Edge Davao 5 Issue 87

EDGEDAVAO

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VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

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Foul play in couple’s suicide?

By Lorie A. Cascaro

T

he possibility of foul play in the death of a couple who allegedly committed suicide in their house at San Antonio, Matina, Davao City last July 2 is still under police investigation.

The couple, Ali Crisostomo, 40, originally

from Kidapawan City, who served as a deacon of Jehovah’s Witnesses Church, and his wife, eden, 22, from Dumaguete City, reportedly left a suicide note inside their room.

Senior Inspector Aldrin Juaneza of the Talomo Police Station said the letter, which is significant in determining whether there was foul play, is under custody of the

Crime Laboratory 11.

The note says: “To my body of elders.

Dear Brothers, I wrote this letter to inform you all that I voluntarily stepping down my privileges as one of the elders of our congregation due to the wrongdoings that I have been committing. It is sad that it happens to

FFOUL, 13

Science/Environment Page 4

Sports Page 15

SUPPORT. Governor and national president of JCI Senate Philippines Antonio H. Cerilles says Junior Chamber International supports responsible mining and opposes il-

LTFRB asked to explain Black taxi row

By Antonio M. Ajero

Follow Us On

legal and unregulated mining during JCI’s Forum on Responsible Mining yesterday at the Grand Menseng Hotel. [LEAN DAVAL, JR.]

T

he LAND TRANSPORTATION Franchising and Regulatory Board headed

by Jaime D. Jacob has been asked by Secretary Mar Roxas of the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) to explain the alleged controversy over the

issuance of a permit to Mabuhay taxi company operate taxi cabs colored black which is being opposed by an association of taxi operators in Davao City.

LTFRB insiders told edge Davao that Jacob was directed to report on the controversy and answer the memorandum briefing submitted by LTFRB Region 11 Director Ben-

jamin Go regarding the case.

The LTFRB regional director reportedly narrated the “lapses, shortcomings and possible complications of the black taxi issue.”

An earlier report indicated that members of the Metro Davao Taxi Operators Association, Inc. (Medatoa), whose members

FLTFRB, 13

EDGEDAVAO 2 THE BIG NEWS Only 4 small-scale mines Davao registry of deeds in region legal – MGB11 named 12th top grosser VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

By Jade C. Zaldivar

O

NLY four out of dozens of smallscale mines in the Davao region operate legally with permits acquired from the national government, according to the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) for Davao region yesterday.

The four registered small-scale mines, named after their location, are: Lumanggang and Panoraon in Maco, Compostella Valley (Comval); InupuanSaravan in Nabunturan (Comval), and Dinagsaan Puntalinao in Banaybanay, Davao Oriental “They are paying taxes already. every shipment of copper or gold ore goes to the processing plant, for which they have to pay excise tax,” MGB 11 regional director edil-

Warning

berto Arreza said in an interview at the Grand Men Seng hotel where a mining forum was held.

“It is unfortunate that the biggest number of smallscale mining groups have not applied for permits, with Pantukan having the most with 20,000 miners since there are 19 smallscale mining areas there, and also in Diwalwal which has approximately 10,000 miners who do not operate legally,” he added.

Arreza said there are approximately 50,000 working miners in the region. Minahan ng Bayan is in line with Presidential Decree (PD) No. 1899 “establishing Small-Scale Mining as a New Dimension in Mineral Development” which was approved by former president Ferdinand Marcos in 1984.

Davao Gulf may add to ‘plastic vortex”’

A

Davao City businessman is calling for a clean-up trash in the Davao Gulf which threaten to contribute to the growing plastic vortex in the oceans.

President of the American Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines - Davao City, Philip “Sonny” Dizon plastics are insidious as these cannot be decomposed.

“There is no joke with these plastics,” he told reporters, adding that the biggest trash vortex in the world is found between Japan and Alaska, and it is four times the size of Japan.

“All the oceans in the world have a plastic vortex.

It’s so big that it creates its own biodiversity underneath the plastic,” he said.

Also known as “the Asian Trash Trail” or the “eastern Garbage Patch,” trash vortex has an area equivalent to the size of Texas, according to Greenpeace International.

It has been reported that plants and animals in marine ecosystems “can be transported on the floating plastics outside their normal habitat, invading new habitats to become possible nuisance species.”

Dizon acknowledged the efforts of the Davao City government to reduce the use of non-biodegrad-

FDAVAO GULF, 13

PD 1899 allows the operations of small-scale miners to “generate more employment opportunities, thereby alleviating the living conditions [in] the rural areas and will contribute additional foreign exchange earnings.” however, following the identification of Minahan ng Bayan areas throughout the country, Arreza said, majority of small-scale miners fail to register although it is expected of them.

“Actually they (smallscale miners) are happy that the national government has identified Minahan ng Bayan areas.

It means the national government will be allowing them to mine as opposed to when they operated on their own before without proper

FONLY, 13

By Lorie A. Cascaro

D

avao City’s Registry of Deeds (RD) of the Land Registration Authority (LRA) 11 was hailed for ranking 12th among the top 20 grossers in the country last year, a government officer said yesterday.

Lawyer Asteria e. Cruzabra, Davao City registrar of deeds, in an interview, said Davao City is number one in terms of collection in the Visayas and Mindanao, surpassing Cebu City, Cagayan de Oro City and Zamboanga City.

She said the city’s income from registration fees and other fees collected last year was close to P90 million, showing a significant increase from that of previous years.

She said, “We are hopeful that we will surpass last year’s income, although we have no annual target because we are dependent on

people who want to register their lands.”

