddenly makes a big difference. It becomes “genius.”

That’s what we need right now.

Not one, not two, but a cluster of geniuses who will emerge and finally help extricate this nation from the quagmire we have been consigned to for so long.

Will the Creative Force respond? We can only hope soon.

We truly deserve it, after all.

Education BusinessMirror

A8 Saturday, June 25, 2022

Editor: Mike Policarpio

UNDP, DICT, PLDT fire up free Wi-Fi for 220 public colleges, universities

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ULACAN—The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)Philippines recently activated 1,000 free Wi-Fi access points across 220 public higher education institutions (HEIs) nationwide.

The hotspots were installed and rolled out with the support of PLDT. The milestone, spearheaded by Acting ICT Secretary Emmanuel Rey R. Caintic and UNDP-Philippines Resident Representative Dr. Selva Ramachandran, was held in a hybrid ceremony in the Bulacan Polytechnic College-San Jose Del Monte campus (BPC-SJDM), with the simultaneous virtual participation of representatives from Nueva Vizcaya State University (NVSU). The two schools are among the participating HEIs in the DICT-UNDP project.

The activation of free Wi-Fi ac-

cess points in public HEIs is part of UNDP’s commitment to broaden public access to free Internet services, and help provide means to tap information and basic public services, with special focus on education and health. It is also in line with the two agencies’ joint commitment to support communities as the latter recover from the pandemic, as well as provide digital services and infrastructure to help improve equitable and inclusive gateways to basic services.

In his keynote speech, Caintic expressed his pleasure for the successful rollout of the free Wi-Fi

UNDP’s Selva Ramachandran (from left), with DICT officials Emmanuel Rey Caintic and Alan Silor

initiative with UNDP: “I’m happy to have implemented this…with UNDP and PLDT. Among the key objectives of the…project is to contribute to the progress of several Sustainable Development Goals.

That’s why it was strategic that we partnered with UNDP, because it’s clear to them which of the goals we are targeting.”

“Our commitment to provide inclusive access to free Internet services in public spaces and government offices to aid learning and to augment the government’s

services remains stronger than ever,” said Ramachandran. “I am happy to share that from October 2021 to May 2022, we’ve already activated 1,000 free Wi-Fi sites, and that we plan to put up 300 more Wi-Fi access points in HEIs under this initiative.”

He also noted that “Internet access made readily available by the DICT-UNDP partnership allows students and teachers to have a flexible platform for teaching and learning, especially now that blended online and in-person

learning [are] the new norm.”

PLDT First Vice President Joseph Ian Gendrano conveyed the telco firm’s gratitude for being selected to partner with UNDP: “We’re honored to have been given the opportunity to serve and provide public Wi-Fi access to 220 HEIs across the country.”

Meanwhile, ICT Undersecretary for Resilient Government Emergency Communications Alan A. Silor noted that: “[the partnership] is in a much better place now.

Soon we will be delivering more access points to boost connectivity in the countryside through the program.”

Silor concluded: “May this progress inspire us to forge new ideas [leading] to fruitful services similar to today’s Wi-Fi activations. Let’s continue working on building the foundations of a digitally connected Philippines… for every Filipino.”

“We’re really proud that one of the beneficiaries is the BPC,” said Dr. Rosemarie S. Guirre, Management Information System department head of the college. “Internet connectivity is [something that we really need as members of the faculty, as] teaching online is part of the new learning. This is the new modality. To UNDP, PLDT

and DICT: Thank you so much!”

For her part, NVSU Officer-inCharge Ruth Raña Padilla called on to their academic circle to take advantage of the service: “As we [partner with DICT and UNDP which are providing our university free Wi-Fi connectivity for all students, employees, and personnel, we implore everyone to maximize this opportunity to explore] new information and increase collaboration with one another.”

The activation of 1,000 free Wi-Fi access points in HEIs nationwide was made possible by the DICT-UNDP Connectivity, Capability, and Resiliency through Free Wi-Fi for All (CoRe FW4A) project through the engagement of PLDT. Despite setbacks from the pandemic, the partnership carried on with installations in key areas at the beginning of the year.

The CoRe FW4A project supports the Philippine government’s commitment to accelerate the rollout of the Free Wi-Fi for All National Program, under Republic Act 10929, otherwise known as the “Free Internet Access in Public Places Act of 2017.” The UNDP supports the DICT, serving as the lead implementing agency overseeing the law’s effective and efficient implementation.

New learning, teaching methods in private-school system to improve student competency in PHL UPHSD lands

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TALWARTS of the local education sector, particularly private-school owners, are encouraged to embrace new teaching and learning methods so they can aid the academic system in the country to level up with international standards.

A typical classroom in the country under the “group method of instruction” proved to be unsuccessful for almost two decades. In fact, Filipino students underperformed in the National Achievement Tests from 2006 to 2014, as they trailed their foreign counterparts in the 2018 Programme for Interna-

tional Student Assessment, and the 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Studies.

Preparing them to become globally competitive, the combination of Mastery Learning Method (MLM), One-on-One Tutoring and Higher Mental-Process Teaching can enhance their competency up to 98 percent, according to a meta-study by world-renowned educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom.

MLM empowers and capacitates private schools so they can reinvent students’ learning experiences within their classrooms.

While the other two strategies proved to be difficult for the teachers to implement, adding them to the former has been effective.

By integrating technolog y, specifically adaptive learning techniques, structural changes in students’ learning process can now be performed in a feasible, consistent, and economical manner, per Dr. Luz Bay. The senior adviser of Frontlearners Inc., who is also the senior psychometrician at The College Board of the United States, confirmed that the abovementioned improvements also

include curriculum-aligned and adaptive algorithms effective in elevating the way students learn and are taught by teachers.

Frontlearners has spearheaded and dedicated time as well a s resou rces to help pr ivate schools seamlessly integrate the Frontlearners’ Adaptive Mastery Learning Process (FAM). Its expertise, tools and systems can help school owners introduce the innovation accessibly, worry-free, and economical.

Through FAM, private-school teachers can provide students with individualized learning plans

and activities, quality learning materials, frequent assessments, as well as timely guidance and adjustments based on their own needs.

“All these are part of Frontlearners’ learning solutions, [which addresses issues] in student competencies,” said Frontlearners Cofounder and Chief Technology Officer Leo de Velez, who added that it is the firm’s intent to aid schools in rearing students who are future-learners, and have educational capabilities that can be truly at par with our international counterparts.” Roderick L. Abad

EDUCATORS SPEAK

CAM advocates Christian education in nation-building

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NE-fourth, two-fifths… What do fractions have to do with Jesus?

