Edge Davao 5 Issue 29

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VOL.5 ISSUE 29 • APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

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Mindanao power crisis:

Leaders want ‘cartel’ probed

By Lorie A. Cascaro Jade C. Zaldivar

SCIENCE\ENVIRONMENT Page 4

Sports Page 14

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M

There is a need to investigate the cross n Claim cross ownership of pow- ownership of the power industry in Min-

er firms should be prohibited

danao, according to Secretary Luwalhati Antonino of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) at the close of the summit attended by President Benigno Aquino III at the Waterfront Hotel, Davao City.

Asked about the alleged conspiracy among power sectors resulting in “artificial power shortage,” Antonino replied, “Ang

INDANAO leaders want government to look into an alleged conspiracy among the big players in the power sector in creating an “artificial shortage.”

This, as some officials claimed that President Aquino did not have sufficient

information about the real situation when he attended last Friday’s Mindanao Power Summit.

Antonino

Fuentes

Del Rosario

By Jade C. Zaldivar

the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (Epira) Law. More than 300 energy players and stakeholders from power cooperatives, business organizations, and leagues of public officials in Mindanao gathered at Waterfront Insular Hotel to present their own analysis and recommendations.

“The Mindanao power crisis is not

only a technical issue, but also and significantly, a political one. It would not take political will in order for real solutions to be met,” Mindanao Development Auhority (MinDA) chair Lualhati Antonino said.

Summing up presentations by the Confederation of Provincial Governors, City Mayors and Municipal May-

Cross ownership

FLEADERS, 13

13 ‘solutions’ recommended D ELEGATES to the Mindanao Power Summit held in Davao City last Friday put forward a dozen recommendations to solve the power crisis in the region.

The “solutions” were bannered by the non-privatization of the Agus-Pulangi power plants and the revision of

F13 SOLUTIONS, 13

2 THE BIG NEWS Cagas offers DS towns for hydro development

By Jade C. Zaldivar

W

HILE other local government units are having difficulty deciding whether or not to allow the development of hydro electric power plants in their palces, Davao del Sur Gov. Douglas Ra. Cagas has offered several towns and cities in his province as potential locations for hydro power plants.

Cagas, a veteran lawmaker who’s on his thrid term as governor, made the offer during the 1st Mindanao Power Summit held April 13 at the Waterfront Insular Hotel.

Cagas said his province has numerous bodies of water, such as waterfalls, which can host small power plants.

“What I really came here for (the summit) is to propose that we establish mini hydro power

n Proposes mini-hy-

dro plants

Cagas plants. Aside from the existing plant we have from Hedcor, Davao del Sur can offer a lot of areas where we can establish mini hydros,” Cagas said in an interview.

“We have in Magsaysay, Bansalan, Matanao, New Quezon in Hagonoy, Malita, Sta. Maria, Don Marcelino ang dam-

ing waterfalls sa amin, maraming bodies of water,” he added.

Cagas said the Davao del Sur Electric Cooperative has started to construct facilities in Digos City.

“Although small, if you add up their production eventually it can be a lot of help, it would add up to the needed power and at the same time the availability of power will gain more investors,” Cagas said.

Echoing the consensus of the sunnit delegates, Cagas said he is against privatization of the AgusPulangi plants.

“The governors’ recommendation is to ask the President not to sell the Agus and Pulangi plants, hindi i-privatize.

Inig mabaligya na ang nipalit mangutang, unya ang utang ipatong sa bayronon sa consumers,” he said.

Davao Oriental to generate own power, Gov. Malanyaon

D

AVAO ORIENTAL is capable of generating its own power needs as it shifts development thrust from purely agriculture to industrialization.

This was bared by Gov. Corazon N. Malanyaon, who said that an indepth study made recently shows that the province can generate the power supply that it would need in the future from its sources, especially those to be generated from biomass production. And other forms of renewable energy.

Another study is also

looking into solar energy, the lady governor told Edge Davao.

She said that while the province is not so keen in borrowing money for big ticket projects like power generation, there are already several offers to fund power development

under various schemes.

She said that 50 percent of electricity of the province at the moment is sourced by the Davao Oriental Electric Cooperative (Doreco) from the National Power Corporation, while the rest is taken from the power barges.

She said her people’s concern is more on how they can continue enjoying reasonable rates of electricity as the province develops.

The governor said the Aquino administration should be allowed to look for ways to solve the Mindanao power crisis.

dead wrong in giving the people of Mindanao only two choices, which is to pay higher rates or live in darkness. There is another way, which is to address the power shortage by ensuring that the governmentowned hydroelectric power plants continue to provide cheap and abundant renewable energy to Mindanao,” said Casiño.

He said Mindanao does

not have to follow the path taken by Visayas and Luzon, where electricity rates are the highest in Asia. “In fact, given that its low cost of power gives Mindanao its competitive edge, jacking up the rates would kill the economy and make the people of Mindanao poorer than they already are.”

“The Mindanao Summit is showing the right way to go about develop-

Malanyaon

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

EPIRA AMENDMENT. Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III proposes the immediate amendment of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 that takes out the responsibility of the government in the power generation. [KARLOS MANLUPIG]

Ungab’s committee okays tax exemption for PSF donations

T

HE House Committee on Ways and Means has approved the tax exemption of the proposed People’s Survival Fund to be created by amending Republic Act 9729 otherwise known as the Climate Change Act of 2009.

The panel chaired by Rep. Isidro Ungab (3rd District, Davao City), in a recent hearing prior to the congressional break, approved the bill’s tax provision seeking to exempt from the donor’s tax any donation or bequest made to the People’s Survival Fund.

Prior to its referral to the Committee on Ways and Means chaired by Rep. Isidro Ungab (3rd District, Davao City), the unnumbered substitute bill to HB 1711 authored

by Deputy Speaker Ma. Isabelle Climaco (1st District, Zamboanga City), HB 3528 by Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada III (4th

District, Quezon) and HB 3558 by Rep. Rufus Rodriguez (2nd District, Cagayan de Oro City) were approved by the Committee on Ecology chaired by Rep. Danilo Ramon Fernandez (1st District, Laguna).

Section 14 of the substitute bill provides for the amendment of Section 18 of RA 9729 by inserting certain provisions on the creation of the People’s Survival Fund which shall be established as a special trust fund for the financing or adaptation programs and projects based on the national strategic framework.

The People’s Survival Fund shall be used for activities that actually, directly and exclusively support priority adaptation projects and programs adopted pursuant to climate change action plans of local governments based on the substitute bill.

The committee approved the tax provision

in Section 18 (D) of the measure which provides that “any donation or bequest made to the People’s Survival Fund shall be exempt from donor’s tax and the same shall be considered as allowable deduction from the gross income of the donor, in accordance with the provisions of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.”

The substitute bill provides that the People’s Survival Fund shall be obtained from both public and private sources, either foreign or local, including but not limited to the following: •The initial amount of P50 million to be allotted in the annual General Appropriations Act (GAA), and thereafter, such sum as shall be deemed necessary to carry out the objectives of the fund; • Five percent of emission reductions earned by industries that are domestically

ing the power sector, which is to ensure that state-run plants provide cheap and abundant renewable energy while regulating the industry to avoid monopoly and abuse of market power,” said the progressive solon.

“Pres.Aquino should especially heed the call of the governors of Mindanao who passed a resolution opposing the planned

privatization of the Agus and Pulangi hydropower plants.The governors are also seeking the revision of the EPIRA that would stop the further privatization of public power facilities, prohibit cross-ownership, and declare power plants as public utilities subject to the Public Utilities Act. We in Congress support their calls,” said the Davao-born lawmaker.

Mindanao lawmakers, on the other hand, are proposing the creation of a Mindanao Power Corporation to run the rehabilitated Agus and Pulangui hydroelectric plants.

Casiño said that he was dismayed at Pres. Aquino’s response to the summit.

“Instead of listening and keeping an open mind to the sound and logical proposals to stop the privati-

FUNGAB’S, 13

Casiño: Noynoy should listen to Mindanao stakeholders

A

FTER attending the Mindanao Power Summit Friday, Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño called on President Benigno Aquino III to listen to the people of Mindanao and not make the same mistake as his predescesors did in the Visayas and Luzon, which was to totally privatize power and jack up prices.

“The President was not only insensitive but

It figures

4percent GROWTH rate of the Philippine economy expected by Moody’s Analytics in 2012. This slower than targeted caused by the dampening effects of a still weak global economy on Southeast Asian countries. Moody’s likewise expects the Philippine economy to grow at 4.8 percent in 2013.

5million tons P195.1billion 9.9percent YEARLY sugarcane production in Mindanao, according to the Philippine Sugar Millers Association. PSMA said the region’s four sugar mills generate about 1.5 million tons of bagasse (biomass), a potential source of surplus power of up to 70MW if only government fully implements the Renewable Energy Law.

AMOUNT spent by the government in paying its debts in January and February, 2012, down 19 percent from the P242.3 billion paid in the same period last year, according to the Bureau of the Treasury.

DROP in car sales in the Philippines in the first quarter, from 36,184 units in 2011 to only 32,608 units from January to March, this year. However, the automotive sector remains confident that it is on track to a full recovery this year.

$50million MONEY businessman Herminio Disini, a crony of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, which the Sandiganbayan ordered him to return to the Filipino people. The amount, according to Sandiganbayan, represented “ill-gotten” commissions that Disini got brokering the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in 1974.

FCASIÑO, 13

7,000 NUMBER of summer jobs offered by the private sector for students and out-of-school youths to help them pay for their education. Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the jobs are made available under the DOLE Special Program for Employment of Students.

EDGEDAVAO

THE BIG NEWS

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

You can now buy your favorite Business Paper from any of these establishments still at Php 15.

Koronadal

Twister kills girl in South Cotabato A tornado ripped through two villages in the town of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato last Tuesday afternoon, killing a 12-year-old girl and injuring two other residents.

In a belated report,

the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said Friday the twister ravaged residential and farming communities in Barangays Poblacion and Lamdalag of Lake Sebu at around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

The lone fatality was identified as KC Dawang, who was reportedly inside their house in Sitio Lem-ehek, Poblacion when it was struck by the twister.

Two local residents - Imelda Swan of Sitio

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3

THE BIBLE PREACHER AND THE BAD BOY. Sarangani Representative ‘Manny’ Pacquiao immediately sits beside close friend Ilocos Sur Governor ‘Chavit’ Singson during the Mindanao Power Summit held here April 13. Pacquiao in February announced his being Bible Ambassador, and confessed he used to ‘do evil things like gambling

and womanizing’ while Singson confirmed March it was him in a photo enjoying a hedonistic party with women in a private plane. This, Singson said, was for a liquor ad but nonetheless the photo has gone viral online. [JADE C. ZALDIVAR]

Lem-ehek, Poblacion and four-year-old Kayla Faith Tampungan of Sitio Tabudtod in Barangay Lamdalag - were injured after trees fell on their houses.

The NDRRMC said 15 families in the two named sitios also lost their homes as a result of the incident.

Isidro Janita, South Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) chief, said Friday they immediately extended food and relief assistance worth P19,800 to the affected residents.

The municipal government of Lake Sebu, through its Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, has also extended emergency assistance worth 5,000 to the victims, including fuel for the chainsaws used in the clearing of the felled trees, logs and other debris in the affected communities. [ALLEN V. ESTABILLO/MINDANEWS]

EDGEDAVAO 4 SCIENCE\ENVIRONMENT Rainfed agriculture Water: Progenitor of next war? to ease climate change VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

By Jims Vincent T. Capuno

T

HE Philippines has more than three million hectares of dryland or rainfed areas or three-fourth of the 10 million hectares of cultivated areas that can be the next frontiers for food production.

However, farming is becoming difficult because of the problem associated with climate change.

In a symposium, “Enhancing Philippine-International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (Phl-ICRISAT) Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development”, the Philippine Rainfed Agriculture Research Development and Extension Program (PhiRARDEP) was discussed and given due concern by all stakeholders promoting agriculture.

Patrick L. Cabrera, technical staff of the Department of AgricultureBureau of Agricultural Research (DA-BAR), one of the symposium discussants, explained that climate change is undoubtedly the biggest global challenge, and the Philippines is one of the most vulnerable to this phenomenon.

Cabrera said the people who live in drylands are at high risk due to drought, pest infestation, poor and degraded soils and lack in physical structure and social services.

He defined rainfed agriculture as referring to the cultivation of crops without irrigation utilizing mainly water that comes from precipitation stored in the unsaturated soil. This also refers to drylands mostly located in Northern Luzon, Central Visayas and Southern Mindanao.

Over five million poor households are dependent on dryland farming and it contributes only about 40 percent of total domestic food production, Cabrera said.

The country has vast drylands in higher elevations as well as in coastal areas.

Cabrera said that BAR, as the national coordinator for research and development in agriculture, has been tasked to lead in the mapping out and formulation of a unified and integrated PHIRARDEP. This was done through a consultation-workshop with researchers, experts and project implementers from the national and regional DA agencies and other stakeholders including state universities and colleges (SUCs).

