BusinessMirror March 15, 2020

ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDS

2006 National Newspaper of the Year 2011 National Newspaper of the Year 2013 Business Newspaper of the Year 2017 Business Newspaper of the Year 2019 Business Newspaper of the Year

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

www.businessmirror.com.ph

n

Sunday, March 15, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 157

EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS

BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR (2017, 2018)

DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS

PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

DATA CHAMPION

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK

PCID HEAD CALLS FOR DRAMATIC SHIFT IN PUBLIC PERCEPTION ON MUSLIM INSURGENCY IN THE SOUTH

FACES OF REBELLION

THE sun begins to set in an area where government troops battled Islamic extremists in Marawi City, June 15, 2018.

By Roderick L. Abad

C

Contributor

ONSIDERING that violent extremism is a growing global threat that comes in different forms, a noted human-rights and peace advocate has called for a change of public perception in the country about it being mostly linked to the Muslim insurgency being waged in Mindanao.

AP/AARON FAVILA

“When you look at violent extremism, I think we should not be married to the idea that violent extremism is just faith-based,” said Amina Rasul-Bernardo, president of the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID).

She made this appeal before government officials, foreign participants, representatives from different nongovernment organizations, members of the academe, media and others during the Talking Asean on “Preventing Violent Extremism through Good Governance and Rule of Law” forum held

recently by think tank Stratbase ADR Institute and The Habibie Center’s Asean Studies Program in Makati City.

“When you talk about violent extremism, it’s always ISIS [Islamic State], the radicals or the Muslims.

No. As far as I’m concerned and I come from the area of conflict, the ISIS is not as worrisome to meet,” she pointed out.

What these liberation fronts want, according to her, was just to “isolate themselves to carve out an independent kingdom” that will be recognized here and abroad.

“So please do not just focus your attention on Muslim Mindanao. Because all of these things are happening on a bigger scale outside of ARMM [Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao],” Bernardo told reporters on the sidelines of the forum.

The PCID official even cited that there are other huge problems now confronting the country, such as narco politics, smuggling, human trafficking, and gun running, among others.

“We are peanuts in Muslim Mindanao. So if you are going to

be looking at cutting all of these criminal actions, is has to be a national government effort and not something that’s focused only on one sector of society,” she said.

Bigger danger

THE armed conflict that has been taking place in the country is not limited only in the south but all throughout the nation, Bernardo pointed out.

For Bernardo, the scarier and more dangerous threat for violent extremism would be those who Continued on A2

World economy powering down daily makes recession more likely

By Enda Curran and Michelle Jamrisko

A

Bloomberg News

PANDEMIC-DRIVEN global recession is becoming more likely by the day as the flow of goods, services and people faces ever-increasing restrictions.

In just the past day or so, President Donald Trump curbed travel to the US from Europe, Italy’s government ordered almost every shop to close and India suspended most visas. Twitter Inc. joined the flood of companies telling employees to work at home and the National Basketball Association suspended its season.

While such announcements are aimed at containing the coronavirus, each quarantined city, canceled flight, scrapped sporting event and scuppered conference

will hammer demand across the globe this quarter and likely longer.

An initial consumer rush to stock up on supplies may be followed by months of cautious restraint.

“The resulting pandemic of fear continues to spread and is bound to cause a global recession,” Ed Yardeni, president and founder of Yardeni Research Inc. wrote in a research note.

Dashed are the hopes from just a few weeks ago that the world economy would track a V-shaped trajectory—a sharp first-quarter

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.8600

A TRADER uses a hand sanitizer dispenser on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, March 12, 2020. AP/RICHARD DREW

slump in growth followed by a second-quarter rebound. Now, the biggest economic shock since the 2008 financial crisis is raising the risk of a worldwide recession, with the debate shifting to how long and deep the slump will be.

Equities and bond yields continued their retreat on Thursday, with the MSCI World Index of stocks now on the verge of a bear market.

China is already on course for what could be its first quarterly contraction in decades. In the US, a Bloomberg Economics model suggests a 53-percent chance that the 11-year expansion will end within a year. The economies of Japan, Germany, France and Italy were already shrinking, or stalled, before the virus outbreak, and the UK is wobbling amid Brexit uncertainty.

As the virus spreads, the threat grows of a phenomenon economists refer to as a feedback loop— a vicious cycle in which a country Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4853 n UK 64.0277 n HK 6.5398 n CHINA 7.2368 n SINGAPORE 36.0991 n AUSTRALIA 32.0774 n EU 56.8055 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.5507

Source: BSP (March 13, 2020)

NewsSunday BusinessMirror

FACES OF REBELLION A2 Sunday, March 15, 2020

Continued from A1

want to overthrow governments and put in their own ideology.

And that would be the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist coalition of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), the New People’s Army (NPA), and the National Democratic Front (NDF), she added.

“They are nationwide, whereas, the ISIS is really in areas that are predominantly Muslims.

Therefore, [it’s a] minority. But you find the left-leaning violent groups in areas from Luzon to Mindanao, particularly in very rich hunting grounds called mining areas because this is where the indigenous peoples are. They have their own grievances and, therefore, also easy to recruit,” explained the topranking PCID officer.

These terror groups, despite their remote locations, have managed to sustain their rebellious activities for decades as they try to establish an independent state— thanks to the levy they impose on any kind of business that operates within their territories.

Proof of which, Bernardo cited, was a report from the Department of National Defense a couple of years ago about the revolutionary tax that was generated by the CPP-NPA-NDF. She said: “I think it was something like P5 billion a year.”

Such extortionist activity of these rebel groups ever since has not only robbed off potential earnings for the country, but also has averted the growth of their stronghold places.

“The CPP-NPA-NDF has been in existence for more than 50 years and it continues to drag down our

www.businessmirror.com.ph

economy, especially in those areas.

There will be no massive development in those areas, primarily because [of constant concerns about the] CPP-NPA through attacks on government forces and through revolutionary taxation,” shared Jonathan Malaya, spokesman and undersecretary for plans, public affairs and communication at the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“If you’re a Filipino, that’s the bigger threat because we are very married to the idea of a democratic form of government that we’ve lived under for how many decades now. And you do not want that government system being changed in non-democratic ways, in violent ways,” Bernardo added.

‘Cancerous cells’

AKIN to a cancer cell that continues to reproduce and spread out to cause harm to other parts of the body, violent extremism over time has occurred not only in poor states but even in progressive and highly developed economies.

“The scary part of the ISISinspired violent extremism is that it really has metamorphosed,” Bernardo said.

In fact, she noted that “the ISIS cancerous cells” are not only confined in the Muslim communities where problems, such as bad governance, conflict, low education rates, and high adult illiteracy rates, among others, exist.

“But you find them in the strong countries that are pillars of democracy, with good governance, respectful rule of law, high GDP [gross domestic product],” she said.

“You find them striking ter-

IN this November 23, 2016, file photo, members of the New People’s Army read a local paper at their guerrilla encampment tucked in the Sierra Madre Mountains southeast of Manila. AP/AARON FAVILA

ror and operating in the areas like Washington, DC, New York, Australia, Japan and Europe. And the terror that they have struck there on their own is more damaging than what they have done in the Muslim communities.

“So when you try to equate good governance, corruption with violent extremism, I think you’re again missing out on more crucial factors that contribute to radicalization.”

As many have analyzed, it comes down almost to a case-bycase situation, regardless of the economic status, the kind of leadership and justice system a certain nation has.

“It’s something a little bit more that creates violent extremists out of .00001 percent of the population,” the PCID president said. “And you need trained people who know how to identify and how to deal with these people who have now been transformed from ideological radicals to violent extremists.”

National strategy

TAKING a whole-of-government approach to fight radicalization, the Duterte administration has come up with the National Action Plan on Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (NAP P/CVE).

The government has adopted this strategy, which was started by the United Nations and picked up by the Asean, to prevent a repeat of the Marawi Siege in 2017, according to Malaya.

He said that it has been taken up via the Anti-Terrorism Council to address cultural, economic, political, psychosocial and religious factors of radicalization that result in violent extremism.

This plan, likewise, seeks to deal with other issues, such as marginalization, human-rights violations and non-adherence to the rule of law.

“Unsurprisingly, the plan also identifies the need to strengthen good governance and the rule of law as one of the keys to countering these root causes,” said Stratbase ADR Institute President Victor Andres Manhit.

“I was very impressed by what the Philippine government is doing,” said A. Ibrahim Almuttaqi, head of the Asean Studies Program at The Habibie Center. “It seems to be a very comprehensive national work plan.”

Indonesia, where he hails from, was among the first countries in the region to come up with a national workplan to avoid and combat violent extremism.

“I must congratulate Indonesia because the Indonesian process for creating the NAP for PVE has been exemplary in its inclusiveness,” Bernardo said as she recalled her participation, upon invitation by the Indonesian government, in three of the workshops held to discuss the crafting of this workplan for the most populous Muslim nations in the world.

“This is, I guess, the realization that it’s not Indonesia alone. It’s all of Asean together. So whatever it is they do must also find a mirror

image on the other side of the sea in Mindanao, Sulu, so that things work as they should and it has to be supported by Asean,” she added.

Unfortunately, though, such approach in engaging the stakeholders was not embraced in the Philippines, observed the PCID president.

“The putting together of the National Action Plan is not as inclusive as, for instance, Indonesia has been,” she said critical of the NAP P/ CVE. “There is no way government alone can do this because you cannot monitor what’s going on in the communities. It’s us who can—the religious leaders, the young people, the business sector, the teachers, the madrasahs. They’re the ones who know what’s going on. And if they are outside the policy formulation for prevention of violent extremism, who will be the partners of national government?”

While the course of action on a national scale has been already laid down, Bernardo remains hopeful that this will still be improved in the near future. Taking a cue from their counterpart officials from the AntiTerror Council and the DILG, she stressed that the move of these agencies to do more consultations with stakeholders needs a lot of support.

World economy powering down daily makes recession more likely Continued from A1

that starts to recover domestically then suffers diminished demand from abroad as other nations succumb, prolonging the downturn.

At Pacific Investment Management Co., global chief economic adviser Joachim Fels says the US and Europe face the “distinct possibility” of a recession. Former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, a paid contributor to Bloomberg News, says the coronavirus may prove to be the most serious crisis of the century so far and puts the odds of a US recession at 80 percent.

Traditionally more conservative in calling a recession, Wall Street economists are also downgrading their forecasts. Those at Bank of America Corp. on Wednesday cut their global growth forecast for 2020 from 2.8 percent to 2.2 percent. That’s “in spitting range of a typical global recession” and well below the world’s long-term trend of 3.5 percent, they said.

Counterparts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. told clients this week that the risk of a global recession “has risen materially.” To revive their confidence, they said they need to see a fading of the virus, a stronger and more creative response by economic policy makers, and for firms and banks not to slash jobs or lending.

Policy makers are already

struggling to keep up, adding to concern that falling demand won’t be cushioned enough by stimulus.

The Federal Reserve’s emergency interest rate cut of March 3 failed to buoy investor confidence, adding to pressure on its officials to ease monetary policy and perhaps even slash rates to zero when they reconvene next week if not sooner.

There are also calls for it to follow the Bank of England in channeling assistance to parts of the economy in most need.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde gets her chance to act on Thursday. She telegraphed action by telling European leaders that the region risks an economic shock that echoes the crisis of the last decade unless they act urgently. But she too is limited in her ability to respond given euroarea interest rates are already negative, a problem for Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda too.

That leaves fiscal policy, which should be more potent than monetary policy because it can be targeted and delivered in size. But governments are again proving sluggish in getting ahead of the crisis with the majority waiting for their nations to become infected before shifting and then only slowly.

While more governments are rolling out stimulus packages worldwide and are offering more than $130 billion of virus-relief

steps, Trump’s administration has been slow crafting a plan after initially questioning the need for one.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel promised to do “whatever is necessary” on Wednesday, but the rhetoric has yet to be matched by a fiscal push in Europe’s largest economy, which is traditionally skeptical of opening the fiscal spigot.

Much of the economic data have yet to bear out the magnitude of the pain to the global economy.

In some ways, though, the virus outbreak’s impact is more worrisome than even the financial crisis, given that it’s hitting a multitude of consumer and business channels and has crushed prospects for a full recovery in some sectors, said Taimur Baig, chief economist at DBS Bank in Singapore.

“This is the opposite transition from the crisis propagation perspective—now we have the services sector basically coming to a standstill worldwide” while the financial system still is relatively healthy, said Baig, a former economist at the International Monetary Fund.

While the crisis of 2008-09 was a “classic financial crisis,” this time, “it’s not about fixing banks or putting capital in there—it’s about saying the pandemic has ended.

That’s what makes it very uncertain” as the virus has proved so hard to control, he said.

The World BusinessMirror

Editor: Angel R. Calso

Luxury shoppers in China emerge from quarantine to buy again

C

hinese shoppers are slowly returning to the glitzy malls and boutiques where they’ve been driving growth of the global luxury industry as coronavirus quarantine measures relax.

Store traffic in China is creeping back up after falling as much as 80 percent at the virus outbreak’s peak there earlier this winter, hammering sales of brands ranging from Burberry Group Plc. to Kering SA’s Gucci. The recovery could accelerate in the coming weeks, fueled by so-called revenge spending sprees.

Amrita Banta, managing director at Agility Research, used the term—previously coined to describe pent-up Chinese consumer demand that was unleashed in the 1980s after the chaos and poverty of the Cultural Revolution—to describe buying by luxury clients whose pockets are flush with cash after weeks of canceled plans.

“China seems to have turned the corner and bigger cities are showing cautious optimism,”she said. “We see a slow but definite bounce back.”

Chinese shoppers made up more than onethird of the luxury industry’s sales and about two-thirds of its growth in recent years. When Beijing imposed lockdowns in late January to stem the spread of the coronavirus, sales ground to a halt just as the key Lunar New Year vacation period was getting started.

What had previously seemed like a disastrous first quarter for the industry is poised to turn into a poor first half, as luxury hubs like Italy ramp up their own quarantine measures and the virus spreads in major markets like the US.

Global spread

Even as the virus spreads globally, there are signs that China’s own outbreak is coming under control. The country reported only twodozen new cases of the disease on Wednesday, down from hundreds or thousands per day a few weeks ago. And luxury brands such as Hermes International are reopening shops.

“We see a slow improvement in the business in China,” Salvatore Ferragamo SpA Chief Executive Officer Micaela Le Divelec

Lemmi said on Tuesday. “On top of the traffic, the mood of the Chinese customers will also be relevant. After a month and a half of closures and restrictions, there is a will to come back and have a real life.”

Andy Li, who works in financial technology, agrees. The 29-year-old has already gone to the Maoye mall, in the northern Shanxi province, three times since quarantine measures eased two weeks ago. The mall, which houses brands including Kering’s Gucci and Bottega Veneta, checks shoppers’ temperatures before allowing them to enter.

Guests must also wear masks.

“I was trapped in my home for an entire month,” Li said. “Our residential compound was chained up, and we were not allowed to go anywhere. Now I feel somewhat free again.”

Online shopping

He tried shopping more online during the quarantine, but said the products he ordered got stuck in customs amid logistics delays.

Hermes says it has reopened all but two of its stores in mainland China, after closing 11 locations when quarantine measures were at their peak. Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Ltd., the world’s biggest jeweler by sales, said about 85 percent of its more than 3,600 Chinese stores resumed operations this week.

Flight cancellations and restrictions on sales of package tours have made it harder for Chinese tourists to travel internationally, which could accelerate a shift to buying more at home rather than on shopping trips abroad.

That trend had already taken hold as lower import duties and taxes made local shopping more attractive.

It’s unlikely that revenge spending will make up for all of the lost sales. The outbreak is likely to reduce industry sales by as much as 40 billion euros ($45 billion) in 2020, according to the survey of 28 top executives undertaken by Boston Consulting Group and Sanford C. Bernstein. And not everyone will be racing back to the mall as quarantine measures relax. Bloomberg News

Sunday, March 15, 2020

A3

Most coronavirus patients recover, still anxiety, fear loom

S

EATTLE—Amid all the fears, quarantines and stockpiling of food, it has been easy to ignore the fact that more than 60,000 people have recovered from the coronavirus spreading around the globe.

The disease can cause varying degrees of illness and is especially troublesome for older adults and people with existing health problems, who are at risk of severe effects, including pneumonia.

But for most of those affected, coronavirus creates only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, with the vast majority recovering from the virus.

According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe ailments may take three to six weeks to rebound. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed, but more than 58,000 already have recovered.

Because the difference in impact can be so great, global health authorities have the difficult task of alerting the public to the virus’ dangers without creating panic.

Already, the widespread consequences of the virus have been staggering, sending shock waves through the world’s financial markets. Global oil prices sustained

their worst percentage losses since the Gulf War in 1991, and new restrictions were imposed in Italy and in Israel as the Holy Week approached.

But even some of the most vulnerable patients can fight their way through the disease.

Charl ie Campbel l ’s fat her, 89-year-old Eugene Campbell, has been diagnosed with the coronavirus and is hospitalized in Edmonds, Washington. Charlie said his father’s doctor is cautiously optimistic, adding, “Under normal circumstances, he would discharge my dad, but these aren’t normal circumstances.”

Eugene came to the hospital from Life Care Center, a nursing home in Kirkland that has been linked to 19 of Washington state’s 23 coronavirus deaths.

“We went and saw him yesterday and he looked pretty good,” Charlie said, noting that his father is breathing normally and his vital signs and heart rate are good. “He may be the oldest person to recover from coronavirus.”

For some who’ve been quar-

antined, anxiety and dread that they will become stigmatized by friends, neighbors and coworkers have made them reluctant to acknowledge even the most modest health impact. A few patients with the virus who were interviewed

by The Associated Press—all of them passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship that ended up quarantined off Japan—described symptoms that were no stronger than a regular cold or flu.

“It’s been a 2 on a scale of 10,” said Carl Goldman, hospitalized in Omaha, Nebraska, since February 17, after developing a 103-degree fever on a chartered flight from Japan to the US. Goldman is staying hydrated with Gatorade. He said he continued coughing more than two weeks after he first got sick, but would probably only have missed one day of work if he had been diagnosed with the cold or flu. He stays active by pacing in his room, trying to match his pre-sickness routine of 10,000 daily steps on the pedometer.

“I totally get this is where I need to be and I need to be cleared of this before I’m released,” he said.

Greg Yerex, who was diagnosed along with his wife, Rose Yerex, on the Diamond Princess, said he had no symptoms and felt as healthy as he did on any other normal day.

“If I was home, I would be out doing everything I normally do,” he said in an interview conducted via Facebook calls when the couple was still hospitalized in Nagoya,

Japan. Rose tested negative when she got to the hospital.

For Greg, it was the couple’s mental health that faced the biggest threat as they spent days in quarantine, isolated from friends and family and deprived of any direct human contact.

