BusinessMirror November 19, 2014

Japan’s Abe puts off tax hike, calls snap poll

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OKYO—Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called a snap election for December and put off a sales-tax hike planned for next year, vowing on Tuesday to step down if his strategy to revive the ailing economy falls flat.

Despite Abe’s aggressive revival policies to end two decades of stagnation, the Japanese economy slipped into a recession last quarter, after a tax increase in April crushed consumer and business spending. That prompted Abe and other officials to reconsider a second hike planned for October next year.

“I’ve been pondering this problem,” Abe told a news conference. “Even if we raise the tax as planned, tax revenue will not increase if the economy does not recover.”

Abe said he will dissolve parliament on Friday, setting an election for midDecember to seek public approval for his decision, which he said was needed to ensure the success of his “Abenomics” policies of extreme monetary easing, heavy government spending and economic reforms.

“I need to hear the voice of the people,” Abe said. “I will step down if we fail to keep our majority because that would mean our Abenomics is rejected.” »A2

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks during a news conference at his official residence in Tokyo on Tuesday. AP/Shizuo Kambayashi

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Tuesday, November 18,19, 2014 Vol.Vol. 10 No. 40 Wednesday, November 2014 10 No. 41

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europeans’ role in snuff video BusinessMirror

World The

B3-1 | Wednesday, November 19, 2014 • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

By Cai U. Ordinario

25-percent to 35-percent increase in annual domestic output is achievable if the Philippines can only exploit the economic potential of its so-called demographic dividend.

A pro-democrAcY protester removes barricades from an occupied area outside government headquarters in Hong Kong’s Admiralty district on Tuesday. AP/Vincent Yu

removal of Barricades Begins at HK protest site

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ONG KONG—Workers in Hong Kong on Tuesday started clearing away barricades at one site of the student protest that has rocked the city for the last two months.

The removal comes after a Hong Kong court granted a restraining order against the protesters last week requiring them to clear the area in front of a tower in the central part of Hong Kong, as well as separate order against a second protest site Mong Kok brought by taxi and minibus operators.

The workers could be seen cutting plastic ties holding the barricades together. Students, who have been protesting for greater democracy in the former British colony, did not resist. Some protesters had already moved their tents to other parts of the protest zone ahead of the clearance operation.

The protesters oppose Beijing’s decision that a panel will screen candidates for the inaugural 2017 election for Hong Kong’s top official.

Chinese authorities have declared the gatherings illegal.

It is not known what the students, who occupy several sites around Hong Kong, plan to do next.

On Saturday three students who have led protests for greater

democracy in the former British colony were turned back in their attempt to go to Beijing to meet with top Chinese officials.

Alex Chow, Nathan Law and Eason Chung—members of a student group that played a main role in organizing massive street protests that started nearly two months ago—were denied boarding passes for a Cathay Pacific flight when they were told their documents that would allow them to travel to Beijing were invalid.

In a news conference hours later, the student leaders said annulling their travel documents is an unreasonable move that deprives them of their rights to enter the country’s territory.

Carrie Lam, chief secretary for the Hong Kong administration, said that it was unnecessary for the students to petition Beijing and that the central leadership of the ruling Communist Party was aware of their appeals.

Pro-democracy lawmakers in Hong Kong are routinely denied entry to the mainland, and Beijing in the past has confiscated or refused to renew the travel permits commonly known as return-home cards for a number of Hong Kong activists. AP

Working while others sleep?

Obesity may be a higher risk

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ry as they might to adjust to a schedule that has them toiling while others sleep, swing-shift workers do not fool their bodies into burning calories and using nutrients the way people who obey their internal circadian clocks do, says a new study.

The result—a metabolism that burns fewer calories during sleep and slows down at night despite work demands— could help explain why those who work overnight shifts are more likely to be obese and to develop Type 2 diabetes.

In a study conducted by University of Colorado sleep specialists, 14 lean, healthy adults agreed to turn their days upsidedown progressively over a six-day period.

Checking into a University of Colorado clinical research facility, the volunteers were all fed a diet sufficient to maintain their weight. They simulated a sleep-wake schedule that started with two regular working days and then made a transition to three night shifts in a row.

Published on Monday in the journal PNAS, the research reported that as subjects commenced their simulated “swingshift schedule,” their bodies first responded by revving higher: for the first 24-hour period that their sleep-wake schedule was transposed, they burned 10 calories more than they had during an ordinary baseline day.

At no point in the six-day experiment did subjects adapt to a snoozeby-day, work-by-night schedule by boosting production of the sleepfriendly hormone melatonin in the day and curtailing it at night.

But their bodies quickly adapted to the reversal by turning their thermostats down.

Compared to the baseline readings taken on their arrival (a day when they were awake by day and asleep eight hours at night), the subjects burned 52 fewer calories on Day Two of their swing-shift schedule, and 59 fewer calories on Day Three of that schedule. Los Angeles Times/Tribune Content Agency

Europeans have prominent role in beheading video

THis image taken from an undated video shows a militant that the French government say is Frenchman maxime Hauchard. interior minister Bernard cazeneuve said there is a “strong presumption” that Hauchard is among the group of islamic extremist fighters in the video released over the weekend. AP

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THis still image, taken from an undated video published on the internet by the islamic state group militants and made available on November 16, purports to show extremists marching syrian soldiers before beheading them. AP

ARIS—The cold-eyed militants lined up behind their victims in the latest Islamic State (IS) video appear to come from outside the Middle East, including one from France and possibly two from Britain, as the extremist group tries to show a global reach.

The grisly video—clearly aimed at a Western audience—lingers as much on the faces of the camouflaged extremists as the men who are beheaded. The victims include American aid worker Peter Kassig and more than a dozen Syrian soldiers.

The images of the IS militants, who are shown one by one in closeup, allowed authorities to identify one of them on Monday as a 22-yearold Frenchman who converted to radical Islam.

Maxime Hauchard has been on the radar of French authorities since 2011, when he took two trips to Mauritania to attend a Koranic school, said Paris prosecutor Francois Molins. The prosecutor said investigators were trying to determine if another Frenchman also is in the video.

Last year, the prosecutor said, Hauchard left Paris on a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, planning to cross into Syria under the pretext of doing humanitarian work in the warravaged nation.

President Barack Obama confirmed Kassig’s slaying after a US review of the video.

The overwhelming majority of IS fighters are from the Mideast, but the extremist group is trying to cement its claim on an Islamic empire straddling Iraq and Syria.

Europe appears to be a fertile ground to find supporters, with officials saying thousands of young Europeans have headed off to jihad. More than 1,000 people in France alone are under surveillance for suspected plans to join the militants, officials said.

In the video released on Sunday, some of the knife-wielding extremists standing behind their kneeling victims had distinctly Asian features.

Another whose face was hooded had the familiar London accent of the jihadi who also appeared in beheading videos with American hostages James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and with British hostages David Haines and Alan Henning.

There also were indications that a Welsh medical student may be the man standing next to Hauchard.

“It’s quite transparent that IS is trying to exaggerate its base of support,” said Charlie Winter, a researcher at the Quilliam Foundation in London. “They are trying to show that Muslims from all over the world are protecting their Syrian brethren and their Iraqi brethren.”

European officials are trying just as furiously to counter that message.

“I call solemnly and seriously on all our citizens, and notably our young people who are the primary target of the terrorist propaganda, to open your eyes to the terrible reality of the actions of Daesh,” said French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, using an Arabic acronym for the IS group. “These are criminals that are building a system of barbarity.”

Hauchard gave an interview to France’s BFM television in July, telling the network he had helped capture Mosul, the Iraqi city whose fall eventually prompted the United States to resume military operations in Iraq.

“We’re waiting for death,” Hauchard said at the time. “My objective is to be a martyr.”

A man from Wales, Ahmed Muthana, said he thinks he saw his son, 20-year-old Nasser Muthana, in the latest video, and Winter, the British researcher, confirmed the likeness.

“It resembles him. I was shown a picture of the video. I cannot confirm it is him, but I think it might be,” Ahmed Muthana told Britain’s Press Association.

Kassig had gone to Syria on a humanitarian mission. His parents, Ed and Paula Kassig, said on Monday that while their hearts have been shattered by his death, they believe his life is proof that “one person can make a difference.”

“In 26 years, he has witnessed and experienced firsthand more of the harsh realities of life than most of us can imagine,” Paula Kassig said in Indianapolis, Indiana, reading a brief statement.

“But rather than letting the darkness overwhelm him, he has chosen to believe in the good — in himself and in others. AP and LA

world Times/TNS

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scan. print. send. receive.

The Miracle of Birth

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EAR God, we are happy to know that all parents participate in an event that is beyond understanding.

They each contribute a part of themselves. As a result, what develops within the mother is a fully formed living person. It is not surprising, therefore, that when a baby is born, people speak of the event as “The Miracle of Birth.”

(Personally, I have had five “births” and I thank God they are all professionals and have families of their own now. Let us all enjoy The Miracle Birth in our families. Amen.

LEARNT FROM THE GREAT LEADER AND LOUIE M. LACSON Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

»

ONE of these multifunction goodies from Canon is the Pixma MG3570, a competitively priced all-inone wireless inkjet printer (print/scan/copy) that is available in either a stylish matte black finish or the glossier red or white.

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YOUTUBE BRINGS ITS HUGE FAN BASE TO MUSIC STREAMING »D2

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Wednesday, November 19, 2014

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Villar Group Chairman Manny Villar leads the groundbreaking ceremony of Vista Hub, Vista Land’s flagship office development in Bonifacio Global City. Joining him are (from left) Jie Espinosa, Colliers International director for office services; Nikki Cachuela, Vista Land head of operations for BPO Division; Manuel Paolo Villar, Vista Land CEO and president; Philip B. Lim, JV partner; and Meloi Casas of Casas + Architects. Right photo shows an artist’s perspective of Vista Hub.

Here comes the first Lumia carrying the Microsoft name B M D The Seattle Times

Scan. Print. Send. Receive.

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HE term “paperless office” has been bandied about since the mid-1970s, when personal computing began to inform daily life and futurists saw a work environment in the none-too-distant future where documents and transactions could be rendered and accomplished digitally.

Such future seemed even more inevitable as the Internet took hold of the global community in the 1990s and made all kinds of communication—personal or professional, long distance or otherwise—nearly instantaneous with e-mail and other electronic messaging formats.

The advent of so-called cloud services and social media in recent years has made it seem that not only is a paperless office about to come to pass but even a paperless world.

Whether such world comes sooner rather than later, global companies whose businesses have been fueled by consumers’ consumption of paper have expertly retooled their models in anticipation of this seeming inevitability.

Canon—the multinational corporation headquartered in Õta, Tokyo, Japan, which has been supplying the imaging and optical products needs of consumers, industries and professions since the 1930s— is one such company.