In mathematics or algebra, a fraction is a broken part of an integer. The dictionary says it is the act of breaking, or the state of being broken. Each aspect of math is a tool that describes God’s creation. His love and fractions are no exception.

Light of the World Christian Academy of Makati (CAM) mathematics teacher Oliver Jimenez said that this didn’t have to do with just numbers, or plain-old arithmetic at all. This lesson leads us to the Bible verse of 1 Corinthians 11:24, which says: “and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’”

“That Jesus’ body was broken for our sins... That He suffered greatly for us in such a violent manner… Isn’t it amazing to find out how fractions go back to Jesus?” asked Jimenez. “Every number can be expressed as fractions, and you can only make sense with them if they have a common denominator. We only become complete like an integer if we have Jesus. Apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5b), and He gives us life to the full (John 10:10). And just like how numerical fractions can be added, multiplied and divided, God wants to use us to add disciples, multiply their joys, and

divide their sorrows.”

Christian learning in CAM

CAM Principal Hiyasmin Nadal shared that “as Christian educators, we teach our children from a Biblical worldview.

Every subject, including math, should point students to Jesus, to God. A math curriculum with a Biblical worldview uses biblical principles to lay a solid [numerical] foundation.”

Nadal continued: “Imagine how much more we can learn about Jesus and God’s character by using such an approach as this. Through this, you can learn that there is a bigger purpose behind math than just numbers.”

She explained that since all of math is a way of recording and expressing the laws and relationships God created, it will teach students to properly apply elementary math skills such as addition and subtraction to their lives, so they can use what they know to serve others, and to build their nation.

CAM promotes a Christian education for nation-building with its three pillars of learning: Christ-centered vision and mission, growth mindset, and innovation.

The school believes each child is a gift from God: endowed with potentials to be harnessed and maximized, so they can live as godly leaders and impact their generation for Jesus.

God’s Word is integrated in all subjects

and personal coaching and nurturing is intentional.

Since 2014 CAM has been deliberate in its creation of a growth mindset culture: the belief that intelligence is not fixed, and can be developed through learning effort and creativity. Thus, CAM teachers, students and parents embrace challenges, learn together from criticisms, and persist in the midst of setbacks.

The learning institution envisions to be a leading 21st-Century school in a new normal, as it chooses the most engaging instructional design and learning-management platform enabling optimum learning experience.

Teachers and parents collaborate to forge a strong partnership for the best interest of the children.

During the pandemic, CAM was one of the first to adopt online learning in August 2020. With Globe Telecom’s Brightspace Learning Management System, CAM provides safe, secure online and onsite classes for kinder and primary-school pupils.

Christian education advocate

THROUGH CAM’s three pillars of learning, children will have a headstart with a strong character-building and academic foundation.

President and Founder Vinson B. Pineda, MD, FAAD, who is a staunch advocate of Christian education, be-

CAM believes each child is a gift from God endowed, with potentials to be maximized, like fifth-grader Yuto Tamura. lieves that “success is only 15 percent knowledge, and 85 percent character.”

As such, Pineda explained that the next generation must be taught, trained, and mentored to maximize their God-given potentials and become active citizens in building a great nation.

In 2004 Pineda’s passion to include a Christian school as a special ministry came to fruition with the founding of CAM, which is recognized by the Department of Education and known for its progressive approach to modern learning.

Dr. Pineda is known as the “father of Philippine dermatology.” While he first made a name in medicine, he started passionately imparting the love for life-long learning after finishing his Master’s and doctorate degrees in divinity at the Asian Seminary of Christian Ministries in 1998. That

was a turning point that solidified his vision to touch the next generation through a dynamic and relevant approach to Christian education.

Today he enjoys seeing the fruit of his labor, and guides his successor, Dr. Angela Pineda. While the former has passed the baton to his daughter, his mission of promoting Christian learning in nation-building is stronger than ever, especially in the new normal where students need to have faith in God and strong Christian values to overcome socioemotional and mental health problems and issues.

Indeed, Dr. Pineda’s legacy to nationbuilding is his unceasing contribution in “declaring God’s power to the next generation. (Psalm 71:8).”

(CAM is now open for enrolment from pre-Kinder to Grade 12. For inquiries, call 0917-590-6745, or e-mail cam.lightoftheworld@gmail.com.)

high in global rankings

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HE University of Perpetual Help System DALTA (UPHSD) posted exceptional scores in two international ranking systems for higher educational institutions HEIs. UPHSD garnered five stars in three criteria of the 2022 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Stars ranking: online learning, employability and inclusiveness. The institution also got four stars in academic development and social responsibility, as well as three in teaching and internationalization.

Overall, the university was given a three-star rating.

Another international ranking system, the Applied Higher Education (AppliedHE) Private University Ranking: Asean 2022, placed UPHSD at first place among private HEIs under the internationalization criteria.

It landed in 20th place.

President Dr. Anthony M. Tamayo thanked the UPHSD community for the achievements: “These rankings are products of the hard work and collective effort of our academic community in constantly finding ways to improve the quality of our teaching and the education of our students.

This pursuit of quality and excellence is our commitment to our students, community and stakeholders.”

According to its web site, QS Quacquarelli Symonds is the world’s leading provider of services, analytics, and insights on the global highereducation sector. Its QS World University Rankings, which started in 2004, has become the world’s most popular source of comparative data about university performance.

Meanwhile, the AppliedHE Private University Ranking: Asean is the first ranking of private universities in the region. It highlights an institution’s quality of teaching and learning, employability and research, as well as community engagement, internationalization and institutional reputation.

AppliedHE, its online portal says, provides “an employment-ready, future-focused suite of services for institutions of higher learning to accelerate their branding and marketing presence.”

Tourism&Entertainment BusinessMirror

Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua

Saturday, June 25, 2022 A9

Shangri-La Boracay: A Private Sanctuary Story & photos

by Ardee P. de los Angeles

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ore than the party atmosphere, visitors also come to Boracay to put their feet up, slow down, relax and enjoy great food with family and friends. The island is slowly becoming a family and a sustainable tourist destination.

Shangri-La Boracay boasts gorgeous views from its loft villa.

Guests can enjoy bubble baths with a view.

Experience a romantic dinner by the beach.

The pool is available for Chi spa guests.

Shangri-La’s private beach is exclusive for the resort’s guests.

There is always the option to party and explore the vibrant nightlife at the island ’s Station 2. But if you want to avoid the crowd, have some peace and quiet, and wake up in luxury and comfort, then a stay close to Station zero and Punta Bunga beach is highly recommended.

A private paradise

Shangri-La Boracay’s private paradise was included in 2021’s prestigious list of Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards.

