BusinessMirror March 27, 2023

March 24 to 26. SM SUPERMALLS

Diokno commits unity for economic recovery

By Raadee S. Sausa

THE government will have a unified effort in strengthening intersectoral ties for economic recovery, the Finance chief assured the Filipino-Chinese business community at the weekend.

“ The Marcos Jr. administration is built on the premise that unity is vital for recovery. We will stay true to this principle and strengthen intersectoral linkages as envisioned in the Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028,” Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said during the Federation of FilipinoChinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. (FFCCCII)’s 33rd Biennial Convention recently.

T he FFCCCII brings together chambers of commerce and trade

associations from all over the Philippines to promote business growth and improve the competitiveness of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

T he Federation has been a development partner of the government since 1954.

“ For almost seven decades, the Federation has consistently devoted itself to promoting cooperation and co-prosperity between Filipino and Chinese businesses,” Diokno said.

T he secretary said, to strengthen intersectoral linkages, the government will harness the publicprivate partnership (PPP) mechanism to help the public sector finance massive Build, Better, More infrastructure programs through mutually beneficial agreements

with private proponents. PPPs can be undertaken through various modes, such as the BuildOperate-Transfer (BOT) Law.

I ts recently revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) addressed stakeholder concerns on the financial viability and bankability of PPP projects, potential delays, rigid processes and ambiguous provisions.

Meanwhile, the PPP Act was approved by the House of Representatives on third reading in December 2022 and is now pending in the Senate.

O n March 9, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board approved 194 high-impact Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFPs), with a combined value of P9 trillion.

T he 45 of the IFPs are financed through PPPs.

D iokno also cited the importance of enhancing the ease of doing business through digitalization, noting the E-Governance bill that recently hurdled the House of Representatives.

“Once enacted, the Bill is expected to enhance the ease of doing business in the country and improve public trust in the government. As business leaders, I hope that you will lead the charge in ushering digital transformation initiatives in your respective fields and industries,” he said. Diokno pointed out that the Philippines is now part of the largest trade agreement in the world, along with China.

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BSP: DEPOSIT RATES UP WITH KEY RATE HIKES

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

Data shared in a recent briefing from BSP Deputy Governor Francisco Dakila Jr. showed interest rates for short-term deposits have increased by 310 basis points (bps).

T he average interest rate for short-term deposits has reached 3.68 percent in 2023. The same deposits carried an interest rate of 0.58 percent in May 2022.

Dakila also said for long-term deposits, interest rates averaged 3.01 percent in May 2022, and this has since increased to 5.14 percent in 2023. This is a 212.4-bps increase.

B SP Governor Felipe M. Medalla said, however, that the passthrough of the rate hikes have a better chance of seeing an impact if the deposits are higher. However, Medalla said, choosing which bank to place deposits in is not solely based on interest rates, but other factors such as branch location and the amount of deposits.

“ If your deposit is P100,000, you’re unlikely to move to a bank that’s farther away. That’s the nature of the business,” Medalla said.

THEY PRODUCE FOOD, BUT ARE FOOD-POOR

FILIPINOS producing the country’s food are among those who could not afford to eat, according to data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

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B ased on the 2021 poverty statistics, the PSA said food-poor Filipinos, in terms of magnitude, comprised those living in rural areas with 13.673 million; children, 10.463 million; and women, 9.986 million.

I n terms of incidence, the subsistence incidence was the highest among fisherfolks at 10.8 percent; farmers, 10.7 percent;

and children, 9.4 percent.

“ The fisherfolks sector remained to have the highest subsistence incidence of 10.8 percent,” PSA said. “This indicates that around one in every 10 fishermen belongs to a family that is foodpoor or a family with income that is not sufficient to buy its minimum basic food needs.”

O ther sectors where there were a lot of food-poor Filipinos were urban residents with 1.874 million; and the youth, with 1.578 million who could not afford their basic food needs.

T he basic sectors with the least

Biz groups still opposing PPA order after tweaks

By Andrea E. San Juan

MAJOR business groups in the Philippines have reiterated their opposition to a policy which details the container monitoring policy of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), which has recently been recommended for pilot implementation by the AntiRed Tape Authority (ARTA), subject to validation.

T he Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc., in a statement posted on its social media page, announced that ARTA Secretary Ernesto V. Perez with his team, met with major business groups in the country, including PHILEXPORT and Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) to discuss issues in the PPA Administrative Order (AO) 04-2021.

number of food-poor Filipinos were Persons aged 15 years and above with disability at 86,000; fisherfolk, 122,000; and Senior citizens, 280,000.

I n terms of incidence, sectors that made up the top 5 in terms of subsistence incidence were rural residents at 9 percent and the self-employed and unpaid family workers, at 6.4 percent.

T he three basic sectors with the lowest subsistence incidence, meanwhile, were migrant and formal sector workers with a food poverty incidence rate of 2.6 per -

See “Food,” A2

T he stakeholders asserted that despite the amendments made by the PPA in the provisions, “the major issues—unnecessary extra costs and time to process—remain.”

W ith this, the business groups said they disagree with the pilot implementation of the policy, as this “will surely result in port congestion.”

I n a statement released by ARTA on March 8, the anti-red tape watchdog announced that upon the result of its evaluation of the PPA’s Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) on Administrative Order 04-2021, the said policy garnered a score of 36 out of 40 or a “Good Practice” rating.

See “Biz groups,” A2

THE successive key policy rate hikes have already passed through to deposits of Filipino account holders, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) disclosed.

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Open defecation still bugs, but declining, in rural areas

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

BARMM tops list

MEANWHILE , the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) had the highest percentage of families practicing open defecation with no toilet facility at 9.7 percent.

T his was followed by Region V or the Bicol region at 8.1 percent and Region VI or Western Visayas at 7.1 percent.

of families with access to basic sanitation facilities. However, the percentage of rural families practicing open defecation (4 percent) was higher than in urban areas (1.2 percent).

With this, ARTA said in its letter to PPA that “as part of Section 8 of the RIS or the Monitoring and Evaluation Plan, the PPA has signified that the Implementing Operational Guidelines will be subjected to a pilot implementation and will be amended accordingly to address any issues and concerns that may arise.”

subject to proportionality rules, provide recommendations to improve regulatory management and provide technical assistance and advisory opinions in the review of proposed national or local legislation, regulations or procedures.

P SA data showed open defecation is practiced on average at 2.6 percent based on the 2022 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS). This, however, is lower than the 3.5 percent posted in 2020 in the APIS. O pen defecation was at its highest in rural areas at 4 percent, lower than the 5.8 percent in 2020. However, this was significantly higher than the 1.2 percent open defecation in urban areas which was also lower than the 1.6 percent in 2020.

(Open defecation is the) disposal of human faeces in fields, forests, bushes, open bodies of water,

In a competitive global economy, we believe in lower barriers to trade and investment in general. In a dynamic global economy, we believe any barriers should be subject to modification by the President and Congress, better

beaches and other open spaces or with solid waste,” PSA said.

In 2022, about 84 percent of families had basic sanitation service level or used an improved sanitation facility that is not shared with another household.

Moreover, about one out of 10 families (10.8 percent) had a limited service level or was using an improved sanitation facility but shared with two or more households.

T he rest of the families had an unimproved service level (2.7 percent), and no sanitation facility or they practiced open defecation (2.6 percent).

than being fixed in the Constitution,” the club said.

It said a survey among Asean nations, China and India “shows that while their constitutions may discuss economic principles, specific economic restrictions and guidelines are left to the legislature.”

Further economic liberalization will bring in new players and technol -

T he data also showed regions with the lowest percentage of families with basic service sanitation facilities were BARMM at 51.6 percent; Region XII-Soccsksargen, 73.8 percent; and Region VII-Central Visayas, 76.3 percent.

T he top three regions with the highest percentage of families with basic service sanitation facilities were Region III-Central Luzon (92.5 percent), Region IVA-Calabarzon (90.4 percent), and Region II-Cagayan Valley (89.8 percent).

By residence, urban areas (84.6 percent) and rural areas (83.3 percent) had almost equal percentages

ogy, who will boost competition on price and quality, benefiting Filipino consumers,” it said.

Finex, in a letter to the Rodriguez committee last February 17, said it agreed with House members on the need to amend the Charters economic provisions, “which have resulted in the most restrictive economic environment among our peer countries and

A cross regions, the top three regions with the highest percentage of families with basic service sanitation facilities were Region III-Central Luzon (92.5 percent), Region IVA-Calabarzon (90.4 percent), and Region II-Cagayan Valley (89.8 percent).

O n the other hand, regions with the lowest percentage of families with basic service sanitation facilities were BARMM (51.6 percent), Region XII-Soccsksargen (73.8 percent), and Region VII-Central Visayas (76.3 percent).

I n addition, BARMM had the highest percentage of families practicing open defecation with no toilet facility (9.7 percent), followed by Region V-Bicol (8.1 percent) and Region VI-Western Visayas (7.1 percent).

have impeded foreign investments.”

“ We note that in almost all countries in the world, restrictions on foreign investments are not contained in their Constitutions. Instead, restrictions on foreign trade and investments are done through legislation or administrative orders that can be changed to suit shifting national priorities,” it said.

Finex also supported the proposed convening of a constitutional convention to propose the amendments.

R odriguez also cited the January 22, 2021 joint statement of several business organizations, including MBC, Finex, Filipina CEO Circle, Management Association of the Philippines, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Judicial Reform Initiative, more than a year before the May 2022 elections.

In their statement, the groups urged candidates “to express their support for the relaxation of restrictive economic provisions in our Constitution and commit to initiate steps for the adoption of such provisions within the first 12 months of their term.”

“ So we in the House and some supporters in the Senate are on the right track. We are following the recommendations of these big business groups, including their suggested timeline,” Rodriguez said.

‘Independent-minded’

FOR his part, Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said the opposition of these big business group to Charter change echoed the position of independentminded members of the House of Representatives against a Constitutional Convention to amend the 1987 Constitution.

L agman reiterated that Charter change by Con-con or any other mode is not timely as the government has to address more pressing economic problems on poverty, inflation, and food security;

A ccording to Lagman, the political debate on amending the Constitution will be disruptive of the country’s economic recovery momentum and divisive at a time when national unity must be forged.

The multibillion-peso cost of a constitutional convention can be better channeled to propeople agenda and reforms,” he said.

“ The recent statutes liberalizing the entry of foreign investments into the country should first be fully implemented without trifling with the Constitution,” he added.

The Resolution of Both Houses 6, which calls for a hybrid Constitutional Convention (Con-con)—comprising elected and appointed delegates—to do a makeover of the Charter’s restrictive economic provisions, and House Bill 7325, which is meant to be the implementing law for RBH 6, are both pending before the Senate.

T he twin Con-con measures were passed on third and final reading before the congressional recess by 301 or nearly 96 percent of the chamber’s 314 members, illustrating the super majority support in the bigger chamber for immediate Charter Change.

A RTA provides ratings on the quality of analysis in the submitted RIS, which are categorized according to the RIS score: Best Practice (40), Good Practice (30-39), Satisfactory RIS (24-29), and Insufficient RIS (8-23).

P rior to PPA obtaining a Good Practice rating from ARTA, the anti-red tape watchdog noted that PPA went through a Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA).  The RIA is anchored on Section 5 of Republic Act 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018.

T he provision, ARTA said, “mandates that all proposed regulations of covered government offices shall undergo a Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) to ensure that these will not add undue burden and cost to stakeholders and to avoid overlapping regulations.”

Moreover, it states that, when necessary, any proposed regulation may undergo pilot implementation to assess regulatory impact subject to the clearance of the heads of agencies.

Under Section 17 of the EODB law, the anti-red tape watchdog explained that it also has the power and functions to review proposed major regulations of government agencies using submitted RIS

cent; senior citizens, 2.8 percent; and urban residents, 3.3 percent.

Meanwhile, in terms of income poverty or those who lived below the official poverty thresholds compared to the other basic sectors of the population, Fisherfolks also saw the highest poverty incidence at 30.6 percent.

T his was followed by Farmers with a poverty incidence of 30 percent; Children, 26.4 percent; and Individuals residing in rural areas, 25.7 percent.

Fisherfolks, farmers, children, and individuals residing in rural areas remained the poorest sectors in terms of poverty incidence in 2021,” PSA said. “These sectors also registered the highest poverty incidences in 2015 and 2018.”

T he data also showed other sectors included self-employed and unpaid family workers with a poverty rate of 18.7 percent and women at 18.4 percent.

L ast week, the Monetary Board raised the BSP’s overnight reverse repurchase facility by 25 bps to 6.25 percent, effective Friday, March 24, 2023. The BSP said with this, the interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities will be set to 5.75 percent and 6.75 percent, respectively.

Medalla said while the US Federal Reserve also decided to raise interest rates by 25 bps on Wednesday, this did not factor in the decision of the MB.

He added that in the future,

T he Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement creates a free trade zone covering 30 percent of the world’s population, 29 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP), 29 percent of global trade, and 33 percent of global inward investments in 2020.

Since RCEP promotes the growth and development of MSMEs which

P ursuant to this, ARTA recommended that the PPA conduct a full RIA and submission of a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) on Administrative Order 04-2021 or the Policy on the Registration and Monitoring of Containers covering containers originating from foreign ports that will be unloaded at government and/or private ports under the administrative jurisdiction of the PPA.

A RTA said it received the RIS from the PPA last January 30.

A ccording to ARTA, “the RIA helps policymakers, like the PPA, to examine the impacts and consequences of different policy options and enables them to form a sound decision based on their understanding on whether a proposed regulation will achieve its policy objectives.”

PCCI and Philexport were among the trade, industry and transport and logistics groups that issued a solidary statement since May 2022 seeking the “immediate revocation” of the policy, as it “treatens to cripple the transport and logistics industries and the national economy as a whole.”

Moreover, in a statement last January 26, 2023, these major stakeholders said implementation of the order will “result in an almost 50 percent increase in the logistics cost of imported goods.”

Comparing the 2021 poverty incidences among the basic sectors with the estimates in 2018, all the sectors exhibited significant changes, except for the self-employed and unpaid family workers,” the PSA said.

It was also noted that all sectors showed an increase in poverty incidence following the trend of the official poverty estimate at the national level, except for farmers, which indicated a significant reduction in poverty incidence of -1.6 percentage points from 2018,” it explained.

T he data showed the least poor sectors in 2021 were migrant and formal sector workers with a poverty incidence rate of 10.2 percent; senior citizens, 10.3 percent; and urban residents, 11.6 percent.

T he PSA noted that these sectors also had the lowest poverty incidences in 2015 and 2018.  Cai U. Ordinario

the BSP may no longer track the US Federal Reserve’s movements. Medalla said if the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decides to pause on rate hikes, the BSP may not be keen on doing the same based solely on the movement of the US monetary authorities.

Medalla said future actions by the Monetary Board will be “datadependent.” He noted that while the recent headline inflation showed prices slowing, considering the seasonality of prices would show that inflation continued to increase.

make up 99 percent of businesses in the Philippines, the DOF chief said he looks forward to more opportunities with the FilipinoChinese business community. I look forward to the Federation’s continued support in fostering friendly relations between the Filipino and Chinese business communities in the years to come,” Diokno added.

OPEN defecation practices, particularly in rural areas, continue, according to the latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)

The Nation

DILG Region XI warns vs pseudo-contractors

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox

Mindanao Bureau Chief

DAVAO CITY—The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Regional Office XI (Southern Mindanao) has cautioned barangay officials against persons introducing themselves as contractors “wanting to clinch a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on solar light projects.”

A news dispatch by the state-run Philippine Information Agency (PIA) cited a DILG warning aired during the recent meeting of the Regional Task Force (RTF) on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (Elcac), which said barangays would soon be receiving their share of the budget allocated to villages that have been cleared of New People’s Army presence or influence.

Charito L. Cinco, DILG XI Project Development and Management Unit (PDMU) chief, said “these contractors are convincing the barangays to change their priority or proposed projects to solar lights,” noting that electrification project was among the priority areas for expenditure of the upcoming budget share for the barangays.

Cinco said these spurious contractors would be presenting themselves as representatives from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) or the DILG.

A lex C. Roldan, DILG XI regional director, has advised barangay officials to seek the assistance of DILG or other pertinent government agencies to check on the legitimacy of the individuals claiming themselves as contractors.

T he DILG told the ELCAC meeting on the second week of March that the Support to the Barangay Development Program (SBDP) has a fresh fund of P6.336 billion that was “due for release” to cities and municipalities to implement the

identified SBDP priority projects of 959 cleared barangays.

A National Task Force-ELCAC memorandum dated December 22, 2022, mandated the fund allocation per barangay to be spent to farm-tomarket roads, school buildings, water sanitation systems, health stations and electrification projects.

C inco said Davao Region was appropriated P508,729,927 for 77 cleared barangays, each of which would be receiving P6,606,882.17. Davao City has one recipient barangay; Davao Occidental, 10; Davao Occidental, 10; Davao del Sur, three; Davao del Norte, four; Davao Oriental, 15; and, Davao de Oro, 44.

Meanwhile, Roldan said the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-Clip) would continue under the Marcos administration and the delay in fund compensation for surrendered weapons was delayed “because the budget for 2022 has been exhausted.”

“ We already requested a new budget,” he said. “So they no longer have something to worry about that; [unlike some who say] the project is dissolved, [I would like to say it] is continued.”

Roldan said P2.021 million was downloaded in February this year to Davao de Oro for 26 former rebels; P1.706 million for 39 firearms in Davao del Sur; and, P3.727 million for 51 firearms in Davao de Oro.

“On process for downloading in March is P2.666 million for 31 firearms in Davao Oriental,” he added. He said Davao de Oro has requested P1,722,000 for E-Clip funding for 27 firearms surrendered. It remained pending at the Central Office as of this month.

He said there were also other requests that were still subject for evaluation as of March. These were the requests from Davao del Norte (P2,415,000 for 115 firearms); Davao Oriental (P6,010,570) and Davao Oriental (P774,000).

Solon chides CHED for poor use of higher education devt fund

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

ASENIOR deputy minority leader has called out the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) for its poor utilization of the Higher Education Development Fund (HEDF).

“ I maintain my position that [CHED] Chairman [Prospero E.] De Vera is not a responsible steward of the resources to uplift our country’s most vulnerable citizens’ the poorest of the poor. These are our citizens who are in need of every avenue for assistance that enables a better life for them and their families,” Northern Samar Rep. Paul R. Daza said. W hile the HEDF is not entirely a scholarship fund, Daza stressed that it is primarily used to strengthen capabilities of Higher Education Institutions to improve education standards.

“I have serious concerns regarding the utilization of this fund. Data shows that P10 billion of the 2021 HEDF remains unspent, sitting idly in the coffers,” he said.

With all due respect to the good [CHED] Chairman: if there are funds that were allocated for a purpose, yet were not spent to fulfill this purpose, then this is a case of mismanagement. It may look good on paper that the CHED did not spend P10 billion, but the real consequence of that is the Filipino people were short-changed P10 billion because it was not used to serve their needs,” added Daza.

In a recent hearing of the House Committee on Higher Education, Daza said the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)

LTO’s use of ₧341.7M unspent funds upheld by High Tribunal

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

THE Supreme Court (SC), in a vote of 12-0, has affirmed the constitutionality of the use of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) of the P341.7 million unspent funds for the procurement of driver’s license cards (DLC) with five year validity in 2016 to supplement the amount appropriated for the same purpose under the 2017 national budget.

In a 14-page decision penned by Associate Justice Rodil V. Zalameda, the Court en banc denied the petition filed by former ACTS-OFW Rep. Aniceto D. Bertiz 3rd seeking to scrap the P836-million project that the LTO signed in 2017 with Dermalog Identification Systems GMBH for the procurement of DLCs.

Bertiz questioned the constitutionality of the project because according to him the 2016 General Appropriations Act did not allocate a single centavo for the 2017 DLC project.

T he petitioner insisted there was no appropriation for the 2017 DLC project because the invitation to bid did not indicate the specific year of the General Fund 101 as the source of funds and Congress did not enact a law authorizing the expenditure in

the form of continuing appropriations. Bertiz added there can be no validly-issued certificate as to the availability of funds because the specific year of the General Fund 101 is not indicated.

Bertiz’s arguments

BERTIZ also noted that Article 6, Section 29 (1) of the 1987 Constitution provides that “no money shall be paid out of the Treasury “except in pursuance of an appropriation made by law.”

He pointed out that if Congress had deliberately and purposely intended to appropriate public funds to be used as an expenditure for the DLCs, it would have specifically and particularly approved an item of appropriation for the production of DCLs like

what it did in the GAA 2013.

Bertiz pointed out that unlike the 2013 GAA, the 2016 GAA does not have items such as “Production of driver’s licenses,” which has corresponding appropriation of P528.7 million; “issuance of plates and/or tags” which has a corresponding allotment of P189.3 million; and “processing of registration application, inspection of motor vehicles for identity, safety, weight, classification and road worthiness which has a corresponding budget of P154.5 million.

However, the SC ruled that Section 65 of the 2016 GAA authorized the use of appropriations in 2016 for 2017.

‘Existing or appropriations’continuing

SECTION 65 of the 2016 GAA states that: “Appropriations authorized in this Act for MOOE (maintenance and other operating expenses) and capital outlays shall be available for release and obligation for the purpose specified, and under the same special provisions applicable thereto, for a period extending to one fiscal year after the end of the year in which such items were appropriated.”

T he said provision, according to the High Tribunal, is an example of “existing or continuing appropriations” or “appropriations which have been previously enacted by Congress and which continue to remain valid as an appropriation authority for the expenditure of public funds.”

The LTO therefore was acting well within the bounds of

law when it supplemented the appropriation for its 2017 DLC project with the balance of its 2016 appropriation for the same purpose,” the SC declared.

Furthermore, the High Tribunal rejected Bertiz’s conclusion that the expenditure in the amount of P829.7 million for the 2017 DLC Project is unconstitutional for being way beyond the appropriated amount of P528.79 million under the 2017 GAA.

Not a trier of facts

THE Court said the P829.7 million supposed expenditure is well within the approved budget contract of P836 million for the 2017 DLC project.

“Considering the grant of authority for continuing appropriations under Section 65 of the 2016 GAA, the appropriation of P528,793,000.00 for the 2017 DLC Project, as supplemented by the balance of P341,713,000.00 from the 2016 DLC Project, is more than sufficient to cover the ABC of P836,000,000.00 in the 2017 DLC Project’s published Invitation to Bid,” the SC noted.

T he SC ruling, however, did not tackle propriety of the bidding process conducted by the LTO as well as the subsequent award of the contract to Dermalog as the resolution of such issues involves questions of facts.

“ This Court is not a trier of facts; it would be offensive to established order and the hierarchy of courts for Us to initiate such factual review,” the SC explained.

DepEd gives schools time in applying for tuition hike

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

THE Department of Education (DepEd) announced it is giving private schools more time after it moved the deadline for the submission of application and documentary requirements for the consultation period for those who plan to increase their tuition and other fees

for school year 2023-2024.

“ The deadline for the conduct of consultation for tuition and other fee increases for school year 20232024 is extended from March 30, 2023 to June 15, 2023,” stated the memorandum, issued by Education Undersecretary Revsee A. Escobedo on behalf of Vice President and DepEd Secretary Sara Z. Duterte. In the same vein, the deadline

for the submission of documentary requirements is extended from March 15, 2023 to June 30, 2023,” the memorandum added.

T he DepEd regional directors were directed to “review the application of new and or increases in tuition and other school fees under existing and applicable policies.”