It has given its range of point-and-shoot and professional-grade digital cameras (under the IXUS, PowerShot and EOS brands) wireless capabilities that address the seemingly insatiable need of consumers to

share all kinds of visual snippets of their everyday lives to a worldwide community through a variety of socialmedia platforms.

For its comprehensive portfolio of printers, Canon has also pushed functionality beyond their original utility. These modern tools for the home and office no longer just print documents and photos, but also even receive for printing the latest snaps you made on your smartphone or digital shooter, or some clever story you came across while browsing the Web on your tablet.

One of these multifunction goodies from Canon is the Pixma MG3570, a competitively priced all-in-one wireless inkjet printer (print/scan/copy) that is available in either a stylish matte black finish or the glossier red or white.

Beyond its good looks, however, this versatile performer makes for an indispensable tool for the home or the small home/office with the various technologies it packs. The Pixma MG3570 is equipped with the company’s unique FINE (Full Photo-Lithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) technology print head that yields high-quality prints of up to 4,800x1,200 dpi for grainfree images in the most perfect shades.

And for those documents or books that you just had to have scanned and printed out, the Pixma MG3570 features a four-color ink system with dedicated pigment-based black ink for black-and-white document printing—which essentially means greatly improved text printing while the typical problems of smearing when using a highlighter is substantially reduced.

Also packing built-in Wi-Fi connectivity that

supports 802.11b/g/n standard, this all-in-one tool boasts of printing function sharing among multiple computers or devices over a high-speed wireless network, allowing you direct access to these functions straight from either your smartphone, your significant other’s desktop computer, or your teen’s tablet. Yes, the Pixma MG3570 also boasts of support for Google Cloud Print and AirPrint, allowing you to easily create printouts of photos (even borderless prints), e-mail and Web pages, without installing any device driver, straight from your compatible Android or iOS smartphone or tablet.

And just in case you’ve been through one nightmare setup process too many, rest assured that setting up this Pixma for such functionality is easily accomplished in just a few steps that even first-time printer owners will find easy.

You can further leverage the MG3570’s strengths via the Pixma Printing Solutions smartphone applications for photo printing and scanning, and the My Image Garden software for automatic-printing idea suggestions and face-detection function for photo management.

These days, much of the focus of the tech media is on mobile and wearable technologies like smartphones, tablets, smartwatches and smartglasses, with tools like printers and scanners now increasingly becoming nothing more than footnotes and boxed items on the pages of newspapers and magazines.

Despite this challenge, Canon has flourished by making its technologies continuously relevant even as the world marches steadily toward a paperless future. ■

GCash waives transaction fees for money transfer IN celebration of its 10th anniversary in the mobile-money industry, as well as in recognition of the support of its growing customer base, GCash (tinyurl.com/lktvkej), the flagship mobile-money service of Globe Telecom, is waiving transaction fees for money-transfer service until December 31.

With GCash Libre Pera Padala, customers can save P1 for when sending money using GCash.

Customers who will use GCash to transfer money to a fellow GCash user

will also have the chance to win a brand-new Samsung Galaxy S5.

Customers will get one raffle entry for each Send Money transaction, with no minimum amount required for a transaction to qualify for the promo. A customer will receive an SMS confirmation for every qualified entry.

“We celebrate our 10th anniversary in the industry by making send money transactions free to all GCash customers. With our GCash Libre Pera Padala promo, we give

back to our customers for their continued support, and this is our inspiration to drive innovation and superior customer experience in our business. This promo is yet another disruption that we are making in the domestic remittance industry, so we invite our customers to use our Send Money services more to get bigger chances of taking home a Samsung Galaxy S5,” GXI President Paolo Baltao shares.

Customers need to register and have sufficient GCash in their account

to be able to use the Send Money feature. Meanwhile, they can also fund a GCash wallet by cashing-in via GCash partner outlets (Globe Stores, SM Department Stores, Puregold, Villarica, Tambunting, Rural Banks, etc.), Mobile Phone Banking, Online Bank Transfer, BancNet ATMs and BPI branches nationwide.

GCash customers may send money using their mobile phones by dialing *143# free for Globe and TM subscribers, via the GCash mobile app, or via GCash online.

SEATTLE—Microsoft officially entered the post-Nokia smartphone era with the release late Monday of a budget-priced Lumia device.

The Microsoft Lumia 535 will sell for about €110, or about $137, a figure Microsoft said would vary by market. Microsoft’s previous Lumia smartphone devices—which carried the “Nokia Lumia” name—were released in September and cost between $259 and $430.

Last month Microsoft said it would start phasing out the Nokia brand for its smartphones, the latest step in integrating Nokia’s phone-manufacturing business. Microsoft’s $7.5-billion deal to buy the Finnish company’s handset group closed in April.

As part of the deal, Microsoft licensed the rights to use the Nokia name for 10 years on basic cellphones that lack the processing power and Internet connectivity of more advanced smartphones. Microsoft obtained more limited rights to use of the Nokia name on smartphones.

With Monday’s announcement—along with a coordinated rebranding of Microsoft’s Nokia-branded social-media and Internet sites with the “Lumia” name—Microsoft is pushing ahead with a brand it owns in its entirety. “The Nokia brand is very strong,” particularly internationally, Will Stofega, research firm IDC’s program director for mobile technology, said in an interview before the announcement. “The game is going to be for [Microsoft] to make sure people understand what they have: This is an extension of Nokia. And hopefully carry on the same things that people found compelling in those devices.”

Microsoft’s news release on the launch didn’t specify in which countries Lumia 535 would be sold.

A spokesman said the phone would be rolled out this month in some markets, but declined to elaborate.

In 2013 Nokia was the world’s No. 2 phone manufacturer behind Samsung when including basic mobile phones. In smartphones alone, however, Nokia stood at No. 8. The Microsoft Lumia 535 will run the Windows Phone 8.1 operating system, and features a 5-inch display and 5-megapixel front-facing camera. A separate model will feature dual SIM card capability.

The phone comes in green, orange, white, gray, cyan and black, and will be preinstalled with Microsoft software, including Skype, the Office suite and Outlook.

Windows Phone, the operating system that runs on Lumia devices, powered just 2.5 percent the smartphones shipped worldwide from April through the end of June, according to the most recent IDC data.

Google’s Android dominated the market, with a share of 85 percent, and Apple’s iOS ran second with 12 percent. “They do have some distance to make up,” Stofega said of Microsoft. “They are going to clearly look at [rising demand] in some of the emerging markets and see what they can do to bundle both their services and their devices” to draw customers there, he said.

Major international companies have been eager to tap the fast-growing Chinese market in particular, but have struggled to compete with local manufacturers who offer cheaper hardware.

Domestic manufacturers accounted for four of the five biggest sellers of smartphones in China during the third quarter, according to research firm Canalys.

life

D1

manny vs floyd?

Sports

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BusinessMirror

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roper t y developer Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. on Tuesday said it tapped Colliers International as its marketing arm for the company’s first office-building development in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig.

The company said its project, called Vista Hub, is set to start excavation and construction this month. Completion is expected by the second quarter of 2016. Vista Land is spending some P1.5 billion for the venture.

The 15-story office building will be put up on a 2,650-square-meter property on 21st Drive, East Forbes in BGC. It has a total of nine office floors for information-technology (IT) and business-

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

WRITING ON THE WALL

mAnnY PAcQUiAo steps into the ring on Saturday against chris Algieri, but overshadowing the bout are signs that a Pacquiao-mayweather fight might occur in 2015. AP

MANNY VS FLOYD?

By Lance Pugmire

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Los Angeles Times

OR years now, disagreements over money, drug testing and personal grudges have prevented the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight from happening.

Ego is another reason the top 2 boxers of the last decade can’t find their way into the ring together.

Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 knockouts) will step into the ring on Saturday in a World Boxing Organization welterweight title bout against Chris Algieri (20-0, 8 KOs) in Macau. Pacquiao is a 9-1 favorite over Algieri, but overshadowing the bout are signs that a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight might occur in 2015.

The Pacquaio-Mayweather buzz has been heating up since September when, a few minutes after beating Marcos Maidana, Mayweather was asked about fighting Pacquiao.

“If the Pacquiao fight materializes, let’s make it happen,” Mayweather said.

And early last month, Floyd Mayweather Sr. told an interviewer, “I’m pretty sure he’s gonna get Pacquiao.... And it needs to happen. Just like [Muhammad] Ali and Joe Frazier, or Ali and George Foreman, something like that, man, it’s one of those fights like that. The world wants to see it.”

According to key aides for Pacquiao and Mayweather, CBS Corp. Chief Executive Leslie Moonves is helping to bring the two sides together and has the respect of Mayweather and Bob Arum, Pacquiao’s promoter.

“The guy carrying the ball is Moonves,” Arum said. “He and I have talked on a number of occasions and he has suggested we see if we can reach an understanding. I assume, without knowing for a fact, that he’s talking to the Mayweather camp.”

CBS is the parent company of Showtime, which has a six-fight deal with Mayweather (47-0, 26 KOs). In his first four bouts, Mayweather has earned purses greater than $30 million per fight.

Moonves, through a CBS spokesman, declined “out of respect for the privacy of the talks,” to be interviewed about his involvement in Mayweather-Pacquiao talks. So did Mayweather and Stephen Espinoza, the Showtime vice president who runs its sports division.

“We can confirm that Floyd Mayweather definitely wants the Pacquiao fight,” a Showtime spokesman wrote to The Times in an e-mail. “Everyone on our side—Floyd, CBS and Showtime—is advocating for the fight to happen.”

Moonves has been a fixture at Showtime fights. He attended the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez-Erislandy Lara junior-middleweight fight in July in Las Vegas.

Arum has deep respect for the business acumen of Moonves.

“One of the leading television executives in the country. I have no idea if he can get [Pacquiao-Mayweather] done or not, though, because I cannot talk for Mayweather,” Arum said.

Two boxing officials close to Mayweather, but not authorized to

discuss his fight plans publicly, told The Times that Mayweather has never wanted to fight Pacquiao as much as he does now. One official said Mayweather has even mentioned the idea of ending his Showtime deal with consecutive fights against Pacquiao.

Officials from HBO, which will televise the Pacquiao-Algieri fight on pay per view, have discussed with Moonves the idea of a joint broadcast for a Pacquiao-Mayweather bout. HBO and Showtime teamed up for the 2002 Lennox Lewis-Mike Tyson heavyweight title fight.

Arum and Showtime were also partners on the 2011 Pacquiao fight against Shane Mosley.

Officials from both sides have confirmed that proposals have been exchanged this month for a possible fight.

Arum dismissed reports that he has turned down a $40-million guarantee for Pacquiao to fight Mayweather, with another 35 percent of the pay-per-view profit. Arum also said it was “erroneous” that he recently presented Moonves with a proposal for a 55 percent-45 percent purse split in Mayweather’s favor.

Of course, Pacquiao still needs to beat Algieri.

Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, said, “I only hope that Manny doesn’t look so good [against Algieri] that it scares Floyd off.”

Mayweather and Alvarez set a boxing record with $150 million in revenue from 2.2 million pay-per-view buys for their September 2013 fight, which Mayweather won by majority decision. But Mayweather’s two fights with Maidana this year failed to average 1 million buys. And if Mayweather fights the winner of the December 13 Amir Khan-Devon Alexander bout, that fight would also be a hard sell.

A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight could surpass 3 million pay-per-view buys, analysts have said.

However, many in boxing still believe that the fight will never happen.

If Mayweather, who’ll turn 38 in February, wants to fight Pacquiao, Arum has several reasons to make him wait.

First, floating the idea boosts interest in Pacquiao-Algieri. Second, delaying the negotiation can allow Arum to schedule Miguel Cotto’s middleweight title defense against Alvarez on Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas, the date Mayweather has fought for the last three years.

“Manny and everyone involved in boxing wants the fight to happen,” Arum said. “It has to be a deal that’s acceptable to both.... Manny believes his style is such that he beats Mayweather relatively easily...when I [promoted] Mayweather, he never wanted to fight a southpaw. And Manny’s a fast southpaw who moves.”

Yet, Pacquiao was knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez in December 2012. And Mayweather was the 2013 fighter of the year, and doesn’t seem to be slowing down, as he cruised to a unanimous decision over Maidana in September.

“I’m open to a deal,” Arum said. “We’ve got to sit down with the other side and make a deal.”

The Manny PacquaioFloyd Mayweather Jr. buzz has been heating up since September when, a few minutes after beating Marcos Maidana, Mayweather was asked about fighting Pacquiao.

Algieri brimming with confidence

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ACAU—Chris Algieri and his support team are scary confident as the fight week countdown begins for Saturday night’s World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title battle with legendary eight-division champion Manny Pacquiao at the Venetian Macau.

Either Algieri is going to score one of the great upsets in boxing history, or he’s building himself up for an epic letdown.

But there’s absolutely no mistaking the “all-in” attitude Algieri and trainers Keith Trimble and Tim Lane displayed at a meeting on Monday night with a small group of international boxing journalists.

Algieri has his game face on in the gym, where he has been razor sharp against a group of sparring partners that includes former world champ Zab Judah, a slick southpaw brought in to

mimic Pacquiao. But publicly, the 30-yearold from Greenlawn is buoyant amid the big-fight trappings.

Surrounded on Monday by hundreds of enthusiastic Venetian employees at a meet-and-greet, Algieri posed for pictures, signed autographs and said he was ready to “crowd surf.”

“I’m very excited,” Algieri said. “The team is very positive with all the energy in camp and the positivity we’re experiencing from people here in Macau. It seems like it’s flowing into my entire camp, and we are performing above and beyond.”

Asked how he expects to fare against Pacquiao, Algieri didn’t hesitate. “I expect to go out there and control everything,” he said. “That includes my opponent.

Control, control, control. That’s what this sport is all about.”

The audacity of that statement is shocking considering the wins Algieri (20-0,

eight KOs) scored earlier this year over Emanuel Taylor and Ruslan Provodnikov for the WBO light-welterweight title are the only top-quality opponents on his résumé.

Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 KOs) is at the opposite end of that spectrum.

Yet, when Algieri was asked about shouldering the promotional obligations while Pacquiao has gone quietly about his business, he almost described it as a changing of the guard.

“Manny’s done this 1,000 times,” Algieri said, excusing his opponent’s limited involvement. “He’s been this guy. He’s earned his right not to be that guy anymore.

I’m ready to take the reins.”

Pacquiao has let his trainer, Freddie Roach, do most of the talking for their side. A Filipino journalist told Algieri that Roach recently mentioned the challenger was knocked out once during his earlier kickboxing career. Newsday

sports

E1 Wednesday, November 19, 2014

BusinessMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

A NEW DINING DESTINATION IN MOA

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SIDE from pioneering the innovative mixed-use development called Townships, Megaworld, the country’s leading realestate developer, spearheaded another first in the country. Through the company’s commitment in providing environmental sustainability, its new 8 Campus Place Building A in McKinley Hill was recognized as the country’s first LEED gold-certified building for businessprocess outsourcing companies.

LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environment Design, is a green building ratings program developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC).

LEED is the most widely accepted and recognized green building rating system worldwide.

“Megaworld remains committed to underpin the company’s vi-

sion of creating communities that promote sustainability for the environment and maximizing the use of land. We develop a masterplan where residential, commercial and office towers will be in one secured location while we are building environment-friendly structures. Expect more green office towers in the years to come in the company,” said

Jericho P. Go, senior vice president, Megaworld.

The 8 Campus Place Building A, which is now occupied by the American bank Wells Fargo for its global business services, is the first LEED gold-certified project under the LEED for Core and Shell category in McKinley Hill. 8 Campus Place is comprised of three five-storey buildings with a total leasable floor area of 30,000 sq m.

Megaworld and its LEED consultant, Barone International, are proud of several noteworthy sustainable features in the building, such as reduced number of parking spaces to encourage the building occupants to use public transportation instead of private vehicles; accommodations for bicycle storage and shower facilities for individuals who prefer to take a more sustainable commute to their work. The building uses 45 percent less water than standard buildings by providing water-efficient plumbing fi xtures.

Additionally, the exterior landscape was designed to use no potable water for irrigating plants and vegetation. The use of wide-glass architecture was carefully planned

to infiltrate natural light into the building by installing doubleglazed gas-filled insulated (Low-E) glass to reflect the sun’s heat away from the building to reduce the air conditioning need inside the building. The construction materials contained more than 30 percent recycled content and the project earned a bonus point by using over 30 percent of locally available materials produced within the Philippines. The building implemented many innovative indoor air quality features, including the provision of CO2 sensors to ensure fresh air delivery to the building occupants and use of low-emitting paints and materials (Low-VOC) throughout the interior spaces.

To assure the energy systems installed in the building were functioning properly after they were installed, an independent third-party commissioning agent, Facilities Analysis & Controls Ltd., coordinated with Megaworld’s property management office and the company’s facility manager to ensure that the sophisticated green building will function properly and efficiently for many years.

AMILIES, friends and food lovers who regularly troop to the landmark Mall of Asia complex (MOA) in Pasay City can now look forward to a new and unique attraction in this masterplanned seaside estate.

TwoE-com Center, one of the latest structures that changed the landscape of MOA, is also home to Prism Plaza—an alfresco dining and social venue perched atop the fourth-level podium of the iconic office building.

TwoE-com Center has recently been cited as the Best Office Development in the Philippines during the 2012 Asia Pacific Property Awards, organized by the renowned International Property Awards group which recognizes innovative real-estate developments around the world.

Prism Plaza is an integral feature of TwoE-com that definitely changes the lifestyle not only of office employees and professionals working in MOA, but even of visitors and guests who want a different dining destination with cool, breathtaking views of Manila Bay and its famed sunsets.

Lunch meetings and after-work drinks can now become a more effortless and pleasurable part of the workday schedule. Families going out on weekend treats for special occasions can also enjoy a more relaxed and quieter side of MOA. Along canopied spaces in the podium perimeter are new restaurants never before tasted in the mall. Prism Plaza is seen to complement the already rich and varied choices for dining or hanging out in the whole MOA complex.

Family-style restaurant Uncle Cheff y, renowned for its brick-oven dishes and trademark panizza, brings its distinctive flavors this side of town. The warmth of its interiors and its innovative fusion food are perfect for gatherings with friends and coworkers.

Those in the mood for European cuisine can enjoy home-made Spanish dishes at Alba. It sets itself apart from the usual experience of regional cuisine with its use of genuinely flavorful and authentic ingredients and presentation, in servings fit for groups and families.

For those in the know, House of Wagyu is always sought after for its signature dining experience—cooking one’s own steak to perfection, atop a hot volcanic stone grill right on one’s table. Its selection of meats is top of the class and highly regarded by serious steak connoisseurs. With its carefully selected wines and other dishes, House of Wagyu creates just the perfect setting, from high-power executive meetings to romantic dinners.

There is also the quintessential hangout favorite Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, which also serves hearty breakfast and lunch menus, including pasta dishes and salads. Soon to open are more restaurants and food choices for discriminating foodies.

Prism Plaza is truly a unique attraction, accessible by grand imposing staircases and escalators on either corner of the TwoE-com building. What’s more, its central open area is an ideal venue for events such as product launches, intimate concerts or social gatherings especially for the target market of office workers and executives in the E-com buildings.

A Swiss luxury resort A

N inspiring twist has taken over the majestic Tagaytay landscape. With its scenic slopes featuring over 23,000 delightfully lush pine trees, Crosswinds is a fragrant masterpiece. A Swiss-inspired community spanning a hundred hectares, Crosswinds is a first-class luxury resort with several distinct enclaves that feature homes and residences inspired by the beautiful and distinct architecture of Switzerland.

Crosswinds’ enclaves are Alpine Village—Crosswinds’ commercial development which will house an array of retail stores and restaurants; Grand Quartier— Crosswinds’ condotel wherein clients may either purchase a unit or stay in one of the rooms for vacation; Deux Pointe, Montreux Ville, Montreux Gardens, Swiss Quadrille, Pine Grove, Cedar Brooks & Peak View—Crosswinds’ residential developments characterized

by Swiss Chalet homes; and Gran Duetto—Crosswinds’ residential

development in townhouse layout The property boasts of wellappointed facilities, which include a commercial complex, called the Alpine Village, banquet services and function rooms that can be rented for special occasions, and swimming pools and pocket parks for recreation. Soon to be included on its roster of impressive facilities are the chapel, spa and wellness services, and picnic areas.

The unique floor plan layouts, with model homes that feature spacious floor areas up to 219 sq m, is one of the things Crosswinds can stand proud of. Crosswinds also offers lot packages reaching up to more than 1,000 sq m and condo packages at the Grand Quartier with floor areas up to 200 sq m.

In the recently concluded Southeast Asia Awards held at Shangri-La Singapore, Crosswinds reaped recognition as one of Southeast Asia’s “Highly Commended” condos under the Best Condo Development (Philippines)”.

The highly rated award follows the “Best Mid-range Condo Development (Resort)” award received by Brittany Corp. last August of this year from the Philippine Property Awards.

Crosswinds is also home to the very first Home of Eclectic Cuisine in the Philippines. Described as a Southeast Asian bistro, Café Vôi Lá brings together exotic flavors and colonial influences of our very special part of the world. Drawing inspiration from old French Indochina, this quaint restaurant is the proud recent addition to Brittany’s Crosswinds.