“It’s like being a prisoner,” he said. “You pace, you worry, you fret, you imagine all sorts of things. You have no control.”

Greg said that he and his wife, who have since been released from the hospital, plan to go to counseling to work through the mental stress they experienced.

Fellow cruise passenger Rebecca Frasure knows how they feel.

“I don’t get to speak with anyone,” she said in a Facebook call while still hospitalized in Nagoya.

“I have a little window in my room, but cannot leave. The only contact I have is through Facebook messenger. I would never wish this on anyone.”

Frasure said one of the things she found most frustrating was waiting for her test results to come back. Patients who have been diagnosed with the virus must have two consecutive negative tests before they can be released.

Fr a s u re i s no w out of t he hos pit a l , but i s wor r ied about being stigmatized by her home com mu n it y.

“Are they going to be afraid?” she wondered. “Are they going to criticize me for being home, thinking I brought virus back with me?” AP

Pandemic increasingly takes over daily lives, roils markets Virus darkens stages, silences

S

EOUL, South Korea—The coronavirus pandemic has taken over daily lives around the globe, overwhelming hospitals, shuttering schools and offices, halting US presidential campaign rallies and world sports while increasing fears about the financial toll.

The intensifying spread of Covid-19 beyond Asia has dashed hopes about a quick containment, even with travel and social events curbed drastically. And political leaders were among those infected or quarantined due to potential exposure.

Asian markets were sinking further Friday, after US stocks had their greatest losses since the Black Monday crash of 1987 and bad European results. Benchmarks in Japan, Thailand and India sank as much as 10 percent. Losses in mainland China, where the virus is subsiding, were less severe.

In the United States, Congress neared a deal with the Trump administration on a sweeping aid package with sick pay, free testing and other resources to help reassure anxious Americans and calm markets, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.

People fretted over the health risks to the elderly, threatened jobs and dwindling savings while caring for children staying home from shuttered schools.

While Washington scrambled to shape an economic rescue package, the European Union pushed back against President Donald Trump’s sharp restrictions on travel from Europe to the United States, slamming Trump’s “unilateral” decision and declaring the virus a “global crisis, not limited to any continent, and it requires cooperation.”

Trump defended his decision to not notify all EU leaders ahead of the announcement.

“When they raise taxes on us, they don’t consult us,” Trump said. “I think that’s probably one in the same.”

The spread of the virus in Europe, North America and the Middle East has drawn contrast with waning epidemics in the hardest-hit nations in Asia.

China, where the outbreak emerged late last year, still accounts for more than 60 percent of global infections. But on Friday it reported just eight new cases and seven deaths. More than 64,000 people have been released from hospital.

SERVPRO cleaning workers are sprayed as they exit the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington State, on Thursday, March 12, 2020, at the end of a day spent cleaning inside the facility near Seattle. The nursing home is at the center of the outbreak of the new coronavirus in Washington state. AP

With China’s caseload slowing, the government was helping other countries with its expertise. A Chinese medical crew was heading to Italy and surplus supplies were sent to Iran.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told the UN leader his nation wants to conduct joint research on drugs and vaccines and offer “as much assistance as it can” to countries where the virus is spreading. State media reported Xi told UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres by phone that economic and daily life are gradually returning to normal in China thanks to “arduous endeavors” at prevention and control.

The pandemic’s new epicenter is Europe.

Italy’s death toll topped 1,000 on Thursday with more than 15,000 confirmed cases.

France, Spain and Germany all exceeded 2,000 cases each.

In Italy’s hardest-hit Lombardy region, hospitals were overwhelmed with both the sick and the dead. The country’s restaurants, cafes and retail shops closed in a lockdown on personal movement, though grocery stores, pharmacies and markets were allowed to operate.

France, Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Lithuania Algeria and Slovakia shut down their schools, and Europe’s most successful soccer team, Real Madrid, put all its players into quarantine after one tested positive. The Czech government tightened border checks for some countries, and Slovakia closed its international airports and ground transport

hubs. Europeans were adjusting to new US travel restrictions, which exempted Britain and Ireland, raising questions about the policy’s coherence.

In Iran, which exceeds 10,000 cases and 400 deaths, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif urged the Trump administration to immediately lift sanctions over the country’s nuclear program. He said the sanctions made it difficult to import medicine and medical equipment, including to identify and treat coronavirus patients.

State-run TV reported a positive test and home quarantine for Ali Akbar Velayati, a trusted adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the 80-year-old leader of the Islamic Republic. Iran’s senior vice president, Cabinet ministers, members of parliament, Revolutionary Guard members and Health Ministry officials are also infected.

Amid the fear, it can be easy to forget that more than half of the world’s 128,000 people infected have already recovered.

Most patients have only mild or moderate symptoms such as a fever or cold, though severe symptoms including pneumonia can occur, especially in older adults and people with existing health problems.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was isolating himself after his wife tested positive. She said she was experiencing uncomfortable symptoms but “I will be back on my feet soon.” Trudeau’s office said he has no symptoms of Covid -19 but will stay in isolation for 14 days.

Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is in isolation at a hospital after testing positive. In Spain, a leading member of a far-right party tested positive for the virus. Several US politicians were quarantining themselves as a protective measure after coming in contact with Covid-19 patients.

The Brazilian president’s communications director tested positive just days after meeting with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Despite that, Trump has no immediate plans to be tested, or self-quarantine, the White House said.

Trump did, however, halt his trademark political rallies, leaving the US presidential campaign trail all-but-empty with leading Democratic contenders Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders canceling events, too.

Across the US, where cases have topped 1,600, a sense of urgency was pervasive.

Professional athletes and entertainers were among those infected.

Schools emptied of students and workplace cubicles went vacant. Crowded gatherings were restricted from New York to California, and dozens of cultural hubs were closed. Disneyland and Disney World will close in the coming days. And sports fans couldn’t cheer their favorite teams from the safety of their living rooms since basketball, baseball, hockey and other leagues canceled and postponed games.

Workers disinfected schools, public transit vehicles, government offices and places of worship. In Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, the government launched a cleaning campaign for 10,000 mosques. The religious affairs minister called on each mosque to roll up the carpet and spray disinfectant, while also calling on Muslims to not shake hands or share a kiss on the cheek to avoid spreading the virus.

Amid all the cancellations in sports, the biggest athletic competition of them all— the Summer Olympics—was still firmly on the calendar. The International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo organizing committee were not considering canceling or delaying the Games, “absolutely not at all,” Japan’s Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto said. AP

orchestras across America

N

EW YORK—The stage at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle is quiet.

There is no music coming from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the members of Pearl Jam won’t tour. There is no one to admire the treasures at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The ongoing fears surrounding the coronavirus have shuttered places where Americans—and foreign visitors—have long gathered to escape the world and also to engage with it. Almost everything that draws crowds has now sent them all away.

Wisconsin resident Ellen Moodie, 58, found herself in New York, twice rejected. She came for the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden, but that was canceled. So she tried to catch a Broadway show, but those too were canceled. She admitted to being a little disappointed.

“We would love to see a show but understand the situation,” she said.

The list of venues where Americans can no longer find entertainment, or diversion continues to climb—so far scrapped or shuttered are everything from Coachella to Carnegie Hall, Major League Soccer, Disneyland and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Bob and Diane Erickson, of Cambridge, Minnesota, were taking no chances Thursday, hitting all of Nashville’s major tourist destinations that were unaffected thus far, including The Grand Ole Opry and the Ryman Auditorium. “We’re just kind of watching it,” said Bob Erickson. “And frankly, it’s going to get bigger.”

The closures of museums and theaters and concerts come even as families find their kids locked out of school with nothing to do and arts institutions worry about keeping the lights on without ticket sales.

“It’s the people that are down here, trying to earn that dollar that it’s going to affect the most,” said Mike Beliles, of Wilmington, North Carolina, who was visiting Nashville.

“It’s the people who are trying to make ends meet and they aren’t able to work.”

For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older

adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.

Apprehension of the virus has claimed an astonishingly varied list of events stretching beyond the traditional arts, from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo to the New York International Auto Show. Big events in big venues like the NBA season and NCAA basketball tournaments were felled by coronavirus, but smaller and less raucous get-togethers were also abandoned, too.

A ro u n d t h e co u nt r y, b o o k s to re appearances by James McBride, Louise Erdrich and many others were postponed, or canceled, during what is usually one of publishing’s busiest seasons. The prizewinning author and illustrator Gene Luen Yang called off the tour for his graphic novel Dragon Hoops.

The Brooklyn Public Library in New York suspended, or postponed, all public programs until at least the end of the month. Jakab Orsós, the vice president of arts and culture, called the move “only responsible action we could take.” He said the virus is making those in the world of culture humble.

“Its a bitter lesson, that we are not the rulers of the universe. We got very comfortable thinking we could overcome everything. Sometimes we have to learn that there are stronger powers. It’s larger than culture, it’s universal,” he said. “We have to change course. Whatever that is—we have to learn this message. This is a huge and important lesson, especially in the Western world.”

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday banned gatherings of 500, or more, in the city, effectively forcing the hand of Broadway producers who had previously said that Broadway would be “open for business” unless advised not to by the government.

Shows are now slated to resume the week of April 13. AP

A4

The World BusinessMirror

Sunday, March 15, 2020

The new mask: Wave of global revolt replaced by virus fear

Signature face masks

Hong Kong’s protesters made face masks a signature of revolt, wearing them to protect against tear gas and conceal their identities from authorities.

These same masks are now ubiquitous around the world—worn by people from China and Iran, to Italy and America, seeking to protect against the coronavirus.

In Hong Kong, major antigover nment protests t hat at

With oil this cheap, why bother going green?

T

hree months ago, Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, announced—to much fanfare— a “Green Deal” to make the EU carbon neutral by 2050. Alas, a few things have happened since, including a pandemic and an oil shock. Together, these unforeseeable events cast doubt over the Green Deal just as it’s supposed to become legislation this year.

The EU must ensure that the two new problems don’t exacerbate an even bigger one: climate change.

First the good news, such as it is. In the short term the coronavirus almost certainly reduces greenhouse-gas emissions. The

world’s biggest polluter, China, was the source of the outbreak and temporarily had to idle much of its industry. Many airlines are grounding their fleets, and people are also shunning other forms of travel as industry fairs and meetings are canceled. Less kerosene and gasoline is being burned to carry people around, and less carbon dioxide is escaping into the air. But this reprieve is merely a one-off effect.

More important for the Green Deal is the effect of the crisis on energy costs. Less demand also means lower prices, which has strained relations between the major oil-producing nations. Saudi Arabia and Russia are suddenly at

T

The protest camps in central Beirut and Baghdad are subdued.

The coronavirus was the last straw for two struggling protest movements that for a short while seemed like they might actually achieve at least some of the social change they so desperately aspired for.

Both countries, scarred by long conflicts and on the brink of economic collapse, erupted last October in unprecedented, spontaneous anti-government revolts, calling for revolutionary each other’s throats, with the former dumping so much oil onto the global market that the crude price on Monday collapsed to its lowest level since 1991. It could stay dirtcheap for some time.

Gas prices have plummeted alongside those of oil. And these two fossil fuels are now making other energy sources less competitive. That is good if gas power plants drive out even dirtier coalfired ones. But it’s bad when, in transport or heating for example, cleaner and greener alternatives lose attraction: fuel cells, say, or electric cars charged with power from the sun or wind. In green technology, innovation and adoption tends to accelerate when fossil-fuel prices are high, and to decelerate when they’re low.

Now take a closer look at the EU’s Green Deal. It’s a vast and complex package of measures, but it breaks down into two conceptual parts. The bigger one consists of

various forms of direct state intervention in the market—ranging from subsidies to prohibitions and coaxing—to help technologies, investments and companies that are deemed “green.”

These projects just got, relative to their fossil-fuel alternatives, much more expensive for taxpayers, and much more invasive and distorting for market participants.

To drivers refueling at the pump or homeowners installing a heater, the market’s price signal points in one direction, while EU policy points in the other. This won’t go well.

The Green Deal’s other part is much more promising, especially from a liberal (meaning marketfriendly, not leftist) perspective.

It involves expanding and tightening the EU’s existing emissions trading system, which relies on price signals and market forces to decide where in the economy it’s cheapest and easiest to cut

emissions fastest.

In this system, the EU fixes the total quantity of carbon that can be emitted by certain industries, from cement and steelmakers to airlines and power plants, and gives out allowances. Companies that find ways to emit less, by investing in new technologies or processes, can sell their certificates to others who need more time. As the EU notches down the overall quantity, certificates gradually become scarcer and thus dearer, giving companies even more incentive to reduce or recapture their carbon footprint.

But the system has two big challenges. One is that the price of allowances, even though it’s gone up recently, is still far too low, currently about €23 ($26.1) per metric ton. The even bigger problem is that the system at present only covers sectors responsible for less than half the EU’s total carbon footprint. Among the most glaring

EIRUT—As 2019 gave way to 2020 in a cloud of tear gas, and in some cases a hail of bullets, from Hong Kong to Baghdad, from Beirut to Barcelona and Santiago, it seemed civil disobedience and government crackdowns on protests would dominate the international landscape. times drew hundreds of thousands of marchers began to tail off late last year.

But smaller-scale gatherings continue to spring up, mostly to mark the anniversar y of key i nc ide nt s du r i ng l a st ye a r ’s demonst rat ions, u nderl in ing the refusal of city leader Carrie Lam to give in to most of the movement’s demands.

“The movement that began last June, while no longer regularly making the front pages, is still very much under way and Hong Kong remains on the brink,” wrote Jeffrey Wasserstrom, a historian of modern China at the University of California, Irvine.

The government’s handling of the virus outbreak may add to protesters’ long list of grievances, he said.

Complaints include the selection of quarantine sites, Lam’s refusal to close the border with China entirely and the stranding of Hong Kong residents in virus-hit parts of mainland China, although some returned home last week.

In Chile, protests that drew hundreds of thousands of people demanding social reforms late last year had dropped off dramatically during the southern hemisphere’s summer months. Those who are never absent are the masked hard-liners who clash violently with police.

They call themselves the “first line” of defense for other protesters from police repression.

Despite the expanding coronavirus, Carlos Donoso, a 30-yearold tattoo artist, says he won’t stop protesting.

“You could catch it in the disco, at the gym, in the supermarket. It’s much more important what we’re doing now,” he said.

In India, fear of the virus has had almost no impact on an 85-day-long sit-in led by women in New Delhi’s sprawling Muslim-

By Joe Nocera

Bloomberg Opinion

change. “Thieves!” they shouted to describe a hated and corrupt ruling class they blame for their current despair.

But security crackdowns, disputes among the protesters, economic exhaustion and a craving for normalcy greatly diminished the rallies in recent weeks.

Protesters in both countries now struggle to attract demonstrators with the added obstacle of outbreak worries. Both the Iraqi and Lebanese governments have called on citizens to avoid large gatherings, although they have not yet banned protests outright.

“What are you waiting for?

Do not fear corona, you are dying any way from the air you breathe!” shouted a woman in Beirut marching along with a small group of protesters, referring to Lebanon’s chronic pollution and waste management troubles. “Better to die protesting.”

To e n c o u r a g e p r o t e s t e r s , Iraqis set up a ster i l i z at ion booth on the edge of Baghdad ’s Tahrir Square for those entering the encampment at the center of their movement. Civil defense teams sterilized the square and the Turkish Restaurant, a Baghdad high-rise where protesters have been staging a sit-in, turning it into a potent symbol of the demonstrations.

On a recent day, protesters wearing face masks and protective suits marched in Tahrir Square.

“The demonstrations may make you ill, but they will not kill you,” said Ali Salih, 30, who works as a volunteer paramedic for the protesters. “We gave at least 700 martyrs and more than 25,000 wounded. How can it end without fulfilling its demands?” AP

The Associated Press

Then came the coronavirus.

Protests, by their very nature driven by large gatherings, have been doused. Streets crammed with tens of thousands of chanting protesters are largely deserted.

Masks worn to protect against tear gas are now worn to protect against the virus. A very different kind of fear has set in around protest camps and around the world.

The global unrest spanned three continents last year, fueled by local grievances but reflecting worldwide frustration at growing inequality, corrupt elites and broken promises.

In Hong Kong, Beirut and Barcelona, images of euphoric protesters captured people’s imaginations around the world even as they were beaten back, and in some cases, shot dead by police.

In most of these places, the protests had waned even before the outbreak—a combination of fear and fatigue giving way to resignation or apathy. The spreading of new coronavirus has in some cases given authorities a means to further suppress the protests.

But the movements are not over. Even with the panic and adjusted daily behavior engulfing the world, some continue to demonstrate, insisting they have sacrificed too much to give up.

With the street revolts’ underlying causes largely unaddressed, those surviving remnants could eventually swell once more.

Coronavirus aid should go to citizens, not corporations he most infuriating aspect of the US government’s response to the 2008 financial crisis was the contrast between its generosity to companies and its lack of generosity to citizens.

Co n g re s s p a s s e d a $ 7 0 0 - b i l l i o n bailout for the banking industry. AIG Inc. received $180 billion worth of loans from the Federal Reserve. The auto industry received nearly $81 billion in taxpayer funds. Yet, people who either lost their jobs or were in danger of losing their homes received little or nothing in the way of federal assistance. The result was a great deal of avoidable suffering.

Based on recent remarks by President Donald Trump and administration officials, I fear we’re headed down the same path as the coronavirus crisis brings the economy ever closer to a recession. On Friday, for instance, the president’s chief economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, told Bloomberg News that the administration was looking at ways to help the airline, hotel and cruise-ship industries, perhaps by deferring taxes. And while he also said that the administration wanted to help taxpayers, he added, “We don’t want to willynilly throw $300 billion-$400 billion, with a thousand-dollar check to every American.”

O n Tu e s d ay, t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n added oil and natural gas producers to the list of industries it was concerned about after the net worth of energy mogul Harold Hamm, a Trump supporter, dropped by $2 billion in the wake of the collapse in oil prices. (Hamm confirmed to the Washington Post that he had reached out to the White House.)

A s fo r t h e re s t o f u s, t h e m a i n p r o p o s a l c o m i n g f r o m t h e Tr u m p administration is a payroll tax holiday.

I n c l a s s i c Tr u m p f a s h i o n , h e t o l d Republican senators on Tuesday that he wanted the tax holiday to last through the November elec tion so he wouldn’t be accused of raising taxes while he was running for a second term.

In 2008, you could at least make the case that the industries the government was helping were in serious danger of imploding. If the banking industry hadn’t been saved, it could have brought down the world’s financial system.

The federal government propped up AIG because officials feared that its collapse, too, could have devastating consequences on the financial system.

As for the auto industry, the Obama administration concluded, correc tly, that the country could not let General Motors and Chrysler fail, which would have cost hundreds of thousands of middle-class jobs.