PHIRARDEP is en-

visioned to strengthen and invigorate the existing rainfed systems and practices, thereby hastening the development of rainfed agriculture in the country. This program will serve as the country’s proactive defense to mitigate drought, land degradation and other risks arising from climate change.

Moreover, it will significantly contribute to poverty alleviation and social empowerment through sustained and improved livelihoods brought about by a stable and secured supply of suitable crops in Philippine rainfed areas.

This RDE program will mean more investments, community participation and better social services in the long run, according to the BAR technical staff.

The PHIRARDEP’s specific objectives are as follows: 1. Adapt, test and promote suitable farming systems and drought-mitigation strategies in Phl rainfed areas; 2. Increase rainwater use efficiency and water availability in rainfed areas through rainwater conservation and rainwater harvesting interventions; 3. Enhance livelihood opportunities in rainfed communities through th adoption of appropriate income generating activities for women and small farm holders; 4. Support the formulation and advocacy of enabling policies and institutional strategies for rainfed areas; and 5. Strengthen capacities and mobilize various stakeholders to harness the full potential of the entire rainfed value chain.

The program’s components are: 1. Rainfed farming systems innovation -– develops cutting edge and demonstrates new business and funding models on profitable farming systems for major crops/ trees that could be grown in marginal, droughtprone areas; 2. Participatory watershed management; 3. Strategic social science and policy research; and 4. Capacity building, communication and social mobilization.

The primary beneficiaries of the program are the smallholder rainfed communities. Policy-makers, local administrators, development workers and researchers will also benefit from the outputs of the program. [PNA]

I

N 1979, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat said: “The only matter that could take Egypt to war again is water.”

In other parts of the world, water could also be the primary reason why a country would declare war against another country.

As World Bank’s Ismail Serageldin said in 1995: “The wars of the next century will be about water.”

“The world has got a very big water problem,” says Sir Crispin Tickell, former British ambassador to the United Nations and one of the organizers of the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. “It will be the progenitor of more wars than oil.”

Next to air, water is the element most necessary for survival. A normal adult is 60- to 70-percent water. A person can live without food for almost two months, but without water only for a few days.

A household of five needs at least 120 liters per day to meet basic needs – for drinking, food preparation, cooking and cleaning up, washing and personal hygiene, laundry, house cleaning, according to the Washington-based Worldwatch Institute, a global environmental group.

A person needs at least 24 liters of water daily, or one liter per hour. Even when he is breathing, he still needs water. “Our lungs must be moist to take in oxygen and excrete carbon dioxide,” wrote Leroy Perry in an article. “It is possible to lose half a liter of liquid each day just by exhaling.”

That’s how important water is. While 70 percent of the earth’s surface is water, only three percent of it is considered fresh water – and almost all of that three percent is inaccessible for human use. About threequarters of all fresh water on this planet is locked away in the form of ice caps and glaciers located in polar areas far from most human habitation.

In all, only about 0.01 percent of the world’s total water supply is considered available for human use on a regular basis. “If the world’s freshwater supply amounted to the contents of a bathtub,” explains Don Hinrichsen, an award-winning American environmental journalist, “the amount easily accessible to humanity would fill a thimble.”

Today, water is becoming a rare commodity.

“There is now no longer an unlimited supply of fresh water and international competition for it is growing. As demand grows, the competition will grow more fierce and more violent,” observed Mostafa Tolba, former executive director of the UN Environment Program.

The world should listen. By 2050, as many as 7 billion people – more than currently alive in the world today – may live under conditions of water scarcity and stress. “Water

crisis is becoming one of the most pressing environmental and developmental problems facing humanity,” agrees Don Hinrichsen, an environmental journalist who has done studies on water crisis for Johns Hopkins University and Wood-

infrastructure and endemic corruption.

“If the present trends continue, Asian will soon face a water quality management that is unprecedented in human history,” warns Kallidaikurichi Seetharam, director of the Institute of

row Wilson International Center for Scholars. “It may very well end up being one of the main issues confronting humanity as we proceed further into the twenty-first century.”

The Rockefeller familyfunded Asia Society agrees.

Its new report, Asia’s Next Challenge: Securing the Region’s Water Future, has identified water as the “next nexus of conflict.” So much so that it urges national governments of Asia to put water security on the “political and developmental agenda.”

An estimated 799 million people in Asia do not have access to safe drinking water, said Professor Tommy Koh, chairman of the Asia-Pacific Water Forum Governing Council.

The region’s water woes stem from a combination of inadequate supplies to service an increasing urban population, pollution, poor

Water Policy in Singapore.

“In two or three years, (the Philippines) could be in a real water crisis,” a World Bank official told Financial Times.

In 2007, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) sounded the alarm. The study said that unless things are turned around, river and groundwater systems will fail by 2025. Only about33 percent of river systems are still suitable as a supply source and up to 58 percent of groundwater sources are

“While 70 percent of the earth’s surface is water, only three percent of it is considered fresh water – and almost all of that three percent is inaccessible for human use.”

Quips

now contaminated.

The country has 421 principal rivers. During dry months, 16 rivers are touted to be “biologically dead,” according to the ADB study.

In addition, it warned that water availability could be “unsatisfactory” in eight of the country’s 19 major river basins.

The ability of groundwater – or water held underground or in pores and crevices in rocks – to meet future water demand was also projected to be very limited, amounting to only 20 percent of the total water requirement in the country’s nine main urban centers by 2025.

“Groundwater is used for drinking by about 50 percent of the people in the country,” said a report from the World Bank. Forty-nine percent of groundwater is consumed by the domestic sector and the remaining is shared by agriculture (32 percent), industry (15 percent), and other sectors. “About 60 percent of the groundwater extraction is without water-right permits, resulting in indiscriminate withdrawal,” the bank deplored.

‘GIVEN the recent tragedy in Japan and the rethinking of utilizing nuclear power in places like Germany, we are not thinking of getting into nuclear energy,’ --Malacanang Palace Spokesman Edwin Lacierda. PDI

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

THE ECONOMY

Hydro not sustainable source of power: PNoy P

RESIDENT Benigno S. Aquino III yesterday said the Mindanao needs a more diverse mix of energy sources if the demand of power supply cannot rely anymore on the existing hydropower to provide the base load of the entire island.

Speaking before the stakeholders during the Mindanao Power Summit in Waterfront Insular Hotel here, the President said the Mindanao is relying on hydropower for more than half of its consistent consumption, the base load, which is not sustainable anymore, considering the many variables that affect water supply – from rainfall, to

natural calamities, even to seasonal variations like El Niño.

However, the President said he is open for the rehabilitation of the Pulangi and Agus Plants.

He added Pulangi plant will be rehabilitated within one month while Agus Plant 6 will be rehabilitated within 30 months. The President also said Mindanao needs reliable and long-term electric power to accommodate the economic development of the island.

Meanwhile, the President said Mindanao’s energy production capacity is at 1,280 megawatts including the 200 megawatts from the barges, “which I must thank the

cooperatives for contracting,” he said.

He further stressed Mindanao’s peak demand is at 1,300 so there is a need of 20 megawatts more to meet the peak demand. “But we also have to meet the reserve margin of 150 megawatts. So, what this really means is we need 170 megawatts more,” the President added.

Furthermore, Pres.

Aquino said that in 2003, National Power Corporation’s (NAPOCOR) debt had already reached a staggering P1.24 trillion which is 24.3 percent of total consolidated public sector debt.

He added this debt was bigger than the entire

General Appropriations Act for that year. “The country faced a continuing, hopeless dilemma which is to pay NAPOCOR or pay for everything else like roads, schools, and health care,” the President said.

Aquino said this explains why Congress passed the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. “The idea behind it was: NAPOCOR would sell its power plants to private investors, and use the proceeds to pay its debt. This was supposed to put an end to the never-ending, increasing debt. It also freed money that could go to essential government services,” President Aquino added.

5

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Tulip Drive, Ecoland, Davao City

F. Torres St., Davao City Tel No. 227-3773 - (72) Fax: 295-3485

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6

THE ECONOMY

Stat Watch

1. Gross National Income Growth Rate (At Constant 2000 Prices)

3.5% 4th Qtr 2011

2. Gross Domestic Product Growth Rate (At Constant 2000 Prices)

3.7% 4th Qtr 2011 USD 3,342 Million Nov 2011 USD 4,985 Million Nov 2011 USD -1,643 Million Nov 2011 USD -114 Million Dec 2011 P4,442,355 Million Nov 2011

3. Exports 1/ 4. Imports 1/ 5. Trade Balance 6. Balance of Payments 2/ 7. Broad Money Liabilities 8. Interest Rates 4/

4.71% Oct 2011 P128,745 Million Nov 2011 P 4,898 Billion Oct 2011

9. National Government Revenues 10. National government outstanding debt

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

PNoy: Consumers should ‘bite the bullet’

S

AYING the people should “bite the bullet” a little bit more President Benigno Aquino III today rejected calls to stop the privatization of the power industry as a solution to the power crisis in the island.

Speaking at the Mindanao Power Summit at the Waterfront Insular Hotel Davao, Aquino said Republic of the Philippines Department of Transportation and Communications LAND TRANSPORTATION FRANCHISING AND REGULATORY BOARD Regional Office No. XI Davao city Petition for Renewal of a Certificate of Public Convenience to operate a PUJ DUAL Ordinary Regular Service.

EUGENIO L. LIMLAO, Petitioner Case No.2003-XI-00448 x- - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -x NOTICE HEARING

11. Peso per US $ 5/

P 43.65 Dec 2011

12. Stocks Composite Index 6/

3,999.7 Sept 2011

13. Consumer Price Index 2006=100

128.1 Jan 2012

14. Headline Inflation Rate 2006=100

3.9 Jan 2012

15. Core Inflation Rate 2006=100

3.4 Dec 2011

16. Visitor Arrivals

284,040 Sept 2011

17. Underemployment Rate 7/

19.1% Oct 2011

At least, FIVE (5) days prior to the above date petitioner shall publish this Notice once in a one (1) daily newspaper of general circulation in Mindanao

18. Unemployment Rate 7/

6.4% Oct 2011

Parties opposed to the granting of the petition must file their written opposition supported by documentary evidence on or before the above date furnishing a copy of the same to the petitioner, and may if they so, desire appear on said date and time.

MONTHLY AVERAGE EXCHANGE RATE (January 2009 - December 2011) Month

2011

2010

2009

Average December November October September August July June May April March

43.31 43.64 43.27 43.45 43.02 42.42 42.81 43.37 43.13 43.24 43.52

45.11 43.95 43.49 43.44 44.31 45.18 46.32 46.30 45.60 44.63 45.74

47.637 46.421

February

43.70

46.31

January

44.17

46.03

47.032 46.851 48.139

48.161 48.146 47.905 47.524 48.217

48.458 47.585 47.207

EDGEDAVAO

Petitioner is a grantee of a Certificate of Public Convenience issued in this case authorizing the operation of a PUJ-DUAL Ordinary Regular service on the route: ECOLAND SUBDIVISION (SM CITY OF DAVAO) ROUTE and for cargoes as dual service from said route to any point in Region XI with the use of ONE (1) unit, which certificate will expire on January 22, 2013. In the petition filed on February 17, 2012, petitioner request authority to extend the validity of said certificate to operate along the same route with the use of the same unit previously authorized.

NOTICE, is hereby given that this petition will be heard by this Board on APRIL 30, 2012 at 09:00 a. m. at this office at the above address.

government was bent on pursuing the privatization intent of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira) to remove the pestering financial burden plaguing the National Power Corp.

But he assured that removing the shackles of the heavily indebted state-run NPC, whose debt stood at P1.24 trillion in 2003 or more than the national budget that year, could free more money to build new power plants or improve further the investment attraction “not only of the energy sector in Mindanao”.

Aquino was reacting to a consensus recommendation from the business and political leaders in Mindanao to “eliminate the privatization policy” in the Epira, extend the nationalization policy for the hydroelectric power plants in the region and, in case of hikes in power rates, “make it cheaper over the rate in Luzon and the Visayas”.

Aquino explained the Epira was intended for NPC to sell its power plants to private investors, and use the proceeds to pay its debt.

“This was supposed to put an end to the neverending increasing debt.

It also freed money that could go to essential government services.”

He said erasing the debt would have multiplier implications, and in the case of Mindanao “businesses will improve our energy sector’s ca-

This petition will be acted upon by this Board on the basis of its records and the documentary evidence submitted by the parties, unless the Board deems it necessary to receive additional documentary and/or oral evidence.

WITNESS the Honorable BENJAMIN A. GO, CESO V, Regional Director, this 17th day of February 2012 at Davao City.

TERESITA DELA PEÑA-YÑIGUEZ Chief Transport Development Officer /hoc Copy furnished: Petitioner, Eugenio L. Limlao, #40 Orange St., Spring Village, Ma-a, Davao City Counsel, Atty. Eduardo T. Manzano, Rm 208, New Borgaily Bldg., San Pedro St., Davao City NOTE: Affidavit of Publication and newspaper where notice was published must be submitted three (3) days before the scheduled hearing.

pacities as opposed to the old government-run system, in which these companies’ leaders had no qualms about mortgaging the country’s future to satisfy the people and to please the appointing body”.

But Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casino noted that the NPC “remains indebted despite paying billions of debts over the past 10 years.”

“From 2001 to 2010, Napocor shelled out $18 billion to service its financial obligations. Yet, from $16.4 billion in 2001, Napocor’s debts remained high at $15.8 billion as of 2010,” Casino said in a statement yesterday.

He said power rates have doubled and NPC rates have jumped by at least 95 percent 10 years after Epira was implemented.

“You just have to bite the bullet a little more,” Aquino told the summit, saying that efforts, including the scheduled shutdown of one power plant in Bukidnon, would proceed to retrieve more embedded capacities in the existing power plants that were downgraded by years of wear and tear.

Of the repair work on its seven power plants in the Agus complex in Lanao and Pulangi complex in Bukidnon, the complete shutdown of the Pulangi plant was the more threatening, with 140 megawatts of running power to be lost within a month beginning April 17. But he

said that another 100 mw would be retrieved after the repair on the eroded portion of the water channel in the dam.

Aquino said this would leave 70 mw more to even the overall demand of 1,300 mw in Mindanao, whose grid would be primed up more to reach the target of 1,450 mw. He said that this remaining deficit would be sourced from the other generating sources.

But he warned that this leveling of the capacity with the demand was precarious “because if any one of the plants malfunction, then the problem returns”.

To improve the reliability of the base load, “the simple truth is: you have to pay more,” he said.

“Of our P1.8-trillion budget, remember that only P400 billion of this is programmable. So, can government pay for new plants, plus old loans, and still provide the services and facilities you need?” he added.

Vicente Lao, president of the Mindanao Business Council, expressed reservation about the denial of the Mindanao position to shield the island’s hydroelectric power plants from being sold at auction. “Will we still have to pay more because we believe that the loans would not still be fully paid after we sell these plants?”

He expressed the same apprehension over the likelihood of interconnecting Mindanao to the

surplus grid in the Visayas and Luzon. “We expect that the NGCP [transmission company National Grid Corp. of the Philippines] would charge us in our bills to recover the interconnection project.”

Aquino said that Mindanao has to accept some trade-offs in exchange for reliable supply. “What we need you to realize is that the old days of cheap power are no longer sustainable, and you must also put in your fair share in solving the problem. You have to pay a little more for the current and future health of the energy sector in Mindanao,” he explained.

Since January, the NGCP has reduced the power supply sent to the 27 power distributors and electric cooperatives in the island due to shortage in supply allegedly due to reduced generation from the hydroelectric power plants and the partial utilization of the other sources of energy.

Areas in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Southwestern and Southeastern Mindanao, including those in Bukidnon serviced by the Bukidnon Second Electric Cooperative, had to sustain brownouts lasting as long as four hours.

After the government agreed to remove the mandated contingency reserve and use it in the grid, brownouts had reportedly improved also in these areas by half.

Davao City, some areas in Davao del Norte, Cagayan de Oro City and some parts of the Caraga Region, You want to EXPORT your products? either have rotating brownouts of 30 Is your company READY for export? minutes or none at all.

Aside from askA strong business plan will proof your export-readiness! ing Aquino to shield the hydroelectric We have more than 30 years’ experience in business analy- power plants in Minfrom privatisis and provide excellent and successful business plans at danao zation, the Mindanao governors and sevvery affordable rates. eral organizations also wanted to speed up the processing Contact Raf Vlummens at 092 0675 2754 or trv. and permitting prodavao@gmail.com cess by the national government. “For example, it would take trv business consultancy two years to get a water right,” said SaSME Center - Chamber building rangani Gov. Miguel JP Laurel Ave., Davao City Rene Dominguez.

(MINDANEWS)

as of august 2010

Cebu Pacific Daily Zest Air Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Philippine Airlines Daily Philippine Airlines Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri/Sun Philippine Airlines Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Silk Air Mon/Wed/Sat Cebu Pacific Thu Cebu Pacific Tue/Wed//Sat

5J961 / 5J962 Z2390 / Z2390 5J593 / 5J348 PR809 / PR810 PR819 / PR820 5J394 / 5J393 5J599 / 5J594 5J347 / 5J596 5J963 / 5J964 PR811 / PR812 5J595 / 5J966 MI588 / MI588 5J965 / 5J968 5J965 / 5J968

5:45 5:45 6:00 6:10 7:50 7:50 8:00 9:10 9:40 11:30 12:00 18:55 12:55 13:35

Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Cebu-Davao-Iloilo Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Zamboanga-Davao-Zamboanga Cebu-Davao-Cebu Iloilo-Davao-Cebu Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Cebu-Davao-Manila Davao-Cebu-Singapore Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila

6:15 6:25 6:30 7:00 8:50 8:10 8:30 9:40 10:10 12:20 12:30 13:35 13:25 14:05

Silk Air Thu/Sun Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri Philippine Airlines August Zest Air Daily Cebu Pacific Daily Philippines Airlines Daily Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Thu/Sat Cebu Pacific Daily Cebu Pacific Tue/Sat/Sun Cebu Pacific Daily Airphil Express Daily Philippine Airlines Daily except Sunday Philippine Airlines Sunday

MI566 / MI566 5J507 / 5J598 15:55 Z2524 / Z2525 5J967 / 5J600 PR813 / PR814 5J215 / 5J216 5971 / 5J970 5J973 / 5J974 5J969 / 5J972 2P987 / 2P988 PR821 / PR822 PR821 / PR822

18:55 15:00 Mani2Mani 16:05 16:35 16:55 18:00 18:40 20:00 20:30 20:30 21:20 22:20

Davao-Singapore Cebu-Davao-Cebu 16:50 Cebu-Davao-Cebu Manila-Davao-Cebu Manila-Davao-Manila Cagayan de Oro-Davao-Cagayan de Oro Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila Manila-Davao-Manila

15:20 15:30 16:45 17:05 17:45 18:20 19:10 20:30 21:00 21:00 21:50 22:50

MOTORING

EDGEDAVAO VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012 Riding the wrong lane

T

IME was when the road going to Diversion Highway through Marfori-Chinese Cemetery-Bacaca is a very lonely road.

Not today.

I used to call it “The road less taken” from Robert Frost’s 1915 poem. Now it is the road of choice for most motorists living or heading to, or coming from the city’s North side. That is why for us using this road everyday, the traffic has gone from deserted to dreadful.

Although traffic has improved this summer break, this is but a short respite. The usual heavy traffic would still be from 6 to 8 in the morning and 4 to 6 in the afternoon.

Worse, a single accident is this section especially the Ladislawa ascent (descent if you are coming from the city) automatically results to a bottleneck. Then you can expect your schedule for the day to change for the worse.

It’s that vulnerable. No thanks to speeding motorcycles who I count as having been involved in the most incidents of road accidents in this area.

Not to despise our motorcycle-riding motorists, I think most will agree with me that these small machines run faster than we imagine.

Or shall we say, they are rid-

den faster than they should be. Add to their loud exhaust pipes and the knack of some bikers to ride ala threadingthe-needle. Snaking their way through tight line of cars.

Some counter-flow their way through like they’re not even afraid to run smack on your car.

Are these guys born with metal bones and self-regenerating bodies and appendages?

Why the heck most of them drive like there’s no tomorrow is a mystery to me considering that these 100, 125 and 150 cc machines are as light as a feather. A little bump here or a little skid there is already a lifetime of difference for the bike and the rider.

Last week after a meeting with the Department of Tourism at the Landco Building, I drove through the exit going to Torres Street. The vehicles from the JP Laurel side already stopped to give way to my turning left. Just after my car’s hood crossed the middle of the road and as I turn the wheel to the left, a motorcycle wiggled his way frantically to avoid hitting me. He rode the wrong lane and sped faster than he should.

The man was lucky. I too was. But you see, incidents like these are not the first time I experienced in the road. Will this biker tell me why he had to ride the wrong lane and risk life and limbs?

I am sure you have experienced similar incidents on the road too.

Our roads are not big and wide here in Davao.

Yes, for the biggest city in the world, it is unfortunate that we still have to ride and drive the narrowest roads.

7

‘For the 2012 model year, Isuzu has designated the 4×4 D-MAX LS as the “Radikal” variant.’

I

SUZU Philippines Corporation continues the winning tradition of the D-MAX as the diesel authority launches the 2012 model of the bestselling pickup. A recent recipient of the “Best OnBoard Entertainment” trophy in the pickup category of the 2011 Auto Focus People’s Choice Awards, the 2012 D-MAX further proves that when it comes to versatility and dependability, “The Possibilities are Endless,” which is its marketing catchphrase for the year.

For the 2012 model year, Isuzu has desig-

nated the 4×4 D-MAX LS as the “Radikal” variant.

It features a color-keyed bumper over-rider up front, genuine Isuzu bedliner at the back, and the distinctive “Radikal” badge on the sheet metal.

The cosmetic and functional upgrades complement the D-MAX’s proven standard equipment: powerful 3.0-liter 4JJ1-TC iTEQ commonrail diesel engine; durable ladder-type chassis; comfortable FlexRide suspension system; 2-DIN audio-video head unit with navigation-

ready system; projectortype headlamps that provide 14% more illumination than their ordinary counterparts; side-impact steel beams; dual front airbags; ABS with electronic brakeforce distribution; reverse camera and sensor; two-tone (4×2 LS) and Elegant Black (4×4 LS) seat materials; and a high-center console box.

“The continued sales and critical success of the D-MAX is proof of its world-class quality,” says IPC President Ryoji Yamazaki. “This is the result of our sensitivity to

the unique requirements of the Philippine pickup market. The 2012 model is designed to preserve the D-MAX’s lofty stature in its highly competitive segment.”

The 2012 Isuzu DMAX is now available in Rich Red, Magma Red, Midnight Blue, Ebony Black, Glacial White and Titanium Silver.

For other inquiries, visit your nearest Isuzu dealership now. In Davao City, the Isuzu DMax is available at Isuzu Motors Davao (Southern Motors Davao) along McArthur Highway.

biking expedition. The trail-finding journey was marked by heavy rains and muddy conditions, almost rendering the road impassable.

Actually, by normal standards, it could have been impassable. But the D-MAX was a beast.

This 4x4 monster is a trusty beast on adverse road conditions. Not even the almost zero visibility coming down with heavy fogging could stop this off-

road genius.

In the actual take, we loaded the D-MAX with bikes and set off for the expedition. Once again, the weather tested the D-MAX and our bikes to the fullest. In a place where the motorcycles and trucks tie their tires with chains to be able to manoeuvre through rock-strewn roads without much traction because of the thick mud, the D-MAX survived the muddy onslaught.

D-MAX Discoveride in Kapatagan

W

E took the Isuzu D-MAX 4x4 Boondocks Edition to Kapatagan, Davao del Sur for the first ever Discoveride Mountain Bike expedition organized by the Mindanao Travel Channel and Bravetower Events Promotions.

Twice, we trekked Kaatagan and all of its 1,200-meter elevation on muddy conditions and we did not regret the decision to do the shoot in partnership with Isuzu DMAX courtesy of Southern Motors Davao.

The first time we got up the chilly hills of Davao del Sur, which is a popular take-off point for Mt. Apo climbers, was to scale the terrain and discover trails for the mountain

KAPATAGAN DISCOVERIDE. The Isuzu D-MAX 4x4 Boondocks got fully-loaded with mountain bikes and conquered Kapatagan’s slippery road conditions.

8 VANTAGE POINTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

South China Sea 101 SPECIAL FEATURE

BY GLORIA JANE BAYLON

E

EDITORIAL

Classic suit

S

OMETHING big and classic is about to happen in the Big City.

A group of physicians and other concerned citizens is set to file a P1-billion class suit against the owners of motor vehicles proven to contribute to the worsening air pollution inManila by emitting toxic substances.

The suit will include the transportation secretary who happens to be Manuel “Mar” Roxas II. Although bad publicity for Mar, the politician, this is definitely welcome news to all citizens who are exasperated by the government’s continued failure to check air pollution, not only in Manila, but also in other areas of the country.

In a statement, the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) said it will include the transportation secretary (Roxas) because his agency, the Department of Transportation and Communication, is mandated by the clear air law to ensure that motor vehicles that are registered do not spew toxic substances into the air.

Among those targeted by the suit are negligent private companies and government regulatory agencies tasked with safeguarding air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR).

“The current state of air in the metropolis poses a clear and present danger to the lives of the people residing in the area,” the PMA

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Door 14 ALCREJ Building, Quirino Avenue, 8000, Davao City, Philippines Tel: (082) 301-6235 Telefax: (082) 221-3601 www.edgedavao.net editorial@edgedavao.net marketing@edgedavao.net

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stated, adding that “it does not only bring respiratory illnesses to Metro Manilans but can also result in cardiovascular problems like heart attack, stroke and sudden death.”

PMA president Oscar Tinio said 80 percent of the air pollutants in Metro Manila come from the more than 3.2 million motor vehicles plying the streets of the metropis daily.”

