BusinessMirror May 1, 2015

BusinessMirror

THREE-TIME ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDEE 2006, 2010, 2012

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A broader look at today’s business

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Friday, May 1, 2015 Vol. 10 No. 204

P.  |     | 7 DAYS A WEEK

STRONG INVESTOR APPETITE FOR ENTERTAINMENT HAVENS RESHAPING PHL REAL-ESTATE PROFILE

Gaming is new property-boom driver P

THANK YOU,

HENRY

MOTORING

E2-E3

Motoring BusinessMirror

THE all-new i20 and Tucson

S    R R M.   R

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YUNDAI Asia Resources Inc. (Hari) is investing, according to reports, a total of P1.2 billion in its newly inaugurated 10-hectare Hyundai Logistics Center (HLC) in Calamba, Laguna. And this is only the first step.

One of Hari’s values in business is environment protection, and the HLC, in a way, is a realization of this principle.

Furthermore, HLC follows the standards of Philippine Green Building Initiative (PGBI), a group of professional development associations formed through the shared concern for the environment.

“GREEEN, with the three Es, stands for Geared for Resiliency and Energy Efficiency for the Environment,” shared Architect Mel Punsalan, vice president for technical of PGBI. In fact, HLC received the highest-rating Kamagong, since it garnered a score of 87.5 percent.

Located along the Mount Makiling forest reserve and Tagaytay mountain ridge, the logistics

center can accommodate 5,000 vehicles, equivalent to a two-month inventory for the firm. Hari has so far spent P700 million for the first phase of the HLC, which covers the stockyard warehouse, parts warehouse and a portion of the planned training academy.

The second phase, meanwhile, which would involve P500 million worth of investments, would cover a 12-story office, a car museum, a center for climate change and facilities for the training academy.

As of this writing, the first phase has already been completed, while construction of the second phase is expected to start early next year.

The facility is intended to house imported Hyundai vehicles coming in through the Batangas Port before being brought to Hari’s dealerships nationwide.

Through the facility, Hyundai cars would undergo detailing, washing and drying, as well as tests, to ensure they are in pristine condition before being sold.

Aside from the HLC reveal, Hari also introduced the Global Dealership Space Identity—the worldwide dealership standard of Hyundai, not to mention its two new latest models that will yet again change the local car spectrum: the all-new i20 Cross Sport and the allnew Tucson.

The i20 Cross Sport will be available in June, while the new Tucson will go on sale in August.

HYUNDAI executives, together with their partners, give a toast.

“We are expecting to sell about 500 units per month for the i20 Cross Sport, while we see a 300to 400-unit-per-month sale for the return of the king Tucson,” Agudo said. Agudo also disclosed that total Hari sales last year reached 23,019 units.

With the company accounting for 85 percent to 90 percent

of the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors Inc.’s (Avid) sales, Agudo said the group’s sales are expected to rise by 5 percent this year, from last year’s 35,565 units.

As of the first quarter, Hari has sold 5,364 units, while Avid’s total sales reached 8,448 units.

With all of these, it’s good to

know that Hari is taking the lead in inspiring change that shall set the pace for innovation and environmental preservation. This plan— which started with a vision—is now gaining ground and slowly coming into fruition. It is this distinct resolve that makes this Korean automaker one of the towering giants in the global arena.

MOTORING

E1

FLOYD: MONEY MANNY: GOD’S PLAN Sports FLOYD:

MONEY.

life. Being rooted in Ayala Land’s heritage of real-estate excellence, Alveo Land [consistently] created an extensive portfolio of holistic communities attuned to the needs of a dynamic, urban lifestyle,” Alveo Land President Robert S. Lao said.

The executive said the two companies should soon establish an evenly shared joint-venture entity that will require spending

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Newsday

AS VEGAS—Floyd Mayweather Jr. says everything he does in and out of the ring is calculated. So, maybe the low-key persona he’s adopted before his welterweight title fight against Manny Pacquiao is all part of his larger game plan.

But Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach doesn’t buy it.

In his view, Mayweather’s altered state from his usual trash-talking self is another sign he really didn’t want this fight. There’s no mistaking that Pacquiao is the one who has projected the greatest sense of eagerness to hear the first bell at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

His enthusiasm was on display again on Wednesday in a meeting with writers before the final news conference. “Yes, I feel I’m the one who really wants this fight to happen,” Pacquiao said. “The fans also really want to see this fight. It’s a good thing that it’s happening now.

I believe that it is God’s plan.”

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MANNY PACQUIAO is relishing role as underdog, while Floyd Mayweather Jr. remains low-key. AP

RORY MCILROY OY has his plans for Sunday all set up. AP

Much of the emphasis from Pacquiao (57-5-2, 38 KOs) has been on his Christian awakening and how he wants to inspire people with his rags-to-riches story of a starving boy sleeping in the streets in the Philippines who now commands the world stage against the great Mayweather (47-0, 26 KOs).

But a fighter who hasn’t stopped any of his past nine opponents and often has seemed distracted by other undertakings, including his work as a congressman, also claims to have been rejuvenated for this fight.

“I’m so happy because the feeling and the killer instinct and the focus that I have from 10 or 11 years ago is back,” Pacquiao said, with genuine excitement.

“A couple fights I have in my career, I never feel like this.

But now, it’s different. I have nothing to worry about. I’m 100-percent relaxed and confident.”

Ask him why he lost that killer instinct, and Pacquiao has trouble explaining it, but it’s real to him. “My interest of this fight, my love for this fight, my eagerness for this fight is to show something, especially since I’m an underdog,” Pacquiao said. “Every time I’m an underdog in a fight that

feeling is kind of different. It’s back, absolutely.”

Roach, who has had a long rivalry with Mayweather, said he was struck at the original news conference to announce the fight in February that Mayweather didn’t respond when he said Pacquiao would kick his rear end.

“His speech was very subdued and very low-key,” Roach said. “I’m driving home, and I’m saying to myself, ‘I’m not sure he’s going to show up.’“ “He was forced into this fight. I don’t think it’s a fight he wants to be in. He gets to pick and choose his opponents, but he didn’t get to pick and choose this one because a CBS company, Showtime, was losing money with this [six-fight Mayweather] deal.”

The reason Mayweather ultimately took the fight, Roach said, was to please his business partners and allow Showtime to profit from their deal. In fact, Mayweather has said this fight is nothing more than business to him.

Asked on Wednesday why he has toned down his act for this fight, Mayweather said, “Me speaking loud, I did that in the past. I’m older now. This fight sells itself.”

Maybe it’s all a ruse, a set-up to lure Pacquiao into

a reckless fight. But maybe Mayweather is not quite sure what to expect from this reborn Pacquiao with the fighting spirit of the underdog and the conviction that he is exactly where he wants to be.

“I can’t explain, but my feeling is that I’m more relaxed compared to my other fights,” Pacquiao said. “I thank the Lord my God. I am serving, and He is feeding me peace of mind.”

SPORTS

RORYY WANTS TO SEE FIGHT, NO MATTER WHAT AN FRANCISCO—The most pressure Rory McIlroy faces all week could be the quarterfinals of the Match Play Championship.

And it would have nothing to do with his opponent.

The quarterfinal matches—if the world’s No. 1 player advances that far—are expected to end as late as 7:30 p.m. PDT on Saturday. That would be an hour or less before Manny Pacquiao fights Floyd Mayweather Jr. in Las Vegas.

McIlroy already has tickets to the fight.

So what happens if McIlroy is still playing?

“Nothing that a few quick birdies won’t change if I try and win 7 and 6,” McIlroy said. “If the fight starts at maybe 10 o’clock like they usually do, then it should be OK.” Except the fight is supposed to start somewhere between 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. It’s possible McIlroy got the time zone mixed up, like he did at the 2012 Ryder Cup. But he made one thing clear on Tuesday—he didn’t want to miss it.

“I went to Pacquiao in 2009, and then I think Mayweather fought later on that year, and then they were supposed to fight the next year and it never happened. So [I’ve] been waiting five years for this to happen,” McIlroy said. “I always said if these two guys fought each other, I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to go. Luckily, we’re somewhere close where I can get in line.

“Hopefully, I’m still a part of this tournament at that time, but it just wasn’t an opportunity that I

was going to miss.”

The flight to Las Vegas is short and he would be flying private. The hard part might be getting out of Harding Park, which is on the south side of San Francisco and about a 20-minute drive to the airport.

Masters champion Jordan Spieth was a little more coy on his fight plans.

“If things don’t go perfectly this week, I may see him at the fight. Who knows?” Spieth said. “I don’t plan on being there. But I may be there.” AP

S “L,” A

S “L,” A

MANNY PACQUIAO (right) and Floyd Mayweather Jr. pose with the World Boxing Council belt in Wednesday’s news conference in Las Vegas. AP

MONEY THE BIG THING AS MAYWEATHER, PACQUIAO

READY FOR FIGHT

B VG C

MANNY: GOD’S PLAN. Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s altered state from his usual trash-talking self is another sign he really didn’t want this fight.