Can you really say that this time around? Let’s start with the industry that has been hit the hardest: cruise ships. To begin with, the vast majority of them aren’t even registered in the US. By registering with foreign nations, cruise liners are able to circumvent US regulation. As one study put it a few years ago, “those nations whose open registries have become the most popular also tend to be those who possess the most lax labor, safety and environmental c o d e s.” O n e f a vo re d n a t i o n i s t h e Bahamas; maybe they should ask that government for a bailout.

And cruise lines are hardly a vital American industry. If they all went out of business tomorrow, Miami would be hit hard, but that’s about it. There is simply no public policy rationale for bailing out the cruise-ship industry.

Th e re i s a p u b l i c p o l i c y r a t i o n a l e f o r s av i n g a i r l i n e s, o f c o u r s e. Th e re

By Zeina Karam

B

www.businessmirror.com.ph

In this, January 30, file photo, people line up to buy face masks at a cosmetics shop in Hong Kong. Last year, face masks were the signature of Hong Kong’s protesters, who wore them to protect against tear gas and conceal their identities from authorities. These same masks are now ubiquitous around the world—worn by people from China and Iran, to Italy and America, seeking to protect against the coronavirus. The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. AP/Kin Cheung

majority neighborhood of Shaheen Bagh, now an epicenter of the protests over a disputed new citizenship law. Hundreds of women take turns maintaining the aroundthe-clock gathering.

The demonstrators demand the revocation of the citizenship law, which fast-tracks naturalization for religious minorities from several neighboring countries, but not Muslims. The law caused an explosion of communal violence and rioting in New Delhi, with dozens killed.

Organizers say more women and children were now participating in the sit-in after authorities closed all primary schools in the capital because of the coronavirus.

“We are also taking the necessar y precautions by wearing masks,” said Hena Ahmad, a protester. In a twist, thousands of women across Mexico made their protests felt this week by staying home from work and school, to demonstrate against gender-based violence. And teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg called for digital protests for now, to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

‘Better to die protesting’

i s h a rd l y a n o t h e r i n d u s t r y t h a t i s a s c r i t i c a l t o t h e U S e c o n o m y, n o t o n l y because of the number of people it e m p l o y s b u t f o r t h e w ay i t e n a b l e s s o m u c h e c o n o m i c a c t i v i t y.

B u t s i n ce 2 0 1 3 , w h e n Am e r i c a n Airlines Group Inc. took over US Airways Group Inc. in the last of the big airline mergers, the industr y has generated hundreds of billions of dollars in profits.

Delta Air Lines Inc., for instance, has recorded nearly $37 billion in adjusted earnings since 2016; at the end of last year, according to Bloomberg, it had almost $3.5 billion in free cash flow.

The Trump tax cuts were a great boon to the airlines, just as they were to many industries. And, like many industries, instead of reinvesting that money, or saving it for a rainy day, the airlines used some of it on stock buybacks.

Delta was chief among them; last year it announced it was borrowing $1 billion to “accelerate” its buyback program. On Tuesday, however, Delta announced that it was suspending the buyback, as well as reducing capacity, instituting a hiring freeze and deferring $500 million in capital spending.

In a note posted on the Delta web site, Chief Executive Officer Ed Bastian said: Over the last 10 years, we’ve transformed Delta by strengthening the balance sheet, diversifying our revenue streams and enhancing operational and financial flexibility. The environment is fluid and trends are changing quickly, but we are well positioned to manage this challenge and are taking actions to e n s u re t h at D e l t a m a i nt a i n s i t s leadership position and strong financial foundation.

Does that sound like a company that needs a bailout? I think not. The other big airlines are making similar m ove s, a n d t h e i n d u s t r y l o n g a g o l e a r n e d to we at h e r d i f f i c u l t t rave l environments, such as after 9/11 in 2001 and the financial crisis in 2008.

Yes, governments may have to step in sometimes to save industries, but in a capitalist economy, they should never be in the business of ensuring profits. That is exactly what the Trump administration would be doing if it aided the airlines.

Hotels? I’ll simply note that should Trump bail out the hotel industry, among the recipients of government aid would be...himself.

Wh at w i l l i n e v i t a b l y h a p p e n a s the coronavirus continues to hurt the economy is that workers will be laid off.

And it won’t just happen in the industries most affected, like airlines and cruise lines; it will happen across the board.

A payroll tax holiday may serve as a mild economic stimulus, but it’s pretty obvious that it won’t help anyone who doesn’t have a job.

That is why the focus of any government aid should be on those who don’t have jobs, not on those who are still employed. In a press release issued on S unday, S enate M inorit y Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nanc y Pelosi called for the government to cover paid sick leave, ex tend unemployment insurance and e x p a n d f o o d p ro g r a m s. Th e Tr u m p administration should also demand that banks give some mortgage forbearance to people who lose their jobs because of the coronavirus crisis.

Of course, the administration could always just send people a check for $1,000. Larr y Kudlow might not like it, but it makes a lot more sense than bailing out cruise ships. omissions is the entire transport sector (meaning road, rail and water, not air).

Fortunately, the EU now has an ideal opportunity to fix that: It should, with haste, step in to extend the emissions trading system to the petroleum industry. With crude oil prices so low, consumers at the pump wouldn’t initially feel the difference. But as the oil and Covid-19 crises recede, the carbon price would bite just as it should, changing behavior and investment decisions throughout society.

Europe, like other parts of the world, has several big tasks in 2020. One is to beat the virus, another is to save the economy in the process, a third is to start rescuing our climate. If the European Green Deal fails, others, from China to India, won’t even think of emulating it. The eventual fallout from the coronavirus and the oil shock would then be planetary.

Andreas Kluth / Bloomberg Opinion

Journey BusinessMirror

»life on the go

A5 | Sunday, March 15, 2020 • Editor: Tet Andolong

Hann Casino Resort

Hann’s bold journey W

By Bernard L. Supetran

HEN Dae Sik Han forayed into property development at Clark Freeport Zone a few years back, he must have been inspired by World War II motto—“Who Dares Wins” of the British commando force Special Air Service which took on daring missions behind enemy lines.

Years later, the Korean magnate would be reaping the benefits of this bold move with the success of Widus Hotel & Casino and Clark Marriott Hotel in helping spur growth in the industrial and tourism enclave.

Buoyed by his initial daring wins, Han has recently embarked on another bold step by expanding his recreational complex into a millionaire’s playground with the launch of the Hann Resorts, the first luxury lifestyle brand at the free port and its adjunct, New Clark City.

The newly minted master brand will be a collection of premium sub-brands—Hann Casino Resort

The Casino

and Hann Lux Lifestyle Resort which aims to be a game changer in the travel industry with its integrated and consummate leisure experience.

“Our vision is to raise the concept of play into a lifestyle that people would want to discover through world-class experiences,” said Hann Development Corp.

President and CEO Dae Sik Han. He noted that Hann Resorts aims to elevate the experience of play with the perfect mix of gaming, golf, nature and outdoors, entertainment and recreation in an ultraluxe resort environment north of the metropolis.

Under its “Live Bold. Play Bold”

Hann Development Corp. President and CEO Dae Sik Han Bernard Supetran

battlecry, the hotel group is embarking on an ambitious project which is valued at least P 12 billion over the next few years, the biggest single investment in the free port area.

“With Clark already drawing a lot of tourists and investors, we hope that an integrated lifestyle and leisure resort brand will further attract people and turn both Clark and New Clark City [NCC] into a bustling center for recreation and development,” he enthused.

Under the rebrand, the Widus complex will be transformed into the Hann Casino Resort comprised of Clark Marriott Hotel, Hann Casino, and Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts which are targeted to be relaunched before the end of the year.

The four-star Widus Hotel and

Widus Hotel & Casino

Hann Resorts VIP ceremonial toast

its 4,500-square-meter Las Vegasstyle gaming space casino, will assume the Mercure Hotel brand after its renovation is completed in 2022. A recipient of the 2019 Tripadvisor Travelers’ Choice, is also a preferred venue for special events and staycations.

“Hann Resorts seeks to establish itself not only as a global destination brand for tourists, but also as a powerful master brand that has gathered together an experienced international team to help our guests playfully escape the ordinary and offer a wide range of options to live bold and play bold,”

Han added.

Swissôtel is known for its contemporary touch infused with the freshness and vitality of the Alps mountains and Swiss hospitality, while Mercure reflects the distinct character and culture of its location.

Both brands are part of leading Accor augmented hospitality group which boasts of 5,000 hotels and residences across 110 countries.

The resort chain will also introduce to the Philippine market the Thai-based Banyan Tree Hotel, an award-winning luxury hospitality brand which pioneered the all-villa concept in the hospitality industry

as a sanctuary for the senses. Another world-class brand to debut in the local scene is Angsana Hotel which exudes local chic and a family or group-oriented recreation.

The next phase of development will include the entry of Westin Hotel, a leader in wellness leisure, and The Luxury Collection by Marriott International which prides itself as the gateway to the world’s most aspirational destinations.

Golf lovers have something extra special for them with the three exciting 18-hole championship fairways Hann Lux Luxury Resort will build at the NCC in Capas, Tarlac in partnership with the world’s most prestigious developers.

The first course will be the handiwork of Nicklaus Design by legendary 18-time champion American Jack “The Golden Bear” Nicklaus and is considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. The second will be executed by multititled South Korean KJ Choi who is regarded to be the most successful Asian pro player, while the third will see the artistry of the Sir Nick Faldo Signature Golf Course by the English golfer ranked as the world’s No. 1 during his heydays.

“Hann Resorts will not only bring high-end international brands to the country, but will also showcase the global Filipino lifestyle and culture,” Han concluded.

With a gung-ho vigor and winning attitude, Han’s grand undertaking will undoubtedly be another bold journey.

Journ

Business

A6 Sunday, March 15, 2020

Some more tastes of Samar

T

By Roderick L. Abad

hink of Samar. Little did you know that this province actually has a rich gastronomical heritage. Thanks to the provincial government in cooperation with the Samar Provincial Tourism Office, their initiative called the ”Secret Kitchens of Samar” will soon unveil this hidden culinary treasure to the delight of every Juan—literally and figuratively.

Anchored on the food tourism thrust of the Department of Tourism (DOT), it forms part of the “Spark Samar” campaign incepted in 2015 by then governnor and now Second District Rep. Sharee Ann Tan-de los Santos. It has since transformed into a fullpledged development agenda now being carried out and implemented by the administration of incumbent Gov. Reynolds Michael Tan. “Actually, there is really no WarayWaray or Samarnon cuisine that we can truly call,” Samar Tourism Operations Officer (TOO) John Michael Cristobal told reporters in mixed Filipino and English during their recently hosted media familiarization tour of the province. “We want to cement Samarnon food to the bigger market.”

Considering the unique flavors and blends of what Samar could offer on the table, the governor guaranteed that they fare well with culinary hubs across the nation. Taste-wise, he’s confident that ”we’re not far behind them.”

With the Secret Kitchens of Samar, Tan said that they will “complement the beauty of nature to the delicious food, thriving people’s organizations, and also good governance.” He described it like “a complete package deal” to give more reasons for the people to come to

their province.

Heirloom cuisines

The breathtaking scenery of Lulugayan Falls in Calbiga, Samar.

INTERESTINGLY, such gastronomic endeavor was inspired by a local tale about an old, handwritten recipe book that was found behind a dresser.

According to Cristobal, its idea was drawn from the olden times wherein their elders would normally close the doors and windows of their houses whenever they cook their very own dish so as to keep their ingredients and techniques a secret. He said: “They didn’t normally share their recipes.”

For DOT Regional Office 8 Director Karina Rosa S. Tiopes, most of them back then would probably just want their families to be known for their “specialty” that they could serve on special occasions like the town fiesta.

She noted that “usually, the recipe is handed down from generation to generation [and given only to] select members of the family.”

Among the heirloom cuisines that could be featured in the Secret Kitchens of Samar is the Bola Catalana—Catbalogan’s version of embutido—wrapped in leaf lard or sensal. In this capital city of Samar, the Piczon family’s version of this Spanish sausage is very popular.

Theirs have ingredients, such as

ground pork, pickles, bread crumbs, salt, brown sugar, onion, green peas and raisins. At its core are the sliced boiled eggs, cheese sticks, sausage and bell pepper. It’s steamed and baked for two hours.

“This is really the original recipe from our lola,” Mary May Paleyan said of the signature dish of their clan that they inherited from their grandmother named Petrona. ”We now do this on special occasions and whenever there are orders from close friends.”

Tamalos is another “hand-medown” dish the province also boasts of. Such is a local spin of the Tamale of Mexicans, which found its way to Samar being the first land spotted by the traders from Mexico in their initial voyage to the Philipines that, eventually, led to the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade from 1565 to 1815.

This nutty, creamy course is also a source of pride for Catbalogans, particularly for the Samson family, whose recipe inherited from the inner circle of their mother, aunts and great-aunts is considered a legend in their hometown. Their own edition of the Tama-

les consists of rice dough filled with pork and seasoned with a sauce called Pipi-an made out of ground glutinous rice with chilies and pasotes leaves to produce that zing flavor. Such entree is covered by a thick peanut sauce. It’s then wrapped in banana leaves and steamed.

Unlike those who have remained so secretive of their family recipes, Juliana Nabong-Samson said that she has already shared it to others. She added that she would have her neighbors and friends taste it, and even demonstrate it upon the request of others who would want to know how to do it.

Villareal’s Humba passed on to generations is also worthy of the spotlight.

That of Leonora C. Nono, former principal of Villareal Elementary School, is among the town’s favorites. Her ancestral recipe is distinctive for its big cuts of pork belly cooked with bay leaf, garlic, onion, peanut, pepper, soy sauce, sugar and vinegar.

Traditionally, she said that it’s cooked in a banana leaf-covered big clay pot, wherein all the ingredients are on top of layered coconut leaves.

Slow cooking for two hours is required with gradual fire to ensure the pork’s tenderness, she added.

Completing the list of local cuisines that were privately concocted and cooked by the ancestors of Samarnons are the Native Tinolang Manok of Calbiga, Tinapa of Calbayog, Sagmani of Pinabacdao, Galleta of Paranas, Keseo of Gandara, Latik and Rice Piñato of San

Jorge, Pop Rice and Linupak of Jiabong, as well as seafood dishes with mud crabs of Pagsanghan.

Initial launch

AS a head start, only 10 food items will inititally be showcased during the launch of the Secret Kitchens of Samar at the Shangri-la Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City on March 14.

“Corioso, Salvaro, Roscas, Decana, Rosquetes, Tablea, Karlang Chips, Kamote Chips, Adobong Tahong, and Tahong Chips—these are the initial products we repackaged and rebranded under Secret Kitchens of Samar, which will be available for order online and soon to select stores nationwide,” Cristobal told the BusinessMirror.

These Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved products, he revealed, were chosen as the campaign’s flagship offerings due to their long shelf life. He disclosed their plan to include in the campaign other homegrown food with strong market potential, yet, need to be enhanced by the the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in terms of longevity, quality, taste and presentation. This project, per the TOO, is also open for other food producers in the province to pitch their products provided that they have secured FDA certifications for them.

“All other recipes and delicacies can be enjoyed when they visit Samar and try our Food Trail to Samar’s Secret Kitchens,” he said, while citing that they can be availed in food places of tourist spots like the Sohoton Cave and Natural Bridge and Lulugayan Falls, and even in any of the local restaurants than can carry any of the heirloom dishes in their menu. “Also, we will be putting up a food map. We are now in the process of engaging families in immersions where they can cook for the tourists.”

Ripple effects

BINAGOL is a rootcrop delicacy from the town of Calbiga.

PACKED camote chips are on display at the shelves of Karlang Processing Center in Santa Rita.

MRS. Juliana Nabong-Samson pours the sauce called Pipi-an on top of the cooked pork cuts for her ancestral recipe called the Tamalos.

TINAPA or smoked fish is abundantly produced in Calbayog City.

A clay pot full of Humba ingredients is all set for that two-hour slow cooking method to achieve tenderness of the pork.

BY and large, this soon-to-be launched foodie campaign is expected to create a domino effect from the tourism industry down to other related sectors and, at the same time, address the perrenial concerns of the province.

“As a region, we all agreed that our growth rate for domestic tourism is 20

FRESHLY caught mud crabs in Pagsanghan.

percent per annum, 10 percent for foreign. So everybody is really working together to buffer, reaching those targets as a region,” Tiopes pointed out of the unified goal of the six provinces, including Samar, that comprise the Region 8.

This is in fact was already realized in the past recent years, per Cristobal, with their total tourist receipts amounting to P2.2 billion in 2018 from P1.8 billion in 2017.

Since it focuses on people’s organizations in tourism-ready areas, the Secret Kitchens of Samar hopes to help spur economic activities from the grassroots up to the local and provincial levels. Through its sustainable approach, this initiative now builds a value chain wherein all members of the community are engaged in the process—from planting the raw ingredients to harvesting, production, delivery and sales of their own produce.

“We are here to fill the gap,” Tan said of their role in providing them the needed assistance not covered by the support and intervention of national government agencies like the DOST and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), as well as private organizations.

For instance, the governor cited that they extended the Karlang Processing Center in Santa Rita, which was supposed to be a shared facility for karlang and camote production, and funded the plantation adjacent to it to allow the community-based group operating this to grow their own produce.

The Catontong Rice Processing hub in Jiabong that produces Pop Rice, on the other hand, was given a financial assistance by the provincial government to build its own production facility with machines provided by the DTI. The Secret Kitchens of Samar, taking a cue from the success of the Spark Samar, is also seen to help spur the local economy. It is noted that poverty incidence in the province has dropped from 43.9 percent in 2015, the period when the latter was incepted, to 22 percent at present.

“The economic opportunities that we have given to our communitybased organizations are already big.

For example, the Sohoton Cave and Natural Bridge, which is one tourism product we have in Basey, its income in 2017 was around P3 million for the organization, and it grew to P6 million in 2018,” Cristobal said.

In line with the Duterte administration’s massive “Build, Build, Build” program, various infrastructure projects now ongoing in the province, such as the construction of farm-tomarket roads, road improvements, renovation of the old aviation facility in Calbayog and establishment of a new airport in Catbalogan will likely facilitate the movement of trades and goods, including those of the Secret Kitchens of Samar, once they are completed soon.

Most important, this endeavor will change the negative notions on the province since time immemorial as being mired in poverty and rebellion.

“We have no incidents of kidnapping. We have no random bombings.

So it’s just an image or remnant of what happened way back in the 1970s that’s still not erased,” Tiopes reiterated, while lauding the provincial government’s pursuit of tourism as a way of changing the mindset of the people, both Samareños and outside the region. “It’s the easiest way to convince people to take a second look at Samar and discover us this time in a different way.”

ney

»life on the go

sMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

A7

Cebu hotels for the wise traveler

T

HE Queen City of the South remains a favorite among local and foreign tourists seeking for a complete vacation experience.

