Philippine Canadian Inquirer #232

CANADA’S FIRST AND ONLY NATIONWIDE FILIPINO-CANADIAN NEWSPAPER AUGUST 26, 2016

VOL. 8 NO. 232

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De Lima on pork barrel scam: “It’s unfair”

Senators suggest ways to improve anti-drug campaign

Yasay: PH not leaving UN; Duterte just exasperated

Embassy urges FilCans to hold on to native tongue

Where will your retirement income come from?

Ottawa’s economic advisers to meet Morneau to discuss Canada’s weak growth

BY ANDY BLATCHFORD The Canadian Press

UNDAUNTED Sen. Leila de Lima faces reporters to respond to President Duterte's latest tirades against her.

LYN DRILLON / PDI

Duterte fires ex-President’s men

BY MARLON RAMOS Philippine Daily Inquirer STARTING MONDAY, all presidential appointees of previous administrations would be considered resigned, President Duterte declared.

The President ordered the government shakeup during a press conference

in Davao City that began after midnight Saturday. Mr. Duterte expressed disgust over information he received that corruption persisted in state agencies despite his repeated warnings against unscrupulous dealings in government offices.

“Consider your positions vacant as of

Filipino-Canadian in Focus: Calista Espinosa

OTTAWA — A team of federal advisers recruited to help resurrect Canada’s sagging economic growth has been exploring opportunities around trade, infrastructure, innovation and labour markets, says the group’s chair, Dominic Barton.

The council, created to provide advice to the Trudeau government, is scheduled to meet Finance Minister Bill Morneau in Toronto on Wednesday.

The meeting follows data showing that in May the country had its worst one-month performance in real gross domestic product in seven years — dating back to the darkest days of the Great Recession. Statistics Canada said the economy contracted 0.6 per cent that month, in large part due to the Alberta wildfires.

Barton, global managing director of the consulting firm McKinsey & Co., told The Canadian Press that the group is “driving along” four classic work

❱❱ PAGE 22 ❱❱ PAGE 8 Duterte fires

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FILIPINO-CANADIAN IN FOCUS InFocus.canadianinquirer.net

❱❱ PAGE 18 Ottawa’s economic

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AUGUST 26, 2016

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FRIDAY

Philippine News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

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OFW group welcomes SC ‘status quo order’ on Marcos’ burial at Libingan ng mga Bayani

BY LEILANI S. JUNIO Philippines News Agency MANILA — The United Overseas Filipinos Worldwide (U-OFW), an advocacy group of Filipinos abroad, has welcomed the order issued by the Supreme Court to stop the government from proceeding with the interment of the late President Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig City.

In an en banc decision on Tuesday, the SC issued a status quo order granting immediate relief sought in the petitions against the Marcos burial case and enjoining the orders of the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), prohibiting them from burying him at the heroes’ cemetery for the next 20 days or until Sept. 12, 2016.

The order was directed to DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and AFP Chief Gen. Ricardo Visaya.

The SC also postponed the oral arguments on the case which was initially scheduled on Wednesday at 9 a.m. to Aug. 31 at 10 a.m.

“Let the oral arguments be heard by the people; the pros and cons on the issue of allowing former President Marcos be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani — though ultimately, it is the SC that will decide,” said John Monterona, convenor of U-OFW. He also said that the decision of the SC to livestream the audio of the oral arguments would help the Filipinos, including OFWs, to become clear and fully informed of the issue.

Monterona added that he is certain the audio livestream of the SC oral arguments will be followed by the millions of Filipinos abroad.

He, however, admitted that their group is against the burial of the former President at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

“It is not simply an issue of burying Marcos. It is an issue of whether we allow to bury the historical facts of the cruelties and atrocities committed by the Marcos regime against its own people. We won’t allow distortions of our history as a nation as we learned valuable lessons from the past to become a great nation of the future,” he said.

There were four petitions filed in the SC questioning the legality of the order issued by the Duterte administration allowing the burial of Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

Meanwhile, the SC has consolidated these petitions and just issued a status quo order to give way to the oral arguments scheduled from Aug. 24 to Aug. 31 before issuing a resolution.

The petitioners argued that the

JUN ACULLADOR / FLICKR

planned burial of the late dictator at the Libingan is “illegal and contrary to law, public policy, morals and justice.”

They alleged that allowing the burial of the former leader would violate Republic Act No. 289 (law regulating the Libingan ng mga Bayani) and R.A. 10368 (Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act) and also argued that the burial would also violate the constitutional provision on state policies.

On Monday, the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) said the decision to bury former President Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City is within the executive powers of President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

Solicitor General Jose Calida submitted an 86-page comment on the three petitions and the application for Temporary Restraining Order filed by victims of human rights violation during the Martial Law years before the Supreme Court.

In an 86-page comment, the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) claimed that the decision of President Duterte to allow hero’s burial for Marcos was a valid exercise of his prerogative power under the Constitution and the Administrative Code.

“Petitioners question the memorandum and directive with respect to the interment of former President Marcos arguing that the Libingan is ‘reserved only for the decent and the brave.’ Petitioners’ thesis readily reveals the political, and, hence, non-justiciable nature of their petitions,” said in the comment.

Calida also said that Marcos was entitled to the privilege of interment at the Libingan under AFP rules - being a former President, Commander-in-Chief, retired military veteran and Medal of Valor awardee, adding that the late dictator did not possess any of the disqualifications provided in the same rules.

He also explained that President Duterte, in his wisdom, deems it appropriate to inter the remains of former President Marcos in a parcel of land of the

public domain devoted for the purpose of being a military shrine, and recognize his being a former President, a Medal of Valor awardee, a member of the retired military personnel, and a war veteran.

Calida further argued that the decision to allow Marcos’ burial at the heroes’ grave is not contrary to public policy, does not contravene the principles and policies enshrined in the Constitution and does not violate the country’s obligations under international laws.

The Solicitor General explained that

President Duterte is not bound by the 1993 agreement between then President Fidel Ramos and the Marcos family to have the remains of former President Marcos interred at Batac, Ilocos Norte, which was invoked by petitioners.

He also assured that the burial would not affect claims for compensation under R.A. No. 10368 (An Act Providing for Preparation and Recognition of Victims of Human Rights Violations During the Marcos Regime), since the PHP10-billion funds for the reparation remain intact and will be released upon approval of the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB).

He pointed out that Marcos need not be a hero to be entitled to such privilege as the Libingan ng mga Bayani is not exclusive to fallen heroes.

Calida also rebutted petitioners’ citation of Republic Act No. 289 (law regulating a heroes’ cemetery), saying such law covers not the Libingan but rather the national pantheon, which was supposed to be built at East Avenue in Quezon City by virtue of Proclamation No. 431 issued

by President Elpidio Quirino on Dec. 23, 1953 but did not materialize. ■

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Philippine News

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Legarda to DOTr: Vehicles should comply with Clean Air Act

Mining firm on DENR audit: Very thorough, tough but fair

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency

BY LILYBETH G. ISON Philippines News Agency

MANILA — Senator Loren Legarda on Tuesday asked the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to beef up the monitoring of emissions of vehicles noting that smoke-belching vehicles in roads were still prevalent.

Legarda, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance and co-author of the Clean Air Act (RA 8749), made the statement after the DOTr revealed that none of its smoke emission testing machines are working.

“I am very concerned about

the state of air quality. Smokebelching vehicles continue to ply our roads even if they should be penalized for polluting the air,” Legarda said.

“Our people will greatly benefit if we are able to strictly implement the law to address smoke belching. We must have cleaner air so we prevent lung diseases and improve overall health,” she added.

The senator suggested that the DOTr, particularly the Land Transportation Office (LTO), could simplify its hotline for smoke belching reports and to use social media as a venue to report these violations.

At present, the LTO hotline where citizens can report smoke-belching vehicles is (02) 921-9073.

DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade for his part assured that under his watch, the agency will immediately acquire smoke emission testing machines through the Motor Vehicle User’s Charge (MVUC) Fund.

He further said that the department will also strengthen the monitoring of emissions testing centers and make sure they are working on a more efficient transport system so that in the long run there will be no need for emissions testing. ■

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MANILA — The ongoing audit of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) of all mining firms operating in the Philippines was “tough but fair”, the San Roque Metals Inc. (SRMI) said.

“The audit was tough, but I think it was fair. The parameters were fair. The technical audit is a listing of papers that they will ask you to give for the technical audit. We submitted all 145 documents that they asked,” said SRMI mining tenements manager Alfredo Belen Jr. in an interview.

“I would say that the questions were fair and we were given a chance to answer all the responses be it positive or negative. And I would think na ang mga tinanong nila (who they asked) reflected sentiments on the ground,” he added.

With regards to DENR’s social audit, Belen said it was “very thorough but it was an independent audit.”

“We didn’t go with them (audit team). They went out to the local community at kung sino gusto nila kausapin, kumakatok sila sa mga bahay. Law of percentages yan para sa akin.

If you feel that 80 percent or 90 percent of the community is with us, the social audit will show whether it’s true or not,” he said.

“The rules are very strict, they were not allowed to ask if the respondent was pro or anti SRMI. The question was, nakinabang ba kayo sa operations, ano ang epekto sa buhay ninyo (did you benefit from the operations, what were the effects). They asked around and the questions and observations they put it down on paper, they gave it to us and asked to comment,” he added.

As a large-scale miner and holder of Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) covering more than 1,000 hectares, SRMI said they have been mining responsibly and have held an ISO 14001 certification for its mining processes and

environmental management since 2013.

The same certification has been renewed sometime in 2016, and is good until late 2018.

“We have complied and continue to comply with all government requirements and standards both for mining process and environmental management. We are one of only four Philippine mining companies that hold an ISO 14001 certification,” said Belen.

SRMI is the first nickel mine and the third metal mine in the country to have secured ISO 14001 certification.

Meanwhile, Agusan del Norte Governor Angelica Rosedell Amante-Matba is appealing to the DENR to allow the operations of SRMI to continue.

“Before, our province is so laid back. People have no jobs and they would really go to politicians but we cannot accommodate them all. You cannot accommodate a growing population. That’s impossible,” said Matba in an interview.

She noted the workforce of SRMI alone was now 1,700 while taxes paid by the company reached more than PHP23 million last year.

“I’ve seen it myself and honestly I was impressed. If you’re gonna ask me, their operations have been a great help to the community. If you say that mining does not contribute, I don’t know where that’s coming from,” the lady governor said.

Matba said suspending the operations of SRMI would be a burden on the local government.

“Not all mining companies are bad. I would understand if you close the companies destroying the environment, but if companies are following the rules of the country, why will you close it,” she said.

Matba is one of the governors included in the “honor list” of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) who “are good in disaster preparedness, and “have made their provinces competitive when it comes to business.” ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

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POEA’s online system to speed-up seafarers’ registration, Sec. Bello assures PHILIPPINES NEWS AGENCY MANILA — Starting Sept. 15, 2016, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) will be implementing the online registration system for seafarers.

“This system improvement is in line with our objective to provide speedy and efficient service to our clientele, specifically to the overseas Filipino workers,” said Labor and Employment

Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III. Bello said the implementation of online registration was approved by the POEA Governing Board Resolution No. 13, Series of 2016.

The resolution instructs the POEA to replace the Seafarers Registration Certificates (SRC) with the online seafarers’ registration.

The online SRC system, Secretary Bello said, is aligned with President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s directive to government offices to review all systems and

requirements to avoid duplication of functions, eliminate queuing, and facilitate delivery of services to the public.

Bello said the online registry shall benefit around 50,000 SRC applicants per year, and remove long lines at POEA offices. The online seafarer registry shall likewise pave the way for the development and implementation of a universal identification system for Filipino seafarers.

He said the way forward is to have a universal ID system for seafarer that is acceptable to

all government agencies and Port States in compliance with ILO Convention No. 185 or the Seafarer’s Identity Document Convention.

Secretary Bello signed GB Resolution No. 13, Series of 2016, along with POEA Administrator and Governing Board Vice-Chair Hans Leo J. Cacdac, and members Felix M. Oca, Estrelita S. Hizon, Alexander E. Asuncion, and Milagros Isabel A. Cristobal.

The Board directed the POEA to link up with the Maritime In-

dustry Authority (MARINA) to look into the possibility of data sharing and development of a universal ID system for seafarers.

The POEA issues SRCs to seafarers with their perpetual ID number for easy access of personal records and efficient processing of employment documents.

Bello said the POEA shall conduct an extensive information dissemination campaign before the implementation of the online registration system. ■

House to probe drugs in Bilibid under Leila

BY GIL C. CABACUNGAN AND LEILA B. SALAVERRIA Philippine Daily Inquirer PRESIDENT DUTERTE’S allies in the House of Representatives are pushing for an inquiry into how convicted drug lords virtually took over New Bilibid Prison and used it as base for drug production and distribution during the five years that Sen. Leila de Lima had been secretary of justice.

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas last month led a group of lawmakers in filing House Resolution No. 105, calling for an investigation of the operation of drug syndicates in Bilibid and the culpability of prison and justice officials, including De Lima.

The INQUIRER learned about the filing of the resolution yesterday, two days after President Duterte accused De Lima of accepting payoffs from convicted drug lords held at Bilibid and having an affair with her driver.

Mr. Duterte’s attack is believed to have been provoked

by De Lima’s calling an inquiry into the spate of drug killings that came with the President’s war on drugs.

De Lima denied the accusations, calling the President’s attack “foul” and “character assassination.” She said the attack would not stop the inquiry by her committee on justice and human

rights, which opens on Monday.

The auxiliary bishop of Manila, Bishop Broderick Pabillo, yesterday urged the Senate not to be cowed and instead proceed with the investigation.

“I hope the probe will really be true and the senators will not be cowed. I admire the determination of De Lima,” Pabillo said.

Pabillo urged all those concerned to cooperate in the investigation in order to put an end to extrajudicial killings in the government’s campaign against the narcotics trade.

De Lima defended

Several senators rallied around De Lima yesterday, defending her against Mr. Duterte, who had warned Congress not to investigate his war on drugs.

Minority Leader Ralph Recto said he did not believe De Lima was involved in illegal drugs.

“Hard for me to believe Senator De Lima is coddling/protecting drug lords and receiving money from them,” Recto said in a text message.

He said he expected the Senate to call an all-member caucus to determine how to deal with the President’s attack on one of its members.

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said Mr. Duterte’s attack on De Lima showed that the President did not brook opposition.

But with De Lima standing up to him, Mr. Duterte now knows not everyone will bow to him,

Trillanes said.

“I think President Duterte, because of his long experience as a totalitarian mayor of Davao City, is instinctively intolerant of dissenting voices. But he is slowly finding out that our senators are no pushovers, unlike the city councilors he is used to dealing with,” he said.

Sen. Joel Villanueva called for a stop to “personal attacks” and said he hoped the President would be more patient with other officials who were also working for the good of the country.

Sen. Bam Aquino urged De Lima to remain strong and pursue her search for truth and justice through her committee’s inquiry into the extrajudicial killings.

‘Prove her innocence’

But Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, an ally of Mr. Duterte, said De Lima should “prove her innocence instead of crying foul.”

“She knows the system very well,” Gatchalian said in a text message. He said he trusted Mr. Duterte. In the House resolution, Alvarez and Fariñas cited the cases of Peter Co and Herbert Colangco, two drug lords publicly named by Mr. Duterte, who continued to have hands-on control of their drug networks despite being held at Bilibid.

They said the probe would ensure transparency and accountability in the government to restore the public’s trust in governmental institutions. www.canadianinquirer.net

Senator Leila De Lima, Chairperson of the Committee on Justice on Human Rights; and Senator Panfilo Lacson, Chairman of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs looks on during the Senate public hearing on dangerous drugs and alleged extrajudicial killings.

JESS M. ESCAROS JR. / PNA

‘Asylum for drug lords’

The lawmakers said the drug lords had held Bilibid captive, as shown in the December 2014 raid where a makeshift drug laboratory, drug paraphernalia, cash, highpowered firearms and luxury items were discovered.

“The government operations exposed the nation’s premier detention facility as a permanent asylum for drug lords, gambling lords and local mafiosi operating freely within the enclosed facility, imposing control on inmates, and operating side by side with institutional workers and security personnel,” the lawmakers said.

Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop, who also signed the resolution, said he would like De Lima to explain reports that she held off several planned police raids on Bilibid due to the intervention of then Bureau of Corrections Chief Franklin Jesus Bucayu.

Acop, chair of the committee on public order and safety that would handle the probe, said De Lima should also explain why she allowed 18 drug lords who

were caught living it up and operating their drug businesses inside Bilibid to return to their detention centers after the raids.

“We have received intelligence information that at least eight hardcore drug lords continue working their businesses inside [Bilibid] through the past few years [on] De Lima’s watch.

We found these drugs lords were the heavy bettors in casinos and cockfights,” Acop said.

Not payback

Acop denied the investigation was payback for De Lima’s calling a Senate inquiry into the extrajudicial killings, saying the resolution was filed on July 21.

Aside from Alvarez, Fariñas and Acop, the resolution was signed by Batangas Rep. Raneo Abu, Rizal Rep. John R. Duavit, Davao City Rep. Karlo Alexie Nograles, Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez, Iloilo Rep. Jerry Treñas, Cavite Rep. Abraham Tolentino, Oriental Mindoro Rep. Salvador Leachon and Valenzuela Rep. Eric Martinez. ■

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Philippine News

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

De Lima on linking her to pork barrel scam: “It’s unfair”

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency MANILA — Senator Leila De Lima on Tuesday said that being linked to the multi-million pork barrel scam case involving business woman and alleged mastermind Janet LimNapoles was “unfair,” stressing that she herself handled the cases of Napoles when she was Justice Secretary.

“That’s a rehashed issue. Why do they keep digging old issues?

Who is responsible for the detention of Napoles? Then they link me to Napoles? That’s too unfair,” De Lima said in a mix of

English and Filipino.

De Lima reacted following President Rodrigo Duterte’s earlier announcement to re-investigate the multi-billion peso pork barrel scam case involving Napoles and some senators.

Duterte also claimed that he received information about a De Lima’s phone conversations between her and her driver Ronnie Dayan that revealed her links to illegal drug trade in Bilibid Prison.

The said conversation also provided information on their ATM records, Duterte said.

This led Congress to call for a probe on the senator’s alleged involvement in illegal drug op-

erations inside the prison.

De Lima, however, maintained that she was never involved in drugs.

“The Committee on Justice conducted also a series of hearing twice or thrice inside Bilibid. We had an ocular inspection with the Congressional committee last Dec 15 2014,” the former Justice Secretary said.

“I initiated it (the probe) so why will they investigate me? I found a way to expose the drug problems there. Don’t they know that I exerted certain efforts, steps after discovering all of those inside Bilibid?” she added.

Senator Leila de Lima, in a press conference, says that if the Duterte administration proves her guilty of her alleged drug-links, “I am willing to resign, I am willing to be shot in front of the President.”

JOEY O. RAZON / PNA

De Lima refused to dwell on the topic saying that she did not find a “legitimate matter” for the purpose of the inquiry.

She meanwhile vowed not to

let the allegations against her affect her work at the Senate.

“I’ve always been strong. I’m used to confronting a lot of challenges,” she said.

Peace talks between Philippines Empty QC house government, rebels resume was a ‘shabu’ lab

BY DAVID KEYTON The Associated Press

50 years, holding out against constant military and police offensives. They draw support from those dissatisfied with economic inequality, especially in the countryside, and the Philippines’ alliance with the U.S. The rebels trace their roots to a communist party whose guerrilla wing helped fight Japanese occupation forces in World War II and their ranks swelled after dictator Ferdinand Marcos

the peace process with ceasefires, the release of political prisoners, and the appointment of two allies of the guerrillas to OSLO — Peace talks between Cabinet posts in concessions the government of Philippine that fostered the resumption of President Rodrigo Duterte talks. and communist rebels aimed “The NDFP (National Demoat ending one of Asia’s longestcratic Front of the Philippines) running rebellions formally are optimistic that objective resumed Monday, with hosts conditions and subjective facNorway cautioning against a tors in the Philippines are more quick result. favourable than ever,” said Jose Some 150,000 people have Maria Sison, founder of the died in the conCommunist Parflict that began ty of the Philipalmost half a pines. ”He offers century ago. more hope for “We are goHe offers more hope for the the advance and ing to have five advance and success of the peace success of the very demanding negotiations than previous presidents peace negotiadays here ... but and regimes. tions than previI would like to ous presidents congratulate the and regimes.” two parties on Attending the the resumption of the formal declared martial law in 1972. talks are two top Philippine peace talks,” said Norwegian They set up jungle camps over communist rebel leaders who Foreign Minister Borge Brende. the sprawling archipelago as were released from a maxiThe negotiations were facili- launching pads for raids tar- mum-security jail on Friday. tated by a cease-fire imposed by geting the military and police, One of them, Benito TiamDuterte and a truce announced large agricultural and mining zon, said he had a lot of catchby the rebels that began Sun- estates as well as U.S. forces, ing up to do. “We have to cram,” day. which maintained major bases he said.

Although less numerous and in the Philippines until 1991.

Participants in Oslo told the less violent than Muslim sepaAs they sat down to talk in the AP that the talks were expectratist rebels in the country’s Norwegian capital, both sides ed to last until Friday when an south, the Maoists have fought agreed that an important fac- agreement could be signed outand outlived successive Philip- tor has changed: a Philippines lining a roadmap to continue pine administrations for nearly president strongly supporting the peace process. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

Chinese tenant’s disappearance prompts raid; P35-M drugs found

BY MARICAR B. BRIZUELA Philippine Daily Inquirer

P20 million.

200 kilos weekly output

AN ABANDONED townhouse in Barangay Apolonio Samson, Quezon City, turned out to be a drug laboratory capable of producing 200 kilos of “shabu” (methamphetamine hydrochloride) a week.

Wilson Lee, the owner of the unit on Christian Street, Grace Village, said that he rented it out in December to Daniel Geng, a Chinese national who disappeared after failing to pay the rent for several months.

On Saturday, Lee decided to check out the townhouse himself but because he was suspicious of his previous tenant’s activities, he asked for help from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Quezon City Police District (QCPD), barangay officials and his lawyers.

When the townhouse was opened by the joint team from PDEA and QCPD, they found around 10 kilos of what was believed to be shabu worth around P35 million. Also discovered were drug equipment and chemicals valued at around

According to PDEA, the drug laboratory was capable of producing around 200 kilos of shabu weekly.

Lee said that Geng started leasing the townhouse unit in December. At first, the tenant had no problem paying the monthly rent but starting in March, he stopped remitting his payments, Lee added.