Davao City ranks sixth among the top RDs in terms of performance through the number of transactions last year, including commercial, industrial and residential matters.

“There were many land title applications for condominiums and housing. Property development in the city is very positive. Yearly, we have a growing trend in collections,” she added.

She mentioned the implementation of the Voluntary Title Standardization (VTS) policy by the city since last month, although there have been only two applicants so far which are pending approval due to extensive physical damage of the original copy of the land title.

“This is only voluntary, so we are waiting for people to come and register their manual land titles with the data

base. But, most people think this is a way to replace their tattered titles,” she said.

Cruzabra is yet to see the implementing rules and regulations to determine whether the new policy authorizes the registry to convert dilapidated titles, considering that in cases such as this, there should be a court order before replacing the original copy under Republic Act 26.

Despite the extensive physical damage of land titles, usually by termites or burned beyond recognition, the registry has no authority to convert unless there is a court order, she said.

“It’s not as easy as that because it may be abused and would lead to corruption as peole don’t have to go to court,” she said.

She added that the registry is offering 20% discount within six months for all applicants for VTS, which costs P600 per title.

PAINTER AND PEDESTRIAN. A pedestrian passes under a construction worker painting the facade of a newly constructed building along Claveria Street.

[KARLOS MANLUPIG]

Groups attending forum LGU-academe partnership doubt responsible mining on data management mulled

P

RO-people and environment groups attending yesterday’s Forum on Responsible Mining at the Grand Men Seng hotel here said equating responsible mining with legally documented mining lacks perspective for structural analysis on the mining industry.

The multi-sectoral forum was organized by JCI Senate Philippines, Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and Coalition for Responsible Mining in Mindanao to convey their pro-stand on responsible mining.

Jean Suzanne Lindo, Kalikasan Party-list Third

Nominee, at the sideline of the forum, said the discussions sent a general message for the eradication of smallscale mining because they are illegal, and only those that are legal should be allowed to operate.

The groups Kalikasan, Panalipdan, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), Promotion of Church People’s Response in Davao City submitted a position paper to the forum, opposing the current mining policy under Republic Act 7942 and pushing for national industrialization.

“The mining that we want is an industry that gives

more than it consumes,” Lindo said, adding that it should be more of national and local industries to help the Philippines’ economy and not of other countries.

She cited matters that were not discussed at the forum, including health impacts of mining, environmental sustainability, and targets for reduction of carbon emission and increase in forest cover among others.

“The vulnerabilities should be taken into considerations,” she added.

The groups also expressed their categorical and unequivocal support for

FGROUPS, 13

By Greg G. Deligero

T

he local government of Davao City is set to ink an agreement with major colleges and universities to better manage data and information beneficial to both the city government and the academe.

The draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the “Academe-Government Partnership for Sustainable Development of Davao City” between the city government and the Davao Colleges and Universities Network (DACUN) has yet to be forwarded to the city

council for the enactment of a corresponding ordinance authorizing the city mayor to sign the agreement.

In his official endorsement to the city legal office, Ricardo D. Franco, officer-in-charge of the City Information and Technology Center (CITC) said the MoU is favorable to the city government.

CITC is the city’s frontline office in the adoption and application of information and communication technology in government operations.

Under the draft agreement, DACUN and the city government will share ex-

pertise and resources in database development, profiling of barangays, construction of indicators for comparative development analysis and project evaluation.

“Both parties recognize the importance of establishing a mutually beneficial public-private partnership in providing effective and efficient social services to the people of Davao City and thus contribute to the sustainable growth of the city,” said part of the MoU. It emphasizes the need for the development of a database to allow “the

FLGU, 13

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

THE BIG NEWS

3

JCI Senate supports responsible mining

By Jade C. Zaldivar

T

he prominent group, JCI Senate Philippines, manifested its support for responsible mining in the country in a forum at the Grand Men Seng hotel here yesterday.

JCI Philippines, an affiliate of the worldwide organization Junior Chamber International (JCI), said “mining should not be abhorred but exercised through responsible and legal means.”

“We invited representatives of sectors, whether anti or pro mining or those who are undecided yet. The intention is not to persuade these sectors to support mining but to educate them that with proper implementation, mining can help improve our country’s economy,” said Zamboanga del Sur Governor Antonio Cerilles, president of JCI

Senate Philippines.

Mines and Geoscience Bureau (MGB) for the Davao region, an office under the Department of environment and Natural Resources, noted this was the first time JCI manifested its support for mining.

“I think what they’re doing is commendable. The most important thing really is educating the people on the potential of mining to the country,” MGB 11 regional director edilberto Arreza said in an interview.

JCI’s Committee on Responsible Mining chair, lawyer Menjie Redelosa, stressed that mining will exist with or without laws governing or limiting such.

“The matter is already before us. In areas where there are mineral deposits, there will always be mining.

PEOPLE’S MINING BILL. Members of progressive organizations staged a protest action in Davao City on Tuesday claiming that there is no “responsible min-

FJCI, 13 ing” under the Philippine Mining Act. [KARLOS MANLUPIG]

4

SCIENCE/ENVIRONMENT

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

75% of Japan’s NW Pacific whale hunt unsold: official

Whaling nations shot down proposed Atlantic sanctuary J

Pieces of whale sushi are pictured in 2010. Three-quarters of the tons of meat from Japan’s controversial whale hunt last year was not sold, despite repeated attempts to auction it, officials said.

T

hree-quarters of the tons of meat from Japan’s controversial whale hunt last year was not sold, despite repeated attempts to auction it, officials said on Wednesday.

The Institute of Cetacean Research, a quasipublic body that organises the country’s whaling, said around 75 percent of roughly 1,200 tons of minke, Bryde’s and sei meat from the deep-sea mission did not find buyers.