Rick M. Santos, chairman, founder and CEO of CBRE Philippines, said that, if the trend in the gaming sector continues, the country is sure to rival Macau in the coming years.

“We are bullish on the growth of the real-estate gaming sector, especially when private and public entities focus on developments and implementations that will favor investors. If the performance of the sector continues on an uptrend, the Philippines can even rival Macau,” Santos said.

S “G,” A

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AS VEGAS—His middle name is Money, or at least it used to be before Floyd Mayweather Jr. stopped flashing $100,000 wads of cash every time he saw a camera. Related stories on C1 & C4.

That doesn’t mean money is ever very far from his mind. Certainly, not now, when he’s the richest man in the richest fight ever. C  A

TY, AYALA FIRMS TO JOINTLY DEVELOP LAGUNA LOT P

C1

| Friday, May 1, 2015 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

BusinessMirror

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C

ONTINUED expansion in domestic liquidity threatens to push past the double-digit line in March, averaging 9.4 percent, or P7.7 trillion, from only 8.5 percent in February, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said on Thursday.

But the acceleration failed to unsettle the monetary authorities who said domestic-liquidity expansion, known as M3 among technocrats, should remain in single digit this year.

While this was faster than the 8.5-percent acceleration in February, such was also significantly tamer than M3 growth averaging 35.3 percent in March last year.

Continued M3 growth is beneficial for an expanding economy like the Philippines, as this helps ensure the productive sectors have the fuel they need to push the economy forward.

The BSP remains confident the continued domestic-liquidity expansion is in lockstep with projected local output, measured as the gross domestic product, averaging 7 percent to 8 percent this year.

“The continued expansion in domestic liquidity during the month indicates sufficient liquidity to sustain the economy’s growth momentum,” the central bank said in a statement.

The monetary authorities traced the continued acceleration of domestic liquidity to fewer placements by trust entities in the BSP’s special deposit accounts (SDA) window compared to the previous month.

Friday, May 1, 2015 E1

Editor: Tet Andolong

According to Hari, it plans to change the landscape of automotive-industry property development in the country through this state-of-the-art facility. In today’s ever-changing world, the clamor for a more eco-friendly work environment, which uplifts the wellbeing of employees and catalyzes growth in both the automotive and property-development sectors, is becoming stronger than ever. This is its answer to that call.

During an interview conducted by the BusinessMirror, Hari President and CEO Ma. Fe PerezAgudo said: “It is high time for us to consolidate our operations, so we could streamline the process flow and become more efficient and more productive, and so we can have better quality control.”

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SANTOS: “If the performance of the sector continues on an uptrend, the Philippines can even rival Macau.”

GREEENer FUTURE Henry Ford Awards Best Motoring Section 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 2011 Hall of Fame

Domestic liquidity grew 9.4% in March

ROPERTY-MARKET advisory firm CBRE Philippines tags the gaming sector as a “sunshine market” that is boosting the country’s real-estate profile, and will be further propped up by the rising number of tourists in the Philippines.

INSIDE

C1

ROPERTY developers Federal Land Inc. and Alveo Land Corp. on Thursday signed an agreement to develop a 45-hectare property in Biñan, Laguna, into a mixed-use residential showcase.

The property is on Laguna Boulevard in Biñan town and a few kilometers away from the proposed Cavite-Laguna Expressway in the general vicinity of Ayala

PESO EXCHANGE RATES ■ US 44.2500

LAO: “We are fortunate to be working with one of the most reputable developers in the country. This is a project that will reflect our shared vision of improving the quality of life.”

Land’s Ayala Westgrove Heights and Nuvali projects.

Federal Land is a unit of GT Capital Holdings Inc., the holding firm of the Ty family, while Alveo is a unit of Ayala Land Inc. known for pursuing projects targeted at upper-middle-income consumers.

“We are fortunate to be working with one of the most reputable developers in the country. This is a project that will reflect our shared vision of improving the quality of

■ JAPAN 0.3717 ■ UK 68.3043 ■ HK 5.7098 ■ CHINA 7.1374 ■ SINGAPORE 33.4973 ■ AUSTRALIA 35.6395 ■ EU 49.1927 ■ SAUDI ARABIA 11.8006 Source: BSP (30 April 2015)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Friday, May 1, 2015

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Money the big thing as Mayweather, Pacquiao ready for fight   A Mayweather has spent as much time this week talking about the mansion in Las Vegas, the home in Miami and the private jet that seats 14 than he has about Manny Pacquiao. He even figured out the math when it comes to dividing it up among his kids.

“Let’s say I make $200 million,” Mayweather said. “That means my kids for this fight will get $50 million apiece. I think I made a smart move.”

Indeed, Mayweather proved a smart businessman in signing for a fight that will likely earn him $180 million or more. But the smartest thing he may have done was delay the fight five years so it would be must-see TV, even

Gaming...

at a record price of $99.95.

“Five years ago this was a $50-million fight for me,” Mayweather said, “and a $20-million fight for him.”

The frenzy for the boxing’s biggest event of the century continued to build on Wednesday, even if the two fighters themselves were very subdued. They appeared at a final prefight news conference with nothing bad to say about each other, and couldn’t even bring themselves to scowl for pictures.

If the past five years were personal, with the two camps trading barbs, the fight itself is not. Pacquiao will be fighting for his legacy and a country desperate for him to win, while Mayweather will be fighting to add to his already sub-

  A

He said the gaming segment— thanks to several big-ticket establishments that are now sprouting in the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) Entertainment City—is an emerging sector in the industry.

Casino operators in the Entertainment City—namely, Travellers International Hotel Group, Bloombery Resorts Corp., Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corp. and Tiger Resorts—industry experts say, all expect double-digit growth in revenues for 2015.

Moreover, the mushrooming of leisure-retail-gaming establishments in the Entertainment City should serve as an impetus for development of similar mixed-purpose establishments, considering the uptrend in tourism arrivals, CBRE said.

“Tourism does play a hand in the development of the gaming sector as the Philippines goes beyond the casinos; tapping into other hospitality aspects, such as MICE [Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibits] and entertainment,” Santos said.

Department of Tourism figures show visitor arrivals reached 456,524 this February, 8.02 percent higher than the arrivals in the same month last year at 422,631.

The Aquino administration is seeking to grow tourism revenues to $4.6 billion by 2016. It also aims to attract 6 million tourists and create 3 million jobs by next year. Th is would allow the sector to contribute 6.35 percent to the gross domestic product.

Catherine N. Pillas

stantial bank accounts.

That was apparent when Mayweather was asked if being undefeated was the biggest motivation for him.

“At the end of the day my daughter can’t eat no zero,” Mayweather said of his unbeaten mark.

“She can’t spend a boxing ring.”

Money shouldn’t be a problem for the Mayweather family after this fight. Not with total revenue of some $300 million—and possibly more if the pay-per-view is the hit that network executives privately think it will be.

Mayweather won’t be the only one getting rich. Pacquiao will also share in the $120 million or so his side will pocket for the fight, beginning with a $25-million check

Laguna...

from promoter Bob Arum the night of the fight.

“I don’t like to write checks of an amount I don’t have in the bank,” Arum said. “I can cover 25 so that’s the amount he will get fight night.”

Pacquiao said he couldn’t even conceive of the kind of money he makes now to fight.

“I used to sleep in the street starving and hungry,” the Filipino congressman said. “I can’t imagine the boy who slept in the streets was raised to this level where I am today.”

Both fighters finished their major preparation earlier in the week, with both facing challenges unlike they have seen before.

In Mayweather’s case it’s a southpaw who fights in spurts and comes from different angles, a style

  A

P1.9 billion to develop the project.

The co-owned project will acquire properties from the various owners at a total cost of P1.03 billion, GT Capital’s Carmelo Maria Luza Bautista said.

“Through this strategic partnership with Alveo, we look to deepen our involvement in horizontal property development, inasmuch as the historical focus of Federal Land was mostly on high-rise condominium projects. In tandem with Alveo’s proven expertise and track record, we expect to provide much-needed quality homes in a secure, well-planned and efficient community that will benefit not only the city of Biñan but other nearby areas of Southern Luzon, as well,” Federal Land President Alfred Ty said in a statement.

Alveo Land earlier said it targets to generate P40 billion in sales this year and should launch P25 billion worth of projects in the fi rst half.

This year’s target should prove better than last year’s P36 billion, a record high for the company.

The company said the project would mean the addition of 5,000 units in combined office and housing space.

Federal Land has 32 property-development projects pursued mostly in key Metro Manila areas.

Its flagship projects include the Metrobank-Grand Hyatt Plaza at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. Forming part of the company’s 10-hectare Veritown development, its offerings include a luxury hotel, and prime office and retail space.

he will have to figure out early in the fight. For Pacquiao, it’s a defensive wizard who has fought 47 fighters and beaten every one of them.

“I think we can outpoint this guy,” trainer Freddie Roach said. “If a knockout comes, it will be a bonus.”

Mayweather has been rather quiet about his strategy, preferring instead to talk about how he became the highest-paid athlete in the world or promoting his web sites. But he said his father, Floyd Sr., has crafted a game plan that will help him remain unbeaten after 19 years in the sport.