The PDEA said that they had also been monitoring the townhouse for months after they received reports that it was being used as a drug laboratory.

Authorities, on the other hand, linked Geng to Shih-ming Tsai, Kuo-chuan Cheng and Chun-ming Lin who were arrested in Las Piñas and Parañaque cities on July 5.

The Chinese suspects operated shabu laboratories in the areas and Geng was “their counterpart in Quezon City,” the police said.

The discovery of the abandoned drug laboratory prompted Senior Supt. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, QCPD director, to advise the public to be more careful when choosing tenants. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

7

UN exec accepts Palace Victims of Comelec challenge to visit PH hacking may call new agency hotline

BY LEILA B. SALAVERRIA Philippine Daily Inquirer

THE WAR of words between President Duterte and the United Nations escalated on Thursday, with a UN envoy warning that “state actors” could be held responsible over hundreds of killings in the government’s controversial crackdown on illegal drugs.

Challenged by presidential chief legal counsel Salvador Panelo to come over and see for herself the real situation, UN special rapporteur on summary executions Agnes Callamard tweeted on Friday: “Invitation to investigate welcomed. Ready to ‘see for myself.’”

In a statement, presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that the “seeming incomprehension by local and international observers” was “more alarming than the pandemic use and trade of illegal drugs in the Philippines.”

from UN chief Ban Ki-moon.

“When you are in New York or somewhere else, 10,000 kilometers or miles away from the Philippines and then you make such judgments, that’s recklessness,” Panelo said of Callamard’s statement. “Those statements are misplaced and baseless, and they better come over and see for themselves the real situation,” he added.

Vigilante killings

Abella said on yesterday that the President had ordered an investigation of police personnel in connection with possible incidents of vigilante or mistaken killings.

“The President decries the attribution of killings to the Philippine government. This is simply unfair, especially to the hardworking men and women in uniform who risk their lives and limbs to win the war against drugs,” Abella added.

The Palace official blamed the previous adminisLegal obligations tration for not doMore than 1,500 ing enough to curb people have died in the drug problem Mr. Duterte’s fight and the “disturbing against narcotics, President rise of ‘narcopolitiPhilippine National Duterte has cians’” who use drug Police Director Gentime and money to buy votes, eral Ronald dela Rosa again warned and said that Presitold a Senate hearing us during dent Duterte was on Thursday, saying the (election) now dealing with the that 665 drug suscampaign that if matter. pects were killed in you vote for me, It has resulted in “legitimate (police) this is going to a number of deaths, operations” with anbe bloody.

Abella said, “but other 889 killed by even more surprisvigilantes. ingly, in the surrenUN experts called der of hundreds of on the Duterte adthousands of users,” ministration to end he added. targeted killings and It appeared that the extrajudicial exa number of the ecutions of drug suspects. “Claims to killings were perpetrated by those infight the illicit drug trade do not ab- volved in illegal drug operations, Abelsolve the government from its inter- la said, adding that “[t]he nature of a national legal obligations and do not number of deaths imply internecine, or shield state actors or others from re- organizational killings, within the drug sponsibility for illegal killings,” Calla- trade.” mard, said in a statement on Thursday.

Also on Thursday, two UN rights ex- Ensure public safety perts said that Duterte’s directives callAbella said the government’s principal ing on law enforcers and the public to concern was ensuring the safety and sekill suspected drug traffickers “amount curity of citizens, leading it to undertake to incitement to violence and killing, a a purging of bad eggs within the police crime under international law.” ranks.

The warning came a day after Presi“Crime rate has significantly dedent Duterte, who swept to a landslide creased. A general cleanup of police election victory in May largely on a ranks on assignment has been underpledge to kill thousands of criminals, taken when the President assumed ofcalled the UN “stupid” and vowed to fice,” he said. continue his antinarcotics offensive despite mounting criticism, including ❱❱ PAGE 9 UN exec

BY JULIE M. AURELIO Philippine Daily Inquirer THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) said on Saturday it would be launching a cybersecurity hotline where voters affected by a massive pre-election data breach could seek assistance.

The Voter Care Center hotline 5259301 will begin eight-hour operations on Aug. 22. The poll body’s education and information technology departments will assist in fielding calls from voters whose personal data were leaked online.

The Comelec said voters would be helped “by identifying the best course of action to protect their online security.”

Requirements for verification

For verification, callers will be required to provide their name, birth date, address, contact number and e-mail address.

The Comelec added that reports on

www.canadianinquirer.net

possible online security breach and identity theft may be mailed to votercarecenter@gmail.com, with the voter’s personal information.

Last March, the hacker group Anonymous Philippines defaced the Comelec website and stole the personal data of some 54 million registered voters.

The data breach was discovered more than a month before the May 9 elections.

Two hackers busted

Two hackers in their 20s have been arrested and charged with violating the anticybercrime law.

A month later, a website uploaded a voter database hacked from the Comelec website, and published for public viewing sensitive voter information, from birth dates and addresses to fingerprint data and passport information.

The website has since been taken down, but the Comelec is facing complaints before the National Privacy Commission for the disastrous data leak. ■

Philippine News

8

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Bello orders OWWA to assist the families of OFWs killed in Riyadh fire Publisher Philippine Canadian Inquirer, Inc. Correspondents Jane Moraleda Socorro Newland Bolet Arevalo Katherine Padilla Gerna Lane Sotana Community Editor Mary Ann Mandap maryann.mandap@canadianinquirer.net Administration Head Victoria Yong Graphic Designer Shanice Garcia Photographers Angelo Siglos Vic Vargas For photo submissions, please send to editor@canadianinquirer.net Operations and Marketing Head Laarni Liwanag (604) 551-3360 laarni.liwanag@canadianinquirer.net Advertising Sales Alice Yong (778) 889-3518 alice.yong@canadianinquirer.net Nelson Wu (647) 521-5155 salestoronto@canadianinquirer.net nelson.wu@canadianinquirer.net Amelia Insigne (416) 574-5121 amelia.insigne@canadianinquirer.net Antonio Tampos (604) 460-9414 antonio. tampos@canadianinquirer.net PHILIPPINE PUBLISHING GROUP Editorial Assistant Christelle Tolisora Associate Publisher Lurisa Villanueva In cooperation with the Philippine Daily Inquirer digital edition Philippine Canadian Inquirer is located at 11951 Hammersmith Way, Suite 108 Richmond, B.C. V7A 5H9 Canada Tel. No.: +1 (888) 668-6059, +1 (778) 889-3518 | Email: info@canadianinquirer.net, sales@ canadianinquirer.net Philippine Canadian Inquirer is published weekly every Friday.

Copies are distributed free throughout Metro Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, and Greater Toronto.

The views and opinions expressed in the articles (including opinions expressed in ads herein) are those of the authors named, and are not necessarily those of Philippine Canadian Inquirer Editorial Team.

PCI reserves the right to reject any advertising which it considers to contain false or misleading information or involves unfair or unethical practices. The advertiser agrees the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of error in any advertisement.

Member

PHILIPPINES NEWS AGENCY MANILA — Facilitate the release of the death benefits and other assistance due the families of the six overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who died in a fire last Saturday at the Sulaimania District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III issued this order on Wednesday to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), an attached agency of the DOLE. “My heart goes out to the deceased OFWs who died in a foreign land and

also to their families,” Bello said.

He added that OWWA will provide the necessary assistance to the families to mitigate their sufferings over the death of their loved ones.

The Labor Chief, who chairs the OWWA Board of Trustees, said they would “make sure the families of the OFWs would be able to collect the benefits due them, including insurance and unpaid wages from their employers.”

He also instructed the OWWA to coordinate with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in the identification of the victims, particularly those who were OWWA members, and set in motion the welfare assistance due them.

He said the heirs of OWWA members who die in accidents are entitled to PHP200,000 in death benefit, while those who die of natural causes get PHP100,000. They are entitled to an additional PHP20,000 for funeral expenses.

OWWA members’ dependents may also avail themselves of elementary and secondary education subsidies, scholarships in state colleges and universities, and livelihood programs.

On the other hand, families of nonOWWA members may avail themselves of a package of assistance from the National Reintegration Center for OFWs. ■

Duterte fires... ❰❰ 1

this hour,” the President said in his two-hour press conference that ended past 3 a.m. on

Sunday.

At the beginning of his term, Mr. Duterte told previous presidential appointees to stay at their jobs in holdover capacity. He said, however, that he received information unbridled irregularities were still happening in “regulatory agencies.”

“Until now, in my provincial visits, I still hear that corruption is being committed,” he said.

“My mouth is, as they say, lousy. If you are there because of a presidential appointment, I will declare all your positions, all throughout the country, vacant,” he said.

He reiterated that he had promised the Filipinos during the campaign that “I will give them a clean government.”

The President particularly mentioned the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) as the two agencies where anomalous transactions still took place “Those who are appointed to the LTO, except the career (officials), consider your positions vacant as of this hour,” he said.

‘All of them’

Asked if his order included all presidential appointees, Mr. Duterte said: “All of them, it will number in the thousands. Consider yourself in the crucible of the truth about corruption in this country…If the rule is enforced, it must be enforced on all or none at all.”

He said he did not care if a government clerk ran an affected government agency for the meantime.

Later in the day, the President’s spokesperson said the government’s

Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar.

delivery of basic services to the people would not be adversely affected by the decision of Mr. Duterte to sack all appointed public officials.

“I think our bureaucracy is strong enough. It will function even without the heads of offices because we have deputies and career officers,” Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar told state-run dzRB radio.

“I don’t see any problem (arising from the President’s directive). Our government can still operate (without them),” he said.

According to Andanar, only presidential appointees of the previous administrations would be affected by the major shakeup. Career employees would not be covered.

Executive authority

Mr. Duterte’s bureaucratic purge aimed at cleansing the government of

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TOTO LOZANO / PPD / PNA

corruption was within his executive authority, said former Senate President Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. “Mr. Duterte, a lawyer, is aware of the limits of his power…he knows what he can or cannot do by law,” Pimentel said in a text message on Sunday.

“I’m sure that many of those who might be actually removed would eventually be restored to office unless they are found to have transgressed the law on drugs or on corruption,” said the former senator, founder of Mr. Duterte’s party, Partido Demokratiko PilipinoLakas ng Bayan.

Sen. Richard Gordon said Mr. Duterte had given the appointees a chance to prove themselves.

“In the first place, he let them stay and ‘do your job’… but nothing… Also remember he’s under pressure from his supporters who think [the Duterte administration] can do better,” Gordon said when reached by phone. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

‘The Economist’ gives PHL highest rate in migration governance study

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency MANILA — Widely respected British news magazine, “The Economist,” recently recognized the Philippines for having a well-developed migration policy governance.

The results are based on the findings of the publication’s research arm, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

“This recognition by ‘The Economist’ of the excellent migration governance framework of the Philippines is an affirmation of the continuing commitment of the Philippine Government to promote and protect the rights and welfare of the Filipinos who chose to work abroad,” said Philippine Ambassador Cecilia Rebong, Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva.

In a research conducted by

The Economist Intelligence Unit-Migration Governance Index (EIU-MGI), the Philippines is the only country that was given the highest rate as “developed and mature” in all categories, namely: institutional capacity; migrant rights; safe and orderly migration; labor migration management; and regional and international cooperation and other partnerships.

Countries included in the study have been categorized based on their performance as nascent, emerging, developed, and mature.

The research studied 15 countries which were selected to broadly represent economic development, type of migration profile, including migrant receiving and sending countries, and geographic scope.

The outcome of the study highlighted transparency as an essential marker of a comprehensive migration policy to in-

clude: clear information for potential immigrants about laws, regulations, visas and opportunities, publicly available data about migrant flows, migrant deaths and human trafficking; robust information-sharing systems between government departments, integrated programs to aid repatriation of migrants, and structured information exchange and dialogue with other countries.

The EIU-MGI is a project commissioned by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and designed by The Economist Intelligence Unit.

The project aims to provide policy-benchmarking framework for evaluating countryspecific migration governance structures.

It also aims to assist countries in assessing how comprehensive and coherent their policies are, and in identifying gaps that exist as well as areas that needs improvement. ■

9

UN exec...

Abella said the government approach was to treat drugs as a public health and social issue, as well as a matter of national security.

When he took office on June 30, Mr. Duterte told a crowd in Manila: “If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful.” However, Panelo said the UN should not take such statements seriously. “He is just asking the public to cooperate with the campaign.”

Duterte’s spokespersons have described his statements as hyperbole, although the police have reported killing more than 600 people since he took office.

Panelo insisted police only killed suspects in self-defense while the other deaths were the work of drug syndicates who feared their members would surrender and cooperate with authorities.

“How can you stop the killing of members of the syndicates?

You cannot be guarding them all the time,” Panelo said. ❰❰ 7

Condemned

International and local rights groups, some lawmakers and church leaders have condemned the killings while the Senate will continue its investigation next week into possible rights violations during police operations.

Dela Rosa said yesterday that law enforcers would not be deterred by the Senate investigation and that their campaign was just starting. “It’s a low (point) when we are being investigated but we go on ... we never back down,” he said.

UN special rapporteur on the right to health, Dainius Puras, said the fight against the illegal drugs trade must “respect the human rights of each person.”

But Mr. Duterte’s spokesperson Martin Andanar said the public supported the crackdown. “President Duterte has time and again warned us during the (election) campaign that if you vote for me, this is going to be bloody,” he said, adding that there is “no war without casualties.” ■

Senators suggest ways PNP can improve anti-drug campaign

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency MANILA — A number of senators on Tuesday’s Senate inquiry into extrajudicial killings committed to support the Philippine National Police (PNP) by vowing to review ways the Duterte administration’s intensified anti-drug campaign could be improved.

One of them was Senator Miguel Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri who expressed interest to look into the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) similar to what was done in the recent PHP3.8-billion RCBC scam.

Zubiri also sought to review the “too-strict” Bank Secrecy Law to monitor syndicates’, smugglers’ and other illegal operators’ transactions.

The senator stressed that once the money is found, it will be easier to find the syndicates.

“First, we must amend

the AMLA, strengthen the AMLC (Anti-Money Laundering Council) and penalize the AMLC for the non-compliance of the AMLA to the red-flag provisions,” Zubiri said.

“Second, the bank secrecy law should be relaxed for all officials, elective and appointive including judiciary,” he added.

Senator Grace Poe urged the PNP to ensure that those given monetary incentives are not themselves involved in the illegal drug trade, with PHP2.5billion in intelligence and confidential funds at Malacañang’s discretion to support the antidrug campaign.

She said the mechanics for the use of such funds should be carefully looked into by the chamber once deliberations for the 2017 proposed General Appropriations Act reach the Senate.

The incumbent senator also suggested a “reasonable” increase in the maintenance expenses of police precincts in

the country, with the current allocation of PHP1,000 per policeman.

A total of more than PHP200billion is contained in the proposed outlay for public order and safety, to support the Duterte administration’s antidrug campaign.

Of that amount, the PNP has PHP110.4 billion for 2017 for the police force, to hire more policemen, acquire more guns and patrol vehicles and finance other activities for more effective crime suppression.

Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara suggested that the senate review the anti-wiretapping law or RA 4200 to include illegal drug trade.

Since the law only covers treason, kidnapping, espionage and not illegal drug trade, Angara said that he would want it to be prioritized.

“Maybe we should prioritize the amendment of the antiwiretapping law or RA 4200 because it does not cover the sellwww.canadianinquirer.net

Witnesses take their oath before testifying at the hearing on alleged extrajudicial killings conducted by the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights at the Senate Building in Pasay City.

AVITO C.DALAN / PNA

ing or pushing of drugs,” Angara said.

“Because if we know they deal drugs, we can overhear their conversations over the phone.

That is what America did in Jamaica when they captured the drug lord Dudus,” he added.

Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, for his part, advised the PNP anew to appoint a qualified civilian to head the agency’s Internal Affairs Service (IAS). At present, its acting head is a police officer.

Last week, Poe sought the same alteration stressing that a number of cops were also reportedly involved in the illegal drug trade.

PNP Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said that the PNP has already submitted a list of qualified applicants to President Rodrigo Duterte.

Dela Rosa meanwhile welcomed all these suggestions and reforms, saying that the PNP had “nothing to lose and everything to gain.” ■

10

Philippine News

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Yasay: PH not leaving UN; Duterte just exasperated

BY ESTRELLA TORRES AND MARLON RAMOS Philippine Daily Inquirer FOREIGN SECRETARY Perfecto Yasay Jr. said President Duterte did not make an outright threat to withdraw Philippine membership from the United Nations but merely expressed frustration at rapporteurs who criticized his administration as if it was behind the summary killings of drug suspects.

Yasay said it must be understood that the President made the statement in the wee hours while being bombarded with a lot of media questions.

“When you are tired, disappointed and frustrated and angry under these circumstances, we must give a leeway on the part of the President for this kind of reaction,” Yasay said at a press briefing on Monday.

“Like us, he is only human,” he added.

At his two-hour early morning press briefing in Davao City on Sunday, the President described the United Nations as “inutile” and a “stupid body,” which has “done nothing” for the Philippines.

Yasay said the President did not threaten to leave the United Nations. “He (the President) expressed disappointment over the actions of these rapporteurs and then just simply said the comment that he made as a reaction to it,” Yasay said.

Agnes Callamard and Dainius Puras — UN special rappor-

teurs on summary executions and on the right to health, respectively — raised concern on Friday over the rapid increase in the number of people being killed, with 650 of them in the last six weeks alone, in line with Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs.

“The President has already made assurance that he will respect human rights and firmly stands against the illegal or criminal killing of people on drug-related offenses,” Yasay said.

The foreign secretary said the two UN rapporteurs should have followed UN protocols to make an official request to investigate the alleged summary killings before making a statement criticizing the administration.

“The special rapporteurs are allegedly quoting from media reports that are making assumptions that these are true and accurate,” he said.

But Yasay said these reports “do not constitute prima facie evidence of fact.”

“We do not begrudge their right to do their job, and so they must also not begrudge our country’s right and our people’s right to govern ourselves and to solve the urgent problems at hand,” he said.

He said Mr. Duterte was “extremely disappointed and frustrated with this action of the special rapporteurs in arbitrarily concluding that these drug-related killings were done by, or at the instance of, law enforcers.”

But he assured the public

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella clarifies that the Philippines is not separating from the United Nations during a press briefing in Malacañang.

TOTO LOZANO / PPD / PNA

that Mr. Duterte was committed to the United Nations as the Philippines was a founding member. In 1945, the Philippines joined 49 other nations in signing the UN Charter in San Francisco, creating the international body.

Palace spokesperson Ernesto Abella also sought to downplay the implications of Mr. Duterte’s threat to sever the country’s ties with the United Nations, saying his tonguelashing was nothing but “a statement of sovereignty.”

Abella maintained that the

Philippines was not deserting the 193-member international body which, the President claimed, disrespected him as head of state for issuing statements about his administration’s vicious drug campaign.

The spokesperson said Mr. Duterte only wanted to reiterate that the Philippines “is a sovereign nation and should not be meddled with.”

“We are not decoupling (from the United Nations),” Abella said at a news conference in Malacañang.

“It was simply a matter of re-

cord … It was not a statement of fact that we are leaving,” Abella said.

Pressed to explain further the President’s scathing remarks against the United Nations, he said the issue of “decoupling is not … to be taken lightly.”

Abella, who appeared uneasy fielding questions from reporters, said the media should “get to the core” of the Mr. Duterte’s statements.

“It was not spur of the moment,” Abella said of the President’s remarks.

He said the President’s rebuke of the world body did not mean that his administration was turning down its support and was opposing an independent investigation of the drug killings, but a reiteration that the Philippine government could conduct its own probe as a free nation.

However, Mr. Duterte was “referring to the fact that the United Nations seems to be singling out the Philippines,” Abella said.

Asked why the President regarded the statement of the United Nations as meddling in the country’s domestic affairs, Abella said: “The United Nations, being a public institution, should have made formal representations because we also are a formal institution.”

“He was taking umbrage of the fact that the United Nations, through [its] representatives, were making public statements without having made formal representations,” he said. ■

Duterte eyeing Lorenzana as PHL envoy to US, Gibo as DND chief

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday said that he has offered the post of Philippine ambassador to the United States to Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and is eyeing former Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. to replace the former.

In an ambush interview at Malacañang Palace, the President said that he offered the post to Lorenzana Monday night but the latter has not yet

accepted the offer.

He said the problem of who would be sent as ambassador to the US came up during a meeting Monday night.

“We were discussing yesterday who is going to be sent as ambassador to the US and there was a lot of finger pointing. Tinuro… sino tumuro sayo… somebody… ikaw… di ako ah… somebody said yun o, sabi ko tama yan. Sabi niya kakarating ko lang. Pagka-wala akong ibang makuha, then we’ll just have to scout for a new Defense secretary, marami naman diyan eh,” Duterte related.

Prior to his appointment as DND Secretary, Lorenzana was Special Presidential Representative for Veterans Affairs at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, DC from 2004 to 2015.

“We are looking for one and I was not joking if I could not find anybody it could be Lorenzana.

E matagal na based sa Washington DC yan, and I know him well kasi dati ng nag-Mindanao stint yan e. But sabi nya gusto nyang manahimik na dito finally, that is he want to stay home so tingnan natin (He has been based in Washington DC for a long time, and I know him well www.canadianinquirer.net

for he had served in Mindanao.

But he also said he wanted to lie low here finally and to stay home, so we’ll still see),” the President said.

Should Lorenzana accept the position, he said that he is seriously considering Teodoro to his former post.

“Gibo, he was my lawyer long before, when he was a young lawyer. I offered to help him in the last election. Tatakbo ka ba, kasi kung tatakbo ka, susuporta ako sa iyo. (Are you running?

Because if you are, you have my full support) Now, I would like to call him again,” he said.

“Gibo is very talented very bright and he handles himself very well both privately and officially,” Duterte said.

The President said that there is urgency in naming a new envoy to the US because of the proximity of the APEC and ASEAN forums.

“There are a lot of things to talk about; APEC is coming and ASEAN is there. We will receive the chairmanship of ASEAN. Invariably, whether you like it or not, there be issues concerning everybody including China and United States,” Duterte said. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

11

CHR says ICC may exercise power over extrajudicial killings

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency MANILA — If rampant extrajudicial killings continue, the International Criminal Court (ICC) may exercise its jurisdiction over them, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said on Tuesday.

CHR Chairperson Jose Luis Martin Gascon raised this possibility during the Senate inquiry into the purported extrajudicial killings under the Duterte administration’s intensified anti-drug campaign.