The name of Café Vôi Lá is derived from a Vietnamese word voi la, which means lime leaf—a key ingredient in much of Southeast Asian cooking. Like the region that we call home, you can expect a delicious taste of everything—from slowly simmered then grilled babyback ribs to their very own Asian curry blend of seafood or chicken and our grilled chicken or pork sa-

PROPERTY

tays flavored with kafir with a siding of turmeric rice. Café Vôi Lá guarantees the customers that the taste of its Southeast Asian cuisine can totally leave their palettes in a

pleasant surprise.

The flavors of Café Vôi Lá’s menu, along with its relaxing ambiance, truly mirror all the ingredients that make Crosswinds a

world-class property in the South.

So come home to where cool pinescented mornings last all day. Come on to Crosswinds and truly Live Inspired.

See “Vista Land,” A2

Although in recession, Japan vows continued ODA to PHL

ICONIC architecture and a mixed-use environment are the winning propositions of TwoE-com Center as the International Property Awards’ Best Office Development in the Philippines.

MEGAWORLD’S 8 Campus Place

process outsourcing (BPO) use, with dining options made available on the first two floors. Parking will be on one basement and four podium levels, it said. The development has a gross floor area of over 20,000 sq m.

Vista Hub is designed for 24/7 operations, with 100-percent backup power and reliable support facilities that include high-speed elevators, high-speed fiber-optic telecommunications backbone and secure building-monitoring system, the company said.

Vista Land first partnered with Colliers for its first BPO venture in Worldwide Corporate Center in Mandaluyong City.

“In the future, we will build more IT BPO

C1

PHL’S FIRST LEED GOLD CERTIFIED BUILDING 8 Campus Place is PHL’s first LEED gold-certified building

VISTA LAND TAPS COLLIERS FOR BGC OFFICE VENTURE

By VG Cabuag

| Wednesday, november 19, 2014

On the sidelines of the launch of the United Nations Population Fund’s (UNFPA) 2014 State of World Population Report, University of the Philippines (UP) School of Statistics Dean Dennis Mapa told reporters that the additional growth would translate to an annual increase of about two percentage points in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

This means that, if normal annual growth is at 6 percent, this could be boosted to 8 percent if the Philippines will benefit fully from its demographic dividend.

“At the very least, the contribution of demographic transition is about between 25 [percent] and 35 percent of real GDP growth,” Mapa said, in explaining his initial findings on the 2014 Study on Demographic Dividend.

Continued on A2

E1

OKYO, Japan—The outlook for the partnership between the Philippines and Japan remains rosy, even as the world’s third-largest economy was dragged into a recession after a contracting third-quarter print.

This was the consensus between Filipino and Japanese government officials, who participated in the symposium on the 60th anniversary of the Japanese official development assistance (ODA) here on Monday.

Foreign Secretary Albert F. del Rosario underscored the importance of cooperation and

PESO exchange rates n US 44.8870

partnership between the two nations amid their continued pursuit for inclusive growth.

He said the program has immensely benefited the Philippines in a wide range of priority areas, including maritime cooperation, peace building, governance, education, health care, construction and youth leadership-training programs.

“As the Philippine government continues to pursue inclusive growth, ODA has become instrumental in filling the financial gap for development and poverty reduction that has beset the Philippines and other developing countries,” the Filipino official added.

Continued on A2

n japan 0.3853 n UK 70.2167 n HK 5.7887 n CHINA 7.3296 n singapore 34.5870 n australia 39.1309 n EU 55.8933 n SAUDI arabia 11.9641 Source: BSP (18 November 2014)

A2

News BusinessMirror

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Although in recession, Japan ‘Exploit demographic dividend’ vows continued ODA to PHL Continued from A1

Development priorities

Continued from A1

But the partnership does not end until the Philippines has achieved inclusive growth and has achieved its goal of reducing poverty; if not eradicate it.

“Japan and the Philippines should continue to pursue an inclusive-growth agenda that effectively put our peoples at the center of development,” del Rosario said.

The East Asian country has been the top donor of the Philippines for several years now.

The total assistance that Japan has been extending to the Philippines is at ¥5.17 trillion as of end-2012. In 2012 alone, Japan donated roughly ¥69.97 billion in a mix of grants, loans and technical cooperation.

“The future of the PhilippinesJapan partnership from 60 years and beyond is full of infinite promising possibilities. From these possibilities let us prioritize what is best for our peoples and shared future,” he emphasized.

In line with this, the Cabinet official listed several development areas that need to be prioritized in the coming year.

He said human-capital development, through assistance in education and training, especially in science and technology, which fosters innovation and creativity to increase the skills knowledge and productivity of Filipino workers and the new labor entrants, is imperative.

“This strategy becomes imperative as the Philippines enters the so-called demographic sweet spot in 2015 when majority of its population with a median age of 22 years enters the work force,” del Rosario pointed out.

“Grand programs, therefore, that focus on science and technology education must be promoted. Perhaps it’s high time to consider a comprehensive agreement on science and technology that considers ODA as one of the funding mechanisms,” he added.

Separately, vocational-technical training programs for new entrants and for skills upgrade, he said, should be further considered as part of the two nations’ cooperative activities under their human-capital development program.

This could help bring the Philippines’s competitiveness to higher levels as it builds a more productive and creative work force.

“For this purpose we will request more cooperation with Japan in research and development investments,” del Rosario said.

“Secondly, let me inject the fact that with the regional integration that’s happening in Southeast Asia, we do have a need for being able to upgrade our competitiveness. We could do this by improving productivity, which means we should be increasing the capabilities of our people.

One way we could seek assistance is to get Japan to help us in terms of providing more assistance for developing more engineers, scientists and technicians,” he added.

To be continued

Vista Land. . . continued from a1 developments,” Vista Land Chairman Manuel Villar said, adding that the company will build its second BPO development under the Vista Hub brand on a 10-hectare lot in Vista City on Vista Avenue in Daang Hari, Las Piñas.

Villar earlier said the company will simultaneously build eight buildings for the BPO sector, with a total leasable area of 290,000 square meters, in Vista City.

All the buildings, he said, will be fully leased upon their completion in two to three years.

To serve the growing BPO sector in its development, Villar said the company will expand its existing Evia commercial complex in Las Piñas from the current 40,000 gross floor area to about 200,000 square meters.

Vista Land officials earlier said the

company wants to achieve P1 billion in recurring income from both office and retail space by 2017.

At the moment, a huge chunk of the company’s P20.02-billion revenues last year came from real-estate income and only P628.9 million came from its rental revenues, or those that came from commercial operations, as well as other forfeited fees.

The UP dean said demographic dividends can come in the form of higher per-capita income due to higher productivity and the increase in the saving rate that results in rapid economic growth.

But first things first, Mapa said. The Philippines needs to address the jobs challenge because if the country fails to provide employment to those entering the demographic transition, it will take around 40 to 50 years before the country could start reaping the demographic dividend again.

He explained that when workers enter the labor force at around the age of 20, they have 40 to 50 years as productive members of the labor force. But if, from the start, they do not have jobs, it will cost the Philippines its demographic dividend.

“In Thailand, they have been benefiting from that demographic dividend for 25 years. So if you don’t really reap that dividend, then you would lose it,” Mapa said.

However, Mapa said this is not to say that the Philippines has missed the boat in terms of riding the demographic dividend, as over 50 percent of the Philippine population is under 30 years old.

NOVEMBER 19, 2014 | WEDNESDAY

Continued from A1

Delaying the tax hike will slow Japan’s work on repairing its tattered public finances. But Abe said the risk to the world’s third-largest economy was a bigger threat.

Fresh elections may seem a puzzling decision given the bad news on the economy.

But the Liberal Democrats have a solid majority and hope to further consolidate their power at a time when opposition parties are weak and in disarray.

NOV 20

THURSDAY

NOV 21 FRIDAY

METRO MANILA

23 – 31°C

22 – 32°C

TUGUEGARAO

20 – 29°C

19 – 29°C

Abe described his strategies as the “only path” for Japan to escape its economic malaise.

“Some people say Abenomics has failed or it’s not performing well,”he said. “But what else can we do. I have yet to hear of a better idea.”

Japan has bubbled with speculation of an early election since early this month.

Last week, the Liberal Democrats were coaching freshman lawmakers on campaign strategies and optposition parties rushed to discuss possible new alliances. Preelection debates by party leaders are in the works,

NOV 22

SATURDAY

EASTERLIES AFFECTING THE EASTERN SECTION OF THE COUNTRY.

Easterlies are winds coming from the East passing over the Pacific Ocean.

These are warm and moist in nature; causing hot weather and generating thunderstorms.

(AS OF NOVEMBER 18, 5:00 PM)

LAOAG

LAOAG CITY 23 – 30°C

BAGUIO CITY 16 – 21°C TAGAYTAY CITY 20 – 28°C

22 – 30°C

22 – 31°C

BAGUIO

15 – 20°C

14 – 20°C

SBMA/ CLARK

22 – 31°C

22 – 31°C

TUGUEGARAO CITY 21 – 29°C

SBMA/CLARK 23 – 31°C

TAGAYTAY

LEGAZPI

PHILIPPINE AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (PAR)

NOV 20

THURSDAY

NOV 21 FRIDAY

NOV 22

SATURDAY

23 – 32°C

METRO CEBU

25 – 32°C

24 – 33°C

25 – 33°C

20 – 30°C

TACLOBAN

24 – 32°C

25 – 33°C

25 – 33°C

23 – 32°C

CAGAYAN DE ORO

25 – 32°C

25 – 33°C

25 – 33°C

METRO DAVAO

24 – 34°C

24 – 34°C

25 – 35°C

24 – 34°C

25 – 34°C

25 – 35°C

20 – 28°C

19 – 28°C

15 – 21°C

23 – 32°C

ILOILO/ BACOLOD 24 – 32°C

TACLOBAN CITY 24 – 32°C

METRO CEBU 24 – 32°C

PUERTO PRINCESA

22 – 30°C

23 – 31°C

ZAMBOANGA SUNRISE

SUNSET

MOONSET

MOONRISE

5:58 AM

5:24 PM

3:02 PM

2:54 AM

20 – 29°C

LEGAZPI CITY 23 – 31°C

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY 25 – 32°C

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

and new campaign posters have gone up in Tokyo neighborhoods.

Abe got a rare second term as prime minister, having stepped down just a year into his rocky first term in office in 20062007. His support ratings started out high as share prices surged in early 2013. But they have fallen recently. Parliament got bogged down in squabbles over campaign-finance scandals that led to resignations of two of his cabinet ministers within weeks of an early September reshuffle. AP

NORTHEAST MONSOON AFFECTING EXTREME NORTHERN LUZON.

eastern portions of the country. It is cold and dry; characterized by widespread cloudiness with rains and showers.

METRO MANILA 23 – 32°C

Meanwhile, the UNFPA said reaping the demographic dividend is the reason countries need to increase investments on young people.

In the 2014 State of World Population Report, the UNFPA estimated that between 1950 and today, the Philippines experienced a 320-percent growth in the numbers of children aged below 15 who need schooling and health and who will need jobs in the future.