Every year, the Province of Cebu welcomes millions of tourists, all waiting to uncover what Cebu has to offer: from its pristine beaches, diving spots, historical landmarks, to its mouthwatering local culinary offerings that include danggit, chicharon and its famed lechon. For the more adventurous, Cebu also serves as a perfect jump-off point to other equally stunning and exciting island destinations, like Oslob, Malapascua and the Kawasan Falls in Badian.

“Cebu has long been a famed tourist destination, due largely to the diverse offerings it presents to every guest. It seems that no two trips to Cebu will be the same as every visit here will allow you to discover something new and something fun,” said Sta. Lucia Land Inc. President Exequiel Robles.

“What’s good with Cebu is that it presents opportunities not only for the leisure travelers, but also for investors looking to set up shop in such a dynamic environment.

Whatever the purpose of your travel, Cebu will definitely have something to offer. This is why for us developers, we consider Cebu as a truly valuable market. Whether you’re here to develop land for residential, commercial or leisure purposes, Cebu will always have a market for you,” Robles explained.

Seeing the value and potential of strengthening its presence in the area, trusted home developer Sta. Lucia Land continues to expand its project offerings in Cebu. Beyond delivering master-planned resi-

dential developments, it has also expanded its resort and hotel footprint here.

“Our hotel projects in Cebu— which include Arterra Hotel and Resort, Sotogrande Cebu and La Mirada—were created with the comfort, convenience and enjoyment of our guests in mind. These are competitively priced, offering the perfect setting for a relaxing and fun-filled vacation. All our hotels are equipped with the necessary features and amenities to guarantee a memorable, stress-free vacation,” Robles said.

Arterra Hotel and Resort

Arterra Hotel and Resort is perched at the edge of Punta Engaño, a famed diving destination in Mactan Island—thus granting you stunning views of the ocean and coastline. It is also located on the same strip where one can find the most popular five-star hotels in Cebu province.

Here, the hustle of the vibrant Cebu City becomes a minor distraction compared to the gorgeous, nature-inspired property. It has a breathtaking panoramic view of the ocean which gives its visitors the peace and clarity of mind. Apart from the usual amenities of any resort, hotel guests can also enjoy the exclusive country club life with Arterra’s membership-only North Point Peninsula and Resort Club.

Truly, a gorgeous, nature-inspired property is like having your own piece of paradise. And it can be readily had at Arterra.

Sotogrande Cebu and La Mirada offer the perfect setting for a relaxing and fun-filled vacation.

Sotogrande Cebu

Located along the shores of Cebu, Sotogrande Hotel converts the dream of an easy and relaxed lifestyle into reality thus making that dream vacation of every weary traveller a reality.

It provides guests a luxurious lifestyle, as well as proximity to numerous famous landmarks, like the

Lapu-Lapu Shrine. It is also a mere 15-minute drive from the Mactan International Airport and about 30 minutes away from Cebu City.

Vacationers will have the luxury of indulging in a more relaxed and laidback lifestyle as Sotogrande Cebu is equipped with facilities and amenities that include swimming pools and a country club, all meant to be

enjoyed by guests.

La Mirada

La Mirada is the second of four towers to rise within the Residencia de Vistamar, a world-class resort community in Cebu. Since it is near Cebu’s flourishing cities, La Mirada provides guests and travelers with great access to some of the city’s best

destinations, as well as the ease and comfort that only a well-designed condotel development can offer.

Built with the convenience and welfare of the guests in mind, La Mirada is equipped with well-thought out amenities and facilities, such as recreation rooms, video and game rooms, tennis court and basketball courts, among others.

Vu’s Sky Bar and Lounge returns to the Roaring 1920s N

IGHT owls and partyphiles can look forward to a more refined urban vibe at Vu’s Sky Bar and Lounge until April 30, 2020. The Sky Bar takes on the 1920s with its three featured bespoke cocktails inspired by the Age of the Peaky Blinders, presented with Don Revy Philippines.

When the clock strikes 8 p.m., guests may enjoy three signature blends that take after the vibe and mood of the Roaring 1920s. For those who enjoy the dark, refined notes of the Peaky Blinder Whiskey, the Sky Bar recommends going for “The Shelby,” which also includes Martini Rosso and mara-

schino liqueur. Guests who seek evening on the edge may opt for the “Flat Cap,” which is a combination of Peaky Blinder Spiced Dry Gin, Cointreau and orange bitters. A refreshing kick is in store for those who choose to enjoy the “Birmingrum,” a playful take on one of the era’s classic drinks. This cocktail highlights Peaky Blinder Spiced Rum, combined with apple juice, cinnamon and fresh lemon juice.

Each featured drink is available at P420 (inclusive of VAT, and subject to applicable taxes and charges).

Vu’s Sky Bar and Lounge will hold a special themed event celebrating the Peaky Blinder era on

April 3, 2020 (Friday), at 8 p.m.

With crowd favorite Real Groove Band, guests can look forward to an evening of 1920s-flavored revelry.

Door charge is at P699 per person, inclusive of one Peaky Blinder cocktail of the guest’s choice. Partygoers who come in their best 1920s costume will get the chance to win special prizes during the event.

Please log on to marcopolohotels. com for more details on the hotel’s ongoing promotions. Subscribe to updates via social media through the hotel’s official social-media accounts: facebook.com/MarcoPoloOrtigasManila, and @MarcoPoloManila on Twitter and Instagram.

Kuya J Group Marketing Director Ton Gatmaitan (from left), Kuya J Café + Restaurant Rockwell Sheridan franchise owners John Erwin Chen and Cherry Rocha, with Kuya J COO Richard Joseph Li.

Kuya J Café + Restaurant opens in Mandaluyong

W

ELL-loved Filipino restaurant Kuya J launched its third Kuya J Café + Restaurant, giving customers a new spot perfect for an afternoon of relaxation with a warm cup of coffee or a grand dinner of delicious Filipino comfort food with loved ones. Located at Rockwell Sheridan in Mandaluyong, Kuya J Café + Restaurant introduced its original blends and brews, including the rich Kuya J Café House Blend, the creamy and warm cappuccino, and the chocolaty tablea coffee, along with Pinoy dessert treats, such as the guava cake, tablea cake, and salted egg cheesecake. Aside from fresh coffee and pastries, the new store will be serving portions of Kuya J’s best sellers, such as the grilled scallops, beef caldereta, and

chorizo dinamitas.

Also, get a taste of Kuya J’s new Lechon Baka, there is a new bida coming to Kuya J that will surely level up your next salo-salo!

Tender, flavorful, and juicy, Kuya J’s newest salo-salo star offers a delectable dining experience. A smoky hunk of grilled meat is a staple in Filipino gatherings making Kuya J Lechon Baka a must-try for all barbeque lovers. Whether you want to eat it as it is or with its complementary sides, you will surely enjoy this treat because of its spice, succulence and value for money.

Available in all Kuya J stores nationwide, this new delicious offering allows diners to enjoy a full, and heavy, slab of meat covered in lip-smacking barbeque sauce and

char-grilled to perfection. Every bite of the Kuya J Lechon Baka is bursting with the right amount of sweet and tangy flavors leaving you wanting for more.

Diners can choose from three variants: the Lechon Baka Salo for P1,199 which comes with a full slab of beef and kamote fries; Lechon Baka Solo for P499 which is the one slab with kamote fries and 2 cups of rice; and another Lechon Baka Solo for P449 which is also one slab but comes with kamote fries only.

Satisfy your barbeque cravings and visit a Kuya J restaurant near you to enjoy Kuya J Lechon Baka!

For more information, visit http://www.kuyaj.ph, or follow them on Facebook and Instagram @kuyajresto.

Journey

»life on the go

BusinessMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

Sunday, March 15, 2020

A8

Around the Philippines with Angelo Comsti Yusi, Ilocos Norte. It’s a soupy igado, which provides warmth and comfort for breakfast when it’s typically enjoyed.

Bakas na Papar, Lanao del Sur. This is a seafood dish from Mindanao that’s colorful not just in presentation but also in taste and texture.”

Ngohiong, Cebu. Filipinos love fried spring rolls and this singkamas and ubod-filled version is no exception.

Kinalas, Naga. It’s like Filipino ramen composed of tender shreds of meat, flavorful broth and noodles.

Serkele, Isabela. It looks like dinuguan but tastes differently as beef is used instead of pork.

Paradosdos, Bulacan. The country has a variety of ginataan. Bulacan’s version has less items than the halo-halo kind, but is satisfying just the same.

Trianggulo Valencia, Malabon. There’s only one person selling this generations-old turon stuffed with biko, making it a prized kakanin.

Kinunot, Sorsogon. Fish, coconut milk and malunggay— three simple ingredients to come up with a delicious dish.

Pancit Puso, Cavite. An interesting noodle dish as pickled puso ng saging and not calamansi is used to add sour notes.

Bule Baluga, Pampanga. Here’s a dish that introduces us to the diet of the Aetas.

THE TOURISM ADVOCATE

W

HO is Angelo Comsti?

“The late, great Doreen Fernandez urged me to celebrate food and my proud Malolos, my city of birth. But when you’re 16, the wisdom of the food gods is wasted on the young since the only thing I wanted to do at that time was date. I missed out on empanada de kaliskis and the proud ensaymada culture of Malolos.”

It took me years of working on food brands and tourism campaigns all over the world, from Singapore to Ethiopia to the European Union, to realize that food and culture gold mine was just in the same street I grew up in. Until, Angelo.

Fast-forward to reconnecting with who I feel, and what I am about to say will be very controversial indeed, is the Doreen Fernandez of our generation, Angelo Comsti.

Angelo Comsti is not just a great writer and editor—that’s the least I celebrate about him. I

have seen this for myself firsthand prior to his initial flirtations with food as a writer for Chalk in his late teens.

But what gets us all out on a holiday amid the Covid-19 chaos and apocalyptic traffic is that Angelo is much more than a great writer and editor.

Just like Doreen, who’s never put anyone down, Angelo has quietly lifted so many food brands and people and, if he didn’t like your food, you’ll never know it. How can someone so low key and soft spoken have an entire country under his spell as

@fooddudeph Angelo is an advocate in the truest sense of the word. While many of you have seen him in glamorous restaurants locally and overseas, my most vivid memory of him was awkwardly balancing in a small cigarette boat in the backwaters of Malolos, interviewing with one of the last three surviving tuberos— that’s artisanal vinegar making to many of you. That experience has yielded an award-winning piece that would hopefully give a new lease in life to many tuberos all over the Philippines.

Angelo is also a community leader and a convenor. He can bring together not just rock star chefs from all over Asia, but the entire food and culinary value chain. From distributors to diners to restaurateurs to argue, discuss, converge the future of food in the country. He’s the founder of the Asian Culinary Exchange and, next year, he’s going to redefine the food scene once more.

From Batanes to Tawi-Tawi, Angelo left no secret kitchen unturned. Everyone, even the most reclusive chefs, openly embraced him because it is the very spirit of Filipino food that commands him. Everyone sensed that purity of intent.

I had the pleasure of talking to him about his new book Also Filipino and he mentioned 10 relatively unknown dishes that are worth the travel.

“It took a single local trip for me to realize that Filipino food is more than just adobo and sinigang. But it took a visit to 22 provinces for me to compile and record 75 provincial recipes for my recent cookbook, Also Filipino.

There’s still so much more to discover in the country foodwise. It’s a good thing that I’m always hungry. Here are 10 dishes that are definitely worth traveling for.”

Also Filipino is more than a book, it celebrates the diversity of our being Filipino as expressed through food.

Madamo Gid nga Salamat.

Shukran. Agyamanak. Dios Mabalos Sa imo.

A very grateful and hungry nation thank you, Angelo.

Angelo Comsti’s new cookbook, entitled Also Filipino

Science

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

Strengthening of commercialization of techs set through Sustain I.P.-TBM

T

he Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) recently signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with 30 state universities and colleges to reinforce the council’s aim to intensify technology commercialization.

The MOA is under the program “Support to the University’s Strategies in Technology Acceleration Initiatives by Nur turing the Intellectual Property and Technology Business Management Offices of the Consortia Member Agencies-Phase 2 [Sustain IP-TBM].”

Held recently at the DOST-PCAARRD Innovation and Technology Center (DPITC) in Los Baños, Laguna, the MOA signing aims to strengthen the capacities of selected SUCs under the IP-TBM program Batches 1 and 2.

Sustain IP-TBM involves five mentor-agencies and 25 mentee-agencies across the Ilocos, Southern Tagalog, Bicol, Western Visayas and Southern Mindanao with Cavite State University (CvSU) as the overall program coordinator.

The program will also collaborate with the Association of PAQE Professionals and the Inte l l e c t u a l Pro p e r t y O f f i ce o f t h e Philippines (IPOPHL).

“Sustaining our initiatives on intellectual property and technology business management is imperative as the program hopes to further contribute in sustaining our upward trend in the commercialization of agri-aqua innovations in the Philippines,” said PCAARRD Executive Director Dr. Reynaldo V. Ebora.

Ebora said that Sustain IP-TBM Phase 2 will deal with the challenges of sustaining IP-TBM’s initial efforts in protecting, managing and commercializing intellectual properties.

He added that the program will implement a mentor-mentee regional approach, which will involve five mentor-agencies, whose project leaders have embraced the responsibility of mentoring the IP-TBM offices of the 25 par ticipating consor tia member menteeagencies under them.

This undertaking was one of the clear examples of PCAARRD’s battle cry during its last year’s anniversary: “PCAARRD in the Regions: Addressing regional needs through sustained partnership.”

Launched in 2017, IP-TBMs are technology transfer offices that are envisioned to mirror the initiatives of DPITC, which serves as a one-stop hub for technology owners and generators, investors, end-users, and other stakeholders within the agriculture, aquatic, and natural resources innovation system.

The first batch of this program star ted with 10 agencies and was followed by another batch of 16 agencies. The combined accomplishments of the IP-TBM program with Batches 1 and 2 (2018-2019) resulted in 121 trained technology-transfer officers under the 12-module DOST-PCAARRD Intellectual

Pro p e r t y M a s te r C l a s s a n d Te c h n o l o g y Commercialization Mentorship Series.

With the skills gained from the program, b o t h b a t c h e s e xc e e d e d t h e i r t a rg e t e d outputs and have facilitated the following IP applications: 90 patents, 348 utility models, 43 industrial designs, 31 trademarks and 433 copyrights.

The first and second DOST-PCAARRD Technology Pitch Days conducted in 2018 and 2019 have har vested 54 agri-aqua technologies; and attended by almost 200 officials, technology generators, technology transfer officers, potential collaborators, and industry partners from SUCs, and Research and Development Institutes (RDIs).

The IP-TBM program has also conducted IP audits and reviews wherein 10 out of the 26 revised institutional IP policies and technology transfer protocols have already been approved by the respective board of regents of the SUCs. The MOA signing was attended by SUC presidents, consortium directors, officials and staff of the following par ticipating agencies under the six-project components of the program: Project 2: Ilocos Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development Consortium; Mariano Marcos State University; Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University; Ilocos Sur Polytechnic State College; North Luzon Philippines State College; Pangasinan State University; and University of Northern Philippines.

Pro j e c t 1 a n d 3 : S o u t h e r n Ta g a l o g Agriculture, Aquatic and Resources Research, Development and Extension Consor tium; CvSU; Southern Luzon State Universit y; University of Rizal System; Marinduque State College; Batangas State University; and Rizal Technological University.

Project 4: Bicol Consortium for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development; Bicol University; Camarines Norte State College; Camarines Sur Polytechnic College; Sorsogon State College; Catanduanes State University; and Central Bicol State University for Agriculture.

Project 5: Western Visayas Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development Consortium; Capiz State University; Aklan State University; University of Antique; Guimaras State College; Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College; and Central Philippines State University.

Project 6: Southern Mindanao Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development Consortium; University of Southeastern Philippines; University of the Philippines-Mindanao; Davao del Norte State College; Davao Oriental College of Science and Technology; Davao del Sur State College; and Compostela Valley State College.

S&T Media Services

Searca renews 20-year commitment to support PHL biotech info center

Searca Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio (left, seated) and ISAAA Southeast Asian Center Director Dr. Rhodora R. Aldemita (right, seated) sign the MOA. The signing was witnessed by Joselito G. Florendo (right, standing), Searca deputy director for Administration, and Jerome C. Barradas, Searca BIC special project coordinator.

F

ully committed to continuing the delivery of credible, science-based information o n a g r i c u l t u ra l b i o te c h n o l o g y fo r Southeast Asia, the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) has renewed its 20-year partnership with the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) for the Biotechnology Information Center (BIC) in the Philippines.

S i g n ato r i e s to t h e m e m o ra n d u m o f agreement are Searca Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio and ISAAA Southeast Asian Center Director Dr. Rhodora R. Aldemita.

Searca and ISAAA jointly established the Searca BIC, which ser ves as the Philippine biotechnology information node that is par t of the Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology.

As such, Searca BIC is part of ISAAA’s global network of BICs, which respond to information needs, promote and advance a broader public understanding of crop biotechnology, and monitor the local agribiotech environment.

“Researchers have developed a lot

of technologies aimed at boosting farm productivity, meeting the challenges in food security, and improving lives of farmers. The use of biotech crops is one solution that science offers us,” Gregorio said.

Since 2000, the Searca BIC has been actively reaching out to various stakeholders from different sectors in the Philippines and the Southeast Asian region.

It has carried out knowledge sharing and capacity building initiatives to create an enabling environment that will unleash the potential of biotechnology for agricultural development.

“Searca stands by its long commitment to help farmers understand the science and enable them to make well-informed decisions about these technologies,” Gregorio added.

Aldemita affirmed that “Searca is one of our active collaborators in the region and we are very pleased that we are continuing our joint knowledge sharing initiatives that would hopefully lead to maximizing the potential of biotechnology to benefit various stakeholders, par ticularly resource -poor farmers in developing countries.”

Sunday

Sunday, March 15, 2020 A9

Safety of Fukushima waste water is the focus of sea-release debate

O

KUMA, Japan—Inside a giant decontamination facility at the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant, workers in hazardous materials (hazmat) suits monitor radioactive water pumped from three damaged reactors, making sure it’s adequately—though not completely— treated.

Three lines of equipment connected to pipes snaking around in this dimly lit, sprawling facility can process up to 750 tons of contaminated water a day. Four other lines elsewhere in the plant can process more.

From there, the water is pumped to a complex of about 1,000 temporary storage tanks that crowd the plant’s grounds, where additional tanks are still being built.

Officials say the huge tanks will be completely full by the summer of 2022.

The decontamination process, which The Associated Press viewed on a recent tour, is a key element of a contentious debate over what should be done with the nearly 1.2 million tons of still-radioactive water being closely watched by governments and organizations around the world ahead of this summer’s Tokyo Olympics.

The plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco) says it needs to free up space as work to decommission the damaged reactors approaches a critical phase.

It’s widely expected that Tepco will gradually release the water into the nearby ocean following a government decision allowing it to do so. The company is still vague on the timing.

But loc a l resident s, es pe cially fishermen, are opposed to the plan because they think the water release would hurt the reputation of already battered fisheries, where annual sales remain about half of the level before the nuclear accident, even though the catch has cleared strict radioactivity tests.

Tepco Chief Decommissioning Officer Akira Ono says the water must be disposed as the plant’s decommissioning moves forward because the area used by the tanks is needed to build facilities for the retrieval of melted reactor debris.

Workers are planning to remove a first batch of melted debris by

December 2021. Remote-control cranes are dismantling a highly contaminated exhaust tower near Unit 2, the first reactor to get its melted fuel removed.

At Unit 3, spent fuel units are being removed from a cooling pool ahead of the removal of melted fuel.

The dilemma over the everg row ing radioactive water is part of the complex aftermath of the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami that hit on March 11, 2011, destroying key cooling functions at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant.

Three reactors melted, releasing massive amounts of radiation and forcing 160,000 residents to evacuate. About 40,000 still haven’t returned.

Except for the highly radioactive buildings that house the melted reactors, most aboveground areas of the plant can now be visited while wearing just a surgical mask, cotton gloves, a helmet and a personal dosimeter.

The area right outside the plant is largely untouched and radiation levels are often higher.

The underground areas remain a hazardous mess. Radioactive cooling water is leaking from the melted reactors and mixes with g roundwater, which must be pumped up to keep it from flowing into the sea and elsewhere.

Separately, even more dangerously contaminated water sits in underground areas and leaks continuously into groundwater outside the plant, experts say.

T he cont a m inated water pumped from underg round f irst goes t hrough cesiu m a nd strontium removal equipment, af ter which most is rec yc led as cool ing water for t he d a maged reactors.

The rest is filtered by the main treatment system, known as ALPS, which is designed to remove all 62 radioactive contaminants except for tritium, Tepco says.

Workers wearing hazmat suits work at a water treatment facility at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, on February 12. Nine years ago, on March 11, 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami destroyed key cooling functions at the plant, causing a meltdown that leaked a massive amount of radiation and forcing some 160,000 residents to evacuate. About 40,000 of them still have not returned. AP/Jae C. Hong

Tritium cannot be removed from water and is virtually harmless when consumed in small amounts, according to Japan’s industry ministry and nuclear regulatory officials.

But despite repeated official reassurances, there are widespread worries about eating fish that might be affected if the contaminated water is released into the sea.

Katsumi Shozugawa, a radiolog y expert at the University of Tokyo who has been analyzing groundwater around the plant, said the long-term consequences of low-dose exposure in the food chain hasn’t been f u l ly investigated.

“At this point, it is difficult to predict a risk,” he said. “Once the water is released into the environment, it will be very difficult to follow up and monitor its movement. So the accuracy of the data before any release is crucial and must be verified.”

A fter years of d iscussions about what to do with the contaminated water without destroying the local economy and its reputation, a government panel issued a report earlier this year that narrowed the water disposal options to two: diluting the treated water to levels below the allowable safety limits and then releasing it into the sea in a controlled way, or allowing the water to evaporate in a yearslong process.

T he repor t a lso urged the government to do more to fight the “reputational damage” to

Metrology lab trains PDEA staff on accurate measurement

T

o strengthen the countr y ’s wa r against drugs, and to be more confident of the validity and accuracy of their antidrug enforcement p ro c e d u re s, 4 5 o f P h i l i p p i n e D r u g Enforcement Agency’s (PDEA) chemists and laborator y staff from around the countr y are undergoing a seminarworkshop on mass metrology at the National Metrology Laborator y of Industrial Technology D evelopment Institute (NML-ITDI) in Bicutan, Taguig City, from March 2 to 20.

The PDEA chemists and laboratory staff are being trained on the fundamentals of mass metrology and measurement u n c e r t a i n t y, a n d c a l i b r a t i o n o f nonautomatic weighing instruments (NAWI), specifically laboratory scales.

Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Ac t of 2002, drives the move for accurate measurement of drugs samples, t h r o u g h t h e “ Ta m a n g S u k a t L a g i ” campaign of PDEA and NML.

Under R A 9165 a person can be placed to life imprisonment or death for possession of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine or shabu, o t h e r w i s e c a l l e d i n t h e s t re e t s a s chalk, cr ystal, chemical, crank, ice, glass, meth, speed or tina.

P D E A L a b o rato r y S e r v i ce D i re c to r Derrick Arnold C. Carreon said at t h e s e m i n a r t h a t, “Ce r t a i n l y, w i t h s u c h a s m a l l q u a n t i t y, l i ve s c a n b e c h a n g e d f o re ve r.”

NML-ITDI is the de facto National Metrology Institute of the Philippines tasked by law to be responsible for establishing and maintaining national measurement standards for physical quantities—such as mass, temperature, pressure, voltage, resistance, luminous intensity and time interval, and their dissemination to Filipino users.

It advocates “Tamang Sukat Lagi” as a means to remind businesses and consumers to practice and observe correct measurement. AMGuevarra/S&T Media Service

PDEA Laboratory Service Director Derrick Arnold C. Carreon S&T Media Service

Fukushima fishing and far m produce, for instance by promoting food fairs, d e v e l o p i n g new sa les routes a nd ma k ing use of t hird-par t y qu a l it y accred itat ion systems.

Tepco and government officials promise the plant will treat the water for a second time to meet legal requirements before any release.

At the end of the tour of the treatment facility, a plant official showed a glass bottle containing clear water taken from the processing equipment.

Workers are required to routinely collect water samples for analysis at laboratories at the plant. Radiology technicians were analyzing the water at one lab, where AP journalists were not allowed to enter.

Officials say the treated water will be diluted with fresh water before it is released into the environment.

Doubts about the plant’s water treatment escalated two years ago when Tepco acknowledged that most of the water stored in the tanks still contains cancer-causing cesium, strontium and other radioactive materials at levels exceeding safety limits.

Masumi Kowata, who lives in Okuma, a town where part of the plant is located, said some of her neighbors are offering their land so that more storage tanks can be built.

“We should not dump the water until we have proof about its safety,” she said. “The government says it’s safe, but how do we know?” AP

Faith A10 Sunday, March 15, 2020

Sunday

Editor: Lyn Resurreccion •www.businessmirror.com.ph

Coronavirus: Manila church braces for ‘worst-case’ scenario

O

ne of the country’s largest archdioceses hinted the possibility of halting “public gatherings” in its parishes if the 2019 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation worsens.

Bishop Broderick Pabillo, the Apostolic Administrator of Manila CBCP News

Bishop Broderick Pabillo, Manila’s apostolic administrator, did not specify such gatherings, but urged parishes “to be prepared for any eventuality.”

“Worst-case scenario would be the suspension of public gatherings,” Pabillo said in a pastoral letter issued last week.

The bishop, however, exhorted the public to stop spreading unnecessary panic and fear.

“Let our attitude be compassion and care for others. Thus, we need to take precautionary measures in the spirit of charity for all,” he said.

The cancellation of public Masses was among the measures taken in Hong Kong, Singapore, Italy, and in some dioceses in Japan to stem the spread of the virus.

In the Cubao diocese, the Immaculate Conception Cathedral stopped the holding of barangay Stations of the Cross and the senakulo (Passion play) this coming Holy Week.

The parish’s pastoral council said the decision was made to ensure the safety of its parishioners amid the increasing cases of coronavirus in Metro Manila.

Its scheduled lenten recollection and regular activities like the monthly formation programs have also been postponed indefinitely.

“We continue to ask the mercy of the Lord to end this epidemic,” said Fr. Dennis Soriano, rector of the Cubao cathedral.

P resident D uter te h a s a lready declared a state of public health emergency as cases

of coronavirus in the countr y jumped to 33 as of Tuesday.

Pabillo also called on the archdiocese’s more than 80 parishes to brace for the “economic effects” of the health crisis.

“We need to save at this time of impending crisis. Let us make our church institutions resilient,” he stressed. “What we can save, let us put in a Disaster Resiliency Fund.”

“In this way, in case we have no collections, we may sustain the salaries of our employees and maintain our religious institutions,” according to him.

In spite of all the precautionary measures to be adopted, Pabillo noted that they must be all accompanied by prayers.

“We encourage all to intensify our prayers to ask for Divine protection and intervention. Faith can avert evil,” he said.

Among the precautions Pabillo identified for the churches and institutions are: n Suspension of the practice of dipping of hands in the Holy Water Font, or Stoup. Empty all fonts and let the faithful be informed that such practice will be temporarily suspended. Holy water can be made available for people to take home or sprinkling of the Holy Water can be done before or after liturgical gatherings. n Let containers of 70 percent ethyl alcohol be located at various entrance doors accessible to the public in our church institutions. n Advise the faithful to stay home when they are sick with flulike symptoms and cough. They should get medical attention for their good and the good of their family members.

Signages may be posted to this effect in prominent places.

They can sanctify the Lord ’s Day by praying in their homes and reading the Scriptures.

TV masses are available for

them to watch at the Quiapo Church Facebook and web site, as well as TV Maria and Radio Veritas and other parishes have video -streaming facilities. n Priests and lay ministers who have flu-like symptoms should also refrain from serving as an act of charity that we can offer to the people. n Routinely clean with disinfectants the high touch areas, pews, benches, door knobs, as well as microphone covers. n There is no need to hold hands when praying the Lord’s Prayer and when giving the sign of peace. For the time being, the Filipino sign of reverence in holding or kissing the hands of the priests and the elderly can be substituted by a slight bow with a smile or by a slight touch on the head for the giving of the blessing. n Until the virus is overcome all should refrain from the kissing and holding of statues and sacred images, and even the glass frames that protect them. Barriers should be installed so that people do not get near them to touch them. n Ministers and priests should thoroughly wash their hands before they serve. For the time being, Holy Communion is to be received by the faithful by hand. n Parishioners who are weak or have noncommunicable diseases like diabetes, cancer, etc., are encouraged to wear masks even during Holy Mass. n Churches and adoration chapels with air conditions and hardly any windows should be biomisted.

Open windows and doors after mass and shut off the air conditioning in order to have the air, heat and sunlight circulate. n Those who count the money must wear mask and use alcohol after counting. They should be provided with latex gloves.

pendencia, and as an option, Isola di Francesco, a pilgrim island devoted to Saint Padre Pio. This is Green Faith Travel’s first pilgrimage outside of Luzon on its ninth year of spiritual journeys.

Organized in 2012, Green Faith Travels had more than 25 major pilgrimages as its way of evangelizing the faithful, especially the inactive, passive or even “unchurched.”

Thus, it is creating a community of pilgrims through its yearly Lenten, Easter and Marian journeys in various provinces in Luzon, while also promoting ecology (Green), evangelization (Faith) and heritage (Travels).

For more information, please contact Bro. Edwin P. Galvez at 0926 - 6152596, e-mail greenfaithtravels@gmail.com, or visit Green Faith Travels on Facebook.

Roy Lagarde/CBCP News

The beautiful churches in Bohol—Church of Our Lady of the Assumption in Dauis, Saint Joseph the Worker Cathedral in Tagbilaran City, and Immaculate Conception in Báclayon. The photos were taken in 2013 before the earthquake struck Bohol.

Richard Eusebio/Green Faith Travels

Visita Iglesia in Bohol, Cebu

P

ilgrims of Green Faith Travels, a nonprofit Catholic pilgrimage apostolate, will visit 11 restored heritage churches in Bohol and Cebu for its annual Lenten Pilgrimage of Faith and Heritage from March 25 to 29.

The restored churches were heavily damaged by an earthquake in 2013.

The five-day Visita Iglesia will also commemorate in advance the 500th anniversary of Christianization of the country as the apostolate also observes the “Year of Ecumenism,” Interfaith Dialogue and Indigenous Peoples, the last in the nine-year call of the Catholic Church for New Evangelization.

In Bohol, pilgrims will pray at Saint Augustine Parish (established in 1782) on Panglao Island; Church of Our Lady of the Assumption (1697) in Dauis; Saint Joseph the Worker Cathedral (1767) in Tagbilaran City; Immac u l ate Concept ion Pa rish (1596) in Báclayon; Santa

Monica Parish (1842) in Alburquerque; Most Holy Trinity Parish (1799) in Loay; Santo Niño Parish (1793) in Cortes; Our Lady of Mount Carmel (1829) in Balilihan; and San Nicholas de Tolentino Parish in Dimiao.

In Cebu, pilgrims will pray at the Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Pedro Calungsod, Cebu Met ropol it a n C at hed ra l, Basilica Minore del Santo Niño, A rc hd iocesa n Sh r i ne of O u r Lady of Guadalupe, Chapel of the Holy Relics, National Shrine of Saint Joseph in Mandaue and the Shrine of the Our Lady of the Rule in Mactan Island.

Pilgrims will also visit important religious, historical and natural sites in Bohol and Cebu, including church museums, the National Museum in Bohol, Nova Shell Museum, Blood Compact Monument, Tarsier Sanctuary, Chocolate Hills, Billar man-made forest, Magellan’s Cross, Heritage of Cebu Monument, Plaza Inde-

Tibetan Buddhists protest Exiled Tibetan Buddhist nuns wear protective masks as a precaution against a new coronavirus as they applaud a speaker during a protest march in Dharamshala, India, last week. They mark the 61st anniversary of the failed 1959 Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule. AP/Ashwini Bhatia

Pilgrims turn to prayer, kinship during COVID-19 scare

The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, West Bank, was closed as a preventive measure against the coronavirus. The Palestinian tourism ministry said it’s closing the storied Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus, as a precaution. AP/Majdi Mohammed

J

ERUSALEM—A group of Christian pilgrims from Alabama is turning to prayer and positive thinking as they cope with an openended coronavirus quarantine, confined to their West Bank hotel rooms while they wait for clearance to return to the United States.

Chris Bell, the lead pastor at the 3Circle Church in Fairhope, Alabama, said his 13-member group arrived last week for what was supposed to be a dream-of-a-lifetime trip to the Holy Land.

But after two days of touring Jerusalem and Bethlehem, they were notified that they might have been exposed to the virus after a group of Greek tourists staying in the same hotel had tested positive.

They have been instructed by local authorities to remain in their hotel indefinitely.

“We’re really sad that things turned out the way they did,” Bell said. “It’s not a great situation, but we’re trying to make the best of it.”

He said the group is made up of church staff and spouses, and for almost everyone, it was their first time in the Holy Land.

He said this familiarity and shared faith, along with generosity from the hotel and the local community, has helped them get through the ordeal.

He said the group is confined to one floor of the hotel. Each morning, he said people put on gloves and masks, and meet in the hallway to pray together.

They also have reading materials and Wi-fi, allowing them to read the news, stream movies and remain in contact with the outside world.

“We love each other. Most of us have our spouses with us, as well.

So all of that human interaction, even though it’s through gloves, masks and at a distance really helps us get through every day,” he said.

Bell said the hotel staff has treated his group with great hospitality, disinfecting rooms and delivering food in plastic bags. He said the local community has sent shipments of everything, from shawarma to bread and chips, and from Popeye’s Chicken to medications.

His group also remains in contact with Palestinian and Israeli authorities, as well as US consular officials at the American Embassy in Jerusalem.

Late on Sunday, the group got some good news. Palestinian government spokesman Ibrahim Melhin announced that test results had come back and determined no one was infected.

“There is no need for them to

stay in quarantine,” he said, adding that he expected them to leave

by Monday morning.

Bell did not return a message seeking comment, while the US Embassy declined comment, citing privacy concerns.

But earlier, Bell said everyone remained hopeful they would be allowed to go home soon.

“We are people of faith. And we do not believe this is an accident,” Bell said. “We know that our God knows exactly where we are. And He has a plan for this and that He is going to sustain us, and he’s going to be faithful to us. And we just want to represent him well while we’re walking through us.”

The group’s hotel, the Angel, is located in Beit Jala, a town on the outskirts of Bethlehem, which has become the epicenter of the West Bank’s coronavirus scare. Fourteen of the 19 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the West Bank are hotel workers.

The hotel’s director, Maryana al-Arajah, who is among those infected, said that everyone diagnosed with the virus is in closed rooms and quarantined on one floor, while those at risk, such as the Americans, are on a separate floor.

She said workers who are not infected have been given gloves, masks and protective clothing while they deliver food and continue to disinfect the building. In all, 42 people are in quarantine, she said.

The coronavirus scare has generated a sense of panic throughout Bethlehem—the biblical town revered by Christians as the birthplace of Jesus Christ.

Streets have been empty since the first cases were announced last week, and the Church of the Nativity, built on the grotto where tradition says Christ was born, has been closed to the public.

Israel, meanwhile, has confirmed 29 cases of coronavirus, including a 38-year-old man who was in serious condition.

Some 20,000 people have been ordered into 14-day home quarantine protectively, while the local travel sector has taken a beating as scores of flights in and out of the country have been canceled.

“We know there’s a lot of people hurting,” Bell said. “So we’re not just praying for ourselves. We’re praying for the hurting people of this area because we love them.”

“We’re just hoping that we are able to go home and have great memories and a great story to tell in the end, an epic story,” he said. AP

Tourism& Entertainment BusinessMirror

Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua

Sunday, March 15, 2020 A11

Lakbay Norte: La Union and Pangasinan’s unhurried charm Part One

T

Story & photos by Pauline Joy M. Gutierrez

he long road stretched for hours as the soft rays of the afternoon sun slowly seeped through the windows of our service bus as we approached La Union.

Outside, the ocean lapped fervently against the gray sand along the coast of Agoo.

The air was hot and dry when we arrived but, otherwise, felt too familiar—like the indescribable warmth that you get from countless summers spent on the seaside with family you now barely see.

Northern Luzon, for the most part of my life, has always been home. It’s the one place I grew up in, one that I go to feel less alone and one where time moves ever so slowly, at least for a little while. This year, I was lucky enough to be part of Lakbay Norte, a tourism initiative organized by the North Philippines Visitors Bureau that aims to introduce destinations that were under the tourism radar over the past few years. (Who knew work can be a vacation, too?)

For its ninth iteration, the annual tour took print and digital travel writers to the beach towns of La Union and Pangasinan.

Although the economy in the Ilocos region mainly anchors in agroindustrial and agricultural sectors, tourism activity maintains a healthy traffic in its provinces with a focus on religious and historical tourism, as well as ecotourism, wherein the Department of Tourism-Region 1 recorded more than 15.7 million arrivals in 2018.