L ikewise, the memo said that the renewal of permits to operate of

private schools has been moved to April 15, 2023. Private schools are supposed to have submitted their renewal requirements last February 1. T he DepEd said that the changes were “due to the adjustments made to the school calendar for the past three years due to the pandemic,” which also warranted the adjustment of the school calendar this school year.

disclosed in 2019 they submitted to CHED a list of more than one million Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) students but only 7,000 were given support.

“Nakakadurog ng puso,” said Daza.

[This is heartbreaking.]

He added that for this year, the DSWD said that over 700,000 more senior high school students under the 4Ps program are graduating [and], hopefully, venture into college or university. At the rate the CHED is going, I fear that not even one percent of these poor students will get support from the government.”

A ccording to Daza, the country is facing a huge problem as its tertiary education dropout rate is 25 percent to 30 percent—among the highest in Asia.

And we can’t completely blame it on the students because most of these are due to financial reasons,” he said.

“I have defended the budget of the CHED for the past couple of years, in the august halls of Congress, during those grueling yet important budget hearings. I fervently believe that the CHED is a key agency in giving the poor more opportunities to escape poverty, especially after it was empowered by RA 10931 (The Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act),” he added. “After seeing their underutilization of this budget–which also equates to, in my mind, a lack of compassion–I can’t help but regret taking up the cudgels for them in the House.”

Daza urged De Vera to find it “in his heart” to use the power and responsibility that he was given to answer the plight of the poor, underprivileged, and undereducated.

THE United States Coast Guard and some of its air assets will arrive in the Philippines to help in the ongoing clean-up operations on the massive oil spill in Mindoro, Department of National Defense Senior Undersecretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr. said on Sunday.

In a statement issued following his report to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Galvez said they will be expecting in the following days the arrival in the country of the entire US Coast Guard and another C-5, the US Air Force’s largest and strategic airlifter.

“We are looking forward to the arrival of the entire US Coast Guard contingent for the additional technical support in our disaster response operations. Although, one US C-17 with equipment (60K loader) already arrived this morning and is now at Subic Air Base; another C-5 is expected to arrive tomorrow,” the Defense chief said.

Galvez, who is also chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), along with the Office of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Undersecretary Ariel F. Nepomuceno and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Chief Admiral Artemio M. Abu and other Armed Forces of the Philippines and local government officials, conducted an aerial inspection of the affected areas of the oil spill early Sunday morning.

“We will immediately employ these assets and integrate in our response operations. In addition, we continue to closely monitor the ROV’s (remotely-

In a first, nurse to be 125th Independence Day parade marshal on 2 continents

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operated vehicle) operations for significant updates and to further determine the extent of the oil spill,” Galvez said.

The DND official added that the presence of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has greatly helped in the clean-up operations by providing rapid environmental assessments of the affected areas, identification of priority areas at risk of environmental damage, and assessment of the needs for ecosystem restoration.

“They [NOAA] provide support for scientific modeling to estimate the trajectory of the oil spill and satellite imagery to boost assessment efforts,” Galvez said.

The DND senior official also reported that the Japanese ROV found out that the oil tanker, MT Princess Empress, “suffered extensive structural damage after sinking.”

“At this point, no visible consumption fuel leak coming from the damaged vessel. Oil leaks had been observed from all eight compartments (tanks). Some through ballast tanks. Volume of remaining oil inside the compartments cannot be estimated at this point,” Galvez said. “Oil spillage rate from the source is likewise yet to be determined, quoting the findings of the Japanese team.

He added that the situation in the areas in Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan) and Western Visayas regions affected by the oil spill “is a lot better and very encouraging than I imagined.” Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

D r. Go will elevate the role of 125th Philippine Independence Day Parade Grand Marshal in Milan by working with Consul General Elmer G. Cato (he is the immediate past ConGen in New York) in sponsoring projects in culture, technology, environment, and education that will impact the lives of

Filipino Migrant workers within the jurisdiction of the Philippine Consulate in Milan.

Dr. Go is an indefatigable dynamo out to achieve the improbable. Everyone awaits the next installment in the saga of Dr. Dely Po Go, who has been dubbed “Steel Sampaguita.” Troi Santos

DENR vows lawsuit for Mindoro oil-spill damage; claims caravan to reel off

continued from a12

L eones said administratively, the DENR can compel the rehabilitation of affected ecosystems under the Clean Water Act. He said the DENR will make sure that the cost of DENR’s effort, including mobilizing people for the coastal cleanup, water quality monitoring and damage assessment will be charged to MT Princess Empress’s owner.

L ast week, a lawyer of MT Princess Empress’ insurer P&I Club, Atty. Valeriano del Rosario announced that local claims offices will be established in affected areas, beginning with the “Claims Caravan” at the Provincial Capitol of Oriental Mindoro. “ The claims caravan will act as the

collecting point for the claimants to submit their completed claim forms,” he said.  Claimants may include individuals, corporations, and local government units affected by the oil spill. T he categories of claims include the cost of cleanup and preventive measures, economic loss in fisheries and marine culture, economic loss in the tourism sector and related businesses, and damage to properties.

T he National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said a total of 163,508 people or 34,555 families in Mimaropa and Western Visayas were affected by the oil spill.  At least 192 people experienced health-related problems because of exposure to industrial oil from the sunken vessel.

US military assets to arrive to help in oil-spill cleanup

Study: Much to do to fully realize TradeNet benefits

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

DESPITE the progress made with the implementation of the “TradeNet” or the Philippine National Single Window (NSW), there is still much to do to “fully realize” the platform’s benefits, which include trade facilitation and cost reduction for exporters and importers, according to a report released by the Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department (CPBRD) of the House of Representatives.

C iting the report titled “Institutionalizing the Philippines’ National Single Window: TradeNet,” the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport) said in a statement last Friday that a fully functioning NSW can lead to: a “more efficient and effective public service delivery; increased transparency in cargo processing; more timely, accurate and cost-efficient exchange of information; reduced customs operational costs; and, improved revenue collection.”

The paper noted that importers and exporters stand to benefit from a “high-performing” NSW because currently, these traders are “subjected to tedious and repetitive documentary requirements and processes,” which the report said are conducted in different physical offices or individual electronic systems of

trade regulatory government agencies (TRGAs). According to Philexport, the paper observed that TradeNet continues to be hampered by “technical challenges and glitches.”

“It is good that the NSW has successfully connected to the ASW, joining the live operations of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement or ATIGA e-Form D in 2019 and the live test operations of the ASEAN Customs Declaration Document (ACDD) in 2021.

Unresolved challenges

HOWEVER, the paper emphasized that the platform continues to have “unresolved” technical and financial challenges that prevent the live operations for the electronic exchange of the said ASEAN customs document. With this, the paper noted that the Bureau of Customs (BOC) is currently using a separate “internally developed system.”

The policy paper also cited the Philippines’s low utilization of the “Asean Single Window” compared to other member states in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

In terms of the lack of integration of digital payments, the report noted: “Much as the platform is capable of integrating payments into the system, these are currently being done outside of the platform

with users having to upload the proof of payment.”

Another challenge mentioned is the high number of trade regulatory government agencies (TRGAs), which the report said makes the trade process for users and the onboarding process for the TRGAs “complicated and the unclear delineation of the responsibilities of the involved agencies.”

“The progress of the onboarding process at four TRGAs is way below the target of complete onboarding of all TRGAs as provided for in [Ease of Doing Business- Anti-Red Tape Authority] EODB-ARTA Resolution 12 (series of 2020) and ARTA MC 012021,” the policy brief noted. At the same time, the report said, the delineation of responsibilities of involved agencies is unclear. “There are differing viewpoints with regard to the responsibility of managing, operating and maintaining the TradeNet platform.”

“Reviewing the relevant issuances shows that there are no clear provisions assigning this mandate to a specific agency,” the report also noted.

CPBRD recommendations

ANOTHER challenge the report highlighted is that assistance and support to users, who potentially face infrastructure and capability concerns, seem “inadequate, varied and inconsistent.”

Lawmakers doled out cash in quake-hit Davao de Oro

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

An additional consideration that was raised by TRGAs is the possibility of some clients, mainly smaller sized enterprises, having no access or adequate capabilities in handling devices and internet connectivity needed to utilize the TradeNet,” the paper said.

T he CPBRD is recommending these actions, among others, to address these challenges: align the functions of TradeNet services to the detailed functions enumerated by the Department of Finance (DOF) and adopt digital payments in government transactions.

T he CPBRD also stressed that the government should “appropriate an adequate project budget, designate a permanent project management body, clearly define the roles and responsibilities of involved agencies and rationalize the coordinating mechanisms.”

T he paper also recommended providing targeted support to smaller enterprises.

Given that there may be considerable costs for some enterprises to move from manual to electronic submissions, their transition must be supported through the provision of public facilities or assistance desks,” the paper said.

“Further, delivering an interactive interface that is compatible with different devices (i.e., computers, mobile phones, tablets) would enhance its accessibility,” the paper added.

THE leadership of the House of Representatives in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) have distributed cash aid to at least 1,653 families who fell victim to the series of tremors that rocked the province of Davao de Oro the past week.

S peaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez and Tingog Party-list Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez helped facilitate the release of cash aid to the victims—most of whom were displaced by the earthquake— under DSWD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) Program.

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck the Mindanaoan province on March 22, followed by strong aftershocks that caused a considerable amount of damage to property of the citizens.

“ Natural calamities such as earthquakes are unforeseen, and the injuries and damage it causes are of no fault of the victims. So it is only just to allocate and direct the government’s ayuda program to victims of the Davao de Oro earthquakes,” the Speaker said.

“ We know that the amount of assistance does not really cover the damage done by the recent calamity. But we hope it alleviates a little our citizens’

plight in this time of need,” Tingog’s Romualdez said. “The government is doing everything in its power to restore normalcy to Davao de Oro.”

The DSWD, along with representatives from Romualdez’s office and local government officials, conducted AICS payouts to the municipalities of Compostela, New Bataan and Maragusan.

In Compostela, a total of 319 beneficiaries received cash aid of P3,000 each.

House Deputy Secretary General Sofonias P. Gabonada Jr. represented the Romualdez couple in the financial aid distribution and was accompanied by Davao de Oro Rep. Maria Carmen S. Zamora.

In New Bataan, a P5,000-cash assistance was given to each of the 503 beneficiaries, all from Barangay Andap.

Lawmakers have also facilitated the swift distribution of AICS amounting to P3,000 to 285 beneficiaries from the remote and no-network signal Barangay Tandik of Maragusan, Davao de Oro.

In Barangay Paloc, Maragusan, Davao de Oro, an additional 465 families whose houses were partially damaged benefitted from P3,000 financial aid and additional 81 families received P5,000 each after their houses were reported to have been totally damaged.

Solons approve proposed Building Act, Natl Infrastructure Program

THE House Committee on Public Works and Highways approved the proposed measure for the new Philippine Building Act (PBA) and the proposed 30-year National Infrastructure Program (NIP).

Panel chairman and Surigao del Sur 1st District Rep. Romeo S. Momo Sr. said his committee approved the committee of these landmark legislations last week.

Momo called for the immediate passage of the PBA as “it is badly needed” due to catastrophes in the Philippines and the world.

The lawmaker said that the recommendations and positions of stakeholders “have been carefully considered in order to make sure that we have a well-

crafted bill that will cater to all sectors’ concerns, for the common good.”

“This consolidated and updated bill of the proposed PBA will aid our country in adapting into our next normal, aiming for resilience, agility and sustainability,” Momo said.

The lawmaker added that the proposal will provide for the minimum standards for the regulation of location, planning, design, construction, occupancy, maintenance, and demolition of buildings, the establishment of a permitting process based on their classifications and the setting of reference standards to safeguard life, ensure health and well-being of the people, protect property and reduce and manage hazards, exposures and vulnerabilities

thus minimizing disaster risk

The substitute bill for the proposed PBA is a consolidation of House Bills (HBs) 815, 1180, 1205, 1207, 1409, 2392, 3442, 3686 and 7218.

It also wants the formation of a National Building Office to issue and promulgate rules, approve changes on the standards, issue appropriate orders, such as cease and desist and demolition, and appoint local building officials and Regional Building Appeals Board.

Earlier, the lawmaker bemoaned the current National Building Code, which was promulgated in 1977, as he cited the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Turkiye and Syria last month, as well as

the Philippines’ own vulnerability to natural disasters.

Roadmap MEANWHILE, Bulacan 6th District Rep. Salvador Pleyto said the NIP’s substitute bill aims “to provide the roadmap for the systematic development of our national infrastructure system for the next 30 years.”

This bill has been aligned to the policies and programs of the new Philippine development plan for 2023 up to 2028 as approved by NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority) and President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. himself, according to Pleyto.

“It also provides the long-term framework that will seamlessly in-

terconnect our medium and annual infrastructure programs and therefore provide for continuity in its infrastructure development across different administrations,” the lawmaker added in his speech.

In Momo’s explanatory note on the proposed NIP, he highlighted the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent spate of typhoons and flooding that affected the country.

“The adverse effects of the Covid pandemic, coupled with the recent spate of destructive typhoons and floods that struck the country, further highlight the need for longer-range, resilient, and high-impact engineering projects that will more effectively address major disruptive events, while

complementing immediate emergency responses,” he wrote. The 30-year program, the lawmaker added, would “ensure continuity in the development and implementation of the projects in the program, notwithstanding changes in national leadership.”

HB 1975 identified the the core national infrastructure projects: transport and logistics infrastructure (road transport, metropolitan and urban road and expressway systems); rail and other mass transport (long-haul rail systems, urban commuter rail systems, urban bus transit systems); ports; and airports (Mega Manila airport systems and regional airports), among others.

Marie N. Dela Cruz

Jovee

Agriculture/Commodities

Unifed asks govt to junk beverage firms’ bid to import sugar directly

By Raadee S. Sausa @raadeeboy

THE United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines

(Unifed) has asked the government to deny the request of beverage companies to directly import sugar for their needs, an official said over the weekend.

I n a statement, Unifed President Manual Lamata said he got wind of a request of Coca Cola Beverages Philippines Inc., Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines Inc., ARC Refreshments Corp., Nestlé Philippines Inc., Alaska Milk Corp., and Monde Nissin Corp. to meet with the President to allow industrial users to “directly import premium refined sugar.”

In a letter addressed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recently in his capacity as head of the Department of Agriculture, the beverage companies complained about sugar supply, high price and alleged “outright refusal” of traders to “provide price quotes to industrial buyers.”

T he letter was signed by Gareth Mc Geown, president and CEO of Coca Cola, Frederick Dy Ong, president and CEO of Pepsi, Jeffrey Yao, director of ARC, Kais Marzouki, chair and CEO of Nestlé, Tarang Gupta, managing director of Alaska and Henry Soesanto, CEO of Monde Nissin.

T he letter urged the President to “consider available options that will allow industrials to directly import premium refined sugar to address the shortage and stabilize prices of domestic sugar,” and in order to “prevent future supply crises,

Citicore’s pioneering AgroSolar program melds solar energy generation, farming

we propose that importation be used to create a buffer stock for at least one quarter,” and “prices for imports for sale in the Philippines should be pegged closer to world market price.”

Moreover, Lamata attacked the industrial users saying, “this is sheer greed” from companies that grew their business because of “Filipinos who patronize their products. This lobby to allow them to import directly will affect the more than five million stakeholders of the sugar industry who are ironically their consumers as well.”

“ These beverage companies should be buying local sugar because we buy their local products as well and I hope President Marcos will continue to have his heart and protect the farmers from these greedy companies,” he said.

T he companies also claim they comprise over 90 percent of industrial users and have concerns to present to the president including sugar scarcity, quality and sugar pricing in the country that allegedly threatens their business operations and the livelihoods of tens of thousands of workers.

L amata said “these companies have earned billions of revenues from us Filipinos, they can surely protect their workers and their interests for decades to come. However, allowing them to directly import now will not just kill the sugar industry but kill the millions who are dependent on this industry just so they can further enrich themselves at our expense.”

IT was a harvest like no other: Citicore Renewable Energy Corporation (CREC) on Friday (March 24) conducted a ceremonial harvest in Brgy. Dalayap, Tarlac City, as part of its pioneering Agrosolar initiative, showing off deep green leaves of pechay Tagalog while sending this message: solar power generation does not displace agriculture.

CREC President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Oliver Y. Tan, in his message, said Citicore’s AgroSolar remains to be an essential complement to the company’s operations, integrating solar power generation, and farming.

For this year, we have identified pechay as the focused crop to support the farmers from Tarlac, which has long been recognized as one of the major producers of pechay,” Tan said.

T he pechay crops, which were planted and grown alongside the solar panels at the Citicore Solar (CS) Tarlac 2, will be harvested in two cycles.

This summer, we will be harvesting an additional 4,000 to 5,000 kilograms of pechay, which brings our total yield to about 8,500 kilograms of crops,” he added.

Since 2021, CREC harvested at least 3,735 kilograms of crops such as turmeric, arugula, and French beans, and provided livelihood to at least 45 partner-farmers and local off-takers.

Farmers will benefit from profitsharing at 25-40 percent, while local off-takers will be able purchase these crops at a price that allows for a profitable margin at 30-50 percent.

I n his speech, Tarlac City Vice Mayor Genaro Mendoza said Citi-

core’s Agrosolar initiative, proves that solar power generation does not displace agriculture. “Napatunayan natin, pwede pala pagsamahin ang solar at pagtatanim. Hindi pala totoo na kalaban ng agrikultura and solar power. Sana, lahat ng solar power companies gawin ito [We’ve proven that solar and farming can go together. It’s not true that solar power is the enemy of agriculture. I hope all solar power companies will follow this lead],” Mendoza said. Meanwhile, Councilor Katrina

Biggest Zambales mango festival set April 21-30

By Henry Empeño Correspondent

IBA, Zambales—Zambales is set to deliver this April what is touted to be a “revenge event”—the biggest, liveliest and most exciting mango festival in history following three years of visiting restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

G ov. Hermogenes Ebdane said the provincial government and various community organizations are busy preparing for the 2023 Zambales Dinamulag Mango Festival, which features at least 16 major cultural, tourism and sports events in nine days.

“ We expect more visitors coming to the festival this year because we have activities that would appeal to a wide range of audience,” Ebdane said over the weekend. “And Zambales is more than ready for them. That’s what we have been doing for the past two months—planning and preparing for this big event,” he added.

T he festivity will center on the world’s sweetest mango fruit, a local pride validated by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1995.

T he Dinamulag Festival, which gets its name from the sweet and succulent carabao mango variety in Zambales, will highlight the rich agricultural resources, as well as farm tourism attractions through the Parayawan Agri-Tourism Showcase and Trade Fair. This will open at the festival grounds near the provincial capitol on April 28.

To promote the local mango industry, the festival will also include the 1st Philippine Mango Derby Open House at the Batungbacal Far in Palauig, and the Luzon Mango Congress at the People’s Plaza in Botolan on April 28.

O n the fun side, a “Mango EatAll-You-Can” buffet will open also at the festival grounds beginning

April 28 to give mango lovers a chance to savor the juicy sweetness of local mangoes at just P150 for 30 minutes. Various mangoeating challenges will be staged in the same venue.

Meanwhile, the Zamba-Liwanag Float Parade & Competition will feature float entries depicting the bountiful harvest of Zambales mangoes, as well as the unique attractions, and heritage and traditions in the community. M ore mango-inspired folk presentations will be seen during the Zambayle Street Dancing Parade & Showdown on April 29, as street-dance groups from Zambales towns compete for top

prize in one of the biggest purses offered during the Dinamulag Festival.

Visitors can also experience mango-picking at various farms from April 24 to May 5.

According to the Zambales Tourism Office, this year’s festivity will officially kick off with the 1st Gov. Jun Ebdane Cup Fun Shoot, April 21-23 at Camp Conrado Yap in the capital town of Iba.

M ore action-filled events:

“Pulayo ha Dinamulag Festival” marathon with 3km, 5km, 10km, 21km, and 40 km categories on April 24; Mountain Bike Fun Ride in Iba on April 25; “Lumba Tamo” Road Bike Race that will swing

from Subic to Sta. Cruz and back to Iba on April 27; and Gov. Jun Ebdane 4x4 Off-Road Challenge in Iba, and Gov. Jun Ebdane Motocross Challenge in Botolan on April 29 to 30.

O n the other hand, the Binibining Zambales Pageant, which is a festival mainstay, will have this year’s reiteration beginning April 26 with the presentation of candidates and talent night at the festival grounds. This will be followed by swimwear competition on April 27 and the grand coronation night on April 30.

Fireworks display following the pageant coronation will cap the nineday mango festival.

Angeles said Agriculture contributes to 80 percent of livelihood in Tarlac City. Speaking partly in Filipino, she said, “Tarlac’s progress runs alongside the entry of big businesses like Solar Power generation. That is why we are happy that Citicore, through Agrosolar, has not forgotten our farmers.”

In an interview, Fiona Nicolas, CREC Head of Corporate Affairs and Foundation, said Citicore enjoins Solar Power companies to follow suit.

We are blessed with vast areas of

land. Imagine the contribution we can do to job generation in our host communities, to food production and to food security in our country. We can surely make a difference,” Nicolas told reporters in the Agrosolar Ceremonial harvest.

CREC, through the Citicore Foundation, will use proceeds of the sales of these crops for its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects such as echo sheds, tree planting, and flood mitigation activities, and USBONG scholarship grants.

PHilMech gets stakeholder appeals for RCEF extension

THE Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) is starting to get pleas to extend the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF), which will end in June 2024.

PHilMech Executive Director Dionisio Alvindia said the agency has been getting pleas whenever they are on the field from local officials and farmers organizations on the need to extend RCEF.

“ During the social preparation and training phases for qualified farmers’ groups, and the actual distribution of farm machines under the RCEF-Mechanization Program, we get pleas from both farmers and local officials to have the RCEF extended beyond June 2024,” Alvindia said over the weekend.

One of the first local officials to formally sound an appeal to extend RCEF is from Kalinga.

If there is another six years, more farmers in our province will benefit from the program. That is our plea

THE Llano Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative (LFMPC), located in Brgy. Bayugo, Jalajala, Rizal, recently opened a dairy center where buffalo milk products and byproducts can now be brought for trading.

Called ‘Dairy Box’, the facility will be the first in the Calabarzon region.

Calabarzon stands for the Provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangaz, Rizal and Quezon.

T he Dairy Box will be the center not only of the LFMPC’s delicious buffalo milk products but also of various products made by nearby cooperatives and associations in the province. “ We are very grateful to the De-

on behalf of our brothers and sisters here in Kalinga who are farmers” John Paul Baguiwan, representative of Gov. James Edduba of Kalinga Province, said.

A number of farmer leaders in Kalinga also expressed their sentiments on extending RCEF. “ We would like to request to Sen. Cynthia Villar: we just started this in 2022 yet the program is ending in 2024. We would like to request for an extension of the RCEF program so the assistance given to farmers will also be extended,” said Graciana Tombaga, chair of the Holy Trinity Cathedral MPC.

For her part, Leila Apita, Sagpat farmers association said “we wish that RCEF be extended so more farmers like us can be assisted like when RCEF started. It was through the program that we got organized and was registered so we can avail of the machines. We want the program extended so more farmers can also get their farm machines for free.”

Raadee S. Sausa

partment of Agrarian Reform (DAR), which facilitated the partnership between and among various government agencies and local government units to put up this Dairy Box,” Tagumpay Pangulto, manager of LFMPC, said in a statement. A mong the products offered by the Dairy Box are flavored milk, pastillas de leche, and other pasalubong products, all made with 100-percent fresh buffalo milk.