UNFPA also said the Philippines experienced 549-percent growth in the number of working-age people needing jobs now.

“The total population requiring food, services, jobs and basic infrastructure will have grown 750 percent by 2050—a substantial headwind,” the UNFPA said.

The UNFPA said in the 1950s, the Philippines, Thailand and South Korea had similar total populations, each between 19 million and 20 million.

But declines in the population of Thailand and South Korea were steep and so the current population of these countries is only at 67 million and 50 million, respectively.

On the other hand, there was a rapid increase in population in the Philippines.

The UNFPA estimates that the country’s population is currently at 101 million.

Japan’s Abe puts off tax hike, calls snap poll

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

TODAY’S WEATHER

He said based on 2010 data, there are 31.3 million Filipinos, or 34 percent of the total population, who are aged 0 to 14, while 20 million, or 22 percent of the population, are aged 15 to 24.

Further, he said that the Philippines has not reached the “Goldilocks period” as the country’s total fertility rate (TFR) is at around 2.1 percent to 2.4 percent. This means the TFR is not very high nor is it very low —just right.

The UNFPA data showed that the country’s current TFR is at 3.1 percent. Mapa said his study estimates that the country will reach the Goldilocks period by 2020, assuming there are interventions done, or by 2030, under a business-as-usual scenario.

“As countries move from large families [high fertility rate] into small families [low fertility rate], they pass through what is called a Goldilocks period described as a generation or two in which fertility rate is neither too high nor too low,” Mapa explained.

“This fertility rate that is consistent with stable population is about 2.1 [the replacement rate of fertility]. The fall to replacement fertility is a unique and precious opportunity for higher economic growth—demographic gift or dividend,” he added.

23 – 32°C

HALF MOON

NOV 14

25 – 33°C

25 – 33°C

LOW TIDE MANILA HIGH TIDE SOUTH HARBOR

11:16 PM

25 – 32°C

NEW MOON

NOV 22

1:14 PM

8:19 PM

0.21 METER 0.76 METER 8:32 PM Partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers and/or thunderstorms

Cloudy skies with rain showers and/or thunderstorms.

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY 24 – 32°C ZAMBOANGA CITY 24 – 34°C

ILOILO/ BACOLOD

24 – 32°C

25 – 33°C

25 – 33°C

Watch PANAHON.TV everyday at 5:00 AM on PTV (Channel 4).

METRO DAVAO 25 – 34°C

Light rains Partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers

Weekday hourly updates: 6:00 AM on Balitaan, 7:00 AM & 8:00 AM on Good Morning Boss!, 9:00 AM, 10:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 12:00 PM, 1:00 PM on News@1, 3:00 PM, 4:30 PM, and 6:00 PM on News@6

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The Nation

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo

BusinessMirror

A3

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Groups: Edca signals return of US bases

T

By Joel R. San Juan

HE implementation of the Philippine-US Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) will lead to the return of the US military bases in the country that were shut down in 1991 after the Senate refused to ratify another treaty that would extend their stay in the country.

The warning was raised by the petitioners during Tuesday’s oral arguments at the Supreme Court (SC) on the cases seeking the nullification of the Edca, which was signed by Philippine and US officials on April 28.

Lawyer and a known Aquino clan ally Rene Saguisag, who is one of the petitioners against Edca, said the agreement would allow the presence of US troops in the country that could last for decades.

Saguisag was among the so-called “Magnificent 12” senators who voted against the continued stay of the US military bases despite then-President Corazon Aquino’s support for the signing of a new treaty.

Saguisag insisted that Edca is an international agreement that warrants the concurrence by the Sen-

ate under the Constitution.

“It’s not up to the President or defense secretary to decide on something that has intergenerational consequences,” Saguisag said.

“We remain convinced that we voted on the right side of history. I am here in that continuum, that our 1991 collegial vote not be nullified by one man, no matter how much i like him and wish for him to succeed,” Saguisag said in an apparent reference to President Aquino.

Lawyer Rachel Pastores, one of the counsels for the petitioners, also claimed that Edca is a “basing agreement” that would restore US bases and facilities in the country, which is a violation of the provision of the Constitution, which prohibits foreign military bases and permanent stationing of troops.

She added that the agreed locations pertained to in Edca, where the US forces and troops shall be stationed, are akin to former military bases.

Meanwhile, former University of the Philippines Law Dean Pacifico Agabin, also a counsel for the petitioners, said the Republic of the Philippines (RP)-US Military Bases Agreement of 1947 “is being repackaged, embroidered and gift-wrapped” in the form of Edca.

Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, an appointee of Aquino, questioned why none of the petitioners sought the mandatory transmittal of Edca to the Senate.

On the other hand, in an interview with reporters, Solicitor General Florin Hilbay said he would argue before the Court that Edca is just an implementing agreement to augment the provisions of the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).

“It’s just an implementing agreement. There are general commitments under the MDT; there are more specific commitments under the VFA. The MDT implements all of those commitments through the power of the President as commander-in-chief, chief executive and head of foreign relations,” Hilbay said.

Bonifacio ‘PX’ store loses money to thieves

A

STORE selling foodstuff and other goods at low prices to soldiers and their dependents, and located in one of the camps of the military had lost a “huge amount of money” to thieves, the military reported on Tuesday.

The theft, which was discovered on Monday morning, occurred at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Commissary and Exchange Service (Afpces)at the Bonifacio Naval Station in Fort Bonifacio, Makati City, said the Navy Public Affairs Office chief, LCdr. Marineth Domingo.

Domingo did not provide other details, saying the incident is still being investigated by the police, although she initially said that a huge amount of money was taken by the thieves.

Afpces, also known as “Store” or “PX Store” has branches in nearly all major military installations in the country. It sells goods at low prices to soldiers, their dependents and even civilians working inside camps.

Afpces, which sells tax-free merchandize, was introduced by the military as part of its efforts to boost the morale of its members, in addition to housing and other privileges which seek to elevate the welfare of soldiers and enhance their morale.

Domingo said the theft in Fort Bonifacio was discovered at around 7 a.m. on Monday after the store manager found out that the money kept in her office was missing from the vault.

The money was the proceeds of the store’s sales during the weekend.

“The vault was opened but not forcibly,” she said, hinting it may have been an inside job, but which she further refused to comment.

“The Navy is working closely with the authorities to facilitate the speedy disposition of the case. The Navy, likewise, maintains its responsibility in maintaining the safety and security of its tenant units,” Domingo said.

Until Tuesday, the Navy said policemen were still working on the case.

Domingo said even security personnel tasked to secure the camp noticed nothing unusual before and during the commission of the crime.

“There was no commotion reported by our roving watches and security personnel detailed in the area nor any unauthorized entry of unauthorized personnel within the base premises,” she said.

According to Domingo, it was only in the morning when the store manager reported for work that it was discovered that a theft had occured. Rene Acosta

Think tank launches institute on international, strategic studies

O

NE of the country’s leading private think tanks, advisory and research consultancy groups, Stratbase, is launching the Albert del Rosario (ADR) Institute on Strategic and International Studies as it enters its second decade.

The institute will be launched on November 21 at the Manila Polo Club during ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of the group.

“We’re relaunching SRI as the ADR Institute to reflect a shift to a more regional outlook in our governance, socioeconomic, and other policy work and in light of the continuous rise of East Asia as a major global player whose economy could soon surpass that of the United States and Europe combined,” Stratbase Founder-Managing Director Victor Andres Manhit said.

Manhit, who will also head the new institute, said Stratbase’s research arm will still focus on crafting strategic solutions, an area where SRI has made its mark.

“In our work, it has always been clear that East Asia’s affairs have always inserted themselves into the domestic equation,” Manhit said. “There is always a great correlation between domestic and regional affairs.”

The new institute is also a tribute to current Foreign Secretary Albert F. del Rosario who was Stratbase chairman prior to his appointment by PresidentAquino to the Cabinet.

“The ADR Institute believes that national and regional development and security can be achieved through the collaboration between the public and private sectors and the regional community. Secretary del Rosario epitomizes this vision,” Manhit said.

Makati-based Stratbase was founded in 2004 and has become a full-service advisory and research consultancy group with proven expertise in political, business and investment counseling; campaign strategy; strategic issue management and research; market intelligence and assessment; and public advocacy.

Manhit used to chair the De La Salle University political science department, and is now a fellow of the Foundation for Economic Freedom as well as Philippine country director of Bower Group Asia, which is advisor to an exclusive group of Fortune 500 companies and private-equity firms in Asia.

The first major project of the ADR institute’s senior fellows will be a three-year program on “US-Philippine Strategic Initiative,” in partnership with the Washington, D.C. based Center for Strategic and International Studies, which is ranked as the No. 1 think tank in the world for security and international affairs in the University of Pennsylvania’s 2013 Global Go To Think Tanks Report and has been called one of the most respected of Washington think tanks. Recto Mercene

Economy

A4 Wednesday, November 19, 2014 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

P-Noy woos more investors at Singapore business forum

By Butch Fernandez

P

resident Aquino flew to Singapore on Tuesday with a mission to woo more investors for the Philippines after separate meetings with Singaporean leaders, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Tony Tan Keng Yam. In his two-day “working visit” to the city-state, Mr. Aquino was invited as the keynote speaker at The Economist’s “The World in 2015” gala dinner on Tuesday, where he is expected to take the opportunity to invite attending business leaders to explore investment opportunities in the Philippines.

Before boarding his chartered flight from Manila on Tuesday morning, Aquino said in a predeparture statement that he also intends to address concerns of business executives invited to the news magazine’s annual event about the bright prospects of doing business in the country.

Aquino added that he also aims to “generate goodwill and support” for his reform agenda, as well as plans and programs for sustainable economic development, and, at the same time, push his vision for Southeast Asian region and the Mindanao peace process as the core element of his government’s program for inclusive growth.

According to Mr. Aquino, he is also scheduled to hold separate meetings with other business groups that have conveyed interest in expanding their investments in the Philippines.

On his last day in the city-state,

Aquino will also take time to visit some of the estimated 180,000 Singapore-based Filipino workers at the Jolibee fast-food branch in downtown Orchard Road.

“Doon hindi lamang natin makakasama ang masisipag nating kababayan, maipapahayag at maibabandila din natin ang world-class na produkto at serbisyo ng Pilipino,” he said.

Malacañang, in a statement, reported that the government had set aside P11.6-million for President Aquino and his delegation’s brief visit to Singapore.

Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. said the amount would cover “expenses for transportation, accommodation, food, equipment and other requirements of the Chief Executive and his 54-member delegation.”

Among those accompanying the President at Singapore are Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan, Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, Presidential Management Staff Chief Julia Andrea Abad, Presidential Protocol Chief Celia Anna Feria, Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda and Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III. “This is a significant opportunity for our President to share his administration’s plans and reform programs toward sustainable economic and inclusive growth, as well as the peace process for Mindanao,” Ochoa said.

BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Panel OKs resolution granting emergency powers to Aquino

T

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz & Lenie Lectura

he House Committee on Energy on Tuesday approved House Resolution 21, granting President Aquino emergency powers to address the projected power deficit next year.

With a vote of 18-1-1, the panel, chaired by Liberal Party Rep. Reynaldo Umali of Oriental Mindoro, immediately approved the joint resolution that would mainly use the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) in addressing the projected power shortage in 2015.

Besides the ILP, the resolution said additional generating capacity shall be sourced from the fasttracking of new committed projects; plants for interconnection and rehabilitation; and adoption and execution of energy-efficiency and -conservation measures shall be pursued vigorously in both public and private sectors.

Although it was not included in the resolution, Umali, also the cochairman of the Joint Congressional Power Commission, assured the public that there will be no passed on costs to consumers in using the ILP.

“The intent is there will be no pass on to consumers, the intention is not to burden the public with additional cost [of electricity] through the joint resolution,” Umali said, saying President Aquino is not opposing the idea of tapping Malampaya funds as subsidy.

“In the course of congressional hearings conducted, it was revealed that, in week 14 [April] of 2015, a maximum projected shortfall of 1,004 megawatts (MW), of which 600 MW is needed to meet the required dispatchable reserve, and 404 MW is needed to meet the required contingency reserve. Corollary, a total of four weeks of yellow alert is projected for the critical period,” the resolution said.

The resolution was principally authored by Umali, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II.

Sucat plant partial reactivation

The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.

(PSALM) may consider the restoration of some units of the decommissioned 850-megawatt (MW) Sucat thermal power plant.

According to PSALM President and CEO Emmanuel R. Ledesma Jr., his office has received proposals to rehabilitate some of the four units of the power facility.

“As to the power-plant itself, we are currently evaluating proposals to rehab some units of the plant,” he said in a text message.

The oil-fired power plant in Sucat, Muntinlupa City, was previously owned by the Manila Electric Co., and later acquired by the National Power Corp. in November 1978. It is consisted of Unit 1, which has a rated capacity of 150 MW; Units 2 and 3, each with 200 MW; and Unit 4, which is rated at 300 MW.

STX Marine gets contract for Malaya rehab

Ledesma also said PSALM has awarded to Korean firm STX Marine Service Co. Ltd. the contract to overhaul the first unit of the Malaya thermal power plant.

Under the terms of reference, work must be completed within 90 days from issuance of the Notice to Proceed, he added.

Once Malaya1 is rehabilitated, the

entire Malaya facility can run at its full capacity of 650 MW. The government wants the rehabilitation of the Malaya Unit 1 done before summer of next year to make it available in time for the 2015 Malampaya shutdown.

The Malampaya facility will go offline from March 15 to April 14, 2015 to commence Phase 3 of the Malampaya project, involving the installation of a platform aimed at maintaining the fuel supply to power plants providing half of Luzon’s power needs.

The Malaya power facility is consisted of a 300-MW unit with a once-through, type boiler and a 350MW unit fitted with a conventional boiler. It was rehabilitated in 1995 by the Korea Electric Power Corp. under a 15-year rehabilitate-operatemanage-maintain agreement.

STX Marine also recently won a one-year contract to operate and maintain the two units of the Malaya thermal power plant.

Under the terms of reference, work must be completed within 90 days from issuance of the Notice to Proceed, he added.

Once Malaya1 is rehabilitated, the entire Malaya facility can run at its full capacity of 650 MW. The government wants the rehabilitation of the Malaya Unit 1 done before summer of next year to make it available in time for the 2015 Malampaya shutdown.

Economy

news@businessmirror.com.ph

BusinessMirror Wednesday, November 19, 2014 A5

SME influx from Japan, China, S. Korea seen with 2015 AEC

S

By Cai U. Ordinario

outheast Asian countries, including the Philippines, may need to prepare for the influx of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with the advent of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) next year.

At a news briefing on Tuesday, Asian Development Bank (ADB) Office of Regional Economic Integration (OREI) Head Iwan Azis said the influx of investments will be coming from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the Republic of Korea (South Korea), and Japan, which are looking to cut their costs.

“This is my personal prognosis, if you will, I think what is going to happen, there will be massive investment from the Plus 3, China, Japan and Korea to Asean, but it will be different than in the ‘80s,” Azis told reporters.

“Unlike in the ’80s, [in the] coming years it will be SMEs [especially from] Plus 3 [China, Korea and Japan], they are facing increasing cost of production in their own countries,” Azis said.

Azis said international investors are greatly encouraged by the prospects under the AEC, and greater regional integration and cooperation in Asia.

He said investors, however, will be look-

ing to invest in Asean countries to serve the large domestic markets in this side of the world. The Asean has a market of around 600 million people.

“Asean has been growing over the last two decades. The number of middle class has been increasing, so there’s strong demand in Asean. They are coming to utilize the strong regional market,” Azis said.

The ADB official added that these investors will also increase their use of local currencies in the countries they will be investing in.

Azis said this can be done by tapping the local currency bond markets or facilities, such as the Asean Plus 3 multicurrency bond investment facility (MBIF).

The Asean Plus 3 MBIF allows countries in the Asean Plus 3 to have access to the local currency of the other members.

Meanwhile, the ADB believes the economic resilience of Asia will continue to support stronger regional cooperation and integration in the coming years.

The ADB’s Development Outlook Update estimates Asia to post a growth of 6.2 percent this year and 6.4 percent next year.

“Asian integration is and will continue to differ from Europe’s,” Azis said. “Asian integration—and the institutions supporting it—will focus on strengthening national economies by harmonizing rules and regulations in finance and trade, while managing the risks from a very diverse region.”

After the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and1998, the ADB said there was a growth in cross-border trade and investment that led to greater integration on the ground.

To cope with a slower global economy, the region continues to harmonize financial rules and regulations, and further liberalize trade and investments unilaterally or through multicountry free-trade agreements.

The report stated that these pragmatic and market-friendly institutions should help Asia grow strongly as a region, even as individual countries must continue with reforms to overcome structural weaknesses.

Asia is highly integrated, but integration remains uneven. East Asia and Southeast Asia have close links with each other. Both the Pacific and Central Asia trade actively with many other Asian nations.

Countries in South Asia are not closely connected with each other yet, but are increasingly keen to build links, particularly with East Asia.

BSP: Rise in universal, commercial banks’ August NPL ‘manageable’

By Bianca Cuaresma

T

he asset quality of larger banks in the country slightly dipped in the first eight months of the year, as their non-performing loans (NPLs) rose during the period, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Tuesday.

The NPLs of universal and commercial banks rose to P101.2 billion as of end-August this year, up by 6.3 percent from the P95.19-billion NPL figure in July this year. This is the highest recorded NPL rise in one month.

The higher NPL volume of universal and commercial banks during the period brought the NPL ratio of the industry to 2.21 percent of the sector’s total loan portfolio during the said period.

The universal and commercial banks’ NPL ratio in August is slightly higher compared to the July NPL ratio of 2.11 percent. It is, however, lower compared to the year-ago level of 2.67 percent.

NPLs are also popularly known as “bad” or “soured” loans, as these are the credit that the borrower has not repaid for more than 90 days

after its original due date.

A lower NPL ratio is favorable as it means that the bank is less susceptible to loan-quality erosion and most of the banks’ loan assets are healthy with only a small percentage of bad loans.

“The BSP keenly monitors the loan quality of universal and commercial banks as part of its efforts to ensure adherence to high credit standards. This is vital to maintaining the stability of individual banks and of the financial system,” the central bank said.

Despite the rise in the bigger banks’ NPLs, the central bank said it is still at a “manageable” level, especially as banks have enough reserves to counter probable losses brought by the loanloss risks from NPLs. The central bank reported that the banks loan-loss reserves continued to surplass their NPLs during the period.

“In August the universal and commercial banks’ reserves for potential credit losses represented 134 percent of the NPLs,” the central bank said.

The ratio, however, decreased from the 140 percent coverage of NPLs as seen in the previous month.

Opinion BusinessMirror

A6 Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Editor: Alvin I. Dacanay

editorial

Amending constitutional provisions to attract FDI

W

E support Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr.’s initiative to amend the provisions of the 1987 Constitution that bar foreigners from putting their money in the Philippine economy, except in cases where they are minority stockholders in corporations owned and controlled by Filipinos. We believe that, if it succeeds, this initiative will increase foreign direct investments (FDI) in the Philippines by at least fivefold and bring us, more or less, on a par with our better-performing Southeast Asian neighbors.

Though we denounce any bashing of the Philippines, right now the following numbers depress us: According to the August 2014 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) FDI statistic database, of the total FDI net inflow in the region in 2011, 2012 and 2013, which amounted to $334 billion, the Philippines received $8.5 billion, or 2.6 percent, of the total. This figure is superior to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic’s 0.3 percent, Cambodia’s 1.6 percent and Myanmar’s 2.1 percent, but inferior to Vietnam’s 7.3 percent, Malaysia’s 10 percent, Thailand’s 10.6 percent, Indonesia’s 15.1 percent and Singapore’s 49.6 percent. Brunei Darussalam received 0.7 percent, but it hardly needs FDI. It has been this way for the last 40 years.

Those opposed to constitutional amendments say the Constitution has nothing to do with our dismal performance in attracting FDI. Things that impede the flow of FDI include the lack of infrastructure, inconsistent regulatory practices (like our disregard of bidding rules that we ourselves have set up), and even shortsighted and amateurish foreign relations (like refusing to apologize for a mistake, on the ground that only one person did it).

They have a point there, but still, despite the President’s travels around the world and his efforts to invite foreigners to invest in the Philippines, the favorable grades from credit-rating agencies, and the pronouncements by some pundits that we are the best economic performer in Asia and will continue to be so in the next few years, things have not turned around for us.

Those trips, carried out at enormous expense, yielded near-zero results; and those ratings and pronouncements are not much more than hot air.

Constitutional restrictions do have a bearing on our mediocre ability to attract foreign investment. As far as can be ascertained, our country is the only Asean member that has constitutional prohibitions on foreign investments.

Can’t we do any better in attracting FDI? Yes, we can—by getting rid of the restrictive provisions of our Constitution, as Belmonte proposes to do.

At this juncture, we pause to answer the “nationalistic” argument: that foreign investors are out there, ready to jump on us and exploit us the moment we lift the constitutional restrictions.

This argument has got it all wrong: Foreign investors are not ready to pounce on us. There are only foreign investors looking around for opportunities to make money. They will go to where the opportunities abound; and certainly not in countries that are inhospitable to them, especially as there are many other countries competing with each other to welcome them with open arms.

We hope Belmonte gets all the support he needs. If he succeeds on this initiative, it can serve as a defining moment of his speakership.