Travelers appreciated the secluded beaches and the lush tropical haven.

“It is an incredible honor to be recognized in this prestigious list, we’re extremely grateful to all who took the time to vote for Shangri-La Boracay,” said Udo Wittich, hotel manager of Shangri-La Boracay. “We’re happy that our resort is providing travel inspiration to many, and we certainly look forward to welcoming more guests when the pandemic eases and traveling becomes the norm again.”

Shangri-La offers direct transfers from Caticlan airport and it only took us about 20-25 minutes to get to the resort. We were picked-up by Shangri-La’s airport representative at the airport and drove us to their Mabuhay lounge

Vintana serves delectable breakfast buffet selections.

in the jetty port. A few minutes later, we were already on a speedboat going to the resort.

Wittich welcomed us at the resort’s jetty port with communications executive, Jaiko Del Rosario. After exchanging greetings and pleasantries, we were led to a waiting buggy that will take us to the reception area.

After the welcome drinks and check-in process, another buggy motored us to our premier Seaview room. There is also the option to walk to the rooms and lobby to enjoy the peaceful surroundings.

The 63-sq-m premier room has a king size bed, a sofa bed, a private balcony with daybeds and a marble bathroom with separate rainshower and bathtub. The room also prov ides sweeping views of the sea and has direct ac-

Private speedboat transfers from Caticlan’s jetty port.

cess to Punta Bunga beach which is only a stone’s throw away. The calming sound of the waves can also be heard from the spacious balcony. This space is great for morning coffee or just lounging around.

Vintana Asian Café

Breakfast was served buffet style the next day at the resort’s Vintana restaurant. This Asian themed Café serves delectable Filipino and international breakfast buffet selections, along with an array of well-loved Asian cuisine favorites.

The muesli and cereal options were plentiful and, for a heavier meal to jumpstart the day, there’s also Filipino favorites like pork, bacon, sausages, garlic rice, and fried or scrambled eggs. There is also a lot of fruit available.

Shangri-La’s Mabuhay lounge offers comfort and convenience.

That, plus coffee or any beverage of your choice will get you ready to explore more of the property.

Punta Bunga and Banyugan

A short walk from our room, P u nt a Bu nga beac h of fers a great opportunity to just lounge around on the beach in the early mornings. A staff member from Shangri-La is stationed nearby and ready to assist guests. I recommend going on long walks along the beach and enjoying the views with only a few people around.

On the northwest side, farther away from Station zero and Punta Bunga, is Shangri-La Boracay’s Banyugan beach, a private beach exclusively for the guests of the resort. Sit by the pool and enjoy the drinks and food at the beach bar, or go for a swim as you wait

Shangri-La’s van service is available at Caticlan airport.

for the golden hour.

Chi, the spa

A fter spending time at the beach, resort guests can pamper both body and soul at this luxurious spa. A 5,714 sq m haven located on a rocky peninsula looking across the bay, Chi offers massages, body soaks, and luxurious body scrubs.

A private dinner

Have a romantic dinner with a loved one as the resort’s private nooks and beaches transform into some of the most magical places on Boracay Island. The private dining menu consists of a variety of surf-and-turf barbecue options, or guests can enjoy a special course menu prepared by a dedicated personal chef. A unique experience on the island, this is

truly a great way to end the day.

The food choices and other resort activities can be scheduled even before you arrive at the resort.

Exploring white beach

Getting around the island is easy and comfortable since Shangri-La also offers complimentary van shuttle services that can take guests to D’Mall at Station 2.

Trips are scheduled throughout the day and reservations can be made at the front desk. There is also the option of taking an etrike to your destination on the island which can be arranged by a staff member of the resort. The wait time is only a few minutes.

The overall experience is superb and I will definitely go back.

Boracay is alive once again and it is time to visit and support the tourism community.

Nayong Pilipino pushes for ‘safe space’ for LGBTQIA+ community

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he Nayong Pilipino Foundation (NPF) has partnered with the National Library of the Philippines (NLP) and LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual) community to gather insights on creating a safer physical and cultural space inclusive for everyone.

A roundtable discussion dubbed “Umpukan sa Nayon” on June 10, 2022, held at the National Library of the Philippines in Ermita Manila has become an avenue for the foundation to gather insights on gender sensitivity while also raising awareness of our complex history with the LGBTQIA+ community.

T he ideas gathered dur ing the said discussion will serve as a guide in creating the Nayong Pilipino Cultural and Creative Hub in the Entertainment City in Parañaque.

These ideas include gendersensitive designs like genderequal comfort rooms, and a space showcasing the work of LGBTQIA artists, among others.

According to NPF Deputy Executive Director Dr. Jovertlee C. Pudan, “Umpukan sa Nayon” wants to shed light on pre-colonial practices within Indigenou s Fi l ipi no Com mu n it ies that involved members of the LGBTQIA+.

“Many of you might now know that long before the Spaniards colonized the Philippines, the country had a long history as far as the LGBTQIA+ community is concerned. The intention of this ‘Umpukan’ is to also shed light on pre-colonial practices within Indigenous Filipino Communities that involve members of the LGBTQIA+,” he said.

“The NPF aspires to not only be a green space but also a safe

and inclusive space for everyone from all walks of life, regardless of gender and sexual orientation,” Pudan added.

Among the speakers during the discussion were Dondy Ramos, assistant professor of History from the University of the Philippines, Alvin Cloyd Dakis, a trainer for gender sensitivity, Amber Quiban, a transgender woman from Cordilleras, and a UP Diliman student, and Daniele Guevarra of Philippine Normal University Katalonan.

A ssistant Professor R amos talked about the roles of the LGBTQIA+ community during the pre-Hispanic period.

According to Ramos, local men dressed up in women’s apparel and acted like women long before the Spaniards came and were called “Babaylan,” “Catalonan,” among other things. They were significant not only because they

crossed male and female gender lines. To the Spanish, they were astonishing, even threatening, as they were respected leaders and figures of authority.

PNU student leader Danielle Guevarra emphasized that the LGBTQIA+ community was accepted and treated with high regard before.

“A ng mga baba ylan a y ma y pinanghahawakan na significant role sa pre-colonial era. Bakit noon accepted ang LGBTQI A+ community, bakit ngayon may reservations?”

Meanwhile, Alvin Cloyd Dakis, a trainer for gender sensitivity, explained that a culture of acceptance will not be achieved if we don’t ask the involved persons and accommodate how they want to be addressed.