He said critics of the way he fights don’t really understand boxing, and that he doesn’t need to be great defensively to beat Pacquiao.

“I’m pretty sure it’s going to be

US...

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CHEAPER OIL CUTS BUSINESS INVESTMENT

SHARPLY lower oil prices in the past year have caused oil and gas companies to cut back on drilling and exploration. Few new wells are being dug, and the number of rigs in operation has fallen. That caused investment in a category that includes oil and gas to tumble by 48.7 percent. The plunge dragged down overall investment in structures, which includes rigs, by 3.4 percent, the weakest showing since the fourth quarter of 2009.

Should we be worried? Yes. Most economists expect cheap oil will weigh on business investment for at least one more quarter. And with profits being slammed by the strong dollar, which makes overseas earnings less valuable, companies are reluctant to spend elsewhere. AP

a very exciting fight,” Mayweather said. “But sometimes I shut guys out and they call it a split decision or majority decision. My hands are always tied behind my back. The standards are always set higher for me.”

The two fighters did disagree on which man was the one to actually get the fight to happen five years after it should have happened.

Mayweather said he kept calling his adviser, Al Haymon, telling him to make the fight because he wanted it so much. But Pacquiao said it was the pressure he put on since beating Chris Algieri in Macau last November that finally forced Mayweather’s hand.

“I feel I’m the one who really wanted this fight to happen,” Pacquiao said. AP

Liquidity...   A

The deceleration of domestic liquidity growth in March 2015, when compared to the double-digit growth in the same month last year, is a reflection of the so-called statistical base impact associated with the significant increase in M3 last year, the BSP said.

Latest data show SDA deposits now down to only P985 billion in April, compared to its peak of about P2 trillion before the operational adjustments the BSP adopted in 2013.

Money supply continued to expand also because of sustained demand for credit during the period, according to the BSP.

The Nation

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo

BusinessMirror Friday, May 1, 2015 A3

Aquino to reveal ‘chosen one’ in June

P

By Butch Fernandez

resident Aquino said on Thursday that he will reveal his “chosen one” this coming June. The 55-year-old bachelor Chief Executive, however, is not talking about a June bride, but his administration’s anointed presidential bet to succeed him in 2016.

Interviewed at the inauguration of the Negros First Cyber Center in Bacolod City, Aquino admitted that the choice for the administration standard bearer in the 2016 national elections is still a search in progress.

“Tuloy tuloy pa ’yan. Theres no change,” Aquino told reporters. “We are still targeting end of semester, end of June, to make the announcement.”

At the same time, Mr. Aquino indicated that the Liberal Party-led coalition that will carry the campaign to elect his chosen successor is expected to expand, as the 2016 election campaign period draws nearer.

“Marami kaming coalition partners, and, siguro, kung marami kami noong 2010, mas marami ngayon dahil ang mamanahin ng susunod sa akin mas konti ang problema,” Aquino said.

But Aquino dodged when asked to confirm if Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, who is struggling to improve survey ratings, is his “chosen” standard bearer, saying he will reveal his choice in June.

Meanwhile, an official of the ruling Liberal Party (LP) said the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) is set to convene “soon” to discuss its political direction in the 2016 national elections.

LP Secretary-General and Rep. Mel Senen Sarmiento of Samar said they are still finalizing the date of the LP’s NEC convention, but noted that it should be done before the end of the second quarter.

Sarmiento also said he is happy that many nota-

ble names have been showing their interest to run in the Senate in 2016 under the LP banner, but, he said, everyone must go through the party’s selection process.

Reports indicated that actor Dingdong Dantes, Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno and Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista might give it a shot to run in the senate under LP. “They are welcome to be part of the LP slate. But, until the names of our candidates have been approved by the Party’s National Executive Council, nothing is official yet,” Sarmiento said.

Sarmiento said the LP’s candidates for president, vice president and senators "must have the approval of their National Executive Council, which will convene soon.”

“Everything at this moment is speculation because we still don’t have any official line-up yet.

We have a selection process to observe and we will choose our candidates on the basis of this process,” Sarmiento said.

Earlier, Rep. Edgar Erice of Caloocan, LP Committee on Electoral and Political Affairs chairman, said he is confident that President Aquino will choose Roxas as the administration bet for 2016.

The recent Social Weather Survey showed Vice President Jejomar C. Binay and Sen. Grace Poe taking the top spots in the list of President Aquino’s successors.

With Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

Protect journalists, safeguard democracy: US ambassador

‘Send Veloso recruiters to Indonesia’

A

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

member of the House Committee on Justice on Thursday said Mary Jane Veloso’s recruiters must also face the Indonesian justice system.

Despite the Indonesian government’s decision to stop Veloso’s execution, Liberal Party Rep. Jerry Treñas of Iloilo said justice is not complete for Veloso until after the people, who manipulated her to become an unwilling drug mule, are fully held accountable for their crimes.

The lawmaker said he would favor any action by the Philippine government to turn over Maria Kristina Sergio, the alleged recruiter who duped Veloso into smuggling heroin to Indonesia and her live-in partner Julius Lacanilao to Indonesian authorities, so that they can be prosecuted as masterminds in the attempt to smuggle heroin in Indonesia.

Veloso, 30, was sentenced to death after she was arrested in 2010 with 2.6 kilos of heroin, then valued at $500,000. Veloso told the Indonesian court that she did not know about the heroin sewn into the lining of her suitcase and was merely duped into carrying them to Indonesia from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Treñas said justice can be only achieved if the people who caused the incarceration of Veloso and her near-execution in Indonesia are fully held accountable for their misdeeds, not only for Veloso and many other unsuspecting drug couriers but also for the millions of young people around the world who destroyed their future because of drug addiction.

“Mary Jane was victimized by Sergio and Lacanilao because she is naive and she’s poor. Many more like her will fall victims to these drug smuggling rings if the people, who use and manipulate people like Mary Jane, are not punished. They are a menace to our society and I would

briefs military denies undertaking reclamation activity in w. philippine sea

The country is not undertaking any reclamation activity in the West Philippine Sea, the military said in response to China’s claims that the Philippines is developing or improving its existing facility in area.

The statement was issued by Vice Adm. Alexander Lopez, the commander of the Armed Forces Western Command, which has jurisdiction over the territory that is being disputed by China, adding the military was abiding by the Declaration of Conduct governing claimants of the South China Sea. “There is no truth to that, there is no truth to that,” Lopez repeatedly stated when he was asked about China’s allegations that the government is undertaking reclamation activities in the territory that it occupied in the Kalayaan Group of Islands.

Lopez said that China was making the claims as a ploy to stave off international criticisms over its massive reclamation activities in seven reefs that it occupies in the West Philippine Sea or within the Philippines’s considered territory. Rene Acosta

not mind if they replace Mary Jane in Indonesia’s dreaded execution island,” Treñas said.

Treñas added that Veloso’s innocence also gave the Indonesian government the right justification for the reprieve, but the Philippine government should return the favor by surrendering Sergio and Lacanilao to the Indonesian justice system, so that they can be prosecuted to masterminding the foiled attempt to smuggle illegal drugs.

Meanwhile, Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon of Kabataan said the Philippine government should not only work to commute Veloso’s sentence but also exhaust all means to let her return to the country.

Ridon also called on the Indonesian government to respect the legal processes of the Philippines and let Veloso return to the Philippines for questioning as a witness against alleged human trafficker Sergio, who voluntarily surrendered to Philippine authorities on Tuesday.

He issued the statement after Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle lawmaker Masinton Pasaribu urged the Indonesian government to keep Veloso under Indonesian custody and eventually carry on with her execution.

Sen. Francis Escudero, for his part, urged the government to exhaust all legal means for the pardon or commutation of the death sentence of Veloso, who was given a reprieve by the Indonesian government shortly before her scheduled execution along with eight other people for drug-related crimes.

According to Escudero, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance, there are about 13,000 to 14,000 distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) languishing in prisons in various parts of the world. He said that, with this number, the “current P100-million budget allocated to the DFA for legal assistance to OFWs is evidently not enough to reach to as many OFWs in need of assistance.” With Recto Mercene

pnp on heightened alert for labor day rallies

The Philippine National Police (PNP) alerted all its units on Thursday as part of its security preparations for today’s observance of the Labor Day, when thousands of workers are expected to stage simultaneous rallies around the country.

PNP Spokesman Sr. Supt. Bartolome Tobias said all police units in Luzon and the Visayas have been placed on heightened alert, while those in Mindanao were placed on full alert in anticipation of the protests and rallies that will be staged today in key areas around the country by members of labor groups.

Tobias said assured that the PNP would respect the rights of workers and even ordinary Filipinos to attend the rallies, but also warned that these gatherings should be held within the limits of the law.

“As a matter of policy, the PNP will extend full cooperation and support to participants in projected mass actions only within the bounds of law. We can tolerate lawful expressions and peaceful assemblies, but will never compromise the rule of law and the right of the majority to feel safe, secured and convenient,” he said.