Likewise, La Union and Pangasinan had increased its visitors to more than half a million (over 20 percent) in the same year. If there’s any indicator to why such is the case, it’s the growing number of new alternative experiences the local community now offers to tourists.

Agritourism takes root

Taking cue from their neighbors in the uplands of the Cordillera, grape

The Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Charity's remarkable architecture attracts tourists.

Vineyards thrive at Uvas Cafe in Bauang, La Union. wife, Marissa—who runs a clinic— and tai chi and qi gong classes led by Ramon, who has been a practitioner of both for 28 years.

Surfing and sustainability in San Juan

Lomboy’s Farm’s fruity wines to sweeten happy occasions. farmers in the town of Bauang, La Union, have reintroduced a concept of purchasing produce to tourists: letting them harvest the fruit on their own.

Uvas Cafe, ideally located just along the MacArthur Highway, has a sprawling vineyard where one can taste artfully plated charcuterie spreads while sipping red and white wines made from Lomboy Farm’s cardinal grape harvests, as well as tropical fruit wines, like guapple (a hybrid fruit of large guava and apple), duhat (java plum), pitaya (dragon fruit) and wild blackberry.

“Unknown to many, grapes prefer long dry seasons. Fortunately for the Philippines, we have six months of sunlight,” said Gracia Lomboy, daughter of then-provincial agriculturalist Avelino Lomboy and owner of Lomboy Farms.

Grapes ripen faster and accumulate more sugars in warmer climates, which result in higher-alcohol levels during fermentation. In retrospect, it loses its herbal notes, also known

Aside from surfing babes, sea turtles are in San Juan, Urbiztondo. as pyrazines, and takes on ripe fruit with voluptuous softer tannins. But this doesn’t mean it doesn’t have room at the table and soon, Gracia added, the business started to pick up pace and other farmers in Urayong and nearby barangays also ventured into grape production.

Just a shy half an hour drive from Bauang is the Lotus Farm at Dasay in San Juan owned by retired military officer Ramon Tamayo.

Tamayo acquired the property over a decade ago, which was then a piece of land with sloped terraces and a relatively void ecosystem that is a

result of chemical farming. Today, it is a sustainable ecotourism farm and wellness sanctuary.

Giant dignified bamboo trees (including the Hunan-native black bamboo or Phyllostachys nigra) grow abundantly throughout the property, while clean spring water runs from the hills to the lush rain forest that is home to a variety of heirloom rice and tropical plants. For foodies, there’s an impressive selection of plant-based meals from its inhouse farm-to-table restaurant.

The farm also offers tours, acupuncture treatments by Ramon’s

Despite the bustling busyness along the beach of Urbiztondo, a sea turtle was sighted laying its eggs for the first time in a long while. With San Juan’s no-exception rule toward sustainability, this doesn’t come off as a surprise.

Coastal cleanups are a regular occurrence in the area, largely through the efforts of the La Union Surf Club and SIFCare-Curma, or Coastal Underwater Resource Management Actions, a project which organizes volunteers to help patrol the beach in San Juan to secure turtle nests and, eventually, help to safely release the hatchlings back into the ocean.

“Only 1 percent of the hatchlings will survive to be an adult, and that is in nature,” explains Curma. “Most of the mortality rate happens from the nest until the shallow water, so what we’re doing here is we transfer the nest from the hatchery for proper incubation.”

Poaching has been rampant in San Juan until 2010, and even in other parts of the country until today. We learned that the organization now trains former poachers of sea turtles to become beach patrols.

Spanish-era churches

The Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Charity, as fondly described by Municipal Tourism and Information Office-Agoo’s Iwa Serrano, is a survivor of sorts.

The parish was founded in 1578

by Franciscan friars, Fray John Baptist Lucarelli of Pesaro, Italy; and Fray Sebastián de San Francisco of Baesa, Spain.

A massive earthquake destroyed the church in 1982, paving the way for reconstruction of the shrine of Nuestra Señora de Caridad in 1893.

It was later demolished and replaced with the present church in 1975 that was again later hit by a catastrophic 7.7-magnitude Luzon earthquake. “ This basilica was destroyed twice,” Iwa recalled. “But here in Agoo we see that as a reflection of our resilience. The broken parts are just part of its charm.”

Today its unconventional architecture demonstrated by its two nonidentical bell towers is a tourism magnet.

To the left of the façade is a four-level hexagonal tower, while the right bell tower is a bell gable in its form. The confessional and the ceiling have a similar architecture. One is in front of the stained glass window of the Crucifixion of Jesus with the two thieves.

More historic churches can be found in the other towns of La Union.

To be continued

Taal Lake rises from the ashes thru watersports The flavors of Rome from Mamma Mia

Oz Goose boats at Taal Lake

W

atersports, like sailing, holds hope for Batangueños affected by Taal Volcano’s recent phreatic eruption that started on January 12, 2020. Taal Lake Yacht Club (TLYC) and the Philippine Home Boatbuilders Yacht Club (PHBYC) are organizing the first major sailboat race or regatta on Taal Lake barely three months after the seismic event. The Oz Goose National Championships 2020 will happen in the town of Talisay, Batangas, on March 28 and 29.

Taal Volcano’s phreatic eruption displaced many of Batangueños, families were moved to evacuation centers and residents of Pulo, or Volcano Island had to be resettled as no one is

allowed on the island for the foreseeable future.

Many residents around Taal Lake rely on tourism for their livelihood, through boat trips to the volcano, volcano tours and horseback rides.

With the volcano on semipermanent lockdown, tourism income from volcano trips is no longer an option for these Batangueños, thus alternatives are needed to bring tourism back.

PHBYC and TLYC believe that this can be through watersports. This is the reason why both clubs decided to hold the Oz Goose Nationals in Talisay, Batangas. PHBYC’s original plan for 2020 was to hold the regatta in Nasipit, Agusan del Norte where there is a new Oz Goose fleet managed by the Balangay Marina Sailing and

Yacht Club. However, recent developments on Taal Lake made them decide to hold the event in Taal Lake again where it has been held for three years running.

According to Michael Storer of PHBYC and a resident of Batangas, “It is important to have activity on the lake to give the residents hope for their future, and illustrate how sailing and other watersports can be a sustainable form of tourism income. The layer of volcanic ash that covered Talisay is almost all gone and the vegetation is starting to grow back, changing the color of the surroundings form gray to green.”

The Batangas Tourism Office is equally enthusiastic with the first regatta to be held on the lake after the January 2020 eruption. Sylvia Marasigan, provincial tourism officer of the province of Batangas said that: “Taal Volcano’s eruption has really stifled tourism income in this area; Taal Lake is the largest body of fresh water in the Philippines conducive to watersports, PHBYC and TLYC’s initiatives to hold this regatta is a great start to reviving sports tourism on Taal Lake.”

More than 20 sailors from all over the Philippines are expected to arrive in Batangas on the last weekend of March to compete in the 2020 Oz Goose Nationals. Peter Capotosto of TLYC commented that: “90 percent of TLYC income is derived from Volcano tours and it is great that corporate sponsors, like Broadwater Marine, Pioneer Adhesives and Imperial Homes, chipped in to make sure that this regatta will be a success, all we need to hope for is better weather.”

S

erving the Uptown Mall area, Mamma Mia is known for its all-day and all-night dining concept with a wide array of Italian dishes that bring home to diners that warm and cozy ambiance that is distinct to Italian family gatherings. This March, Filipino diners can savor the flavors of Rome as Mamma Mia unveils its latest and exciting addition to its menu of authentic Italian dishes.

Taking charge of the Mamma Mia kitchen is chef Alessandro Carosi, who hopes to create a sensation by introducing some of Rome’s hallmark dishes, such as pizza and pasta based around the iconic sheep’s milk cheese, the Pecorino Romano. A native of Rome, Carosi took up culinary arts at the Istituto Alberghiero and worked most of his career in restaurants around Italy, three of which he currently owns. His culinary expertise covers Italian cuisine, including appetizers, main courses and desserts, but it is pizza he considers his prized creation.

“My specialty is pizza, and I’ve been perfecting it over 15 years,” proudly says Carosi. And to perfect Mamma Mia’s pizza, the chef has upgraded the pizza dough’s quality, making it lighter and soft to the bite. “For the dough, we are now using wheat flour from Napoli. And let it rest for 24 to 36 hours to produce a very light pizza dough so you can enjoy more the flavors of the toppings,” Carosi adds.

The Italian chef is also bringing in a 30-kilogram Pecorino Romano cheese wheel made from fresh whole sheep’s milk. The Pecorino Romano cheese is produced in the regions of Lazio (of which Rome is the capital city) and

Chef Alessandro Carosi

Sardinia, and the Tuscan province of Grosseto.

It is a hard cheese with a smooth, thin, natural rind that’s white to pale straw in color. It has a crumbly texture and delivers an intense salty flavor that increases with age.

To highlight the Pecorino Romano cheese as the central ingredient, Carosi will be serving pasta dishes, such as Bucatini All Amatriciana, Trippa alla Romana, Rigatoni con Salsiccia, and Bucatini Alla Norcina. These are best paired with Italian wines the bar service list can offer.

“At Mamma Mia, we are happy that our regular diners come back for our best sellers, and we would like to keep the dining experience fresh and exciting since there’s so much to

discover in the Italian cuisine, especially if you go to its many regions, in terms of tastes and flavors. With Chef Carosi heading our kitchen, we are proud to initiate the Filipino palates to the flavors of Rome.

“We’re really excited to have our regular and new diners try out our other new menu items as well, such as Cappelletti al Forno, Cappelleti in Brodo, Pappardelle Con Gamberi E Calamari, and Trippa alla Romana.

“We suggest that they also have a taste of our new creamless carbonara. It is really something different from what we’re too familiar with: the one with the heavy cream. The authentic recipe really involves simple ingredients, like pasta, crunchy meat bits, eggs and, of course, cheese. The only way to find out how good our carbonara is, is to come and try it at Mamma Mia. “And those are just for starters. You can expect more of the new dishes, more of the flavors of Rome coming from Chef Carosi very soon,” says Giulius S. Iapino, chief executive and president of Rigatoni Corp. Eatalian Inc., the mother company of Mamma Mia. Rigatoni Corp. Eatalian Inc. also owns other popular Italian restaurants, like Parmigiano Ristorante Pizzeria in Molito Commercial Complex in Alabang; and Parmigiano Ristorante Pizzeria at Newport Mall, Newport Boulevard, Pasay. They also own Toni & Sergio at Venice Grand Canal Mall in Taguig City; and another branch of Toni & Sergio at Eastwood Mall, Bagumbayan, Quezon City.

For reservations, please call Mamma Mia at 0927-2978178 or at (02) 5418933, or leave messages on their Facebook and Instagram accounts.

A12

Sunday, March 15, 2020

Sports BusinessMirror

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

EVEREST SHUT DOWN CLIMBERS using the northern route in China generally use operators based in Nepal to equip and manage the expeditions. AP

Pro sports teams’ charter operator grounded

D

ALLAS—Federal officials have grounded a charter operator that carried professional baseball and hockey teams, saying the company and its pilots weren’t authorized for the kind of commercial venture they operated.

The Federal Aviation Administration said

Wednesday that it issued an emergency order revoking the operating certificate of Paradigm Air Operators Inc. The FAA said Paradigm conducted at least 34 unauthorized flights between June 2013 and March 2018 for customers including the

Texas Rangers, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Cleveland Indians and the Oakland Athletics baseball teams, as well as the New York Rangers and the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey teams.

Paradigm did not immediately comment after being reached for response.

The FAA has different standards for private aircraft carriers and those who advertise or otherwise promote their services to the public.

Private operators can generally work for one or a few selected customers, while the second group, so-called common carriers, face stricter regulations because they can solicit business.

The FAA said Dallas-based Paradigm Air’s pilots had not finished training and flightproficiency checks that are required for common-

carriage flights. The company also lacked people in key jobs: It had no director of maintenance, no chief pilot and no chief inspector, the agency said.

The FAA said Paradigm paid a consultant to arrange long-term contracts with several teams and was paid by a charter broker for some of the flights. On at least 11 occasions, the FAA said, Paradigm claimed trips were demonstration flights for prospective aircraft buyers when the real purpose was to make money.

WORK FROM HOME S TAFF working for Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) and Olympic Channel in Madrid were asked to work from home with coronavirus cases rising in Spain.

An e-mail to staff sent by Yiannis Exarchos, the chief executive of OBS and the Olympic Channel, said that all staff who could work remotely should do so. It follows a series of preventive measures which have been announced by the Madrid Regional Government.

No staff have tested positive for coronavirus and the premises will remain open as some work requires special equipment which cannot be accessed from home.

“Although the premises will stay open

and there have been no reported cases of coronavirus among the staff, plus the hygienic care is optimal, as of Wednesday March 11, if you can develop your activity from home, you are encouraged to do so,” the e-mail reads.

“Please talk to your manager first to confirm.”

“When working remotely you are expected to be available and reachable during the same time that you would be at the office in normal circumstances,” the e-mail added. “All staff working with laptops are requested to take their laptops home with them every time they finish work at the premises, together with their respective power supply units and audio headsets.” Insidethegames

Court hears UAE challenge to Qatar’s Asian Cup title

L

AUSANNE, Switzerland—An appeal by United Arab Emirates soccer officials that could strip Qatar of its 2019 Asian Cup title was being heard at sport’s highest court on Thursday.

A Court of Arbitration for Sport judging panel is weighing the UAE soccer federation’s claim that 2022 World Cup host Qatar fielded two ineligible players to achieve its biggest soccer success.

The appeal seeks to overturn Asian Football Confederation rulings that cleared Qatar of wrongdoing at the tournament hosted by the UAE during ongoing diplomatic tensions between the Middle East neighbors.

A verdict by three CAS judges is likely to take at least several weeks.

Lawyers arriving at court for the day-long hearing declined to comment.

The UAE has alleged Qatar star forward Almoez Ali and defender Bassam Al-Rawi were not born there and did not meet Fifa nationality requirements to represent the country.

The UAE filed a complaint with the AFC after losing to Qatar 4-0 in the Asian Cup semifinals in Abu Dhabi in January last year.

When an ineligible player case is proven, AFC rules say a team must forfeit the game.

The Asian governing body’s first disciplinary ruling cleared Qatar hours before beating Japan 3-1 in the final. An AFC appeal panel confirmed the initial verdict. AP

By Binaj Gurubacharya The Associated Press

K

ATHMANDU, Nepal— Expedition operators on Mount Everest said Thursday that Chinese mountaineering officials will not allow spring climbs from their side of the mountain due to fears of the coronavirus.

On the others side of the mountain in Nepal, operators say cancellations for the popular spring climbing season have been pouring in despite the mountain being open for business.

Dawa Shepra of Kathmandu-based Climbalaya Treks and Expeditions said the officials told them though the virus was getting under control in China, they could not risk bringing in foreign climbers.

He said the conversation with the China Tibet Mountaineering Association officials was over the phone and no official e-mails, faxes or messages were sent.

Jiban Ghimire of Shangrila Nepal Trek also said he spoke on the phone with Chinese officials who said there would be no climbing on Everest during this year’s popular spring climbing season.

Climbers using the northern route in China generally uses operators based in Nepal to equip and manage the expeditions.

Although China has canceled most sports events for the foreseeable future, Zhang Mingxin of the Tibetan sports administration said it was still monitoring the situation and had yet to make a decision.

“We have been maintaining contact with overseas organizers of the mountaineering teams to get updated information. It depends on the development of the epidemic situation and the ability of our providing services,” Zhang told The Associated Press on Thursday.

In Nepal the mountaineering season began last week and Everest was still open for climbers.

Officials and mountaineering expedition operators, however, said they fear there will be a significant drop in the number of climbers this year. That could reduce government revenue and affect the thousands of workers who depend on the climbers for their livelihoods.

“This season is not very encouraging for the mountaineering industry in Nepal,” said Surendra Thapa, the director at Nepal’s Department of Tourism.

Operators says though climbers generally arrive in April so they can attempt scale the peak in May, they were getting many cancellations.

“We are getting flooded with postponements. They all want to hold on their climb and shift to 2021 season,” said Jiban Ghimire of Shangrila Nepal Trek.

Pemba Sherpa of Xtreme Climbers Treks, said all of the cancellations were going to be a big setback for Nepal’s mountaineering industry.

QATAR defender Salem Al Hajri lies on the pitch after shoes and bottles where thrown in by United Arab Emirates fans during their Asian Cup semifinal match at Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi in January last year. AP

Coronavirus got you working from home? Expect a pain in the neck

Coronavirus got you working from home? Expect a pain in the neck I’ve realized how much I relied on the daily, small social contacts the office provided. Journalists can be strange animals: often lone wolves, whose job is nevertheless to insert themselves into the affairs of other people. Maybe we need that contact more than many of us would readily admit. While our team holds a video conference call every morning, my gut feeling is that working from home isn’t good for team building. There is no substitute for face-toface contact, though how much is necessary is an elastic question.

One friend at a bank in Hong Kong is working alternate days in the office. That’s a neat way of thinning out the number of desk-based employees and cutting down the risk of infection. Perhaps that could become a permanent model for some companies. I could be persuaded.

Now, the good news: just as I was finishing up this column, we got word that we should be able to return to the office next week. And if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to my popcorn. Casablanca’s on, and I always did love that film.

By Matthew Brooker Bloomberg

T

he banging comes first, followed by the screaming. I could try to blot out the noise and carry on, but proximity to family is supposed to be one of the benefits of working from home.

My one-year-old son knows there’s a computer keyboard on the other side of the door that needs a merry bashing with his tiny fists. I relent, as always, steering him toward an old desktop rather than my work laptop. He soon tires, and toddles off in search of fresh excitement.

Like hundreds of other employees in Bloomberg’s Hong Kong bureau, I have been working from home for the past several weeks. How long exactly is hard to say, without checking. With no clear separation between the home and work, the hours and days blur into each other. There’s a constant sense of extended hiatus. Like the residents of Casablanca, we are waiting, waiting for that plane (or subway, rather) out of here and back to the office.

For futurists, the business disruption wrought by the coronavirus is a dream come true. In 2014, a study by researchers at Stanford University challenged the notion that employees permitted to work from home might spend their time eating popcorn on the sofa and watching Netflix.

‘I didn’t fully appreciate how seamless and ergonomic my office setup was until now.’

On the contrary, they found that home working led to a 13-percent performance increase, while employees who volunteered for the nine-month trial reported improved work satisfaction and their attrition rate halved. The company in that case study, perhaps prophetically, was Chinese: Ctrip (now known as Trip.com Group Ltd.), a Shanghai-based and Nasdaq-listed travel agency then with 16,000 employees.

Now the global spread of the coronavirus offers a far larger and wider natural experiment in the technical, logistical and human challenges of having large numbers of people work remotely. Companies from Twitter Inc. and HSBC Holdings Plc. to Dentsu Group Inc. have advised, encouraged or required at least some staff to work from home. How well businesses function under these conditions could have a lasting impact on our approach to work.