Raul M. Leonin, DAR-Rizal Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II, said this is proof of the LFMPC’s hard work and dedication to providing fresh and quality milk products, who have been engaged in dairy processing since 2006. Jonathan L. Mayuga

A FARMER waters a 4,000 linear meter plot of pechay crops which are ready for harvest located at CITICORE Solar Plant, Dalayap, Tarlac City. Through the concept of “Agrovoltaic” technology, the same land area is developed for solar energy generation and agriculture. Citicore is the first to use Agrosolar technology in the Philippines. NONOY LACZA

NOTICE OF FILING OF APPLICATION/S FOR ALIEN EMPLOYMENT PERMIT/S (AEP/S)

Notice is hereby given that the following companies/employers have filed with this

Office application/s for

3 ANOC99 CORPORATION POGO 1 Building, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

4 ANOC99 CORPORATION POGO 1 Building, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

5 ANOC99 CORPORATION

SONNY SUN Operation Head

Brief Job Description: Implement strategies in alignment with strategic initiatives and provide a clear sense of direction and focus

CUI, TIANLIANG Chinese Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

FENG, FENGFENG Chinese Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s/Master’s degree in any Business/Engineering course

Salary Range: Php60,000Php89,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

18 ANOC99 CORPORATION

POGO 1 Building, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

19 BOJIE MANUFACTURING CORPORATION

Lots 1-8, Block 4, Golden Gate Business Park, Buenavista II, City of General Trias, Cavite

20 BRICKHARTZ TECHNOLOGY INC.

Lot 4044, Molino Boulevard, Niog III, City of Bacoor, Cavite

TRAN XUAN TIEP

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

ZOU, XIAOYING

Production Management Supervisor

Brief Job Description:

Ensure the safe use of equipment and schedule regular maintenance

HONG, DEZHI

Mandarin Customer Service

Brief Job Description:

Ensure outstanding customer satisfaction by maintaining strong working relationships

CHEN, JUNJUN

21 BRICKHARTZ TECHNOLOGY INC.

Lot 4044, Molino Boulevard, Niog III, City of Bacoor, Cavite

Mandarin Customer Relations Officer

Brief Job Description:

Ensure outstanding customer satisfaction by maintaining strong working relationships

guage

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Excellent problem-solving skills and mechanical ability

Salary Range: Php60,000Php89,999

Basic Qualification:

Has excellent problemsolving and communication skills in Mandarin, with related BPO experience

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification:

Has excellent problemsolving and communication skills in Mandarin, with related BPO experience

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Lot

23 BRICKHARTZ TECHNOLOGY INC.

Lot 4044, Molino Boulevard, Niog III, City of Bacoor, Cavite

Basic Qualification: Has excellent problemsolving and communication skills in Mandarin, with related BPO experience

PHILIPPINE MANUFACTURING CO. OF MURATA, INC.

Lot 2A, Phase 1B, First Philippine Industrial Park, Pantay Bata, City of Tanauan, Batangas

34

Lot 4044, Molino Boulevard, Niog III, City of Bacoor, Cavite

25 HINO MOTORS PHILIPPINES CORPORATION Industrial Park Road, Canlubang Industrial Estate, Canlubang, City of Calamba, Laguna

26 HYS METAL PLASTIC AND ELECTRONICS (PHILIPPINES) INC.

Amplefield SME Park, J.P. Rizal Ave., Lima Technology Center, Bugtong Na Pulo, City of Lipa, Batangas

ZHANG, DANDAN Mandarin Customer Relations Officer

Job

Ensure outstanding customer satisfaction by maintaining strong working relationships

SATO, DAISUKE Special Body Equipment Specialist for Imported Products

Brief Job Description:

Assess, identify and determine the special body requirements of trucks currently used by HMP

YANG, YANBING Production Consultant

Brief Job Description: Use production methods to manage product issues in meeting business objectives

MATSUKAWA, AKIRA Vice President-Manufacturing

Basic Qualification:

Has excellent problemsolving and communication skills in Mandarin, with related BPO experience Salary Range:

Basic Qualification:

Has excellent problemsolving and communication skills in Mandarin, with related BPO experience

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Graduate of Humanities and Social Sciences and English studies or equivalent

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Have worked in a manufacturing company and have some technical skills

Salary Range: Php60,000Php89,999

TECH CORP. Block 2, Lot 7, Calamba Premiere International Park, Batino,

#3 Road, First Street, Phase 1, Cavite Economic Zone, Tejeros Convention, Rosario, Cavite

28 JFE SHOJI STEEL PHILIPPINES, INC. 107 Trade Avenue, Laguna Technopark, Loma, City of Biñan, Laguna

29 KOJIMAIRYO PHILIPPINES INC.

Lot 3, Block 2, Daiichi

Brief Job Description: Develop, implement and review operational policies and procedures

OGURA, GENKI Assistant Section Head

Brief Job Description:

Act as a leader and mentor developing a stable and proficient team and ensures compliance with local laws, policies and procedures

Basic Qualification: Have experience on managing manufacturing related activities

Salary Range: Php150,000Php499,999

Basic Qualification: With 5 years of work experience as a section head

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Qualification: With more than 10 years of work experience with Kojimairyo Co. LTD in China

36 SAN TECHNOLOGY, INCORPORATED Block 7b, Phase 2, CEZIA Road, Cavite Economic Zone, Tejeros Convention, Rosario, Cavite

37 SANSYU PRECISION LIPA, INC.

Warehouse Building No. 1, EZP Technohub, Lima Technology Center, Santiago, Malvar, Batangas

38 SERCOMM PHILIPPINES INC.

Lot 15, Road 3, Carmelray Industrial Park, Canlubang, City of Calamba, Laguna

39 SINOTECH ASIA CONSTRUCTION INC.

Unit 203, Conrado Commercial Complex, Niog I, City of Bacoor, Cavite

40 SUMINAC PHILIPPINES, INC.

Lot 5 & 6, Block 2, Phase 3, First Cavite Industrial Estate, Langkaan I, City of Dasmariñas, Cavite

KATO, MASATO

Production Manager

Brief Job Description: Oversee production process, workflow and schedule

HUANG, SHIH-LUN

Finance Manager

Brief Job Description:

Oversee all accounts, ledgers, and reporting systems ensuring compliance

LIU, YU

International Marketing Consultant for Chinese

Brief Job Description:

Oversee the international transaction of trade specialist and trade operation

MIYATA, SHIGERU

Design Engineering Gen. Manager

Brief Job Description:

Support the organization in the improvement of the Design Engineering systems

Basic Qualification: At least 4 years of experience in injection molding production and production planning

Salary Range: Php60,000Php89,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in English and Mandarin language both written and spoken

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledge on English, Mandarin, Fukien or other Chinese language

Salary Range: Php30,000Php59,999

Basic Qualification: Expert in Design Engineering

Salary Range: Php90,000Php149,999

quality control standards

41 YOU-WE PHILIPPINES INC.

Lot 4, Block 4, Josefa Village, Sambat, City of Tanauan, Batangas

42 YUTAKA MANUFACTURING (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION

110 North Science Avenue, Laguna Technopark Inc., Malamig, City of Biñan, Laguna

ZHAO, YOULAI Technical Service Manager

Brief Job Description: Assist the general manager to manage the technical team

ISHIYAMA, TETSUYA

Treasurer/assistant Vice President

Brief Job Description:

Manage and control the production and manufacturing division

Basic Qualification: Familiar with feed products and technical service processes and good language ability

Salary Range:

Php60,000Php89,999

Basic Qualification: College graduate

Salary Range: Php150,000Php499,999

Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE Regional Office IV-A located at 3rd and 4th Floors, Andenson Building II, Parian, Calamba City, Laguna, within 30 days after this publication.

Please inform DOLE Regional Office IV-A if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

ATTY. NEPOMUCENO A. LEAÑO II OIC-Regional Director

The World

nothing left’: Deep South tornadoes kill 26 Putin says Russia will station nuclear weapons in Belarus

MOSCOW—Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans on Saturday to station tactical nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus, a warning to the West as it steps up military support for Ukraine.

Putin said the move was triggered by Britain’s decision this past week to provide Ukraine with armor-piercing rounds containing depleted uranium.

Tactical nuclear weapons are intended for use on the battlefield and have a short range and a low yield compared with much more powerful nuclear warheads fitted to long-range missiles. Russia plans to maintain control over those it sends to Belarus, and construction of storage facilities for them will be completed by July 1, Putin said.

He didn’t say how many nuclear weapons Russia would keep in Belarus. The US government believes Russia has about 2,000 tactical nuclear weapons, which include bombs that can be carried by tactical aircraft, warheads for short-range missiles and artillery rounds.

Putin argued that by deploying its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Russia was following the lead of the United States, noting that the US has nuclear weapons based in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey.

“We are doing what they have been doing for decades, stationing them in certain allied countries, preparing the launch platforms and training their crews,” Putin said, speaking in an interview on state television that aired Saturday night. “We are going to do the same thing.”

Russia has stored its tactical nuclear weapons at dedicated depots on its territory, and moving part of the arsenal to a storage facility in Belarus would up the ante in the Ukrainian conflict by placing them closer to the Russian aircraft and missiles already stationed there.

Some hawkish commentators in Russia long have urged the Kremlin to put the tactical nuclear weapons close to the weapons

to send a signal to the West about the readiness to use them.

The US said it would “monitor the implications” of Putin’s announcement.

“We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture nor any indications Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said. “We remain committed to the collective defense of the NATO alliance.”

Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine had Soviet nuclear weapons stationed on their territory but handed them over to Russia after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

Putin said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has long asked to have nuclear weapons in his country again as a counter to NATO. Belarus shares borders with three NATO members—Latvia, Lithuania and Poland—and Russia used its territory as a staging ground to send troops into

neighboring Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Putin noted that Russia helped modernize Belarusian military aircraft last year to make them capable of carrying nuclear warheads. He said 10 such planes were ready to go. He said nuclear weapons also could be launched by the Iskander short-range missiles that Russia provided to Belarus last year.

Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who is living in exile, said the agreement to transfer the tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus “underlines the threat to regional security” from Lukashenko’s regime.

“Europe won’t be safe until Belarus dictator is removed & brought before tribunal to face justice for crimes against our country & Ukraine,” Tsikhanouskaya wrote in English on Twitter.

Lukashenko’s support of the war has drawn international criticism and sanctions. But he has publicly stood by Russia, which has pumped billions of dollars into shoring up his Soviet-style, state-controlled economy with cheap energy and loans.

Putin had initially objected to the depleted uranium rounds that Britain promised to ship to Ukraine by making the false claim that they have nuclear components.

He subsequently toned down his language, but insisted Saturday that the ammunition posed an additional danger to both troops and civilians in Ukraine by leaving a radioactive trace and contaminating agricultural land.

“Those weapons are harmful not just for combatants, but also for the people living in those territories and for the environment,” he said.

Putin added that Russia has vast stockpiles of similar ammunition but so far has refrained from using it.

Depleted uranium is a byproduct of the uranium enrichment process needed to create nuclear weapons. The rounds can’t generate a nuclear reaction but they do emit low levels of radiation. The UN nuclear watchdog has warned of the possible dangers of exposure.

Such rounds were developed by the US during the Cold War to destroy Soviet tanks, including the same T-72 tanks that Ukraine now faces in its push to break through a stalemate in the east. AP

Israeli defense minister calls for halt to judicial overhaul

By Isabel Debre The Associated Press

JERUSALEM—Israel’s defense minister became the first ally in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition to break ranks on Saturday as he called for an immediate halt to the far-right government’s contentious plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary.

In a televised address, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant expressed concern over the turmoil within Israel’s military that he said posed a threat to the country’s security. Citing the need for dialogue with the opposition, Gallant asked that Netanyahu’s coalition wait until after Parliament reconvenes from its holiday break next month before pushing ahead with its divisive plan to weaken the Supreme Court.

“For the sake of Israel’s security, for the sake of our sons and daughters, the legislative process must be stopped at this time,” Gallant, a top official in Netanyahu’s Likud party, said.

The government’s plan to increase its control over the judiciary has sparked the largest protest movement in Israeli history and triggered a grave national crisis, including even warnings from the president of civil war.

On Saturday, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets as they have every week since the start of the year—in many cases bringing parts of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to a standstill. It has also raised the hackles of Israel’s closest allies, testing its ties with the United States.

Police unleashed water cannons on masses of protesters who whistled and waved Israeli flags as they marched down Ayalon highway in Tel Aviv on Saturday night. “Shame! Shame!”

they chanted in Hebrew. As the protesters advanced, officers on horseback violently rammed into the crowds. “Haven’t the Jewish people suffered enough?” read one protester’s sign.

The judicial proposal has drawn intensifying criticism from across Israeli society— including from former prime ministers and defense officials, high-tech business leaders, Israel’s attorney general and American Jews.

In recent weeks, discontent over the overhaul has even surged from within Israel’s army—the country’s most popular and respected institution, which has historically been an apolitical unifier. A growing number of Israeli reservists have threatened to withdraw from voluntary duty in the past weeks, posing a broad challenge to Netanyahu as he defiantly plows ahead with the judicial changes while on trial for corruption.

“The events taking place in Israeli society do not spare the Israel Defense Forces—from all sides, feelings of anger, pain and disappointment arise, with an intensity I have never encountered before,” Gallant said. “I see how the source of our strength is being eroded.”

In security-minded Israel, the unrest has prompted concern about the Israeli military’s stability as it maintains its 55-year-old occupation of the West Bank and faces threats from Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group and from its archenemy Iran.

Violence both in Israel and the occupied West Bank has escalated over the past few weeks to heights unseen in years. On Saturday, a Palestinian shot and wounded two Israeli soldiers in the northern West Bank town of Hawara, the site of a violent settler rampage last month.

“This is a clear, immediate and tangible danger to the security of the state,” he said, referring to the judicial plans. “I will not take part in this.”

Gallant stopped short of saying what, if anything, he would do if Netanyahu ignored his plea. But his strong statement of concern for the polarized nation marked the first crack in Netanyahu’s coalition, the most right wing and religiously conservative government in Israeli history.

Despite mounting dissent, the government passed a key part of the overhaul on Thursday, approving legislation that would protect the Israeli leader from being deemed unfit to rule because of his trial and claims of a conflict of interest. Critics say the law is tailor-made for Netanyahu and encourages corruption.

That day, Gallant met with Netanyahu, reportedly to voice concerns that protests by Israeli reservists and other security forces were hurting Israel’s international image and power of deterrence. After the meeting, Netanyahu nonetheless announced that he would become directly involved in the overhaul, declaring his hands “untied.”

Israel’s attorney general issued a sharp rebuke on Friday, warning that Netanyahu had broken the law by announcing his direct involvement in the overhaul while facing criminal charges—a stern statement that raised the specter of a constitutional crisis.

Netanyahu is on trial for fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals involving wealthy associates and powerful media moguls. He denies wrongdoing and dismisses critics who say he could find an escape route from the charges through the legal overhaul his government is advancing.

Supporters of the judicial overhaul—which includes plans to increase the coalition’s control over judicial appointments and diminish the Supreme Court’s ability to strike down laws passed by Parliament—say it will restore power to elected legislators and make the courts less interventionist. Critics say the move upends Israel’s system of checks and balances and pushes it toward autocracy.

In spite of the backlash, Netanyahu has dismissed offers for a compromise, including from Israel’s mainly ceremonial president earlier this month.

“For the sake of our security, for the sake of our unity, it is our duty to return to the arena of dialogue,” Gallant said. Associated Press writer Sam McNeil in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed to this

By Emily Wagster Pettus, Michael Goldberg & Rogelio Solis

The Associated Press

ROLLING FORK, Miss.—Rescuers raced

Saturday to search for survivors and help hundreds of people left homeless after a powerful tornado cut a devastating path through Mississippi, killing at least 25 people, injuring dozens, and flattening entire blocks as it carved a path of destruction for more than an hour. One person was killed in Alabama.

The tornado devastated a swath of the Mississippi Delta town of Rolling Fork, reducing homes to piles of rubble, flipping cars on their sides and toppling the town’s water tower. Residents hunkered down in bathtubs and hallways during Friday night’s storm and later broke into a John Deere store that they converted into a triage center for the wounded.

“There’s nothing left,” said Wonder Bolden, holding her granddaughter, Journey, while standing outside the remnants of her mother’s now-leveled mobile home in Rolling Fork.

“There’s just the breeze that’s running, going through—just nothing.”

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency announced late Saturday afternoon in a tweet that the death toll had risen to 25 and that dozens of people were injured. Four people previously reported missing had been found.

Other parts of the Deep South were digging out from damage caused by other suspected twisters. One man died in Morgan County, Alabama, the sheriff’s department there said in a tweet.

Throughout Saturday, survivors walked around dazed and in shock as they broke through debris and fallen trees with chain saws, searching for survivors. Power lines were pinned under decades-old oaks, their roots torn from the ground.

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves issued a State of Emergency and vowed to help rebuild as he headed to view the damage in an area speckled with wide expanses of cotton, corn and soybean fields and catfish farming ponds. President Joe Biden also promised federal help, describing the damage as “heartbreaking.”

The damage in Rolling Fork was so widespread that several storm chasers—who follow severe weather and often put up livestreams showing dramatic funnel clouds—pleaded for search and rescue help. Others abandoned the chase to drive injured people to the hospital.

It didn’t help that the community hospital on the west side of town was damaged, forcing patients to be transferred. The tornado also mangled a cotton warehouse and ripped the steeple off a Baptist church.

Sheddrick Bell, his partner and two daughters crouched in a closet of their Rolling Fork home for 15 minutes as the tornado barreled through. Windows broke as his daughters cried and his partner prayed.

“I was just thinking, ‘If I can still open my eyes and move around, I’m good,’” he said.

Rodney Porter, who lives about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Rolling Fork and belongs to a local fire department, said he didn’t know how anyone survived as he delivered water and fuel to families there.

“It’s like a bomb went off,” he said, describing houses stacked on top of houses. Crews even cut gas lines to the town to keep residents and first responders safe.

The warning the National Weather Service issued as the storm hit didn’t mince words: “To protect your life, TAKE COVER NOW!”

Preliminary information based on estimates from storm reports and radar data indicate that the tornado was on the ground for more than an hour and traversed at least 170 miles (274 kilometers), said Lance Perrilloux, a meteorologist with the weather service’s Jackson, Mississippi, office.

“That’s rare—very, very rare,” he said, attrib -

uting the long path to widespread atmospheric instability. “All the ingredients were there.”

Perrilloux said preliminary findings are that the tornado began its path of destruction just southwest of Rolling Fork before continuing northeast toward the rural communities of Midnight and Silver City, then moving toward Tchula, Black Hawk and Winona.

The supercell that produced the deadly twister also appeared to produce tornadoes that caused damage in northwest and north-central Alabama, said Brian Squitieri, a severe storms forecaster with the weather service’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

In northern Alabama’s Morgan County, a 67-year-old man who became trapped beneath a trailer that flipped over during severe overnight storms was rescued by first responders, but he died later at a hospital, AL.com reported.

Even as survey teams work to assess how many tornadoes struck and their severity, the Storm Prediction Center warned of the potential for hail, wind and possibly a few tornadoes Sunday in parts of Mississippi and Louisiana.

Cornel Knight waited at a relative’s home in Rolling Fork for the tornado to strike with his wife and 3-year-old daughter. Despite the darkness, its path was visible.

“You could see the direction from every transformer that blew,” he said. Just a cornfield away from where he was, the twister struck another relative’s home, collapsing a wall and trapping several people.

Royce Steed, the emergency manager in Humphreys County where Silver City is located, likened the damage to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

“It is almost complete devastation,” he said after crews finished searching buildings and switched to damage assessments. “This little old town, I don’t know what the population is, it is more or less wiped off the map.”

In the town, the roof had torn off Noel Crook’s home.

“Yesterday was yesterday and that’s gone –there’s nothing I can do about it,” Crook said. “Tomorrow is not here yet. You don’t have any control over it, so here I am today.”

The tornado looked so powerful on radar as it neared the town of Amory, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Tupelo, that one Mississippi meteorologist paused to say a prayer after new radar information came in.

“Oh man,” WTVA’s Matt Laubhan said on the live broadcast. “Dear Jesus, please help them. Amen.”

Now that town is boiling its water, and a curfew is in effect. Three shelters in the state are feeding the throngs of displaced people.

“It’s a priceless feeling to see the gratitude on people’s faces to know they’re getting a hot meal,” said William Trueblood, of the Salvation Army, as he headed to the area, picking up supplies along the way.

Despite the damage, there were signs of improvement. Power outages, which at one point were affecting more than 75,000 customers in Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama, had been cut by a third by midafternoon Saturday, according to poweroutage.us.

Meteorologists saw a big tornado risk coming for the general region as much as a week in advance, said Northern Illinois University meteorology professor Walker Ashley.

Tornado experts like Ashley have been warning about increased risk exposure in the region because of people building more.

“You mix a particularly socioeconomically vulnerable landscape with a fast-moving, longtrack nocturnal tornado, and, disaster will happen,” Ashley said in an e-mail. Associated Press writer Emily Wagster Pettus in Rolling Fork, Mississippi; Michael Goldberg in Silver City, Mississippi; Jim Salter in O’Fallon, Missouri; Rick Callahan in Indianapolis; Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas; Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington; Robert Jablon in Los Angeles; Seth Borenstein in Kensington, Maryland; and Jackie Quinn in Washington, D.C. contributed to this report

‘There’s

Charlie Weissinger tosses away the paneling from one of the desks in his father’s demolished law office in rolling Fork, Mississippi on saturday, March 25, 2023. emergency officials in Mississippi say several people have been killed by tornadoes that tore through the state on Friday night, destroying buildings and knocking out power as severe weather that produced hail the size of golf balls moved through several southern states. AP Photo/Rogelio V. Soli S

russian President Vladimir Putin listens to russian Transport Minister Vitaly savelyev during their meeting in Moscow, russia, on saturday, March 25, 2023.

Russian campaign recruits students to fight in Ukraine

By Dasha Litvinova The Associated Press

Iran-backed fighters on alert in east Syria after US strikes

By Bassem Mroue The Associated Press

BEIRUT—Iran-backed fight -

ers were on alert in eastern Syria on Saturday, a day after US forces launched retaliatory airstrikes on sites in the war-torn country, opposition activists said. The airstrikes came after a suspected Iran-made drone killed a US contractor and wounded six other Americans on Thursday.

The situation was calm following a day in which rockets were fired at bases housing US troops in eastern Syria. The rockets came after US airstrikes on three different areas in Syria’s eastern province of Deir el-Zour, which borders Iraq, opposition activists said.

A new campaign is underway this spring across Russia, seeking recruits to replenish its troops for the war in Ukraine.

As fighting grinds on in Ukrainian battlegrounds like Bakhmut and both sides prepare for counteroffensives that could cost even more lives, the Kremlin’s war machine badly needs new recruits.

A mobilization in September of 300,000 reservists—billed as a “partial” call-up—sent panic throughout the country, since most men under 65 are formally part of the reserve. Tens of thousands fled Russia rather than report to recruiting stations.

The Kremlin denies that another call-up is planned for what it calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine, now more than a year old. But amid widespread uncertainty of whether such a move will eventually happen, the government is enticing men to volunteer, either at makeshift recruiting centers popping up in various regions, or with phone calls from enlistment officials. That way, it can “avoid declaring a formal second mobilization wave” after the first one proved so unpopular, according to a recent report by the US-based think tank Institute of the Study of War.