“The only way for you to know the pronoun that they use or their preferred name is to ask them

NPF Programs Unit Head Josephine Grace Mirafeuntes (from left), NPF Deputy Executive Director for Marketing and Operations Dr. Jovertlee C. Pudan, Dondy Ramos, assistant professor of History from the University of the Philippines, Alvin Cloyd Dakis, a trainer for gender sensitivity, Daniele Guevarra of Philippine Normal University Katalonan, Amber Quiban, a transgender woman from Cordilleras, and a UP Diliman student, and Edgardo Quiros, assistant director of the National Library of the Philippines

with respect,” he said.

“One day, hindi na natin kailangang ipaliwanag na trans woman ako, kasi tanggap na tayo [we do not have to explain that I'm a

trans woman because we are already accepted] in the same way we were accepted thousands of years ago,” said Amber Quiban of the UP Babaylan.

A10 Saturday, June 25, 2022 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

MODERATOR Jolly Estaris, lead for video and media sales of Google Philippines, with Maki Gingoyon and Darwin Mariano.

PROVIDING ACCESSIBLE HEALTH CARE TO FILIPINOS

Google gathers LGBTQ+ and allies in tech for Pride Conversations

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N 2020, Google launched its Pride Conversations to celebrate diversity, equity and inclusion during Pride Month.

I always love attending Google’s and YouTube’s online events because the conversations are so intelligent and thought-provoking that I take notes from beginning to end, and this one was no different.

For 2022, Google’s “Pride Conversations: Championing LGBTQ+ and allies in tech” put the spotlight on app and web developers, UX/UI designers and tech professionals, among others, to tell inspiring LGBTQ+ success stories and encourage more allies.

“As we reconnect with Pride, may we remember the past. May we continue to champion stories of equity, equality and diversity,” said Bernadette Nacario, Google’s country director in the Philippines.

Google invited different personalities to talk about their experience as LGBTQ+ and how they coped during quarantine (one panelist said drag content really helped). It was a real conversation moderated

by Google’s own Jolly Estaris, lead for video and media sales of Google Philippines, and aired live over Google’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

Writer Mela Habijan, who was the first Miss Trans Global in 2020, always wanted to work for a certain multi-national which manufactured her favorite chocolate drink.

“Akala ko wala akong puwang sa mundo [I thought I had no place in this world]. Sabi nila, they only accept people who looked and acted professional,” said Habijan.

Habijan considers social media, tech and the digital world as the “fairy godmothers” who gave her the power to be herself.

To her, social media was an open-minded platform and a democratic arena. Tech was a space for empowerment. The digital world, unlike the real world at the time, saw her being trans as a leverage of potential.

“I found my voice online and I used my socials to amplify diversity,” said Habijan, who is now one of the most visible LGBTQ+ in the Philippines.

The other panelists for “Pride Conversations: Championing LGBTQ+ and allies in tech” included Cristina del Rosario, head of design of fintech company First Circle; Darwin Mariano, Boys’ Lockdown producer and founder of online event solutions platform Ticket2Me; Jolly Estaris, lead for video and media sales of Google Philippines; Maki Gingoyon, cofounder and COO of dating web site www. mytransgenderdate.com; Mark Lacsamana, UI design

lead of talent recruitment software PageUp; and Sam Rose Cruz, product designer of live streaming and recording app XSplit.

Del Rosario, who met her wife nine years ago on a dating app, talked about how social media and the Internet was a space that helped her became a better ally. This, by the way, is a concern in the LGBTQ+ community as not every person or experience is the same. Even LGBTQ+ need to become allies.

“I know hardly any lesbians in my personal life but I know many lesbians online. I also follow a lot of trans and non binary creators,” said Del Rosario.

“Pride is not being ashamed of who I am just because I am a woman who happens to love another woman,” said Cruz. She also talked about her experience during the early days of the pandemic.

“We were confined in our own homes and many of us felt isolated but our community has always been about showing up for people.”

Gingoyon recalled how she and her partner, who is trans-oriented, founded www.mytransgenderdate.com.

“I believe my personal experience is pretty much common among transwoman in the hope of finding that person who will love us for who we are.”

But the dating experience for transwomen in 2012 and earlier was very different.

“Transwomen were presented as sexual objects and this stained the image of transwomen online. It hurt so much because we weren’t taken seriously. My partner is a trans-oriented man and we talked about how finding a genuine dating site was very difficult,” said Gingoyon.

In 2013, Gingoyon and her partner cofounded www. mytransgenderdate.com, which is now a safe space for 1.5 million transwomen worldwide.

Mariano talked about how liberating the genre BL (stands for Boys’ Love) was. In the past, this genre was considered a sub-culture of K-pop, J-pop and Thai drama, but it’s now mainstream thanks largely to creators like Mariano who removed the fetish factor and simply presented Boys’ Love as what it is—a love story between two individuals.

“I was producing theater for a very long time.

It’s important to show the community that these kinds of stories can be successful, and to show kids growing up that it’s okay to be different. The challenge is supporting it with a business model that lets you monetize it so you could keep producing content,” said Mariano.

And this is where platforms, like YouTube come in. Creators of BL can upload their content on their YouTube channels for monetization and they can produce new content.

The panelists also reminded everyone that there’s still much to be done to achieve equality and diversity.

“Being as open as we are is revolutionary but nobody is free until everyone is free,” said Lacsamana.

Gingoyon reminded everyone how LGBTQ+ has always been around, that they are in fact a part of history.

British mathematician Alan Turing was convicted for homosexuality but they helped crack Nazi Germany’s “Enigma” code and laid the groundwork

for modern computing.

“In 1952, Turing was convicted of ‘gross indecency’ over his relationship with another man, and he was stripped of his security clearance, subjected to monitoring by British authorities, and forced to take estrogen to neutralize his sex drive—a process described by some as chemical castration,” according to The Associated Press.

Lynn Conway, a promising computer engineer, was fired by IBM in 1968 because she was undertaking a gender transition.

In 2020, IBM apologized to her in a virtual meeting and the company gave her an award for her pioneering work in computers. Conway was 82 when she received the apology.

“Pride should also be a reminder for everyone that there were people who fought for everyone to be treated equally,” said Gingoyon.

To view “Pride Conversations: Championing LGBTQ+ and allies in tech,” go to www.youtu.be/1WDZmJyPwc. ■

TELEHEALTH service provider KonsultaMD and convenience store chain Lawson Philippines have joined hands to make health care more accessible and affordable than ever.

Every Lawson Premium Series ready-to-eat meal worth a minimum of P95 entitles the customer to a free one-month KonsultaMD health plan for up to five members. The health plan includes 24/7 unlimited voice consultations, four video credits, e-prescriptions, e-laboratory requests, e-medical certificates, and access to various benefits offered by other KonsultaMD partners.