For me, the technical hurdles have been insignificant—trivial, to use a word beloved of techies—and nothing that Bloomberg’s technical support team couldn’t sort out relatively quickly. I have found the principal challenges to be physical and psychological.

Hunching over a small laptop screen for a full 10-hour working day, for days on end, is an entirely different proposition than occasionally doing a bit of work from home on an evening or a weekend.

After a while, I start to feel aches and pains in my neck and back. I didn’t fully appreciate how seamless and ergonomic my office setup was until now.

2 BusinessMirror

The most obvious solution would be to buy a stand-alone monitor and keyboard.

So far, I have resisted this step, hoping that this will finally be the week that we get the call to return to the office. To invest in hardware would be to accept the semipermanence of the situation. It would feel a little like buying a house in Casablanca.

So instead I take frequent breaks and remind myself to pay attention to my posture, lest I end up like another foreign journalist I know, who told me he’d ended up partially paralyzed after spending two years covering a major story on a laptop from a hotel room in Shanghai. In 2006, while based in Shanghai, I started taking lessons in the Alexander Technique after an episode of severe back pain. I credit that training in body consciousness with keeping me free from any serious problems since then. Would I be in worse shape now without that awareness? Quite possibly.

The size of Hong Kong apartments compounds the physical and mental challenges.

Working at home, I tend to move less than I would in the office, where the trip to the coffee machine or the meeting room requires a journey of at least a few hundred meters. My apartment is bigger than average, at just under 800 square feet (74 square meters), but it takes me only a few seconds to walk from one end to the other.

There have been days at a time when I haven’t gone out, having no desire to expose myself to any more risk of infection than necessary. This has left me feeling a little detached and fuzzy on occasion.

March 15, 2020

Sound trip BusinessMirror

your Music our business

Publisher

: T. Anthony C. Cabangon

Editor-In-Chief

: Lourdes M. Fernandez

Concept

: Aldwin M. Tolosa

Y2Z Editor

: Jt Nisay :

SoundStrip Editor

: Edwin P. Sallan

Group Creative Director : Eduardo A. Davad Graphic Designers Contributing Writers

: Niggel Figueroa Anabelle O. Flores : Tony M. Maghirang, Rick Olivares, Darwin Fernandez, Mony Romana, Leony Garcia, Stephanie Joy Ching Pauline Joy M. Gutierrez

Columnists

: Kaye VillagomezLosorata Annie S. Alejo

Photographers

: Bernard P. Testa Nonie Reyes

Y2Z & Soundstrip are published and distributed free every Sunday by the Philippine Business Daily Mirror Publishing Inc. as a project of the

BusinessMirror The Philippine Business Mirror Publishing, Inc., with offices on the 3rd Floor of Dominga Building III 2113 Chino Roces Avenue corner Dela Rosa Street, Makati City, Philippines.

Tel. Nos. (Editorial) 817-9467; 813-0725.

Fax line: 813-7025 Advertising Sales: 893-2019;

817-1351,817-2807.

Circulation: 893-1662; 814-0134 to 36. www.businessmirror.com.ph

BusinessMirror

YOUR MUSIC OUR BUSINESS Noel Cabangon

Art by Jimbo Docena Albano | Photos by Bernard Testa

MODERN DAY KUNDIMAN NOEL CABANGON ON HIS MUSICAL JOURNEY AND BRAND NEW SINGLE

By Edwin P. Sallan With additional reporting by Fhejay Mae Solemne, Eloisa Jane Palermo and Raymond Enriquez

F

OR an artist who first made a name for himself in the indie music scene, Noel Cabangon has found a lot of mainstream success.

With this trusty acoustic guitar, the 56-year old singer-songwriter from Rosario, La Union has indeed come a long way from the time he fell in love with music at a very young age to the time he taught himself how to play the guitar to the long and distinguished career that made him one of the most iconic figures and moving forces in Original Pilipino Music.

In a recent interview with SoundStrip for the Breather Moments segment of the BM Broader Look podcast, Cabangon recalled his early exposure to folk

music in his hometown.

"Even before" I learned to play the guitar, I already liked to sing. My uncles, the brothers of my father, all knew how to play guitar and they would often ask me to sing while they would accompany me with their strumming. By the time I was 10, I learned how to play the guitar on my own and there are many singers not only in our town but also in Baguio City which is in close proximity to La Union,” he shared, speaking in mostly Filipino.

Cabangon’s musical awakening was further strengthened when he

decided to learn a little more about classical music through an extension program at the University of the Philippines. Then he would vividly look forward to the brass bands that played and even competed during the annual town fiestas.

“I also had relatives who lived next door and every day they would play music in their quadrosonic stereo. There I heard all kinds of music, from Chicago to Stevie Wonder to the Doobie Brothers to the Spiral Starecase. I had an uncle who studied in Manila who brought the city culture to our province. And then I had another uncle who played a lot of OPM from Yoyoy Villame to Freddie Aguilar. All of these artists that I was exposed to reinforced my music knowledge.”

Cabangon was already in college and staying in Metro Manila when he started to perform professionally.

“I was a reliever for the main performer in a folk house in Cubao

near the old Fiesta Carnival and Rustan’s Superstore. Before that I was also a folk singer in Baguio while I was a student at St. Louis University. Then one day, the singer I was relieving was absent so I got the call and got my first paying gig where I earned P25 pesos.”

After that, he started making the rounds of folk houses in the metropolis. This was also around the same time when folk-rock artists that came first before him such as Florante, Freddie Aguilar, Heber Bartolome and even Joey Ayala were beginning to be known for their original compositions— something that is not lost on the then young Cabangon.

In 1987, Cabangon together with Rene Boncocan and Rom Dongeto formed the folk trio, Buklod. Known for the political theme of their music, Buklod was a hit with the then Continued on page 6

4

Sound BusinessMirror

MARCH 15, 2020 | soundstrip.businessmirror@gmail.com

YOUR MUS

RHYTHM & RHYME

by Kaye Villagomez-Losorata

NO TIME TO DIE Billie Eilish puts world tour on hold

A

LL over the world, the coronavirus scare has every man, woman, and child praying and taking necessary preventive steps so there would be no time to die. However, for most countries struggling with the new normal because of the increasing number of infected, people ironically have time to kill as events are being canceled everywhere, dramatically transforming the most populated cities and tourist destinations into ghost towns.

The concert scene has taken a hit worldwide.

According to Billboard, world tours have pushed the emergency cancelation button.

“More than 20,000 music events between January and March have been canceled or postponed in China and Hong Kong, costing 2 billion yuan ($286 million) in ticketing and box-office losses, according to the China Association of Performing Arts,” read a story on the leading music website.

In the Philippines, Green Day, Slipknot, and Avril Lavigne have since announced that they are postponing the Asian legs of their 2020 concerts.

British singer Yungblud called off dates in South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Singapore while Mariah Carey, Miley Cyrus, Ciara, and Madonna has parked performance schedules as well in different parts of the world.

For our music fix, we would all have to rely on our

mobile phones to stream our daily soundtrack, one that provides a temporary escape from World War C. In other news, Billie Eilish, music world’s most recent Grammy sweetheart, just entered the elite James Bond theme song club. But how does her “No Time To Die” stack up against the roster of 007 theme songs?

No Time To Die has the pace of Adele’s “Skyfall” but is bereft of the classic soul and grand arrangement build-ups previous James Bond themes spoiled us with. Think “Diamonds Are Forever” vs. “The World Is Not Enough,” Eilish’s song leans towards the latter.

If you listen to “No Time To Die,” you can almost segue to the chorus of “The World Is Not Enough” but also hear elements of the relatively unknown Matchbox 20 track “You Won’t Be Mine” from the 2000s.

Somehow though, “No Time To Die” pulled off a slow-burning, haunting yet quiet drama that actually works paired with the young singer’s signature vocals.

LEARNING FROM THE PAST

H

Stephanie Joy Ching

IGH school was a turbulent time in many people’s lives. Outside of the challenging classes preparing us for college, this was also the time we were developing both physically and personally. As such, most of us can recall high school as an emotional rollercoaster ride full of our first ups and downs.

Agsunta

That is the thesis of Agsunta’s latest release, "Feels Trip". The album consists of six original songs and is produced

by DNA Music. It is a heartfelt and genuine album that perfectly captures those raging, hormone filled emotions of our teen years.

Billie Eilish (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Eilish’s Bond turn offers tighter lyrics though; better than Adele’s unclear story for “Skyfall.” The new song could easily be your next breakup anthem starting with stanza one: “I should have known/I’d leave alone/Just goes to show/That the blood you bleed is just the blood you owe/We were a pair/But I saw you there/Too much to bear/You were my life, but life is far away from fair.”

The primer sets to motion that lump on your throat as it breaks into betrayal: “That I’d fallen for a lie/You were never on my side/Fool me once, fool me twice/Are you death or paradise?/Now you’ll never see me cry/There’s just no time to die.”

Somehow, it still lacks recall from the old Bond songs. We still sing “Nobody Does It Better” or “Live And Let Die” or “For Your Eyes Only” or belt out the chorus of “Diamonds Are Forever.” But do we find ourselves reaching for “Skyfall” or “You Know My Name” or “Die Another Day” on karaoke?

It’s as if Bond theme songs were sliced to two halves: the before and after “Goldeneye.” The old Bond songs have the brooding 007 imprint written

all over; you’d know right away when it’s a Bond song.

Somewhere after “Goldeneye,” you will hear them theme songs and would not be able to place them to the movies they opened credits for.

On the bright side, "No Time To Die" is way better than “Writing’s On The Wall,” “You Know My Name,” and “Another Way To Die.” The downside, however, is that the release of the latest Bond movie and Daniel Craig’s last turn as 007, has been pushed back to November in response to worldwide threat of the coronavirus.

Initially scheduled for an April theatrical run, MGM and Universal, alongside Bond franchise producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, announced in a statement that “after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace, the release of ‘No Time to Die’ will be postponed until November 2020.”

The author is a former entertainment reporter and editor before shifting to corporate PR. Follow @ kayevillagomez on Instagram and Twitter for more updates.

The alternative rock sound of the band drew inspiration from groups such as Mayonnaise, Rivermaya, and Ben&Ben, adding an edgier layer to the otherwise very sentimental album.

Agsunta’s music effectively zaps their millennial demographic back to the halls of their high school campus.

“Come to think of it, the people who are aged 25 to 26, are now the millennials,” they said about the album’s single ‘Hayskul Hits’. “2014 was ten years ago, and it’s amusing to think “What? That was ten years ago?”

Other songs in the album, which were inspired by either the band’s or their friends’ personal experiences, also capture key moments in a student’s life. “Alas-Dose” talks about the all too familiar situation of finding your anxieties keeping you awake at ungodly hours. While the almost country sounding “Bagong Umaga”

perfectly complements the song’s message of “Tomorrow is a brand-new day and another opportunity to make a fresh start.”

Being a typical OPM album, Agsunta’s release is not without its share of hugot songs, which in this case, are “Kung ‘Di Na Ako” and “Lokomotor.”

“It really is a heartbreak song,” the boys said about “Kung ‘Di na Ako.” “It’s about letting go, saying “If it’s not that person, that’s okay, I’ll let them go.”

However, the songs are more than just a nostalgia trip or a way of putting complex emotions into perspective. As they showed in the album’s single, people can learn from the past and slowly become better people in the future.

“The reality of life is there in the song,” they said. “You see how people have improved. Former bullies become nicer, people start families.”

d trip

soundstrip.businessmirror@gmail.com | MARCH 15, 2020

5

SIC OUR BUSINESS

HITTING THE RIGHT NOTES

GRACENOTE’S BRAVE NEW WORLD

By Leony R. Garcia

F

OR concert-goers and music lovers, it’s always a pleasant sight to see singer, songwriter and multiinstrumentalist Eunice Jorge does her things on stage. She sings, (rather, she rocks!), and plays the musical instruments: the organ, the violin and the guitar one after the other.

For those who have followed the rise of Gracenote, it is a must that Eunice do all these on stage. How does she feel about it? Is being a woman doing all these an advantage or disadvantage?

In an interview with SoundStrip minutes before the recent launch of the band’s latest album, "Small World" at Eton Centris, Eunice said she feels it’s an advantage on her side.

She said she is elated whenever she hears positive comments on her performances. “I think I’m okay with that and I’m glad I am a woman who is able to do those things,” she said.

Eunice is strongly backed by three equally competent musicians in bass player Jazz Jorge, drummer EJ Pichay and guitarist Tatsi Jamnague – the much-needed last addition to the puzzle and whose long band scene experience makes him a vital cog in the group.

Exploring a new world of music via ‘Small World’

The four-piece band released their third album under Universal

Gracenote Album

Gracenote

Records, aiming to prove that music makes the world smaller as they introduced a new and different sound that is not quite what their fans are used to, The new songs, according to the band members, are the result of Gracenote’s transformation as a collective, upping the excitement among themselves. Five songs in the album possess instant pop sensibility that should easily connect with listeners, namely: “Fantasy,” “Invisible,” “Paulit-Ulit,” “No Hate” and the lead single “Kalawakan.”

The album title has to do with today’s sense of connectivity according to the group. As Eunice related, “Sobrang laki ng universe but music is here to connect people and [in our view] makes the world smaller, especially now that we have social media. That’s also how we keep on evolving as a group.”

Sporting an alien icon with a V sign on the left cheek, Eunice, who described "Small World" as purposely conceptualized and straightforward, explained, “V stands for vulnerability. Our current sound is alien-ish to some extent, but the lyrics are human and expressed vulnerability.”

Small World, now available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music and all digital streaming platforms, was produced by Nick Lazaro (of La Balls studio) who shares musical history with the band. The album comes in physical

CD, too, because of that conviction, Eunice argued, “Mas nakikilala mo ang artist when you listen to a set of their music. It’s really like a trophy na mahahawakan mo after ng lahat ng pinagdaanan niyo doing the songs in the album.”

Making it in the OPM industry

Gracenote started making a strong presence in the OPM alternative/rock field in 2013 via its debut album, "First Movement," produced by Soupstar Entertainment and distributed by Universal Records.

The group first jammed as students at St. Scholastica’s College of Music and later formed Gracenote.

They were first noticed as one of the contenders to Nescafe’s Soundskool inter-collegiate band competition.

From that competition, Gracenote would play even more shows, including bigger ones, alongside their local musical heroes. Soon, a loyal following would steadily develop, as more and more fans attended their energetic shows and familiarized themselves with the band’s catchy, but still unrecorded, original tunes.

Soon, Gracenote signed with Universal Records with “Baso at Bote” as its first release under the label. As requested by many fans, the track is the band’s first track where bassist Jazz Jorge takes center stage as lead vocalist.

Gracenote reaped further

achievements through the viral hit “Bakit Ganyan Ka?”—a collaboration with Parokya Ni Edgar’s Chito Miranda.

The collaboration’s anouncement in July 2017 online created quite a buzz among fans of the two bands and its video reached 800,000 views in less than 24 hours after its initial release.

The song was the most talkedabout collaboration online, garnering 28,000 shares on Facebook. It has also made its mark at the hit charts of Manila’s top FM stations and has been labelled by When in Manila as the latest OPM love anthem.

Further, the band’s "Transparent" album won the Best Cover Art at the 30th Annual Awit Awards 2017.

Gracenote also successfully rocked and rapped with Abra as they were recently chosen to be part of the Coke Studio PH campaign in August 2017. The collaboration with Abra on “Stargazer” and the band’s take on the street-stylings of his thought-provoking song “Ilusyon” proved their artistic prowess to the delight of their longtime fans and of Abra’s as well.

Recently, Gracenote collaborated with TV sensation Maine Mendoza for the latter’s debut single “Parang Kailan Lang,” scheduled to be released on March 20. Eunice wrote and produced the track, joined in by the rest of the band during recording.

Expect more of Gracenote in the days to come.

6

MARCH 15, 2020 | soundstrip.businessmirror@gmail.com

Sound trip BusinessMirror

YOUR MUSIC OUR BUSINESS

SoundSampler

Modern...

by Tony M. Maghirang

Of blood, punk rock and Green Day

GREEN DAY Father of All Motherf..ers My, how time flies! It’s been nearly three decades since Green Day kick-started the pop-punk ‘revolution’ with their 1994 breakout album “Dookie” and the trio of Billy, Tre Mike and will be coming to Manila late this month in what’s expected to be a fresh reboot of pop-punk hysteria in these parts.

Green Day are on a global tour on the heels of their latest release titled “Father of All Motherf..ers” and some statements from Billie Joe Armstrong regarding the last Grammy Awards are fodders to potential controversies.

Now, there’s real controversy with regards to the title of the band’s latest album which nobody even in the rock press doesn’t seem to mind. Perhaps, those who still listen to these pop-punk pioneers have already accepted the idea that Green Day are just going through their middle-aged asshole phase. Like, f*ck punk rock. They’ve matured enough to find joy in pre-punk rock & roll as evidenced by the garage rocking opener as well as the ‘60s Kinksreferencing revival in the handsome trio of “Fire, Ready, Aim,” “Oh Yeah” and “Meet Me On The Roof.” Through the remainder of the album, Green Day relish the feel-good vibes in the music of a more innocent time even if they’re now talking about stabbing you in the heart, junkies on high and things not going right.

Advanced reviews report that the band is still one of the best live acts on the planet. These mofos know how to please an increasingly fickle audience.

MANNEQUIN PUSSY Patience Female-fronted pop-punk is on the line in Mannequin Pussy’s brand-new album. It’s on the line because it departs from the commercially successful formula of Paramore and their kind. What Mannequin Pussy does is to take away the ultra-saccharine sheen of pop-punk and replace it with a palette of pop confections within the ambit of old-school punk. Where the titular track and “Drunk I” open in driving punk rock, “Fear/+/ Desire” de-escalates to the charming atmospherics of dream pop, “Cream” sizzles in the tough hardcore of the likes of Sleater-Kinney while “F.U.C.A.W.” comes out fighting in the tradition of L7 and Bikini Kill. Patience is the sound of a band shooting heat-seeking missiles out of punk’s chaotic engine.

BRITTLE GLASS CASKET S/T The band’s name projects a pop-punkish attitude so it’s no surprise that the first two songs on an album unattractively titled "S/T reel off" as polite odes to Blink-182. Squeaky female vocals add to the distraction.

Then, on the third cut, the backing combo brings up their proto-punk garage influence and the track caroms to

the classic punk attack becoming “a runaway train with Bugs Bunny at the controls.” A short instrumental track, “Darna Interlude” later and the band continues their garage punk romp till the melodic indie-pop of “Yourself.”