It is separate from the smaller coastal whaling programmes in northern Japan, whose meat still attracts buyers because it is fresh -- as opposed to frozen -- and sold in regions with deep whale-eating traditions.

The institute held regular auctions between November and March to sell frozen meat from creatures caught in Northwestern Pacific waters last summer. It was intended to promote whale consumption and increase revenue.

A spokesman for the institute blamed the “disappointing” auction results on food sellers wishing to avoid trouble with antiwhaling activists.

“We have to think about new ways to market whale meat,” he told AFP. Japan exploits a loophole in the international moratorium on whaling allowing for lethal research.

Anti-whaling nations and environmentalist groups routinely condemn the missions as a cover for commercial whaling that they say threatens the population of the giant marine creatures.

Japan however says the research is necessary to substantiate its view that

there is a robust whale population in the world.

Japan also argues that whaling is part of its tradition and accuses Western nations of cultural insensitivity. The country’s powerful fishing industry, as well as right-wing activists, have urged no compromise.

In a recent report, Japanese anti-whaling campaigners said the poor auction results confirmed that Japanese consumers no longer ate a lot of whale meat. however, the public supports whaling missions, mainly as a demonstration of their outrage against anti-whaling groups which have harassed Japanese whalers, said a report by freelance journalist Junko Sakuma, released by the Iruka and Kujira (Dolphin and Whale) Action Network.

Sakuma, who studied the institute’s auction outcomes, said the topgrade whale meat from the Northwestern Pacific missions still attracted buyers.

But the low general demand for whale meat and Icelandic whale meat imports are creating oversupply, which in turn makes Japan’s whaling programme unsustainable, Sakuma said.

“Among (Japanese whaling officials) who continue research whaling by relying on Japanese sentiment that ‘anti-whalers are outrageous’, there must be people who are secretly thanking Sea Shepherd,” she said.

Sea Shepherd is a militant environmental group that has routinely attacked Japanese whalers on the high seas to hinder the hunt.

APAN and its allies shot down a Latin American-led proposal to create a sanctuary for whales in the southern Atlantic Ocean, reigniting international tensions over Tokyo’s whaling.

The International Whaling Commission, which has long been torn by disputes, fell into familiar divisions just hours after officials opened the main session of their week-long annual meeting in Panama City.

Argentina, Brazil, South Africa and Uruguay put forward a proposal to declare the southern Atlantic a no-kill zone for whales, a largely symbolic measure as whaling ended there long ago.

Thirty-eight countries voted in favor of the measure and 21 voted against, with two abstentions.

Under commission rules, proposals need to enjoy a “consensus” of 75 percent support for approval.

Jose Truda Palazzo, who spearheaded the proposal for the Atlantic sanctuary when he was Brazil’s representative to the International Whaling Commission, blamed nations that receive Japanese aid for scuttling the proposal.

“Japan doesn’t want to give an inch on anything that may compromise their ability to roam the world doing whaling as they see fit,” said Truda Palazzo, who is now at

Brazil’s non-governmental Cetacean Conservation Center.

“You can’t really believe that Nauru or Tuvalu has an interest or has studied the sanctuary.

They are voting because Japan tells them to.”

But environmentalists saw some silver lining, saying the proposal was enjoying growing support. At last year’s meeting held on the english Channel island of Jersey, whaling nations walked out to prevent a vote on the Atlantic sanctuary.

Japan each year kills hundreds of whales in Antarctic waters that are already considered a sanctuary, infuriating Australia and New Zealand, where whalewatching is a lucrative industry.

Japan, whose Antarctic expeditions are routinely hindered by the militant US-based Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, says it is technically abiding by a 1986 moratorium on commercial whaling as its activities are for research.

The International Whaling Commission allows lethal science on the ocean giants, with the meat then going to consumption.

Japan argues that whaling is part of its culture and accuses Western nations of insensitivity. environmentalists say few Japanese eat whale and that the country’s

position is driven by its powerful fishing industry.

Norway and Iceland are the only countries that openly defy the commercial whaling moratorium, although their hunts are confined to nearby waters. The two countries also voted against the proposed Atlantic sanctuary.

China, Russia and South Korea -- which all have faced friction in the past over their fishing industries -- also opposed the Atlantic sanctuary.

South Korean delegate Kang Joon-Suk told the session that the International Whaling Commission needed to move beyond its divisions and support both “conservation and sustainable use” of whales.

Monaco, which despite its small size has been assertive on whale conservation, submitted a proposal that would invite the United Nations to take a role in enforcing the authority of the International Whaling Commission.

Graphic on the proposed southern Atlantic Ocean whale sanctuary, rejected at the Intenational Whaling Commission meeting in Panama after Japan and its allies voted against the initiative.

EDGEDAVAO

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 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

18. Unemployment Rate 7/

6.4% Oct 2011

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

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

47.032 46.851 48.139

48.161 48.146 47.905 47.524 48.217

48.458 47.585 47.207

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

THE ECONOMY

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

5

DA allots P6-B fund for rice production T

he Department of Agriculture is allotting an initial P6 billion to further increase rice production and farmers’ incomes, and subsequently increase the country’s farm mechanization level and keep pace with neighboring Asian countries like Thailand and Vietnam.

Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala said “our target in the medium-term is to increase the current farm mechanization level at 0.57 horsepower per hectare (hp/ha) to 0.8 hp/ha.”