“We urge the organizers of these mass actions to guard their own ranks against infiltrators and saboteurs who may take advantage of the situation,” Tobias added. Rene Acosta

U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg delivers his keynote address during a forum organized by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism at The Bayleaf Hotel in Manila. OLIVER SAMSON

By Oliver Samson Correspondent

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ress freedom stakeholders must unite and work harder to protect journalists and safeguard democracy in the country, US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg told a forum marking World Press Day in Manila on April 29.

“The impunity for the killings of media people should not be allowed to exist,” Goldberg said.

“We have to work to further freedom of speech and work harder to safeguard democracy.”

He said press freedom means freedom from fear, intimidation and violence for journalists.

Goldberg noted that journalists risk their lives by uncovering corruption in the government, exposing private companies that pollute the environment and by giving voice to people who have no political and economic power.

To sustain democracy and achieve

prosperity, “journalism must be able to thrive” in an environment under which journalists “can work independently without undue interference and in conditions of safety,” Terrence Jones, United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator and UNDP Representative, said in his opening address.

“For peace to be lasting and development to be sustainable, human rights must be respected,” the UN envoy added, quoting a joint statement by the UN secretarygeneral, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization director general, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Jones said the Philippines is regarded as one of the “most dangerous” countries in the worldfor members of the media today. The Freedom Fund for Filipino Journalists noted that some 120 journalists have been killed since 1980.

“These extrajudicial killings do not only pose a threat to the journalist’s right to life, they also

represent threats to the right to freedom of speech, the right to information and, ultimately, the right of the nation to call itself a democracy,” Jones said.

Perpetrators of are often “powerful and well-connected, while the victims are often poor and powerless,” lawyer Jose Manuel Diokno, national chairman of the Free Legal Assistance Group, said.

Diokno, who is dean of the De La Salle University’s College of Law, said prosecution witnesses are usually scared to testify and cases involving media killings become neglected as courts are overloaded with other cases.

The justice system in the Philippines “is outmoded, inefficient, highly congested and extremely slow,” he said.

But the ‘fundamental issue” is not court congestion nor delay, but impunity, he noted.

“Impunity is the inability of the Philippines as a state to hold the perpetrators of human-rights violations accountable,” Diokno said.

Economy

A4 Friday, May 1, 2015 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

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30M Pinoys covered by microinsurance

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By Cai U. Ordinario

ACOLOD CITY—Nearly 30 million Filipinos are covered by at least one form of microinsurance, according to the Microinsurance Network, an advocate of insurance service cover for lowincome populations worldwide.

Microinsurance Net work Chairman Michael McCord told reporters on Wednesday that microinsurance cover in Asia and the Pacific region numbers 66

million more or less. A third of this, or 27.9 million, are in the Philippines.

“The Philippines itself has been a tremendous case study for micro-

insurance. [You’re] really one of the best examples across the globe for microinsurance. Here, you have almost 30 percent of the people in the Philippines covered by microinsurance, for various kinds of products,” McCord said in a news conference at the Asia-Pacific Economic Conference Roadmap for Resilient Economies Meeting on Disaster Risk Finance.

McCord said microinsurance is necessary to achieve the goal of inclusive economic growth in the Philippines. Microinsurance can act as a safety net, especially for low-income households who are highly vulnerable to disasters.

He quickly added that the disasters are not confined to natural

calamities, such as earthquakes and strong typhoons, but also to the loss of life of key family members and their breadwinners.

Hav ing microinsurance, McCord said, can prevent these families from falling into poverty or falling deeper into poverty.

In order for the microinsurance products to reach low-income Filipinos, McCord said the government and private sector must create innovative mechanisms to distribute and sell them.

McCord added that there is also a need for the government to encourage insurance firms to sell microinsurance products through incentives and efficient regulatory framework.

Negros power supply seen to stabilize soon

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CAMPING FOR KIDS OF ALL AGES Ayala Land Inc. and Leonio Land will be holding a two-day camping activity that features everything that children and adults enjoy dubbed the Alviera Brightscape Campfest on May 30 and 31 at the Sandbox at Alviera in Porac, Pampanga. Photo shows (from left) Cedric Valera, Travel Factor managing partner; Jules Rodriguez, World Traveller & Game Plan host; and John Estacio, general manager of Alviera; during the media launch of the Alviera Brightscape Campfest. NONIE REYES

ACOLOD CITY—Businesses in Bacolod heaved a sigh of relief with the passage of the Sugarcane Industry Development Act in March 2015.

The Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Frank Carbon said the law assures Bacolod City and surrounding areas of sufficient power supply in the coming years.

Carbon said currently, only 20 percent of Negros Island’s power supply is internally generated and the bigger part is sourced from Samar, Leyte and Cebu.

He said the signing of the Sugarcane Industry Development Act would augment Negros island’s power supply. The law provides a P2-billion annual budget for the sugar industry. It also created two more revenue streams for industry players.

T hese add it iona l revenue streams are fuel ethanol and power from biomass. Currently, products derived from sugarcane are primarily sugar, molasses and alcohol.

Carbon said biomass power plants can now have additional waste supply because all marginal lands in Negross Occidental that are not suited for sugarcane planting will be planted with trees and grass.

Without the law, the Negros Island will remain vulnerable to power disruptions, since getting supply from another island has its challenges like congestion and breakdown of transmission lines, among others. Cai U. Ordinario

The absence of these two conditions are usually the reasons insurance companies become discouraged in offering microinsurance products to low-income Filipinos.

“I believe that without insurance products, you can’t have sustainable development. The [function of] insurance is to keep people from falling back into poverty,” McCord said.

Recently, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said preventive socialprotection programs, such as microinsurance schemes, can cushion the impact of variable weather patterns and natural disasters.

The ADB added that governments need to accelerate the review

and reform of pension schemes in view of the region’s huge informal sector and rapid aging.

“Expanding social-protection coverage requires mobilization of additional public revenue which can be secured by broadening the tax base, improving tax collection, and improving public expenditure management,” the ADB said.

“Governments should also encourage private firms to contribute more to social insurance programs.

After many years of high growth, the Asia and Pacific region is in an excellent position to invest in better social-protection systems that are attuned to the needs of its people,” it added.

Nlex modernization works

seen completed by May

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By Lorenz S. Marasigan

MULTIMILLION-PESO road modernization project being implemented by the operator of the North Luzon Expressway (Nlex) is seen to be completed by May, its president said on Thursday.

Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) President Rodrigo E. Franco said the company is expected to complete its P141.7million heavy maintenance works involving asphalt overlay of 30 lane kilometers and road patching of 20 lane km of the expressway on May 30.

He said heavy maintenance is being done every year to maintain the high quality of the expressway and to continue to improve its quality of service.

“In Nlex, we do not wait until serious damage takes place.

We want to ensure seamless travel that is why we regularly do the necessary repairs and maintenance,” Franco said.

The project, which began in October 2014 and will end in May, focuses on the asphalt overlay of the 15-km San Fernando-to-Angeles northbound stretch, and road patching of the 5-km Mexico-to-San Fernando southbound lane and the 5-km Bocaue-to-Santa Rita northbound lane.

Despite ongoing maintenance works, motorists are assured of smooth traffic flow, as MNTC implements a traffic management plan which includes the closure of only one lane at any given time.

Asphalt overlay is undertaken from Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., while patching works run from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The company booked a net profit of P2.57 billion in 2014, as impressive traffic volume and the rapidly expanding nontoll revenue base cushioned the negative effect of the longstanding delay in the implementation of a toll hike on the Nlex.

The figure was 8 percent higher than the P2.38 billion registered the year prior, after revenues from toll operations rose by 6 percent to P7.52 billion. Nontoll earnings also reached P121.79 million, a 14-percent increase from 2013.

This, however, was lower than its P8-billion revenue target for 2014, as regulators continue to postpone the already-delayed increase in toll fees.

Yearly traffic figures are constantly breaking records,

with 2014 numbers climbing to an average of 185,297 vehicles entering the thoroughfare to the north each day. The figure was higher by 7 percent compared to the year prior.

This traffic growth was driven mainly by the sustained economic stability in the regions around the expressway service area, backstopped by robust vehicle sales and lower fuel prices.

This year the company has set a more modest revenue target of P7.8 billion, or about 4 percent higher from 2014, due to the nonimplementation of the toll increase.

But, should the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) approve the toll adjustment, Franco said revenues could “easily grow by about 6 percent or 7 percent.”

The absence of a toll-rate increase could lead to the depletion of the company’s revenues, Franco said, hence, leading to lesser financial financial muscle to implement the needed expansion of the toll road.

TRB Director Edmundo O. Reyes earlier said the country’s major thoroughfares would burst at their seams by 2018, if no expansion would be implemented.

Currently, the Pangilinan-controlled expressway operator is spending billions of pesos to upgrade its services and expand the toll road to meet the growing demand for connectivity.

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. executives have repeatedly expressed their dismay on the slow poke implementation of the rate increase, despite being provided under the toll operations agreement signed with the government early on.

The toll regulator has not acted on the company’s two petitions, one filed in 2012, and another filed in 2014.