According to PMA Manila Governor Leo Olarte, an orthopedic surgeon and a practising lawyer, the Philippine Clean Air Act (RA 8749) recognizes the principle that “polluters must pay.”

Once air polluters are penalized without exception, their ‘partners-in-crime’ are expected to quickly get on the side of the law— or else! That would be a big leap towards drastically reducing air pollution and attaining that longed for ‘nirvana’: a Metro Manila largely free from life-threatening pollutants, thanks to its clean air. This will be good for its population, including Mar Roxas himself and his yet-to-be-born offsprings.

We laud PMA President Tinio and his association for finally coming out strong against a long existing problem and for “biting the bullet” as it were with its billion-peso proposed class suit against the major polluters.

The time has come to confront the government’s “noynoying” on the decades-old problem.

ANTONIO M. AJERO Editor in Chief

RAMON M. MAXEY Consultant

GREGORIO G. DELIGERO CARLO P. MALLO Associate Features and Lifestyle KENNETH IRVING K. ONG KARLOS C. MANLUPIG • JOSEPH LAWRENCE P. GARCIA LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR., Creative Solutions Photography LORIE ANN A. CASCARO • JADE C. ZALDIVAR • MOSES C. BILLACURA Staff Writers

Columnists: MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. BORBON • MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • EMILY ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA Economic Analyst: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG

JOCELYN S. PANES Director of Sales

SOLANI D. MARATAS Finance

RICHARD C. EBONA IMELDA P. LEE Advertising Specialists

AGUSTIN V. MIAGAN JR Circulation

CAGAYAN DE ORO MARKETING OFFICE

LEIZEL A. DELOSO | Marketing Manager Unit 6, Southbank Plaza Velez-Yacapin Sts. Cagayan de Oro City Tel: (088) 852-4894

MANILA MARKETING OFFICE

ANGELICA R. GARCIA | Marketing Manager Blk. 1, Lot 10, La Mar Townhomes, Apitong St., Marikina Heights, Marikina City Tel: (02) 942-1503

(Part 1)

ditor’s Note: This is a Q-and-A primer on territorial and sovereignty claims, in part or in whole, of the South China Sea, a timely snapshot read particularly now that the Scarborough scare has just been upon us.

Scarborough shoal is the international reference for what the Philippines now call “Panatag” (calm), alternatively Bajo de Masinloc. Scarborough and “Pagasa” Island (hope) in the Kalayaan Island Group of the internationally-referred Spratlys Archipelago are also claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan. In Chinese, Scarborough is called “Huangyan Dao,” Pag-asa is known as “Zhongye Dao,” and the Spratlys as “Nansha.”

Philippine claims to Pag-asa island, which is a barangay in itself under Palawan’s jurisdiction was officially laid in 1974 when Admiral Tomas Cloma left a note there for the world to notice and the issue forwarded to the United Nations. I have seen that note and Cloma’s bust in the three times that I was privileged to fly to Pag-asa and boodle-fought with Philippine soldiers stationed in that desolate terrain.

The claim to Bajo de Masinloc was supposedly made even earlier, which was followed by a scientific exploration. Between the two areas, that with Scarborough -proven to have rich oil and gas deposits -— is for now believed to be an even more touchy claim for the Philippines and China.

Completing the list of claimants of other reefs, atolls and sandbars in the Nansha are Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan.

For us in the media, this 22-page English-language publication is a commendable move on the part of China. The closest I got to related literature from the Philippine side is the controversial Republic Act 9522, the Philippines Baselines Act of 2009. I was presented a draft map of Philippine territory based on those baselines that was prepared by the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA), the official Philippine cartographer. I still have to actually obtain an official Chinese map that shows the dashes to its Nansha claims.

As to the Q-and-A primer itself, personally given to me by Chinese ambassador to Manila Ma Keqing, we still have to find one from the Philippine side that is as clear-cut about China’s stand on the South China Sea dispute.

Ask yourself: if even many in the media do not fully grasp the issue of the sonamed West Philippine Sea, how can the general public be far behind? It is enviable that China has a specific government think tank handling the issue of the South China.

After the scare of this week, we are assured that China and the Philippines are bent on resolving their conflicting territorial claims diplomatically. But how many times have we heard this diplomatese uttered, particularly since after 2009 when the Philippines formally presented its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) claims based on the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS).

True, it is the job of the armed forces to protect our sovereignty and our maritime environment, but after the verbal braggadocio, we retreat into a diplomatic cubicle? Better to be restrained and circumspect from start to finish; can we really afford the posturing?

President Aquino was right to say that violence should be avoided even as we assert sovereignty.

For now, China also wants their differences shelved while projects for joint cooperation in the disputed areas are contemplated, citing the more encompassing and greater issue of Philippine-China interests. “No party to the disputes should impose its claim of jurisdiction on other parties.”

For its part, the Philippines wants that Beijing first agree to some parameters or “talking points” before even considering sitting on the discussion table. This includes China pointing out which specific areas could be developed jointly for oil/ gas/seismic exploration, etc. There is a stand-off here.

To be continued

EDGEDAVAO

N

VANTAGE POINTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

No sign of signing

Misplaced fears

O matter how hard I did, I couldn’t find the flimsiest reason for the Philippine government to fret over the scheduled launching of North Korea’s Unha-3 long-range rocket that will bring a weather satellite into orbit and hype it as a security threat.

The rocket is unarmed, and that’s a clear-cut assurance it isn’t aimed against any imagined target, not even against either of its two nemeses, Japan or South Korea. If this is the case, why would the Philippines embroil itself in an issue in which it has no direct stakes? The government was acting irresponsibly by spreading fears and treating the event as if a nuclear weapon was about to be launched.

Some elements of the media only added to the confusion by uncritically echoing Malacanang’s alarmist statements. Last night, I was aghast to know

SOMEONE ELSE’S WINDOWS

BY MARCOS C. MORDENO that a multi-awarded [kuno] broadcast journalist found it all right to feed her viewers with “news” that tended to portray that the rocket launch could wreak terrible havoc on us.

Now, aside from the need for the media to be sober and discreet in reporting events related to the rocket launch, let’s be candid about other things and not indulge in delusions.

The Philippines is a nobody when it comes to geopolitics. Whatever we say on North Korea’s plans won’t create a ripple in Pyongyang, although it will earn for President Aquino a pat on the back from President Obama with a complimentary “that’s my boy.”

We are a nobody when it comes to

We are a nobody when it comes to geopolitics. In fact, we can’t even assert our legal, historical right to Sabah in Northern Borneo.

P

OPULAT I O N C O N TROL PROGRAM EXPLAINED – There is a fundamental point that needs emphasis: population control and family planning program, and contraceptive use cannot exist completely independently. Both are essentially important to each other. Surely population explosion is far more than compounding the country’s prevailing socio-economic problems. Population control program defines the boundaries that give security to the majority – food, education, shelter, health care and medical services, employment and more.

However, other projections are even terrifying. Consider this: the supply of contraceptives becomes scarce as a result of the USAID decision to stop its project, most likely there will be more cases of abortion even without the controversial Reproductive Health Bill.

About nearly a million women are estimated to have abortions each year to deal with the financial and emotional strain of unwanted pregnancy despite the fact that abortion is highly illegal and strictly prohibited and against the teachings of the Catholic Church.

And besides, the church shall continue defending the right to life of every human being, from the moment of conception to the end of his or her natural life, and resists all organized efforts of the government that they perceived as transplanting “anti-life and anti-family

Monkey Business

geopolitics. In fact, we can’t even assert our legal, historical right to Sabah in Northern Borneo. Don’t brag about PNoy’s eagerness to defend the country’s sovereignty over the Kalayaan Group of islands in the disputed Spratlys.

He is speaking from beneath the shadow of Capitol Hill, and presumes that the US military will automatically come to the rescue in case the tension in the West Philippine Sea escalates into a shooting war.

Disgusting indeed that the Philippines should find it in its best interest to embrace a confrontational stance toward China and North Korea only because we are banking on America’s equally aggressive brand of diplomacy as our insurance policy. In short, our role in Asian geopolitics has not and could not go beyond that of being a comic, if nervous, elf standing on the shoulder of one of two mean giants out to destroy each other. [MindaNews/H. Marcos C. Mordeno writes mainly on the environment, human rights and politics. He can be reached at hmcmordeno@gmail.com]

An advocacy worth our support and cooperation (Last of a two parts)

laws and practices” into our social order. For fear of getting the brunt of the powerful and influential Catholic Church, what has to be done by some of our lawmakers, it might be asked?

We should take a good look at our predicament and raised this question: What isn’t going right here in our country? Take note that growth outruns the country’s ability to build its economy and investment in infrastructure. The country’s puny savings and high consumption rates, chronic budget deficits, high population growth and high-ratio of non-working dependents to working population makes the Philippines lagged far behind its progressive and prosperous neighbors. These countries – Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia reduced birth rates at the time of or before economic takeoff.

Yes, in reality as stated earlier, population growth is straining the country’s resources, which is why there is crushing poverty – an old problem traditionally associated with joblessness, homelessness, landlessness, and food shortage, lack of shelter and medical care, and literacy. But it needs not to be a permanent one. With an honest-togoodness, well-meaning and long term government population control and human development program like the RH bill, Filipinos could properly organized and motivated to become an important resource in addressing their own economic and social conditions.

They have to realize that the most important change will come not only from the government or any outside entity but from them. They must firmly

9

believe that the problem on population can be conquered if only they have the drive, the courage and the will to overcome it. Any government program can be achieved if the strong political will and determination intervene in every turn. Sustaining legislative advocacy is the first mean to the success of any government undertaking.

We would call this the brain and spinal column of a population, human development and reproductive health program, such as we defined the subject. And we must begin with what experts call a “situational factor” – the involvement of a non-stock and nonprofit foundation such as the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development Inc. (PLCPD), a nongovernment organization established in December 1989.

The foundation becomes an advocacy, empowering and building institution between the legislature, government agencies and civil society to effectively gather support and consolidate efforts in the formulation and implementation of laws that favor population control and sustainable human development program. But the PLCPD or the like could only undertake advocacy work on population and human development, and make it succeed if the government officials – from top to bottom would embrace sacrifice, work shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, and set aside self-righteous pride in addressing the concern and see to it that the urgent program should be strictly followed and carried out to the letter. There is an advocacy worth our support and cooperation – the RH Bill.

COMMENT

BY PATRICIO P. DIAZ

(1st of 2 installment) (3. Leonen’s Past Opening Statements) S the opening statements of Government and MILF chief negotiators during their 26th Exploratory Talks last March 19 to 21 show, the difference of their positions is so wide that a stalemate impends. Beyond their mutual determination to stay on course, are the parties softening in their positions? A review of their past opening statements will show.

How have the government present position evolved since the Parties resumed their talks after the four-month impasse following MILF’s rejection of Government’s proposed peace settlement, the “3 for 1 Solution” last August?

December 5 – 7, 2011 On the 23rd formal exploratory talks, Marvic Leonen, citing the President, states that the “current policy of government today is all-out justice, not all-out war” and “is consistent with the primacy given to our peace and the overriding hope that peace can better be achieved through a comprehensive settlement”.

Defined: A peace agreement is one that: “can sincerely be implemented by the administration that promises it”; “serves as a framework for all parties to work with each other under a regime of mutual respect”; “should reflect a genuine knowledge of history and a true understanding of the current and future needs of our people”; “ should be flexible enough” -- its provisions contingent with and “malleable to their contemporary realities”; is “a negotiated political settlement of armed conflict” and that “it should be able to address the legitimate interests of all those we represent”– a peace agreement acceptable to and supportable by all.

In Gist: Behind the statement’s fine rhetoric, Leonen essentially reiterates the “GPH ‘3 for 1’ Solution”, the core of the ARMM Reform Agenda under RA 10153, which at the time was already three months behind launching schedule, as the substance of the Government’s political settlement and comprehensive compact.

January 9 – 11, 2012: On the 24th formal exploratory talks, Leonen stresses how “the entire Republic of the Philippines will benefit with a region for Bangsamoro peoples that is not only genuinely autonomous but also one where the principles of good and effective governance is in place”.

Envisoned: This autonomous government is one: that “can be democratically elected in free, clean and honest elections ensured by security forces that are neutral from political interests and a vibrant and assertive civil society” where “there are real choices between sincere and capable political parties who offer principled leaders”. has “a clear working relationship with the national government in many aspects” including “the equitable sharing of wealth and the generation of revenues to make the autonomous government credible in producing opportunities for its people in an environmentally sustainable manner as well as allow the national government to provide the kind of assistance that should be expected of it”.

Goal and Timeline: The Government’s political option: “… this is an administration that wants to see the solution to the Bangsamoro question in motion when it leaves in a little over four years time”.

Then addresses the MILF Panel: “… we should both meet the challenge of crafting an agreement soon enough, so that it could be implemented and then assessed and then adjusted before the next term of the next President of the Republic” – setting a timeline: “… the golden opportunity to craft such an agreement is this first quarter of this year”.

Mandate: Of the Government Panel: “Our standing instructions from our President are to work earnestly and with due and deliberate dispatch careful to consult all constituents that we also represent along the way.”