To attain it, he said the Department of Agriculture is implementing a medium-term (2011 to 2016) agricultural and fishery sector mechanization and modernization program, a major component of the Aquino government’s Food Staples Sufficiency Program (FSSP). The mechanization program is spearheaded by the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development Mechanization (PhilMech) in tandem with the DA national commodity programs (rice, corn, high value crops, livestock and fisheries), regional field units, and other concerned agencies.

For the national rice program alone, Secretary Alcala said the DA has already allotted P3.6 billion (P1B in 2011 and P2.6B this year), and proposes a P2.4-B budget in 2013. The amount is used to procure various farm production and postharvest machinery and equipment that the DA provides to qualified irrigators’ associations (IAs), farmers’ groups, and local government units (LGUs) via an 85:15 counterparting scheme, where the DA shoulders up to 85% of the equipment cost, while the remaining 15% serves as the equity or local counterpart of the beneficiaries.

The production and post harvest machinery and equipment include rice drum seeders, transplanters, power tillers with trailers, mini fourwheel tractors, hand tractors, floating tillers, reapers, seed

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

cleaners, rice cutters, threshers, combine harvesters, collapsible dryers, hermetic cocoons, laminated sacks, flatbed and mechanical dryers, multipurpose drying pavements or solar dryers, including construction of palay sheds, warehouses, rice mills and processing facilities.

In 2011, the DA rice program has procured P1-B worth of 2,300 units of various production and postharvest machinery and equipment, including 429,450 pieces of 10-square meter laminated sacks or ‘trapal’ that serve as dryers.

This year, with a P2.6B budget, the DA targets to provide IAs, other farmers’ groups, LGUs with more than 7,000 units of various farm machinery and equipment.

For his part, DA Undersecretary Joel Rudinas said “we want to provide the environment that would encourage the private sector to invest in the country’s farm machinery industry. We plan to reach a farm mechanization level of 0.8 hp/ ha, similar to that of Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.” he said other developed countries like Japan and South Korea are already highly mechanized, at 7 hp/ha and 4 hp/ha, respectively.

“We want to move from traditional to mechanized farm labor by enabling our farmers acquire appropriate farm machine and equipment so they could perform various farm and postharvest chores faster and more efficiently, and thus produce more harvest and earn more income,” said Rudinas.

“Secondly, as we are vulnerable to climate change, with farm machines we could devote less time for land preparation and harvesting. We could plant early, and similarly harvest early with the use of harvesters, thus avoiding possible damage due to typhoons,” he added.

For his part, Assistant Secretary Delima said “we do not

intend to displace any farm labor. Instead, we aim to increase farm labor productivity. More importantly, with the use of farm machinery, farmers could prepare their land at the same time and adopt a synchronized rice planting schedule. This practice would enable farmers to monitor and effectively control crop pests, and subsequently minimize production losses.” he said the DA will explore other alternative sources

of energy, which are costefficient and sustainable, to power farm machinery and equipment. “We will therefore encourage manufacturers to develop farm machines and equipment that could run efficiently on alternative sources of energy,” Delima said.

Finally, he said “we will also have to train new breed of farmers on how to properly use and maintain farm machinery, equipment and facilities.”

Alcala: More postharvest facilities needed for palay

I

F the country has enough postharvest facilities, it could save one million metric tons of palay yearly, and subsequently need not import anymore.

Thus said Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala during a recent forum with rice industry leaders and top officials of financial institutions.

“We can minimize post harvest losses in palay that reaches over 1 million tons per year, if we have enough drying facilities. We can make palay production a lot cheaper, more efficient, and more convenient for farmers if we have enough farm machineries in place,” the DA chief said. he thus encouraged the private sector to invest in rice production, processing and trading, including exports when the country eventually achieves sufficiency by 2014 and beyond.

Studies conducted jointly by the DA’s Philippine Center for Postharvest Development Mechanization (PhilMech) and Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) showed a total of 16 per cent is lost from the time palay (paddy rice) is harvested from the field, threshed, dried and then milled into rice and stored.

This is equivalent to a

maximum saving of 2.66 million metric tons (MMT), based on last year’s total palay harvest of 16.68 MMT. If we could save at least six percent of total postharvest losses, we would have an additional supply of one million metric tons of palay, or roughly 650,000 MT of rice, which is more than the 500,000 MT the country is importing this year, Secretary Alcala said.

For his part, newlyinstalled PhilMech Director Rex L. Bingabing said in terms of percentage the biggest amount of palay lost or wasted is during drying (5.8%), as most farmers dry threshed palay on roads. Further, another 5.5% of dried palay is lost during milling, as majority (88%) of millers still use single-pass facilities, with low milling recoveries ranging from 50% to 57%.

Modern multi-pass mills have 65% to 70% milling recoveries, PhilMech said.

Other manual postharvest operations that result in palay losses are threshing (2.2%), harvesting (2%), storage and piling (1%). The DA is thus implementing a medium-term national farm mechanization and postharvest program to enable farmers to produce more crops and reduce losses.

as of august 2010

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

EDGEDAVAO 6 DA allocates P50 M to save small banana players THE ECONOMY

T

he Department of Agriculture in partnership with small banana growers and exporters, mostly based in Davao region, will put up common packing facilities that comply with required export standards.

Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala said the DA in tandem with the Mindanao Banana Farmers and exporters Association (MBFeA) will initially put up two banana packing facility at barangays Kinnamon and Casig-an, both in Sto. Tomas, Davao del Norte,

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

worth P3.1 million (M) each. The DA chief visited the prospective sites on June 20, 2012, accompanied by MBFeA officers, led by its president Romeo Garcia, chairman, and DA officials.