Lawson also offers a free upgrade of Lawson Iced Coffee Blends from 16oz to 22oz for all KonsultaMD app users. Members simply have to present their app to the cashier for their upsized drinks at over 70 branches nationwide.

“We want to make health care as accessible as possible, like walking to the nearest convenience store. With Lawson as our partner, it becomes as easy as ordering a meal for breakfast, lunch, or dinner,” said Cholo Tagaysay, KonsultaMD CEO. KonsultaMD can be used to consult with licensed Filipino doctors specializing in general medicine, family medicine, dermatology, dentistry, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, ophthalmology, pediatrics, psychiatry, rehabilitation medicine, psychology, and surgery.

“Telehealth has become an important innovation that will stay and evolve even after the pandemic. We believe the public will continue to use KonsultaMD because of the ease and convenience of talking to a doctor anytime without leaving their homes,” Tagaysay added.

Over the pandemic, KonsultaMD consultations surged by over 2,000 percent. Doctors onboarded also grew by over 1,600 percent.

The KonsultaMD app is available on Google Play, App Store and App Gallery, or via use.konsulta.md/ lawson.

GOOGLE EXEC TO UN: UKRAINE ‘A CRYSTAL BALL’ FOR INFO WARFARE UNITED NATIONS—A Google executive warned the UN Security Council on Tuesday that cyberattacks, disinformation and other forms of information warfare being waged in Ukraine are a “crystal ball” for future problems elsewhere.

“States must find a way to turn the volume down and settle on some kind of deterrence doctrine for the cyber domain,” Jared Cohen said at a council meeting on hate speech, incitement and atrocities in Ukraine.

He argued that while tech companies have needed expertise, “there is no magical algorithm or single fix for this,” and finding a solution will take a lot of experimentation.

Cohen heads Jigsaw, a part of Google that aims to build technology to combat disinformation, censorship and extremism online.

He said Ukraine “has been disproportionately targeted” by advanced cyberattacks since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, adding: “It is essentially our crystal ball for what is likely to come.”

The war in Ukraine upped pressure on tech companies to work harder to combat hate speech, disinformation and other harmful content online. The European Union is working on sweeping new rules that would require Google, Facebook parent Meta and other tech giants to police their platforms more strictly.

Western powers on the Security Council have accused Russia of a campaign of propaganda, disinformation and hate directed at undermining Ukraine. A recent report from Mandiant, a cyber security firm, found that Russia used disinformation, fear and propaganda to demoralize Ukraine and divide its allies.

“Hate speech can also be a war crime,” British

deputy UN Ambassador James Kariuki said on Tuesday, calling on Russia to “stop making such statements.”

Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia repeated his country’s counterclaims that Ukrainian authorities’ rhetoric has poisoned citizens against Russia and Russian-speaking populations in Ukraine, with Western encouragement.

“We see, from our side, a real incitement to violence and Russophobia in Ukraine,” he said.

Albania, which currently holds the council’s rotating presidency, called for Tuesday’s meeting. AP

A MEETING of the UN Security Council on maintenance of peace and security in Ukraine is held, Tuesday, June 21, 2022, at United Nations headquarters. AP

www.businessmirror.com.ph

BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Saturday, June 25, 2022 A11

Falcon, foldable...fabulous While the US sanctions linger, tech giant Huawei again takes flight with the premium Mate Xs 2

BY GERARD RAMOS Lifestyle & Entertainment Editor

W

HEN was the last time a mobile phone stirred the kind of excitement you remember from childhood, when you discovered the latest Matchbox car waiting for you under the tree on Christmas Day? For me, that would be all the way back to 2006 when Sony Ericsson—leveraging Sony’s decades of music expertise, gleaned in part from its hugely popular Walkman brand of portable players—came out with the W810, arguably the first truly refined fusion of Sony’s strength and Ericsson’s formidable networking muscle.

These days, it’s quite the challenge to get a rise out of new mobile phone releases, as these devices, whether in the value-proposition end or the premium category, have become so generic-looking that it would take the trained eye of a gadget junkie to spot any significant differences. And even then, one might only be able to muster a “Nice!”

“Blasé” is, however, not the reaction I had when I got my hands on the latest flagship from tech giant Huawei, the Mate Xs 2—the latest iteration in the foldable phone category the company debuted in 2019 with the first-ever Mate X, which gave “users the first

Bitcoin inches up above psychological threshold of $20,000 OAKLAND, California—The price of a Bitcoin inched above $20,000 on Sunday after the broader crypto selloff dragged it below the significant psychological threshold a day earlier.

The price of the world’s most popular cryptocurrency was $20,129.70 as of Sunday afternoon. On Saturday, Bitcoin had plunged as much as 9.7 percent to less than $18,600 by late afternoon on the East Coast, according to the cryptocurrency news site CoinDesk. At some points during Saturday, it was below $18,000.

On Sunday, though, the volatile cryptocurrency climbed higher, though it is still more than 70 percent below its November 2020 all-time high of nearly $69,000. Many in the industry had believed it would not fall under $20,000 again.

Ethereum, another widely followed cryptocurrency that has been sliding in recent weeks, took a similar tumble on Saturday to well below $1,000 but also regained ground on Sunday, adding nearly 11 percent to $1,101.81.

The cryptocurrency industry has seen turmoil amid wider turbulence in financial markets.

This past week was Wall Street’s worst since 2020, during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

Investors are selling off riskier assets because central banks are raising interest rates to combat quickening inflation. Higher rates can help bring down inflation, but they also heighten the chances of a recession by increasing borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, and pushing down prices for stocks and other investments like cryptocurrencies. AP

glimpse into the future of smartphone design.”

Since 2019, according to the company, it has “continued to experiment and innovate in a bid to provide different foldable form factors for all different users.” With the Mate Xs 2, Huawei ditches “the inward-folding approach it took with the X2” to what it dubs as a “return to its roots to deliver an outward-folding handset, which is the thinnest, lightest and most reliable flagship foldable device on the market.”

Try “excited” and “amazed” as my initial emotional response when I first powered up the Huwaei Mate Xs 2 and unfolded it to reveal all of the phone’s gloriously dazzling display, then quickly marveling even more at the impressive technology the company has packed into its slim dimensions.

This foldable has none of the unweildy bulkiness that marked earlier foldables, as the Huawei Mate Xs 2 just weighs 255g and has a thickness of 11.1mm when folded and 5.4mm when unfolded. According to the company, the Mate Xs 2 is “the thinnest and lightest foldable phone (that is) a joy to hold and once you’re ready to put it away, it takes up barely any space in your pocket or bag”—and they’d be right. Not unlike my Huawei P40 Pro Plus, the Mate Xs 2 slipped in and out of my pants easily despite the slim jeans I can still manage to squeeze into following my pandemic weight gain.