One Muscovite told The Associated Press that his employer, a statefunded organization, gathered up the military registration cards of all male employees of fighting age and said it would get them deferments. But he said the move still sent a wave of fear through him.

“It makes you nervous and scared— no one wants to all of a sudden end up in a war with a rifle in their hands,” said the resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared reprisal. “The special operation is somewhat dragging on, so any surprises from the Russian authorities can be expected.” It’s been more than a week since he handed in his card, he said, and exemptions usually get resolved in a

day or two, heightening his anxiety.

Russian media report that men across the country are receiving summonses from enlistment offices. In most of those cases, men were simply asked to update their records; in others, they were ordered to take part in military training.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week that serving summonses to update records in enlistment offices is “usual practice” and a “continued undertaking.”

Other unconfirmed media reports say authorities have told regional governments to recruit a certain number of volunteers. Some officials announced setting up recruitment centers with the goal of getting men to sign contracts that enable them to be sent into combat as professional soldiers.

Ads have appeared on government websites and on the social media accounts of state institutions and organizations, including libraries and high schools.

One of them, posted by a municipal administration in the western Yaroslavl region, promised a one-time bonus of about $3,800 to sign up, and if sent to Ukraine, a monthly salary of up to $2,500, plus about $100 a day for “involvement in active offensive operations,” and $650 “for each kilometer of advancement within assault teams.”

The ad said the soldier would also get tax and loan repayment breaks, preferential university admission status for his children, generous compensation for his family if he is wounded or killed in action, and the status of a war veteran, which carries even more perks.

In the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, officials asked universities, colleges and vocational schools to advertise for recruits on their websites, said Sergei Chernyshov, founder of a private vocational school there.

Chernyshov posted the ad on his social media account “so that everyone knows what our city hall is up to,” but he told the AP that he doesn’t

plan to put it on the school website.

“It’s weird” to target vocational school students, he said.

Other efforts include enlistment officials meeting with college students and unemployed men, or phoning men to volunteer.

A Muscovite who spoke on condition of anonymity for his own safety said that he received such a call and was surprised at how polite it was: “After my ‘No,’ there were no threats or (attempts to) convince me—(just) ‘Thanks, goodbye.’”

There have only been isolated cases of enlistment officials really pressuring men to sign up, said Grigory Sverdlin, founder of a group called Go by the Forest that helps men avoid mobilization.

The group gets up to 100 messages a day from men seeking advice on dealing with summonses or enlistment officials, he said, compared with dozens per day in recent months. In most cases, the officials wanted to update their records with addresses and phone numbers, and they might try to recruit men during that process.

But Sverdlin said some cases stand out.

In the Vologda region, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Moscow, the group received messages saying that almost everyone going to the enlistment office after receiving a summons “is forced to sign a paper barring them from leaving the region,” he said.

Lawyer Alexei Tabalov, who runs the Conscript’s School legal aid group, believes there’s nothing unusual in authorities handing out summonses now. Some of the notices are traditionally served before Russia’s spring conscription draft, scheduled to begin April 1 for those eligible for mandatory service.

All Russian men from age 18 to 27 must serve one year in the military, but a large share avoid the draft for health reasons or get student deferments. The share of men who avoid

the draft is particularly big in Moscow and other major cities, and many simply evade enlistment officials bearing conscription summonses.

Tabalov said that men have reported going to enlistment offices to update their records but have officials there that “beat around the bush and promote the idea of signing the contract, talk about how one should love their motherland and defend it.”

He doubted anything could make volunteering attractive after 13 months of a war that has killed and wounded tens of thousands.

“People already understand what it means to sign a contract,” he said. “Those who got burned once are unlikely to fall into the same trap.”

Tabalov said that his group continues to get messages from soldiers who want to terminate their contracts, but that isn’t legally possible until President Vladimir Putin ends the partial mobilization, which began in September, with a new decree.

“Getting out of the war automatically means criminal prosecution,” Tabalov said, adding there have been a flurry of criminal cases since December, with prosecutions of soldiers who desert or go AWOL.

The news outlet Mediazona counted 247 verdicts in 536 criminal cases on these and similar charges, adding that over a third of those convicted got suspended sentences, which allows authorities to send them back to the front line.

The current recruitment campaign is similar to one enacted last summer, before the September call-up, said Kateryna Stepanenko, a Russia analyst with the Institute of the Study of War.

Back then, authorities also used financial incentives, and various volunteer battalions were formed, but the effort clearly wasn’t successful, because Putin eventually turned to the partial mobilization.

Whether this one will succeed or not is unclear. Associated Press writer Yuras Karmanau contributed to this report

Taiwan loses ally of 8 decades as Honduras recognizes China

By Cindy Wang & Debby Wu

TAIWAN a nd Honduras ended

more than eight decades of diplomatic relations as the Central American country said it now recognizes the island as part of China. China and Honduras will establish diplomatic ties at the ambassadorial level effective immediately, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement, calling it “the right choice” for the Central American country. Taiwan said the Honduran decision was regrettable and hurtful, and linked it to the promise of financial support from China.

“For a long time, our belief has been to support the long-term and substantive development of our allies through forward-looking and pragmatic approaches to the best of our ability,” Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen said. “We will not engage in a meaningless money-diplomatic contest with China.”

Honduras said there is “only one

China” and Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory. The People’s Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing all of China, it said in a statement on Twitter. It did not include any mention of reasons behind the decision or financial aid.

The move means Taiwan now has full official diplomatic relations with just 13 countries, mostly around the Caribbean. That cuts the number of friends that can take up issues for the self-run island in international forums like the United Nations, where it lacks a seat.

Honduras’s bid to switch official ties to Beijing was driven by financial issues and debt, Reuters reported earlier this month, citing Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina’s comments to a local TV station. Honduras owes Taiwan $600 million, he added.

The Honduran government wanted $2.45 billion in financial aid from Taipei, and compared Taiwan’s monetary support with China’s, Taiwanese

Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said at a briefing on Sunday.

The move comes before Tsai starts a visit this week to allies such as Guatemala and Belize, and stops in the US. She has used her nearly seven years in office to garner support from nations who are willing to defy China, which has pledged to bring the island under its control.

China has repeatedly said Taiwan is part of its territory, while Taiwan has asserted it is a de facto sovereign nation.

“Taiwan’s severance of diplomatic relations with Honduras is part of a series of Chinese attacks and threats,” Taiwanese Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan said in a statement. “These measures cannot change the fact that Taiwan and China are not subordinate to each other, nor can they destroy the will of the people of Taiwan to love freedom and democracy and embrace the world.”

The US, Japan and other nations have recently made bigger displays of

While it’s not the first time the US and Iran have traded strikes in Syria, the attack and the US response threaten to upend recent efforts to deescalate tensions across the wider Middle East, whose rival powers have made steps toward détente in recent days after years of turmoil.

In the first Syrian comment since the attacks occurred, the foreign ministry condemned the US strikes saying they are “a flagrant violation of Syria’s sovereignty.” The ministry added in a statement that Damascus aims to end “American occupation” and spread government control over all parts of the country.

“The calm continues as Iranbacked militiamen are on alert out of concern of possible new airstrikes,” said Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor.

Omar Abu Layla, an activist from Deir el-Zour who is currently in the US and runs a group that monitors developments in east Syria, said Iranbacked fighters have evacuated some of their posts and moved into trenches in case of any more American strikes. “They are in a state of alert,” he said.

President Joe Biden said Friday that the US would respond “forcefully” to protect its personnel after US forces retaliated with airstrikes on sites in Syria used by groups affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The strikes followed an attack Thursday by a suspected Iran-made drone that killed a US contractor and wounded five American servicemembers and a US contractor.

“The United States does not, does not seek conflict with Iran,” Biden said in Ottawa, Canada, where he was on a state visit. But he said Iran and its proxies should be prepared for the US “to act forcefully to protect our people. That’s exactly what happened last night.” Activists said the US bombing killed at least four people.

In Iran, domestic media outlets quoted a spokesman for the nation’s Supreme National Security Council, Keivan Khosravi, as saying that Tehran would immediately respond to any US attack on Iranian bases in Syria.

rabesh neighborhood in the city of Deir el-Zour, and two military posts near the towns of Mayadeen and Boukamal.

Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces control the area, which also has seen suspected airstrikes by Israel in recent months allegedly targeting Iranian supply routes.

According to US officials, two simultaneous attacks were launched at US forces in Syria late Friday. Officials said that based on preliminary information, there was a rocket attack on the Conoco plant, where US troops are stationed, and one US service member was wounded but is in stable condition. At about the same time, several drones were launched at Green Village, in Deir el-Zour province where US troops are also based. One official said all but one of the drones were shot down, and there were no US injuries there. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which answers only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been suspected of carrying out attacks with bomb-carrying drones across the wider Middle East.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the American intelligence community had determined the drone in Thursday’s attack was of Iranian origin, but offered no other immediate evidence to support the claim. The drone hit a coalition base in the northeast Syrian city of Hasakeh.

Iran relies on a network of proxy forces throughout the Mideast to counter the US and Israel, its arch regional enemy. The US has had forces in northeast Syria since 2015, when they deployed as part of the fight against the Islamic State group, and maintains some 900 troops there, working with Kurdish-led forces that control around a third of Syria.

The exchange of strikes came as Saudi Arabia and Iran have been working toward reopening embassies in each other’s countries. The kingdom also acknowledged efforts to reopen a Saudi embassy in Syria, whose embattled President Bashar Assad has been backed by Iran in his country’s long war.

support for the island and its population of around 23 million people.

President Joe Biden has repeatedly stated that the US would defend Taiwan against a Chinese attack, comments that have angered Beijing. In December, the US authorized up to $10 billion in weapons sales to Taiwan over five years.

Earlier this year, the Czech Republic’s new president, Petr Pavel, drew a stiff rebuke from Beijing after holding a phone conversation with Tsai days after his election. He later said he hopes to meet Tsai, who will leave office in 2024.

The last nation to switch diplomatic relations to Beijing from Taipei was Nicaragua in 2021. The Pacific Island of Kiribati did so in 2019.

Paraguay, among nations that still recognize Taiwan, holds general elections in April. The ruling Colorado Party historically has been proTaiwan, and a key driver behind not recognizing China. With assistance from Amy Stillman / Bloomberg

“Any excuses-seeking attitude for attack on bases that are established at the request of the Syrian government, will immediately face an answer,” Khosravi was quoted as saying.

Khosravi rejected US charges that Iran is behind attacks on American bases in Syria, suggesting they are attacks against “illegal occupation of part of Syria.”

A statement issued late Friday by the Iranian Consultative Center in Syria warned the US not to carry out further strikes in Syria. Otherwise, “we will have to retaliate.” It warned that “it will not be a simple revenge.”

The center, which speaks on behalf of Tehran in Syria, said the US airstrikes targeted places used to store food products and other service centers in Deir el-Zour. It said the strike killed seven people and wounded seven others without giving the nationalities of the dead. An official with an Iran-backed group in Iraq said the strikes killed seven Iranians.

The Observatory raised the death toll from the US strikes to 19, saying they were killed in three locations, including an arms depot in the Ha -

The State Department said in a statement Saturday that they have been in contact with Saudi officials about their approach to the region, including with Syria adding that Washington’s stance against normalization with Assad’s government “remains unchanged, and we have been clear about this.”

The State Department said the US’s consistent message to regional partners who are engaging with the Syrian government has been that “credible steps to improve the situation for the Syrian people should be front and center in any engagement.”

According to officials, Iran has launched 80 attacks against US forces and locations in Iraq and Syria since January 2021. The vast majority of those have been in Syria.

The US under Biden has struck Syria previously over tensions with Iran—in February and June of 2021, as well as August 2022.

Syria’s conflict that began in 2011 has left nearly half a million people dead. Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria contributed to this report

TALLINN, Estonia—Advertisements promise cash bonuses and enticing benefits. Recruiters are making cold calls to eligible men. Enlistment offices are working with universities and social service agencies to lure students and the unemployed.

A billbo A r d advertising “Contract military service” is seen beside a highway outside Krasnodar, russia on Thursday, March 23, 2023. A campaign to replenish ru ssian troops in Ukraine with more soldiers appears to be underway again, with makeshift recruitment centers popping up in cities and towns, and state institutions posting ads promising cash bonuses and benefits to entice men to sign contracts enabling them to be sent into the battlefield AP Photo

Editor: Angel R. Calso

‘A new day is dawning’

ON March 20-22, 2023, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Russia, meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin both in official and unofficial capacity. From those discussions came a statement from Xi that is profound in its implications.

“We signed a statement on deepening the strategic partnership and bilateral ties which are entering a new era. Change is coming that hasn’t happened in 100 years and we are driving this change together.” In response, Putin toasted, “I am sure that Russian-Chinese cooperation has truly unlimited possibilities and prospects.”

At first glance, and immediately mentioned in US and European press, one might think that Xi could be referring to the World War One “Central Powers” of German and the Austro-Hungarian Empires. However, that alliance was publicly formed after the beginning of the mobilization of troops by Austria against Serbia.

A more interesting correlation might be the “Entente Cordiale” between the United Kingdom and France in 1904, marking the end of almost a thousand years of intermittent conflict between the two states. The core of the “Cordial Agreement” were accords that, for example, said Egypt was fully in the British sphere and Morocco in France’s and economic issues from other overseas territories of the two countries.

British diplomat—and Britain’s “Germany expert”—Eyre Crowe wrote: “The fundamental fact of course is that the Entente is not an alliance. For purposes of ultimate emergencies it may be found to have no substance at all. For the Entente is nothing more than a frame of mind, a view of general policy which is shared by the governments of two countries.”

At the time of this agreement, the UK had been economically isolated from “The Continent” by choice, relying for its wealth on its colonies. France was isolated involuntarily as both Germany and the AustroHungarian Empire appropriately viewed France as an economic rival.

It may not be an overstatement as Pepe Escobar, a Brazilian geopolitical analyst, wrote, “This is the first time in arguably five centuries that no political leader from the west is setting the global agenda.”

It is important to realize that 77 percent of Russia’s area is in Asia, the western 23 percent located in Europe. Director of the Carnegie Moscow Center, Dmitri Trenin, commented that, “Contemporary Russia is neither the East, nor the West, neither Europe, nor Asia. Rather, it is possible to speak confidently about the civilizational uniqueness of Russia.”

A cornerstone of the Xi-Putin agreement is to move forward with the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, which would deliver annually 50 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia to China. The pipeline has gained urgency as Moscow seeks to replace Europe as its major gas customer. The proposed pipeline would bring gas from the massive Yamal peninsula reserves in west Siberia to the world’s top energy consumer and growing gas consumer.

Putin told Xi that Chinese investors will get first priority on all hard assets left behind when Western companies left Russia. In addition, Russia has been forced by the economic sanctions to look elsewhere from Europe and the US to buy everything from high-tech to machinery, all goods that China is more than happy to sell to Russia.

Now we add in the BRICS plus Russian ally Iran and China’s new BFF Saudi Arabia. Further, over 40 delegations from Africa arrived in Moscow a day before Xi to take part in a “Russia-Africa in the Multipolar World” conference—a run-up to the second Russia-Africa summit in July. Putin chose this moment to write off more than $20 billion in African debt.

Pepe Escobar: “A new day is dawning, from the lands of the Rising Sun to the Eurasian steppes.”

The risks to workers’ health in the summer

RISING SUN

AlMOst everyone knows what precautions to take in the summer, especially if one is used to spending the height of summer in a country like the Philippines. March is also Fire Prevention Month, which reminds us why we hear the sound of fire truck sirens more often these days. As we close the month and step into the potentially hotter days of April and May, let us bring our attention to workplace hazards connected to the season.

Fatigue is one of the top health considerations as far as workers and employees are concerned. If you’re out in the field a lot or if you work outdoors—I’m thinking of our delivery riders, courier guys, etc.—be sure you know that dehydration could set in more quickly for you. Fatigue affects concentration and judgment, so those working near traffic or those who operate heavy machinery should be extra careful. To prevent it, don’t stay in the sun for long periods and remain hydrated. Sports drinks are also an option since the body quickly

absorbs them. Have some kind of salty snack handy so one can readily replace sodium and electrolytes lost by sweating. Rashes and cramps that are triggered by heat are also common in the summer, especially for people working in humid places. If this is not managed, the person exposed to intense heat and humidity may suffer from heat stroke, which is a medical emergency. Prevention includes the avoidance of outdoor work during the day’s hottest hours, taking plenty of breaks, and staying

Fatigue is one of the top health considerations as far as workers and employees are concerned. If you’re out in the field a lot or if you work outdoors—I’m thinking of our delivery riders, courier guys, etc.—be sure you know that dehydration could set in more quickly for you. Fatigue affects concentration and judgment, so those working near traffic or those who operate heavy machinery should be extra careful. To prevent it, don’t stay in the sun for long periods and remain hydrated. Sports drinks are also an option since the body quickly absorbs them. Have some kind of salty snack handy so one can readily replace sodium and electrolytes lost by sweating.

hydrated. Companies must train employees how to recognize the danger signs and what actions to take to save a life, their own or a co-worker’s.

If one is already dehydrated, he or

she would experience thirst, muscle cramps, fatigue, excessive sweating, and nausea or dizziness. So, companies have to make sure there is plenty of clean and safe drinking water for everyone at all times. It would also be good to launch an internal info campaign to remind workers to limit caffeine, sugar, and alcohol intake as these contribute to dehydration, and also to teach everyone about the physical signs to watch out for, like yellow urine color, higher heart rate, etc.

Sunburn and UV exposure are linked to skin cancer risk, so workers who spend a lot of time in the sun have to take the necessary measures to stay healthy. For example, covering the exposed skin by wearing a hat and sunscreen, using an umbrella, taking breaks, and drinking plenty of water. What’s clear is that companies should remember that the summer season poses different risks or challenges to workers. It’s very important to recognize these and to act on it so employees can remain healthy and productive during these cruel months. Enjoy the summer, but let’s all stay safe as we work and play.

Surigao del Norte LGU eyes tourism prospects

IN far-away Gigaquit in surigao del Norte, a program is now in place to boost the 4th class municipality’s tourism prospects as a way forward for the poor coastal community. such a program may provide other similar communities all over the country the template to level up their income stream while at the same time battling climate change and revving up economic growth.

It is a tough call that Mayor Chandru Tumulak Bonite has envisioned for the municipality, a legacy he wants to bequeath his constituents, after mulling over the natural calamities that have visited the place, notably of Supertyphoon Odette in December 2021, which led him to pursue a win-win formula: to transform tourism sites that have been destroyed such as Puyawan Falls into notable ecotourism places.

A fortnight ago, Mayor Bonite paid a visit to ALC Group Chairman D. Edgard A. Cabangon and unveiled his tourism project for the 4th class municipality, and so off we went to Gigaquit (pronounced Higakit) this week to see first-hand the devastation that Odette brought on Puyawan Falls. The mayor showed us the structures that were destroyed, such as footbridges, and told us what

In an assessment done by the DENR, Gigaquit was found to have 450 hectares of mangrove that is home to various species, and that has a potential for the ecotourism market. The potential for tourism dollars can be easily seen in the poor community of about 22,000 residents.

as a natural dike from sea surges.

can be easily seen in the poor community of about 22,000 residents.

he intends to do.

Puyawan Falls, whose development will also benefit a community of indigenous people near the place, will become host to several swimming sites and campsites, which the municipality intends to establish to lure surfing enthusiasts even from Siargao for them “to have a welcome change,” as the mayor said.

Gigaquit has what it takes to become a huge hit for tourists, much like that of Siargao, noted for its surfing come-on. It has, however, other ecotourism overtures that we believe can transform it into a firstclass municipality. Mayor Bonite hoped this can be accomplished in no time. He is passionate in telling us his plans that include constructing the last mile for a boardwalk along the coast. The boardwalk, which will be host to restaurants, will also serve

The municipality is bent on pushing forward its ecotourism potential, what with its host of natural wonders such as a mangrove forest with 17 species that include nipa (from where the famed Gigaquit Rhum comes from), Baoy River and other rivers, a marine sanctuary where giant clams abound, plus a diversity of coral fish species, and a mangrove-lined river with a fork that empties into the sea.

Recently, Gigaquit was adjudged the second runner-up in the National Search for Outstanding Coastal Community that MMK or Malinis at Masaganang Karagatan launched. For now, the focus of the municipality is to conduct cleanups in partnership with concerned government agencies.

In an assessment done by the DENR, Gigaquit was found to have 450 hectares of mangrove that is home to various species, and that has a potential for the ecotourism market. The potential for tourism dollars

According to Suginli Express program host Emil Canda, the administration of Mayor Bonite is serious in seeing through the change in the economic environment of Gigaquit. In fact, he opted to go back to the municipality after 20 years in the advertising business in Manila, to be part of the good governance model of Mayor Bonite. Two others we interviewed working at the municipality also are balikGigaquit citizens.

We believe in the potential of Gigaquit as a tourism haven and we were fortunate enough to have made the visit. The last segment of our tour with the mayor floored us in disbelief. It was a river ride along the mangrove forest where we were treated to 25 minutes of hovercraft ride along a circuitous route of miles and miles of mangrove.

During our hovercraft ride, Mayor Bonite passionately talked of having kayaking, floating cottages, water tubing, jet-ski offering, and restaurants along the mangrove-lined river that can rival the famed Loboc River of Bohol. Prior to the river ride, Mayor Bonite spoke glowingly of the last place that he intended to show to us to bolster his administration’s tourism program. And boy! How right he was. It was a fantastic experience and with the two rainbows that showed up during the ride, his words rang in my mind: “Lucky ride.”

Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II

A different kind of 5S Tele-tax-novela

Joel L. Tan-Torres

DEBIT CREDIT

Part two

IN part 1 of this series, I mentioned that it is possible that the scapegoat in this tele-tax-novela may have been used by the masterminds in the “Official Receipts-(OR)-for-sale” scam. These masterminds could have inserted the names of the scapegoats in the ORs that were printed and subsequently sold to the partners of the syndicate, without the knowledge of the scapegoats.

A cursory search on the Internet disclosed some interesting information on the scapegoats or respondents to the criminal cases filed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue with the Department of Justice this month. These respondents were accused of being involved in the fake ORs syndicate led by the masterminds are Buildforce Trading Inc. (Buildforce), Crazykitchen Foodtrade Corp. (Crazykitchen), Decarich Supertrade Inc.(Decarich), and Redington Corp.(Redington).

My search (without the aid of Artificial Intelligence Chat GPT) disclosed some information about three respondents, while there was no information about the fourth. While doing this search, I realized that there are organizations providing information for a subscription fee on business enterprises. Such information as address, telephone number, board members and executives, and even financial data are available. The organizations that I referred to in my search include Crunchbase, Company file, and BizDirect Asia. From the data that I was able to gather from these sources, Buildforce, Crazykitchen, and Decarich have business information available. I speculate that these companies may have registered with the regulatory offices, such as the BIR and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and may still be in operation or have ceased their business. I wonder if the BIR did a due diligence on these companies before they filed the criminal complaints. Did the BIR enforcement officers do an ocular inspection of the premises of these companies to determine if these are still conducting operations or may have even re-located from their registered office addresses? As to the fourth respondent, Redington, my search did not disclose any information from the Internet on this scapegoat. Is it possible that the masterminds used a fabricated company, like Redington, in its OR-for-sale business? Did the BIR search its database to determine if Redington had previously registered its business with the BIR?