February 13-15, 2012 On the 25th formal exploratory talks, Leonen again clarifies that the ultimate goal of the Government-MILF negotiation is to secure permanent peace: “The legacy that all of us in this room wish to participate in is to facilitate an agreement that will not only make peace possible--it is also an agreement that should bring in the possibility of making peace permanent.”

A

To be continued

10 SUBURBIA

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

Paragliding in Sarangani S

ARANGANI is a good flying site for paragliding said Armand Dard, a French national and a visiting paragliding professional instructor.

“This is my second time in the Philippines and my first time in Sarangani. Last year I did some paragliding in Carmona, Cavite and also in Boracay but this place which I discovered one month ago is a better flight site,” Dard said.

The flying site is located at SAFI Ranch 1 in barangay Seguil, less than 30 minutes drive from General Santos City.

The flight site is overlooking Sarangani Bay. “It has comfortable take off and landing sites,” Dard noted. “It

also has big landing site comfortable for beginners and you can fly almost everyday.”

Dard is conducting paragliding international standard trainings to members of the newlyformed Sarangani Paragliding Club.

“You ask what is the next big thing in Region 12, we are crossing our fingers -- but I believe in a heartbeat, it’s going to be Paragliding in Sarangani. It is definitely a #1forfun!” said Michelle Solon, chair of the Regional Tourism Council.

“Who said there is no wind around Sarangani Bay? On the contrary there is enough wind!” added Solon who has tried sky sports paragliding.

Joseph Oncada, vice president of Sarangani Paragliding Club said they started paragliding in September last year “and this is the newest sport in the country.”

“To those who want to become pilots, or just want to experience flying in tandem, we offer training and tandem flights,» Oncada said.

A short flight or a maximum of 10-minute flight would cost P2,300.

“For a long flight or 15 to 20-minute flight, we charge 3,000 pesos» Oncada added.

Oncada said the Sarangani Paragliding Club will also have a paragliding accuracy competition on May 18 in time for Sarangani Bay Festival.

April 17 - 18

Water interruption bared

A

temporary water service interruption is scheduled by the Davao City Water District from 5:00 PM of April 17 until 12:00 AM of April 18 to allow the interconnection of 150mm diameter pipe to 400mm diameter pipe along Davao-Agusan Road corner Amparo Village and Purok 2 in Tibungco. When done, this project will help improve water pressure in the area.

The water cut will be experienced in the following areas: Ilang: (Davao – Agusan Road) Ilang (From Barangay Hall of Ilang), Amparo Village, Bugac-Ilang, New Society Village, Central Ilang, Muslim Village ; Tibungco: (Davao – Agusan Road) Purok 10, Upper Manggahan, Manggahan Village, Tibungco Doctors Medical Clinic, Purok 11, Purok 1 & 2, Barrio Pogi

St., Tefasco, Deluxe Sawmill, Purok 3, Purok 12, Purok 4, Cal Village, Vicente Gloria Compound, Purok 5, Tibungco Relocation, Tibungco Cemetery, San Juan Village, Hudson Sawmill, Purok 9, Purok 6, Purok 14, MINDDACO, Purok 6 Buhisan, Tesda School, Buhisan Elem.

School, Purok 16-A; Bunawan: Barrio Bunawan, Km. 22 Budbud, Felipe Calderon Elem. School, Km. 23, Don Ramon Substation, Holy Cross of Bunawan, Bunawan Bgy. Hall, Daniel Perez Central Elem. School, Lim Medical Clinic, Purok 5 Punong, Km. 24, Inabangga, Km. 25; Lasang: (Davao – Agusan Road) Crossing Licanan, Km. 26, Licanan, Bgy. Lasang, Tambungon, Saguitarius, Lasang Elem School, Lasang Public Market, Purok Scorpio Bucana, Aledia Elem. School, Bucana, Purok Pisces.

Would-be affected customers are advised to store enough water prior to the scheduled water interruption as water supply may be restored earlier if work goes smoothly or later if unforeseen problems arise. In behalf of the DCWD management, acting general manager Edwin V. Regalado apologizes for the inconvenience the water service interruption may cause and likewise appeals for the understanding and cooperation of the affected customers.

The general public may call the DCWD trunk line at 221-9400 and press “1” on their phone dial to listen to the latest daily water updates, or contact its call center through the 24-hour hotline 221-9412 or 0927-7988966 for updates, complaints, queries and other matters pertaining to DCWD services.

Alternative learning center launched in Pantukan by KGCP

T

HE King-king Copper-Gold Project (KCGP) recently facilitated the groundbreaking ceremony for the proposed multi-purpose building of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) Pantukan District, an informal educational system for out-of-school youths and individuals who failed to finish formal education.

Clyde Gillespie, Director for Environmental Permitting of St. Augustine Gold & Copper Ltd.

(SAGCL) and Rogelio “Jing” Bantayan – Community Social Responsibility Head of SAGCL attended the event. Also present is Brgy. Capt.

Roberto Yugo of Brgy.

Kingking; Ms. Carmen Agustin, DepEd District Supervisor; Mr. David Vismanos, ALS District Coordinator and the elementary teachers from all over Pantukan.

“This donation is part of the continuing effort of SAGCL’s ongoing commitment to support the

education sector of the Pantukan community” said Mr. Gillespie. In the past, KCGP has also provided school facilities to Pantukan’s schools.

KCGP is currently studying the feasibility of mining the Kingking gold and copper deposit in Pantukan. In connection with this, they are conducting extensive environmental research, community consultations, exploratory drillings and other related studies within the area.

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

Pneumococcal vaccination for adults kicks off in Davao

P

FIZER Philippines Foundation Inc., in partnership with the Davao Chapter of the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID), administered pneumococcal disease vaccines to Davaoeños to indigent senior citizens, kicking off the foundation’s firstever adult vaccination drive in Davao City.

Pfizer and PSMID vac-

cinated 130 elderly in: Missionaries of Charity, Southern Philippines Medical Center, and Carmelite Sisters.

Pfizer’s ongoing vaccination program for pneumococcal disease, “PD Alliance in Motion”, started in 2010 through partnerships with various local government units and non-government organizations focusing initially on vaccinating children. Since

it started, Pfizer has provided free pneumococcal vaccination to nearly 10,000 children from Nueva Ecija, Manila, Malabon, Bacolod, Palawan, Pangasinan, Aurora, Pampanga, and Cebu.

The vaccination in Davao is the first leg of the Pfizer adult vaccination campaign, given recent FDA approval for the adult indication for 50 years old and above.

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17,940

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27,411

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LOCATION Pneumococcal Disease is among the leading killers in the world and the #1 cause of morbidity in the Philippines, especially for adults with compromised immune systems; however, it is also the leading vaccine-preventable disease.

The vaccination program of Pfizer Philippines Foundation Inc. includes a short class to educate Filipinos on Pneumococcal Disease, which in the Philippines is the most common cause of pneumonia.

AREA (sq.m.) PRICE/sq.m.

Villa Josefina Resort Village, Dumoy Toril, Davao City

Minimum of 240 sq.m.

P5,985

St. Joseph Homes, Sirawan, Toril,Davao City

Minimum of 150 sq.m.

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LOCATION Lot Area Flr. Area Blk. 4, Lot 10 Villa Josefina Resort Village 240 sq.m. 177.31 sq.m Dumoy, Toril, Davao City

For Inquiries: Please Call : PRYCE CORPORATION c/o SONNY MOLE Contact No. : 0922-­‐879-­‐0036 / (082) 224-­‐2686 Email ADD : sonitomole1223@yahoo.com

PRICE P4.8 M

12

NATION/WORLD

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

Dabawenya in Korea’s National Assembly D

AVAO City-born Jasmine Lee has been elected to a seat at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, a first for South Korea’s growing immigrant community.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Lee stood for election under the Saenuri (New Frontier) Party, which won 25 of 54 partylist seats in the National Assembly. Lee’s election victory helped Saenuri get the majority votes in the assembly with 152 of 300 seats.

According to the website of Korea’s National Assembly, Lee is expected to “maintain proper dignity as an assemblyman, attend the Plenary Session and committee meetings, and comply with legislation and regulations re-

garding the proceedings.”

She will serve a term of four years.

Lee grew up in Davao City and took up Biology at the Ateneo de Davao University. She married a Korean sailor in 1995 and moved to Korea soon after, the DFA said.

She became a Korean citizen in 1998.

Since 2006, Lee has appeared as a panelist on “Love in Asia,” a Korean television show that “raises awareness of (Korea’s) foreign neighbors and reflects on the true meaning of family.” She also appeared in a Korean movie.

Lee regularly gives lectures on multiculturalism and is secretary-general of a charity organized by foreigners married to Koreans. “In January of this year, she received the Korea Image Millstone

Award, which is given to people who successfully blended into the Korean society and helped it become a better place,” the DFA said.

In a speech to leaders of the Filipino community in Korea last month, Vice President Jejomar Binay said the Philippines was “very proud” of Lee for running for parliament.“It shows that Korea is prepared to extend the opportunity to become a public servant even to those who were not born here,” he said.

Philippine Ambassador to Korea Luis Cruz said in March that Lee “has distinguished herself as an ardent advocate of multiculturalism in Korean society.”

There are around 1.2 million immigrants in South Korea, the DFA said.

Corruption feeding Afghanistan unrest A

FTER a decade of war and billions of dollars in Western aid, Afghanistan is drowning in a tide of corruption that is exacerbating conflict and stifling economic development, experts say.

Corruption is enabling the drug trade to thrive and pushing Afghans towards the Taliban, analysts warn -- fuelling the two drivers of instability in the war-torn country.

Mohammad Shafiq Hamdam, head of the Afghan Anti-corruption Network, said

CORRUPTION. After a decade of war and billions of dollars in Western aid, Afghanistan is drowning in a tide of corruption that is exacerbating conflict and stifling economic development, experts say. graft lies at the heart of most of the country’s problems.

“If there are cases of infiltration in the army, it’s corruption. If there are cases of smuggling heroin out of the country, within the country, it’s corruption,” he said.

In January, an Afghan soldier killed five of his French trainers at a base in Kapisa, in the country’s northeast. According to the US news website McClatchy, he bribed a recruiter first to join the Afghan army and then again to rejoin after deserting.

Corruption among the security forces is rife -- the interior ministry recently sacked 70 police officers in western Afghanistan.

“I’ll never say that the first problem of Afghanistan is security. The first one is corruption,” said Mohammad Qasem Halimi, of the Asia Foundation NGO. With checkpoints at the entry to built-up areas, militants can only get in because of corrupt police, he said.

EDGEDAVAO

Leaders...

12 solutions...

FFROM 1

nakikita namin, it’s a cross ownership kasi ikaw na may-ari ng generator, ikaw pa ang may ari ng transmission, ikaw pa yung distributor, so diktado mo lahat. Ito yung dapat tingnan.”

She added that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) failed in its purpose of creating a “regime of competition” because in reality there are only few players in the industry.

Presenting viable solutions to the power situation in Mindanao at the summit, Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario said cross ownership should be absolutely prohibited between and among the generation, transmission and distribution sectors as a result of the EPIRA. He asked the President during the conference to review the EPIRA because privatization of power assets has resulted in cartels, such that only a few in the private sector are involved.

“The EPIRA has not worked for the island of Mindanao after 11 years of implementation,” he said in his presentation.

Meanwhile, Rep. Daisy Fuentes told reporters that she was dismayed by the EPIRA, admitting that she was one of the legislators who passed the law in 2001. Fuentes also served as governor of South Cotabato for three terms before goping back to Congress.

“Kaya naman kami nag approve ng EPIRA kasi naniwala kami doon sa mga experts na ito ang pinakatama,” she said.

“Yung sinabi nilang walang cross ownership, it’s happening,” she said, adding that reasonable rates of electricity have not been attained in contrast with the objective of the law.

Non-transparency Mayor Darlene Custodio of General Santos City also told the President during the conference, “There is a feeling of non-transparency,” because until now no one is telling us exact numbers.

Noting the issue on transparency, Fuentes said, “Kasi baka maraming nagsasabotahe, baka hindi totoo tong mga numbers.”

She added that some members of the House are also suspicious about the national agencies involved because of their failure to give data during committee hearings.

“Alam nyo na ngayong dumating si Presidente, napwersa silang lahat na gumalaw lahat at magbigay ng data nila,” she said.

Further, she lauded Del Rosario for his presentation of the nine-year income of the National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR), saying it was her first time to see data of the national agency.

Antonino also hit the non-transparency, particularly of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) for not providing her office with data.

“Dalawa lang nakuha namin na financial statements from PSALM,” she said, citing the data shown to the President during the summit.

“Kahit napepeke ang data, kailangang imbestigahan,” Antonino said, adding that the President agreed that there is a need to investigate.

Monitoring

commit-

tee

13

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

In his address, the President said the government is studying the formation of a Mindanao Power Monitoring Committee to be chaired

by MinDA, with representatives from the Department of Energy, NAPOCOR, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, and others from civil society, electric cooperatives, and the business sector.