Secretary Alcala said the amount will come from the President Aquino’s Social Fund which allotted P50M to construct new packing facilities and upgrade existing ones to enable small banana farmers comply with international sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS).

he said the DA through the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) is currently inspecting small banana packing facilities in Davao region, and subsequently accredit those that meet required standards.

Secretary Alcala urged the members of the MBFeA to form themselves into clusters so they could be served by common or central accredited packing facility. he made the call during a consultation with small and multinational banana growers and

exporters, along with Davao local government officials, led by Vice Governor Victorio Suaybaguio, Jr., in Tagum City.

During the forum, the DA chief urged the ‘big players’ — or members of the Philippine Banana Growers and exporters Association (PBGeA), headed by its executive director Stephen Antig — to share their technologies and good agricultural practices with the small growers and exporters, so they could be more productive and meet the stringent export

to expand production.

In the fourth year of the partnership, however, Rogelio “Roger” Pascual, the cooperative’s president, noted delays in the company’s payments to the cooperative.

The delays in payments by as much as thirty days created cash flow problems for the cooperative.

“It was a difficult time.

We could no longer afford the daily wages of our workers and other overhead costs,” Pascual recalled.

After consulting its members, the cooperative’s management decided

to discontinue the contract agreement with the company and to look for new buyers. It was a risky move, but deemed necessary to ensure Greenland’s longerterm survival.

Pascual knew that the key to success was to become aggressive in establishing new markets. In 2010, he attended a forum organized by the Vegetable enthusiasts and Growers Society (VeGS) in collaboration with the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Growth with equity in Mindanao (GeM) Program.

Of resorts and a congressman

standards. he said the DA will also provide them technical and marketing assistance, and training through the BPI, Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS), and high Value Crops Development Program (hVCDP). however, he cautioned some of them not to resort again to ‘polevaulting’ or reneging on marketing contracts with multinational companies and dealing with other buyers and importers whenever export prices

of banana spike or shoot up, and in the process hastily skipping or relaxing on the required SPS or export standards.

Meanwhile, he said the DA, represented by AMAS Director Leandro Gazmin, and officers of the MBFeA and PBGeA, along with trade industry officials are embarking on a trade mission to explore and clinch more export markets for Philippine bananas. They group left June 23, 2012 for the Middle east, Brussels, Netherlands and Italy.

GenSan cooperative revitalizes asparagus venture

A

farming cooperative in General Santo City is proving that with persistence and marketing know-how, an organization can overcome setbacks and emerge stronger in the process.

For three years, the Greenland Multi-Purpose Cooperative supplied the asparagus requirements of a multinational company.

Bound by its contract grower agreement with the firm, the cooperative enjoyed a steady revenue stream which provided its members with a stable source of income and enabled them

P

UTTING up resorts is the investment of the season. Ancestral houses, family farms, beach properties, are all turned into resorts. But in this particular city where tourism is the main industry, one official of a very corrupt government agency is constructing a resort that transcends four properties that she does not own. how the official of a very corrupt government agency got her building permit is not surprising. her agency has projects that can make or break the popularity of a politician.

So, the folks at the city where her resort is located just granted her permit turning a blind

eye to the fact that the owners of the property are already up in arms!

And oh, did you know that the equipment used to construct the resort are government property? Who knew that the government had equipment like that when roads and bridges in the region are all nakatiwangwang?

When confronted about this, the official of a very corrupt government agency simply said that she was just doing the project on behalf of a congressman who was also rumored to have had an affair with her?

Whoopsie daisies!

EDGEDAVAO

ICT HUB

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

7

Apple pays $60 M to end China iPad trademark row A

PPLe has paid $60 million to end a dispute over who could use the iPad name in China, a court said Monday, giving the US tech giant more certainty in selling its tablet computer in the Chinese market.

Apple paid the sum last week to settle its long-running legal battle with Chinese computer maker Shenzhen Proview Technology, the high Court of the southern province of Guangdong said in a statement.

“This means that the dispute between Apple and Shenzhen Proview over the rights to the iPad brand is resolved in a satisfactory manner,” said the statement posted on the court’s website.

The amount paid by Apple was well below the $400 million demanded by the Chinese firm.

Both Proview, based in the southern city of Shenzhen, and Apple had claimed ownership of the Chinese rights to the “iPad” trademark.

Proview’s Taiwanese affiliate registered “iPad” as a trademark in several countries including China as early as 2000 -- years before Apple began selling its hugely successful tablet computer.

Apple subsequently bought the rights for the global trademark -- in-

cluding from the Taiwanese affiliate.

But the Shenzhen branch of Proview said the deal did not include the rights for mainland China and the two sides had been locked in a legal feud since the China launch of the iPad in 2010.

Proview urged Chinese authorities to ban the sale, import and export of the iPad late last year after a Guangdong court issued a ruling against Apple. however, although a few Chinese cities reportedly ordered iPads to be seized, those calls were largely ignored.

The Chinese firm also sued Apple in China’s commercial hub of Shanghai and in the US state of California, but the lawsuits were thrown out.

A lawyer for Proview, Xie Xianghui, said the debt-ridden Chinese company had originally sought $400 million in compensation for giving up the rights but settled for the lower amount out of “practical” considerations.

“We previously hoped that the compensation would be $400 million, so that it would be enough to pay back all the debts,” Xie told AFP on Monday.

“We have to say it is the practical choice. It is a comprehensive settle-

Photo illustration shows a customer in Lyon, France, holding an Apple iPad. The US tech giant has paid $60 million to end a dispute over who could use the iPad name in China, a court said Monday, giving Apple more certainty in selling its tablet computer in the Chinese market. ment and the end of the lawsuit in mainland China.”

Xie said Proview felt “pressure” to settle, though he declined to say why.