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Another branch in the City of Smiles Susie G. Bugante

All About Social Security

O

N Tuesday the Social Security System (SSS) formally opened its newest branch—its ninth this year—on the ground floor of the Besca Building, Burgos Extension, Barangay Villamonte, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental province. Called the SSS Bacolod East Branch, this office is expected to serve 3,211 employers and 15,039 employees in an area covering 11 barangays in Bacolod and the towns of Murcia and Don Salvador Benedicto.

During the branch’s inauguration, Mayor Monico Puentevella of Bacolod welcomed the opening of the new branch and expressed satisfaction at the SSS’s efforts to reach out to all private-sector workers in

the city, including tricycle drivers and market vendors. The growing number of self-employed persons wanting to become members of the pension fund is just an indication of the heightened appreciation of

the benefits that social-security coverage brings.

For his part, SSS President and CEO Emilio S. de Quiros Jr. said the agency is aggressively setting up more branches and service offices here and abroad to give members greater access and convenience to its services.

He also said the SSS is committed to establishing 24 new branches this year and that, aside from the nine already inaugurated, several more are ready to be formally opened before the year ends.

Meantime, the people of Bacolod have every reason to smile for having a new office to serve them. SSS Bacolod East Branch is headed by Lina Hilado, who has eight employees under her supervision.

On a personal note, I am amazed at the development in this City of

Smiles. The last time I was here was just two years ago, but already there are several new buildings that have cropped up. There is even one huge building for businessprocess outsourcing centers. Also remarkable are cake houses and coffee shops around the city that have a wide variety of desserts to choose from. No wonder visitors to this genteel city also have reasons to smile.

For more information about the Social Security System and its programs, call its 24-hour call center at (632) 920-6446 to 55, Monday to Friday, or visit www.sss.gov.ph.

Susie G. Bugante is the vice president for public affairs and special events of the SSS. Send comments about this column to susiebugante.bmirror@ gmail.com.

25 years after rights convention, children still need more protection

By Susan Bissell Inter Press Service

U

NITED NATIONS—This week marks 25 years since the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), a historic commitment to children and the most widely accepted human-rights treaty in history.

The CRC outlines universal rights for all children, including the right to health care, education, protection, and the time and space to play. And it changed the way children are viewed, from objects that need care and charity, to human beings, with a distinct set of rights and with their own voices that deserve to be heard.

My career with the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) began the same year the CRC was adopted, and I have seen profound progress in children’s lives. Since 1989 the number of children who die before their fifth birthday has been reduced by nearly half. Pregnant women are far more likely to receive antenatal care and a significantly higher proportion of children now go to school and have clean water to drink.

We must celebrate these important achievements.

But this anniversary must also be used to critically examine areas of children’s lives that have seen far less progress and acknowledge that millions of children have their fundamental rights violated every day.

Fresh in my mind right now are deadly bomb attacks on schools in northern Nigeria and Syria, Central

American children braving perilous journeys to flee violence, children being recruited to fight in South Sudan and gang rapes in India.

These crises and events are stunning in their scope and depravity, and in the depth of suffering that our children endure. As upsetting

of overwhelming scientific evidence of the long-lasting physical, psychological, emotional and social consequences they suffer well into adulthood because of such violence.

Our children endure it, in spite of most countries’ national laws and international law and despite 25 years of the CRC. Earlier this year Unicef released the largest-ever global compilation of data on violence against children. The figures are staggering and provide indisputable evidence that violence against children is a global phenomenon, cutting across every geographic, ethnic, cultural,

Our children endure a cacophony of violence too often in silence, and too often under an unspoken assumption that violence against children is tolerable to some degree. Our children endure it, in spite of overwhelming scientific evidence of the long-lasting physical, psychological, emotional and social consequences they suffer well into adulthood because of such violence. as they are, they play out alongside acts of violence against children that happen everywhere and every day.

Twenty-five years after the adoption of the CRC, we clearly must do more to protect our children.

Our children endure a cacophony of violence too often in silence, and too often under an unspoken assumption that violence against children is tolerable to some degree.

Our children endure it, in spite

social and economic divide. The data shows violence against children is tolerated, even justified, by adults and by children themselves.

As we reflect on the last 25 years, we must also look forward and commit to doing things differently. Now, more than any other point in history, we have the knowledge and ability to protect our children, and with this ability comes the obligation to do so.

First, children need protection from the crises that play out in the public eye, like conflicts in Iraq, Syria, South Sudan and others.

We also need programs that work at preventing and responding to the everyday, hidden violence. Initiatives like a program in Turkey that reduced the physical punishment of children by more than 70 percent in two years. Or child-protection centers in Kenya that respond to thousands of cases every year. Or a safe-schools program in Croatia that cut the number of children being bullied in half.

Countries must also strengthen their child-protection systems—networks of organizations, services, laws and processes—that provide families with support so they can make sure that children are protected.

And finally, as we approach the end of the Millennium Development Goals, world leaders must prioritize child protection as we look toward 2015 and beyond.

As a long-serving Unicef official and, more important, as a mother, I want for children everywhere what I want for my own daughter—a world where every child is protected from violence.

The 25th anniversary of the CRC provides an opportunity to recommit to the promise we made to children, and take the urgent action needed now to protect them from harm.

Susan Bissell is the United Nations Children Fund’s global chief of child protection and associate director of programs.

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Greenpeace’s overrated status

Gina Lopez goes ballistic

that figure in 2006.

Among its attractions are a saltwater swimming pool and a couple of freshwater pools; a fishing area that yields tilapia, catfish and carp; horseback-riding; a butterfly haven; biking; an adventure zone with a zipline, bow and arrow, paintball and bungee-jumping facilities; a Superferry Boating Lagoon; and 5 hectares of picnic grounds, with grilling facilities under the canopy of trees.

The abovementioned attractions are the commendable accomplishments of the AFI. As I’ve said, La Mesa is becoming more popular each day. But it has also put to rest all the

ones that hacks had asked her a year ago.

“Why don’t you look at the bigger picture—we’re saving a lot of people from poverty and trying to make the air you breathe a lot cleaner, but you insist on nitpicking! Who hired you to ask me these questions? The mining companies?”

Flabbergasted, I could only say I was merely repeating the questions raised by the COA auditors. I also told her that it was my duty as a journalist to get her side, but since she had responded in such a nasty way, I was unilaterally terminating the interview. But I didn’t say with extreme prejudice.

Minutes later, however, she sent me the following text message: “Hi Butch…sorry, the questions you asked are just so similar to issues raised last year. I really have a reaction to nitpicking, instead of looking at the bigger picture. If you want to know the numbers I will send you the number of our finance and admin person. Stay well…hope you can visit the ecopark and the watershed one day. It’s really a work of love and giving….”

Still, in all, I believe all the questions raised by the COA have to be properly answered.

try rules and regulations, are not, per se, indicative of labor-law control under our jurisprudence,” the High Court said.

“The duties that the petitioner enumerated in his motion are not supported by evidence and, therefore, deserve scant consideration. Even assuming their existence, however, they mostly pertain to the duties of an insurance agent, such as remitting insurance fees to Manulife, delivering policies to the insured, and after-sale services.

For agents leading other agents, these include the task of overseeing other insurance agents, the recruitment of other insurance agents engaged by Manulife as principal and ensuring that these other agents comply with the paperwork necessary in selling insurance.

That Manulife exercises the power to assign and remove agents under the petitioner’s supervision is in keeping with its role as a principal in an agency relationship; they are Manulife agents in the same manner that the petitioner had, all along, been a Manulife agent,” it added.

Allowing an agent to supervise other agents and granting him managerial

titles should not also be used as an indication of employment. Thus, the SC also said: “Manulife permitted him to exercise guiding authority over other agents who operate under their own agency agreements with Manulife and whose commissions he shared. Under this scheme—an arrangement that pervades the insurance industry— [the] petitioner, in effect, became a ‘lead agent’ and his own commissions increased as they included his share in the commissions of the other agents; he also received greater reimbursements for expenses and was allowed to use Manulife’s facilities.”

“His designation also changed from unit manager to branch manager, and then to regional sales manager, to reflect the increase in the number of agents he recruited and guided, as well as the increase in the area where these agents operated. x x x As our assailed resolution concluded and as we now similarly conclude, these arrangements, and the titles and positions the petitioner was invested with, did not change his status from the insurance agent that he had always been [as evi-

denced by the agreement that governed his relationship with Manulife from the start to its disagreeable end]. The petitioner simply progressed from his individual agency to being a lead agent who could use other agents in selling insurance and share in the earnings of these other agents,” it added.

Tongko took the effort to distinguish it from other cases, in which there were findings of an employer-employee relationship over purported insurance agents. In Great Pacific Life Assurance Corp. v National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) (187 Supreme Court Reports Annotated 694) and Insular Life Assurance Co. Ltd. v NLRC (350 Phil.

918 [1998]), there were findings of an employer-employee relationship, since “the cited cases all dealt with the proper legal characterization of subsequent management contracts that superseded the original agency contract between the insurance company and the agent.”

OMERTA

Lito U. Gagni

A

THAI Supreme Court ruling that was issued against Greenpeace in mid-October shows just how overrated the European pressure group is. In junking Greenpeace’s suit to stop field trials on genetically modified papaya, that nation’s highest court strongly underscored the misguided thrust of the Amsterdam-based environmental organization, which has also been raising similar noises over the Philippines’s food-security preparations through its efforts to adopt biotechnology, which has been proven to raises farmers’ income.

The legal disaster that Greenpeace suffered in Thailand is deemed important in light of the court actions that the pressure group has initiated in our country, in its desire to impress on our farming and scientific communities its misguided, but oft-repeated, warning to not embrace genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Greenpeace had banked on the element of fear in putting a stop to the adoption of biotechnology, despite the fact that the United States has already embraced it wholeheartedly.

Overrated—that is what Greenpeace is, and it is time for the country to see through its machinations to stop the country’s adoption of GMOs. Thailand‘s Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry has, in fact, announced that it was looking to conduct a feasibility study on improving four crops—maize, cassava, palm and sugarcane—and would consider biotechnology to boost production.

Similarly, the Philippine scientific community, led by scientists from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), has been leading the effort to introduce the benefits of biotechnology to the farming sector, which Greenpeace has consistently blocked. Our scientists are promoting biotechnology not only because crops developed through this process are safe, but also because it reduces the use of chemical pesticides in our farms.

Why Greenpeace is blocking a technology that makes chemical pesticides unnecessary is still a mystery. But, somehow, it has succeeded in its so-called shock-and-awe campaign. Recently, Greenpeace managed to make the Court of Appeals (CA) issue an order stopping the field trials being conducted by our scientists on a biotechnology-developed eggplant variety called Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) talong. The order—a major setback for our scientists—created the impression that Greenpeace is so powerful that it can get our courts to act according to its whims.

But the Thai High Court ruling, as well as recent developments, appears to debunk the myth of a very powerful Greenpeace. One such development is the decision of our Supreme Court (SC) to allow Filipino farmers who want to plant Bt talong to intervene in the appeal filed by UPLB scientists, who are now asking the SC to lift the CA order.