It is to make sure that price increases of electricity are fair even as the President said people in Mindanao should expect to “pay a little more” for a stable supply of energy.

Meanqhile, Aquino may be a victim of misinformation or disinformation on the real situation of Mindanao’s power problem, otherwise he would consider maintaining government control of the Agus-Pulangi Hydro Complex (APHC).

This was the common reaction of some of the region’s leaders--who strongly oppose the privatization of the hydro power plants in Mindanao--to the President’s message during the power summit last Friday.

Antonino, who maintains her opposition to the privatization of hydro power plants, said the President lacks information and that energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras admitted it, particularly on the data submitted to the national central office.

Representative Teddy Casiño said the President is misinformed about the privatization issue in Mindanaom hence his strong resistance to the call to stop privatization of the Agus and Pulangi hydro plants.

“Ang dating sa akin parang hindi siya nakinig. Parang buo na yung idea niya.

Sarado na ang kanyang isip,” he told reporters.

Immediately after the summit, Casiño expressed dismay over the President’s action, saying, “I would have wanted more openness from the President, more discussion of ideas than opposing the point.

Gusto ko sana napalabas pa niya yung mga actual suggestions ng mga tao dito rather than nagdebate.”

Before reading his speech, Aquino said EPIRA has not worked in Mindanao as it had exempted the Agus and Pulangi hydro plants from privatization for10 years.

Addressing President Aquino that EPIRA has directly affected Mindanao, Sergio Dagooc, president of the Association of Mindanao Rural Electric Cooperatives, (AMRECO) Inc. said only the hydro plants were exempted but not the power barges.

He told the President that the EPIRA was the reason for privatizing the two 200MW power barges, now owned by the Thermal Marine, Inc., causing the hike of power rates in Mindanao.

“In fairness kay Pangulo, he’s making his response based sa mga feedbacks sa energy family and some legislators. Bigyan na lang natin ng pagkakataon si Presidente pag aralan naman yung mga proposal natin at mga justification natin vis-a-vis doon sa previous data/information na nakuha niya and we will wait,” Dagooc told reporters after the summit.

Casiño said the President’s mind appeared to be closed as he is pursuing the policy of privatization of

FFROM 1 our power assets.

“Sa isang summit you’re not supposed to debate eh or argue. Ang importante dito, palabasin mo lahat ng idea and then i-didigest ito pero parang ang dating, ang Presidente ang nakipagdebate,” he said.

Casino hopes that all the efforts at the summit will not be put to waste, and that the President would study all the presentations submitted by different sectors.

Might consider Meanwhile, Antonino said the President is pursuing privatization because there is a law, he just cannot really say it.

Thus, Congress has the capacity to do something about the law.

Representative Daisy Fuentes hoped that the President would consider not privatizing the hydro plants by the time Congress can present to him the paper work.

“He’s asking for numbers kung makakatulong ba yan, mababayaran ba ang utang, masusustain ba ninyo. I think if we can prove it to him, possible. Ang gagawin ng DOE (Department of Energy) magkacounter sila na mali yang number Antonino said others are saying the hydro plants are losing, but, “No. It’s making money. Internally, we can generate the funds to fix the thing.”

She mentioned that DOE Secretary Jose Rene Almendras also said that the APHC is a net earner.

“Kung maprove siguro namin na it can fix itself, na makabayad pa sa utang, na marerehabilitate na hindi na hihingi sa national, makukumbinse natin siya,” Fuentes said.

Casiño pointed out that the hydro plants were not rehabilitated earlier than the power crisis occurred because the government was planning to sell them anyway.

“Kami po sa Kongreso may malakas na resolution opposing the privatization of Pulangi. Hopefully, mahabol pa natin itong apparently fixed position ng Pangulo,” he said.

Antonino said the rehabilitation of AHPC may only cost less than P5 billion.

“If in one year’s time, the complex will earn around P7 billion, it can fund its own rehabilitation with one year income. Lalaki na ang capacity nya, of course mas lalaki pa ang income,” she added.

ors League Presidents (Confed), the Philiuppine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Association of Mindanao Rural Electric Cooperatives Inc., Lanao Power Consumers Federation (Lapocof), the Mindanao Commission of Women, among others, reesulted in the following recommendations: • Stop the LeyteMindanao interconnection project, keep Mindanao separate from the Luzon-Visayas grid – This will maintain exclusive access to power from hydroelectric plants.

• Review the Epira Law in order to determine whether the objectives of the law were met. ‘It has ‘has not worked for the island of Mindanao after 11 years of implementation.’

• Maintain government ownership of the Agus-Pulangi hydroelectric power complex under the premise

Casiño...

FFROM 2

zation of Agus & Pulangui hydropower plants to keep power rates low, revise EPIRA and further develop the island’s rich renewable energy sources, he was intent on shooting down the

Ungab’s...

that the region would continue enjoying cheap power rates this way.

• Retain state ownership of power barges so these assets run by the National Power Corp. (Napocor) would serve as ‘spare tires’ to augment electricity supply in the region.

• Reactivate, repair, and maintain existing plants of Napocor • Create the Mindanao Power Committee which should be led by people from Mindanao.

• Establish a onestop-shop in order to fast track applications of small power cooperatives to sell their surplus energy to the Mindanao grid, and to ease investor inflow.

• Pursue nuclear power development although construction is expensive, the energy produced from it would be greater and cheaper than that from coal and diesel fueled plants.

• Cultivate renew-

proposals and insisting that Mindanaoans pay higher rates for private power companies.”

“The President seemed gravely misinformed about the negative impact of power privatization in Mindanao, the facts about renewable energy, and the

LEGAL NOTICE

Notice is hereby given that an Affidavit of Self-Adjudication was hereby executed by Danilo S. Pichon, the only surviving son of Antonio B. Pichon leaving a estate consisting of parcels of land, located in Davao City and evidenced by TCT No. T-26006, TCT No. T-26008, TCT No. T-26012, TCT No. T-24228 and TCT No. T-23785 of the Registry of Deeds of Davao City. Acknowledged before Notary Public Atty. Oscar A. Carcedo per Doc. No. 207;Page No. 42; Book No.I; Series of 2012

failures of the EPIRA law.

He even said hindi siya nagpapapogi, insinuating that the participants were just grandstanding. It was a truly disappointing exercise. The morning session was great but things turned sour when the President spoke,” Casiño concluded.

Republic of the Philippines REGIONAL TRIAL COURT 11TH JUDICIAL REGION OFFICE OF THE CLERK OF COURT-SHERIFF Davao City

FFROM 2

implementing the international carbon market instruments.

Provided that this provision shall be considered as an automatic compliance with the required sustainable development undertaking; •Ten percent of the annual special vehicle pollution control fund under RA 8794 otherwise known as “An Act Imposing a Motor Vehicle User’s Charge on Owners of All Types of Motor Vehicles and For Other Purposes”; and •Donations, endowments, grants and contributions.

able energy sources such as biomass in order to harness Mindanao’s rich agricultural resources.

• Establish a crisis fund for Mindanao which will be paid for

by Mindanao residents and not having to rely on national taxes.

• Guarantee a budget for maintenance of existing state-owned power plants. Stakeholders said the staterun Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. had ignored the maintenance requirements of facilities that are up for privatization.

• Strict monitoring of electric cooperatives by the Department of Energy to ensure that the cooperatives honor supply agreements with power plant operators who have complained that the distributors contract only minimal power and turn to the region’s reserves whenever demand outstrips their available supply.

BANCO DE ORO UNIBANK, INC. (formerly BANCO DE ORO UNIBANK, INC.) Mortgagee

EJF-REM CASE NO. 13,283-12

-versusTAMSI AWOURA REALTY INCORPORATED, AND SPS. FLORA T. & HENRI ARMAND JOSEPH KERVELLA, Mortgagor/s x- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -x NOTICE OF EXTRA-JUDICIAL SALE Upon extra-judicial petition for sale under Act 3135, as amended filed by the above-mentioned mortgagee against Tamsi Awoura Realty Incorporated and Sps. Flora T. Henri Armand Joseph Kervella, with postal addresses at Door 7 Casa Esperanza Habana Compound, Rizal St., Davao City, Unit B Somerset Town Villas Doña Luisa Ave., Juna Subd.,Matina, Davao City and/or Lot 8-B along Doña Avenue, Juna Subd., Matina, Davao City, to satisfy the mortgage indebtedness which as of February 29, 2012 the total amount of the outstanding obligation/indebtedness of the mortgagors in favor of the mortgagee has amounted to Philippine Pesos: FOUR HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN FIVE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED NINETY NINE AND 05/100 (Php 475,199.05), inclusive of interest, penalties and other charges, plus other legal expenses incident of the foreclosure and sale the undersigned Sheriff IV of the Regional Trial Court, Davao City, will sell at public auction on May 03 , 2012 at 10: A. M.; or soon thereafter , at the main entrance of Hall of Justice, Ecoland, Davao City, to the highest bidder for CASH or MANAGER’S CHECK and in Philippine Currency, the following real property mentioned and described below together with all the improvements found thereon, to wit; TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. T-446533 “ A parcel of land ( Lot 8-B, Psd-11-106048 xxx) situated in the Barangay of Matina City of Davao, Island of Mindanao. xxx containing an area of ONE HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN and 75/100 (147.75) SQUARE METERS, more or less.”- Registered in the name of TAMSI AWOURA REALTY INCORPORATED. All sealed bids must be submitted to the undersigned on the above-stated time and date.

In the event the public auction should not take place on the said date, it shall be held on June 7, 2012 without further notice.

Prospective buyers are hereby enjoined to investigate for themselves the title of the herein-above described real property and encumbrances thereon, if any there be.

Davao City, Philippines, March 29, 2012 FOR THE EX-OFFICIO PROV’L SHERIFF: (Sgd) JAY C. ESPERANZA SHERIFF IV NOTED BY:

ATTY: EDIPOLO P. SARABIA, JR. Clerk of Court & Ex- Officio Provincial sheriff

Copy furnished: THE MORTGAGEE : BANCO DE ORO UNIVERSAL BANK. THE MORTGAGORS:TAMSI AWOURA REALTY INC. and SPS. FLORA T. &HENRI ARMAND JOSEPH KERVELLA THE PUBLISHER: EDGE DAVAO POSTING : 3 Conspicous places (Edge 4/16,23,30

14 SPORTS

Lakers hold off Nuggets, clinch playoff T L

OS ANGELES (AP) Coach Mike Brown wasn’t on the Los AngelesLakers’ bench in a suit and tie. Kobe Bryant was.

Although that’s an unlikely scenario for success, the Lakers still took an enormous step toward the postseason thanks to Matt Barnes’ outside shooting and Andrew Bynum’s inside persistence.

Bynum had 30 points and eight rebounds, Barnes added a season-high 24 points

and 10 rebounds, and the Lakers clinched a playoff berth with a 103-97 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.

Pau Gasol had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacific Division-leading Lakers (38-22), who have won three of four without Bryant while the NBA scoring leader rests his bruised shin. Los Angeles also played without Brown, who left Staples Center shortly before tipoff for undisclosed

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EDGEDAVAO End of the road

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

personal reasons. ‘’You can tell that these guys went out tonight and wanted to represent Mike Brown as best they could, and that’s what they did,’’ said assistant coach John Kuester, who didn’t give any additional information about Brown’s issues after running the team. ‘’They have worked extremely hard, they care about one another, and it’s also those types of feelings that are poured out on the

floor.’’

With Bryant shouting instructions and counsel as a virtual assistant coach on the bench, the Lakers gave away another early lead and committed 23 turnovers, yet still took three of four from Denver to win the clubs’ season series for the first time in three years. With six games left, Los Angeles is 1 1/2 games ahead of the Clippers for the division lead and the No. 3 playoff seed.

WRESTLING. Talk N Text guard Jared Dillinger (right) applies the arm lock on Mick Pennisi of Barako Bull in Game 2 of their semis match in the ongoing PBA Commissioner’s Cup.

here was nary a Chinaman’s chance for Charly Suarez. His Chinese foe made sure of that.

Charly Suarez threw everything at China’s Liu Quiang but in the end, China’s Liu Qiang put an end to the Philippines’ aspirations in the Asian Olympic Qualifying Event after the Chinese bet fashioned out a 15-11 win last Thursday in Astana, Kazakhstan.

The Davao boy’s loss leaves the Philippines with just one qualifier to the London Games in men’s boxing: another Davao bet light-flyweight Mark Anthony Barriga of Panabo City.

That means, the brunt of the country’s Olympic quest now lies on the narrow shoulders of this tiny young man.

The report from Kazakhstan told us that Liu banked heavily on his height and reach advantage in repulsing Suarez, who became desperate in the second round as the Chinese bet took an early 3-1 lead.

Nevertheless, Liu kept his poise and instead piled up point after point en route to breaking the hearts of the fiveman Philippine team that was hoping to send two or three more Olympic qualifiers. I am sure the loss was also terribly felt in Charly’s hometown in Panabo City where he honed his boxing skills at the Barangay Una stable.