The frontwoman sings of heartbreaks and separation in the context of “Walk away/Things will never be the same” from “Yourself.” They would sound trite and blah in the hands of OPM balladeers but Brittle Glass Rocket, they’re shaped like brass in pocket. Like, hey ho, go eff yourself!

In S/T. the band is actually searching for their niche in the local pop-punk subculture and their initial effort is laudable. Their breakout moment is just a couple of loud and fast chords away.

FONTAINES D.C. Dogrel People should be reminded that the Arctic Monkeys were punks when they first started and on their slippery shoulders, Irish trouble makers Fontaines DC construct similar music that’s part punk uprising and part post-punk ramajama in the tradition of The Talking Heads and UK’s The Slits. A track called “Television Screens” even summons the spirits of both The Gang of Four and Tom Verlaine’s Television, bridging two generations arising from ‘70s punk’s possibilities.

In the grander scheme of things falling apart, Fontaines DC vocalist Grian Chatten pulls in nightmares of dashed hopes, regular disconnection and urban decay in songs titled “Hurricane Laughter,” “Too Real” and “Roy’s Tune.” That last song comes encased in midtempo strummed guitars to possibly half-conceal the raging aches and frustrations of the narrator. The pent-up emotions erupt into something more sinister in “Liberty Belle” where main man Chatten bleats “You know I love that violence that you get around here / That kind of ready-steady violence.”

Chatten delivers his words like intellectual sermons allowing the music to blend well in intensity and volume. His voice never rises in anger to make a point of contention and it’s up to the backing music to rise to the occasion. They do a swell job of a balanced punk-inspired rock attack.

from page 3

fledgling indie music crowd. That’s where Cabangon further honed his craft as a songwriter.

Interestingly, many of Buklod’s songs covered relevant subjects including agriculture, the environment and armed conflict. It’s no surprise that perhaps because of their timeless appeal, at least two of their songs namely “Tatsulok” and “Kanlungan” became big hits at a later time.

“When the group Bamboo later revived ‘Tatsulok’ in 2007, it became a big hit. Before that, McDonald’s decided to use ‘Kanlungan’ for their now popular TV commercial. The song was a fit for the story they were trying to tell in that commercial, about a family whose members are leaving one by one as they started to raise their own families. And then they were reunited at a McDonald’s restaurant after so many years,” Cabangon further shared.

Although it became a big hit rather belatedly “Kanlungan,” written by Dongeto is now considered a classic and widely regarded as Cabangon’s signature and most requested song during his live performances.

“That song opened many opportunities.

For an artist who wants to push for certain advocacies, it’s always better to go mainstream because that’s how your message will be heard—when you have a bigger audience. And to be able to do that, you have to go to the mainstream,” Cabangon pointed out.

The success of both “Tatsulok” and “Kanlungan” took Cabangon to

places he never thought he would ever go and not just in a literal sense.

When he was signed by Universal Records, he found even bigger success in the Byahe album series that featured his own cover versions of classic and contemporary OPM hits like the Apo Hiking Society’s Pag-Ibig,” Bong Gabriel’s “Ang Aking Awitin,” Florante’s “Handog,” Up Dharma Down’s “Tadhana” and of course, Rey Valera’s “Kahit Maputi na ang Buhok Ko,” among many others.

Many of Cabangon’s Byahe covers also became staples of his live sets. But despite the popularity of the album series, the desire to release fresh original material remained embedded in his consciousness. It’s no surprise therefore, that Cabangon greeted 2020 with a brand new song, “Pipiliin Pang Maghintay.”

Describing the new song as a modern day kundiman that gives “all the feels,” Cabangon said the hugot-filled tune is partly inspired by legendary songwriters George Canseco and Willy Cruz.

“I actually wrote this in 2018 but I was able to release it only now. I guess we were just looking for the right time to release. I know it’s a bit of a departure from my identity as a folk singer and storyteller and maybe not as socially relevant. But as an artist, I understand that people have different emotions and perspectives so I try to write about everything that reflect that,” he concluded.

Noel Cabangon’s “Pipiliin Pang Maghintay” is now available for streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, and Amazon Music under Universal Records.

BARRED Bloodstained Existence What’s primarily interesting about Barred is how well their mesh of punk noise and ululating largely undecipherable vocals can get under your skin. Opener “Trapped” speaks of deterioration in cesspools and septic tanks from a singer who seems to be declaiming while his hair is on fire. There’s so much agitation going on in the human element of the song such that the crash, burn and detonations in the surrounding metallic din makes sense.

This introductory modus operandi gets repeated in later compositions appropriately titled “Blinded,” “Scourge” and well, “Disease.” In fact, the entire record tends to induce extreme unease to any listener quite similar to initial exposure to such releases as Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music or in the periodic WSK Festival happening around the time of the Fete dela Musique, You get orchestrated punk/metal/electronic machinations intended to unleash the dark night of the soul of both performer and listener.

Beware though that a bloodstained existence can be a harrowing aural experience.

Noel Cabangon

Coronavirus pushes job interviews for college students online

T

By Janet Lorin

Setting a global standard in Philippine education

Bloomberg

he coronavirus is changing job recruiting at US colleges, as travel bans force some employers to scrap in-person campus interviews for virtual ones and students adjust to new networking norms.

Intel Corp. isn’t participating in external recruiting events. Amazon.com Inc. is shifting some on-site interviews to a virtual format. Accounting giant PwC is converting in-person office visits to videoconferencing and phone calls for about 1,000 undergraduates with offers to work there, mostly in summer jobs.

“Bringing large volumes of students to offices, requiring them to travel—we didn’t feel that was the right thing to do,” said Rod Adams, who oversees PwC’s recruiting in the United States and Mexico.

Coronavirus is upending college campuses. Classes and finals at the University of Washington won’t be held in person for the remainder of the quarter, which ends March 20. Harvard prohibited all university-related, nonessential domestic air travel, while Cornell is canceling nonessential events or work-related gatherings of more than 100 people through April 15, excluding on-campus events.

The disruption hits during a busy season

for many college career centers, though some schools have finished their main job fairs. Graduating seniors and younger students are looking for jobs and internships, and colleges typically host corporate visits and help students network with potential employers.

For companies banning trips, “No travel means no travel—you can’t go to career events,” said Megan Hendricks, executive director of the MBA Career Services & Employer Alliance, an international business school trade group.

“Hopefully for most companies, the switch to a remote model will mean the same number of hires.”

For students still meeting face-to-face with recruiters, schools advise avoiding handshaking. The University of Rochester’s career education office suggests politely declining with an explanation rather than an informal fist bump.

“We don’t want it to be awkward for the students,” said Joe Testani, executive director of the career center. “They probably feel undue pressure to make a good impression by having a firm handshake.”

The school canceled a trip to New York City for students to visit marketing firms over the spring break, partly because one company said it wasn’t allowing outsiders and organizers didn’t want to make students travel if they were uncomfortable, he said.

Even before the outbreak, virtual interviews in the initial stages with a company were already on the rise because of their efficiency and convenience, said Katharine Marianacci, associate director and engineering coach at Lehigh University’s Center for Career & Professional Development.

Companies could see the ease during the outbreak, which may contribute to the acceleration of the trend.

Amazon, which is based in Seattle, the epicenter of the US outbreak, is switching some recruiting events to the virtual format to reduce exposure risks, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Alphabet Inc.’s Google canceled all inperson interviews at its Washington state offices, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. The interviews will be rescheduled.

Filipino talents look beyond salary in SMEs, start-ups, province-based companies

W

hile salary remains to be the top driver of attracting the work force, Filipino talents who prefer working in SMEs, start-ups, and province-based companies look for jobs that offer flexibility, social involvement, less bureaucracy, job security, among others.

In 2019, JobStreet Philippines, the No. 1 online job portal in the country, reveals salary/compensation, career development, and work-life balance as the top 3 drivers of attraction among the Filipino work force based on their recently conducted extensive study, Laws of Attraction, with more than 18,000 respondents. However, JobStreet Philippines believes that attracting and retaining young professionals and top talents are more than just providing competitive compensation. With varying business setups in the country, LOA unveils possibilities for enterprises to understand the work force and effectively modify their approach in hiring talents.

Size doesn’t matter LOA reveals that Filipinos do not actually consider the size or market position of the company when they apply for a job. In fact, only 1.2 percent of the respondents said that

they consider the company size.

While small and medium enterprises (SMEs) cannot totally provide competitive salary, enterprises can market instead their unique propositions that set them apart from big companies—flexibility, career growth, less bureaucracy, socially responsible, and closer working relationship between bosses and employees.

SME hirers can emphasize or work on their management/leadership style to attract target employees and retain top talents. Young professionals mostly look for fun, family culture but respectful management in SMEs. Meanwhile, experienced employees look for a collaborative workplace that has pacesetting leadership, result-driven and high-performing.

Security in start-up LOA reveals that aside from the top 3 key drivers of attraction, employees also look for job security.

Start-ups can take this as an opportunity to introduce the job as long term, financially secure, and established. Offering full-time roles can likely attract employees, as the said respondents are put off by contract roles or project-based assignments.

7 BusinessMirror

They also prefer a workplace surrounded by leaders and coworkers who are professional, respectful and collaborative.

Opportunities outside NCR Based on the LOA, candidates from Gen X or Y seem to be the most inclined to accept provincial employment, while baby boomers are the most reluctant, and Gen Z has the largest number of unsure candidates.

Offering competitive salary, career development opportunities, and work-life balance is a no brainer to attract talents from Metro Manila to work in other locations. However, hirers from province-based companies can amend its recruitment strategies centered on Gen Z who are the future of the national work force. Compared to overall crossgeneration averages, these drivers are valued more highly

by Gen Zers: sign-on bonus (53 percent versus 39 percent), company holidays and recreational activities (57 percent versus 47 percent), and flexible work hours (51 percent versus 40 percent), among others.

To discover more on Filipino workforce, visit JobStreet’s LOA portal on https://www.jobstreet.com.ph/en/ cms/employer/laws-of-attraction/.

March 15, 2020

T

he call to meet a global education standard in the Philippines through the K-12 program was an opportunity for STI Education Services Group Inc. (STI ESG) to build on its already strong school foundation and growing academe.

Through development of an industry-driven curriculum and a unique employmentoriented framework, coupled by accredited faculty members and activities that also foster the personal growth of its students, STI has positioned itself as a prominent learning institution in the country.

Further testament on STI’s commitment to achieving world-class quality education are in the academic programs and learning opportunities it provides its students to hone their skills and to holistically develop as individuals. Such is also reflected in its expansive network and numerous partnerships with esteemed players across varying industries and government entities, namely, Cypher Learning, Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), ABS-CBN, UnionBank of the Philippines, SITEL, The Heritage Hotel Manila, Department of Education, Microsoft, and OSM Maritime Group to name a few.

STI, as the largest pioneer of senior high school in the Philippines, understands the importance of equipping its students with strong skills and the proper foundations to earn a degree and decent employment.

Aside from employing the same global standard of teaching and learning among its senior high schools, STI also introduces modern and relevant programs and tools to aid incoming college students.

The newly implemented STI College Admission Test—the aim of which is to measure students’ aptitude and personality prior to admission to an STI school—is one of STI’s most recent interventions to guide senior high students as they pursue college education in any STI school.

“As part of our commitment to enhance our student’s essential life skills in order to succeed in their endeavors, we developed this tool to help STI schools gain a better understanding of their students,” said STI VP for Academics Aisa Q. Hipolito.

Through their class-leading education, industry-adept programs, promising linkages, and relevant programs that prioritizes the educational and personal development of its students, STI continues to further cements its position as a pioneer on how meeting a global standard can transform Philippine education.

Why rational people are panic buying as coronavirus spreads

By Ari Altstedter & Jinshan Hong

ness school. “They just see other people doing it and start doing it themselves because they are afraid they might lose out.”

Quelling this kind of panic can mean assuring people there’s enough toilet paper for everyone, but more important may be making people believe the situation in general is under control, Yap said. Perhaps no government has done as good a job of that so far as Singapore’s.

Bloomberg

T

he worldwide spread of the novel coronavirus is leading to some curious side effects: Store shelves are being stripped bare from Singapore to Seattle.

Supermarkets in the UK have started rationing items.

In Hong Kong a delivery man was reportedly robbed at knife-point of hundreds of toilet paper rolls. Australia has seen brawls break out at supermarkets prompting police to taser one man. And France effectively nationalized all production of face masks after people began depleting the supply.

Panic buying has emerged as reliable a feature of the coronavirus epidemic as a fever or dry cough.

Psychologists view control as a fundamental human need. With a disease that’s highly infectious and can turn deadly, this epidemic violates a sense of control in fundamental ways. Unless policy-makers can find a way to restore that feeling, the cycle of panic buying, hoarding and scarcity only stands to escalate.

“People are really not equipped psychologically to process this type of thing,” said Andrew Stephen, a marketing professor at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School. “So that just makes it worse for a lot of people in terms of uncertainty, and then they do whatever they need to do to try and get back some control.”

The panic buying is already threatening to do real damage. The US Surgeon General has pleaded with Americans to stop buying face masks to ensure that health-care

Seeking calm

workers have them, while Japan has said it will introduce penalties for reselling masks. EBay Inc. banned new listings for health products after instances of price gouging became common, with packs of hand sanitizer that usually sell for $10 popping up for $400.

And the prospect of extended confinement at home has sent people scrambling for other items. Oat milk has become a hot commodity due to its longer shelf life than dairy-based products, survivalist gear popularized on the National Geographic show Doomsday Preppers is in demand and Hostess Brands Inc. reports sales of their famously indestructible snack, the Twinkie, are soaring.

Early panic As one of the first places the virus touched down, Hong Kong in late January became a case study in how panic buying can escalate. When Rona Lai, a 23-year-old who works in financial services, was first asked by her employer to work from home, she stocked up on about a week’s worth of food. But as reports coming out of China grew more dire and supermarket shelves ran dry, she began hoarding food in earnest.

Then the rumors started that Hong Kong’s supply of toilet paper would be affected by the epidemic spreading

in China, from where the city imports most of its goods. So when Lai noticed stores were being cleared of toilet paper, too, she joined the buying. Now boxes of toilet rolls take up her entire sofa, and tissue paper, detergents and snacks are stacked under her dining table. ”I readied myself for a protracted war against the virus,” she said.

Similar panic buying often precedes snow storms and typhoons, but the global nature of the coronavirus’ spread—along with access to information facilitated by social media—means hysteria today is traveling in ways not seen in previous epidemics, like the 2003 SARS outbreak caused by a similar virus.

The disease’s spread to more countries seems to be being accompanied by the rumors from Hong Kong about impending toilet paper shortages, for instance. It wasn’t long after coronavirus cases started appearing in Singapore that toilet paper started disappearing. In Australia a growing number of people have racked up charges related to toilet paper induced fighting, as hashtags #toiletpapergate and #toiletpapercrisis have trended.

“Even people who were queuing up in the supermarket line to buy toilet paper, they have no idea why they are buying toilet paper,” said Andy Yap, a professor of organizational behavior at the Singapore campus of INSEAD busi-

Though the city state initially had bare shelves, too, things returned to normal after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong released a video message outlining steps residents could take to prevent the virus’ spread. He assured them there was sufficient supply of basic goods and said the disease appeared less deadly than the SARS epidemic. Following the message, extensive control measures were rolled out.

“This is information that gives people control again,” Yap said. “And now we know transmission isn’t that widespread, people are going out.”

Other countries have been less effective at imparting this message. Chinese officials were slow to report the outbreak. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe abruptly abandoned his initially mild approach in a shock announcement urging schools to close, sending parents into a frenzy.

Iran’s deputy health minister appeared on television to downplay the virus’ threat, even as he showed visible signs of infection.

Whether these governments can bounce back to inspire confidence will depend not just on their leaders’ decisions, but also the characteristics of their respective countries. Sociologists rate various countries on metrics like how individualistic or communal their people are, how much trust they generally have for each other and their government, said Amy Dalton, a marketing professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology who studies consumer psychology. More communal societies, where people have a lot of trust in each other and their government, like Singapore, are better equipped to deal with things like epidemics.

On the other hand, “this every-man-for-himself thing is really going to be exacerbated in the US,” she said.

“They’re low trust, they’re very individualistic, and of course, they have no faith in their government.”

How to stock up wisely, emergency or not

C

oncerns about the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) mean more of us are doing what we probably should have been doing all along: washing our hands more frequently and thoroughly; staying at home when we’re sick; stocking up on food and supplies in case that stay becomes extended.

People who may have been exposed to the new coronavirus or who get sick with Covid-19 might be advised to stay home for as long as 14 days to keep from spreading it to others, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s led many people to wonder if they could manage for two weeks at home without a run to the grocery store.

Stocking up shouldn’t mean panic-buying cases of toilet paper at the nearest warehouse store, of course. But keeping a reasonable supply of shelf-stable food and other supplies on hand makes sense for all kinds of emergencies, from natural disasters to stretches of unemployment.

At the same time, it’s important for your wallet and

your community not to hoard stuff you don’t need. You can spend a small fortune on N95 masks, for example, but those are better reserved for the health-care workers who can help those who become sick enough to need treatment. Likewise, there are companies selling emergency food kits with a decades-long shelf life, but those may include stuff you or your family just won’t eat. That’s a waste of money and food.

A better approach is to create a two-week cache of food based on the “store what you eat, eat what you store” principle that I detailed in “The Emergency Fund You Can Eat.” The basics: Write down two weeks’ worth of meals. Consider what your household would eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner during that period, including mains, side dishes, beverages and desserts. Include snacks and treats that could make a potentially stressful time a little easier, as well as foods that could help someone with flu symptoms, such as broth, herbal tea, ice pops and electrolyte drinks.

8 BusinessMirror

Shelves that held hand sanitizer and hand soap are mostly empty at a Target in Jersey City, N.J. People who may have been exposed to the new coronavirus or who get sick with Covid-19 may be advised to stay home for as long as 14 days to keep from spreading it to others, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. AP Adapt ingredients, as necessary. In a natural disaster such as a hurricane or earthquake, utilities including water, fuel and electricity could be disrupted, March 15, 2020

so it’s important to have alternate cooking sources, such as a camp stove, as well as an emergency water supply. In a disease outbreak, utilities likely won’t be interrupted, but you may not have ready access to perishables or have the energy for elaborate meals.

(Restaurant and grocery delivery may be an option, but that can get expensive if used for every meal.)

It’s smart to have a similar approach to other necessities, including hand soap, disposable facial tissues, toilet paper, diapers, pet food and litter, household surface cleaner, laundry and dish detergent, and hygiene supplies. Figure out how much your household is likely to use each week, and keep at least a two-week surplus on hand.

Likewise, the Department of Homeland Security recommends that you regularly check your prescription drug supply, and keep nonprescription drugs and medical supplies on hand. These can include pain relievers, cough and cold medicines, and vitamins. NerdWallet via AP