All these issues and questions provide the twists and turns on this evolving tax-tele-novela. Next week, I will continue my discussion

From the data that I was able to gather from these sources, Buildforce, Crazykitchen, and Decarich have business information available. I speculate that these companies may have registered with the regulatory offices, such as the BIR and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and may still be in operation or have ceased their business. I wonder if the BIR did a due diligence on these companies before they filed the criminal complaints.

on the roles of the other characters in this novela. These include the enforcement officers, namely the BIR, the National Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Justice, the masteminds, and the partners. Recently, I noted that there are other characters who are emerging, the free riders and the bit players. A friend of mine asked what is my role in this tax-tele-novela. He jokingly asked if I am the scriptwriter of this novela. I assured him that definitely I have no plan of being the scriptwriter. At most, I said that I am just the chronicler of these events. I have previously written in this column six articles on this “OR for sale” crime. These are the articles entitled “Receipts for sale,” “To catch a (Tax) thief, “Investigative Tax Journalism,” “My investigation continues” (Parts 1 and 2), and the first part of this article. For those interested in reading these, you can access the online versions on the web site of BusinessMirror.

Next week, I continue writing on the chronicle, not the script, of the tax-tele-novela.

To be continued.

Joel L. Tan-Torres was the former Dean of the University of the Philippines Virata School of Business. Previously, he was the Commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy, and partner of Reyes Tacandong & Co. and the SyCip Gorres and Velayo & Co. He is a Certified Public Accountant who garnered No. 1 in the CPA Board Examination of May 1979. He is now back to his tax practice with his firm JL2T Consulting. He can be contacted at joeltantorress@yahoo.com.

Siegfred Bueno Mison, Esq.

THE PATRIOT

IN her book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying up,” author Marie Kondo said that if a thing, whether a piece of clothing, a book, a gadget, or even a memento, does not spark joy, discard it. After all, memories are best kept in the heart and not in souvenirs. Kondo essentially says that tidying up things translates to tidying our lives.

The principles of her KonMari method appear to be the precursor of the more popular Japanese 5S.

The 5S Method, which in Japanese, stands for Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, and Shitsuke, is used to organize things in the workplace. In my past organizations, 5S was adopted to get rid of the clutter by doing Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain. During the 5S campaign in the Bureau of Immigration, several colleagues were quite pessimistic about cleaning their respective cubicles since, according to them, they have other “better” things to do.

The resistance to a unique way of doing things seems understandable given the previous years of “organized chaos” in any workplace. What most workers do not realize is that 5S has this underlying objective of giving us a focused perspective at work.

I wrote in my column five years ago: “No clutter gives us more focus. More focus leads to greater efficiency.”

Unknown to him perhaps, Ren Manansala (Ren) is one KonMari advocate as he promotes 5S plus 2, which he calls as 7S in Franklin Baker Company of the Philippines (FBCOP). To Ren, the additional S stands for Safety and Security. To him, a more productive workplace is not just about cleaning, recycling, and organizing; it is also having security-conscious people who know how to keep company premises safe from threats that can disrupt operations or affect product quality.

As Vice President for Operations of FBCOP, Ren teaches 7S knowing that basic awareness of the use of

firefighting equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE), for example, contributes to the overall quality of FBCOP products. He also teaches the value of integrating security with the usual 5S, as basic as turning off computers and locking doors after work, which can impact the quality of work. Having spent more than seven years in FBCOP, Ren believes in the simple formula, that is, quality people + quality workplace = quality product. As a result, all the plants of Franklin Baker have AA++ certifications from BRCGS, a company that harmonizes food safety standards across the supply chain. Considered as the most rigorous third-party certification scheme of its type, the BRCGS Global Standards are a market-leading global brand that helps build confidence in the supply chain and provides assurance to customers that products with BRCGS certifications are safe.

With the reputable history of food quality in FBCOP, coupled with Ren’s 7S advocacy, FBCOP products are globally recognized as fully compliant to food safety and regulatory standards.

By encouraging employees to have less distractions at their desks, and hopefully and eventually in life, Ren assures both employees and customers of FBCOP that “everything is under control” when it comes to manufacturing coconut ingredients that meet the highest quality standards. What I noticed from Ren’s management style is that he has learned to let go of certain things beyond his control. Whenever something

goes wrong in the production, his “operations mindset” is to fix and not to blame. After all, even as VP for Operations, he cannot possibly control everything that happens in all three manufacturing plants of FBCOP in Laguna and Davao. Not known to many, Ren is a prayerful person, who prefers to see the positive side of things by saying that it could have been worse.

In our personal lives, there is a need to let go of certain things and not to acquire more of the unnecessary or redundant stuff. This brings to mind a life lesson shared by Doris Puls, a professional organizer of D & O Decluttering and Organizing: “A place for everything and everything in its place.” Growing up in a “practical” environment, she relays —“When you use something, you put it back. Every dish and utensil was put away exactly where it belonged. Our family of nine had one pair of scissors and we had to put them back in their place for the next person to use. Which also brings up the point that more isn’t always better.”

Quite obviously, decluttering and organizing are geared towards a higher objective. The Bible, particularly in 2 Timothy 2:21, lays down the primary purpose of said principles, thus: “Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.” The “latter” refers to distractions in life, people and things which are wicked if not immoral, comparable to wooden and earthen vessels in this verse. So, if believers clear themselves of “clutter”—things, habits, or activities that defile good company, they are actually made holy in preparation for doing the more meaningful activities in life.

More than just getting an AA++ certification rating from any global standard, believers, who get rid of wicked friends or associates, but remain in the company of the faithful, are assured of a quality life, echoing Ren’s formula of quality people + quality workplace = quality product. More than merely acquiring worldly possessions, believers who keep it simple are able to lead a better ex-

ample for others and render quality service, resonating Doris Puls’ blueprint of more isn’t always better.

I believe that what the Holy Book wants us to learn anent decluttering and organizing is something beyond getting rid of what we do not need in our lives. It is more about focusing on eternal truths, values that transcend even our earthly existence as they impact the lives of others in a positive way. What Jesus Christ told the crowd of people in Matthew 6:1921 remains doctrinal up to this day:

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

As individuals, whenever our environment and our lives are sorted, set in order, shone, standardized, sustained, safe, and secured (7S), we can focus on our real mission of not just having a quality life but giving a quality life to those around us, laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven. According to KonMari, if there is a thing, even if new, but is not a need, “plant a seed,” as in giving it to others.

Jesus Christ taught us the ultimate gift of giving by His example of dying for our sins on the cross. Whether we call it 5S or KonMari or Ren’s 7S or Puls’ more is not necessarily better, the principle of less clutter at work and in life with security and safety dimensions to boot, the principle is not just about improved efficiency. It is also about enriched spirituality in the product within us—a “treasure” which we can be appreciated by those around us.

A former infantry and intelligence officer in the Army, Siegfred Mison showcased his servant leadership philosophy in organizations such as the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, Malcolm Law Offices, Infogix Inc., University of the East, Bureau of Immigration, and Philippine Airlines. He is a graduate of West Point in New York, Ateneo Law School, and University of Southern California. A corporate lawyer by profession, he is an inspirational teacher and a Spirit-filled writer with a mission. For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.

China minister says nation’s recovery to benefit US firms

CHINA’S opening up after Covid and its strong economic recovery will offer “triple” benefits for US business communities despite “chilly” relations between the two countries, Foreign Minister Qin Gang told a group of American business leaders.

The fact that President Xi Jinping was reelected, the nation’s continued efforts to open up to the world, and its social and economic “reset” will benefit US business communities, Qin said in the meeting on Saturday in Beijing, according to a statement posted on China’s Foreign Ministry website.

Still, relations between China

and the US are as “chilly” as early spring weather, the minister said.

Qin welcomed US companies to keep expanding investments in China and to set roots in the country, according to the statement. Beijing hopes the US can help promote bilateral relations despite current difficulties and restore ties to a healthy and stable trajectory, he said.

US representatives said ChinaUS relations are at a critical stage and the business communities are committed to preventing the two countries from stepping into a trap of isolation and conflict. They said they welcome further face-to-face communications and hope more

Yes to People’s Water Code, no to privatization

replace widespread water privatization, which has failed to ensure cheap and affordable water, unhampered access for household and production use, sanitation, and public management to ensure all these.

Since the privatization of water in Metro Manila in 1997, which was the biggest at that time, water rates have soared, yet the basic public utility remains inequitably distributed.

(An open letter to the Marcos administration, government agencies, lawmakers, and our fellow water consumers and advocates)

ON World Water Day, we, the Water for the People Network (WPN) press the crafting of legislation adhering to the People’s Water Code, which prioritizes the needs of ordinary Filipinos over private sector profit. This is to

Manila Water Company Inc. tariffs per cubic meter rose 1,043 percent from P4.02 to P45.93 and Maynilad Water Systems Inc. 577 percent from P7.21 to P48.83 in January 2023.

This is despite new Concession Agreements removing foreign currency adjustment and value-added tax charges in November 2021 and March 2022, respectively. Under the CAs, water bills are computed to ensure private water firms’ profits at the expense of consumers. We note that prior to the pandemic,

Manila Water’s net income rose from P3.2 billion in 2009 to P5 billion in 2019, and that of Maynilad from P2.8 billion to P7.7 billion in the same period. Yet water access and services remain poor for many Filipinos. In local water districts nationwide, of which 124 are in a “joint venture” with Villar-owned Prime Water Company, consumers lament high fees for murky, inefficient, and interrupted water supply.

Recent government-cited data also show that 22 million Filipinos or 21 percent of the country’s population still do not have access to safe drinking water; more than half of the population of 332 municipalities are considered waterless; around 26% of families have no access to water treatment facilities; and more than 3 million citizens are compelled to practice open defecation.

Meanwhile, we also note that urban poor communities pay more than they can afford for water— with many connected to submeters and forced to pay P60 to P135 per cubic meter. Farmers and fisherfolk also lament the lack of irrigation and the constriction of fishing waters, respectively, which affect their livelihoods.

We additionally want to underscore how the water undertakings of profit-driven big businesses undermine people’s rights. Indigenous Filipinos and other communities’ homes, livelihoods and environment are threatened by commercial water supply projects such as the Kaliwa, Genned, and Jalaur megadams in Sierra Madre, Apayao and Iloilo, respectively. Local water districts takeover by oligarch firms has also led to public sector retrenchments such as in Bacolod. Deprivatizing and not merely

China-US flights could be added to facilitate exchanges, according to the statement.

Among US attendees at Saturday’s meeting were Albert Bourla, chairman and chief executive officer of Pfizer Inc.; Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council; and Ray Dalio, founder of hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, according to a photo attached to the statement. American business leaders including Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and Boeing International Corp. President Brendan Nelson are attending the China Development Forum in Beijing this weekend.

consolidating or managing the country’s existing water systems would be a positive step towards solving the country’s water problems. We are forwarding the Filipino People’s Water Code as a foundation of possible such legislation and say that the principles stipulated therein and not a profit-driven framework should guide water resource management in the country.

The water code crafted by IBON and the WPN upon the right to water watchdog’s inception in 2004 invokes the principles of water being a basic human right; water being part of national patrimony and should not be subject to exploitation for foreign or private interests; water as a people’s resource allocated mainly for the people’s survival and livelihood needs and with preferential treatment for the poor and marginalized sectors; water as a public good that should remain in the public

“Clearly, the US China tension and the way it is managed will have great bearing on the global economy, great bearing on all nations.” Tharman Shanmugaratnam, a senior minister of Singapore and chairman at the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said at the forum Sunday, “And how the US and China are able to combine competition—perfectly legitimate competition, economic competition—with the need for cooperation is going to require considerable strategic ambition and strategic skill, but it will matter to the world.” With assistance from Lucille Liu / Bloomberg.

domain; giving precedence to ances-

tral domains in the conservation of water resources; and the promotion of community management in the conservation and development of water resources.

These principles span the following: Conservation and rehabilitation of water resources and freshwater ecosystems; Development and management of sustainable and pro-people water supply infrastructure; Reversal of privatization and water utilities being government responsibility; Effective provision of water for people’s use; Development and management of irrigation to promote agrarian reform and fresh water aquatic resources with preference for small fisherfolk; and Promotion of democratic governance in water supply management and water services.

Water for the People Network

A12

PHL Village Hotel issue still blocking Naia-2 expansion

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo @akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to build the necessary infrastructure to accomodate the growth in the air transport and tourism sectors.”

N AIA-terminal 2, also known as the Centennial Terminal, will be catering fully to domestic flights of Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Philippines Air Asia before yearend.

Air Asia has announced the move to Naia-2 on July, while PAL is still negotiating certain terms of the transfer with respect to charges, with MIAA. Cebu Pacific Airways’ domestic flights will remain at Naia-3, and Naia-4.

tional flights as well.

D ue to issues in valuation, however, GSIS and MIAA has not been able to settle the takeover of the portion, where the hotel and its annex stand. As such, Chiong said there is no target date for completion of the Naia-2 annex: “That’s the site hopefully,  if we are able to settle the issue regarding the Philippine Village Hotel.”

T he hotel, now in a crumbling state, was owned by Philippine Village Hotel Inc. (PVHI), which has unpaid obligations to the GSIS. The hotel property, spanning over 36,000 square meters, has been eyed by MIAA since 2014 for the extension of passenger terminal 2. The property was leased by PVHI from the Nayong Pilipino Founda -

tion Inc. (NPFI) in June 1975, which was renewed in 1995.

I n a Viber message, GSIS President and General Manager Jose Arulfo “Wick” Veloso told the BusinessMirror , “The PVHI property can be negotiated with the MIAA as we are both looking for the best interest of the country. GSIS supports any plan by

M IAA general manager Cesar Chiong explained, “Terminal 2 is not [large] enough to handle all domestic flights right now, but once we are able to construct the  annex to terminal 2, Cebu Pacific’s domestic flights can be transferred there.”

Naia-2, which is currently occupied solely by PAL for its domestic and international flights, can accommodate up to 9 million passengers a year. The 75,000 square-meter Naia-2 was originally designed for domestic passengers, but was revised to accommodate interna -

W hen the Nayong Pilipino cultural park, in which miniature replicas of the Philippines’ famed tourist sports were built, was closed in 2002, some 9 hectares of  NPFI’s property was transferred to the MIAA. Later, in 2012, about 22 hectares also owned by NPFI was turned over to MIAA for use in its Naia expansion plan.

A ccording to a brief, PVHI still has some P270 million in remaining obligations to GSIS, but the state pension fund has been unable to find bank balances of the hotel firm that it can garnish, despite a court’s issuance of a writ of execution in January 2018. Prior to this, the Supreme Court decided in January 2009, to evict PVHI for its inability to pay P26 million in back rentals to the NPFI.

A FIRST,

TO BE 125TH INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE MARSHAL ON 2 CONTINENTS

NEW YORK—In June 2023, Dr. Dely Po Go, DNP, RN, LNHA, will write history by serving as the 125th Philippine Independence Day Parade Grand Marshal on two continents: New York City and Milan, Italy. She is also the 2023 PAFCOM Parade Grand Marshal of the PhilippineAmerican Friendship Day Parade in Jersey City, New Jersey.

A well-respected humanitarian, philanthropist, a community and nurse leader, she is the recipient of the Gerry Roxas Leadership Award. She graduated summa cum laude with her doctorate degree, is an outstanding alumna from high school, college, a Woman of Peace Awardee for helping poor children around the world; a Sinag Lahi Awardee, a trustee at multiple boards, educator, entrepreneur, HIRAYA President-elect.

S he was previously named as New Jersey Nurse Diva, an advocate of gender equality and diversity, announced in the Wall Street Journal as one of the Nine Top Most Distinguished Professionals in the world selected from among 1.5 Million Professional biographies by Marquis Who’s Who International. She is a faculty

DENR vows lawsuit for Mindoro oil-spill damage; claims caravan to reel off

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

AS the application for compensation in the Oriental Mindoro oil spill begins on March 27, the government led by the Department of Justice (DOJ) steps up the case-building process against the owner of MT Princess Empress.

T he Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) through the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) and the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), for its part, is stepping up the assessment of the devastation to the environment for possible inclusion of a damage claim in the criminal case or cases to be filed against the owner of MT Princess Empress.

T he chief of the DENR Task Force MT Princess Empress, Undersecretary Jonas R. Leones, told the BusinessMirror the DENR is following the lead of the DOJ and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), which has jurisdiction over incidents of oil spill.

He said DENR has only 2 roles under the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCOP)—water quality and waste management or disposal.

He said the DENR will file a claim for environmental damage, but is still in the process of assessing the damage caused by the Mindoro oil spill.

A ccording to Leones, criminal raps against the owner of MT Princess Empress may cover violations of environmental laws like the Wildlife Act and the National Integrated Protected Areas Act (NIPAS) or relevant legislation in case of damaged protected areas.

H e said the owner of the illfated vessel that sank off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro together with some 900,000 liters of industrial oil, faces penalties and fines as prescribed by the said laws. But since oil spills fall under the category of marine pollution, Leones said the Clean Water Act

may not apply. Under the Clean Water Act, the penalty for causing water pollution ranges from P10,000 to P200,000 per day until remediation has been satisfactorily performed.

“ In oil spills, the PCG under the marine pollution law has jurisdiction,” he said.

He added that the Clean Water Act pertains to discharge in inland water bodies.  The oil spill falls under marine pollution, which is under PCG’s mandate.

N evertheless, he said since oil spill causes damage to the environment, the DENR will go after the owners, whether through penalties and fine under the Wildlife Act or NIPAS—for causing the demise of plant and animal wildlife, including corals, mangroves and seagrass.

“Oil spill causes damage to the environment.  The DOJ is looking into it.  The other day [last week], agencies met to discuss” the criminal and administrative charges to be filed, said Leones.

“

Like in Tubbataha, remember that the corals were damaged.  We can impose the same penalty or fine [in the case of the oil spill],” added Leones, referring to the 2013 grounding by the USS Guardian on Tubbataha Reef, causing enormous damage to corals in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.  A total of 2,345 sqm of corals were destroyed within the legislated protected area, and the US Navy was slapped with a fine of P58 million under Republic Act 10067, or the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park Act of 2009.

I n the case of the Mindoro oil spill, close to 30 locally-managed Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are affected.

However, Leones said the leak is continuing “so we cannot make a final assessment yet.”

He said the DENR-BMB is in charge of assessing the damage to the environment while the DENREMB conducts water quality sampling in oil spill-affected areas.

member of the William Paterson University, and most of all, a friend to all. Dr. Go has evolved into one of the most trusted members of the Filipino community. She is on the Board of Trustees of the Philippine Nurses Association of New Jersey, Kinding Sindaw, F.I.L.I.P.I.N.A.S., Vice Chair-of New Jersey State Nurses Association Institute for Nursing, and President-elect of HIRAYA Foundation.

Continued on A3

HOR leader calls out biz grps for Cha-cha flipflop

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

THE chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments on Sunday accused several business groups of flipflopping on the issue of amending the Constitution’s “restrictive” economic provisions.

I n a statement, Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez named the Makati Business Club (MBC) and Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex) as the organizations that have changed their stand in their recent statement on Charter reform.

MBC and Finex are now against Charter amendments. Before this position, they were in favor of changing the Constitution’s economic provisions,” he said.

I n a joint statement on Friday, MBC, Finex, Filipina CEO Circle, Judicial Reform Initiative, Philippine Women’s Economic Network, and Women Business Council of the Philippines opposed the current House initiative to rewrite the Constitution’s economic provisions.

T hey cited the high cost of funding a constitutional convention that would propose the amendments, the investment promotion campaign of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and recently enacted laws that aim to relax certain economic restrictions.

R odriguez said the President’s efforts to attract foreign capital “are commendable but are still subject to the limitations of the Constitution, as are recent laws, including the amended Public Service Act.” These laws cannot amend the Charter. As for the cost involved, we are trying to keep them to the minimum,” he said.

He said MBC and Finex favored Charter reform in previous position papers sent to his committee.

I n a position paper dated September 11, 2019, the Makati Business Club said it was reiterating its “longrunning support” to lift investment restrictions in the Constitution.

Among other means, we support adding the words ‘unless otherwise provided by law,’ following the constitutional provisions that set the limits on various sectors.

THE Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) are discussing ways to settle the latter’s takeover of a hotel property at the old Nayong Pilipino complex to allow for the expansion of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

IN

NURSE

DR. Dely Po Go, DNP, RN, LNHA

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Monday, March 27, 2023

NGCP to DOE: Transmission projects devt to be fast-tracked

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

THE National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has accepted the challenge of the Department of Energy (DOE) to fasttrack the development of transmission projects in the country.

In a recent meeting between the DOE and NGCP, Energy Undersecretary Rowena Guevara said the grid operator gave assurances of providing a list of transmission assets that are critical to the government’s goal of hitting the country’s renewable energy (RE) share—35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040--- in the power generation mix.

“Last week, I met with Mr.

Anthony Almeda and the NGCP team to discuss how transmission development can be accelerated to match the pace of generation development. NGCP welcomes the challenge of using new technologies for faster completion of transmission lines,” said Guevera.

The assurance came after the DOE official announced last week that the second round of the

green energy auction program (GEAP) would result in more RE projects with 11,160 megawatts (MW) by 2024.

New transmission lines and expanding substation capacity are equally important as increasing power supply. Power plants generate electricity that is delivered to customers through transmission and distribution power lines.

“We will include in the terms of reference the list of areas and corresponding capacity of transmission that is already available. This will be provided by the NGCP. This way, we are guaranteed that the generated renewable energy can be transmitted at the projected timelines of 2024 to 2026,” added Guevara.

Guevara said that of the 11,610 MW, 3,590 MW is targeted for installation in 2024, 3,630MW by 2025, and 4,390MW by 2026.

DOE Undersecretary Sharon

Garin, according to Guevera, has been assisting NGCP with right-ofway (ROW) issues, which are the major causes of delay for transmission projects across the country.

NGCP, for its part, said it has proactively sought the DOE’s assistance on issues on permitting and ROW concerns. It added that the grid is prepared whenever new plants come online and when the demand for power in a certain area increases, by anticipating these scenarios and constructing new facilities.

All of NGCP's projects are well laid out in its 10-year Transmission Development Plan. In the next 13 years, the grid operator is committed to invest approximately P440 billion across 211 projects meant to support the growing electricity demand in the country and to make the country’s power backbone continuously reliable.

NGCP holds the sole and exclusive concession and franchise for operating the Philippines’ transmission network.

GT Capital income rises 67% to ₧18.4B

By VG Cabuag @villygc

GT Capital Holdings Inc., the holding firm of the Ty group, said its income rose 67 percent in 2022 to P18.4 billion from P11 billion in the previous year, mainly from the good performance of its banking unit.

Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. had an income of P32.8 billion; Toyota Motor Philippines Inc.’s was at P5.7 billion; Federal Land Inc., at P4.5 billion; and AXA Philippines, P2.5 billion.

GT Capital associate Metro Pacific Investments Corp.’s core net income rose 15 percent to P14.2 billion.

“GT Capital accelerated its recovery momentum in 2022, reflecting the country’s strong economic growth, normalized mobility and resurgent consumption spending. Despite certain headwinds, namely higher inflation, elevated interest rates and foreign exchange volatility, the GT Capital group of companies delivered strong results across all sectors. We remain optimistic with the outlook for the coming year and are confident in our strong market position in the key sectors we represent,”

GT Capital president Carmelo Maria Luza Bautista said.

Metrobank delivered strong results with a 48 percent year-on-year increase in net income to P32.8 billion on the back of better corporate and consumer lending businesses, healthy fee income, subdued operating expense growth and lower pro -

visions amid stable asset quality.