“Failure of the government to address this situation, apparently prevailing of unexplained extrajudicial killings, and providing remedies in terms of prosecution of perpetrators could result in the possibility of the ICC exercising jurisdic-

tion over those matters. But we must first satisfy the principle of complementarity,” Gascon said.

Gascon explained that the principle of complementarity is a provision in the Rome Statute that “requires states to either be unable or unwilling to prosecute these cases at which point ICC can exercise jurisdiction.”

Asked by Senator Leila De Lima if there would need to be a complaint filed before the ICC can assume jurisdiction, Gascon said that there is a process of consultations exercised by the prosecutors of the ICC. “The UN has mechanisms of monitoring and ICC as well. So they receive information on a regular basis, they would normally conduct consultations, they also provide advisory support for us to address these concerns,” Gascon said.

“If these concerns are not ad-

equately addressed, it is possible that the prosecutor will make a recommendation for assumption of jurisdiction,” he added.

Gascon further said that the Philippines is a party to Rome Statute from 2011 when the government ratified the treaty that established the ICC. According to Gascon, the ICC has jurisdiction over four crimes, namely” war crimes, genocide, aggression and crimes against humanity.

De Lima, Chair of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, said that some experts suggested that extrajudicial killings were considered as crimes against humanity.

“If these extrajudicial killings proliferate and we are not doing everything to address these and have prosecution and accountability, Article 7 of the International Criminal Court

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa delivers his opening statement during the hearing on the campaign against dangerous drugs and alleged extrajudicial killings.

AVITO C.DALAN / PNA

provides for the situation of crimes against humanity. The condition for it is widespread or systematic attacks on civilian population,” Gascon said.

He said that the definition of widespread is not by fixed number but the condition that it is not given a remedy.

In fact, he said that there have been instances by other ICCs that have identified a single act as sufficient for crimes against humanity.

De Lima, meanwhile, urged

Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Ronald Dela Rosa to observe caution when threatening to kill suspected drug pushers as his statements can be used as evidence against him.

Dela Rosa admitted that he did try to scare off drug pushers in such a way but promised to change this.

PNP records show that a total of 712 drug-related deaths were recorded from July 1 until August 23. ■

Hontiveros conducts hearing on anti-hospital deposit law, vows to punish violators PHILIPPINES NEWS AGENCY MANILA — Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday conducted a senate inquiry on the reported violations of several hospitals under Republic Act 8344, otherwise known as the Anti-Hospital Deposit Law, where she vowed to punish erring medical institutions.

“No one should be refused adequate and quality medical care or unnecessarily die just because they are poor. Profit should not reign supreme over the health needs of the people.

It not only negates the coun-

try’s achievements in achieving universal healthcare, it is also inhumane. Ang deposito ay mababayaran, ang buhay na nawala ay hindi mapapalitan (Deposits can be paid, lives lost cannot be replaced),” Hontiveros, Chair of the Senate Committee on the Health and Demography, said in her opening statement.

During the hearing, several witnesses testified that University of Sto. Tomas (UST) Hospital and the Southeast Asian Medical Center allegedly refused to follow RA 8344, which prohibits any medical institutions to demand any deposit or any other form of advance pay-

ment, as a prerequisite for admission or medical treatment of a patient to prevent death or serious harm.

According to the witnesses Siarra and Anjo Pelayo, UST Hospital’s refusal to give emergency care to the former led to her miscarriage. Another witness Emiliano Del Rosario said his wife Sisa was refused care in Southeast Asian Medical Center due to non-payment of deposit that led to the worsening of her condition and death.

“Ito ay mga taong na hindi walang-wala. Mayroon silang dalang pera (These people are not poor. They do have money).

However, the alleged erring

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hospitals denied them medical care by insisting on their prescribed deposits before hospital treatment. This is unacceptable,” Hontiveros said.

To address this growing concern, Hontiveros filed Senate Bill No. 216, which seeks to amend the existing Anti-Hospital Deposit Law and impose heavier fines for hospital violators. Her bill recommends that penalties for violations of the Anti-Hospital Deposit Law should be increased from the current P20,000-P100,000 to P500,000-P1 million, exclusive of damages that may be rewarded to the patient-complainant.

“Nararapat lamang na

wakasan na ang ganitong mga gawain sapagkat buhay ang nakasalalay dito. Ito ay pwedeng nauulit at mauulit pa sa iba pang pasyente (It is only right that we end this kind of activity for lives are at stake. This can happen to any patient),” she added.

The said senate bill also seeks to create a Health Facilities Oversight Board, also known as the “Sumbungan Board”, which will be composed by the Department of Health (DoH), hospital associations and patient rights’ advocates. “The primary duty of hospitals and other medical institutions is to save lives. This should be promoted at all times,” Hontiveros said. ■

12

Philippine News

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Duterte restores truce ‘Silencing of guns’ paves way for talks

BY LEILA B. SALAVERRIA Philippine Daily Inquirer PRESIDENT DUTERTE yesterday reimposed the shortlived unilateral ceasefire that he declared last month after communist insurgents declared their own truce as both sides set the stage for a resumption of peace talks Mr. Duterte’s move followed a unilateral ceasefire declaration by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), on Friday night.

But unlike the insurgents’ seven-day truce, which starts after midnight today, the government ceasefire “will last as long as necessary to bring peace in the land and also in order to provide the enabling environment for the success of the peace negotiations,” Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza said at a news conference at Ninoy Aquino International Airport before leaving for Oslo yesterday.

The government ceasefire also starts after midnight today.

The gestures usher in five days of talks between the government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), the political arm of the CPP, in the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

The talks start tomorrow and close on Friday.

The Norwegian government is brokering the negotiations to help try to end the 47-year-old communist insurgency that has claimed more than 30,000 lives and impoverished swaths of the Philippines.

Dureza said President Duterte “restored” the unilateral ceasefire that he announced during his maiden address to Congress on July 25.

The operational guidelines

of the ceasefire for the military, the police and other security forces of the government would also be restored, Dureza said.

“Our citizens deserve no less.

They wish to live peaceful lives bereft of the costs and tragic consequences of conflict and violence,” he added.

He said that with the ceasefire, he was hoping for an early resolution of the conflict.

“The enabling environment brought about by this ‘silencing of guns’ will hopefully go a long way in bringing about an expeditious and early resolution to our differences and aspirations that have long divided us as a people,” he said.

The military suspended operations against the NPA yesterday following the announcement of the government ceasefire, said Col. Edgard Arevalo, chief of the public affairs office of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Mr. Duterte withdrew the unilateral ceasefire on July 30, after the NPA killed a militiaman in an ambush and the CPP failed to declare its own truce.

The failure triggered an exchange of harsh words between him and CPP founder Jose Maria Sison, although preparations for the resumption of peace talks continued.

Mr. Duterte and the communist leader had since patched things up.

Malacañang yesterday hailed the communist insurgents’ truce declaration, saying the government was looking forward to ending the fourdecadelong conflict.

“The President has already walked an extra mile for peace.

He is glad that the CPP/NPA/ NDFP showed a similar gesture of goodwill as a sign of sincerity to the peace process on the eve of our talks in Oslo, Norway,” Presidential Communications

Secretary Martin Andanar said.

Andanar said he had high hopes that the talks, the first in four years, would be successful.

“We therefore feel optimistic that the mutual efforts of both sides would lead to fruitful negotiations that could pave the way for substantive discussions in the hope of putting an end to one of Asia’s longest-running insurgencies,” he said.

Longer truce

Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto said he hoped the ceasefire would last longer than a week.

“Peace, even if temporary, should have a validity period longer than a cell-phone load,” Recto said in a statement.

At this point, the one-week ceasefire of the communists could be classified as “symbolic,” he said.

“What the people want is peace that is sustained. Hopefully, that will be the end result of the peace talks,” he said.

Sen. Francis Pangilinan lauded the Duterte administration’s peace initiatives, saying he hoped for an end to the insurgency with the release of political prisoners and the declaration of a ceasefire.

“We recognize the President’s personal appreciation of the root causes of conflict between Filipino rebels and Filipino soldiers: poverty and injustice,” Pangilinan said.

“Peace is both an end and a means. Peace is the result and the way to progress. When the guns are silent, much work against poverty and injustice can be accomplished,” he added.

The government released top CPP leader Benito Tiamzon and his wife, Wilma, on Friday to allow them to take part in the resumption of peace talks in Oslo.

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President Rodrigo Duterte visited the wake of CPL. Josel P. Miravalles at Camp Siongco Mortuary Chapel in Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao.

President Duterte conferred Miravalles with a posthumous award and promotion to the next higher rankafter he was killed in an encounter with members of a lawless armed group in Midsayap, North Cotabato SIMEON CELI / PPD / PNA

Mr. Duterte had promised to work for the release of other NDFP consultants so they could participate in the negotiations.

Edre Olalia, legal adviser to the NDFP, yesterday said that as of Friday, 17 consultants had been released.

At the airport news conference yesterday, Dureza gave assurance that the government was exerting effort to make available to the Oslo talks as many NDFP consultants as possible.

NPA captives to be freed

In response, communist guerrillas were preparing to release seven captives—six policemen and a civilian police office worker.

In the Caraga region, NDFP spokesperson Maria Malaya said yesterday that the release of five “prisoners of war” captured by the NPA in Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur provinces “signifies the revolutionary movement’s serious intent in pursuing peace talks” with the government.

In Northern Mindanao, set to be freed were PO1 Richard Vaz

Yu, who was snatched by NPA guerrillas in Barangay San Vicente in Carmen, Surigao del Sur, on July 5; PO2 Caleb Sinaca, PO3 Jayroll Bagayas and civilian Rodrigo Angob, who were abducted in Barangay Cagtinae in Malimono, Surigao del Norte, on July 24.

In Southern Mindanao, the NPA was set to free two policemen captured in May and June.

Rubi del Mundo, NDFP spokesperson in the region, said the front had ordered the NPA to free Chief Insp. Arnold Ongachen, who was captured in Governor Generoso in Davao Oriental province on May 29, and PO1 Michael Grande, who was taken in Lupon, also in Davao Oriental, on June 19.

Del Mundo said the NDFP acknowledged President Duterte’s efforts to release the front’s consultants.

The NDFP, she said, was awaiting the release of more than 500 “political prisoners” being held in prisons across the country. ■

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

Philippine News

Sen. Ejercito’s suspension not automatic — Pimentel

Fake Pinoys nabbed at Naia

BY AZER N. PARROCHA Philippines News Agency

BY JULIE M. AURELIO AND JEANNETTE I. ANDRADE Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA — Despite a suspension order issued by the Sandiganbayan against Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III on Tuesday said that his colleague will still have to report to work, at least for now.

“I have to read the copy first but I believe from my experience into my practice, this is not automatic,” Pimentel told reporters in an interview the same day the suspension order was released.

“It has to be implemented so Senator JV should still report to work tomorrow and the subsequent days,” the Senate President said.

Ejercito, for his part, said that he was “touched” by the support given by his colleagues but expressed confidence that he will win the case. “(I) will be serving the 90day preventive suspension because of the Php 2 million gun purchase case very soon. I am confident that I we will be vindicated,” Ejercito said.

He admitted that he felt sad that he will not be able to discharge his functions as a legislator noting that he has been enjoying every minute at the Senate “serving the people.”

Senator JV Ejercito at the Kapihan sa Senado.

The senator, however, urged his friends and supporters not to worry since he knew he was innocent.

“Not to worry guys, I know that I am innocent. Just continue praying that we have a favorable decision soon,” he added.

To recall, Sandiganbayan ordered the suspension of Ejercito and three others for 90 days in connection with the graft case filed against them on the allegedly anomalous purchase of firearms in 2008.

In a six-page resolution, the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division said that Ejercito is suspended

CESAR TOMAMBO / PRIB

“from his position as Senator of the Republic of the Philippines, and from any other public office which he may now or hereafter be holding for a period of 90 days from receipt of this resolution, unless a motion for reconsideration is seasonably filed.”

Ejercito’s graft case arose from the procurement made by the San Juan city government of high-powered rifles in 2008, when he was city mayor.

The purchase was made using the calamity funds of San Juan City even though the city was then not under a state of calamity. ■

ALMOST 200 foreigners, mostly Indonesians, who disguised themselves as Filipinos and used Philippine passports in an attempt to join the Hajj in Mecca were arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) yesterday.

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said five Filipinos even escorted the group of 177 Indonesians and 10 Malaysians who had an early morning flight to Madinah, Saudi Arabia.

A source from the BI said the foreigners were intercepted by the antihuman trafficking task force at around 3:30 a.m. before they got on a Philippine Airlines flight to Saudi Arabia.

What gave their identities away was their inability to speak Filipino, or the Maranao, Cebuano or Maguindanao dialects when interviewed by immigration officers.

The INQUIRER saw that all the foreigners’ baggage were marked “Sheik Omar Abdulaziz,” who could be the organizer of their group.

BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said the foreigners, who could only converse in English, later admitted that they were posing as Filipinos with Philippine passports.

13

The foreigners were rounded up and brought to the Immigration main office for investigation.

Also arrested were the five Filipinos who escorted the Indonesians to their flight.

Recovered from the Indonesians’ possession were genuine but fraudulently obtained Philippine passports.

The passports were allegedly provided by their Filipino escorts who organized the pilgrimage.

Morente said each foreigner paid $6,000 to $10,000 to join the Hajj, a sacred pilgrimage for Muslims in Mecca.

The BI did not reveal the names of the Indonesians and the Filipino escorts because investigations by law enforcement agencies are in progress.

It was revealed that the Indonesians used the quota reserved for Filipino pilgrims to the Hajj given by the government of Saudi Arabia, since there were no more available Hajj slots for Indonesians.

The foreigners admitted that they arrived individually as tourists in recent weeks, with the Filipino escorts organizing the pilgrimage.

Morente said the BI’s Intelligence Division learned that a group of Indonesians with Philippine passports were supposed to leave on Aug. 18 and 19, with Filipino escorts. ■

What is the Right Mortgage for You?

BY MYLENE LIM, AMP Mortgage Specialist IN ORDER to determine the right mortgage for you, you need to have access to the different products available in the market — not just what’s offered by your bank. Just as there are so many houses to choose from, so are there so many types of mortgage financing options.

To begin with, ask yourself the following questions: What kind of property are you looking to buy?

You may be looking for a starter home just to build equity to rent out later or sell to buy another home. Or you may be looking for a house with a mortgage helper to augment your funds with the mortgage payment. Or perhaps you are planning to purchase a rental property.

How long do you plan keep this property?

If you are just planning to build up equity on the property, you may want to go for a shortterm mortgage or with the least penalty when you get out of the contract. If you are in for the long haul, you may want to go for a

product that would give you an option to pay a bigger lump-sum amount every year or an increase in payment frequency.

Are you better off with a fixed or variable mortgage?

A fixed mortgage will give you a peace of mind that you will be paying the same amount every time for the duration of your contract. Your rate is locked even if the interest rate goes up, but the penalty to break the contract is based on interest rate differential (IRD) or 3 months interest whichever is higher. A variable mortgage means the cost for borrowing would fluctuate depending on www.canadianinquirer.net

what the current interest rate is. There is potential savings in a variable rate and the penalty to break the contract is limited to three months of interest.

How much do you have for down payment and other costs?

If you have access to savings, or RRSP (for first time homebuyers), or gift from a family member, you may want put a bigger down payment which would lessen your loan amount, as well as avoid mortgage insurance imposed on purchases with down payment below 20%. You would also need to have 1.5% of purchase price to cover your

closing cost. If you’re planning to do some renovation, you may want to get mortgage with improvement allowance built in.

The right mortgage can easily save you thousands of dollars and will give you the flexibility to make changes with your mortgage down the road. The key is getting a mortgage professional to go through the different options with you. ■ For more information, please feel free to contact me 604 783 9097 | mylene. mortgage@gmail.com | www.BestOptionMortgages.ca | FB: Mylene Lim, AMP

Opinion

14

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

ANALYSIS

Death penalty will set PH in wrong direction, says AI

By Amando Doronila Philippine Daily Inquirer CANBERRA — Since President Duterte took office on June 30, this country has seen so many people killed by vigilante death squads. The “kill list” tallied from that time by the Philippine National Police presents an appalling death toll of 465 extrajudicial executions.

The President has acknowledged abuses in the war on drugs, but is not backing down from a shoot-to-kill order against drug dealers. He has also ordered the reinstatement of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime, which he has pledged to eradicate in the first three to six months of his presidency.

Mr. Duterte has explained these draconian measures that have given the Philippines the international reputation of being Asia’s latest killing field, reminiscent of the genocidal slaughter of up to half a million Cambodians by the Khmer Rouge when they occupied Phnom Penh in 1975.

He has justified these massacres, saying that most drug dealers

and addicts slain in gun battles had Why are you not bothered by the kill- speech. But now that he is in power, put up a fight, but he was sure some ings of Filipinos on the basis of noth- he needs to lend substance to those were “salvaged”—a local term for ing more than suspicion of having words and break with his earlier extrajudicial killings by law enforc- committed crimes. He told foreign rhetoric. Throughout his campaign, ers. The excuse has alarmed human human rights watchdogs “not to in- the President made inflammatory rights activists who denounced it as vestigate us as though we are crimi- remarks that, if translated to policy, “at least, legally questionable,” as an nals” and warned they would not be would mark a sharp deterioration attempt to whitewash law enforce- treated well in the Philippines. in the already problematic human ment agents’ involvement in the killAmnesty International (AI) has rights situation in the Philippines. ings, or to look for scapegoats in the told Mr. Duterte he must fulfill his President Duterte’s promises to witch-hunt for those responsible for inauguration pledge to uphold the adhere to the rule of law must be the summary extranslated into acecutions. tual policy and imMr. Duterte has plemented in pracÏt is encouraging that he spoke of honoring the Philippines’ been battling with tice,” AI said. obligations under international law in his inauguration speech. international orgaSince winning But now that he is in power, he needs to lend substance to those nizations condemnthe election, AI words and break with his earlier rhetoric. ing his controvernoted, Mr. Duterte sial crime war that has “triggered widehas claimed 1,000 lives. He hit out country’s commitment to interna- spread alarm” by calling for the reson Wednesday at “stupid” UN criti- tional law and lead a break with the toration of the death penalty, vowing cism, warning it not to interfere in country’s “poor human rights re- to preside over a wave of extrajudicial Philippine domestic affairs. “Why cord.” executions, threatening journalists should the United Nations be so easand intimidating human rights deily swayed in the affairs of this repubLend substance to words fenders. lic? There were only 1,000 killed,” he “President Duterte was elected on said. a mandate to uphold the rule of law,” Regional leader “What’s the problem? You inject the London-based AI said. “Ït is en“This is a context where a climate politics. Only 1,000 died, and you put couraging that he spoke of honoring of impunity for human rights violamy country in peril, in jeopardy?” the Philippines’ obligations under tions prevails in the Philippines, inhe said. He should have been asked: international law in his inauguration cluding for torture and ill treatment.

Only one police officer has ever been brought to justice under laws criminalizing torture, and few have been held accountable for killing journalists…

“Among President Duterte’s many troubling positions is his intention to restore the death penalty. Doing so would reverse a decade-long ban in the Philippines of this cruel and irreversible punishment. For this [position] the Philippines is a regional leader, as it went against the grain of other countries in the region.

“President Duterte has said that he intends to apply the death penalty to a range of crimes including offenses that do not meet the threshold of ‘most serious crimes,’ which is the only category of crimes for which international law allows the death penalty.

“There is no evidence that the death penalty serves as any more of a deterrent than prison. At a time when this cruel and inhuman and degrading punishment has been abolished in the majority of the world’s countries, reimposing it will set [the Philipines] in the wrong direction.” ■

AT LARGE

Mixing profit and social good

By Rina Jimenez-David Philippine Daily Inquirer IT WAS Gordon Gekko, the financier and takeover “artist” portrayed in the movie “Wall Street” by Michael Douglas, who uttered the famous line “Greed is good.”

This became an enduring passage from the movie because everyone assumes that “greed is NOT good.”

The shameless pursuit of profit, goes the popular mindset, does not, in the long run, benefit society or even the person pursuing it. The prevailing sentiment, it seems, is that a business should be pursued because it offers a social good or a sought-after service. That sometimes the business also ends up making money for the owner is viewed as just a welcome windfall.

And yet profit by itself is not evil.

It is not always equivalent to greed.

Indeed, profit can be seen as a means to sustain an enterprise, provide employment, and even spur the daring and the bold. After all, there can be no more compelling motivation than attaining the means to reach one’s dreams, goals, ambitions.

Sometimes, though, it is possible to combine the two impulses: serving the public while making money.

This, in a way, is an effort now being undertaken by one of the country’s oldest and biggest business houses, Ayala Corp., which is entering into fields not traditionally thought of as “profitable,” but certainly socially desirable. Or, as Yla Alcantara, who looks after the company’s public relations, puts it: “At Ayala, we have a unique way of looking at things. We market challenges as opportunities. We enter new spaces where it makes good business sense for us to invest, respond to market needs and demands, while changing the traditional way of delivering products and services. As we prove the business model to be right, we scale it and we continue to invest in it because we are committed to helping improve the lives of Filipinos in communities where we serve.” *** ONE OF these “new spaces” is health.

Through a subsidiary, Ayala Healthcare Holdings Inc., the group has embarked on two projects: investing in Generika Drugstore which makes available generic drugs (which are generally cheaper and more affordable than “branded” medicines) through a chain of retail pharmacies nationwide; and FamilyDOC, a new chain of community-based primary

care clinics.

Michael Santos, medical director of Ayala-Health with a direct hand in managing FamilyDOC, says one of their aims is to “bring back the family doctor” to the lives of ordinary Filipinos. Catering mainly to families in the “broad C” socioeconomic stratum, the community-based clinics provide primary healthcare services through each clinic staffed by two family health practitioners, three nurses, and a pharmacist.

At present, FamilyDOC is operating two clinics and expecting to open four more by next month. By 2020, says Santos, they envision having a chain of 100 clinics in the National Capital Region, with staff who “go that extra mile” to serve patients.

For a basic consultation fee of P350, every client has access to the doctors and staff and to diagnostic services and basic care, while more serious cases are referred to tertiary hospitals.

The Ayala Group also has invested in other partnerships for health.

Ayala Land, for instance, has partnered with the Mercado General Hospital Group to manage Qualimed, a chain of multispecialty clinics, two ambulatory surgical centers, and three full-service hospitals. The

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same partnership has just opened Qualimed Hospital–San Jose del Monte, while envisioning to grow the business to 10 clinics and 10 hospitals by 2020.