Charly earned a trip

to the gold medal match by whipping Japanese Daisuke Narimatsu, 2411, in the semifinals. Liu secured a trip to the finals with a victory over an Iraqi rival after eliminating a top Mongolian rookie early in the tournament.

Now the only hope for the Philippines to aim for a few more Olympic qualifiers will come when the women’s squad plunges into action in the Asian qualifying in China next month.

The Philippines sent six Olympic bets, but it was only Barriga, who earned a berth during the 2011 world championships in Baku, Azerbaijan.

In London, two mandatory representatives from athletics and another two from swimming and one from shooting make up the very lean Philippine delegation so far.

All told, the debacle suffered in Kazakhstan is going to toll heavily to the country’s chase for an elusive Olympic gold.

It stands at a very low possibility now unless the pint-sized Barriga, a product of Barangay Una project of sports patron and former congressman Tonyboy Floirendo, defies the odds and nail down our first ever gold.

But that, for now, is wishful thinking.

GAB chair says gov’t support needed

G Jose Abad Santos St., Corner Arellano St., Tagum City 8100 Philippines Tel. No.: (084) 216-3003 Cell No,: 0939-243-8539

HELPING YOU MAKE INFORMED BUSINESS DECISIONS.

AMES and Amusement Board Chairman Juan Ramon “Monju” Guanzon laments here the lack of government support to develop local boxers even as he discloses that Visayas and Mindanao have been producing quality boxers and successfully landed remarkable stints both in the local and international scenes.

Guanzon told sportswriters in Bacolod City that there should be a program that would focus on a boxing program from the grassroots level.

Guanzon also said that there were cities that got boxers from Bacolod City but since there were no support from the local government, these boxers had been claimed by other towns and cities as their own. He claimed the boxing facility at the Paglaum Sports Complex was established during the time of his father, the late Congressman Romeo Guanzon and also took initiative for substantial support for the Negros Amateur Boxing Association (NABA) and lauded the volunteerism of trainers and coaches who teach young kids at the said facility.

INdulge!

VOL.5 ISSUE 29 • APRIL 15-16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

ARTS

By Carlo P. Mallo Graphics and Photos by Kenneth Ong

THERE are already too many crimes committed against the fashion world, and whether you like it or not, you are most probably an accessory to the crime or an accomplice without even knowing that you already are. Even here in Davao City, we are already committing a lot of crimes against the fashion industry; the sadder part is that government seems to be turning a blind eye, or even consenting, the commission of these crimes.

Fashion is not just fashion. Not because it only deals with clothes, bags, or brands that may seem obscure to the hungry Filipino masses, means that we can just trample upon the fashion industry and the very laws that serves to protect it and the people behind it. After all, fashion is a form of art.

And no, we are not going to talk about fashion victims and the million fashion faux pas we see everyday.

While the city is not yet host to some of the biggest fashion houses in the industry, it has already committed two of the greatest mortal sins against the industry.

Take a look at Roxas Avenue and see how it is clogged with ukay-ukay vendors selling their wares.

And doesn’t it make you wonder why the local government is not doing anything about the proliferation of ukay-ukay in the city?

There is nothing wrong with wearing ukay-ukay per se, but the fact of the matter is that these products are illegal. Used clothing, as provided by law, are not allowed to be imported into the country except for humanitarian purposes in calamities - man-made or otherwise.

In other words, the sacks upon sacks of ukay-ukay that thousands of Filipinos wait with abated breath to be opened are all smuggled into the country. Smuggled products do not pay the right taxes to the government, if it pays any tax at all.

And doesn’t it make you wonder why the local government is not doing anything about the proliferation of ukay-ukay in the city? Your guess is as good as mine.

Down in the city’s Chinatown, the sidewalks are teeming with knock-offs or products that imitate the complete design, branding, and even the packaging of other products. It doesn’t matter how many A’s there are in the class of your designer bag, your bag is still as fake as it could get.

While knock-offs are nearly seen in every corner of the world, the lack of action from government offi-

cials couldn’t help but make you scratch your head in amusement. Haven’t government officials seen how prevalent piracy these days are, even with designer bags, shoes, shirts, and even mobile phones? Oh wait, government officials also patronize these product.

Buying knock-offs or going to your favorite ukay-

ukay may seem as harmless, little do you know that you are actually helping crime syndicates proliferate and earn money from these seemingly harmless ‘entrepreneurial’ activities.

While buying ukay-ukay and knock-offs may seem the practical solution in this third world country, you are actually shortchanging yourself. Ukay-ukay prod-

The People’s Mart along Roxas Ave.

ucts are second hand rejects from other countries that may have been exposed to God-knows what kind of germs and microbes while the knock-offs are made of

substandard quality with substandard materials.

The choice is in your hands, do you want to commit another crime of fashion?

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VOL.5 ISSUE 29 • APRIL 15-16, 2012

FOOD

The fountain of youth on a plate Practical “youthening” foods for Filipinos

By Angelo Narciso Songco

THE fountain of youth has been the stuff of legend for centuries. Hollywood films have been made with dashing heroes searching for it the world over with a sultry heroine weaved into the plot. On the shelves of fancy shoppes and boutiques, über expensive beauty products claim agedefying effects from exotic ingredients from edibles like caviar, wheat germ and bee pollen to creepy sounding placenta, stem cells and hard-to-read obviously man-made chemicals.

Youth and beauty go hand in hand, however, a more holistic approach to staying young is staying healthy inside out and not just slathering creams and lotions on the body where it just penetrates up to certain level.

Eating healthy has more holistic youthening effects as it works from the inside out. In a nutshell: The high fibre content of healthy food cleanses the colon and physically detoxifies the body. Organic and natural foods are devoid of chemicals which retain water and potentially harm the body in so many ways. More importantly, they posses essential nutrients that are absorbed by the body on a cellular level conferring a wealth of health benefits from the bone to the skin.

Anti-oxidants protect against and combat the harmful effects of free radicals, rogue molecules that harm cell membranes and DNA and cause skin ageing and various diseases including cancer. All of these foods, when consumed with consistency and gratefulness, work together and keep one healthy and young looking. Antioxidants also protect cells’ ability to accurately reproduce themselves. This slows down the aging process and helps us fight off a variety of diseases.

After much research and discussions with health food advocates, I’ve come up with a list of practical foods that, when sensibly incorporated into one’s lifestyle, youthens you from the inside out. Always, remember that organic is always best for fresh produce (and natural for processed food). After all, we’re aiming to maximise the youthening properties of food. It’d be pointless to consume fruits and vegetables that have the residue of chemical fertilisers and pesticides and finished foods that are full or artificial ingredients and preservatives.

Dabawenyos need not fret though that the list comprises of far-out items from exotic locales. Marketing and buzz hype a couple of the items in this list but you’ll be surprised to find that a lot of youthening foods can be found right in your neighbourhood market.

I haven’t taken out certain items that are renowned the world over for their anti-oxidant properties. It’s good that health food stores like Sugarleaf already carry these items. But it’s best to consume what’s in your immediate surroundings as your assured of freshness.

Healthy Picks’ certified all-organic produce

Sugarleaf interiors

HerbTisane

wrinkles. Cucumber and zucchini are excellent for rejuvenating tired, dehydrated skin due to its high water content and high amounts of silica, a mineral needed for healthy, glowing skin • Aromatic garlic, onion, chives and leeks: promotes cardiovascular strengthening, decreases fat storage and fights inflammation and infection. Consume raw when possible, mince finely to release allicin in the garlic, an antibacterial and antifungal compound, and do not overcook to retain benefits • Raw chocolate: this will surely put a smile to a lot of peoples lips but read RAW. Most health benefits are lost or diminished the more cacao is proSugarleaf’s organic vegetable quiche. cessed, ie heated and combined with • Raw unsalted nuts and seeds like • Citrus fruits like calamansi, milk, sugar and flavourings. Raw capili, cashews, peanuts, sunflower seeds: pomelo, lime, lemon and local berries cao is rich in flavanols which improve a tasty mid-afternoon snack, rich in such as strawberry, blueberry, bignay: blood flow to key areas of the brain. It vitamin E which promotes healthy rich in vitamin C, needed in collagen- has also been shown to improve brain skin, hair and nails and protects cell building, an essential component of function, fight sleep deprivation, famembranes from free radical dam- youthful-looking skin. Citrus also tigue, and the effects of aging age from air pollution and ultra violet contains bioflavonoids, which protect • Healthy fats from virgin coconut rays. Most raw nuts if consumed in skin from UV rays and help prevent oil, olive oil, eggs: Monounsaturated reasonable amounts without process- cell death. Berries have naturally oc- fats help improve cardiovascular ing and excessive salt are rich in cho- curring strong anti-cancer properties, health. Rich in polyphenols, powerlesterol-lowering, mono-saturated fats flavonols and anthocyanin all with ful antioxidants that may help prevent that are good for the heart. Imported age-defying properties. Imported ber- age-related diseases. Antioxidants , esnuts like almonds, Brazil nuts are also ries include raspberries, blackberries, pecially in free range and organic eggs loganberries, blueberries, bilberries, are easily absorbed. Eggs are also rich very healthy • “Good fatty” fruits like avocado and cranberries. Goji berry from the in carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin and durian: These fruits are cholester- Himalayas and açai, a superfood from which promote healthy eyes and sharp ol-free and high in vitamins, minerals the Amazon are world-renowned as vision. and dietary fibre which promote co- two of the most potent anti-oxidants • Probiotics in kefir and other live, fermented products: last but not the lon cleansing. Avocado one of nature’s on the planet best natural moisturisers rich in vita- • Vegetables such as cucumbers, least, probiotics, which literally mean min C and E, and omega 3 fatty acids sweet potatoes, leafy greens, zucchinis, “beneficial to life,” are live cultures that that have youthening benefits. Durian bell peppers: peppers are loaded with confer benefits beyond basic nutrihas high levels of essential amino acid, antioxidants as evidenced by their tion. Most probiotics include live actryptophan which have an important brightly coloured red, yellow, and or- tive cultures added to foods. Research ange hue. Beta-carotene, which makes show that there are several strains of esfunctions like sleep induction • Wild fish like salmon: The pig- sweet potatoes orange, balances the sential good-for-you bacteria that have ment that colours it pink is astaxan- skin#39;s pH, helps combat dryness, an ability to promote healthy gastrointhin, a powerful free radicals fighter. and promotes cellular health. Spin- testinal functions, increase immunity Limit consumption of farmed fish ach, tatsoi, polunchai and other greens and help prevent the development of which are raised with feeds and hor- contain lutein, which protects skin cancer-causing toxins throughout the from sun-induced inflammation and body. Kefir, the “emperor of yoghurt” mones

or “milk champagne” has over 30 species of beneficial microorganisms, a serving of which contains several billions of these good bacteria.

• Green tea: contains healthy acids and protein, which help to improve complexion. Regular consumption of green (or black tea) may reduce the risk of age-related degenerative brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s.

At Sugarleaf, we strive to make healthyummy treats for people of all ages. We’ve come across a variety of people who are on various phases on their path to health–some just with sensible eating while others combine it with physical activity. From yogis and yoginis, triatheletes and serious sports enthusiasts, Sugarleaf strives to make healthy eating as “normal” as possible for everyone (normal meaning greattasting and practical).

The key is not to take things too seriously and enjoy your journey towards health; not to make a 180 degree turn and forget your favourite foods and instead incorporate healthier food into your lifestyle gradually. A soda or a bag of chips is perfectly fine once in a while but do not make this an everyday part of your intake. Try to avoid artificial sweeteners, heavily processed and fast food.

Sugarleaf in Makati is located at the G/ and 2/F of the MEDICard Lifestyle Center, 51 Paseo de Roxas corner Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Urdaneta Village Makati City, open 8am to 7pm Mondays to Saturdays. Tel 385 0387. Greenhills branch is located at G/F Health Cube Building, 226 Wilson Street, West Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila.

Open 8am-10pm Mondays to Saturdays and 8am to 2pm Sundays. Tel (63 2) 661 6639 or mobile (63 917) 837 4257. Follow us on Twitter @sugarleafph. Davao franchisees are welcome!

Contact rman@sugarleafph.com if you wish to join our mission in making the Philippines healthier one person at a time!

VOL.5 ISSUE 29 • APRIL 15-16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

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ENTERTAINMENT

They’re engaged!

IN “making a promise for the future”—i.e., getting engaged—Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt instantly made their fans swoon and wedding planners salivate.

Pitt has put a custom-made ring on Jolie after roughly seven years, three adoptions and two pregnancies together—but it’s the thousands of tabloid headlines they’ve survived that make us think they’ve really got a shot at making it.

So, in honor of the happy news, let’s take a look back at what the history books mean when they say “Hollywood romance”: 2004: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie start shooting the steamyand-funny action flick Mrs. & Mrs. Smith. Rumors that there’s romance brewing between Jolie and her married costar are instantaneous, but the duo insist otherwise.

January 2005: Pitt and Jennifer Aniston announce they’re separating after four and a half years of marriage, saying they “happily remain committed and caring friends with great love and admiration for one another.” Aniston files for divorce in March.

May 2005: Time to pick sides!