Of course, you might be inclined to think that impossibly sleek profile necessitated Huawei to make a few compromises here and there—and you’d be wrong. While just a smidge smaller than the X2’s 8” display, the Xs 2’s 7.8” high-resolution screen nonetheless delivers a profoundly compulsive viewing experience “with 1.07 billion colors, plus support for the P3 wide colour gamut on the True Chroma display.” As an aside, you will see here True Chroma mentioned a few more times. Stripped of the sort of dense tech speak that can make eyes glaze over, the technology is about capturing and yeilding images close to true-to-life colors—and it is also the technology that underpins 50MP True Chroma camera system found at the back of the phone, along with a 13MP Ultra-Wide-Angle Camera and an 8MP Telephoto Camera. Meanwhile, the front camera is a 10.7MP shooter with, like with the rear camera system, support for up to 3840 x 2160 pixels for video, which should thrill these so-called TikTok and YouTube influencers—which, alas, is just about everybody these days.

Of course I have been told on several occasions by pedantic engineer friends that it is in the moving parts of anything where the weakest link can be found. Think of the kitchen cabinet door you accidentally yanked off its hinges because you absently leaned on it. So, yes, I did have my qualms about the Huawei Mate Xs 2, whose glorious display needs to be unfolded to be fully appreciated.

Huawei sought to allay my fears: “Some may be concerned about how reliable (the foldable phone) may be. This is not a worry with the Huawei Mate Xs 2, which has been designed, engineered and tested to the highest possible standards. In terms of design and engineering, the (phone) introduces the new-generation Double-rotating Falcon Wing Hinge design, which moves with precision and fluidity.

Thanks to the proprietary hinge technology, the components are packed tightly into a small space to achieve a foldable screen that is as close to seamless as possible, with no visible crease. This makes the Huawei Mate Xs 2 the flattest foldable phone in the world.

“The screen itself is sturdy and reliable, as the Huawei Mate Xs 2 adopts a bullet-proof Composite Structure Screen with a protective film, support layer,

and rotating shaft. The layered structure and highperformance materials provide an excellent shock absorber and buffer, while improving its resistance to drops, crushing or impact. When placing the phone on a desk, the screen is prevented from directly touching the surface thanks to the gap created by the aluminium alloy protective frame around the screen, making the phone scratch-resistant. Structurally, Huawei Mate Xs 2 adopts a leading-edge honeycomb structure and innovative light materials to deliver a lighter, thinner and more reliable user experience.”

From this consumer, I take all that to mean this foldable isn’t going to be an ugly, broken mess after typical use—which, besides doing the usual stuff one does with a typical slab phone, includes routinely unfolding the display to enjoy entertainment content in ways one does on a desktop or a mini tablet, or to enjoy a group Zoom call with more than just the current speaker being shown onscreen. I have been playing around with the Huawei Mate Xs 2 for a few weeks now, and the screen displays none of the unsightly waves or indentations from the the folding and unfolding it has been through.

Needless to say, the success or failure of a mobile phone these days is largely dependent on the wealth of software that is available to it. Go ask Microsoft and what happened to its Windows Mobile operating system. Of course I have already written about the Entity List that Huawei found itself on in May 2019, which, along with other Chinese companies, prevented the tech giant from doing business with any organization that operates in the US. Which means no access to Google software and services, no access to the latest processors packing 5G technology.

Not a few pundits quickly predicted the demise for Huawei in the smartphone space it was all poised to dominate before the US ban.

Despite this no small setback, however, the company continues to march on—not only by judiciously shedding some of the product portfolios it has successfully built up (the value brand Honor comes to mind) but also, and more importantly, developing a software ecosystem, now under the AppGallery umbrella, that helps mitigate some of the drawbacks stemming from the US ban.

So, yes, consumers should have no qualms that buying into the Huawei platform would be severely limiting, as the AppGallery already provides access to such popular apps as TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Viber, WhatsApp, Zoom, a slew of banking apps local and foreign, plus not a few of the world’s popular games including Mobile Legends, PUBG Mobile, Asphalt Nitro and more. And, yes, the number of apps and games to found on the AppGallery continues to grow. Just in case you do need—as I do—those must-have Google apps and services like Gmail, Maps, Photos, Drive, YouTube, Chat, Calendar and Google Play Books the app Gspace provides the perfect solution, as I wrote some months back in my review of the Huawei P50 Pro. All that said, the only barrier to entry I can see for most people to embrace foldables is of course price, which not surprisingly is steep given the years of research, design, engineering and technology that have gone into making foldable displays viable in the general consumer space. But if price is not an issue, then the Huawei Mate Xs 2 will make the experience supremely satisfying. ■

Sports BusinessMirror

A12 Saturday, June 25, 2022

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph • Editor: Jun Lomibao

MONAHAN: PGA TOUR CAN’T WIN ‘ARMS RACE’ AGAINST SAUDI LIV GOLF

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ROMWELL, Connecticut— Commissioner Jay Monahan said the Professional Golfers Association(PGA) Tour can’t win an “arms race” against Saudifunded LIV Golf when the weapon is money.

His response Wednesday was to boost prize money in eight elite events and rely on loyalty and legacy among his players.

Monahan delivered another round of stinging criticism against Greg Norman and his rival league.

LIV Golf has snagged players who have combined to win nine majors in the last five years, including Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.

The latest to sign was Koepka, whose deal with LIV Golf was announced just as Monahan began his first press conference in three months at the Travelers Championship.

“I am not naive,” Monahan said. “If this is an arms race and if the only weapons here are dollar bills, the PGA Tour can’t compete.

The PGA Tour, an American institution, can’t compete with a foreign monarchy that is spending billions of dollars in attempt to buy the game of golf.

“We welcome good, healthy competition.

The LIV Saudi golf league is not that,” he said.

“It’s an irrational threat, one not concerned with the return on investment or true growth of the game.”

The tour, however, appears to be trying to keep up. Monahan said an increase in prize money was in the works from its latest media rights deal it signed in 2020, noting the threat of LIV Golf accelerated some of those plans.

He announced a streamlined schedule— January to August starting in 2024—with seven tournaments worth $20 million or more and fewer spots available for its postseason.

The top 125 qualify for the FedEx Cup playoffs.

Next year, only the top 70 will be eligible.

The fall would be for the players who finished outside the top 70 to secure cards for the following year, and to give them a chance to move into the top 50—or try to stay there— to secure spots in some of the elite $20 million tournaments.