In the “health information technology” field, Globe Telecom and a Mexican partner have developed “Konsulta-MD,” which allows members access to medical advice from licensed doctors through their mobile and landline phones. To date, Konsulta-MD counts some 80,000 members, and its subscriber base is still growing. *** THE other “new” field that Ayala has ventured into is education, through Ayala Education Inc. (AEI) which in 2013 launched the Apec (for Affordable Private Education Centers) Schools and last year acquired a majority interest in the University of Nueva Caceres, a leading educational center in Bicol.

Beth Lui, CEO of the Apec Schools, says Ayala’s venture into the educational field came after studies showed that the critical “gap” in the Philippine education scene lay at the high school level.

When elementary graduates finish the grades, says Lui, three out of four of them cannot afford or can-

not find room in either private or public high schools. The lack of a high school education has a “significant impact” on a young person’s prospects in life, specifically in employability, she points out.

Thus, it was decided that Ayala would enter the field of high school education, years before the K-to12 program was even formally launched.

An Apec education, says Lui, is aimed at preparing its students to find jobs that offer them higher-than-average salaries and open the doors for further opportunities.

The AEI programs for both its high schools and colleges incorporate the same key features: mastery of English, technology immersion, “learning by doing,” positive values and work habits, and relating with its employer partner network.

Since its launch, the Apec Schools has opened 27 schools with a combined enrolment of 10,300 students.

A total of 22 of these schools are found in the NCR, and five are found in Region IV-A, otherwise known as Calabarzon (for Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), which is where many factories and plants are found—the obvious market for a skilled and well-educated workforce. ■

Opinion

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

15

PUBLIC LIVES

The expendable poor and the oligarchy

By Randy David Philippine Daily Inquirer IN ITS first 50 days in office, the Duterte presidency has explicitly identified two targets for destruction. The first: the drug lords and their henchmen and protectors; the other, the oligarchs. The war against these two declared enemies is as complex as it can be. It generates new problems that the government may not be prepared to handle. It runs the risk of backfiring if it succeeds only in sacrificing the expendable poor.

In keeping with his campaign promise to eliminate the drug menace within three to six months, President Duterte ordered the police to launch a sweeping and relentless campaign to demolish the drug trade. To no one’s surprise, the easy pickings occurred in the urban poor communities.

In his recent testimony before a Senate committee, Philippine National Police chief Ronald dela Rosa offered the following statistics: 655 drug suspects killed in police operations in a seven-week period, 899 deaths linked to illegal drugs outside of legitimate police operations, and more than half a million confessed drug users and pushers surrendering to the authorities.

Most of the victims were killed ei-

ther during a raid or in the course of a accredited drug rehabilitation facili- But, he himself admits that the really buy-bust operation, or simply turned ties in the whole country today. There big fish typically operate from abroad, up dead in the streets, usually with a is simply not enough room for the beyond the reach of our laws. cardboard note labeling themas ad- huge number of drug users (576,176) In other words, after all the shock dicts or pushers. Nothing like this has who have turned up virtually over- and awe it has created, it is almost been reported in any middleclass sub- night, anxiously seeking treatment. certain that the war against illegal division or gated village. In such plac- In actual fact, says the DOH, only a drugs will fail to achieve its goal in six es, the police would have been asked small fraction of these—possibly 1 to months—and maybe even in one year. to produce search and arrest warrants 10 percent—probably need confine- Not because the willful Mr. Duterte before they can enter the community ment. The rest could be sent home lacks a clear plan, but because the or a residence or venue within it. and treated as outpatients. Experts problem has festered too long and has As staggering as the number of say that a relapse rate of 20 percent is grown too big for one administration deaths is the numto solve. Once drug ber of individuals addiction is defined who have “volas a public health In other words, after all the shock and awe it has created, untarily” turned problem, and not it is almost certain that the war against illegal drugs will fail to themselves in for just a police matter, achieve its goal in six months—and maybe even in one year. rehabilitation. it is bound to cause These are people further strain on the whose names appear in a police or usual even for patients confined in re- country’s already inadequate health barangay watch list. The police visit habilitation centers. Thus, it is almost system. Thus, one can only note with their neighborhoods, and they are certain the problem will recur as soon more than passing interest the recent “invited” to come forward to clear as the police operations have waned. offer of businessman Roberto V. Ongtheir names, or confess their drug adThe sight of able-bodied young pin to donate the bulk of his shares in diction, or admit to being petty drug drug users lying side by side on the the beleaguered PhilWeb to the Philpushers. After signing a document floor, like sardines, in overcrowded ippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. attesting that no one forced them to drug treatment facilities shows the for the purpose of funding the consurrender, they are either sent home extent of the drug problem, which, struction and operation of drug reor brought to a rehabilitation center. clearly, has been underestimated. But habilitation facilities. A firm engaged Most of them insist on being taken to it also indicates the immense com- until recently in online gaming, Phila drug treatment center out of fear plexity of the drug trade that is at its Web failed to get its license renewed of being killed by the police or by the core. President Duterte has named by Pagcor. drug syndicates themselves. some of the drug syndicates’ protecOngpin isn’t just being suddenly The Department of Health says tors in the ranks of the police, the generous. He also appears to be sendthat there are only 44 government- judiciary, and the local governments. ing out a message: Since, for whatev-

er reason, President Duterte has declared him an oligarch worthy to be destroyed, he will gladly donate to the government his shares in the company, for use in the antidrug campaign.

This donation would cost him several billion pesos, but it would not make him poor. The President, he says, has no need to destroy the business on which 5,000 ordinary employees depend for their livelihood.

The identification of the oligarchy as an enemy appeared now and then in the speeches of then Candidate Duterte. But, given the ostentatiously populist tone of campaign rhetoric, hardly anyone paid much attention. But, today, the term is being echoed in a lot of social media postings, usually as a benign synonym for the elites of “Imperial Manila,” but sometimes ideologically, to refer to the few interlocking families that control Southeast Asian societies like the Philippines.

President Duterte clearly thinks of himself as an outsider to the oligarchical system. It is a system that, in my view, is dying—though not nearly fast enough to pave the way for the birth of the new. In the interim, notes the writer Ben Anderson, all types of strongmen can appear, ominously spewing “plenty of ugly language directed at the oligarchs.” ■

LOOKING BACK

Rizal the user

By Ambeth R. Ocampo Philippine Daily Inquirer IF JOSE Rizal were alive today, he would probably be found dead on a Manila street with a crude cardboard sign identifying him as a drug user. Rizal, after all, admitted taking hashish when he was 18 years old. But someone should explain to the trigger-happy police or vigilantes that in Rizal’s time, hashish, which we know today as marijuana, “Mary Jane,” or “jutes,” was not what it is now: a prohibited drug. It was considered medicine and was dispensed freely from a drugstore.

We know that Rizal experimented with hashish from a letter he wrote to the German anthropologist Dr. A.B. Meyer of Dresden on March 5, 1890, in answer to a query on hashish in the Philippines. Translated from the original German, the letter reads in full as follows: “My distinguished friend: “I received your letter of the 27th of last month and excuse me for not having answered you before this, for I have had to consult some countrymen and books concerning your question about the hashish.

“No book, no historian that I know

of speaks of any plant whose use is similar to that of the hashish. I myself, though, in 1879, used hashish, did it for experimental purposes, and I obtained the substance from the drugstore. I do not believe that its use had been introduced before or after the arrival of the Spaniards [in the 16th century]. The Filipinos drank arak, nipa-palm and coconut wine, etc. and they chewed buyo before the arrival of the Spaniards, but not hashish.

“Neither is a word resembling it found in the language. The is-is or asis is a kind of wild fig tree.

“If I had Fr. Blanco’s Flora [de Filipinas], I could find out if this plant exists. I believe therefore that its use is unknown. Opium was introduced only after the arrival of the Spaniards. We Tagalogs call it apian.

“I am here at Brussels at your disposal as always. If you could give me an introduction to some employee of the library, I would appreciate it.

“Most affectionately yours, Rizal.”

The thought that Rizal could be executed without trial today, based on his admission made in the letter, made me rethink a position I have long held regarding the national he-

ro’s chance of being elected president of the Philippines. Knowing what Rizal was like as a person, and how he was first rejected in the election for the leader of the Filipino community in Spain, when he ran against Marcelo H. del Pilar, I am of the opinion that he will not even be elected barangay captain in Calamba or Dapitan: He will be too serious for voters who elect people who can dance and sing at the drop of a hat. Since he will be too principled to buy votes or pay poll watchers, this significantly trims his chances of election victory.

I used to say that if Rizal were alive today he would probably be shot in Luneta all over again because he would rail against the people and structures that make life in the Philippines unbearable. Now he may be killed for simply admitting to experimenting with marijuana.

I will not speculate on why the 18-year-old Rizal was experimenting with marijuana, but we see that in the 19th century some things we consider dangerous drugs today—like cocaine and heroin—were medicines dispensed by drugstores. Opium was confined to the Chinese; its sale and distribution were regulated because

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it brought in revenues to the government. When the First Republic under Emilio Aguinaldo was established, opium was still considered part of the revenue track. That all changed when the Americans took over, and it has been banned ever since.

If you take the trouble to read the Epilogue to “Noli Me Tangere,” you will see a reference to opium use and how it changed the once jolly Kapitan Tiago into a shell of his former self: “Not one of our readers now would recognize Kapitan Tiago if they saw him… He already fell into a state of total depression such that he began to lose weight and became morose and brooding and suspicious… He wanted to live alone. He took to playing liampo and to cockfighting with such a frenzy that he began to smoke opium… If at any time, when afternoon comes, and you pass the first street of Santo Cristo, you will see seated in a Chinese store a smallish, jaundiced man, thin and bent, with sunken sleepy eyes and muddied lips, and nails, staring at people as if he does not see them. At nightfall you will see him rise painfully, and leaning on a cane, head for a narrow alley

to enter a filthy hut at the entrance of which there is a sign in big red letters: Fumadero Publico de Anfion (Public Smoking Den for Opium).”

One other relic of the opium days is Fumadero street in San Nicolas near Binondo that is classified today as a commercial area, with price per square meter recorded in the internet at P23,625.

Reflecting on the growing number of corpses of suspected drug pushers and users found on the streets daily made me ask how long it will take before people realize that extrajudicial killings are not right. Despite the glare of the media, both local and international, and a touching frontpage photo in the INQUIRER, it seems that most Filipinos think the victims deserved what they got.

There was a recent high-profile rally in Luneta to protest the planned burial of Ferdinand Marcos in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. But there has been no such turnout for the victims of the extrajudicial killings, or even the innocent people killed in the Maguindanao massacre, the trial of which is still ongoing, and will probably linger on until people forget or become jaded. ■

16

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Canada News Federal, provincial Liberals to sign $1.49 billion transit funding agreement

BY JORDAN PRESS The Canadian Press OTTAWA — The federal treasury is doling out $1.49 billion worth of transit funding among cities in Ontario for track upgrades, new buses and improvements and accessibility upgrades to stations, the prime minister announced Tuesday.

Five Ontario cities are the first recipients of $688 million of the dedicated transit funding for projects that have been approved. The funding can be used for up to half of the costs of an eligible project. It’s retroactive to April 1 to cover any costs cities and provinces have already incurred since then.

“For larger cities like Toronto it means upgraded vehicles, more timely subway track repairs and vehicles and stations that are more accessible,” Trudeau said in Barrie, Ont. “In communities across the province this investment will shorten commute times and make public transit more efficient and more inclusive.”

About $500 million of the projects will be in Toronto, with Ottawa next on the list at $156 million.

Waterloo, Barrie and Sudbury, where the federal cabinet just wrapped up a two-day retreat, will receive about $30.6 million combined for 20 projects.

Premier Kathleen Wynne, who has long made a push for more federal infrastructure funding, was on hand for the announcement. She said Ontario is “already putting every available dollar towards infrastructure” as her government has committed to spend $160 billion over 12 years.

“So today’s federal investment of $1.5 billion adds to that amount and it adds to that amount at a critical moment because we’re still catching up from years of underinvestment,” she said.

Ontario is still in negotiation

Kurdi family settles into life in Canada, but still no luck finding a home

BY GEORDON OMAND The Canadian Press

Passengers in the cabin of TTC subway car. Toronto Transit Commission is a public transport agency that operates transit bus, streetcar, and rapid transit services.

VADIM RODNEV / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

with the federal government to finalize an agreement on another phase of transit funding, Wynne said.

Several federal cabinet ministers also fanned out across the province Tuesday as the Trudeau government seeks to capitalize politically on the long-awaited deal. Newly minted House leader Bardish Chagger was in Waterloo, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna in Ottawa and Finance Minister Bill Morneau in Toronto, the city that’s getting the majority of the funding destined for Ontario.

The federal Liberals are betting that the $6.6 billion set aside this year and next for infrastructure work — the first infusion of a promised extra $60 billion over 10 years — will help kick-start the economy and pad government coffers with new tax revenue that will help bring the budget back to balance.

The federal government has also been pushing to spend the money quickly so as not to miss the summer construction season, but has been stymied by provincial delays in finalizing funding wish lists, including Ontario. Under the new federal program, provinces are required to fill half of their funding wish lists before Ottawa can begin distributing the money.

The province is using a streamlined funding process to

get money to municipalities as soon as possible.

Federal officials say Ontario has yet to finalize a funding wish list of water and wastewater projects, something that it must do over the coming months to get $570 million for projects like water treatment facility upgrades and sewers.

Similar work is ongoing in British Columbia, which — like Ontario — signed a transit funding deal first, given the volume of outstanding work required.

The federal government must still sign agreements with Alberta, Saskatchewan, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.

Saskatchewan has said it has concerns that cities could cut corners on work or planning in order to meet the federal government’s deadline of March 2018 for the completion of new construction or expansion projects.

The infrastructure money this year and next is focused on repairing Canada’a aging water and public transit infrastructure, as well as for smaller projects that can be completed by 2019.

There is also money available for planning larger projects that are to be the focus of the second and more lucrative phase of the Liberal infrastructure program. ■ with files from Allison Jones in Barrie. www.canadianinquirer.net

COQUITLAM, B.C. — Shergo Kurdi lifts his shirt to reveal a pale, mottled patchwork of burn scars on his belly and chest — a legacy, he says, of years spent ironing fabric in a Turkish clothing factory after he and his family fled war-torn Syria in 2012.

Now, nine months after arriving in British Columbia with his parents and four siblings, the 15-year-old refugee is preparing to enter Grade 10 and wants to one day become a police officer.

“I like ... to help people,” Shergo said, explaining that he likes the idea of giving back.

Shergo and his siblings are the cousins of Alan Kurdi, the Syrian toddler whose lifeless body was photographed on the shores of a Mediterranean beach last September. The picture spread across the globe and jarred the world into responding to the Syrian refugee crisis.

In the wake of the photograph, the Canadian government committed to taking in tens of thousands of displaced Syrians, a pledge that paved the way for the Kurdi family’s arrival in late December.

Speaking in broken English at his aunt’s home in Coquitlam, B.C., Shergo talked about how difficult his job was in Istanbul.

Shifts sometimes lasted as long as 24 hours, he said, and frequently he didn’t get paid.

The teen used a metaphor to explain how his life has been affected by the move to British Columbia.

“It’s like a flower: (if ) he doesn’t have water he (will) die.

Come to Canada, he has water and opens up again,” he said.

Shergo’s sister, 16-year-old Heveen Kurdi, also spoke positively about her time in Canada, and of being reunited with her father, Mohammad Kurdi, who spent nine months in Germany trying to get his family out of Turkey and missed the birth of his youngest child.

“The whole family (is) together again,” Heveen said, smiling.

She explained that after finishing grade school she wants to study dentistry at university.

She added that she’ll provide free dental work for her family, which prompted her mother, Ghouson Dakouri, to grin and chime in with “Mom is first.”

Still, Heveen said she thinks about her friends and family back in the Middle East every day.

The challenges aren’t over for the Kurdis, as they continue to grapple with finding permanent lodging and securing employment for Mohammad.

The family of seven initially lived with Tima Kurdi, Mohammad’s sister, in Coquitlam. But since June they’ve resided in a group home in downtown Vancouver alongside dozens of other Syrian refugees while they wait for a stable living arrangement to open up.

The Kurdis said the facility accommodates about 70 other people, mostly children, and that their living quarters consist of only two sleeping rooms.

Work is also a challenge. Mohammad, who is a barber, said he must be available to inspect a possible home at a moment’s notice, which makes it difficult to maintain regular, full-time working hours.

Heveen said she hopes they find somewhere permanent to ❱❱ PAGE 20 Kurdi family

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Canada News

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Senate committee says Ottawa too vague on timeline to act on obesity report

BY JOANNA SMITH The Canadian Press OTTAWA — The Senate says the Liberal government is not acting quickly enough to combat the growing problem of obesity.

“We urge them to reconsider.

The health of Canadians is at stake,” Conservative Sen. Kelvin Ogilvie said Friday.

The standing Senate committee on social affairs, science and technology, which Ogilvie chairs, made the rather unusual move of issuing a news release that amounted to a thanks-butno-thanks reaction to the way the Liberal government responded to its March report on obesity in Canada.

The report called on the gov-

ernment to help people lead healthier lifestyles by, among other things, banning food and beverage ads aimed at children, figuring out how to use infrastructure funding to encourage more pedestrian-friendly communities and exploring the possibility of a tax on soda pop.

Health Minister Jane Philpott and Sport Minister Carla Qualtrough told the committee in a letter earlier this month they agreed with the recommendations in principle, highlighting ongoing work in their departments, program funding announced in the federal budget and future plans included in their mandate letters.

They said the government would continue to monitor emerging evidence on whether a tax on beverages containing

Fraser Institute says average Canadian family spent $34,154 on taxes last year THE CANADIAN PRESS VANCOUVER — The Fraser Institute calculates that the average Canadian family paid $34,154 in taxes of all sort last year, including “hidden” business taxes that are passed along in the price of goods and services purchased.

The Vancouver-based thinktank estimates that the average bill for income taxes collected by governments was $10,616 in 2015.

The second-biggest category was payroll and health taxes, at $7,160, followed by sales taxes at $4,973 and property taxes at $3,832.

The other categories include taxes on profits, liquor or tobacco, fuel, natural resources and import duties — totalling $7,573.

The study’s authors conclude that visible and hidden taxes would have been equal to 42.4 per cent of the cash income for an average Canadian family in 2015, estimated at $80,593.

By comparison, the study estimates the average Canadian family spent $30,293 on housing, food and clothing last year — about 37.6 per cent of the family’s total cash income.

The Fraser Institute uses its own “Canadian consumer tax index” to track the tax bill paid by a family with “average income.”

“The objective is not to trace the tax experience of a particular family, but rather to plot the experience of a family that was average in each year,” the 11page report says.

“The ‘consumer’ in question is the taxpaying family, which can be thought of as consuming government services.”

added sugar or artificial sweeteners would be effective.

However, as The Canadian Press revealed earlier this month, the Finance Department weighed the pros and cons of such a tax ahead of the Mar. 22 budget, but decided against it.

In their letter, which the Senate clerk received on Aug. 5, the ministers said the government is committed to fighting obesity and helping Canadians live healthier lives.

Ogilvie did not think so, especially since they did not give clear timelines for action.

“Our report makes it clear that the status quo is not acceptable,” Ogilvie said in an interview Friday.

The report called obesity a crisis and an epidemic, say-

ing that between 48,000 and 66,000 Canadians die each year from diseases or conditions linked to being overweight. It urged the federal government to lead a national campaign to combat the problem.

“The minister’s list of activities that are ongoing — many of them are very good, but they’re obviously inadequate to deal with the fact that two-thirds of (adult) Canadians are oversight or obese, leading to, as time goes by in their lives, diminished quality of life and significant health-care costs,” Ogilvie said.

Spokespeople for Philpott and Qualtrough did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Ogilvie said letting his dissatisfaction be known is a way

to increase awareness not only about the issue, but also about the work of the Senate.

“The press and the public has wondered: what the blazes does the Senate do anyway?” Ogilvie said.

“The Senate does many of these reports on issues very critical to the country. We do them as advice to government and governments respond as they are required to do . . . and nothing ever happens and it goes away and nobody really cares,” he said.

“But the issues are very important and I think the Senate has decided that if it is going to have its work recognized by the public, then it has got to do more to get the message across in terms of the items it signs,” he said.

Ottawa’s economic... streams. investments and is consider- leaders’ summit.

Canada’s rapidly ag- ing what can be done to attract Barton himself has called ing population is one more private capital to help on Ottawa to push deeper into of the challenges that council build some of those projects Asian markets, including Chimembers have been exploring, that, in turn, will boost produc- na, as a way to help revive Cahe added. tivity, he said. nadian growth.

“We’re going to have really Barton added that they are “We’re missing in action in big headwinds on labour-force also looking at innovation, in- Asia,” he said. participation over the next 10 cluding the types of clusters the “I think it’s very important to 15 years, so how do we get country can focus on to ensure for us for growth. We need to more people to participate in Canadian companies scale up. broaden our trade relationthe economy?” said Barton, The group, made up of 14 ships, again not only with China a Canadian who is a sought- business and academic leaders, — I think with India, with Indoafter international expert who has been asked to help create a nesia, eventually with Africa. I has advised governments and plan to get the economy out of just think we have to be more big companies with economic a rut. plugged in and that could be a strategy. unique role we The group, he play in Canada — said, is looking at that we’re a hub, options to boost if you will. immigration as I just think we have to be more Last month, a way to help plugged in and that could be a the Bank of offset the demounique role we play in Canada — that Canada pregraphic obstacle. we’re a hub, if you will. dicted that the It’s also focuseconomy likely ing on training recoiled by one to help workper cent in the ers adapt to the second quarter. increasing automation in the This will be its second In April, before the Alberta workplace, Barton said. meeting with Morneau. Eco- wildfires, the central bank had In the other areas, he said nomic Development Minister forecast the economy would the group has been studying Navdeep Bains will also at- grow in the second quarter by Canada’s trade agreements and tend. one per cent. international relationships, as The group’s recommendaBut looking forward, the well as its exports, imports and tions will command the atten- bank said it expected a “marked its openness to foreign direct tion of Morneau and Prime rebound” in the third quarter investment.