Pitt walks on the beach in Kenya with Jolie and her then-3-yearold son, Maddox. A week later, they meet up in London and jet to Morocco, where Pitt’s shooting Babel.

June 2005: Jolie tells the Today show’s Ann Curry: “To be intimate with a married man, when my own father cheated on my mother, is not something I could forgive. I could not look at myself in the morning if I did that.

I wouldn’t be attracted to a man who would cheat on his wife.”

July 2005: Pitt and Jolie play a married couple with five kids in a domestic-noir-themed photo spread in W. Pitt also goes with Jolie to Ethiopia, where she adopts daughter Zahara.

September 2005: In a cover-story interview with Vanity Fair, Aniston discusses the split in depth and admits to being “shocked” by Pitt’s immediate hookup with Jolie. She also famously says that her ex “has a sensitivity chip missing.”

October 2005: Pitt and Aniston’s divorce is finalized. She gets the house and eight years of grief.

Jan. 19, 2006: Zahara and Maddox’s last names are legally changed to Jolie-Pitt, and the adoption is finalized soon after.

May 26, 2006: Shiloh JoliePitt, the couple’s first biological child, is born in Namibia. People pays a reported $4.1 million for first-picture honors.

October 2006: Pitt tells Esquire that he and Jolie will get married when “everyone else in the country who wants to be married is legally able.” The term “marriage equality” becomes even more significant for tabloids.

March 15, 2007: Jolie adopts Pax from Vietnam as a single par-

ent because the country doesn’t allow unmarried couples to adopt. By May, he’s a Jolie-Pitt.

People buys the first pics of their newest addition for a reported $2 million.

July 12, 2008: Twins Knox and Vivienne are born in Nice, France.

Pitt and Jolie donate the record $14 million they supposedly got for domestic and international photo rights to charity.

October 2008: Jolie implies to the New York Times that there could be more kids in their future: “I mean, I know we seem crazy, just bringing them in one after the other, but we do plan.” Oh, she also says that she can’t wait to show her kids Mr. & Mrs. Smith because “not a lot of people get to see a movie where their parents fell in love.”

December 2008: Aniston is quoted on the cover of Vogue saying: “What Angelina did was very uncool.”

August 2009: Pitt reiterates what he said about marriage equality in Parade: “I stand by that, although I took a lot of flak

for saying it—hate mail from religious groups.”

January 2010: Relevant parties shoot down an In Touch Weekly story that Jolie had an affair with her Salt dialect coach.

However, the couple skip that month’s Golden Globes and SAG Awards (Inglourious Basterds won the top prize), further fueling rumors of trouble in paradise.

February 2010: Pitt and Jolie sue now-defunct British tabloid News of the World over a report that they’re separating. The claim is settled in July, with all proceeds going to the Jolie-Pitt Foundation. The still-going-strong

couple walk the Oscar red carpet together.

November 2011: Pitt tells Australia’s 60 Minutes that he wants to switch from acting to producing when he’s 50—and that he’s “not sure if [he and Jolie] are finished” having kids!

Feb. 26, 2012: Jolie exposes her right leg through the thighhigh slit in her Versace gown at the Oscars...and the Internet (or our view of Julia Child holding a turkey) is never the same.

April 13, 2012: Pitt’s manager confirms that he and Jolie are engaged, though they haven’t set a date yet.

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STYLE

VOL.5 ISSUE 29 • APRIL 15-16, 2012

Countdown to new Marks & Spencer store in Abreeza Mall

M

ARKS & Spencer (M&S) will open a brand new store at the Abreeza shopping mall in Davao City on 25th April 2012.

The new 1,000 square metre store will offer this season’s latest collections and M&S’ exclusive innovations across womenswear and menswear, as well as accessories, footwear, sleepwear and lingerie. Examples of M&S’ popular clothing brands that will be at the store include: • Autograph – Luxurious, chic and sophisticated, the range embodies understated, international style.

• M&S Woman and M&S Man – Stylish, dependable but still inspiring, the range brings you the great value clothes you love.

• Indigo Collection – Soft, pretty and coordinated casualwear, the collection is perfect for women who need easy style for a busy life.

• North Coast – takes a relaxed approach to life with a casual, authentic and laid back style.

• Blue Harbour – the clean, masculine range offers men considered style, where casual can still be smart.

The new store is in line with Marks & Spencer’s international strategy to

We’re delighted to be opening a new store in Abreeza Mall, providing local shoppers with the very best of Marks & Spencer. build a strong presence across Asia.

Following the store opening, M&S will have 19 stores in the Philippines, run under an existing franchise agreement with Rustan Marketing Specialists, Inc. Anthony Huang, the Executive Vice-President for Stores Specialists, Inc. said: “We’re delighted to be opening a new store in Abreeza Mall, providing local shoppers with the very best of Marks & Spencer. Preparations for the opening are in place and the team is very excited about welcoming customers from all over the region to the store – we’re sure that our range of good quality, great value products will be a hit with customers across Davao City.”

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EW YORK (AP) Tom Benson brought stability to the Saints nearly three decades ago and now plans to do the same for the Hornets in small-market New Orleans.

The Saints’ owner agreed Friday to purchase the Hornets from the NBA. ‘’We expect this club to be one of the most outstanding clubs in the league, otherwise I don’t want to get involved,’’ Benson said. ‘’This is just a good thing and I’m just glad to be a part of it.’’

A person familiar with the deal says the purchase price is $338 million. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the financial terms have not been announced.

The NBA has been trying to sell the Hornets since buying the club from founder George Shinn in December 2010.

While preparing the team for sale the league negotiated a new lease for the Hornets to remain in the

SPORTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

state-owned New Orleans Arena through 2024.

The sale of the team to Benson has to be approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors, which was meeting in New York on Friday. ‘’The city is one of the country’s treasures and we really have found the perfect owner,’’ Commissioner David Stern said. ‘’Our goal all along has been to get the Hornets bought by somebody whose commitment to New Orleans would be unrivaled.’’

The framework of ownership negotiations were handled in a way that a new Hornets owner would have to accept the lease worked out between the NBA and Gov. Bobby Jindal. The lease agreement also called for $50 million in improvements to the basketball stadium, which sits right across the street from the Superdome.

Once the NBA approves the sale of the team to Benson, the next step is for the state Legisla-

WORLD GOLF RANKINGS

ture to approve the arena lease deal because of the funding needed for stadium improvements. But legislative leaders already have publicly voiced support for the proposed lease deal, which would take effect in July.

The 84-year-old Benson, a New Orleansnative, has owned the Saints since 1985, when he stepped in to block efforts by other prospective investors to move the NFL franchise to Jacksonville, Fla. Now Benson has made another major investment to stabilize the NBA’s presence in the Big Easy on the same day that the Hornets were hosting the Utah Jazz, the very team New Orleans lost to relocation in 1979.

Benson helped bring the Saints their first playoff appearance in 1987 and finally a Super Bowl title in 2010. His ownership of the Hornets means the two small-market franchises both will be locally owned and now can work as partners in their efforts to attract corpo-

rate sponsorships, and Hornets fans can at least hope that will translate to a better product on the hardwood. ‘’When you have somebody like Mr. Benson, I think it makes it a ton easier because you have stability and you have a foundation,’’ Hornets coach Monty Williams said before Friday night’s tip-off. ‘’It can only be good for me as a coach, our players and especially our city.’’

Hornets forward Carl Landry, who signed only a one-year deal with New Orleans this season in part because of the ownership situation, said Benson’s involvement ‘’definitely will help.’’

Selling the Kings Meantime, in Sacramento, business leaders are asking NBA Commissioner David Stern and league owners to ‘’strongly encourage’’ the Maloof family to sell the Kings so a deal for a new arena can be reached.

In a letter signed by about two dozen of Sac-

ASIA GOLF RANKINGS

ramento’s most powerful businesses leaders and sent to Stern on Thursday, the group accuses Kings owners Joe, Gavin and George Maloof of not negotiating in good faith.

It also questions whether the Maloofs have the finances - and motivation - to keep the team in Sacramento. ‘’We feel it is time for the Maloofs to sell their ownership of the franchise, for the good of the city and in the interest of advancing Sacramento’s effort to build a downtown arena,’’ a portion of the letter reads. ‘’The city, the fans and the NBA deserve and require an ownership group that is fully committed to being a good-faith constructive participant in the arena process. ‘’And we deserve an ownership group that is not only committed to the long-term viability of the franchise in this region but also one that has the wherewithal to make it a thriving, competitive organization.’’

J

uvic Pagunsan of the Philippines ranked no.

9 as of April 8, 2012 rankings released by the official world golf ranking body.

Pagunsan, who finished in a tie for 35th in this year’s World Golf Championship, rose to the 9th position with 1.05 average points. The smoothswinging Filipino also climbed to 167th position in the world golf rankings owing largely to his fine performance in the world championships in Doral, Florida.

K.J. Choi of South Korea, 26th in the world is on top of the Asian rankings which was dominated

by Koreans. Choi earned

15

The timing of the letter was no accident.

The Maloofs were giving an update on the project to the NBA Board of Governors during its annual spring meeting in New York. It was exactly a year ago when Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and the city’s business leaders convinced owners - along with presenting more than $10 million of new sponsorship and ticket sales for this season to the team - at the same Manhattan hotel to keep the Kings from moving to Anaheim, Calif.

Sacramento city officials were not in attendance Thursday. Johnson, who had initially said the city had done its part and it’s up to the Kings and the NBA to resolve the issue, was expected to meet with the Maloofs in New York on Friday, a team spokesman told reporters outside the St. Regis hotel. The mayor’s staff had no comment on what the meeting would entail.

3.801 average points and seven other Koreans occupied the top 7 spots.

Bae Sang Moon and K.T. Kim were second and third, respectively.

The other Koreans in the rankings were Y.E. Yang (4), Charlie Wi (5), John Huh (6), and Noh Seung Yul (7).

Siddikur Rahman of Bangladesh ranked no. 8, a notch higher than the Filipino.

In the world rankings, Luke Donald assumed no.

1 spot with Rory McIlroy in no. 2 and Lee Westwood in no. 3. Newlycrowned Masters champion Bubba Watson is no.

4 while Hunter Mahan is no. 5.

16

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SPORTS

ADRID — Spanish football may be enjoying one of its most successful eras, powered by Barcelona and Real Madrid’s charge through the Champions League, but the glittering success on the pitch hides a darker story.

As Real and Barca are through to the elite Champions League semi-finals, and three Spanish clubs are into the Europa League last four, a survey of the accounts of the country’s top clubs reveals a tale of crippling debts and tax arrears.

Real Madrid lead Barcelona by four points at the top of La Liga, but the two global superstars also rival each other in the depth

VOL.5 ISSUE 29• APRIL 15 - 16, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

SUPERSTARS Leo Messi (10) of FC Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo (4) of Real Madrid play for the two most successful ballclubs in the Spanish League. of their debts — Real have accumulated 589 million euros ($772 million) to Barcelona’s 578 million euros.

The archrivals’ debts eclipse their revenues, which for 2010-2011 amounted to 479 million euros for Real Madrid and 450 million euros for Barcelona.

Europa League semifinals Valencia and Atletico Madrid are also both awash with red ink, to the tune of 382 and 514 million euros respectively.

But the latest figure to hit the headlines in Spain is the 752 million euros that Spain’s elite clubs owe to the tax man at a time when more than five million are

unemployed and the government is asking citizens for more sacrifices.

The sports ministry announced a plan to ensure that football pays for its own debts. But for the moment it is unclear how they will do so.

Six of the 20 Liga clubs — Rayo Vallecano, Racing Santander, Real Betis, Zaragoza, Granada and Mallorca — are currently in bankruptcy proceedings, as are another six second-division teams.

“That figure alone shows that Spanish football is not well managed financially,” said Barcelona University Professor of Economics Jose Maria Gay de

Liebana, who specialises in football.

The analyst compared Spanish football’s debts, which he estimated at 3.5 billion euros in total, to the frenzy of the country’s property market bubble, which imploded in 2008.

“Football is a mirror of the general economy in Spain. For years we have been spending beyond our means, getting deeper and deeper into debt,” he explained.

“For football it’s the same: for years clubs have made colossal and inefficient investments. And as they did not have their own funds to finance these expenses, they went mas-

sively into debt.”

A good example of the race to invest, no matter the cost, is Valencia’s “New Mestalla” stadium.

In 2007, in the midst of the property boom, Valencia decided to buy itself a new 70,000-seat stadium — even though it has only 39,000 members.

The 300-million-euro construction cost was supposed to be financed by the sale of the land from its old stadium for some 400 million euros.

Two years later, engulfed by the property market crisis, construction stopped when the club realized it could not find buyers for the old stadium prop-

erty.

One other factor may have contributed to the accumulation of debts — a lack of financial control by Spanish institutions.

Some blame a lax attitude by the Spanish football league, others the league’s inability to impose tough sporting sanctions.

Until very recently the Spanish professional football league did not have the power to relegate a club in bankruptcy.

Some teams even used the bankruptcy law to their advantage, enjoying legal protection from their creditors while continuing to play football at the highest level.