“Court mediation gave us some pressure,” he said.

Analysts said the Chinese government wanted the matter resolved, wary of the damage a ruling against Apple could do for the foreign business climate in China.

It is rare for a Chi-

nese enterprise to accuse an overseas firm of trademark breaches -- although foreign companies frequently complain of intellectual property rights violations in China.

“It was clear the Chinese government would prefer a settlement,” said Shaun Rein, managing director for Shanghai-based China Market Research Group.

“For Apple, it’s a cheap settlement. For Proview, they just needed the

cash.”

The legal battle did not halt sales of the iPad through Apple’s five retail stores in mainland China, its online store and many licensed dealers.

But, amid uncertainty over how the Chinese courts would rule, the row loomed as a potential huge roadblock for Apple if it lost.

Rein said the settlement should allow Apple to focus more clearly on China.

“having these rights, they don’t have an excuse anymore to be slow in introducing the new iPad line into China,” Rein said, adding that although Apple products were wildly popular in China the company could still do much better.

Greater China -- which includes hong Kong and Taiwan -- has become Apple’s fastest-growing region, with revenues second only to the United States.

Google Docs gets offline editing G

OOGLe has finally launched offline editing for Google Docs users, enabling them to keep writing even when their internet connection drops out.

“No internet connection? No big deal. With offline editing, you can create and edit Google documents and leave comments. Any changes you make will be automatically synced when you get back online,” said Clay Bavor, Product Management Director at Google in a post on the Google Docs Blog.

While most features are available in the offline mode Google Docs users will not be able to insert an image or drawing, use the translate or research tools, or share, download, publish and print documents.

The offline mode is only available for word

processing documents right now but Clay Bavor said, “We’re also working hard to make offline editing for spreadsheets and presentations available in the future.”

Technology blog Venture Beat writes that, “Offline editing puts Google Docs in a position to take on note-taking applications such as evernote.

One major complaint about evernote is the inability to share notes with others, which Google Docs obviously already enables.”

To enable offline editing, click on the gear icon located in the top right hand side of the page in Google Drive (formerly known as Google Docs) in Google Chrome or ChromeOS and select “set up Docs offline beta.” For detailed instructions on setting up offline editing, visit Google’s help Center.

8

VANTAGE POINTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

Intensifying uncertainties

O

EDITORIAL

No tokenism, please

I

T IS heartening to read about the news report that 31 high and low officials of the Department of environment and Natural Resources (DeNR) in Regions 11 (Davao) and 13 (Caraga) were relieved of their positions due to their failure to stop illegal logging.

The sacking which involved two regional executive directors (ReDs), a number of regional technical directors (RTDs), several provincial environment and natural resources officers (Penros) and community eNROs came days after the confiscation of P16 million worth of illegal log shipment coming from Davao in the Manila North harbor. It also came a week after no less than President Aquino lamented over the continued operation of illegal logging despite a ban he had imposed a year ago. In that angry speech, the President had even ordered the Bureau of Prisons to provide more space for illegal loggers his government would arrest and prosecute soon.

Also yesterday, the Philippine National Police chief Nicanor Bartolome, in a parallel move, ordered the relief of the provincial police director and six municipal chiefs of police for reportedly failing to stop illegal logging in Agusan del Sur. On the surface, these two events show the determination of the Aquino administration to

EDGEDAVAO

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once and for all stop the destruction of our forests through logging. however, there is need for Mr. Aquino to show his government’s sincerity by ordering the investigation of the relieved officials as to their involvement in illegal logging. There is such a thing as due process in our country which requires that the sacked officials be subjected first to a no-nonsense investigation before they are declared guilty and meted the appropriate punishment. This is only fair to the relieved officials some of whom may after all be found innocent of the charges.

On the other hand, if the sacking actually involved nothing but the transfer of these people to other areas of assignment without being penalized, then their sacking is being done simply so that government to earn pogi points with the people who have long been incensed by corruption and other misdemeanor in their government. This form of tokenism is commonly practiced in the Bureau of Customs, Department of Public Works and highways and other graft-ridden government agencies, whose erring officials are usually just transferred from one area to another and be allowed to continue their merry corrupt ways, instead of being prosecuted.

No tokenism, please.

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

N The GRID – What will you miss most about summer in the city? Between crazy heat waves and insane traffic gridlock – nothing at all! Let the rainy season begin!

MORe ON SMOKING – Many Canadians are, indeed, chain smokers. I could attest to the fact because I’ve stayed in the city of Toronto for a year. The acquired habit prompted the government of Canada to require tobacco companies to make cigarette packages with new, more graphic warning labels.

The images according to a strict directive include an emaciated cancer patient and closeup of oral cancer. But Toronto’s most dedicated nicotine fans say the scary labels won’t dissuade them from buying their favorite smokes.

All things considered, Filipino smokers likewise felt the same and smoking packs of cigarettes a day doesn’t seem nearly as perilous to their health.

-ONO POTeNTIAL MINIMUM FARe ReDUCTION – Mindful that all the uncertainties raise the possibility of unexpected oil price upsurges after a series of oil price roll back, leaders of different transport groups have requested the government that the minimum fare should remain in status quo for two reasons: first, they explained there’s a possibility that prices of gasoline, diesel fuel and other refined petroleum products would increase unpredictably to undetermined levels, and second, prices of spare parts and lubricants continue to increase despite the assurance of manufacturers and suppliers not to raise prices of their products.