Minister Justin Trudeau, who with the resumption of oil proThe members have also taken travels to China next week for duction and rebuilding efforts a closer look at infrastructure bilateral talks and the G20 in Alberta’s oilsands region. ❰❰ 1

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FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

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20

World News

World’s largest Muslim bloc concerned by Kashmir violence

BY MUNIR AHMED The Associated Press ISLAMABAD — The world’s largest bloc of Muslim countries expressed concern Saturday over alleged human rights violations in Indian-controlled Kashmir, which has seen weeks of deadly clashes between Muslim protesters and police.

Iyad Madani, secretary-general of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, said at a news conference in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad that the situation in Kashmir was deteriorating and urged the international community to act.

“The situation is getting worse rather than better and this cannot continue,” Madani said after meeting with Sartaj Aziz, the foreign affairs adviser to Pakistan’s prime minister.

Kashmir, a predominantly Muslim region, is divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in its entirety by both.

Most Kashmiris want an end to Indian rule and favour independence or a merger with Pakistan, which has long called for a referendum on the region’s future. Hindu-majority India has refused to hold such a vote.

“We should not be afraid of referendum,” Madani said, adding that it was up to the Kashmiri people to decide their future.

Standing next to him at the news conference, Aziz accused Indian forces of using lethal force against Kashmiris protesting peacefully over extrajudicial killings. He said a peaceful solution to the dispute over the region “is an imperative for regional peace and stability.”

More than 68,000 people have been killed since rebel groups began fighting Indian forces in 1989 and in the subsequent Indian military crackdown. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training rebels, a charge Islamabad denies.

Meanwhile, a Kashmiri couple in their late 70s was in-

jured in firing by Indian forces who have intensified nocturnal raids to arrest protesters in the region, police said Saturday.

The husband and wife were injured Friday night by pellets from a shotgun fired as they tried to resist a police party looking for one of their sons for allegedly leading anti-India protests in the southern Tral area, police and locals said.

A police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with department policy said the raiding party “accidently fired” at the couple and “regretted” the incident.

In signs of an intensified crackdown against protesters in Indian-held Kashmir since last week, local residents have increasingly accused counterinsurgency police and army soldiers of systematically raiding neighbourhoods, ransacking houses and beating residents to intimidate protesters.

More than 2,000 people have been arrested for participating in protests and clashes in recent weeks, state government officials said.

Earlier in the week, Indian army soldiers beat a young college teacher to death and injured dozens of other people in a raid in the southern Khrew area. The army later said that it regretted the incident.

A security lockdown and protest strikes have shut the Indian portion of Kashmir since the killing of a popular rebel commander on July 8 sparked some of Kashmir’s largest protests against Indian rule in recent years.

A strict curfew and a series of communication blackouts have failed to stop the protests, as residents have struggled to cope with shortages of food, medicine and other necessities.

At least 63 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in protest-related violence. ■ Associated Press writer Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar, India, contributed to this report.

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Venezuelan government managers to lose jobs over recall

BY HANNAH DREIER The Associated Press CARACAS, VENEZUELA — President Nicolas Maduro is ordering retaliation against managers in government agencies who signed a petition to recall him from office.

Socialist party leader Jorge Rodriguez said Monday that Maduro had set a 48-hour deadline for ministers to fire high-ranking public workers who added their names to a petition seeking a new presidential election.

The sackings would affect the ministries of food, finance, work and basic business, as well as workers in the office of the president.

Hundreds of public work- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

HUGOSHI / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS ers have already said they were fired this summer after signing They are now waiting for elecThe government is Venezuethe petition. tions officials to allow them to la’s largest employer, with nearCritics of Venezuela’s begin the second phase. That ly 3 million people working in a 17-year-old socialist revolu- requires them to collect peti- public post. tion have made the recall effort tion signatures from the 20 per Opposition leader Hentheir chief priority this year, cent of the country’s voters, or 4 rique Capriles, who would but it is unlikely to succeed in million people, over the course have a good shot at winning a wresting the presidency back of three days in order to trigger presidential election if it were from the socialist party as elec- a national recall referendum. scheduled this year, has called a tions officials major protest for drag their feet at Sept. 1. every turn.

Also on MonThe timing day, the head of is crucial beThe timing is crucial because a the Organizacause a successsuccessful recall vote this year would tion of American ful recall vote trigger a presidential election that, States accused this year would according to polls, the opposition Venezuela of trigger a presiwould likely win. failing to respect dential election basic political that, according rights. In an open to polls, the opletter addressed position would to imprisoned likely win. But if the referenMaduro has consistently said opposition leader Leopoldo dum is delayed until next year, the recall will not happen this Lopez, Secretary-General Luis a recall vote would result only year. But he has not spoken Almagro said “there is no dein the vice-president replacing publicly about blacklisting peo- mocracy nor a state of law” in Maduro until his term ends in ple who support the effort. the South American country. early 2019.

The order to fire workers re“The people of Venezuela are Opposition leaders launched calls widespread official retali- victims of bullying, which has the recall process by gather- ation against those who signed become the defining charactering signatures from 1 per cent a petition to recall former pres- istic of this government’s apof the voters earlier this year. ident Hugo Chavez in 2004. proach,” he wrote. ■

Kurdi family... live before September, so she won’t have to risk moving schools and starting over yet again.

Seated on a couch in Tima’s home with his family around ❰❰ 16

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him, Mohammad smiled as his youngest child, 13-monthold Sherwan Kurdi, dragged a toy dog through the living room.

Speaking through his sister,

Mohammad said he feels happy and proud to see his kids like this, the trauma of their ordeal fading from memory.

“Seeing the kids, it’s happy,” said Tima. “He’s happy.” ■

21

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16-07-04 11:52 AM

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AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

FILIPINO-CANADIAN IN FOCUS:

The Making of a Champion: Calista Espinosa

BY KATHERINE PADILLA Philippine Canadian Inquirer IN THE international arena of wrestling, a Filipino-Canadian teenager is stealing the spotlight from the rest of the world. She bore the Canadian flag at Pan-American Wrestling Championship in Peru. She is the only Filipino in the Cadet Women’s Pan-Am Team and in September, she will be the only Filipino to compete at the Wrestling World Championships. She is Calista Espinosa and this is the story of how a champion is made.

While most middle school students are still dozing off at the crack of dawn, Calista is already up at five for an early morning jog, a routine essential to her career as an athlete.

Afterwards, Calista, along with her brother Xavier, leave home for school.

Calista and Xavier are grades 11 and 9 students at St. Patrick’s Regional Secondary School in Vancouver. Like his elder sister, Xavier is also a wrestler.

“They are both in wrestling and very supportive of each other. During the school year, both stay after school to catch up on their homework, then, together, they transit to their wrestling practices,” Mylene Espinosa, mother of Calista and Xavier says.

“Depending on the day of the week, their practices are either in Vancouver, New Westminster, SFU, or Coquitlam. Calista trains 5-6 times a week and Xavier trains 3-4,” she adds.

ALL IN THE FAMILY. The Espinosas don their atheletic unifroms.

sport with potential scholarships. Another reason was because wrestling was a sport offered in school and I loved the fact that I could represent them,” Calista says.

Going global

In 2011, Calista had the honor to represent Canada at the PanAmerican Championship in Lima, Peru. She is the only Filipino on Team Canada.

“I feel very proud!” Calista says.

“To be honest, I sometimes forget that I am a minority on the team. In general, there aren’t too many Filipinos in wrestling; but the ones that are in the sport are spectacular. I think it’s because of our strength and determination that make Filipinos natural wrestlers,” she adds.

The Filipino wrestler

Early on

Calista’s athletic career started with another grappling art, Brazilian jiu-jitsu. At a young age of seven, she was learning all kinds of choke and escape techniques. She later rose to become a yellow belt and competed at Pan Kids in California in 2012 and at the Naga Tournament in Hawaii in 2013.

After dabbling in jiu-jitsu, Calista switched to wrestling under the coaching of Marc Mongeon, a Canadian wrestler who represented Canada in the 1984 Summer Olympics.

“One of the main reasons I switched to wrestling was because wrestling is an Olympic

Watching one’s weight is very important in wrestling. A grappling art that divides its contenders through weight classes, Calista, like most athletes, grappled with cutting down her weight.

“Wrestling is a unique sport because you compete at your weight class. The lighter the weight class that you are in, the better your performance.”

“For myself, I walk around at 45kg (at less than 5 ft. tall) and compete at 43kg. However, for Nationals and a spot on Team Canada, I had to compete at 40kg. That’s more than 10 pounds of my walking weight!

That’s what I find most diffi-

cult about wrestling: being on a strict diet and being Filipino doesn’t make it any easier,” Calista says.

“My parents are sometimes criticized for allowing me to weight-cut, especially by my Lola who is always ready to feed me delicious Filipino food (my favourite is pancit). What these people don’t realize is that my mother meal-plans for me everyday so that I get the nutrients I need to train. However, these meals do not include any Filipino delicacy such as white rice and delicious stews,” she adds.

“The worst part about being a Filipino wrestler is that it’s much harder to resist the yummy Filipino cuisine!” Calista jovially says.

Journey to Georgia

The Espinosas are one of the many Filipino-Canadian families in British Columbia. Like others, they pride themselves for their rich Filipino heritage.

However, the Espinosas carry a unique story from the rest of Filipino-Canadian families for not all families take on the extraordinary journey of raising champions, a journey the Espinosas has gladly taken.

“We are very proud of Calista’s accomplishments and do our best to support her endeavours,” Mylene says.

However, not all journeys are smooth sailing. Similar to parents of athletes who compete internationally, Calista’s parents, Mylene, a school teacher, and Sherween, a carpenter, also encounter difficulties in taking www.canadianinquirer.net

Calista Espinosa wins gold at 40 kg class at the Cadet Canadian Championships in Calgary, April 2016.

their daughter’s athletic career steps further.

“It is a sacrifice, both financial and personal, to help our children pursue any dream, especially Calista’s wrestling career,” Mylene relates.

“We try our best not to stretch our money or time too far that our safety and security may be compromised. Financially, my husband and I make enough to support our family of four in this very expensive economy. It is important to us to set aside enough money for our children so that they may attend a Catholic school and wrestling classes,” she adds.

Calista has been to Washington, Calgary, and Peru just this year to compete.

“Her next tournament in Tblisi, Georgia (between Turkey and Russia), is for the World Wrestling Cadet Championship in September of this year,” Mylene says.

“It is important for our children to push themselves to their limit so that they have no regrets in life. If this means finding the funds to send Calista, then we will do our very best to fuel her dream,” she adds.

Sending Calista to Georgia will cost the Espinosas over $5,000.

Mylene, who grew up in a typical Filipino family, is a witness to the values system of a Filipino community. One of those value is helping others. It’s the same value that she and her husband Sherween taught their children.

“We are a family and together

we use all our talents, time, surplus, and connections to support each other,” she says.

“My mother always taught me that, if you can, help those that can’t. As Filipinos, we do what we can to help those in need,” Calista says.

“Calista is the future of Filipino wrestlers. She is paving the way for other young Filipino wrestlers to dream big and go as far as they can go in this sport.

In order for Calista to reach her limits, she needs to go to Tblisi, Georgia and compete with the best in the world. To do this, she will need support from her fellow Filipinos!” Mylene tells.

“If you are able to, please sponsor my Team Canada journey. If you are fortunate enough to be financially successful now it was because you once had a dream too when you were my age. Please help me represent Canada and all the Filipinos at Tblisi, Georgia,” Calista says.

With your help, Calista will be able to fulfill her dreams of competing at the Wrestling World Championships. Your donations will pave the way for Calista to bring home a gold medal. This is your chance to contribute to the building of a champion. Be part of the story of how a champion is made! ■ Sponsor Calista now! Go to http://gocaligo.wixsite.com/ support for more information on how you can help the Philippine pride. In appreciation of your sponsorship, Calista will write a blog to recognize your generosity.

Community News

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

23

Embassy urges FilCans to hold on to native tongue THE PHILIPPINE Embassy in Ottawa opened its doors to children and parents of Filipino heritage on Aug. 14, for Abakada Atbp., an annual cultural outreach program affording the community’s youngest members an opportunity to appreciate their cultural roots by way of language, dances, songs, stories, games, and food.

Over 30 Filipino-Canadian children plus their parents participated in the fifth edition of Abakada Atbp., which offered a parent-child literacy workshop for the first time since the program was launched in 2012.

Benefits of Learning Two Languages

Teacher Jill Alvarez, a Toronto-based registered early childhood educator and early literacy specialist, cast a new light on language development

chance to make more friends and find better jobs later in life.

Teaching children their home language is the best gift only parents can give,” Teacher Jill explained.

At iba pa

from age zero to six and the advantages of raising bilingual or multilingual children. She introduced techniques for language acquisition involving reading, playing and singing with the child. Teacher Jill also walked the parents through the six stages of language develop-

ment and debunked myths associated with learning a second language as a child.

“Children who learn two languages are likely to be more creative, better at reading, writing, multitasking, and problem solving. They would develop sharper memories, have the

All participants were treated to a boodle fight for lunch hosted by Amb. Petronila P. Garcia, following which they learned from Cultural Attaché Teresa Benitez-Bragais the lively Filipino song called, Kung Ikaw ay Masaya. Vanessa Gomez of the Philippine Dance Troupe of Ottawa (PDTO) taught them the basic steps of Binasuan while the embassy’s Miguel Luis Moreno led the children in playing Pitik-Bulag, Agawan Base and Luksong Tinik.

Storytelling with Lola Basyang

Maura David, acting as Lola

Basyang, regaled the children with Ang Alamat ni Lukas Malakas (The Legend of Strong Lucas). Comprised of embassy dependents, the cast rendered a riveting performance directed

by Dr. Omega Garibay, spouse of Deputy Chief of Mission Uriel Norman Garibay.

“The embassy is delighted to offer Abakada Atbp. every year as an interactive activity that assists parents in introducing their children to the endearing aspects of their Filipino heritage. From the lens of songs, dances, stories, food and games, we hope that our basic lessons impress Abakada participants deep enough to move them to further explore their parents’ native culture and subsequently instill a sense of pride in their Filipino identity,” Ambassador Garcia remarked. ■

Christy Clark abandons BC’s PH bishop leads Ancop position as climate leader Walk in Toronto VICTORIA — Taking meaningful action on climate change to protect British Columbia’s environment and the economy from its effects doesn’t matter to Christy Clark, says New Democrat environment spokesperson George Heyman.

“She has announced a plan that will do less, more slowly than British Columbia’s formerly world-leading strategy,” said Heyman, “Christy Clark went to the Paris climate change negotiations with a personal videographer but as soon as the photo opportunity passed, so did her interest.”

“The premier set up a very promising Climate Leadership Team, staffed with serious people who made serious recommendations on how she could get back on track, then ignored all of their most important recommendations. This is not climate leadership. This is stalling on taking real action against climate change.”

Heyman pointed out that the government has missed two emissions reduction targets already, and emissions have actually risen since Clark became premier. Christy Clark’s updated plan announced Friday

BC Premier Christy Clark.

removed all targets for the next 34 years.

“The updated plan replaces targets with vague positivesounding language. It asks British Columbians to trust this premier who has already failed to meet her own goals. It does little but pay lip service to the important recommendations made by her personally appointed climate experts. It is a cop-out,” said Heyman.

“With this plan, released on a Friday in the middle of summer on one of the hottest days of one of the hottest years

on record, Christy Clark has abandoned British Columbia’s position as a climate leader,” said Heyman.

Heyman noted that he and New Democrat Leader John Horgan met with members of the Climate Leadership Team, and respect their thoughtful and balanced approach to both the economic and environmental issues involved in a climate change plan, and said New Democrats will put forward a real plan to address climate change in the coming months.

■ Press statement from NDP. www.canadianinquirer.net

ANCOP CANADA recently had two distinguished guests prior to ANCOP Walk. They were Bishop Gerardo A. Alminaza and Fr. Jublas Nolasco. Bishop Alminaza is from the San Carlos Diocese, and Fr. Nolasco is from Toronto’s St. Joseph’s Health Centre.

A few years ago, Fr. Nolasco brought 300 packages as part of the parish projects to send relief support to San Carlos Diocese and other parts of Capiz at the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan.

Exactly last year, Bishop Alminaza personally visited the St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Thornhill, to celebrate thanksgiving Mass and to meet the community that sent 300 dona-

tion boxes to typhoon victims.

Fr Nolasco now spearheads the Pangandoy Sa Pag-Eskwela Foundation, Inc. ANCOP Canada recently started to support 10 scholars of the ANCOP Child Scholarship Program through their foundation this school year. These 10 scholars joined the ANCOP Global Walk in the Philippines, last week.

Bishop Alminaza was also invited to join Pangandoy sa PagEskwela Foundation in this year’s ANCOP Walk on Aug. 20, at the Taste of Manila Fest.

He led the opening prayers and blessed all 1,200 walkers to always place their generous hearts in the right place, directed towards our God. ■

Bishop Alminaza of San Carlos Diocese enjoys the Ancop Walk 2016 in Toronto.

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AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Entertainment Robin’s appeal to Du30: Don’t reveal drug users in show biz

BY MARINEL R. CRUZ Philippine Daily Inquirer ACTOR Robin Padilla has pleaded to President Duterte not to reveal the identities of show biz celebrities included on his list of those involved in the use of illegal drugs.

Robin, who campaigned for Duterte in the May national elections, instead asked that a dialogue be set among artists, their managers and government agencies responsible for the crackdown on illegal drugs.

“These people are taxpayers, and they also obey the law. I’m sure that whatever mistakes they might have committed could be sorted out in a more diplomatic way,” he said at the recent launch of Bravo Food

JAYPEE PAELMO AFUNGGOL / FLICKR

Supplement for Men, which he is endorsing along with brother

Rommel Padilla.

He clarified, though, that

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his appeal does not cover drug pushers. “I am not talking about the pushers—they don’t have a place in this industry.

I’m more concerned about the users, because I know that they are the victims here,” Robin explained.

“I cannot speak on behalf of these celebrities. I also don’t know how they will accept this news from the President. I will not be surprised if most of them would say this is a violation of their human rights,” the actor said in Filipino.

“But the President meant no ill will. This is what he has promised to do for us and the country. He is kind and just.

He is giving these drug users a chance to change their ways.”

Robin also said that while there were offers for him to as-

sume a government position, he could not “because I’m an ex-convict. It is also because of that that I was not allowed to vote.”

Robin was sentenced and convicted in 1993 for illegal possession of firearms.

On a personal note, Robin said he has agreed to his wife Mariel Rodriguez’s request to give birth to their daughter in the United States.

“This was actually what her daddy had asked. It would also be best for her to be in an environment that’s peaceful and free from intrigues,” Robin shared with reporters. “It will also be better if she would be with people who can take care of her —her parents and sister— because she is having a difficult pregnancy.” ■

Entertainment

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

25

An interview with Paco Arespacochaga of 90’s pop OPM icon The INTRoVOYS

BY BABES CASTRONEWLAND FOR THOSE of us who spent growing up years in the Philippines loving the 90’s OPM ditties, we will fondly remember the name Paco Arespacochaga as the ex-husband of singeractress Geneva Cruz. However, Paco has made a name for himself as the indefatigable drummer of popular band INTRoVOYS. After the annulment of his marriage to Geneva in 2001, Paco eventually married his second wife, Tiny Arespacochaga, with whom he has a son named Caelen.

Paco founded INTRoVOYS in 1986 along with 3rd-G Cristobal and Jonathan Buencamino.

The band broke into the music scene with their debut album “Back to the Roots.” Their biggest hit is “Line To Heaven.”

Despite of lineup changes over time, the band remains standing tall for 30 years and counting. In 2005, the band uprooted its base from Manila to Los Angeles, California where members still perform in gigs and write their own brand of music.

INTRoVOYS will be performing in Vancouver BC for the very first time in a concert dubbed, “Throwback Sessions”, with another 90’s pop OPM icon, Wency Cornejo (lead singer, Afterimage Band), on Saturday August 27 at Fortune Sound Club, 147 East Pender.

Here’s my interview with Paco (courtesy of Issa Velayo of

Innovision Events & Marketing): Miss B: Your band has attracted troves of loyal followers during the 90’s and penned a lot of Number 1 hits. You, guys, are still performing together to-date. Are all members still original?

Paco: INTRoVOYS are Paco Arespacochaga (original), Jonathan Buencamino (original), Jj Buencamino (original), G3 Misa (since 2008) and JD Dela Paz (since 2012). For Vancouver show, we will be joined in by Rivermaya’s original memberguitarist, Perfecto “Perf” de Castro. We’re flying him in all the way from the Philippines for the concert.

Miss B: The members have all moved to the States (Los Angeles, CA) in 2005 for a perceivably quieter, normal life.

But as an old cliché goes, music has always found its way back to where it began. You’ve released an album the same year entitled, A Brighter Day. What was that like?

Paco: A Brighter Day didn’t turn out to be as successful with the fans as how we’ve hoped it to be. However, it was critically acclaimed. I guess we really didn’t know what to expect then. Listening to all the songs in that album now, I personally think that it was a pretty darn good album! We did release another one entitled, New Beginnings. And because it was a “Greatest Hits” album, it did very well.

Miss B: You recently re-

leased a new album, Where We Left Off that the group is currently promoting. From where the band took off, tell me about the songs in this latest album.

How will they impact a more varied breed; newer generation of fan base to your music?

Paco: Where We Left Off brings us back to what made us “Introvoys” to this day. The songs in the album are inspired from our own real life experiences. We did experiment with infusing new sound textures most of were evident in songs like “Here We Go”, “Swim To The Sky”, “Pangarap” and “Paradise”. “Here We Go”, on the other hand, threads into unfamiliar territory. Fans who purchased said album have given us mostly encouraging remarks

to our new music.

Miss B: Are you venturing on a Philippine tour to promote the album and when will this be, if ever?

Paco: A Philippine tour to promote the new album is not entirely off the hook. But we’re not prioritizing that at the moment. The album is selfproduced and self-distributed.

Without any help from major local distribution companies, it would be a costly endeavor for us to bring the album back home. Fortunately, our fans in the Philippines have purchased the album via the band’s website. Now with digital distribution through Apple music, Spotify, etc., more and more fans are gaining accessibility to our new music.

Miss B: You are the drummer and adjudged to be the most popular member of INTRoVOYS. Did that ever become a bone of contention amongst the other band members?

Paco: The rest of the ‘Voys are like brothers of mine. Jonathan and Jj are my childhood friends. We’ve been together since birth, so to speak. I don’t even know what life is or would be without them (Lol!). We just celebrated our 30th anniversary as a band last July 16 to a sold out show at the Famous Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood and it felt surreal playing our own songs (and a bunch of covers) to a happy and receptive audience in a legendary venue.