For the October to December 2022 period alone, the bank’s earnings rose to P9.3 billion, a 55-percent increase from a year ago.

“Backed by the strategies we initiated during the pandemic, our solid performance and the recognition we received in 2022 reflect our efforts to support our clients’ growing needs as the economy reopens. With our strong balance sheet and highly capable team of Metrobankers, we stand ready to continue to be the trusted partner of all our stakeholders for the long term,” Metrobank president Fabian S. Dee said.

Toyota Philippines recorded new vehicle sales of 174,106 units last year, a growth of 34 percent from the previous year. The auto market, on the other hand, posted sales of 348,200 units or a growth of 24 percent. This resulted in a recordhigh market share for Toyota of 50 percent.

In line with the rise in retail sales, consolidated revenues grew by 40 percent to P183.8 billion from P131.3 billion in the previous year. The primary drivers for sales growth in the past year were the continued launching of new or refreshed products as well as a comparably strong supply of both locally produced and completely-built-up units from Thailand, Indonesia and Japan.

Due to the rapid and steep depreciation of the peso versus the US dollar last year, Toyota’s consolidated net income dipped to P5.7 billion from P6 billion in 2021.

Federal Land, meanwhile, recorded a

four-fold jump in net income to P4.5 billion from P1 billion in 2021, driven by stronger reservation sales and a gain on its investment in Federal Land NRE Global Inc.

The company posted total revenues of P15.4 billion for the year, a 49- percent increase from P10.4 billion in 2021.

Reservation sales rose 74 percent to P18.5 billion from P10.6 billion in 2021.

Federal Land launched two new projects in 2022, the Aki Tower in February and Mitsukoshi BGC in November.

Aki Tower is the third residential tower of The Seasons Residences located in Federal Land’s master-planned community, Grand Central Park in Bonifacio Global City.

On the other hand, Mitsukoshi BGC, which was announced in 2018, had its soft opening last November 2022. It is well on its way to full operations this year. This is a project of Sunshine Fort Bonifacio, a partnership with Federal Land, Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. and Nomura Real Estate Development Co. Ltd., and is also home to The Seasons Residences.

AXA Philippines’ consolidated life and general insurance gross premiums reached P28.2 billion in 2022 from P43.2 billion in the same period last year, due to volatility in the capital markets and limited bancassurance distribution amid geopolitical uncertainties.

The insurer’s consolidated net income increased by 12 percent to P2.5 billion last year from P2.3 billion in the previous year, due to lower attritional losses from its general insurance business.

Fujifilm sees ‘double-digit’ growth in 2023

By Roderick L. Abad

APART from photography, Fujifilm is also making great strides in another portfolio that caters to the country’s expanding medical industry.

“Healthcare business is rapidly growing,” Fujifilm Philippines Inc. President Masahiro Uehara told reporters at the sideline of their signing of a Memorandum of Agreement with Shinagawa Healthcare Solutions Corp. held in Taguig City on March 23.

This segment is currently bigger at an undisclosed number than the firm’s camera offering, at least in the country, following the acquisition of another industry player’s medical unit a couple of years ago.

“We are expecting it to grow by leaps and bounds because in 2021, Fujifilm globally acquired the Hitachi healthcare business,” said JP Camarillo, deputy division head for healthcare at Fujifilm Philippines.

For 179 billion yen, Fujifilm Healthcare took over Hitachi's Diagnostic Imagingrelated business in March 31, 2021, with the goal of combining both organizations’

product lineups to offer a comprehensive solution for a wide range of clinical needs.

“So from purely Fujifilm, we are now also handling the entire portfolio of Hitachi healthcare that includes the CT, MRI, X-ray, ultrasound, etc.,” he elaborated.

Given such development, as well as the constant expansion of public and private healthcare facilities nationwide, the company is bullish about sustaining its strong performance in 2023.

“At least for us [in the medical unit], it’s a double-digit growth for the healthcare business. I think the government has infused a lot of capital and a lot of funds to expand the healthcare facilities across the country. So we are very optimistic in terms of growth, and not only in the government sector, but even the private sector like Shinagawa,” Fujifilm Philippines Medical Division Manager Evan Reyes said of their partnership to bring innovative endoscopy, CT Scan, mammogram, X-ray, and ultrasound machines to the latter’s new diagnostic and preventive care center that will open in

Bonifacio Global City in April.

Across Southeast Asia, he said the Philippines is likely the “third or fourth” top diagnostic and medical market for Fujifilm at present.

In fact, at least one of their branded healthcare equipment can be found in all diagnostics facilities all over the country, per Camarillo, who noted that they are a supplier or vendor “to a lot of healthcare institutions” from first to tertiary levels of hospitals.

Being an end-to-end digital imaging and healthcare solutions provider, Fujifilm now has two service centers—located in Taguig and Cebu.

“I think there’s a bigger demand even in Visayas and Mindanao. So that’s why we wanted to expand our services [there],” Reyes said of the growing needs for both camera and medical devices.

So soon we might open [a service center-cum-office in] Mindanao, [particularly in] Davao, so that at least we have three sites operating by the end of the year,” he stressed.

CEMENT firm Holcim Philippines Inc. said its attributable income slid 63 percent last year to P941.77 million from 2021’s P2.56 billion on softer demand in the first half of 2022.

Revenues for the year were down by 1 percent to P26.58 billion from last year’s P26.94 billion.

The company said it gained momentum in the second half with revenues increasing 9 percent year-onyear to P14.4 billion as sales steadily grew in the third and fourth quarters.

The company said it was able to increase prices and reduce fixed costs by 11 percent, but these were not enough to offset the extraordinary surge in fuel and energy costs, which ballooned by 60 percent from the previous year and accounts for 64 percent of production expenses.

“In the face of extraordinary challenges, our company and people displayed tremendous resilience that enabled us to deliver positive financial performance and contribute to building progress in the country,” Horia Adrian, the company’s president and CEO, said.

“Alongside a strong sales rebound in the second half and expansion of our customer base, we accelerated decarbonization of operations driven by higher usage of alternative fuels and raw materials and production of blended cements. These achievements were key to our resilient results and long-term success anchored on our transformation into the leader in innovative and sustainable build -

ing solutions in the Philippines,” Adrian said.

For the fourth quarter alone, the company’s income rose 72 percent to P455.17 million from the previous year’s P264.76 million.

Revenues for the period, meanwhile, rose 10 percent to P7.47 billion from the previous year’s P6.79 billion.

Holcim said it was able to reduce carbon emissions per ton of cement by 7 percent from 2021 in line with its de-carbonization drive, which also delivered savings of around P1.4 billion in production costs. The effort was driven by efficiency initiatives using digital technologies and increased production of blended cement.

The company said its use of alternative fuels and raw materials increased by 20 percent from 2021. Holcim converted around a million tons of qualified waste into alternative fuels and raw materials for cement production from industrial partners and 35 local governments nationwide.

This also helped the company soften the impact of the surge in fuel and energy costs.

The company also reduced freshwater withdrawals by half last year through improvements to its water recycling facilities to cool equipment, installation of rainwater harvesting structures, and digitalization of monitoring and control tools for greater efficiency.

Aside from lowering the company’s freshwater withdrawals, these initiatives generated savings in 2022.

Holcim PHL income declines 63% in 2022

Perspectives

Cybersecurity considerations in 2023

OUR future is dependent on data and digital infrastructure. We now have a complex tapestry of public-private partnerships, connected ecosystems, and information infrastructures. And as the degree of interconnectedness and dependency increases, so does the interest from those looking to attack and exploit those infrastructures.

Breakthrough technologies also pose new security, privacy and ethical challenges as well as raise fundamental questions about trust in digital systems. This is the environment in which global commerce needs to thrive, and we need to address concerns now as we innovate, not retrospectively when it’s too late.

This interconnectedness and reliance on data and digital are also happening in the Philippines where we saw rapid digital adoption during the pandemic with the need to conduct activities and business online. Going cashless, storing and accessing data in the Cloud, and implementing remote and flexible working conditions are just some of the practices that were made possible by technology.

However, with rapid adoption comes a plethora of risks. KPMG in the Philippines Advisory Director and Cybersecurity Lead Frits Gerald Enriquez explains that “as we rely on technology to thrive and adapt to the changes brought about by the new normal, malicious forces are also taking advantage of these same developments to exploit and cause harm. Hence, strong data security measures and proactive recovery methods must be prioritized to ensure sound and healthy digital presence.”

The annual Cybersecurity considerations report identifies eight considerations that CISOs should prioritize in the year ahead as they seek to accelerate recovery times, reduce the impact of incidents on employees, customers and partners and aim to ensure their security plans enable—rather than expose—the business. The report also explores the key actions CISOs should take to meet the challenges ahead and to help ensure security is the organization’s golden thread, woven into the business across the board—providing the basis for trust.

Eight key considerationscybersecurity for 2023

1. Digital trust. A shared responsibility: Are organizations thinking broadly enough about how to protect the interests of employees, customers, suppliers and partners?

2. Unobtrusive security drives secure behaviors. How do security teams effectively integrate security into business processes, agile development programs and disparate operating models?

3. Securing a perimeter-less and data-centric future. With the security perimeter all but gone, how can organizations pragmatically and realistically transition to a zero-trust approach that protects every aspect of their ecosystem?

4. New partnerships, new models. How can organizations keep security, privacy and resilience at the forefront in an environment where outsourcing and managed services are a growing priority?

5. Trust in automation. What can organizations do to help ensure robotic process automation (RPA), machine learning (ML) and other forms of artificial intelligence (AI) are implemented and managed effectively, sensibly and securely?

6. Securing a smart world. What are the implications for security and privacy teams as companies shift toward a smart, hyperconnected product mindset?

7. Countering agile adversaries. How can security teams keep up with the pace of the changing threat landscape and the increasingly aggressive tactics of attackers?

8. Be resilient when—and where— it matters. Why is it important to think beyond response and proactively plan for recovery?

Cyber strategies for 2023

WHAT actions can CISOs, and the broader business lines take in the year ahead to help ensure security is the organization’s golden thread? Following is a short list of tangible steps CISOs should consider as they seek to accelerate recovery times, reduce the impact of incidents on employees, customers, and partners and aim to ensure their security plans enable—rather than expose—the business.

People

n Prioritize a robust cybersecurity culture that is interesting, engaging and, where appropriate, fun to inspire employees to do the right thing and function as human firewalls.

n Build a security team with the skills mix needed to manage a perimeter-less organization, including cloud and third-party dependencies.

n Communicate broadly and clearly. Ask leaders in other organizational functions about their pain points and how automated processes might help.

n Take a multidisciplinary, crossculture approach. Establish a security ecosystem comprising internal business line specialists, security professionals, data scientists, privacy-oriented attorneys and external policy and industry professionals.

n Embed yourself in the organization and act as a peer, a sounding board and an advisor.

Process

n Build consistent approaches to cyber risk management with an understanding of threat scenarios and attack paths to help inform attack surface reduction and prioritize control improvements.

n Focus on fit-for-purpose security processes that feature consistent user experiences.

n Establish strict identity controls and work to achieve a mature state of identity governance and services.

n Segment legacy environments to limit the attack surface and help contain any breaches.

n Have a proactive recovery plan focusing on the organization’s most critical workflows with a communication structure and stress test it often.

Data and technology

n Embrace the inevitable automation of the security function—trust the latest tools, such as robotic processes, to security orchestration, automation and response (SOAR), and extended detection and response (XDR) systems.

n Work with cloud providers to help ensure broad visibility into how products and services are configured to avoid inadvertent vulnerabilities.

n Consider cybersecurity and privacy issues up front when exploring emerging technologies, including the evolving risks associated with adopting AI systems.

n Assign responsibilities and establish accountability around how critical data is processed and managed and how it supports critical business processes.

n In the interest of speed, scalability and trust, a transition to identity as a service in the cloud needs to happen sooner than later.

Regulatory

n Be aware of changing regulatory trends and drivers and what they could mean for the company’s future technology strategy, product development, and operations.

n Consider the regulatory impacts vis-à-vis AI and automation—establish a clear concept of what the business can and can’t do in these arenas and be alive to public concerns and changing expectations.

n Explore automating compliance monitoring and reporting and task a team member to serve as a regulatory monitor to stay on top of privacy and security regulatory trends.

n Align security and privacy compliance strategy with the company’s broad business strategy to help ensure stakeholders from across the organization are on the same page.

n Look beyond the letter of the regulation—and be prepared to ask yourself more fundamental questions about digital trust and how you make that central to your strategic thinking.

The excerpt was taken from the KPMG Thought Leadership publication: https://kpmg. com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/02/cybersecurity-considerations-2023.html.

© 2023 KPMG Intl Ltd., a private English company limited by guarantee, has Philippine partnership R.G. Manabat & Co. as a member-firm. All rights reserved. For more information, email ph-kpmgmla@ kpmg.com or visit www.home.kpmg/ph. This article is for general information purposes only and should not be considered as professional advice to a specific issue or entity. The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the BusinessMirror KPMG International or KPMG in the Philippines.

Imported goods expensive, so buy local to save–BSP

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

In a recent forum, BSP Governor Felipe M. Medalla said the peso is considered the “shock absorber” of higher prices. This makes imported goods more prohibitive because foreign exchange rate costs are passed on to consumers. Medalla said buying local also

means purchasing items from firms even if they also purchase inputs from other countries like China, since these still make use of Philippine labor.

“We of course allow the peso to be the shock absorber because in some cases, the best way to control [high prices] is encourage Filipinos to buy

local,” Medalla said. Medalla said, however, that allowing the peso to depreciate at a fast rate may also not be a good thing. This, he explained, is where increasing policy rates come into play.

“That’s why letting the peso adjust to reflect market fundamentals is a good idea except [when the pace of adjustment of the] exchange rate is too fast. That’s why we have two policies: one is, the Central Bank sells dollar so that the peso’s rate of depreciation isn’t too steep; the other one is [we won’t raise] interest rates [too much] so that the peso decline is not too much,” Medalla told reporters.

The BSP expects inflation to “normalize” by around November this year, the data for which will be released by December 2023. Medalla

said the inflation print in January when inflation reached 8.7 percent was “such a huge surprise” and “chased the calculus.”

In January, inflation was the highest since November 2008 when inflation clocked in at 9.1 percent. Headline inflation slowed in February to 8.6 percent but core inflation continued to climb.

Economists earlier said core inflation is the indicator to watch as it reached 7.8 percent in February. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said this is the highest since March 1999 when it was at 8.1 percent. Core inflation measures inflation for commodities that are not volatile and excludes certain food and energy items. The movements also lag those in prices of energy and food.

NTA supports legislation vs smuggling of tobacco

By Raadee S. Sausa

THE National Tobacco Administration (NTA) has showed support to proposed antitobacco smuggling bills.

In a statement, the government body said it is “strongly supporting” the passage of Senate Bill (SB) 1812 and House Bill (HB) 3917. Both bills seek to amend Section 3 and Section 4 of Republic Act (RA) 10845 (AntiAgricultural Smuggling Act of 2016) for the inclusion of tobacco, whether manufactured or unmanufactured, including finished products such as cigars, cigarettes or heated tobacco products (HTPs), with a minimum excise tax and VAT payable in the amount of P1 million, in the coverage of large-scale agricultural smuggling as economic sabotage.

The NTA also said that the proposed measures against illicit tobacco trade and smuggling were meant to protect the local tobacco industry and sustain and increase government’s collection of sin taxes.

“Furthermore, tobacco remains

as a high-value cash crop, which contributes a huge amount to the farmers’ family income, particularly those in the Ilocos Region,” the NTA said.

A farmer who follows the prescribed tobacco technology earns an average net income of P72,000 per hectare per tobacco season.

On the other hand, the tobacco industry is one of the strongest pillars of the country’s economy and the lifeblood of the North as it provides livelihood and sustenance to at least two million people including the 600,000 tobacco farmers and their families, the NTA said.

Annual revenues

ACCORDING to the NTA, the industry also generates on the average about P120 billion in revenues annually, “which immensely helps the government fund its education, health, welfare, infrastructure, and economic programs.”

A portion of the excise tax collection is given back to tobacco-producing provinces and municipalities, in accordance with RA 7171 and 8240,

Lender opens credit line for coco farmers

STATE-RUN Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) announced it opened a credit facility to coconut farmers “to increase production and income especially in coconut-producing communities nationwide.”

Under the LandBank “Coconut Farmers and Industry Development (CFID) Lending” program, eligible coconut farmers, cooperatives and associations can access financing for various projects, including the establishment of intercrops and poultry or livestock integration in coconut farms, the state-run lender said in a statement.

“Individual coconut farmers can use the loan to increase production and working capital, to acquire machines and equipment, and establish necessary facilities,” it added. “Coconut cooperatives and associations can also utilize the financing for relending and rediscounting to their members.”

The LandBank said its CFID lending program supports the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan (CFIDP) spearheaded by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), which outlines the policies and directions to rehabilitate and modernize the Philippine coconut industry.

“The CFID Lending Program forms part of the National Government’s whole-of-nation approach towards providing meaningful investments to the coconut industry. Landbank remains committed to providing accessible and affordable credit to coconut farmers nationwide to help improve their livelihood,” LandBank President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo was quoted in the statement as saying.

Under the CFID Lending Program, LandBank will provide short-term and long-term loans of at least P1 million, with a fixed affordable interest rate of 2 percent per annum.

The loan program has a total P333.3 million fund composed of P83.3 million (25 percent) from Landbank funds and P250 million (75 percent) from the Credit Component Allocation under the Coconut Farmers Industry Trust Fund (CFITF) Act, which was signed by former President Rodrigo R. Duterte in February 2021.

The LandBank said its CFID lending program will run until 2071 to accommodate as many players from the coconut industry as possible.

as amended by RA 10351.

The NTA said that the tobacco industry in the country continues to dominate the agricultural, economic social and political aspects of the country.

Among the non-food crops in the agriculture sector, tobacco has been grown commercially, steadily contributing to the economy, and to the government’s efforts toward economic growth and recovery.

“But, one of the identified critical issues and concerns of the Philippine tobacco industry that needs to be addressed is illegal cigarette trading and smuggling,” the NTA said.

Thus, the NTA said, it is in solidarity with the proponents of the proposed measures as these would solutions to the curbing of tobacco smuggling and illicit tobacco trading/agricultural smuggling in the country.

Solon, JTI

DEPUTY House Speaker Kristine Singson-Meehan also expressed support for the approval of the bill.

“As a representative of a tobacco producing province, I support this bill [that] could help curb the illicit trade of tobacco that is now been proliferating in the country and as a consequence negatively impacts our local tobacco industry, especially our tobacco farmers.”

“Smuggled and illicit cigarettes often do not use local tobacco leaf but eat up a big share in the market affecting demand for local leaf, hurting the legitimate industry upon which farmers and workers depend for livelihood and also depriving the government of revenues,” SingsonMeehan told reporters over the weekend.

In November last year, Japan Tobacco International (JTI) Philippines General Manager John Freda has expressed support for the approval of the proposal.

“We believe that the bill, if passed into law, will serve as a strong deterrent against smugglers and counterfeiters of tobacco products and will help stem the tide of illicit trade in this country,” Freda said.

HSBC asks shareholders to vote vs push to rejig structure

HSBC Holdings Plc. has told investors to vote against a proposal by an activist shareholder in Hong Kong to overhaul the company’s structure and spin off its Asian business.

Ken Lui, who leads a group of 100 shareholders pushing for the changes, wants the bank to restore dividend payouts to at least 51 cents a share and reorganize its Asian businesses. The bank said on Friday it will put the proposal before shareholders at its annual general meeting in Birmingham on May 5, and that its board recommends that investors vote against it.

HSBC Shareholder Group Pushes for Proposal to Boost Dividend Lui’s effort adds further pressure on the London-headquartered bank, which is pushing

back against another move by top shareholder Ping An Insurance Group Co. to radically revamp the lender.

The activist shareholders say that HSBC’s business in Europe and the US has “dragged down” overall performance while its Asian operations remain highly profitable, according to Friday’s statement. They also cite the high cost of operating as a UK-headquartered company and escalating tensions between China and the West as further justifications for spinning off the Asian business.

The board said the proposals led by Lui are not in the best interests of the company and would “result not only in a material loss of value for shareholders but also lower dividends.” Bloomberg News

IF Filipinos want to save, they should buy local goods as imported goods have become more expensive, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

This March 20, 2023, photo shows a woman passing by a branch of hsBC holdings Plc in hong Kong. Executives of the 158-yearold bank are urging against an overhaul of the company’s structure. BloomBerg News

The view fRoM MoScow and Beijing: what peace in Ukraine and a post-conflict world look like to Xi and Putin

By Ronald Suny, University of Michigan The Conversation

The setting for the get-together was the late-15th-century Faceted Chamber, the ornate throne room of Muscovite grand princes and czars. The main topics of discussion were fittingly grandiose: How should hostilities in Ukraine end? And after the war is over, how should the international security system be reshaped?

The reaction of many in the West to the proposals put forward by China and discussed with Russia has been notably suspicious of intentions. US.Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned the world not to be “fooled by any tactical move by Russia, supported by China…to freeze the war on its own terms.”

Such sentiment is understandable. Putin launched a brutal, unprovoked war in Ukraine. Amid the heightened emotional environment of missile attacks on civilians, horrific atrocities against ordinary citizens and deportation of children from Ukraine, even a cool evaluation of ways to end the fighting, declare a cease-fire, and begin talks by the belligerents has led to accusations of appeasement. And the peace plan put forward

by China on February 24, 2023, and discussed with Putin during a March 20-22 meeting in Moscow has been criticized as overly vague and lacking concrete suggestions.

In such circumstances, it can be difficult to consider what the interest of the other side might actually be in bringing the killing to an end, and their sincerity of any purported efforts to do so.

But as a historian, I ask, what does the world look like from the other side? How has the run-up to the war and the war itself been understood by Russia and China?

And what do Xi and Putin envision a post-conflict world to look like?

Playing by the rules—but whose?

T H e r ulers of both Russia and China see the West-dominated “rulesbased international order”—a system that has dominated geopolitics since the end of the Second World War—as designed to uphold the global hegemony of the United States.

The two men’s stated preference is for a multilateral system, one which would most probably result in a number of regional hegemons. This would include, to

be sure, China and Russia holding sway in their own neighborhoods.

Xi put the matter rather gently during his Moscow trip: “The international community has recognized that no country is superior to others, no model of governance is universal, and no single country should dictate the international order. The common interest of all humankind is in a world that is united and peaceful, rather than divided and volatile.”

Reflecting his more street tough style, Putin was more blunt. Russia and China “have consistently advocated the shaping of a more just multipolar world order based on international law rather than certain ‘rules’ serving the needs of the ‘golden billion,’” he said, referencing a theory that holds that the billion people in the richest countries of the world consume the greatest portion of the world’s resources.

Continuing in this vein, Putin said the “crisis in Ukraine” was an example of the West trying to “retain its international dominance and preserve the unipolar world order” while splitting “the common eurasian space into a network of ‘exclusive clubs’ and military blocs that would serve to contain our countries’ development and harm their interests.”

China as peacemaker?

Be I j I ng ap pears intent to play the role of negotiator-in-chief in this transition to a multipolar world order.

After its success shouldering aside the United States and brokering a rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia, China has turned its attention to Ukraine.

With its peace proposal on Ukraine, China has deftly estab -

lished certain principles to which other nations would eagerly subscribe.