Also planned are three international events in the fall for only the top 50 in FedEx Cup points from the previous season.

Monahan cited Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, who earlier Wednesday was unusually vocal in his support of the PGA Tour. Scheffler had not won on the PGA Tour until February, and then he won four times in two months to reach No. 1 in the world.

He already has set a PGA Tour record for season earnings at nearly $12.9 million.

“If you’re good enough, you will rise to the top,” Monahan said.

“And if you don’t continue to earn that top spot, someone else as hungry and as talented is right there to take your place. Again, that’s the unique beauty of what the tour has and always will offer to fans.

“It’s damn good and it’s worth fighting for.”

Koepka was among the LIV newcomers announced for the field in Oregon next week, and he was as big of a surprise as Johnson was for the inaugural London event.

Monahan was at Koepka’s wedding June 5 in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Koepka was part of a group of a Rolex outing a week ago in which he joined top players—Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas among them— in discussing in strong terms support for the tour. AP

JERMYN PRADO wears her three gold medals as she lifts her winning machine.

INTERNATIONAL Volleyball Federation (FIVB) president Dr. Ary da Silva Graça speaks as Asian Volleyball Confederation president Rita Subowo, FIVB General Director Fabio Azevedo and Philippine National Volleyball Federation president Ramon “Tats” Suzara look on.

FIVB CHIEF: PHL EXCELLENT HOST T

B J R

HE International Volleyball Federation, or FIVB, gave the Philippines an “A” for its hosting of a leg each of the women and men Volleyball Nations League (VNL).

As a result, the country could now bid for the bigger world championships of what is arguably the second most popular ball sport in the world.

“We never imagined the VNL here would be so beautiful and strong,” Fivb President Dr. Ary da Silva Graça told a press conference on Friday at the Grand Hyatt Manila at the BGC in Taguig City. “It’s fantastic and extraordinary.”

The Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) headed by Ramon “Tats” Suzara is the organizer of the country’s VNL Quezon City hosting at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Week 2 of the women VNL wrapped up last Sunday, while Week 2 of the men’s contest is ongoing at the Big Dome.

“That’s why we should go here in the Philippines and Indonesia because the future of volleyball would be here in Asia,” said Graça, adding reference to the Indonesian president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation, Rita Subowo, who’s in the country along with FIVB General Director Fabio Azevedo.

Subowo and Azevedo similarly hailed the PNVF for its remarkable hosting of the VNL. Graça, 79, a former Brazilian national team member, said that the successful hosting of the VNL “proves that the Philippines is ready and prepared to host such various international tournaments, including the world championships.”

“Everybody was thinking before that it would be a big risk, but it’s not,” Graça said. “So congratulations to the people of Manila.”

Asia has finally grown up in volleyball from zero to 13 international competitions all over the region throughout the years, according to Graça, and the sport has continuously grown with the Philippines now being a part of it.

“We’re going to bid for a world competition here soon along with Indonesia and other countries around you,” Graça said.

He also encouraged the PNVF to keep empowering

and developing the Philippine teams to attract public attention, press and the sponsors.

“And the FIVB is always here to give its 100 percent support to the PNVF without asking anything in return,” he said. “As I told you, we didn’t come here to get anything from your end but to help the development and empowerment of the sport.”

Graça said that the country doesn’t need to be an Olympic champion in five years although it needs to start the building now. “We will provide nets, balls and everything. We’re willing to transfer our knowledge also,” he said. Azevedo agreed with Graça, saying that the PNVFI has met FIVB’s expectations.

“We congratulate the PNVF for such a wonderful hosting and we expect more hosting to come,” Azevedo said. “The beauty of hosting the VNL is you can show it to your local community to inspire the young ones and this is the right investment for what Tats Suzara is doing.”

Subowo expressed gratitude to the Philippines for seeing the great progress of beach volleyball in the country since 1993 when she first introduced the sport in Boracay—where there was no electricity in the island.

“Look at Boracay now, it’s completely different,” she said. “We are working with sir Ramon [Suzara] during Asian Beach Games in Bali and other Asian activities.

We will still work together.”

Suzara also thanked the FIVB for the trust and confidence given to the PNVFI to host the VNL. “I’d like to thank the FIVB for its support. It’s been a tremendous success for the last nine days or ten days.

I heard the tickets are sold out today until Sunday,” Suzara said.

“Without your support and the Volleyball Word, we cannot host this big event. It changes the landscape of volleyball not only in the country but in the whole world.

It’s a historic moment.”

The last time an FIVB president visited the country was in 1994 when Mexican Ruben Acosta came over during the World Grand Prix in Manila.

“It’s 28 years of great mistake for the FIVB not visiting the country. I apologize,” Graça said. “But it’s pleasant to be here, it’s amazing and so astonishing.”

The FIVB leaders and Suzara watched live VNL men’s action later Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

DUTCH SPIKERS BEAT GERMANS IN FOUR-SETTER VNL MATCHUP

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PPOSITE spiker Nimir Abdel-Aziz fired three service aces to finish with 31 points as The Netherlands topped Germany, 22-25, 31-29, 25-23, 25-16, to rediscover its winning ways Friday in the Volleyball Nations League at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

It was also Nimir who gave The Netherlands a 2-1 set lead with a clutch kill and closed out the match with a powerful spike.

The 12th-ranked Dutch simply did not gave up, especially in the second set.

“We’re happy because we didn’t play the best volleyball but we continued to fight after the first set where we didn’t play good,” said Abdel-Aziz, who plays in Italian club Trentino.

The Netherlands, which bounced back from a straight-set loss to Tokyo Olympics gold medalist France on Thursday to improve to 4-3, unloaded six service aces.

“I think we served okay today. We made some mistakes too much, I think,” Abdel-Aziz said. “Good thing we were good in block and defense. Today, the important thing is we didn’t stop fighting,” he added.

The Dutch had more blocks than the Germans, 15-9, with Twan Wiltenburg and Nimir combining for seven.

Gijs Jorna added 11 points, 16 digs and nine receptions while Bennie Tuinstra was the other player from The Netherlands who scored in double digits with 10 points.

No. 16 Germany, which drew 25 points and seven digs from Linus Weber, fell to 3-4.

Magic pick Banchero 1st, Holmgren, Smith follow in NBA Rookie Draft

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PAOLO BANCHERO (right) poses for a photo with National Basketball Association Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected No. 1 by the Orlando Magic. AP

EW YORK—The question for weeks leading into the NBA draft was whether the first pick would be Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren or Jabari Smith Jr. The answer finally came Thursday night—and even Banchero didn’t know it until moments before the announcement of the Orlando Magic’s selection.