But earlier reports swirl around about the potential reduction of the minimum fare once the prices of diesel fuel goes down to P37 per liter from the previous P49 and gasoline at P 4849 level from the previous P57-58 or according to variants. An over-assuming official of a transport group admitted that he and fellow leaders of different groups may not support the idea of a minimum fare cutback while the prices of oil remained in a volatile situation. however, leaders of various consumers and commuters groups say they noticed the cockiness of the transport leaders: “now they’re panicking by trying to find ways and the right patsies to stick to the present P8 minimum fare.” They’re now singing a different tune contrary to their earlier statement that the transport fare should be brought down to P7 when the price of crude oil hits the P37 a liter mark. Shade of deception or hypocrisy!

Lately, a consumers’ advocate group filed a petition before the Land Transportation and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) seeking the reduction of the minimum fare to P7 as a result of the series of oil price roll back. Prices of diesel fuel is now peg at P37 while gasoline at P49-50 a liter. Furthermore, it is widely believed that leaders of the different transport groups are protecting their respective turfs and jockeying for a price status quo.

If nothing else, the oil price issue has focused the minds of transports leaders on their own economic problems while disregarding the rights of the consumers and the commuting public in particular. Such sentiment reverberates loudly considering that the commuting public has been too frightened to add what it’s going to cost them more in their daily necessities – notably increased transport fare. In fact, it was the perception of the commuters and consumers that some of the enterprising transport leaders’ recent move is politically-motivated and their assurance to reduce the minimum fare is nothing but mere lip service.

Until recently there are no changes in their position sparking a certain amount of confusion and public resentment has been building against them. The big question is: how fast will the government move and take necessary actions on the plight of the exploited commuters and how long will it take to produce results?

Moreover, the oil price shock concern intensifies uncertainty surrounding the price roll back scheme and the minimum fare cutback. But one thing is certain though, none of the previous assurances of transport leaders had helped their standing in maintaining their credibility, which suddenly seems more like an uncontrolled adolescent rather than responsible figures of society.

In the weeks ahead, if prices of oil continue to plunge and transport leaders remain reluctant to decrease the minimum fare to its desired level, chances are, a groundswell of petitioners for a fare cutback could also make themselves heard. Nevertheless, if there are oil price movements that would indicate it’s going up, then the transport sector is again in a position to exploit it to their advantage. Unfortunately, the same is true with the commuting public – in reverse. The poor commuters surely will be disgusted by another turn of disadvantageous event.

EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE POINTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

Fading out in andante

‘One tiny drop of water’

D

An Open Letter to our City Councilors in Davao

eARLY esteemed Public Servants: Last June 26, 2012 shortly before the session adjourned for the night, a colleague of yours announced that he will sponsor a resolution seeking 1) the approval of three new memorial parks, in Lubogan, in Baliok, and in Ulas, and 2) a moratorium on new cemeteries in the water rich areas to be put up where we are drawing our Dumoy water. earlier, the same councilor said he was not supporting nor lobbying (sic) the proposed three memorial parks in the area in a privileged speech (Sun Star Davao, June 27, 2002, page 2).

As a Dumoy water consumer and like the hundreds of thousands of others who would be affected by such decisions, we are of the same mind that protecting our environment and natural resources is our lasting legacy for the people of Davao City, encompassing the water everyone drinks, the air everyone breathes and the soil everyone uses to grow the food we eat.

Under the 1987 Constitution and in conjunction with the General Welfare Clause of Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991, it is your solemn duty as a legislative arm of the City Government to fully exercise genuine and meaningful local autonomy to be the effective partner of the national government, the people and civil society… in the enhancement of the right to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature.

Connected to this policy is the operative principle for the meaningful protection of the environment and sustainable utilization of the natural resources and the promotion of healthful ecology which is established through mutual consultation with the people especially the affected communities.

Right where we live from Lubogan (Toril), Baliok, Dumoy, Bago, Puan and Ulas (Talomo), we are aware that underneath us is a huge basin (kawa) containing a large quantity and superior quality of water, we refer to as aquifer, which serves as a ground water supply that everyone of us shares as a common heritage.

These areas are classified in the zoning ordinance as Protected Low Density Residential Areas (R1) where the number of houses is limited to only 20 units per hectare, and the Medium Density Residential Areas (up to 40 houses/hectare). Nonetheless, these areas are referred to as environmentally Critical Areas where development is limited and

“C

hARISMATIC leadership makes all the difference in the world when you are running a revolution,” says helvey. It’s good to have a strong leader who can knock heads together and get everybody to stick to a plan. “You can’t have a democracy to run a war,” he explains. “Once a decision has been made, everybody has to get on with it.”

Still, it would be wrong to jump to the conclusion that successful leadership has to come from a dominant figure. A leadership team has multiple advantages: It will survive if any single leader is captured or killed; it can stop a leader from getting too egotistical or even turning into a new dictator; and it may lead to more innovation, because having an excessively powerful leader can prevent new ideas from percolating.

What’s more, not all of those movements we think of as fronted by charismatic leaders were one-man (or one-woman) bands.

Often there were several inspirational leaders. Think of the combination of Jawaharlal Nehru and Gandhi in India; or Viktor Yushchenko and Yulia Tymoshenko in Ukraine’s Orange Revolution in 2004-2005. even when there is a single strong leader, that person is unlikely to possess all the qualities required to bring a struggle to a successful conclusion.

Movements require both brilliant propagandists and shrewd strategists. In very few

Monkey Business

regulated. Reason for the sparsity of houses is to lessen their impact on the water resource underground. A hectare of memorial park lots would be in the hundreds, several hundreds in fact.

As of now, this long stretch of barangays known to be water-rich is governed by the Comprehensive Development Plan of Davao City enacted in 1996 which serves as the Blue Print for Development up to 2021. In crafting this local law, our wise and forward looking lawmakers of the past councils wanted to leave for us a guide on which to base our development plans of the future.