“The sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively upheld. All countries, big or small, strong or weak, rich or poor, are equal members of the international community,” holds the first principle in language that would be hard to object to.

But those anodyne sentences point in two directions at once. Upholding sovereignty appears, at first, to be aimed at Russia a year after it had so clearly violated the sovereignty of neighboring Ukraine. But the principle also can be read to include the conflict over Taiwan, which is recognized by Beijing and some other states as a part of China. It is perhaps no accident that the plan’s wording come as the US, which officially recognizes China’s claim to Taiwan, has toughened its stance, vowing to defend the island should it be invaded. To Beijing, the United States appears intent on turning a rival, China, into an enemy.

n a tions, China asserts, have the right to enhance their security but not at the expense of others. This principle echoes directly one of Putin’s most frequently expressed reasons for the conflict with Ukraine: the expansion of n ATO into e a stern e urope and the alliance’s promise to expand further by admitting g e orgia and Ukraine. In Putin’s view, such n ATO encroachment is an existential threat to Russia’s security interests.

But the Chinese plan also rejects Putin’s nuclear saber-rattling: “The threat or use of nuclear weapons should be opposed.”

Meanwhile, the Chinese strong -

ly insist on the need for an immediate cease-fire and the start of negotiations, a call that Washington vehemently rejected as a concession that amounted to “diplomatic cover for Russia to continue to commit” war crimes.

What will Russia settle for?

R U SSIA’ S a ims in the Ukraine war are simple enough to dissect, though they have been reduced after the effective Ukrainian resistance to the initial invasion.

Instead of taking over all of Ukraine, and perhaps setting up a puppet government, Moscow has been forced to accept limited territorial gains in the Donbas and the coastal crescent linking both the region and Russia with Crimea. Reduced though they are, such Russian goals are completely unacceptable to Ukraine and to the Western alliance—and, indeed, to all countries that accept that principle that international borders cannot be legitimately changed unilaterally by military force.

Although not clearly spelled out, this principle is even contained in the very first sentence of the Chinese peace plan: “Universally recognized international law, including the purposes and principles of the United nations Charter, must be strictly observed.”

That notwithstanding, Putin has welcomed the intervention of China and the plan in general terms.

Rival global ambitions

S O what’s in this for Beijing, given that to many, the peace plan is already a non-starter?

The conflict in Ukraine is not only devastating to the two belligerents involved, but destabilizing for states around the world. In the

short run, China may be benefiting from the war because it consumes attention and armaments from the West and diverts its gaze from e a st Asia. The US “pivot to the east”—a planned refocusing from the Obama administration onward aimed at countering the perceived threat of China—has stalled.

But there is an argument that Xi is most concerned with China’s renewal of economic development, which would rely on less confrontational relations with e urope and the United States. Stability, both domestically and internationally, works to China’s economic advantage as a major producer and exporter of industrial goods. And Beijing is mindful that a slump in foreign demand and investment is hitting the country’s economic prospects.

As such, Beijing’s new role as peacemaker—whether in the Middle e a st or e a stern e urope—may indeed be sincere. Further, Xi may be the only person on the globe able to persuade Putin to think seriously about a way out of war.

Standing in the way of peace, however, is not only the current intransigence of Russia and Ukraine. The United States’ long-held foreign policy aim of maintaining its “indispensable nation” status runs counter to Russia and China’s ambition to end American global dominance.

It presents two, seemingly insurmountable, rival ambitions.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation. com/the-view-from-moscow-andbeijing-what-peace-in-ukraineand-a-post-conflict-world-looklike-to-xi-and-putin-202323.

Just a few days after being branded a war criminal in an international arrest warrant, Russian President Vladimir Putin was talking peace with his most important ally, Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Chinese President Xi Jinping toast during their dinner at The Palace of the Facets, a building in the Moscow Kremlin, Russia, March 21, 2023. China’s leader Xi just concluded his three-day visit with Russian President Putin, a warm affair in which the two men praised each other and spoke of a profound friendship. t ’s a high in a complicated, centuries-long relationship in which the two countries have been allies and enemies. Pavel Byrkin, S P u tnik, k r emlin Pool Photo via a P File

Local beauty brand marks 40th anniversary with huge sale

ACCESSIBILITY, affordability, and inclusivity without compromising quality. This is what Ever Bilena, the country’s leading cosmetic brand, stands for—and it is the same principle that has made it a household name in the Filipino cosmetic industry for decades.

This year, the brand is celebrating its 40-year milestone in a big way to help makeup lovers and skin-care enthusiasts from all walks of life boost their confidence.

As a treat to its patrons and beauty enthusiasts, the Ever Bilena Anniversary Sale promo is back to offer amazing and affordable products for as low as P40 until March 31 exclusive at all SM Beauty Department Store and Watsons outlets nationwide!

All a beauty enthusiast has to do is buy selected Ever Bilena makeup products at a regular price at any SM Beauty Department Store or Watsons branch and get a second item for only P40.

Moreover, Ever Bilena promo offers in Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok are 40-percent off!

The brand carries a full range of makeup essentials from skin care for young professionals and teens, as well as other personal care products and so much more.

So beauty enthusiasts planning to achieve their makeup goals and get that everlasting look and glow this year, they can fill your carts and enjoy huge discounts on makeup essentials from Ever

To the Max

THE “epitome of Italian quality, design and style,” Max Mara recalls the French Riviera in the 1920s for its current collection as envisioned by its creative director, the British Ian Griffiths. In the heady times between the two world wars, the French Riviera attracted mythic personalities such as F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Gerald and Sara Murphy, Picasso, Picabia, Stravinsky, Cocteau and Diaghilev.

The deep summer blue waters and golden sun of the Mediterranean also inspired iconic figures such as Josephine Baker, Dorothy Parker and Isadora Duncan, as well as fashion designers such as Coco Chanel, Jeanne Lanvin and Jean Patou.

But for the spring/summer 2023 season, Max Mara’s Griffiths gravitated toward timeless muse Renée Perle and architect Eileen Gray to evoke the spirit of French Riviera Style. These archetypes— Perle as the muse for French photographer Jacques Henri Lartigue, and Gray’s feminine take on modernism and shape influenced the structures of the clothes—inspire the collection.

There are about 2,254 Max Mara stores across 90 countries, with flagships in London, New York and Milan. Manila won’t be left behind, as the brand opened in the Philippines in November 2022. The president of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, Sergio Boero, was in attendance.

On March 15, the casual elegance of French Riviera Style, “The Blue Horizon,” was presented at the Max Mara premium boutique at the upscale Ayala Greenbelt 3 Mall in Makati City. With dominant palettes of neutrals such as black, cream, tan and a dash of denim, the quintessential looks from the SS23 runway collection are composed of high-waisted pants, turtleneck tops, and maxi dresses.

The edited pieces—mostly in elongated silhouettes—are suitable during these warmer days in the tropics. The Tailored Suit Project “explores feminine sensuality: a new kind of luxury based on simplicity, authenticity, feeling and versatility.” The dreamy maxi dresses are constructed with a soft cotton blend scuba jersey fabric. The canvas trousers are voluminous while the tank tops are so sexy.

Max Mara has amassed fans such as Hollywood heavyweights Reese Witherspoon (wearing a #MaxMaraSS23 doppio a mano wool coat), Jane Fonda (wearing a silk and wool #MaxMaraSS23 suit with matching silk shirt), Lily Collins (wearing a #MaxMaraResort23 cashmere coat on the cover of Vogue Greece) and Lili Reinhart (wearing a Teddy Bear

What fragrance family is the best for you?

celebrating it here at SM Beauty. We have all these luxury premium brands, and the plan is to bring them together in one experiential location so that people can really explore and discover their scents,” said Sharon Decapia, marketing AVP of Watsons Philippines.

During the launch of “Celebration of Scents” last March 21, guests and customers had the opportunity to sample scents from different brands and listen to insights shared by experts like Nicole LimosMorales of The Beauty Edit and Tin Conde of Luxasia Philippines.

coat from the #MaxMaraResort23 collection). The brand hopes that with the latest collection, Filipinos will also become fans of its timeless and classically chic outfits. “Every clothing item is conceived and designed not only for it to be worn, but also experienced. Shades of Mediterranean blue complete the collection and tell the story of an imaginary encounter in front of a blue horizon,” according to its runway production notes.

Griffiths, at the helm of the brand for 35 years, was asked by Emirateswoman.com how he was able to

fresh category. These notes (clean and fresh herbs, or zesty and tangy notes) are more often used in men’s fragrances than women’s scents. To try: Giorgio Armani’s Acqua di Gio and Chloé Love Story. There are also fragrances which resemble the skin’s natural scent. Most skin scents are soft, lightweight formulas that rely more on dry-down materials like musks, woods and ambers, and less on identifiable materials like citruses of florals. You know how it is when you’ve worn a fragrance for a few hours and its smell is fading? That is how a skin scent is best described.

keep the brand at the forefront of fashion to this day. He replied:

“I always remember the words of our founder Achille Maramotti, who said he wanted to provide ‘real clothes for real women.’ Max Mara resonates with women because it presents them with an image they can relate to. Even the runway shows are like heightened reality; it’s like holding up a mirror and saying, ‘Can you see yourself?’ By remembering Achille’s words, I avoid straying into bizarre fantasy or fashion that alienates women.” ■

Go to your nearest SM Beauty Store or shop online at ShopSM from now until March 31 and enjoy big discounts on a wide variety of authentic fragrances.

“Our goal is to make fragrances more accessible— the joy of discovering your scent, creating beauty through fragrance, through memories, through emotions. All this is what we want our customers to experience. Usually, we’re intimidated to try fragrances in a department store but this setting will make it less so,” said Decapia.

UP until she became sick with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and became sensitive to fragrances, my mother wore Joy by Jean Patou everyday. It was the only perfume she wore since my childhood. She no longer wears any perfume but I will always have this idea of how my mom smells and that’s a mix of tuberose, sandalwood and ylang-ylang along with a bit of soap and cigarettes.

Growing up, she’d always tell me that a lady would never leave the house without spraying perfume, and that stuck with me. I have always had an affinity with amber fragrances (which are also known as orientals, a term I no longer find politically correct). Some of my favorite scents are Tom Ford’s Noir De Noir and Paco Rabanne’s Olympea.

Fragrance layering is a trend that my mother, the Joy by Jean Patou purist, would probably be horrified by. For instance, I love layering the Brazilian Crush Cheirosa 62 Perfume Mist (pistachio, salted caramel and vanilla) over Noir De Noir (rose, truffle, vanilla, patchouli and saffron).

There are so many fragrances that can be layered and mixed for a more unique olfactory experience, and that is exactly the goal of SM Beauty when it launched “Celebration of Scents” ongoing until March 31 at the Mall of Asia Atrium.

“International Fragrance Week is an official celebration globally, and it’s the first time we’re

Conde explained the different types of fragrances and when to use them. For instance, EDTs or Eau de Toilette are great for daytime use while Eau de Parfums or EDPs would work best for nights out. Perfume or “parfums,” being the most concentrated and most intense, would be perfect for social events like weddings or parties.

Limos-Morales said fragrances smell differently on people. This means that what smells good on your friend may not exactly work for you.

There are also different scent families. Conde and Limos-Morales, a fragrance connoisseur and collector, explained what they are.

Florals smell like fresh-cut flowers or have a powdery note to them. They are perfect for the summer. To try: Dior’s Miss Dior and Jo Malone

London’s Rose Water Vanilla.

Amber scents are often thought of as exotic, opulent and seductive. Think herbs and spices or dry, powdery and resin notes sweetened with amber. To try:

Prada’s Paradoxe and Christian Dior Ambre Nuit.

Woody fragrances are usually warm and opulent, mixing incense-like fragrances like sandalwood and patchouli with drier notes like cedar. Sometimes, perfumers will include a citrus or floral note to make it more interesting. To try: Le Labo’s Santal 33 and Aerin Cedar Violet. Herby, citrusy and oceanic scents all fall under the

Most skin fragrances have as the main ingredient Iso E Super, which smells slightly woody and is almost imperceptible. When sprayed on bare skin, Iso E Super helps create an aura for the person who wears the fragrance. Examples of skin scents are Etat Libre D’Orange Secretions Magnifiques and Glossier You Eau de Parfum.

“Scents have the ability to affect our energy and mood. Citrusy scents can perk up one’s energy, floral scents can uplift senses and relieve stress, fruity scents are fun and youthful, woody fragrances are warm and earthy, aromatic fragrances provide a relaxing feel, oceanic or aquatic scents promote tranquility, amber or oriental fragrances are sensual, and spicy fragrances have an alluring scent and can help boost brain power and attention spans,” said Conde, senior trading manager of Luxasia Philippines. The “Celebration of Scents” mall event is a feast for the senses with a floral garden and an array of fragrances, creating a unique and immersive experience. Customers can enjoy special deals, discounts up to 50 percent, and exclusive freebies. SMAC members can also enjoy free bottle engraving of their newly-purchased fragrances.

Participating brands include Jo Malone, Estee Lauder, Body Fantasies, Paco Rabanne, Calvin Klein, Coty, Giorgio Armani, Clinique, Marc Jacobs, Burberry, Chloe, Prada, and Ralph Lauren.

MPH completes acquisition of South Cotabato Hospital, its 5th in Mindanao, 20th in the Network

Mariwasa, SCG feature innovative home solutions at WORLDBEX

AFTER two long years of working around the online space due to the pandemic, Mariwasa, the pioneer in the Philippine ceramic tile industry, recently returned to a face-to-face setup for the 26th edition of WORLDBEX at the World Trade Center, Pasay City, where they featured their latest innovative home solutions.

Jakkrit Suwansilp, President of Mariwasa Siam Ceramics, Inc., could not contain his excitement at the brand’s momentous comeback to the much-awaited event of the building and construction industry.

“During the pandemic, we launched a lot of new products and activities. But this time, it’s face-to-face. This year, Mariwasa will transform itself from a tiles manufacturer and producer to offering DSB (decorative sofa and bathroom) sets. We can now complete your dream home,” Suwansilp said.

He added that despite Mariwasa’s eagerness to return to physical events, they still faced the challenge of making the booth more enticing to encourage guests to view the products they curated for Filipino buyers.

The brand presented itself as Mariwasa Home to show Filipinos that they are the brand to turn to for quality products that are worth every centavo. Mariwasa produces new designs annually to cater to its clients’ ever-evolving tastes. It hopes to create a meaningful connection with customers and homeowners from different generations because the home should be a place of happiness for every Filipino.

Suwansilp shared that their exhibition at WORLDBEX featured products with new effects and functions suited for every room in a household. Upon entering the booth, guests experienced firsthand

Mariwasa’s anti-slip tiles, which Suwansilp recommended that they be used in areas with heavy foot traffic. Compared to other tiles, Mariwasa’s anti-slip product gives people a sense of safety because they don’t have to worry about accidents due to the surface area.

“Our dedication lies in uncompromising quality. Every product we launch, we make sure it follows Philippine standards or more,” Suwansilp said.

Mariwasa’s booth also features bathroom fixtures like sinks and toilets, along with Mariwasa’s other popular products, including its tile grout. Their handy and trusty mascot Tyler was also present to keep guests entertained and delighted as they saw what the company offered.

While progress and artistry are two vital components of Mariwasa’s products, the company also follows sustainable practices by following the ESG (environmental, social, good governance) framework.

Instead of using fossil fuels, Suwansilp shared that Mariwasa utilizes alternative

energy to produce tiles and practices energysaving methods in their facilities. They also partner with local communities to promote environmental sustainability through common approaches like recycling and upcycling.

Also present at the WORLDBEX was SCG Marketing Philippines Inc., which highlighted their new developments that complete a modern home. SCG offers worldclass quality cement products that ensure safety without sacrificing anything.

“We are glad to share that SCG Marketing Philippines Inc., has ensured that this year’s WORLDBEX will allow our visitors to discover the true essence of a home through SCG products. We are excited to let everyone experience what our customers in ASEAN countries have experienced for almost 100 years, from a durable SCG Smartboard to the energy-saving SCG insulation and of course the SCG Smartwood that completes the homey vibe in our booth,” said Bancha Chaiprom, President, SCG Marketing Philippines Inc.

Mercantile Insurance, ValuePlus Auto Service partner to offer motor car insurance and more products

car insurance and a range of similar products to its customers, positioning itself as a one-stop casa alternative and a comprehensive solution for car owners.

Mark Saberola, General Manager of ValuePlus Auto Service, is particularly excited about the partnership, as Mercantile Insurance is not only a strategic partner, but its chairman, Justin Liu, is also a loyal customer of ValuePlus.

Saberola remarks, “We are thrilled to be partnering with Mercantile Insurance, a company that shares our commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction. This collaboration allows us to offer an even greater range of services and options to our customers, making ValuePlus the go-to choice for all their automotive aftersales needs.”

Justin Liu, Chairman of Mercantile Insurance, is equally enthusiastic about the partnership, stating, “As a loyal customer of ValuePlus, I have always admired their dedication to providing topnotch auto services. Our partnership with ValuePlus is a natural fit, as it enables us to extend our insurance expertise to a wider range of customers while supporting ValuePlus in their mission to become a one-stop casa alternative.”

VALUEPLUS Auto Service, a leading automotive service provider, is excited to announce a new partnership with Mercantile Insurance, a top player in the insurance industry. With this collaboration, ValuePlus will begin offering motor

This collaboration is set to benefit both ValuePlus Auto Service and Mercantile Insurance customers, offering convenience, added value, and comprehensive solutions for all their automotive needs.

Year-long Takbo Para Sa Kalikasan 2003 to start with Fire Run on May 23 at CCP Complex; to benefit environmental programs

THE Takbo Para sa Kalikasan 2023, which is now on its 5th year, will commence with the Fire Run on May 23, 2023 at Liwasang Ulalim, CCP Complex in Pasay City. Organized by Green Media Events Company, the proceeds from the four runs will help support the company’s environmental initiatives.

The Fire Run will be followed by the Water Run on July 16, 2023; the Air Run on September 24, 2023 and the Earth Run on November 26, 2023. The race categories for all the runs are 5 km, 10 km and 16km with their respective registration fees at P950, P1,000 and P1,050. All runs will be conducted at the Liwasang Ulalim.

Participants in all race categories are entitled to the event singlet, race bib, finisher shirt and finisher medal. Participants in all

four runs will be entitled to a trophy.

Part of the proceeds from the runs will be used to support environmental activities like tree planting, coastal cleanup, recycling, bring your own bottle, Save Pawikan Creatures, Support Homemade resources, conservation projects, activities that promote climate change awareness, plogging activities and share a care program

Last year, the organizers were able to donate cash and grocery items to the Pawikan Conservation Center. Together with volunteers, a coastal cleanup and tree planting activity were conducted as well.

Participants can register for the run at any of the Chris Sports outlets at SM North Edsa, SM Megamall, Glorietta 3, SM Mall of Asia, SM Bicutan and Robinson’s Place Manila. For inquiries please contact

THE country’s leading private hospital network, Metro Pacific Health Corporation (MPH), the new name of Metro Pacific Hospital Holdings Inc., has completed the acquisition of Howard Hubbard Memorial Hospital (HHMH) through its newlyformed subsidiary Metro Matutum Hospital, Inc. (MMHI). The transaction, initiated through a Business Transfer Agreement signed on October 2022, involves the sale of hospital assets to MMHI by Dole Philippines, Inc. (DPI), a leading producer of fresh and packaged fruits. Mt. Matutum Healthcare Foundation, Inc. (MMHFI), a party to the transaction, has been operating and managing the hospital since 2000 through a management contract.

Established in 1967, HHMH is a 95-bed hospital that has been serving the health care needs of thousands of DPI employees and residents of Polomolok, South Cotabato, and nearby areas. The hospital facility, located within the integrated plantation and canning facility of DPI, has seen modest expansion over the years and several management transitions.

“It’s been a long time coming for this investment, and MPH is excited to finally come in and contribute to the Polomolok community through its expertise in investing in and managing health care facilities around the country,” said MPH Chief Transformation Officer, Provincial Cluster Head, and incoming HHMH President Celso Bernard G. Lopez. “The community should expect nothing but the best out of this investment, including major expansions in the hospital’s facilities and service offerings which our incoming management team will put in motion from day one,” Lopez added.

DPI Vice President and Managing Director, Reynaldo C. Doria, expressed his enthusiasm for the transaction, saying, “DPI is pleased to welcome MPH to the Dole community of Polomolok and is excited to work with them for the continued growth and development of Howard Hubbard Memorial Hospital.”

Doria also added “This is not the first time DPI is working with the Metro Pacific group, which is why we are confident we have found ourselves the perfect partner to better serve the healthcare needs not only of our employees and dependents but also of the general population of Polomolok,” referencing the pineapple company’s waste-to-energy project with Metpower Venture Projects, a whollyowned subsidiary of MPH parent company and publicly listed investment firm, Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC).

MMHI, the new company formed to own, operate, and manage the hospital, is 67 percent owned by MPH and 33 percent owned by MPH subsidiary St. Elizabeth Hospital, Inc. (SEHI),

owner of the 273-bed Level 3 hospital in General Santos City located about 45 minutes from HHMH.

“Throughout SEHI’s history, DPI has been one of our key corporate partners in serving the community and in significant charity work. SEHI is proud to be a part of this transaction and is excited about the opportunity to take advantage of synergies between our two hospitals to improve further the healthcare offerings for the community of Polomolok and General Santos,” said SEHI CEO Antonio G. Veneracion.

HHMH becomes the 20th hospital in the MPH network and is the 5th hospital located in Mindanao, joining SEHI, Davao Doctors Hospital, Manuel J. Santos Hospital in Butuan, and West Metro Medical Center in Zamboanga.

For MPH Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, the investment signifies the continued commitment of MPH to grow and expand its reach beyond the major cities and areas of the country. “Over the past couple of years, there have been many changes and improvements in how MPH operates, and deploying capital through investments in hospitals and other health care businesses will always be a key part of our long-term strategy of making the best health care accessible to as many Filipinos as possible,” said Pangilinan, who also added that “investing in communities such as the quaint municipality of Polomolok and having partners like DPI and SEHI will only enhance our capability as an integrated healthcare network, enabling us to help our fellow Filipinos wherever they may be.”

The 15 other hospitals in MPH’s portfolio are Makati Medical Center, Asian Hospital and Medical Center, Cardinal Santos Medical Center, Manila Doctors Hospital, De Los Santos Medical Center, Commonwealth Hospital and Medical Center, Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Marikina Valley Medical Center, Jesus Delgado Memorial Hospital, Calamba Medical Center, Los Baños Doctors Hospital, Sacred Heart Hospital of Malolos, Central Luzon Doctors Hospital in Tarlac, Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod, and Ramiro Community Hospital in Bohol.

Clean energy leaders to gather in Manila in May for The Future Energy, Solar Show Philippines

Ericka or Jenny of Green Media Events at 099809998345 ir 0977-8521439 or email them at greenmediaeventscompany@gmail.com.

AFTER a triumphant return in 2022, the 9th edition of The Future Energy Show Philippines and Solar Show Philippines will take place in Manila this May 15 to 16, 2023. Firmly established as the largest and most significant event for the sector in the Philippines, the 2023 edition will be bigger and better than ever before.

The Future Energy Show Philippines & Solar Show Philippines will convene more than 150 exhibitors at SMX Convention Center Manila, offering attendees the chance to evaluate solutions from leading energy players such as Jinko Solar, Trina Solar, Longi, Sungrow, CHINT Electric Global, Enphase Energy, Growatt, CSI Technology, Alpha ESS, Ginlong, and Mibet Energy, and many more.