The first petition was due on the first of January 2013.

The second one, submitted on the 30th of September last year would bring the cumulative toll rate adjustment to 15 percent, of which 12 percent is long overdue, The concession that the Pangilinan-controlled company holds allows for toll adjustments every two years.

Current toll fees at the thoroughfare (from Mindanao Avenue to Santa Ines) amount to P218 for Class 1 Vehicles (cars, jeepneys, pickup trucks and vans); P544 for Class 2 vehicles (two-axle trucks, buses and vans); and P652 for Class 3 vehicles (trucks and trailers with three or more axles).

Govt, film industry heighten fight vs movie piracy in PHL

By Roderick L. Abad

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N time for the observance of World Intellectual Property Day 2015, the local movie industry and the government have renewed their commitment to curb rampant illicit camera recording (camcording) in Philippine cinemas.

They vowed to continue upholding intellectual property rights (IPR), protect the livelihoods of the members of the screen community and appreciate audiences for supporting films and television shows through legal means.

In support of the film industry, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines, according to Deputy Director General Allan B. Gepty, has pledged to beef up awareness and enforcement efforts against movie piracy.

On its part, the Philippine National Police (PNP) will keep on working together with the movie sector to make sure violators are caught and brought to justice, said PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Chief General Benjamin Magalong.

“The PNP is keeping close watch on these syndicates and we intend to take them down.

There will be zero tolerance for those caught camcording in cinemas,” he said.

The successful partnership between the state and the film industry has come into fruition since the exclusion of online or physical marketplace in the annual United States Trade Representative

Office Notorious Markets list in 2012.

Their efforts also have led to the removal of the Philippines from the United States Special 301 Watchlist as of April 2014.

Late last year, initiatives were undertaken to enhance protocols for detection, arrest and prevention of illegal camcording in cinemas.

The Motion Picture Anti-Film Piracy Council of the Philippines (MPAFPC), in cooperation with the PNP and the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), had organized an exhibitors conference wherein implementing rules and regulations of the AntiCamcording Law was discussed, guidelines for interdictions were explained, and updates on new technologies used by syndicates to record movies in theaters were bared.

The MPAFPC also produced a new trailer about camcording and its punishments, which are now airing in movie houses.

The current incentive scheme of P5,000 for camcording tipsters also has helped collar IP offenders.

In fact, criminal charges were recently filed against an arrested camcorder of the animated movie Home in March 2015.

There were 14 camcords forensically traced to the Philippines in 2014, compared to 11 in 2013.

As early as this year, some developments have already been accomplished in the fight against movie piracy, including the identification of major syndicates and concerted efforts by all stakeholders to limit their unlawful activities.

Exhibitors also extended their full support to enhancing security, training and engagement with the Motion Picture Association (MPA), while improving deterrent capabilities in deploying detection technologies, such as night vision goggles.

Various education efforts from the government continues, with the Optical Media Board’s (OMB) flagship awareness campaign called “Bawal Kumopya,” which enjoins the general public on the significance of promoting and protecting IP creations and its related rights.

“Just like any other similar properties, intellectual property rights deserve to be protected from unscrupulous profit makers, that brings prejudice to government tax collections, as well as posing undue disadvantages to economic opportunities,” OMB Chairman Ronnie Ricketts said.

After a slump in the Filipino filmdom in the recent decades, the local film industry is undergoing an “age of renaissance,” according to MPAFPC Representative Dominic Du. “The quality and caliber of the films emerging today—many from new filmmakers—is attracting a lot of attention in both domestic and international audiences,” he said.

Motion picture and video are a core part of copyright-based industries, which, as per the 2014 study of the World Intellectual Property Organization, have accounted for 7.34 percent of the gross domestic product and 14.14 percent of employment generated in the Philippines.

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Economy BusinessMirror

Friday, May 1, 2015 A5

Truckers to cut rates below logjam levels

PHL, Australia increase entitlements in upgraded air-services agreement

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By Catherine N. Pillas

ruckers have committed to bring down their rates below the peak congestion levels, although problems remain on the surcharges of shipping lines, the Department of Trade and IndustryConsumer Protection Group (DTI-CPG) reported after a meeting with concerned stakeholders.

The DTI-CPG called the meeting on Thursday to assess and review the continued imposition of congestion-related fees and charges by truckers and shipping lines on traders despite the eased situation at the country’s main sea gateways.

Among the agreements reached on Thursday is the lowering of trucking fees to rates below peak congestion levels. The Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines (CTAP) released its guide rates effective April 15, 2015, to reflect the reduction.

Based on initial computation, the average reduction compared to March 15, 2014, rates is at P1,000 per twenty-foot container and forty-foot container.

Other trucking associations are also reviewing their rates, reported Trade Undersecretary for Consumer Protection Victorio Mario A. Dimagiba.

However, on the shipping lines, challenges for the business community remain. Even as the portcongestion surcharge (PCS) is set to be removed by select shipping lines effective May 1, the remaining port congestion-related charge, or the Emergency Cost Recovery Surcharge (ECRS), stays.

The PCS is computed to be at $200 per twentyfoot container. For a forty-foot container, the charge is double. Traders have said the average increase in costs from shipping lines, during the period of the

congestion, was at $500 to $1,000.

According to the DTI-CPG, 11 major lines have already withdrawn the PCS: APL, Cosco, Sinotrans, Wan Hai, Yang Ming, RCL, PIL, OOCL, SITC, Evergreen and TS Lines. Maersk will remove its PCS today. These shipping lines are estimated to carry 70 percent to 80 percent of inbound container cargoes.

The ECRS, however, which is computed to cost as much as the PCS, is still being implemented by some shipping lines, Maximino T. Cruz, general manager of International Shipping Lines, said during the media briefing. The matter will be discussed in the next meeting of stakeholders, Dimagiba said, with the view to remove the ECRS, as well.

Cruz said the association will urge its members to evaluate if the time is right for the removal of ECRS. “We welcome the reduction of the PCS, but we will have to verify other charges, so we will have another meeting,” said Dr. Henry Lim Bon Liong, executive vice president of the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“This is a serious concern with the stakeholders today and the DTI takes this matter very seriously; we will look into it further,” Dimagiba added.

Notably, in a broader move to regulate shippingline charges, the DTI-CPAB also aired the possibility of regulatingtheshippingchargesofinternationalshipping lines. Although still mum on the matter, the DTI said it will submit a proposal to the Maritime Industry Authority to study if it can exercise this regulatory power.

The Department of Justice-Office of Competition also pledged to look into the “reasonableness of truckers and international shipping lines’ charges,” with the goal of putting a benchmark rate on their charges.

Microtel Pilipinas sees higher profits on domestic travel boost; brings in TRYP hotels

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo Special to the BusinessMirror

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ICROTEL Inns & Suites (Pilipinas) Inc. projects a 100-percent increase in its profits this year, as domestic travel gets a boost from more budget-carrier options, increased accommodations, and better infrastructure in and around leisure destinations.

In an interview with the BusinessMirror, Jose Mari del Rosario, president and CEO of Microtel Pilipinas, also said the company is allocating capital expenditures amounting to P1 billion for 2015 to build two new hotels in Manila and Palawan.

This developed as he announced the timely entry of the company’s newest hotel brand, TRYP by Wyndham. The all-Filipino hotelmanagement company recently signed an agreement with the Wyndham Hotel Group (WHG) to bring in the midpriced brand, “which has over 100 properties in many of the most exciting cities, such as Paris, Berlin, Barcelona, New York, São Paulo and Brisbane. It is designed to suit guests with a penchant for travel and new experiences,” he said.

The first TRYP Hotel in the Philippines is currently being constructed and is scheduled to open in 2016 at the Mall of Asia (MOA) complex in Pasay City, he disclosed.

Other TRYP hotels are being planned in other sites in “Mega Manila, as well as Cebu, and possibly mature resort destinations like Boracay,” said the Microtel Pilipinas CEO. TRYP by Wyndham promises to be “one-part experience, one-part destination.”

The increase in domestic travel has further brightened the financial prospects of Microtel Pilipinas this year.

Del Rosario said: “We are targeting to double our net income for 2015 from new franchises and higher occupancy levels from existing, as well as newly opened properties in 2014.”

He added that “domestic travel this year will improve due to the dominance of the budget airlines [e.g., Cebu Pacific, PAL Express, Air Asia, etc.] and the steady addition of room accommodations in many local tourist destinations.”

The Department of Tourism has projected domestic travelers to reach almost 52 million in 2015.

As far as travel prospects for Filipinos this year, he said, Boracay and Palawan will continue to remain popular among travelers, but more will also be going to Northern Luzon “due to improved infrastructure brought about by improved highways and toll roads (SCTEx connects Subic to Tarlac; Nlex/Tplex now reaches Pangasinan etc.).

Now, travel time to Baguio is reduced to just about four hours [from the previous six to eight hours].”

The company’s P1-billion capex this year will fund the construction of the TRYP Hotel at the MOA complex (P650 million), and a Microtel in El Nido, Palawan (P350 million). This year’s capex is 75 percent higher than what was spent in 2014.