“I had a feeling from the information I was being told is that it was just kind of up in the air,” Banchero said. “Orlando wasn’t really sure yet, and just to be ready for whatever.

“I didn’t find out, though, that I was actually getting picked until about 20 seconds before the commissioner got on the stage. I didn’t even have time to really think about it or anything. It just kind of happened. I can’t believe it, but I’m ready. I’m ready.”

After leading the Blue Devils to the Final Four in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final season, the 6-foot-10 forward was called first by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to begin the draft, beating out fellow first-year forwards Smith and Holmgren.

The order had been debated throughout the process, with Smith often considered the player who would go No. 1.

Instead, he wasn’t even second, falling behind Holmgren to Houston at No. 3.

“Definitely added a chip, but God makes no mistakes, so I’m happy to be here,” Smith said. “I’m happy to be where I’m wanted. I’m happy to get to Houston and just show them, give them what they picked. Just happy to be here.”

All the players picked looked thrilled, with Banchero among those crying or coming close as they hugged friends and family. Wearing a purple suit full of bling, he received a loud ovation inside Barclays Center, where Duke lost in the ACC Tournament final. He came the fourth Duke player taken No. 1 since 1966, when the NBA did away with territorial draft rights, and was followed by Blue Devils teammates Mark Williams (No. 15, Charlotte), A.J. Griffin (No. 16, Atlanta) and Wendell Moore Jr. (No. 26, Dallas).

The Magic were picking first for the fourth time and they’ve done well with their previous choices. They took Shaquille O’Neal in 1992, traded the rights to Chris Webber for Penny Hardaway the next year, and went with Dwight Howard in 2004.

All eventually reached the NBA Finals with the Magic.

Holmgren went second to the Oklahoma City Thunder after the 7-footer led the West Coast Conference in blocked shots, rebounding and shooting percentage at Gonzaga. He looked sharp in his black suit but may need it to eventually

be a bigger size for success in the NBA, as he’s listed at just 195 pounds.

He’s not worried about that talk.

“I wake up every day with a plan on how to make myself a better person, better basketball player,” Holmgren said.

“I put so much effort into executing that, that it doesn’t really leave room to put effort into things that, one, I can’t control, and two, don’t help make me better.”

The Rockets were happy to end up in Smith who has the skills to go higher. The 6-10 forward from Auburn is a natural fit in the current NBA game, able to defend all three frontcourt positions and with a shooting stroke that allowed him to hit 42 percent behind the arc.

Forward Keegan Murray, after a huge leap in his second season in Iowa, jumped all the way to the No. 4 pick by the Sacramento Kings. The Detroit Pistons, a year after taking Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 pick, took athletic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey fifth.

Before the selections began, Silver congratulated the Golden State Warriors on their recent NBA championship and reminded fans that their core of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green was built through the draft. AP

PRADO: GOLDEN GIRL T

AGAYTAY City—Jermyn Prado rode a calculated and lethal race to pedal away to her third gold medal in the PhilCycling National Championships for Road on Thursday.

With the road race (massed start) for Women Elite tracing the same route as that of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, Prado, 27, pedaled patiently in the flats and took her own sweet time before she attacked in the climb back to the Praying Hands Monument with up-and-coming Mathilda Krogg.

They went on a controlled pace to the finish of the 114-km race with Prado prevailing in a friendly sprint to win her third gold medal after the criterium on Tuesday and individual time trial on Wednesday.

“Like I said, I don’t stop training,” said Prado, who clocked three hours, 21 minutes and 23 seconds, same time as the 19-year-old Krogg who settled for the silver medal, in the 114-km race that finished with a climb.

Prado was a former teammate of Krogg at the Philippine Navy-Standard Insurance team, an indication of Standard Insurance Group Chairman Judes Echauz’s determined goal to sustain a competitive women’s team.

Krogg, however, emerged the Women’s Under-23 champion, her second gold after the criterium, in the championships co-presented by Standard Insurance, MVP SportsFoundationandSmartandbackedbyChooks-to-Go, San Miguel Corp., Petron, Le Tour de Filipinas-Air21-One LGC, Tagaytay City, Go For Gold, Cavite’s First District, Batangas First District, Batangas and the Philippine National Police.

Avegail Rombaon secured another medal, a silver, after winding up as the second-best Elite rider after Prado.

The pride of Bicol also riding for Standard Insurance was seven minutes and 33 seconds off the champion in the event organized by PhilCycling and Philippine Olympic Committee president Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino.

Ma. Mhay-ann Lina settled for bronze in the event that was raced under an overcast sky with a threat of rain.

Because of the 80 percent probability of thunderstorm, commissaires decided to send off Thursday’s competitors in six events at five-minute intervals from the Praying Hands Monument start.

Krogg’s teammate, Kate Yasmin Velasco, clinched the Under-23 silver medal with a time of 3:24:40 and 7-Eleven Roadbike Philippines’s Phoebe Salazar was a dynamo behind the leaders and bagged bronze in 3:25:13.

Angelica Mae Altamirano (1:25:15), Lyca Angel Jacobe (1:25:43) and Althea Campana (1:25:44) finished 1-2-3 in Women’s Junior, and Steven Aaron Cerezo (1:02:04), Kyle Christian Mendajao (1:02:06) and Lester de la Cruz (1:02:06) occupied the Men’s Youth podium. Both were raced over 55 kms.

King Vincent Mercado (1:32:29) won gold, Khalil Sanchez (1:32:29) bagged silver and Kien Ebojo (1:32:30) clinched bronze in the 74-km Men’s Junior race, while Kim Syrel Bonilla (1:26:33), Vianne Angel Pagnanawon (1:26:34) and Rosalie de la Cruz (1:26:35) were the top finishers in the 40-km Women’s Youth event that went down to a sprint finish.

Sotto undrafted

K

AI SOTTO went undrafted in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Rookie Draft on Thursday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City.

The 30 NBA teams picked 58 rookies after two rounds of the draft process, none of them selecting the 7-foot-3 Sotto.

He’s now an unrestricted free agent with a chance to play in the NBA if a team gives him an opportunity to play in the Summer NBA League in July in San Francisco and Las Vegas.

Sotto, who played for Ateneo, worked out with the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers before the draft.

He played for the Adelaide 36ers in Australia’s National Basketball League where he registered 7.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.7 blocks. He averaged 15.2 minutes in each of the 23 games he played.

Sotto could also return to Manila to play for the men’s squad for the Fiba 2023 World Cup qualifiers or stay in the US to try his luck in the Summer League. Josef Ramos