It was a dream come true for all the band members.

Miss B: Wency Cornejo has called Vancouver one of his most favorite cities and has since been performing here on a semi-regular basis. Being your group’s first time and with Wency at that, what can the fans expect from you on August 27th “Throwback Sessions” concert?

Paco: Instead of the usual back-to-back concept routine wherein two artists go onstage separately, we’re doing a one long ‘hydrid’ set. We will incorporate Wency into the band’s act. Our audience won’t have an opportunity even for a bathroom break because we’ll be doing a combo mix of INTRoVOYS/Afterimage 90’s OPM hits. New Wave medley and probably a Manila Sound medley. “Basta! It’s gonna be a blast!” ■

Official: Pills found at Prince’s estate contained fentanyl

BY AMY FORLITI The Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS — Several pills taken from Prince’s estate in Paisley Park after his death were counterfeit drugs that actually contained fentanyl — a synthetic opioid 50 times more powerful than heroin, an official close to the investigation said Sunday.

The official, who spoke to The Associated Press on con-

dition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, said many pills were falsely labeled as “Watson 385.” According to Drugs.com, that stamp is used to identify pills containing a mix of acetaminophen and hydrocodone.

About a dozen tablets were found in a dressing room at Paisley Park, but the vast majority was in bottles of Vitamin C and aspirin that had been tucked inside a suitcase and bags — including one Prince of-

ten carried with him.

Autopsy results released in June show Prince died April 21 of an accidental fentanyl overdose. The official who spoke to the AP said records show the 57-year-old Prince had no prescription for any controlled substances in the state of Minnesota in the 12 months before he died.

Authorities are still investigating how Prince obtained the drugs.

Fentanyl has been responwww.canadianinquirer.net

sible for a surge in overdose deaths in some parts of the country. When made into counterfeit pills, users don’t always know they’re taking fentanyl, increasing the risk of fatal overdose.

The Star Tribune first reported about the mislabeled pills in a story published on its website late Saturday.

One pill with the “Watson 385” stamp that was analyzed by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension tested

positive for fentanyl, lidocaine and another drug. Officials found nearly two dozen pills similar to the one that was tested, the official said.

Another aspirin bottle had 64 counterfeit tablets in it. Some pills that were analyzed contained fentanyl, lidocaine and U-4770 — a synthetic drug that is eight times more powerful than morphine.

Authorities also found a pre❱❱ PAGE 31 Official: Pills

26

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Lifestyle Shooting Ninoy They were there when Aquino was shot–‘Like a balloon popping’

BY RUEL S. DE VERA Philippine Daily Inquirer FOR A CERTAIN group of Filipinos, the word “tarmac” will always be synonymous with “Ninoy.”

As schoolchildren, you learn that the word “tarmac” means a kind of paved road, particularly the runways of an airport. But if you were a Filipino of any age on Aug. 21, 1983, you remembered “tarmac” as the place where Sen. Benigno S. Aquino Jr. died.

Arrival at noon

It was a Sunday, but the Manila International Airport (MIA) was abuzz with rumors that Aquino, the opposition leader exiled for years in Boston, was coming home.

Recto Mercene, the airport correspondent for the Times Journal, said he went to the airport early that day—7 a.m.—so he would not miss out on anything.

The gathered reporters and photographers knew Aquino would be flying in around lunchtime, so they were waiting nervously.

There was even a head fake.

When a Cathay Pacific plane from Hong Kong arrived, Mercene and several photographers ran down the area near a baggage carousel thinking this was the flight Aquino was on. Mercene recalls a van belonging to the Avsecom (Aviation Security Command) rolling up and offering them a ride to the newly arrived plane. “We said no,”

Mercene said. The plane proved to be a false lead, and the lensmen walked back the way they came to wait some more.

Ruben Alabastro, then a reporter with the Associated Press, arrived in the airport at 12, joining the throng of media in the arrival area near the VIP area. “We knew he was arriving on a China Airlines flight,” he said, explaining that sources in media and the Aquino family had informed them.

Mercene said the media liaison officer, Col. Vicente Tigas, produced a list of seven photographers, Mercene among them.

Tigas led them to a jetbridge— the tunnel connecting the terminal to the planes—and they were told to wait there. It was Bay 8.

“This is where Aquino will come out,” they were told.

Bloodied safari jacket, pants (folded), belt, and boots worn by Aquino (left) upon his return from exile are on permanent display at the Aquino Center in Tarlac.

JON VOLTAIRE B. AQUINO / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

phers in the jetbridge were anticipating passengers emerging from the aircraft when he heard a popping noise, “like a balloon popping.” Then he heard three similar sounds, one after the other, and he knew immediately they were gunshots.

bridge window with his camera whipped up in front of him. He said he saw “two men fallen on the ground. Then the Avsecom van arrived and I saw one solHeavily guarded dier firing his M-16 rifle at one At 1:05 p.m., China Airlines of the men, I couldn’t tell which flight 811 arrived at the MIA one.” from Taipei.

Mercene had Aquino, under gotten off a few the pseudonym shots when he “Marcial Bonisaw another solfacio,” was on Alabastro said, noting how the dier raise his it, having flown other foreign correspondents were pistol. Mercene from Boston to stone silent. What had begun as thought the solLos Angeles to a heartwarming story of an exiled dier was going Singapore to Maleader bravely coming home had to shoot him, so laysia to Hong turned into a death on the tarmac. he ducked and Kong to Taipei relied on an old and finally to photographer’s Manila. trick: He squatAlabastro said ted so his head they thought they saw a China “(The jetbridge) was sound- wasn’t visible in the window but Airlines plane land, but could proofed, so it took a while for raised his camera in his arms not find a way out of the heavily the sound to travel,” he ex- above his head and kept shootguarded arrival area. plained. ing. He was shooting blind. “I Mercene and the photograMercene ran to the jet- didn’t know if I got anything,”

www.canadianinquirer.net

he recalled.

Back in the arrival area, Alabastro now saw passengers from the China Airlines plane disembarking. The foreign correspondents came out first.

The reporters saw one of the American correspondents on the flight and asked him loudly, “Is Aquino with you?”

The correspondent stopped and answered, “He’s dead!”

Death on the tarmac

The gathered media men’s nervous energy exploded, and suddenly everyone was rushing out to get the story.

“I was surprised,” Alabastro said, noting how the other foreign correspondents were stone silent. What had begun as a heartwarming story of an exiled leader bravely coming home had turned into a death on the tarmac.

Alabastro remembered that

Lifestyle

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

the wire service United Press International (UPI) was actually the first news service to report the shooting. Alabastro called the development in to the AP office in Manila, where reporter David Briscoe built the rest of the story: “The plane arrived and this guy says he’s dead!” Alabastro then left the chaotic scene in the airport.

To this day, Alabastro, now an editor with INQUIRER.net, said he can never forget hearing those words: “He’s dead!”

Meanwhile, Mercene had witnessed Rebecca Quijano— later dubbed “The Crying Lady”—crying and babbling as she walked away from the plane. Mercene looked around him, and suddenly got nervous.

He still had no idea what was on his film.

He advised his fellow photographers: “‘We should get out, because they might arrest us.’

So we scattered.”

He made his way from one exit to another. “They were locked,” Mercene said, “but I got out through an elevator that only I knew about.”

Mercene actually left his car in the MIA parking lot for two days; when he returned to fetch it, he was afraid someone had wired it with explosives (it wasn’t).

Stunning images

By the time Mercene got to the Times Journal offices between 4 and 5 p.m., MIA general manager Luis Tabuena was waiting for him.

“Why is he here?” Mercene asked city editor Isagani Yambot (the late Yambot would later be INQUIRER publisher).

But Yambot had no answers.

Mercene ran to the photo lab and looked at the film. He was stunned by what he saw. His images—of a bloodied Aquino sprawled on the tarmac next to a bloodied Rolando Galman, with the Avsecom soldiers brandishing their firearms around the bodies, of the soldiers lifting a dead Aquino into the van—would become the world’s definitive portrait of Aquino’s death.

Mercene knew what he had— and that he wouldn’t have them for long if he didn’t do anything—so he told the lab technician to print as many copies as possible.

When government media officer Jolly Riofrir arrived that evening and asked Mercene for any photos he had taken at

the airport, Mercene was ready.

“I will give it to you on a silver platter,” he said he told Riofrir.

“Of course, I did this because I already had the prints.”

The Aug. 22, 1983 edition of the Times Journal had three of the shocking shots on its front page. Its banner blasted “Aquino shot dead.” Mercene wrote one of the stories: “Newsman hears shots as ex-solon debarks.”

The irony, of course, was that the Times Journal belonged to then First Lady Imelda Marcos’ brother Benjamin “Kokoy” Romualdez.

Mercene said he had always thought it was Yambot who had orchestrated that front page, but said he now thinks it was another “quiet and principled” editor, Bernie de Leon, who had done it. In fact, the desk then was manned by seasoned editors. What they had done was amazing considered how scared they were of the military in general.

“The military was very powerful,” he recalled.

Sparking a revolution

Those photos changed Mercene’s life. They were featured in publications around the world. It can be argued they helped spark a revolution. He would be called forth to give testimony about them when the Agrava Fact-Finding Commission investigated the Aquino murder.

He speaks of the photographs as someone who understands that these images defined his career. To this day, there is a drama of destiny, captured in stillness, reflected in them. Just look.

Mercene remains sanguine about the legacy of those images.

“I’m always proud of what I have done. It’s not because I was great, but I happened to be at the right place at the right time,” he said. “I don’t mind that I’m not paid now when they use the photos, as long as they use my name. I’m happy.”

Today, Mercene covers the Department of Foreign Affairs as a senior staff writer for the Business Mirror. But as reporter and photographer, he still patrols the corridors of the airport now named after the most famous person who died there—the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. He walks the airport and listens to the sounds of planes landing on the tarmac again and again. ■

27

Where will your retirement income come from?

BY ROBYN K. THOMPSON, CFP, CIM, FCSI Fundata Canada Inc. THE RETIREMENT planning conundrum never seems to change. It just gets more complicated. Ensuring sufficient income for retirement is now on the radar for every so-called Gen-Xer, and increasingly for Millennials as well. In short, if you’re in your 30s or 40s, it’s time to get serious about retirement saving. If you think “middle age” only starts at 50, think again. As a wise man once pointed out, “I’ll consider middle age to be 50 when I’m guaranteed to live to 100.”

The fact is, however, that Canadians are living longer. As average life spans lengthen to over 80, there’s the distinct possibility of running out of money in retirement. A significant decline in health, sudden critical illness, and a need for quality long-term care are risks we all face as we age.

Unfortunately, government pension plans are becoming increasingly stressed. The average monthly payment for Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security is less than $1,200 per month. With governments under pressure to curb runaway spending, there’s very little appetite in the workforce to increase public pensions to those who have retired.

In addition, the private pension landscape is changing too.

Defined benefit pension plans are going the way of the dodo.

Defined contribution plans, which let individuals choose contribution levels and pension management options, are becoming more popular.

And with ever-present inflation and investment risk, building an adequate nest egg has become more of a challenge than ever.

What you’ll really need

A rule of thumb is that in order to maintain your lifestyle during retirement, you will need 60% to 70% of the average annual income for the last five years of your employment before your retirement.

According to research, only about 39% of income replacewww.canadianinquirer.net

A rule of thumb is that in order to maintain your lifestyle during retirement, you will need 60% to 70% of the average annual income for the last five years of your employment before your retirement.

ment at retirement comes from government pensions and plans, such as the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security.

The remainder must be made up from private employer pensions and personal funds.

Building your retirement income stream

At retirement, creating a stream of stable, reliable income becomes a paramount consideration. After all, you’ve spent perhaps 30 years carefully building a considerable nest-egg that needs to provide a steady income for possibly another 30 years.

To begin with, look at proven income-producing products and potential income streams to create the best cash flow for your retirement needs and to comfortably meet contingencies as you age into retirement.

You’ll also have to plan for tax efficiency to keep the tax take to a minimum and prevent clawbacks of government plans. Consider a combination of sources to produce the most tax-efficient income-portfolio possible, one that’s built for income security, asset growth, and inflation-protection.

Income-producing assets

Here are the top incomeproducing assets that are likely

to form part of your retirement income portfolio, categorized by tax rate payable: Top-tax assets: bonds; interest income; pensions; employment earnings; registered annuities; GICs; RRSP/RRIF; real estate rental income.

Mid-tax assets: mutual fund distributions; insurance policy cash value; corporate class mutual funds; prescribed annuities; stock dividends.

Low-tax assets: home; personal capital; Tax-Free Savings Account withdrawals; leveraged insurance policy cash value.

The challenge is to turn this stew into a safe, reliable, taxefficient, long-term income stream that lasts as long as you do. Most of us are too busy with our own lives to become expert portfolio managers and financial planners as well. If you’re in a higher net worth bracket and have already accumulated a sizeable portfolio on your own, it makes sense to hand off some of the money management responsibility to a professional financial planner and money manager, who can objectively assess your financial situation, your needs, objectives, and risk tolerance. The object is to create a sustainable plan that will nail down your financial security in old age. ■

28

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Business NEDA on track with PRRD’s PSEi could zoom past economic development plans 9,000 on Duterte’s economic tack

PHILIPPINES NEWS AGENCY MANILA — Economic adviser and Director General of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the agency is on the right track and moving at a fast pace to attain its goals, During a briefing with the Malacañang Press Corps on the achievements of the agency in the first 50 days of the Duterte administration, Pernia said: “In the first 50 days of this administration, I can say that we are on the right track and at a faster pace to make sure that we achieve our goals.”

NEDA’s plans are in line with President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s goals to come up with economic programs and programs which will benefit and will be felt by the masses.

NEDA is carrying on with the economic programs from the previous administration for its sound fiscal and monetary policies.

Using a previous administration’s plans as a foundation for succeeding plans, and sustainability of development initiatives are ensured despite the change of political administrations, Pernia said.

Accelerated infrastructure development has become a priority. The Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) has so far approved 10 projects with a total amount of Php 320 billion.

Included in these projects are rural development: farm irrigation and farm-to-market roads, school buildings in depressed areas, regional hospitals, airport modernization, flood management, the North-South railway line project and the Metro Manila Bus Rapid Transit project on EDSA. NEDA through the Infrastructure Committee (Infracom) is prioritizing the completion of the Mindanao projects initial phase and will be implemented in 2017 once the NEDA board

BY DORIS DUMLAOABADILLA Philippine Daily Inquirer

NEDA Director-General Ernesto Pernia.

approves it within the year.

In Metro Manila, Infracom has specified measures to urgently address the traffic problem by implementing the Bonifacio Global City-Ortigas link bridge, a common station for the MRT-3, LRT-1 and MRT-7 which is expected to divert at least 25 percent of the city traffic. To decongest ports, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will design the final configuration for the Batangas and Subic ports.

The Legislative Executive Development and Advisory Council (LEDAC) has been reactivated to address institutional, legal and policy issues to facilitate faster implementation of infrastructure projects.

Scheduled to convene in September or October of this year, LEDAC will tackle the following: 1. Creation of a “super body” for the water resources sector—proposed to be the Water Resources Department or Authority.

2. The creation of an independent economic and financial regulator for the water sector.

3. The National Transport Policy which should coordinate different transport projects to facilitate connectivity across the regions and provinces in a systematic manner.

4. Amendments to the Build Operate and Transfer Law and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) to effect faster transactions, avoid procurement and implementation problems for projects, and

TOTO LOZANO / PPD / PNA

5. Amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act or the EPIRA and amendments to the Water Code of the Philippines.

NEDA has submitted a draft executive order with its longterm vision as a guide in crafting the Philippine Development Plan (PDP). The PDP 2017-2022 takes into account the Socio-economic agenda of the Duterte Administration.

For foreign investments, NEDA has launched an online database system for the streamlining of processes and to speed up project approval.

NEDA is also revisiting policies in agricultural and rural development which have lagged behind amid consistent economic growth.

NEDA also continues to monitor previous programs on rice and the effects of the El Nino to ensure there will be no shortage and decide when to import rice given the risks of a La Nina season.

Pernia also announced the launch of a NEDA innovation in planning—”AmbisyonNatin 2040”, the long-term vision project of the Philippines.

Aside from government, international development partners, civil society and the private sector, NEDA is also engaging the youth through social media and other forms of new media.

With 14.3 million users on Facebook alone, the goal of making “Ambisyon 2040” a basis for unity among Filipinos will be achieved. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

THE LOCAL stock barometer could breach the 9,000 mark next year on upbeat corporate earnings prospects backed by “transformational” reforms laid out by the Duterte administration to rebalance the Metro Manila-centric economy, the head of BPI Securities said.

Any upgrade in the earnings of listed companies would be contingent on key reforms to expedite infrastructure development, BPI Securities chief executive Michael Angelo Oyson said.

Looking at the earnings consensus growth of about 11 percent for next year, he said the Philippine Stock Exchange index could reach 9,088 based on a price to earnings (P/E) ratio of 21x. This means investors will be willing to pay 21 times the amount of money they make.

This year, the consensus earnings growth of around 15 percent is seen enough to propel the PSEi to 8,219 based on a P/E ratio of 21x.

“What will be a challenge to many companies in the Philippines is that for the last century, all strategies were Manilabased,” Oyson said, adding these companies would now have to look for growth opportunities in Visayas and Mindanao.

For their exposure to the

goal of Duterte, BPI Securities favors indirect plays such as consumer and property stocks.

They are seen to benefit companies out to win infrastructure projects under the public-private partnership (PPP) framework.

BPI Securities’ top picks are Jollibee Foods Corp., SM Investments Corp., SM Prime Holdings, Ayala Land Inc., Universal Robina Corp., Metro Retail Stores Group Inc., Century Pacific Food Inc. and D&L Industries.

“We believe infrastructure projects are typically low-return business. We also think there is risk that the winning bidder overpays,” Oyson said.

For those looking for direct infrastructure plays, BPI Securities favors Megawide Construction and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

The brokerage house is also upbeat on the power sector.

It is “underweight” (a recommendation to reduce position relative to a benchmark index) on banks and telecommunications.

Oyson said the country was now on its third “reboot” since the People Power Revolution, providing the economy a necessary boost. The base case under the Duterte administration would be for the trend gross domestic product (GDP) to rise to 6.8 percent. The “bull” case would be 9 percent and the “bear” case would be a growth of 3.7 percent. ■

29

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

Sports After apology, questions about future loom for Lochte

BY BETH HARRIS The Associated Press RIO DE JANEIRO — U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte apologized Friday for his behaviour surrounding an incident at a Rio de Janeiro gas station, saying he should have been more “careful and candid” about how he described what happened after a night of partying with his teammates.

But he didn’t explain why he embellished details of an encounter with armed security guards and called it a robbery, and why he omitted to say that he and three teammates had vandalized a gas station restroom.

“Regardless of the behaviour of anyone else that night, I should have been much more responsible in how I handled myself and for that am sorry,” Lochte said in a lengthy post on his Instagram account. “This was a situation that could and should have been avoided. I accept responsibility for my role

in this happening and have learned some valuable lessons.”

Whatever they were, for now, he’s keeping them to himself.

The situation raises questions about the future for Lochte, who is planning to take time off from swimming but wants to return to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Usually known for his party boy image and love of the limelight, he now is facing a line of nervous sponsors, the possibility of legal charges in Brazil and sanctions from USA Swimming and the International Olympic Committee.

The robbery flap deeply hurt Brazilians, who were eager to prove they could get street crime under control and host a safe Olympics. And it overshadowed the efforts of U.S. Olympians, who have dominated the medal count. Swimmers alone piled up 16 golds and 33 medals total at the games.

Known for his outsized personality and regular ‘bro’ behaviour, Lochte has always been about having fun. This is

Ryan Lochte at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

LEONARD ZHUKOVSKY / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

the guy who gleefully admitted eating McDonald’s three times

a day while winning four medals at the 2008 Beijing Games.

For Rio, he dyed his dark hair white, not realizing the pool’s chlorine would turn it light green.

His memorable props — diamond grills on his teeth on the medal podium, crazily colored high-tops, sunglasses bearing his favourite made-up expression of “Jeah!” — and easygoing, goofy nature has made him a popular and relatable star with the public and his teammates.

“I think that is why I do so many different things with the hair, the grills, the crazy shoes,” he said in Rio, “It’s just my personality coming out there.”

Lochte’s success led to his own 2013 reality TV show called “What Would Ryan Lochte Do?” It had a short run and left some viewers with the impression that its star was nothing more than a goodlooking dim bulb. Still, lines for his autograph sessions at meets routinely stretch longer than anyone else’s.

As hard as he plays, Lochte ❱❱ PAGE 35 After apology

IOC chief Bach says Tokyo must define its own Games in 2020 PHILIPPINES NEWS AGENCY RIO DE JANEIRO — Even though Thomas Bach thinks that the Rio 2016 Olympic Games have been “iconic” in many aspects, he says Tokyo needs to strike out on its own path toward a Games that are uniquely Japanese and will reflect the culture of the country as host.

At his final showing Saturday at Rio 2016’s Main Press Center, International Olympic Committee President Bach hailed the first Games to be held in South America as being sustained by the joy of life of the Brazilians, who turned the “great competition into a party for everybody.”

Bach said that Japan needs to take heed, and to prepare

Games that do not simply replicate what has gone before.

“Organizing a successful Games means always being authentic, not taking a blueprint from other Games, not thinking you should copy something,” said the former Olympic fencing champion.

“In the overall approach (they have) to be authentic and make the Games a representation of the culture of the host country.”

Whether the IOC likes it or not, some of the issues related to security and organization at Rio 2016 are a representation of Brazilian society, but that added to the flavor said Bach.

“These games have not been organized in a bubble, these games have been organized in a city where there are social problems, where there are social divides, where real life

continued during this Olympic Games,” he said.

“Somehow being isolated from a country, from society, but to be in the middle of it, to face the challenges to see reality and by seeing this and by facing this also to put sport into perspective.”

Legacy, the word that has become the catch-cry for those rationalizing the cost of the quadrennial mega event, was also put in heavy rotation by Bach.

He said that Rio will enjoy both “soft” and “hard” legacies, the former being the memories generated by the event and the latter the infrastructure built in preparation.

The memories established by the soft legacies will be the story told, and Bach singled out Japan’s wrestling champion Kaori Icho for special mention. www.canadianinquirer.net

“We have seen athletes who have become icons here, the Japanese wrestler Kaori Icho, she was the first to become four-time consecutive Olympic champion in her sport.”