Speaking further about the TRYP brand, del Rosario said, the brand’s “Own the City” culture is an open display of passion for guests and for the cities in which TRYP properties are located, aiming to help guests make the most of their travels.

“TRYP is a trendier brand that targets the young urbanite professionals—the latte and frappé type—who want to combine work with leisure. Design and services are more engaging, casual, with an energetic vibe. It is a select service hotel, with minimal facilities, such as a restaurant, function rooms and pool, but with slightly higher room rates compared to Microtel,” he explained.

“With the tourism infrastructure rapidly improving, in-country and regional travel continues to grow. Young urbanite professionals—the café and latte are constantly traveling now, combining work and leisure. The TRYP experience will address that work-leisure niche,” he enthused.

TRYP Hotels offer several specialty guestroom types, like family rooms with bunk beds for young families traveling with children, fitness rooms with complete exercise equipment, and the “Samsung Experience” room, which features high-tech multimedia to create an interactive, entertaining atmosphere.

Microtel Inns & Suites (Pilipinas) Inc. is the Philippine master franchise holder of Microtel by Wyndham. Aside from El Nido, it plans to further expand its reach to Coron in Palawan, Puerto Galera in Mindoro and Metro Manila. “We will also build additional rooms in our existing Baguio property,” he disclosed.

Microtel, a pioneer in the no-frills, backto-basics, limited-service concept, is the fastest-growing hotel chain in the country. It now has 13 properties in the country located in Acropolis, Quezon City; Baguio; Batangas; Boracay; Cabanatuan; Cavite; Davao; General Santos; MOA; Puerto Princesa, Palawan; South Forbes near Santa Rosa, Laguna; Tarlac; and the UP Technohub in Quezon City.

The New Jersey-based WHG is the world’s largest and most diverse hotel company with 7,650 properties and 661,000 rooms in 70 countries under 15 hotel brands.

Microtel Development Corp., the hospitality arm of the Phinma Group, manages all Microtels in the Philippines.

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

HE Philippines and Australia agreed to modernize their air-services agreement on late Wednesday, increasing the seat entitlements between the two nations by more than half, a senior government official said.

Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) Executive Director Carmelo L. Arcilla informed reporters on late Wednesday that the two nations signed a new memorandum of understanding on air services, expanding the seat entitlements between the Asian and Australian countries from the current 6,000 seats per week to 9,300 seats per week.

Currently, local aviation companies are fully utilizing the old entitlements, with legacy carrier Philippine Airlines operating flights to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Darwin; and Cebu Pacific to Sydney.

“The two countries also agreed to allow thirdcountry code sharing, which will enable designated airlines of the Philippines or Australia to operate services jointly with an airline of a third country to, from or via the other country, and thus improve market distribution,” he added.

Total traffic between the two countries was about 327,000 in 2014, a growth of 10 percent over 2013. Tourists from Australia were about 224,000 in 2013, about 5 percent bigger than in 2014. There are about 400,000 Filipinos living in Australia.

Cebu Pacific has been vocal about its plans

of increasing its operations in Australia. It will now petition for more frequencies before the CAB. In February the local air panel was able to expand the country's air traffic to Singapore, increasing capacity entitlements to 18,888 seats per week, from 17,627 weekly seats. It also bagged additional flight frequencies from Oman, raising the country’s air-traffic entitlements to seven from three flights per week.

The Philippine air panel will also meet its counterparts from Taiwan and Mexico, among others to modernize their existing air-services agreements this quarter.

In 2014 the Philippine air panel was able to yield additional flight entitlements from the following countries: Malaysia, Hong Kong, Ethiopia, South Africa, Macau, Canada, Myanmar, New Zealand, Singapore and France.

The local regulator aims to improve the situation of passenger traffic by increasing seat entitlements, as part of its drive to expand airtraffic rights. The government aims to generate $4.6 billion in tourism revenues by the end of the Aquino administration.

A6 Friday, May 1, 2015

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

Is social media failing as a business?

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HE personal computer has revolutionized and brought an incredible array of tools to a single device. Almost everything, from a typewriter to a telephone, has been packed into our computers.

The mathematical-calculation ability of the computer is unmatched in human history.

However, it is good to remember that humans put a man on the moon with about the same computing power as the average smartphone.

It is the development and expansion of the Internet that have actually changed the world. Access to hundreds of millions of databases, which is what web sites are, has brought the sum total of human knowledge, past and present, to our fingertips.

Along with the capability to connect computers across the globe for the sharing of information came communication between users. One of the earliest forms was the bulletin-board system, or BBS, which allowed people to “chat.” With advances in high-speed connections, a simple-typed conversation between two or more people has evolved into what we now call “social media.”

To hear some people talk, you might think that social media is the greatest human invention since the wheel. It is not.

Social media is nothing more than an electronic platform that is the same as magazines, television, radio and even newspapers. While social media has been hailed as a lifesaving instrument during natural disasters and a facilitator of political revolutions, other forms of communication saved lives and started revolutions even before the “invention” of electricity.

All media, including social media, are at their foundation, advertising platforms. A magazine featuring fancy cars targets people who like fancy cars that, hopefully, they are interested in and will buy. The same is true for magazines that carry pictures of half-naked women, television shows about exotic travel destinations, and newspapers that talk about current events.

Social media has broadened the base of interests across all those interests to also provide communication between users on a scale never seen before in human history. A debate can rage on Facebook about the fate of Mary Jane Veloso and the death penalty, and bring in people and views from literally a hundred different countries.

But Facebook and Twitter, and all the rest of social media are still advertising platforms and there, social media may be failing as a business model.

Twitter just reported its first-quarter 2015 revenues and profits. On revenues of $436 million, the company lost $162 million. Users on Twitter may save lives during calamities, but the one life it may not be able to save is its own.

Average monthly active users came in at 302 million for the quarter, up 18 percent year-over-year. That means the company lost about $0.50 on each of its customers. No business can survive with that model.

Social-media giant Facebook is not doing much better. While profits are growing, revenues were down in the first quarter. And as any advertising company will tell you, revenues are all that counts. Profit will take care of itself.

Not just automation James Jimenez

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spox

ITHOUT a doubt, the automation of the 2016 elections sits comfortably (or perhaps, uncomfortably) at the very top of the list of priorities of the Commission on Elections (Comelec). But it isn’t the only thing on that list. Very quickly, let me run through the other things the Comelec is looking at in preparing for the elections of 2016.

First, what we used to call “Overseas Absentee Voting” is now referred to as “Filipino Overseas Voting.” I’m not entirely sure that it was the name change that did it but last year we breached the 1-million mark for registered overseas Filipino voters. The challenge now is to convert that figure to voter turnout.

Historically, the voter turnout from overseas has been less than stellar.

But 2016 is a presidential election, and so we can all hope that overseas Filipinos actually go out to vote.

Second, the Comelec is determined to make the elections more inclusive than ever before. Accessible polling places for persons with disabilities (PWDs) are being established, for instance, where PWDs and senior citizens won’t be required to climb up flights of stairs just to vote.

The Comelec is also making provisions for detention prisoners to be able to cast their votes; and for indig-

enous peoples to be protected from the predations of local politicians.

Third, the Comelec is studying campaign rules closely. If you recall, the Supreme Court (SC) recently ruled—in that case involving the Team Patay/Team Buhay posters— that the Comelec cannot restrict the right of property owners to put up political posters on their properties.

This is not a new concept, of course. The Comelec never sought to restrict anyone’s right to put up political posters on personal property.

What it wanted to regulate was the size of those posters. But with this new SC ruling, it appears that they can’t even do that. So it is quite possible that we will see gargantuan posters come campaign season, plastered all over privately owned buildings.

Pity the poor candidate who doesn’t have rich friends who own buildings.

Fourth, the Comelec is also studying how it can more effectively po-

lice the costs involved in online campaigning. With the explosion of the Internet and social media, candidates have a direct line to you via your smartphones. They can literally send campaign messages straight to your phones with no regulation whatsoever. For the most part, using these distribution channels is free—free like Facebook and Twitter, for instance—but the cost for making those funny viral videos can be considerable. Again, in the interest of leveling the playing field, that bears looking into.

Fifth, speaking of the unlevel playing field, the Comelec is trying to find a way to restore that balance in the wake of the SC’s decision to limit political-broadcast advertising on a per-station basis. If candidates are allowed to put out 120 minutes of political ads on television per station, and 180 minutes of radio ads per station, you can only imagine how the candidates with small campaign kitties can easily be drowned out by those with deep war chests.

At best, the only clear option for the Comelec in this regard is to beef up the capability of its Campaign Finance Unit to hold candidates to account for their spending. Some victories have been scored from the last elections: Apart from actually dislodging a governor, several hundred cases have been filed against overspending politicians.

The challenge now is to continue this work and to further improve conviction rates.

Sixth, vote buying remains very much top of mind for the Comelec.

Thankfully, with the rise of camera phones and the increasing use of social media by ordinary Filipinos, incidences of vote buying are now more easily—and safely—reported.