This decision signaled to everyone

that the High Court is not intimidated by the supposed political and financial muscle of Greenpeace. The SC decision also represented a breakthrough in the legal battle between Greenpeace and our scientific community, since this appears to be the first time that our farmers’ voice will be heard by our courts on this issue.

The legal setbacks suffered by Greenpeace should now remove our countrymen’s fear that the pressure group can simply dictate what it wants in our country.

The move of our and Thailand’s highest court should tell the world that Asians are ready to stand up to a well-funded European organization. Greenpeace can flex its political and financial power all it wants, but it looks like the Asian courts will not blink.

Greenpeace began its antibiotechnology drive in the Philippines by launching a vicious black-propaganda campaign. Its local mouthpieces warned our farmers that adopting biotech crops would result in the spread of cancer, deaths and deformities among children, and even homosexuality. That campaign, however, appeared to be a massive failure, since our farmers have already adopted biotech corn, which was the first target of Greenpeace here.

The pressure group also has to contend with the respected and credible voices of our officials, who assured our farmers and consumers that biotech crops are safe. Filipinos listened more to the likes of Dr. Emil Javier, former chancellor of the UP System and UPLB, and renowned toxicologist and former Food and Drug Administration chief Dr. Kenneth Hartigan-Go. Javier and Hartigan-Go stood by the position of the global scientific community that biotech crops approved for commercialization have undergone intense screening and are safe. Their sober explanation overshadowed the hysterical, panic-creating propaganda of the local Greenpeace mouthpieces.

Aside from this, our corn farmers who embraced biotechnology have already reaped higher incomes without seeing or experiencing the supposed side-effects of GMO crops. So, the overrated Greenpeace is not invincible at all.

It can be defeated. Truth can prevail over the most hysterical lies.

Conclusion

T

HE La Mesa Ecopark is a 33-hectare site located right outside the natural boundaries of the watershed and 40 meters below the reservoir. It was in 2004 when it was reopened to the public—after most of the 1,500 informal settlers there had been relocated, which cost the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) several million pesos.

The ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. (AFI) claims that all income generated by the ecopark is used for the continuous preservation and protection of the watershed.

In fairness to the AFI, it has, indeed, put the La Mesa watershed back on the map as a hub for leisure and fun by providing healthful outdoor recreation and a “true forest experience” to its visitors.

Today it is now a popular destination for photo shoots, family outings and picnics, and educational field trips. Its visitor traffic is steadily rising every year. In 2005 it recorded 155,666 visitors and nearly doubled

E-mail: omerta_bdc@yahoo.com.

E-mail: hugagni@yahoo.com.

The agents of insurance companies Atty. Dennis B. Funa

INSURANCE FORUM

A

N insurance agent is not an employee of an insurance company. While there may be some traits in the relationship between the agent and the insurance company that might appear to reflect an employer-employee relationship, the Supreme Court (SC) held in Tongko v The Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. (Phils.) Inc. (Manulife) (Resolution, GR 167622, January 25, 2011) that “there are built-in elements of control specific to an insurance agency [that] do not amount to the elements of control that characterize an employment relationship governed by the Labor Code.”

“The Insurance Code provides definite parameters in the way an agent negotiates for the sale of the company’s products, his collection activities and his delivery of the insurance contract or policy. In addition, the Civil Code defines an agent as a person who binds himself to do something on behalf of another, with the consent or authority

A7

issues raised against it, not only by the Commission on Audit (COA) (on the park’s less-than-transparent financial operations) and the MWSS itself, which, to this day, is waiting for its share of the revenues from the park’s operations.

As the COA has pointed out, the AFI has not been issuing financial statements since it began managing the park. And how true is the rumor that no receipts are being issued from the entrance and from each recreational facility?

The AFI charges P50 at the entrance for nonresidents of Quezon City and P40 for residents. For the amenities, it charges P80 for swimming, P60 for biking, P50 for horseback-riding, P200 for the single zipline experience and P350 each for the paintball war games, etc.

I went out of my way to get Gina Lopez’s side of the story on the adverse COA report. Mind you, I never met her in person before.

When I finally got her cell-phone number, her response was both pleasant and gracious. But when my questions came to the hard part—on why the AFI is unilateraly collecting its 15 percent (of the gross income) without the MWSS board of trustees’ approval, she suddenly went ballistic.

She said the questions I’ve been asking were the same “nitpicking”

Butch del Castillo

MARKET FILES

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

of the latter,” the SC said.

“Article 1887 of the Civil Code also provides that, in the execution of the agency, the agent shall act in accordance with the instructions of the principal. x x x All these, read without any clear understanding of fine legal distinctions, appear to speak of control by the insurance company over its agents. They are,

however, controls aimed only at specific results in undertaking an insurance agency, and are, in fact, parameters set by law in defining an insurance agency and the attendant duties and responsibilities an insurance agent must observe and undertake. They do not reach the level of control into the means and manner of doing an assigned task that invariably characterizes an employment relationship, as defined by labor law. From this perspective, the petitioner’s contentions cannot prevail,” it added.

Moreover, “Manulife’s instructions regarding the objectives and sales targets, in connection with the training and engagement of other agents, are among the directives that the principal may impose on the agent to achieve the assigned tasks. They are targeted results that Manulife wishes to attain through its agents. Manulife’s codes of conduct, likewise, do not necessarily intrude into the insurance agents’ means and manner of conducting their sales. Codes of conduct are norms or standards of behavior, rather than employer directives into how specific tasks are to be done.

These codes, as well as insurance-indus-

Atty. Dennis B. Funa is the Insurance Commission’s deputy commissioner for legal services. Send comments to dennisfuna@yahoo.com.

A8 Wednesday, November 19, 2014

PSE BELLAwards A BusinessMirror Special Feature

www.businessmirror.com.ph

THE BELL AWARDS: GIVING VALUE TO EXCELLENT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE B J V B.  B

T

HE success and sustainability of a corporation truly involves a lot of facets. But the most fundamental of these is simply having a structure that keeps all levels of constituents interrelated. This structure is only obtained through sound corporate governance.

Corporate governance isn’t just one structure, though. It consists of the various duties, obligations and rights that

control and direct a corporation. The essence of this governance is to properly dispense the responsibilities to all participants of a corporation. In addition to explicating responsibilities, corporate governance also lays down the workers’ rights within the company.

Good corporate governance ensures that the business environment is fair and transparent and that companies can be held accountable for their actions. Conversely, weak corporate gov-

ernance leads to wastes, mismanagement and corruption.

Moreover, with globalization vastly increasing the scale of trade and the size and complexity of corporations, the importance of corporate governance has been amplified as it becomes increasingly difficult to regulate companies’ internal and external relations.

Meanwhile, investors have also been putting a lot of emphasis on corporate governance as they want to put their

money in a company or a market where they can be sure that their rights and interests as shareholders will be looked after and will grow together with the company.

The trust that good corporate governance brings for investors reciprocally creates long-term value for a company.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), the national stock exchange of the Philippines and one of the oldest stock exchanges in Southeast Asia, is one body that continually puts emphasis on corporate

governance for its listed companies.

The PSE commissioned a study a few years ago that shows a positive correlation between a firm’s valuation and its corporate-governance practices. According to the study, companies with excellent corporate governance attract long-term capital more easily, reduce their cost of capital and have more stable sources of financing, develop enhanced relationships with regulators, the investing public, the community and other stakeholders. In times of financial crises, companies with good corporate governance were found to be more resilient.

Corporate governance takes center stage

INDUCED by the importance of cor porate governance for companies, the PSE first initiated the Bell Awards in 2011.

Since then, awards are given to select PSE-listed companies and trading participants found to have outstanding corporate-governance practices.

These companies are recognized to become role models that can inspire the rest of the market to aspire for higher corporategovernance standards.

“The Bell Awards is a recognition of excellence in corporate governance. I think, listed companies and trading participants would want to be identified as Bell Awards winners as this serves as a showcase not only of good housekeeping, but of being the best among their peers in the field of corporate governance,” PSE President and CEO Hans B. Sicat said.

In identifying the awardees, a panel of judges uses publicly available information and other submissions, including the annual self-assessment disclosure survey on the PSE corporate governance Guidelines for Listed Companies. The PSE validates these submissions and rates these companies under an established scoring system. The companies that rank high will be short-listed and potentially could be included in the roster finalists and winners of the Bell Awards.

The awards’ segment for trading participants is also subject to the same process. Trading partners are rated according to risk-rating criteria used by the Capital Markets Integrity Corp. (CMIC), which serves as the marketmonitoring arm of the PSE, as well as the results of CMIC’s regular and special audits of these trading participants.

Ultimately, the PSE requires that its awardees not only adopt many of the best practices provided in the PSE corporate-governance guidelines, but also do not hold back in publishing all their corporate-governance programs, practices and activities in their website for the investing public and other interested parties. Also, the awardees should not have any violation of rules mandated by the PSE, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulatory bodies.

The Bell Awards 2014

THE Bell Awards truly imparts a high degree of prestige to the winners and even the finalists.

The awardees get to be recognized by investors and other stakeholders as among the bestrun companies in the Philippines. As British Ambassador Asif Ahmad mentioned in his keynote speech during this year’s Bell Awards ceremony, if he were to be asked by anyone from Britain who in the Philippines would be the best people to do business with, he can say “Start with the winners of the Bell Awards.”

This year, six trading participants and five listed companies have been given the privilege to hold the distinction of being 2014 Bell Awards recipients during the gala night on November 10.

The awardees in the large trading participants category were Deutsche Regis Partners Inc., First Metro Securities Brokerage Corp. and Maybank ATR Kim Eng Securities Inc., while the recipients of the Bell Awards in the small trading participants division were I. B. Gimenez Securities Inc., JSG Securities Inc. and R. S. Lim and Co. Inc. The listed companies that received the Bell Awards were Aboitiz Power Corp., Ayala Land, Cebu Holdings Inc., China Banking Corp. and Manila Water Corp.

Finalists in the trading participants and listed companies categories were also recognized. The finalists in the trading participants category were Credit Suisse Securities (Philippines) Inc., Macquarie Capital Securities (Philippines) Inc. and UBS Securities Philippines Inc. Meanwhile, the finalists in the listed companies category were Aboitiz Equity Ventures, BDO Unibank Inc., Globe Telecom Inc., Philippine Savings Bank and San Miguel Purefoods Co. Inc. The 2014 PSE Bell Awards Panel of Judges was headed by SEC Chairman Teresita Herbosa. The panel is comprised of Ahmad, Capital Markets Integrity Corp. President Cornelio Gison, De La Salle—College of Saint Benilde President and Chancellor Brother Dennis Magbanua, FSC, and Representative Maria Leonor Gerona-Robredo of the Third District of Camarines Sur.