“Everybody who knows what this means in combat sports can really appreciate this achievement.”

One legacy Bach was not too keen to address was the funding shortfall admitted by Rio 2016 Communications Director Mario Andrada on Thursday.

“Depending on the amount of (Paralympic) tickets and sponsorship that we sell, the amount of money that we will get from the government will vary,” said Andrada.

“If the decision was to be taken today, we would need around 200 million reais (USD62 million) to fulfill the obligations at the level of ser-

vice that we have agreed with the International Paralympic Committee.”

Contradicting the Rio 2016 spokesman, Bach said there would not be any hit on the public purse.

“The cost of the Games has not rocketed, the budget of the Organizing Committee appears to be lower than the budget the Organizing Committee provided to the IOC seven years ago when the election took place,” said Bach.

“This is thanks to savings, considerable savings, which have been made with regard to the budget of the Organizing Committee.”

“There is no public money in the organization of these Olympic Games, the budget of the Organizing Committee is privately financed, there is no public funding in this.” ■

30

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Technology Uber to offer rides in self-driving cars in Pittsburgh

BY JUSTIN PRITCHARD AND TOM KRISHER The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — The option to hail a ride in a selfdriving car, which was science fiction just a few years ago, will soon be available to Uber users in Pittsburgh, the first time the technology has been offered to the general public.

Within weeks, the company announced Thursday, customers will be able to opt into a test program and summon an autonomous Ford Fusion. But since the technology has not been perfected, the cars will come with human backup drivers to handle any unexpected situations.

Although other companies including Google are testing self-driving cars on public roads, none offers rides to regular people. As an enticement, the autonomous rides will be free, the company said.

Uber, which has a self-driving research lab in Pittsburgh, has no immediate plans to deploy autonomous cars in other cities. But in an interview with The Associated Press, CEO Travis Kalanick said development of the vehicles is paramount for the San Francisco company, which has grown exponentially after starting seven years ago.

“We’ve got to be laser-focused on getting this to market, because it’s not a side project for us,” he said. “This is everything. This is all the marbles for Uber.”

Without drivers, the cost of

hailing a ride will be cheaper than owning a car, changing the way we all get around, Kalanick has said.

By using human backup drivers, Uber is basically testing the technology and taking people along for the ride, said Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina professor who studies self-driving technology.

“Part of this is marketing in the sense that they’re going to be doing continued research and development of these systems,” he said.

Uber also announced that it was acquiring a startup called Otto that has focused on developing self-driving big rigs and is stocked with big talent in the still-small world of self-driving technology. Kalanick said the acquisition signals Uber’s intent to get into the movement of goods and freight.

In another deal, the company announced a $300 million alliance with Volvo to supply vehicles and technology. The announcements may push it ahead of its prime competitor, Lyft, which earlier this year took a $500 million investment from General Motors.

Those arrangements are among of a flurry of deals between Silicon Valley tech companies, traditional automakers and ride-hailing companies as they vie for autonomous car leadership. Google has been testing self-driving cars on public roads since 2009 but has never offered large-scale rides to the public.

Uber’s move to haul passengers with autonomous vehicles

is not surprising, given the company’s history of pushing into grey areas with little or no regulation, Walker Smith said.

Local laws in Pittsburgh may require a driver behind the wheel, but Pennsylvania has no laws governing autonomous cars and their role in ride-hailing, he said.

He predicted that drivers will often have to intervene in Pittsburgh, with its winding, hilly roads and vast number of bridges. Each winter the city gets about 30 inches of snow, which can cover lane lines and trick autonomous car sensors that use them to help guide the ride.

Use of the backup drivers is also an acknowledgement that current autonomous driving systems cannot handle the wide range of unpredictable circumstances on public roads.

Timothy Carone, a Notre Dame professor and author of “Future Automation: Changes to Lives and to Businesses,” said Uber is trying to gain an advantage by putting its cars on the road before competitors. But unlike Tesla Motors, which put semi-autonomous technology in the hands of individual customers, Uber is mitigating the risk with its own drivers.

“This is a way to get autonomous cars out there and accepted and increase the adoption rate,” Carone said. “It will take a decade of testing before an 18-year-old can get in the car and tell it where to go.”

Kalanick would not speculate on when Uber might be ready

www.canadianinquirer.net

By using human backup drivers, Uber is basically testing the technology and taking people along for the ride.

THINK4PHOTOP / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

to dispense with the human driver, saying that full automation can only be used now in limited places with little traffic.

That’s different from the relative chaos of even a small downtown, much less a big city where drivers do not always follow the rules.

Carone expects Uber competitors will now accelerate self-driving tests or merger plans. He thinks they will adopt the same risk-management approach as Uber. Ford Motor Co., for example, said earlier this week that it will have a fully autonomous car with no steering wheel or pedals on the road by 2021, but it will only be used by car-sharing services and will not be sold to individuals.

Though the Google car project just lost its director, Chris Urmson, it has a big head start on Uber and others. Its lead-

ers have suggested they could launch public pilot tests of cars with no steering wheels or pedals in the next year or two.

Volvo will provide Uber with SUVs for autonomous vehicle research. Eventually the SUVs will be part of the self-driving fleet in Pittsburgh. Both companies will design autonomous vehicles on their own.

The real breakthrough for autonomous cars, Walker Smith said, will be when a company puts one on public roads without a backup human. For now, like a motorcycle canyon jumper with a safety net, Uber isn’t ready to take the big leap.

“It’s probably for the best,” he said. ■ Krisher reported from Detroit.

Associated Press Auto Writer Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit contributed to this report.

Technology

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

31

Anti-money laundering Gawker.com dies watchdog assessing next week, killed by vulnerability of fintech startups an unhappy subject

BY ALEXANDRA POSADZKI The Canadian Press

BY TALI ARBEL The Associated Press

TORONTO — The director of Canada’s anti-money laundering watchdog says the agency is studying how vulnerable certain emerging technologies, such as those being pioneered by so-called fintech startups, are to financial crime.

Gerald Cossette says it’s important for the federal government to encourage innovation by emerging financial technology companies.

But, he adds, Ottawa must balance that with the need to protect the integrity and stability of the financial system.

Cossette says many fintech startups — for example those that deal with currency exchange or sending cash — may not realize that they are required to register with Fintrac, the anti money-laundering agency, as money services businesses.

The definition of a money services business was expanded in 2014 to include companies that deal with virtual currencies, and the Finance Department is working on regulations to specify which virtual currency activities will be covered.

While some innovations

NEW YORK — Gawker.com, the brash New York website that broke new ground with its gossipy, no-holds-barred coverage of media, culture and politics, is shutting down after 14 years, brought low by an unhappy, but deep-pocketed, subject.

The news — appropriately enough, broken by Gawker itself — follows the sale of the site’s parent company to Univision.

Founder Nick Denton reportedly told staffers Thursday afternoon that Gawker.com will come to an end next week. Twitter immediately went berserk in an unholy melange of shock, sadness and Schadenfreude.

Univision, the Spanish-language broadcaster, is buying the parent company, Gawker Media, for $135 million; the sale follows Gawker’s loss in a major invasion-of-privacy case brought by the former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan. Gawker had published a video of Hogan having sex with a friend’s wife.

A Florida court awarded Hogan, whose lawsuit was secretly backed by an aggrieved Silicon Valley billionaire, $140 million in damages. Gawker Media went into bankruptcy protection after the verdict, and a judge has to approve the sale at a hearing Thursday.

“The real shame is that Gawker gave Hogan a sledgehammer with which (to) pulverize it in state court,” New York University journalism professor Adam Penenberg tweeted. “If you want to ascribe blame, blame Denton.”

Other Gawker Media blogs may

Striking the right balance between promoting innovation and preventing financial crime is going to require collaboration with industry.

are actually new takes on existing technologies and business models, others have been “more revolutionary in nature,” says Cossette.

“In these cases there are some concerns that new entrants and technologies are disrupting traditional trusted intermediaries and existing business models, ultimately challenging Canada’s existing regulatory paradigm,” he says.

In order to respond to these concerns, Fintrac has been working hard to understand these emerging technologies and track their progress and development, says Cossette.

“We are assessing the vulnerabilities of these new technologies to criminal exploitation,

such as how they can be used in trade-based money laundering, for which mechanism and detection techniques are not as well understood as they should be,” he says.

Striking the right balance between promoting innovation and preventing financial crime is going to require collaboration with industry, Cossette adds.

“It is more important than ever that government and industry work together to increase awareness of regulatory requirements and to ensure that Canada maintains a regulatory framework and approach that both encourages innovation and protects Canadians,” he said. ■

ers have been analyzed.

U-4770 can be tested for in toxicology screens, but is not done routinely because it is a relatively new chemical. Presence of the drug was not tested in Prince’s case, but the levels of fentanyl in his system were more than enough to be toxic, the official said.

Tests on Prince prior to his death did not show fentanyl in his system, which means he wasn’t a long-time abuser of that drug, but likely took the fatal dose sometime in the 24 hours before he died, the official said.

The official did not elaborate on those tests. But at least one doctor, Michael Todd Schul-

enberg, saw Prince on April 7 and again on April 20, the day before he died. According to a search warrant, he told a detective he had ordered tests for Prince and prescribed medications. Schulenberg’s attorney, Amy Conners, has said patientprivacy laws do not allow her to say what the prescriptions were.

The autopsy report also shows Prince had diazepam, lidocaine and hydrocodone acids in his body, the official said.

Diazepam is an anti-anxiety pill sold as Valium. It’s a sedative and can also be used to control seizures, which Prince suffered from as a child. Lidocaine is a local anesthetic. ■

Official: Pills... scription bottle in someone else’s name that contained 10 oxycodone pills, the official said, without revealing who was listed on the prescription.

The official said Prince had many of these pills with him on April 15 when the airplane he was on made an emergency stop in Moline, Illinois, after he fell ill from a suspected drug overdose as he was heading home from a performance in Atlanta. Prince was given two doses of Narcan, an antidote used to reverse suspected opioid overdoses, the official said.

The official said roughly 20 different bottles or pill contain❰❰ 25

www.canadianinquirer.net

live on. The company currently publishes seven sites in addition to Gawker.com, including the feminist-focused Jezebel, the tech site Gizmodo and the sports site Deadspin. Univision wants those properties to help build a more youthful audience than that commanded by broadcast TV. But Gawker’s real enemy, it turns out, wasn’t Hogan so much as Peter Thiel, a PayPal founder and early investor in Facebook who a Gawker site had outed as gay in 2007. Thiel’s vendetta against Gawker raised concerns about wealthy people covertly working to undermine media companies they didn’t like.

Gawker’s snarky and frequently vulgar style was influential throughout publishing.

The site became a breeding ground for journalists, some of whom went on to jobs at the sort of establishment media outposts Gawker itself frequently mocked.

“I think in a lot of ways Gawker has helped to define the voice of the internet,” said Josh Benton, the director of the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University, who said he’s been a daily reader “as long as there’s been a Gawker.”

The site was initially a breezy, insider-y chronicler of the media that made it a must-read for many in the industry. In later years it branched out into salacious stories of all kinds, but still enjoyed needling establishment figures in media and technology.

Denton, an outspoken a former Financial Times journalist, for now does not plan on going to Univision. He also declared personal bankruptcy as a result of the Hogan case. ■

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32

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Travel When in Madrid — go to Toledo, Avila, Segovia Spain’s dazzling capital is also the gateway to three World Heritage sites nearby

BY GIBBS CADIZ Philippine Daily Inquirer

ite, with an apse incorporated into the walls to double in olden times as a fortress.

MADRID, home to both Picasso’s “Guernica” and Cristiano Ronaldo’s playground-stadium, is a can’t-miss destination for anyone interested in seeing the best of Europe.

Spain’s capital is a cultural and artistic wonder, profuse with magnificent edifices like the Palacio Real and La Almudena Cathedral. There are verdant lungs of green such as Buen Retiro park, and vast public spaces from Plaza Mayor to Puerto del Sol. The Prado and Reina Sofia museums brim with works by Goya, Velasquez, Rubens, Rembrandt, El Greco, Tintoretto, Picasso, Miro, Dali. And the innumerable gastronomic options make the city “a great place to feast like kings,” according to Condé Nast Traveler—from the world’s oldest restaurant, circa 1725’s El Botin and its famous cochinillo (roast suckling pig), to Michelinstarred bistros, traditional mercados (public markets) and the quaintest of tapas bars.

Spend some days wandering Madrid’s wide boulevards (there’s an Avenida de Filipinas with a statue of Rizal) or shopping at El Corte Inglés, Spain’s most ubiquitous mall; having your selfie at the Real Madrid Stadium that even during offseason is a shrine swarming with football fans; soaking in the easy, ebullient café culture and night life—dinner starts at 10 p.m, and “Nobody goes to bed in Madrid until they have killed the night,” said Ernest Hemingway—and it’d be a grand vacation.

But the city is, in fact, also an invitation to an even more tantalizing layer of Spain. Not more than two hours tops from it by bus—and mere minutes by train—are three exceptional World Heritage sites: the ancient cities of Toledo, Avila and Segovia.

Roman antiquity

Medieval travelogue

It takes about 33 minutes by

Toledo over sunset.

train from Madrid’s Puerta de heritage of Toledo’s Moorish ledo. Completely surrounded Atocha to Toledo, but when you past before it became a Catho- by medieval walls, it’s been dearrive at the capital city of Cas- lic enclave through the Recon- scribed as “perhaps the most tilla-La Mancha, it’s as if that quista, or the reconquest of 16th-century town in Spain”; half hour had hurled you back Spain from its Arab rulers. the fortifications have never to centuries past. Madrid, deToledo, Spain’s imperial capi- been breached, and today visispite its historic architecture, tal in the 16th century, hosted tors can climb its parapets and is undeniably modern. Toledo a unique, tolerant culture that towers and walk about halfseems straight out of a medi- allowed Christian, Jewish and way of the walls’ length for a eval travelogue, a city sprawled Arab communities to flourish dramatic vista of the town and on a low mountaintop and sur- side by side and made the city its surroundings. Afterward, rounded on three sides by a nat- an important seat of learning. they can catch their breath at ural moat, the river Tagus.

Even now, its historic skyline any one of the countless bars The panoramic view from a includes ancient synagogues and restaurants on the ground, high point outor simply laze side the city is about in a corner dominated by square. the spires of ToThe walls are ledo’s two most Spain’s capital is a cultural and artistic an impressive iconic buildwonder, profuse with magnificent sight, but Avila ings—the Alcáedifices like the Palacio Real and La has another atzar, reconstitutAlmudena Cathedral. traction.

For ed into a military centuries, it has museum after it been a pilgrimhad been poundage destination ed to rubble duras the birthplace ing the Spanish Civil War, and and a mosque—built in 999 and of the pioneering woman mysthe 13th-century cathedral, a then converted into a Catholic tic and church thinker, St. TeGothic landmark which our chapel—along with the mighty resa. The small church in which guide said ranks as the wealthi- cathedral and its soaring, gilded she was baptized is still in use; est church in all of Spain. high altar inside. To miss a tour similar well-preserved conA walking tour of Toledo’s of the cathedral’s spectacular vents, monasteries and villas streets and alleyways, lined interior will be to miss the es- cram every corner of the town. with old buildings adaptively sence of Toledo as a glitter- A small museum adjacent to reused into modern shops and ing moment in the story of old the convent that was built over bars, is the best way to experi- Spain. the original house of St. Teence both the grandeur and dairesa’s family displays her relly rhythms of this city. Some of Dramatic vista ics, including a finger from her the structures sport the graceAvila, an hour and a half by right hand. ful arches and Mudejar decora- train from Madrid, is an even Avila’s cathedral, meanwhile, tion that are the unmistakable more fortress-like city than To- is a massive structure in granwww.canadianinquirer.net

Then there’s Segovia, merely 30 minutes by train from Madrid or about an hour by bus, a destination that takes visitors to an even older time—Roman antiquity.

The city has its own requisite old cathedral and Alcázar— a postcard-pretty castle that wouldn’t be out of place in a Disney park. But its most famous monument, and its main calling card to becoming a Unesco World Heritage site in 1985, is the Roman aqueduct, an engineering marvel built in the first century AD that brought water to the city.

Visitors can walk right up to the base of the aqueduct’s vaulting arches and touch the millennia-old stones. Even better, they can dine at the famed Mesón de Cándido restaurant at Plaza del Azoguejo right by the monument, and partake of the resto’s signature cochinillo asado while enjoying the picturesque view of the Roman aqueduct.

To show how succulent the roasted pig is, a mini-ritual is observed: The chef or head waiter chops the whole piglet with a plate, then throws the plate on the floor for an exuberant start to a typically hearty Iberian meal. “Spain is for living, Castile is for wining, Segovia is for feeling and Cándido for eating,” so said Pablo Neruda.

Three enriching, eye-filling destinations accessible by day trip from Madrid; next time you find yourself in the Spanish capital—and now is a good time to go because the euro remains low—make use of the easy gateway it offers to such priceless explorations of old Spain. ■ Cathay Pacific flies four times a week direct from Hong Kong to Madrid; Call Philippine 24/7 hotlines 1-800-8739-5117 (Globe) and 1-800-1441-1011 (Smart/PLDT).

Travel

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

33

The memory of all that: Can you still find Sinatra in Vegas?

BY RUSSELL CONTRERAS The Associated Press LAS VEGAS — Popular Frank Sinatra tunes in Las Vegas hotel lobbies have been replaced by the likes of Sia and Rihanna. The final tower of the famed Riviera Hotel and Casino has fallen, and the Sands Hotel and Casino is long gone.

A tribute show to the Rat Pack draws mainly retirees.

True, Sinatra’s Sin City presence is fading, and many sites connected to Ol’ Blue Eyes long have disappeared. But Sinatra fans can still locate pieces of his Las Vegas legacy with a little homework.

In downtown Las Vegas, amid the street performers and costumed superheroes taking selfies with visitors, Sinatra aficionados can have a drink at a bar reportedly frequented by the Rat Pack — the name given to Sinatra and his pals, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr. The Bar Prohibition inside the historic Golden Gate Hotel and Casino is sur-

A waxwork of Frank Sinatra at Madame Tussauds museum in Las Vegas.

KOBBY DAGAN / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

rounded by black and white photos of the trio. The venue even has a sign that says, “Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Dean Martin drank here. Make your own history at Bar Prohibition!”

The vintage feel is dampened, however, by video poker machines lining the small bar. And you likely won’t be hearing Sinatra songs. Instead, dealers

in fedoras sling cards to the likes of Katy Perry’s “Roar.”

Farther down Fremont Street sits the Golden Nugget, a casino where an older Sinatra headlined from 1984 to 1989. A dressing room remains somewhat intact from his days as a performer. The casino’s flashy front gives visitors a feeling that they are entering a classic Sinatra

venue and inside the period furniture completes the backdrop.

Outside downtown, fans can grab dinner at the Golden Steer Steak House.

Sinatra and Elvis Presley both ate at this half-century-old hangout (though not together), and there is even a booth named in honour of Ol’ Blue Eyes. With reservations, visitors can have a meal in that private booth and pick a dish as Sinatra would have after a long show.

Along the strip, catching any Sinatra ambiance can be more challenging.

Only the art deco-style Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel remains from the original “Ocean’s 11,” a 1960 film featuring Sinatra and the Rat Pack. Sinatra didn’t headline the Flamingo but did play at the nearby Caesars Palace — a hotel dramatically transformed since the crooner’s days. The Sands Hotel, where Sinatra recorded a live album, has been replaced by The Venetian.

Sinatra’s “Luck Be a Lady” sometimes ❱❱ PAGE 35 The memory

Just show up: No reservations required at some camping spots on Vancouver Island

BY DIRK MEISSNER The Canadian Press VICTORIA — Caretaker Peter Murphy says every camper asks the same question about staying at Kitty Coleman Provincial Park, and he never gets tired of gleefully providing the same answer: Yes, it’s oceanfront.

“Everybody says we’d like to be on the ocean, and I say, ‘They’re all on the ocean.’ We’ve got five (sites) up in the woods. Other than that, the rest are on the water,” said Murphy about the 65site campground located six kilometres north of Courtenay on central Vancouver Island.

The 10-hectare park, on the south side of the Strait of Georgia, is popular for swimming, fishing and boating. Wild onions grow throughout the area and huge cedar and fir trees stand tall on the park’s upland areas.

But it’s the ocean that brings the campers.

“It’s just a beautiful spot,” says Murphy. “It’s one of the best spots you want to be. All of our sites are right on the ocean. The cruise ships go through all the time, and there’s the whales.”

Another unique feature of Kitty Coleman Provincial Park is that it’s one of the few campgrounds remaining on the Island and British Columbia that does not require reservations to pitch a tent

or set up a trailer. Every spot is booked on a first-come, first-served basis — no government websites to deal with.

“The reservation system makes it busier for us now, but if you say you’re coming from Victoria and you call me at 8:30 in the morning when we open, and if we have a site, we’ll hold it until you get here,” said Murphy.

The camping fee at Kitty Coleman is $15 per night.

Reservations for B.C.’s campsites has ignited a political controversy this summer with Environment Minister Mary Polak and Opposition New Democrat Leader John Horgan addressing issues about tour companies hogging campsites, rising camping fees and declining numbers of sites.

Polak says that of the 131,000 campsite reservations made so far this year, the government has received fewer than a dozen complaints of people attempting to resell the reservations.

Horgan says camping fees increased again this summer and since 2001 the Liberal government has closed more than 3,000 drive-in campsites.

Polak says the province is open to making changes to the camping reservation system every year to ensure it’s fair and loophole-free. She says there are about 10,700 vehicle-accessible campsites in B.C., but there are too many people looking for too few campsites.

On Vancouver Island, there are 5,833

provincial campsites, of which 2,386 are available without reservations.

Schoen Lake Provincial Park, 140 kilometres northwest of Campbell River, is one of the few campgrounds that does not require reservations.

It is a wilderness campground, with only nine vehicle-accessible campsites at $11 per night that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Walk-in campers are welcome to make camp within the boundaries of the 8,775-hectare park, known for its Vancouver Island mountains, old-growth forests, meadows, waterways, small lakes and deer, Roosevelt elk and fish habitat.

Salt Spring Island’s Ruckle Provincial

www.canadianinquirer.net

Park, about 30 minutes from Victoria by ferry, offers 78 walk-in campsites located on a grassy meadow that offers breathtaking ocean and pastoral views.

Campers are urged to set up their tents in the field overlooking the ocean.

The fee is $20 per night. The province started taking reservations for 10 walkin sites and four recreational vehicle spots this year, but the remaining campsites are available on a first-come, firstserved basis.