With the proper coordination with law-enforcement agencies, the Comelec has also managed to disqualify some local officials for proven votebuying activities. Hopefully, the public doesn’t tire of its participation in this regard.

Seventh, epal. This remains the scourge of our times. One of the unintended consequences of automation, it is now practically legal for politicians to litter our streets with tarps bearing their names and faces.

Remember that controversy about destroying the sight line of the Rizal Monument? Epal destroys the sight line of everything. And yet, thanks to the SC’s ruling in Peñera v. Comelec, even after the politicians have actually filed their certificates of candidacy in October of this year, the poll body won’t be able to curb the candidates’ enthusiasm for self-promotion until the campaign period actually starts the following year.

And, finally, since today is Labor Day (Happy Labor Day!), I ought to mention that the Comelec is considering writing the owners of retail establishments, asking them to let their employees vote on Election Day, without docking their pay.

James Jimenez is the spokesman of the Commission on Elections.

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Why people continue to opt working abroad

When a State kills Tito Genova Valiente

Alvin P. Ang

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EAGLE WATCH

S we heave sighs of relief after Mary Jane Veloso was given a reprieve, we will still grapple with the reality surrounding her current predicament. What this is essentially is a public trial of what is the government policy on overseas work. Because the bottom line of all this is that she was looking for work outside the country. This continues to happen every day despite the improving economy in the last five years.

Official data shows that unemployment has remained relatively lower compared to previous years. Surveys also show that there are actually jobs available but the issue is the availability of skills and competence. It is, therefore, critical to understand why the desire for overseas work continues and understand the profile of those who are leaving.

Mary Jane’s supposed work as a domestic helper more or less represents the current trend of Philippine overseas work. Data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) shows that domestic work is the top occupation for deployment. It represents a third of the total newly hired workers abroad with about 164,000 new hires in 2013, registering the highest domestic work deployment. This has increased significantly from 68,000 in 2000 with the hundred thousandth barrier being breached in 2011.

Of the 164,000 domestic workers, about 97 percent are women. In the past 10 years, the trend of deployment reveals that the overall increase in deployment has largely been due to increases in the service work mostly in the domestic help occupation. Professional and other high-skilled occupations have relatively stayed in the same level annually.

Further analysis from the Survey of Overseas Filipinos (SOF) also reveals that the domestic workers are not really receiving a higher level of salaries, even as they leave for abroad. In the table below, it can be seen comparing the year 2002 and 2013, the salaries of domestic helpers (lumped together with service workers and possibly some unskilled) have not increased substantially, although their share to total number of workers have increased.

The estimated peso conversion of the average remittances are just roughly above P7,500.00 for the female service workers, and P6,000 for female unskilled workers in 2013 prices. The male salaries are at least P2,000 higher for both categories. This is despite the requirement of a $400 minimum salary for Filipina domestic helpers.

On a broader and long-term perspective, these information is showing that, while current level of overall remittances maybe increasing ($24 billion as of end 2014), their per-capita level is falling. This is telling us that the migration trend is now being dominated by lower-skilled workers.

Furthermore, these information are providing overall scenarios, but they are unable to show details of the migration processes that happen within regions, provinces, towns and households, which ultimately make the decision to migrate. After more than 40 years of experience, various laws passed and studies made on the migration phenomenon, the country continues to be challenged by differing issues and opportunities. This brings the point that the difficulty of managing migration is that it is ultimately a household decision. The framework of the household in making the decision to work abroad is dependent on a lot of factors beyond the salary that will be received abroad.

I recall a conversation with five young mothers from our church who came from Mindanao. As the service ended, they asked to be prayed for in their forthcoming departure to the Middle East. After the prayer, I asked them about their families that they will leave behind, especially the young children. They said that it is necessary to leave and that it will be their parents who will take care of their children while their husbands work in the farm. When I asked about how much will they be receiving? They said net of the payables (they borrowed money to be able to leave) it will roughly be about P7,000. I told them that they could earn that here in the Philippines—yes, they agreed, but not in their rural hometowns. Yes, there is work. But the work does not pay enough or is seasonal. What they need is a regular income that can sustain their families.

With 66 percent of overseas workers tracing their roots to rural hometowns, the shift of the migration occupation to lower skilled workers will continue, lest there are sustained work opportunities in the countryside. The key, therefore, is making our localities provide complete options before the potential migrant and the family make a decision. Toward this, the role of local governments has to be pushed for holistic developments.

They should be working on making their localities attract capital and business. They should be providing broader and complete information for potential migrants. The pre-employment orientation seminar and the predeparture orientation seminar can be implemented in partnership with local governments. The role of the different levels and agencies of government is to provide the environment for our people to have hope. If the decision is to leave, it must be a sound decision based on a cost-benefit analysis of correct information.

Alvin P. Ang, PhD, is Professor of Economics and Senior Fellow of Eagle Watch, the macroeocnomic and forecasting unit of the Ateneo de Manila University. To contact the author, e-mail opinion@businessmirror.com.ph.

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O state or government is ever perceived powerful now than the state and government of Indonesia. It is clearly understood now, especially by the governments of Brazil and Australia, that Indonesia believes in the principle that to execute a criminal is to perform a just act.

Abstracted, the notion of justice is a powerful idea. Abstracted, the power of the state is undeniably the hallmark of a good governance. John Locke has so many words about the freedom of men and the power of the state and the goodness of the nature of men. Abstracted, these concepts are elegant thoughts that fill the universities. In real life, these ideas are difficult to accept more so when they are now applied to us living elements of a state or government.

Those concepts and the discussion of ancient ideas about justice and retribution are all underscored at this moment when so-called criminals have been executed in an island especially designated for that process and that act.

Indonesia has marked an island as the place for the ultimate punishment, which is death.

So, how does a mother or a father say goodbye to a son, who will die at a specific time and day because a law has made sure that death will take

place. Examine for a moment this fact: A government executes a criminal. For some years, the prison is a way to keep him in, not a space for him to repent. The fact that one is executed points to one thing: criminals will never reform. Mystical at this point is the thought, the hope that if ever criminals, who are shot or injected with chemicals, meant for slow death can seek spirtual reform out there, or up there in some planes. Some call it heaven, or some such vague territories where forgiveness is for everyone.

A human being can die in a war, in bed, or because of a disease like cancer, but their deaths cannot be predicted. That is the drama and, ultimately, the oddity of an execution: The person can know when he will pass on and his relatives can even wait to collect the corpse. One has to have the detachment and, perhaps the attachment to a strong faith, of a saint to face the event of a brother, a sister, a son, a daughter being killed

Friday, May 1, 2015

so that justice will be served.

The state kills. The government kills. Those are the truths that we may attempt to muddle now as a Filipina faces an execution. She has beeen given a reprieve, although several media outlets have already executed her.

And, yet, you cannot blame these newspapers and reporters, for when the government decides to kill an erring human being, tha killing, indeed, takes place. It has taken place as we know only Jane Veloso, the Filipina convicted by the Indonesian court for drug trafficking, has been spared for 15 days. That crime has a sordid back story: Jane Veloso is, herself, a victim of human trafficking.

But let us not lose sight of what is happening. The reason the world— or a significant percentage of the international community—is up in arms because governments are site of reason and order and not of chaos and violence.

Why an island for the execution?

If it is for security, there seems to be more opportunities for the breach of security in the area. There must be other reasons.

Execution, backed as it is by legal foundations from the present and the past, remains a morbid act. I see the island as a pronounced dichotomy not of the public and the private, but of the acceptable and unacceptable. If the act of execution is no less than a divine/legal wrath, shouldnt it be displayed, celebrated even? Why hide a legal act if that is the stron-

Bad movies bond guys in critical way

By Reg Henry

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS

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T is probably about time to report how my (semi) retirement is going. The answer is quite well, thank you, although some of my activities have been unexpected.

I knew I’d play a lot of tennis and go to the gym regularly and, when not exercising, drive my wife crazy.

But I did not expect to become a regular moviegoer.

Yet, in coming back to California after an absence of 21 years, this is what I have done. I have always liked a good movie, but those are not the movies I have been going to see. My old friend, Mike, is to blame.

Shortly after coming back, he told me that he and another mutual friend, Gary, had been taking a break from driving their wives crazy by catching an early-evening movie every Wednesday.

Would I like to join them in these outings, which always end in a meal and a beer someplace? “Certainly,” I said.

“There’s just one thing,” Mike said. “We only go to movies that have

no socially redeeming value.”

Apparently the thinking was that, if a movie had a message, the producers were always free to send us an e-mail and we could save the early-bird $7.25 senior discount and just go have the beer.

As one who writes a weekly column said by some to have no socially redeeming value, this did not seem a problem. So that is how I have come to see some of the shallowest attempts at entertainment Hollywood has to offer. They have been a revelation.

It appears the car chase has been raised to a fine art since I last looked in. And things blowing up? It is a wonder anybody living near these film locations still has eardrums.

The first movie we went to see was Run All Night, starring Liam Neeson.

It was, as they say, action-packed, with people being shot and otherwise being made dead throughout.

I recommend it to any undertaker worried about business and in need of cheering up.