In addition to walking the exhibition floor and browsing the hundreds of products on offer, attendees can expect to experience seven tracks of free content across four theatres, covering Large Scale Solar, Rooftop Solar, Rural Electrification, Smart Grid/T&D, Energy Storage, Alternative Renewables and brand new for 2023, a Solar Installer University.

More than 150 speakers from across the Philippines and beyond will be sharing their

insights and ideas on the latest developments in renewable energy and smart energy solutions. Confirmed senior speakers include Energy Secretary Raphael Perpetuo M. Lotilla; Energy Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara; Atty. Monalisa Dimalanta, Chairperson & CEO, Energy Regulatory Commission; Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian; Quintin Pastrana, President, WEnergy Power Pilipinas’ Alexander Ablaza, CEO, Co-Chairman, President, Climargy Inc.; Pete Maniego, Chairman, Energy Lawyers Association of the Philippines/ Chairman, NREB; Luis Gonzales, Chief Data & AI Officer, Aboitiz Power; Ferdinand O. Geluz, Chief Commercial Officer, Meralco; Tetchi Capellan, President, Sun Asia; Atty. Richard J. Nethercott, President and CEO, Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines; Jason Soberano, Vice President, and Chief Business Development Officer, SN Aboitiz; and Ruth Yu-Owen, President & CEO, Upgrade Energy Philippines

Over 6,000 attendees are expected at the two-day event, which offers a unique opportunity to network with industry leaders, innovators and potential investors.

“We are thrilled to once again bring together the Philippines’ top clean energy leaders and their partners together”, said Paul Clark, Managing Director at Terrapinn Asia, “With a sold-out exhibition floor that had to be expanded to accommodate demand, The Future Energy Show Philippines and The Solar Show Philippines truly bring together the people that can shape the Philippines energy future and we look forward to another outstanding event”.

For more information about the event, visit the official website at www.terrapinn.com/ futureenergyshowph23

MARK Saberola, General Manager of ValuePlus Auto Service (middle), and Justin Liu, Chairman of Mercantile Insurance (right), with Sonny Carubio (left) Cubao Branch Head, celebrate their exciting new partnership aimed at providing comprehensive automotive solutions to customers.”

IN the photo are, from left, Jakkrit Suwanslip, President of Mariwasa Siam Ceramics Inc.; Bancha Chaiprom, President of SCG Marketing Philippines Inc.; Yvette Coseteng, Mariwasa Siam Ceramics Inc. Director; Tull Traisorat, Thailand Ambassador to the Philippines; Regina Coseteng, Chairman of the Board of Mariwasa Siam Ceramics Inc.; Architect Rina Soriano, VP of Architectural and Interior Design of DMCI Homes.

Love yourseLf

n SM PriMe iMPleMentS water recycling in SM M all S in an effort to helP addre SS water Sc arcity ProbleM MANILA, PHILIPPINES—Water scarcity is one of the biggest issues that the world is facing today. Defined as a problem that occurs when the water demand exceeds the available water supply, water scarcity is seen as a problem that will only get worse, especially since

PUBLIC relations is a stressful job. I don’t have to tell you that, right? No two days are the same. We may be dealing with a product launch one day, then trying to manage a crisis the next day. Or worse, those two (and many others, heaven forbid) may be happening all at the same time.

But that’s also what makes PR so exciting and addicting. If you’re anything like me, you get a high every time you successfully overcome a crisis, roll out a new project, or get relevant pick-ups for your brand or clients. The feeling is exhilarating.

Given the nature of our job though, the source of our highs can also be the cause of our lows. You may not feel it in your 20s, but as soon as you hit your 30s and 40s—boom! You don’t have as much energy as before.

You easily get drained and your thoughts can sometimes feel a little fuzzy around the edges. You can’t even pull all-nighters now without feeling like you downed a whole keg of beer the night before.

And let’s not even begin to count all the physical aches and

water use continues to increase at an unprecedented rate globally.

According to 2019 figures from UN-Water, an interagency mechanism that coordinates the efforts of United Nations (UN) entities and international organizations working on water and sanitation issues, global water demand is expected to continue increasing by 1 percent annually until 2050.

As a company with sustainability at the core of its operations, SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SM Prime) knows that there is a need for solutions that help address the degradation and depletion of the world’s natural resources. In line with this, the company has been continuously working towards

pains. Long hours seated in front of a computer can wreak havoc on your lower back and shoulders. Your once-20/20 vision is now supported by glasses. I can’t read fine print anymore—I literally need my glasses and a magnifying glass. There are pounding headaches, too. All that brainwork has a really explosive way of manifesting physically.

Because we spend so much time working, we often forget to take care of ourselves. Those aches and pains, the lack of energy and rest—we usually ignore them, putting off executive check-ups because those can wait, but our deliverables certainly cannot. We take care of other people—entire organizations, actually—so much that we forget to take care of ourselves.

h e althier lifestyle

I k N OW a l ot of people who would rather not visit a doctor because they’re afraid to find out what ailments they may have. They would rather be blissfully ignorant—then suffer the consequences later when they do discover something wrong. I used to be one of these people.

strengthening its commitment to a circular economy, implementing solutions that help improve efficiency when using natural resources, including water.

“We all know that fresh water is a finite resource, so it is important that we try our best to conserve it. This is why SM has been adhering to a circular framework when it comes to our resource consumption, including the way we use water in our malls,” said Engr. Liza B. Silerio, Vice President for SM Supermalls Corporate Compliance Group and SM Cares Program Director for Environment.

To improve water efficiency in its mall operations, SM employs facilities that help reduce its con -

After suffering a personal tragedy two months ago, I realized that we really must take better care of ourselves. After all, we can’t be of any use to our organizations if we’re constantly tired and sick. Even worse, we might not live long enough to really enjoy the love and care of the people who truly love us. In an organization, none of us are indispensable. For our families, we are irreplaceable.

The past eight weeks for me have been crammed with hospital visits: consultations with various doctors, physical therapy sessions, tests galore. My recurring headaches, which I’ve been having for years and have grown increasingly worse over the past two years, turned out to be tension headaches brought about by stress, poor posture, and lack of exercise. The good news: it’s treatable. But I need a lifestyle change if I want to get well.

I’m sharing what my doctors and therapists have advised me because I feel many of us are in the same boat. It takes a certain type of person to succeed in PR, and that kind of person is usually passionate and driven to the point of self-destruction. Let’s not allow ourselves to reach that point. Below are some of the things we need to do to become healthier and more productive.

1. Mind your posture

W I TH m ost of our waking hours spent in front of our computers, many of us have already grown accustomed to—comfortable even, or so we think—slouching or having our shoulders hunched. This contributes to

sumption of fresh water. Among these are sewage treatment plants that treat wastewater plumbing systems. This allows the water to be reused, helping ensure that there is enough water for the malls and the communities nearby.

All wastewater from tenants and mall restrooms is treated in the sewage treatment plants to become non-potable water. The recycled water is then used for air conditioning operations, specifically by cooling towers, as well as for flushing toilets and watering gardens.

In 2021, SM was able to save a total of 8.7 million cubic meters of water—enough to fill 3,480 Olympic-sized swimming pools—with

the stiffening of our shoulder muscles, which then lead to tension headaches. Be more conscious of your posture. If you find yourself hunching your shoulders, deliberately relax them and straighten your back. It may seem tedious at first, but my doctors and my therapists swear this simple act will make a world of difference.

2. Use the right tools

T O pr event yourself from always having your neck bent and your shoulders hunched while working on your computer, use a laptop stand to keep the top of your laptop’s screen at eye level. Your arms should also form a 90-degree angle when typing. If you have access to one, use an ergonomic chair with adequate back support. You may likewise use a lumbar support pillow.

3. g et up and stretch

T A k E t ime to get up and stretch every 45-60 minutes. You may walk a little bit or do some simple stretching exercises in your work area. You don’t need a lot of space for your stretches, so having a small cubicle shouldn’t hamper you from doing this regularly.

4. e x ercise

N O m atter how busy you are, take some time to exercise. Brisk walking or jogging for 15-30 minutes a day, three to five times a week should do the trick. If you don’t like doing this outdoors, you may do this on a treadmill. Do core strengthening exercises, too, to help you achieve better posture. Do weight training to strengthen

the help of these facilities, which are present in 72 SM malls nationwide and have been in operation since the early 2000s.

“Aside from minimizing our impact on common water resources, recycling water through these sewage treatment plants allows our malls to save big on water costs,” Engr. Silerio said. “Now, imagine if we all did it. I think we can leave a significant positive impact on our country’s source of fresh water.”

SM Prime is committed to supporting the United Nations in achieving its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), including “SDG

6: Clean Water and Sanitation” which aims to ensure the availability and sustainable management

your shoulder and back muscles; do yoga or pilates to strengthen your core.

5. Manage your stress I T s eems simple enough, but this is the hardest to do, at least in my case. Learn to detach from your work—don’t let it rule your world and your life. Do things that will allow you to fill your cup. You can’t pour from an empty cup, after all. This doesn’t mean turning in half-baked work or output that screams “mediocre.” Cliché as it sounds, learn to balance your work and personal life. Remember that no job (in our field) is worth dying for. The road to a healthier and longer life goes beyond physical interventions. Your mental health is equally important, and so are your work and personal environments and the people with whom you surround yourself. But that’s a story for another day.

PR Matters is a roundtable column by members of the local chapter of the United Kingdom-based International Public Relations Association (Ipra), the world’s premier organization for PR professionals around the world. Abigail L. Ho-Torres is AVP and Head of Customer Experience of Maynilad Water Services, Inc. She spent more than a decade as a business journalist before making the leap to the corporate world.

We are devoting a special column each month to answer our readers’ questions about public relations. Please send your questions or comments to askipraphil@gmail.com.

of water and sanitation for all.

Other initiatives of SM aimed toward this include the Trash-toCash Market and Plastic Waste Collection initiative, both promoting responsible disposal of plastic waste so they don’t end up in seas and oceans; the AweSMSeas campaign in partnership with the USAID and PRRCI, which raises awareness of the importance of managing plastic pollution affecting the world’s waters; and the International Coastal Cleanup that gathers thousands of volunteers annually. Visit www.smprime.com/sustainability-overview to learn more about the sustainability programs of SM Prime Holdings.

Sports

B8 Monday, March 27, 2023

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

Editor: Jun Lomibao

TIME NOT ON GILAS SIDE

By Josef Ramos

THE Samahang Basketbol

ng Pilipinas (SBP) announced over the weekend a 28-member pool for the national men’s team to the Cambodia 32nd Southeast Asian Games.

Naturalized player Justin Brownlee and big man June Mar Fajardo lead the pool where, in the words of the SBP, members of the country’s version of the “Redeem Team” will be culled. But getting everyone in the pool to practice together has become a concern.

This is a great pool of players,” Gilas Pilipinas deputy coach Jong Uichico told BusinessMirror on Sunday. “The only problem we have though is the schedule of practices because we have the Holy Week and the PBA [Philippine Basketball Association] semifinals and the finals.”

Holy Week is from April 2 to 8 while the PBA finals could end on April 20 with the Cambodia SEA Games set to start only two weeks after that on May 5.

Named to the pool were CJ Perez, Chris Ross, Marcio Lassiter, Japeth Aguilar, Scottie Thompson, Jamie Malonzo, Jeremiah Grey, Christian Standhardiger, Stanley Pringle Jr, Roger Pogoy, Calvin John Oftana,

Cebu presses leader Kaya

DYNAMIC Herb Cebu bucked a lackluster performance to beat Mendiola FC 1991, 1-0, Saturday in the Philippines Football League brought to you by Qatar Airways at the Philippine Football Federation National Training Centre in Carmona Cavite.

The Gentle Giants moved within five points off leader Kaya FC-Iloilo in the title race.

W ith Kaya not playing during weekend, Cebu made its move thanks to Japanese forward Rintaro Hama’s 23rd minute strike that pushed the Gentle Giants past a stubborn Mendiola side.

“ We’re happy for the three points,” Cebu’s Turkish head coach Mehmet Kakil said. “But the game was not satisfying. At least, we’re only one game behind Kaya in the standings.”

K aya has 42 points, with Cebu at 37 and a game in hand. Mendiola remained in sixth spot with six points from 13 matches.

The Gentle Giants enjoyed plenty of the ball in the early goings with Ivan Ouano testing Michael Asong with a header in the sixth minute.

It wasn’t until Marius Kore found Hama surging on the left flank

John Paul Erram, Michael Williams, Chris Newsome, Raymond Almazan, Norman Aaron Black, Arvin Tolentino, Kevin Louie Alas and Brandon Rosser.

They were joined by collegiate players Deschon Winston, Karl Kevin Quiambao, Jerom Lastimosa, Mason Francis Amos, Benjamin Phillips III, Ariel John Edu and Michael Phillips.

No Filipino or half-Filipino player who’s playing in the Japan league is included in the pool because of a conflict in schedule with the Cambodia SEA Games.

That moment is upon us, and we’re not leaving any stone unturned in our overall bid to regain basketball glory in our region,” SBP president Al Panlilio said. “What we’ve gone through after that fateful day in Hanoi, both the wins and the losses in the various tournaments that followed, are, in effect, geared also toward bringing the SEA Games gold medal back to our shores.”  Th e SBP also named its pool for 3x3 which settled for the bronze medal in Hanoi. Now under new head coach Lester Andrew del Rosario, the pool is composed of Almond Vosotros, Rodel Samboy De Leon, Brandon Matthew Bates, Jorey Napoles, Lervin Flores, Joseph Emmanuel Eriobu, Jeffrey Manday, Alfred Ryan Batino, Kakou Ange Frank Kouame and Joseph Sedurifa.

By Rick Olivares

FORMER national team mainstays Stephan Schrock, Anton del Rosario and Rolland

Muller lead a Far East United team that will compete in The Soccer Tournament

$1 Million Dollar Winner-Take-All set June 1 to 4 at the WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina, in the US.

A lso named to the Far East United squad was Greg Nwokolo, who played for Indonesia from 2013 to 2019, Guam captain Jason Cunliffe and

TWO high-intensity mixed martial arts (MMA) bouts and the newest slap rap battle makes its Philippine debut in the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC) 84 Rage on April 25 at the Xylo in the Palace at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.

U RCC Founder and President

Alvin Aguilar announced recently the exciting lineup of fights topbilled by the MMA flyweight main

Azevedo, Crowley wrest crowns in well-attended IM

PORTUGAL’S Filipe Azevedo and Australia’s Sarah Crowley were superb on their bikes and relentless with their legs to crown themselves 2023 Alveo Ironman 70.3 Davao champions at the Azuela Cove on Sunday.

70.3 Davao

A zevedo, 30, figured in a threeway battle with Serbia’s Ognjen Stojanovic and Taiwan’s Tuan Chun Chang in the swim then took command by nearly four minutes over Chang with a blistering pace in the bike (2:00:17) by Transition 2.

He then lived through the punishing run (1:20:38) in hot conditions to prevail in 3:51:09 over the 1.9-km swim, 90-km bike and 21km run race powered by Petron.

Stojanovic turned in the best clocking in the closing leg (1:18:02) but fell short of his comeback bid, settling for runner-up in 3:52:28, while Chang timed 3:57:12 for third followed by American Robbie Deckard and Zsombor Deak of Romania, who clocked 4:09:01 and 4:14:27, respectively.

C rowley later came in with a 4:20:14 clocking to beat American Lauren Brandon (4:22:49) and Lottie Lucas of United Arab Emirates (4:25:09) in their side of the pro battle as the Brisbane native kept her hot streak going following a rare sweep of three Australian Ironman races last year, including the Ironman Western Australia in Busselton last December.

NATURALIZED player Justin Brownlee tops the pool for Cambodia, but Dwight Ramos and the other foreign-based Filipinos are not included this time.

The women’s pool out to win a third straight gold medal and coached by Pat Aquino is made up of Danielle Animam, Afril Bernardino, Stefanie Ann Berberabe, Mikka Cacho, Clare Castro, France Mae Cabinbin, Ana Alicia Katrina Castillo, Camille Izabel Clarin, Monique Allison Del Carmen, Ella Patrice Fajardo, Katrina Guytingco, Marizze Andrea Tongco, Janine Pontejos, Angelica Marie Surada, Quinn

Kacey Dela Rosa, Mai Loni Lashae’ Henson, Louna Ozar, Kristine Cayabyab, Aurea Day Marie Gingras, Kristan Geyl Yumul, Kennan Elizabeth Ka, Katelyn Bobadilla, Karl Ann Pingol, Sofia Isabella Roman and Jhazmin Joson. Ryan Batino, Kakou Ange Frank Kouame, and Joseph Sedurifa.

The 3x3 women’s pool, on the other hand, includes Jack Danielle Animam, Afril Bernardino, Ana Alicia

Katrina Castillo, Quinn Kacey Dela Rosa, Janine Pontejos, Clare Castro, Kristine Cayabyab and Mai Loni Leshae’ Henson.

The US sent a star-studded allNational Basketball Association squad it called the “Redeem Team” to regain the gold medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympics after losing the crown in the 2004 Sydney Olympics and 2006 World Cup.

Brandon actually came out of the water nearly two minutes ahead French Julie Iemmolo, Lucas and Crowley. But the 40-year-old Crowley unleashed a strong finishing kick in the next leg to seize the lead then flashed superb staying power by dominating the early part of the run. C rowley, who placed third in the World Triathlon Championship in 2019, built a near three-minute lead then survived Brandon’s lastditch rally to share top honors with Azevedo in the event which marked the pros’ return in the country’s version of the Ironman series.

The Dubai-based Azevedo, who also ruled the 2019 IM 70.3 Shanghai and topped his country’s Middle Distance Triathlon National Championships last year, and Crowley pocketed $30,000 each.

Iemmolo timed 4:37:25 for fourth while Japan’s Ai Ueda clocked 4:43:30 for fifth in the distaff side of the event, the only pro-laced endurance race organized by The Ironman Group/Sunrise Events Inc. this year. Mu lti-titled Dimity-Lee Duke struggled in swim and never recovered, ending up with 4:59:21 for sixth while American Amy Vantassel placed seventh in 5:07:31.

Thailand veteran Charyl Chappuis.

T ST aims to define the world championship for 7x7 football by attracting competitive players from all over the world in a high stakes and intense format that follows the FIFA World Cup structure with 32 teams bracketed in various groups before going into the knockout rounds.

Far East United joins a 32team field that includes Gracie FC organized by the Gracie family who are all mixed martial arts legends, Welsh squad Wrexham owned

event between jiu-jitsu black belters Eros Baluyot (1-0) and Elouie Federic (EF) Sevilla (5-3).

We have two of the best [jiu-jitsu] black belters in the Philippines going after each other and I really can’t wait for that fight,” Aguilar said. “We’ll also be hosting

by actor Ryan Reynolds, Team Demspey of former US soccer star Clint Dempsey, British eSports club Hashtag United, Mexican team Club Nexaca, Major League Soccer side Charlotte Football Club and English team Wolverhampton Wanderers. Far East United’s initial roster is stacked with veterans.

Nwokolo played forward for Indonesia and in eight appearances for the Merah Putih, scored two goals. He scored 143 goals for various clubs and last suited up in 2022

for Indonesian professional team Madura United.

C happuis, the Swiss-born player for Thailand who currently plays for Port Authority Club of Thailand has four international goals for the War Elephants.

Schrock, Del Rosario, Muller lead Far East United in US $1M meet Slap rap makes PHL debut in URCC 84 Rage

the first ever slap rap battle. We have a lot of innovative things we’d like to introduce at URCC.

T he country’s first slap rap battle featires Ronmar Tubig (South Piezze) against Joneil Deo Destreza (Sirdeo) and John Kenneth Reyes (Cloza Mafia) against Daniel Ray Wiggins (Taz Wiggins).

I f Baluyot and Sevilla were calm during Friday’s fight preview, Arvin “Sharpshooter” Chan and Costa Rican fighter Mariano “The Hitman” Jones exchanged verbal jabs ahead of their welterweight showdown.

The 33-year-old Chan (8-9) even went outside Xylo to confront and

Cunliffe is no stranger to Filipino football fans as he remains a regular on Guam’s national team with 25 goals.

Del Rosario bared that there will be a few more announcements over the next few weeks to complete the line-up.

slap the 26-year-old Jones (1-0) that drew the attention of fans.

The incident added heat to their bout supported by the Philippines Nuebe Gaming and Vietnamese Highlands Coffee.

We want to see how the saga of Arvin Chan and Mariano Jones come to end,” Aguilar said.

A l one women’s strawweight fight bet ween Jomary Torres (4-5) and Ma r iane Mariano (2-0) is also in the card.

Tickets are available at www.urcc. onl i ne and app https://apps.wix.com/ place-invites/join-lp/b4e05b90-55a040a8-8fac-17ccf4a2c074?ref=pre_ banner_top (iOS and Google).

UNIVERSAL Reality Combat Championship founding president Alvin Aguilar pose with the fighters.

COPA seals partnership with Speedo

THE Congress of Philippine Aquatics Inc. (COPA) sealed a partnership with swimming apparel brand Speedo as the COPA levels up on its advocacy for grassroots development and swimming inclusivity.

Philippine swimming icon Eric Buhain, now Batangas First District congressman, and Speedo Philippines vice president for operation Manish Mahtani officially sealed the partnership recently along with COPA treasurer Chito Rivera

This partnership is a major boost to Philippine swimming,” said Buhain, an Olympian and Philippine Sports Hall-of-Famer after the signing ceremony at the Speedo outlet at the BGC High Street in Taguig City.

COPA as I see it has the most credible grassroots sports program,” Mahtani said. “Speedo has been around for 34 years and we’re focusing also on grassroots development which is very similar with COPA’s advocacy.”

DENVER—The squeaks from the sneakers on the court sound the same.

But these are far from your classic Chuck Taylors or vintage Air Jordans. Or any version of high tops at all.

The iconic shoe designed to extend slightly over the ankle has pretty much fallen out of favor in the lanes across basketball.

Glance down at the footwear the players are lacing up for March Madness and many are wearing a version of a low-top sneaker (with the occasional mid-cut throw in).

It’s a way to put their fastest, most comfortable, foot forward, especially since studies are inconclusive on whether high tops actually do what they were intended to do— prevent sprained ankles.

A s Colorado guard Kindyll Wetta points out, “we get our ankles taped anyway, so I don’t feel like I need the extra high-top support.”

T here’s also fashion to consider and “low

Low-cut shoes gaining traction on NCAA court

tops,” TCU guard Damion Baugh said, “just look better.”

H igh tops had been a familiar sight since the dawn of Converse’s Chuck Taylors a century ago. As the legend goes, Taylor walked into the company’s sales office looking for footwear that didn’t hurt his feet. The result was an All-Star sneaker that would eventually bear his name—featuring a high, canvas collar—and land Charles H. “Chuck” Taylor in the  Basketball Hall of Fame. He helped spark an industry—Converse had an  estimated 80% share of the market at one point.

O ver the decades, there have been many styles and models of high tops—from Nike’s Air Force 1 to the Reebok Pump to the iconic versions of Air Jordans. The thought behind them was simple—protect the ankle from rolling, almost like a hiking boot.

But the injury data on low tops versus high tops has proven inconclusive.

AUSTRALIAN Sarah Crowley crosses the finish line.

CONGRESS of Philippine Aquatics (COPA) president Eric Buhain (center), Speedo Philippines vice president for operations Manish Mantani (right) and COPA treasurer Chito Rivera seal the partnership.

RINTARO HAMA celebrates his goal.