If You Go...

For more information on visiting provincial parks on Vancouver Island, check out www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks. ■

Events

34

YUKON NORTHWEST TERRITORIES

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

CANADA EVENTS

NUNAVUT

View all events by scanning this QR code or visiting

http://bit.ly/ PCI-Events

BRITISH COLUMBIA ALBERTA

NEWFOUNDLAND

MANITOBA SASKATCHEWAN

QUEBEC

ONTARIO NOVA SCOTIA To have your events featured on PCI, please email events@canadianinquirer.net

VANCOUVER Temporary Foreign Workers Uncontested Divorce Clinic

By Law Courts Center WHEN/WHERE: Saturdays from 2 to 4 p.m., at the Justice Education Society at the Provincial Court of BC Room 260 800 Hornby St., Vancouver B.C. MORE INFO: To book an appointment, call/text 778-322-2839 or email: tfw.divorce@gmail.com Skills Now: Project-based Training for Immigrants in Retail and Administration

By ISS of BC WHEN/WHERE: Call or email at 604-684-2581 (ext 2193 Nanki) skillsnow@issbc.org MORE INFO: Receive a certificate or skills training in retail or administration; job search workshops; and strong employment opportunities.

Mentoring Programme for Immigrant High School Students: Breakfast & Baon 101

By Mentorship & Leadership for Youth Programme WHEN/WHERE: 10 a.m. to 12 nn at Corpus Christi College (near UBC) 5935 Iona Dr. Vancouver BC. Free pick up and drop off service.

MORE INFO: Meet young professionals plus learn to cook. Call/ text Anna de Quito 604-763-2210.

Free Counselling Support Group

By Mosaic

WHEN/WHERE: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., every last Monday of the month, at Mosaic Burnaby Centre for Immigrants, 5902 Kingsway, Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Call Darae (604)2549626 Seniors Club Knitting Circle

By Mosaic WHEN/WHERE: 1–3 p.m., Tuesdays at Mosaic Burnaby Centre for Immigrants, 5902 Kingsway, Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Call (604)438-8214 Enchanted Evenings Concert Series

By Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m., Thursdays, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden, 578 Carrall St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Closed on Mondays, admission by donation Tour of the Chung Collection

By Pacific Canada Heritage CentreMuseum of Migration Society WHEN/WHERE: 10:30 a.m., Aug. 26, at Irving K. Barber Learning Centre MORE INFO: Tour to be led by Dr. Wallace Chung. To pre-register pchcmom.intern@gmail.com Asean Festival 2016

By Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Consulates in Vancouver WHEN/WHERE: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Aug. 27, at the Roundhouse Community Centre Exhibition Hall, 181 Roundhouse Mews Vancouver, B.C.

MORE INFO: Free Admission Summer Sunset Series

By City of Richmond WHEN/WHERE: Every Sunday up to Aug. 28, at the Olympic Riverside Plaza All Night – Beach Volleyball, 5:00 p.m.

– Food Truck opens, 5:15 p.m. – FREE Yoga Class, 6:00 p.m. – LIVE Music MORE INFO: Visit http:// richmond.ca/sunsetseries Throwback Sessions: Wency Cornejo & Introvoys in Vancouver

By Innovision Events & Marketing and Fortune Sound Club WHEN/WHERE: 6:30 p.m., Aug. 27, at Fortune Sound Club, 147 E. Pender St., Chinatown, Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: $30. Special guests include Raffy Swap One, Danger Blanket & Audrey Rose. Call Isabel Velayo at 778-892-4772 for details.

2016 EveRiathing Wall of Stars Awards Night

By Noodlehead Productions PR WHEN/WHERE: 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., at the Rio Theatre 1660 E. Broadway, Vancouver, B.C. Overcoming Effects of Prolonged Separation

By ISS of BC & St. Mary’s Migrant Ministry WHEN/WHERE: 1 to 3 p.m., Sept.

4, Seminar Room, School Gym, St. Mary’s Parish, 5239 Joyce St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Contact Resochita Arma at resochita.arma@issbc.org or 604-684-7496 ext. 1666

www.canadianinquirer.net

JAG Public Square: Truth Reconciliation & Hope

By Jesuit Alumni Group of Vancouver WHEN/WHERE: 12 nn to 2 p.m., Sept. 10, at Vancouver College Alumni Gym Theatre, 5400 Cartier St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Go to http://evite. me/rCH3A2SgCU to register

Toronto, 597 Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, ON MORE INFO: For registrations, call 416-928-9355. The office, at 597 Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, is open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 1 to 6 p.m.

Fundraising Breakfast 2016

By St. Mark’s College/Corpus Christi College WHEN/WHERE: 9 a.m., Sept.. 10, Vancouver College Alumni Gym, 5400 Cartier St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Keynote speaker: Fr. Peter Bisson, SJ. Call Florence Chan at 604-822-5516 to reserve a seat.

Klownz Comedy Bar The Canadian Tour

By GMA TV and Great Smiles Dental WHEN/WHERE: 7 p,m., Aug. 27, at Rembrant Banquet Hall, Toronto, Ont. MORE INFO: Featuring Allan K, Ate Gay, Boobay & Boobsie Wonderland. Call 416-312-7069 for details. $45 general admission.

TORONTO

CALGARY

New WelcomePack Canada Distribution Centre

By WelcomePack Canada Inc WHEN/WHERE: 1 to 5 p.m., Mon, Tues, Thu & Fri at the Filipino Centre Bldg., 597 Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, On. MORE INFO: Call (416) 928-9355

Fiesta Filipino Calgary 2016

By ATB Financial and TFC WHEN/WHERE: 12 nn to 10 p.m., Sept. 2 & 3, at Olympic Plaza Downtown Calgary MORE INFO: Free Admission

Tagalog Class

By Filipino Center Toronto WHEN/WHERE: 10 to 11 a.m., every Saturday, Filipino Centre Toronto, Toronto Homework/Tutorial Class

By FCT WHEN/WHERE: 11a.m. to 12 nn, every Saturday, Filipino Centre

The Canadian Tour

By Klownz Comedy Bar, GMA TV and Great Smiles Dental WHEN/WHERE: 7 p,m., Aug. 28, at Canada Inns Polo Park MORE INFO: Featuring Allan K, Ate Gay, Boobay & Boobsie Wonderland. Call 416-431-9444 for details. $45 general admission.

WINNIPEG

35

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

After apology... works hard, too. His 12 Olympic medals are second only to Michael Phelps among U.S. male Olympians.

This time Lochte was only a small part of the show. He finished fifth in his only individual event and swam on the victorious 4x200-meter freestyle relay. Instead, the biggest memory of the 32-year-old swimmer in Rio will be the grainy security video of him and teammates Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen exiting the gas station restroom and sitting on the ground, some with hands up.

Like other pro swimmers, Lochte is reliant on sponsors to foot his bills so he can focus on year-round training and travel to meets without having to hold a regular job.

His sponsors, including Speedo, Ralph Lauren and airweave premium bedding, have been in no hurry to cut ties with him, though have said they are monitoring the situation.

The incident feeds a lot of American cliches of the badboy athlete, and while it was relatively minor, it is “unsavoury,” says Thomas Ordahl, chief strategy officer at the brand consulting firm Landor.

Ordahl believes it’s probably a good idea for companies to hold off on making decisions until the issue surrounding the dispute is sorted out. But he suspects that eventually, sponsors will probably drop Lochte.

“The truth is that there are enough celebrities to be attached to without bringing that kind of baggage with you,” said Robert Passikoff, president and founder of the research firm Brand Keys.

USA Swimming is expected to convene its executive board to discuss likely punishment, as it did when Michael Phelps was arrested for a second DUI two years ago. Technically, the four could be fined, suspended or expelled. In the Phelps case, the board announced a week after the arrest that it was suspending the sport’s biggest star for six months, banning him from competing in the 2015 world championships and taking away six months of his funding stipend.

For Phelps, it was his third strike.

This is Lochte’s first ma❰❰ 29

jor gaffe, and whatever sanctions the national governing body passes down could have little effect on the professional swimmer. He’s already said he plans to take the first extensive break of his career following the Olympics and move from North Carolina to California.

A suspension could keep him out of next year’s world championships — often bereft of big stars following an Olympic year — and the Arena Pro Swim Series, a five-meet circuit in the U.S. But that would hardly impact Lochte should he decide to resume training for the 2020 games.

As for the other three, Feigen has indicated he would retire after Rio and the 26-year-old is looking forward to attending law school somewhere in Texas.

He made a $10,800 payment to a Rio charity that teaches martial arts to poor children after the incident, and his passport was returned. He left Brazil Friday night.

Bentz and Conger stumbled just as they were getting started on the international stage, so the repercussions could linger longest with the Olympic rookies. They, along with Feigen, swam in preliminary heats, and earned gold medals when their teammates won relays in the finals.

They returned home to the U.S. Friday.

Bentz will be a 20-year-old junior majoring in business at Georgia this fall and Conger will be a 21-year-old senior majoring in corporate communication at Texas. They remain amateurs and presumably will continue their NCAA careers with their respective programs, which also could hand out punishment.

What may take longer for everyone to forget is how the four stole the spotlight.

“While we are thankful our athletes are safe, we do not condone the lapse in judgment and conduct that led us to this point,” USA Swimming executive director Chuck Wielgus said. “It is not representative of what is expected as Olympians, as Americans, as swimmers and as individuals.” ■ AP Retail Writer Anne D’Innocenzio in New York and AP Sports Writer Stephen Wilson in Rio de Janeiro contributed to this report.

Lemon juice makes a chicken and potato bake into a breeze

BY MELISSA D’ARABIAN The Associated Press AUTUMN MIGHT be the official season of the one-pot wonder. Kids are back in school, the office watercooler gets crowded as we trickle back from summer vacations, and suddenly dinnertime feels like more of a time-squeeze.

Busy lives need quick meals that don’t require a ton of prep, crazy ingredients or lots of dishes because the last thing I want to do after a long day of work, kids activities and homework-checking is a counter loaded up with dishes.

Baked dinners are a classic weeknight solution, but how to make one that is healthy, flavourful, and easy? This basic chicken and potato bake is so simple, you might breeze right past the recipe.

But the trick is: lots of lemon juice. Half a cup sounds like a ton, but it’s what makes the chicken super flavourful in just minutes.

The high acid level gets right into the chicken and tenderizes it, and yet as it bakes, the acid mellows and softens into a gorgeous gentle tang. The second trick to this dinner-in-a-pan is a super quick turn in the microwave for some baby potatoes (Note: you can cube up larger potatoes if you don’t have tiny ones).

I’m using boneless skinless chicken breast, but you can use pork chops (bone-in recommended) or even fish. My weeknight strategy: pop this pan into the oven, toss together a green salad, and set the table

while the chicken cooks. Easy, healthy, and even comforting in a fall-night sort of way.

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, mix together the lemon juice, olive oil, granulated garlic and salt and pepper. Pierce each potato a couple of times with a fork (to allow

steam to escape), and place the potatoes in a medium microwave-safe bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice mixture. Cover with a lid slightly askew to allow steam to escape, and microwave on high until potatoes begin to soften, about 4 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the chicken breasts, onion and tomatoes in the lemon juice mixture and toss to coat. Let sit for a few minutes.

Spray an oven-safe baking pan with nonstick spray. Pour the potatoes on the bottom of the baking sheet. Pour the chicken, onions, tomatoes and remaining marinade on top of the potatoes. Bake until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.

Sprinkle with fresh thyme and serve with a green salad.

Nutrition information per serving: 401 calories; 131 calories from fat; 15 g fat (2 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 124 mg cholesterol; 326 mg sodium; 25 g carbohydrate; 2 g fiber; 3 g sugar; 41 g protein. ■

show “The Rat Pack is Back!” at Tuscany Suites & Casino. Come early and have dinner before performers re-enact the classic show from the 1960s — complete with ethnic jokes and alcohol-fueled humour to fit the era’s sensibilities.

“It’s 1960, folks,” says David DeCosta, playing a fedorawearing Sinatra. “We can say whatever the hell we want.”

Sinatra would never have been seen walking around Vegas without a suit jacket and tie on, but today it’s rare to find visitors

not wearing shorts and T-shirts.

One of the few Sinatra markers you’ll find here is on the city’s Walk of Stars. In 2010, Las Vegas paid homage to Sinatra and Martin by giving them each a star along Las Vegas Boulevard.

“Just trying to have a little fun here, folks,” Sinatra and Martin used to tell audiences.

Las Vegas has transformed itself in many ways in the years since Sinatra’s heyday, but you can still find that spirit of fun tracing his footsteps here. ■

Baked chicken and potato dinner

Start to finish: 30 minutes Servings: 4

• 1/2 cup lemon juice • 3 tablespoons olive oil • 1 teaspoon granulated garlic, or 1 garlic clove, minced • 1 pound fingerling potatoes, cleaned • 1 1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed • 1 red onion, sliced lengthwise • 1/2 cup small cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes • lemon wedges, for garnish • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme • salt and pepper

The memory... is played during a water show at the Bellagio and the fountains of Wynn Las Vegas regularly blast Rat Pack songs.

Inside the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas resort and casino is an upscale Italian restaurant named Sinatra. It houses the singer’s Academy Award for best supporting actor in “From Here to Eternity” and his Grammy Award for “Strangers in the Night.”

Two blocks from the strip, fans can catch a 75-minute tribute ❰❰ 33

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Food

AUGUST 26, 2016

FRIDAY

Grilled skirt steak gets a kick from salsa, black beans

BY ELIZABETH KARMEL The Associated Press IF YOU ask a chef what his or her favourite steak is, chances are the answer will be rich, beefy skirt steak.

Skirt steak is often associated with Tex-Mex tacos and fajitas, but I grill it year ‘round and pair it with everything.

It is prized for its flavour, but must be cut against the grain of the meat or it is hard to chew. Many people marinate the skirt steak, but I like to grill it over a medium high heat, about 550 degrees, seasoned with nothing but olive oil and kosher salt so that I taste all of the natural beef flavour.

Each cow has two skirts steaks — the inside and the outside, which is the most flavourful. Most grocery stores simply label their skirt steak, “skirt” but if you can find a butcher who offers both, be sure to ask for the outside skirt.

This recipe is a nod to skirt steak’s humble roots. The simple tomato and corn salsa cuts the richness of the beef and adds a freshness to the dish. The beer-braised black beans are coarsely mashed with onion and garlic and doused with fresh lime juice just before serving. And the tortillas are optional.

You can use whatever tomato you like for the salsa. If it is a regular tomato, cut into a small dice. If you have small cherry tomatoes, cut them in quarters. The shucked corn is brushed with oil and seasoned simply with salt and placed on the grill to char and blister. Once the corn is marked, it is cut of the cob and added to the tomatoes to make a salsa that really doubles as a side.

You can grill the steak and the corn together and assemble the salsa while the meat is resting. Make the beans before you start the salsa and the steak or the steak will get cold while the beans finish cooking.

Grilled skirt steak, beer-braised black beans and blistered corn and tomato salsa

Grilling Method: Direct/Medium-High Heat Start to finish: About one hour Serves 4 Beer-Braised Black Beans Blistered Corn and Tomato Salsa • Outside skirt steak (About 1 pound) • Kosher salt • Olive oil Beer-Braised Black Beans: • Olive oil • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped • 1 small white onion, chopped • 1 teaspoon ground cumin • 2 15-ounces cans black beans, rinsed and drained • 1 12-ounce Mexican or domestic beer • Juice of one lime • Zest of one lime • Chopped fresh cilantro to taste, about 2 tablespoons Blistered Corn and Tomato Salsa:

• 2 large ripe garden tomato, chopped, or pint grape or cherry tomatoes, washed and cut into quarters • 2 ears of corn, shucked and blistered on the grill • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, plus sprigs for garnish • Juice of one lime • Kosher salt • Tortillas: Optional About 45 minutes before you want to eat, heat about two tablespoons oil in heavy large saucepan over mediumhigh heat. Add garlic, onions and cumin.

Saute until onions begin to brown. Add beans and beer to sauteed vegetables and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Coarsely mash beans with the back of a fork. Continue simmering until thick, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Keep warm while you grill the meat and make the salsa. Just before serving, season to taste with lime juice, salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to a bowl.

Sprinkle with lime zest and cilantro.

Serve with the skirt steak and salsa (see below).

Preheat grill with all burners on high and reduce heat to a medium-high direct heat.

Brush corn with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place corn directly on the cooking grates and grill for 3-4 minutes.

Turn corn occasionally to roast and blister all sides. Remove from grill to a clean platter.

When the corn is cool enough to handle, remove the corn from the cob by standing the cob on end and running a sharp knife down the cob to remove the kernels.

Wash and chop the tomatoes into halves or quarters, depending on the size, making sure to reserve all juices.

Put tomatoes and juices into a large glass bowl and set aside. Cut blistered

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corn and add it to the tomatoes, add lime juice a little at a time, tasting and adding until you think the balance of the tomato juice with the lime is right_basically it should taste good without too much of a citrus flavour. Season with salt, stir and toss in the chopped cilantro. Let sit covered_out of the refrigerator until ready to serve. Do not make too far in advance or you will lose the flavours of the fresh cut tomatoes.

Brush steak with olive oil and season steak with about 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt just before placing on the grill.

Place meat directly on the cooking grates and grill for 3-4 minutes. Turn steak once halfway through the cooking time. Grill a total of 6-8 minutes for medium rare meat. Remove from grill to a clean platter and let rest for 5-7 minutes before carving across the grain. Serve with the braised black beans and the salsa.

Beer-Braised Black Beans: nutrition information per serving: 226 calories; 35 calories from fat; 4 g fat (1 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 240 mg sodium; 33 g carbohydrate; 12 g fiber; 1 g sugar; 11 g protein.

Blistered Corn and Tomato Salsa: nutrition information per serving: 42 calories; 7 calories from fat; 1 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 245 mg sodium; 9 g carbohydrate; 2 g fiber; 4 g sugar; 2 g protein.

Grilled Skirt Steak: nutrition information per serving: 294 calories; 158 calories from fat; 18 g fat (5 g saturated; 1 g trans fats); 103 mg cholesterol; 129 mg sodium; 0 g carbohydrate; 0 g fiber; 0 g sugar; 34 g protein. ■ Elizabeth Karmel is a barbecue and Southern foods expert. She is the chef and pit master at online retailer CarolinaCueToGo.com and the author of three books, including “Taming the Flame.”

Seen & Scenes: Vancouver

FRIDAY AUGUST 26, 2016

APPRECIATION NIGHT Ateneo Alumni Association of BC (AAABC) President Amado G. Mercado III hosted an Appreciation Night in Richmond, B.C. for outgoing AAABC 2016 board and several special guests who helped him raise over $4,000 for the organization (Photos by Christian Cunanan).

PINOY FIESTA Another successful Pinoy Fiesta celebration on Aug.14, at the Memorial South Park spearheaded by Jojo Quimpo (Photos by Laarni Liwanag-de Paula).

ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE This year’s annual Archdiocesan Pilgrimage to the Grotto of our Lady of Lourdes was held on Aug. 20, at the Fraser River Heritage Park in Mission, BC. A procession to the Grotto was preceded by a Mass celebrated by Archbishop Miller, CSB (Photos by Laarni Liwanag-de Paula).

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Seen and Scenes

AUGUST 26, 2016

GRAND CONTINENTAL QUEEN

FRIDAY

TASTE OF MANILA Scenes from “Taste of Manila” held Aug. 20 to 21, at Bathurst and Wilson Sts. in Toronto. The event was organized by Rolly Mangante (chairman); Jose Toralba; Joey Abrenilla; and other members of the board. Special guests include Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; Toronto Mayor John Tory; MP Michael Levitt; Consul General Rosalita Prospero; former Amb. Leslie Gatan; and Premier Katlyn Wynne (Text and photos by Amelia Insigne).

Winners of the Miss Grand Continental Queen Canada 2016 presented by Lunijo in Toronto (Photos by Li Eron).

WINTER ESCAPADE 4 On August 11, 2016 the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto hosted the Winter Escapade 4 launch to promote the tour packages scheduled for February 6-14, 2017 to help you escape the cold winter. Next year’s destinations include Manila, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur and Coron.

For more information, visit www.winterescapade.com and contact winterescapade@rajahtours.com.ph

Consul General Rosalita Propero with Consular staff and reps from Philippine Airlines and Rajah Tours Philippines at the launch of Winter Escapade 4.

NAGCARLAN ASSOCIATION PICNIC

For photo submissions, please email info@canadianinquirer.net.

The Nagcarlan Association of Greater Toronto Area and suburbs held its summer picnic at Thomson Park on Aug. 14. Dr. Tom Viray, president of the association, welcomed members and guests (Photos by Ariel Ramos).

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AUGUST 26, 2016

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CANADA

I'm looking for a Filipino surrogate mother, who currently lives in Edmonton, or is willing to relocate to Edmonton, to carry my baby.

You will need to be between the ages of 21-35, and have given birth to at least 1 child. You also need to be in excellent physical, emotional and mental health. You have never had abuse of drugs/alcohol and you are a non-smoker.

If interested, please send a brief introduction of yourself, with your contact information, to

nathanlee6766@gmail.com

CAREGIVER WANTED

for Elderly lady who lives in Burnhamthorpe and Cawthra area in Mississauga Must have some experience with elderly people and be able to help with some cooking and personal assistance. Can live in or live out as there is a basement apartment. Can work flexible hours to start. Hourly wage can be about $12 per hour.

CONTACT Marisa Cerruti (mother) Marisacerruti@rogers.com Lou Cerruti (son) Lcerruti@claybar.ca

Retail Assistant Manager for Cascade Gift Store - Banff, AB.

Responsibilities: Plan, direct and evaluation the operations of the store; manage staff & assign duties; study market & determine consumer needs; determine merchandise & services to be sold; develop & implement marketing strategies; assist in planning budget & expenditures; resolve customer(s) complaints; determine staffing requirements & hiring, etc.

High School graduate, with 3 yrs of related retail experience at increasing levels of responsibility required.

F/T Permanent: $26.50/hour; 40 hours/week.

Subsidized staff accommodation & Extended health benefits.

Send resume to: Cascade Gifts, P.O. Box 2428, Banff, AB T1L 1C2

elaine@cascadegifts.com

Toronto Enquiries: salestoronto@canadianinquirer.net Philippine Enquiries: salesphilippines@canadianinquirer.net

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Tel: (1) 647-521-5155

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AUGUST 26, 2016

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FRIDAY