On the other hand, Get Hard, starring Will Ferrell, almost made us run into the night. As the title suggests,

this comedy is not advised for nuns or, indeed, anybody with any moral scruple. A few adjectives come to mind, with juvenile, puerile and vile chief among them.

True, it had a few funny moments, as happens when bad jokes are remorselessly piled on bad jokes until a good joke turns up, a tactic I have sometimes employed myself. But, when these rare jokes did arrive, we felt dirty laughing.

Halfway through, Gary suddenly got up, said “I can’t stand this anymore” and disappeared. This was shocking. In 15 years of rottenmovie attendance, neither Mike nor Gary had ever walked out of a movie because it was so bad. Suddenly the whole rationale of the outing seemed threatened.

But, when the house lights finally came up to put an end to our suffering, Gary was sitting way in the back. He hadn’t left in a fit of good taste—no, he just couldn’t stand the person behind him coughing. Well, that was a relief.

Much better entertainment was Furious 7, part of a longer series I had completely missed when I was more

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gest deterent to drug problems in the country? Why choose an island, demarcated from the mainland? Is the act so filthy the government makes sure it is able to place a shroud so we cannot see it?

There are accounts saying the men who will fire the gun will never find out whose instrument has the live bullet, if execution is part of a justice system, and the firing of the gun is itself justice, why go through this rigmarole of uncertainty? Why not be proud that you have released the bullet to kill the bad person all in the name of justice?

The government of Indonesia has all the right to protect its people and land. Even with that understanding, though, it is still tricky to believe in the principle that governments, those seat of logic, law and enligtenment have the function to terminate life.

In his book “Discipline and Punish,” Michel Foucault argues that the punitive systems in Europe at certain periods made the body of the condemned man the place where the vengeance of the sovereign was applied, the anchoring point for a manifestation of power, an opportunity of affirming the dissymmetry of forces.

The death of the criminals in that island in Indonesia will always be incomprehensible. Beyond explanation, though, are the photos of the familes of the convicts as they waited outside the execution area for the sound of guns.

E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

sensible. The star was Vin Diesel, who acts as well as anyone named for an automotive fuel could be expected to act.

In the complete absence of socially redeeming value, but not so much as to be socially corrosive, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Later in the month, however, an unsettling movie came along— “Danny Collins,” starring the great Al Pacino as a worn-out rock star trying to recapture the promise of his early career and re-establish links to his estranged family. It soon became obvious that this movie was good and might even qualify as containing socially redeeming value.

As you can imagine, some grumbling was heard later in the men’s room about its quality. Gary put it best: “You know, our wives might have enjoyed that film.” That put a pall on the proceedings, because it is a sad day in America when a trio of guys can’t go out and find some gratuitous cinematic trash.

But we will survive. As you may have guessed, the movies are the least of it. The plot’s real purpose is the camaraderie.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

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www.businessmirror.com.ph

As much as 1.1% of local output being lost annually due to natural disasters

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B C U. O

ACOLOD CITY—The Philippines loses as much as 1.1 percent of its local output, or its gross domestic product (GDP), each year to disasters such as typhoons, according to a high-ranking government official.

In a news briefing that marked the close of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Roadmap for Resilient Economies Meeting on Disaster-Risk Finance, Finance Undersecretary Gil S. Beltran said this was higher than the estimated average of just 0.6 percent to 0.7 percent of GDP in Apec member-economies.

“[It is] still large and it affects mainly the poor and the vulnerable, so we should do something about it because it’s not just the size of the impact, but also its impact on poverty that will push them deeper into poverty,” Beltran said.

According to him, the impact of natural disasters on the poor varies across the region and in the

Philippines. When, for example, Supertyphoon Yolanda hit Central Visayas, the devastation in its wake caused a million people to fall into poverty.

The vulnerability of the Philippines and countries in the region to natural disasters has necessitated the need to consider post-disaster recovery and rehabilitation financing solutions.

Richard Poulter, a specialist on disaster-risk financing and insurance from the World Bank, said the Apec is considering risk-pooling to augment the financial needs of individual countries, after disasters occur.

Poulter said risk-pooling among regions in countries like the Philippines is also another option that is being studied.

“One of the ideas that were proposed in this regard on riskpooling [requires] governments of the different countries coming to-

BELTRAN: “We should do something about it because it’s not just the size of the impact, but also its impact on poverty....”

gether, sharing the risks and taking that to the international insurance market in order to achieve a lower premium than if they were to go individually to markets. This is an idea that Apec is considering,” Poulter said.

Under the plan, Apec economies pool their disaster-risk resources and then tap insurance collectively from an international insurance provider.

Poulter cited the model that the

Philippines has pursued for some of its provinces, adding that this may be applied on a regional scale.

In particular, the Philippines has secured the assistance of the World Bank in developing an insurance framework, wherein disasterprone provinces pool the risks, and have these covered collectively.

Under this arrangement, if a certain province is hit by a disaster, it can file claims from the insurance facility.

“In so many ways, the Philippines has been leading efforts toward [disaster] resiliency, and the model it is pursuing is an example,” Poulter said.

Finance ministries across the region will discuss in further detail the proposals raised at the Apec event in Bacolod, and decide what may be included in the so-called Cebu Action Plan (CAP).

The CAP is the overall financerelated development road map for

Apec, which is now drafted by the Philippines while taking inputs from other Apec member-economies.

It is seen completed in time for the Apec Finance Ministers’ Meeting, which will be held in Cebu City in September.

A study from state-owned think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) quoted data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, showing disasters visiting the country between 1990 and 2006 cost P20 billion a year, or 0.5 percent of the country’s GDP. Further, the PIDS said an average 20 cyclones visit the country each year, and at least five of these exact a heavy price on lives and properties.

The annual casualty and damage to properties from these unfortunate events average 593 dead and P4.6 billion the past 30 years, the government think tank said.

U.S. ECONOMY BARELY GREW IN FIRST QUARTER T

HE US economy nearly stopped growing in the January-toMarch quarter, squeezed by a combination of factors that will either fade (a harsh winter) or persist (a stronger dollar).

Growth was a barely discernible 0.2 percent annual rate in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. That’s the poorest showing in a year, and a sharp deceleration from a 3.6-percent rate in the second half of last year.

Most economists expect growth to rebound in the coming months as short-lived problems, such as a West Coast port strike, dissipate. But the rebound isn’t likely to be that healthy, as the high value of the dollar and other trends continue to weigh on growth.

Several economists slashed their forecasts for the April-June quarter to 2.5 percent from roughly 3.5 percent.

“It’s hard to sugarcoat today’s number,” said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan&Chase. “It was disappointingly soft.”

Here are the key factors behind the first quarter’s weak showing, and which are worth worrying about.

ANOTHER HARSH WINTER

FOR the second year in a row, freezing temperatures and snowstorms delayed homebuilding, kept consumers away from shops and weighed down the economy. Ethan Harris, global economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, estimates it shaved 0.5 percentage points from growth. Consumer spending growth fell to just 1.9 percent, down sharply from 4.4 percent in the previous quarter.

Should we be worried? No. Spending should rebound now that the snow has melted. Strong hiring and lower gas prices, compared with a year ago, should give Americans more spending power.

STRONG DOLLAR SLAMS EXPORTS, PROFITS

EXPORTS of US goods plummeted 13.3 percent, the most since the first quarter of 2009 during the depths of the recession. Imports rose slightly, widening the trade deficit and slashing 1.25 percentage points from growth.

The strong dollar is partly to blame: It has jumped 19 percent since last June.

That makes US exports more expensive and imports into the US cheaper.

Should we be worried? Yes. The dollar is expected to remain strong, given that the Federal Reserve will likely start raising short-term interest rates later this year. That makes it more profitable for foreigners to invest in the US, boosting

CPI Consumer Price Index percent change, by month, seasonally adjusted:

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3.3%

0

’04

0.75

0.75

0.8 ’14

+0.2%

0.50

0.50

0.25

0.25

0.00 0.00

-0.25

-0.25

-0.50 -0.50

March ’14

March ’15

Graphic: Tribune News Service Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

demand for the dollar. Harris forecasts the stronger dollar will cut growth this year by 0.5 percentage points.

STRIKE SHUTS DOWN PORTS

A LABOR dispute at West Coast ports is also partly to blame for the wider trade gap. It delayed the shipment of exports and imports, and may have cut 0.2 percentage points from growth, Harris estimates.

Should we be worried? Maybe. The strike is over, which should boost exports in the April-June quarter. But imports may also come in faster, potentially worsening the trade gap and slowing growth.

GOODS PILE UP

GOODS and raw materials piled up in warehouses across the country at the fastest pace in more than four years.

This trend actually added 0.74 percentage points to growth because companies had to produce those goods. Without the increase in stockpiling, the economy would have actually shrank in the first quarter.

Should we be worried? Yes—because this positive trend is almost certainly temporary. The big increase in inventories likely occurred because sales slowed.

That means companies will focus on clearing their warehouses and store shelves in the coming quarter, reducing their need for new products.

S “US,” 