Unfortunately, this Blue Print has been rewritten (some call it mangled beyond recognition) many times over through numerous requests for reclassification of privately owned properties from agricultural or residential to so-called “special use permits” in order to allow them to be developed into memorial parks, housing subdivisions, gasoline stations, etc. Usual reason to justify such a request is economic in nature: the conversion of the property into something else will create jobs, generate taxes for development, etc. It is an open secret that it is in occasions like these that graft and corruption rears its ugly head. The only condition imposed by the local authorities is: ok, but comply first with clearances and development permits. We wonder why some applicants take only one month to get a bunch of clearances, while others take long years.

We are not anti-business. We have nothing against economic development. If ever special permits have been granted to businesses in the past, there should be strict monitoring and evaluation of the effects of their operation on environmentally sensitive areas. It is our right to know that introduced developments have enhanced the life-process, not threaten it, for the welfare of human beings coming after us.

The real question, therefore, is: how much have we protected the water-rich resources of Davao City? We are glad to have two laws addressing such concerns. They are the Watershed Code and the Water Code. The former is serving its purpose quite laudibly. It has mechanisms such as the Watershed Management Coordinating Council and it meets regularly. The later, sorry to say, is a recent discovery of this present council, thanks to Councilor Melchor V. Quitain, who broached this out as the antidote to the opening of new cemeteries/memorial parks. Although enacted in 2001, some 11 years ago, it had never

The revolution will be organized

been “tried nor tested”. In fact, when queried in plenary session, a representative from the Office of the City Planning and Development Coordinator, admitted to not being aware of such a local law! But this same law is being used by a committee chair hearing applications for new memorial parks to justify new memorial parks even where are drawing our Dumoy drinking water, simply because there is no mention of Dumoy, Baliok, etc in the code!

In the last council session, there was a startling revelation made by Councilor Marissa Salvador Abella, chair of the council environment committee. She said she has stumbled upon old minutes of past joint committee hearings of the energy and Transportation and environment in February 12, 1999, revealing that during the preparation of the coordinates for the water code, there were actually four coordinates, namely: Calinan to Dacudao, Calinan to Malagos, Sirawan and Ulas. how the code ended with only three coordinates should be investigated by the council. The non-inclusion of this fourth coordinate is what is being exploited by sponsors of new cemeteries to justify their recommendations. Why was it not included in the first place? Would Councilor Pilar Braga, author of the controversial ordinance, break her silence, as she did in the June 26 session, to shed light on this very vital piece of information?

Let me end my letter with this thought: we have only one planet. In this our only home in the universe, clean drinking water is a very rare and scarce resource. Ninety nine percent of the water in the world is salty. The remaining one percent is clean drinking water for three billion people in the world to share. There is a very small, small percentage of water elsewhere, in the atmosphere and in the ice caps. If the world’s water supply is like a pail full of water, the one percent would be just about one spoon of it. The Dumoy water is just a tiny drop of that water in the spoon. Can we not see the hand of God in this wonderful allocation? Should we allow it to be further threatened, compromised or endangered?

We hope and pray, dear Councilors, the holy Spirit will guide you in your decision this coming July 3, 2012. This is your opportunity of a lifetime. The future generation depends on it. Thank you.

Ricardo Jr. A. Jimenez A Dumoy Water Consumer

(Conclusion)

analySiS

By Hugo Dixon

cases – such as that of Gandhi, who was both a messianic leader and an intuitive strategist – are both qualities found in one person.

The opposite is more typical. For example, Martin Luther King’s brilliant oratory was married to Bayard Rustin’s tactical genius, according to Roberts. Rustin, who had traveled to India in 1948 to learn the lessons of Gandhi’s campaign, taught King a lot of what he knew about nonviolent struggle. (One of his mottos: Never do the same thing twice.)

An MBA in nonviolent revolution?

Is it possible to teach people how to run a nonviolent revolution? For traditional warfare, there are military academies – such as West Point in the United States and Sandhurst in Britain – dedicated to teaching the strategies of engagement. After training at such a college, young officers then get an apprenticeship working on military campaigns for senior leaders. There is no nonviolent equivalent of Sandhurst, but there have been attempts to train leaders for nonviolent struggles. During the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, young leaders were trained at Gandhi’s old Phoenix Settlement near Durban. Sharp’s Albert einstein Institution has run workshops

for some resistance struggles, as has Popovic – his new Centre for Applied Non-Violent Action and Strategies (CANVAS) has trained activists in several countries, including egypt, Ukraine, and Georgia.

There are also a few academic courses.

One is a graduate program on the strategies and methods of nonviolent social change started by CANVAS at the University of Belgrade. Another is the Fletcher Summer Institute for the Advanced Study of Nonviolent Conflict, held at Tufts University in Boston.

More and more academics are also studying the field. Their books and articles are filtering down to activists on the ground, and what those books are telling them is this: To win a nonviolent struggle you must have leadership and solid strategy. Over time, such initiatives will get the relevant know-how to more and more emerging leaders and make them better nonviolent fighters. And that sharing of knowledge makes it more likely that the next nonviolent uprising will not just overthrow a dictator, but will replace him with a viable democratic government.

[Hugo Dixon is the founder and editor of Reuters Breakingviews. Before founding Breakingviews in 1999, Hugo spent 13 years at the Financial Times, the last five as Head of Lex. He began his journalistic career at the Economist.]

9

Special Feature

I

By Honor Blanco caBie

F one were a senior citizen today, one would definitely remember the serenatas of the 1950s and the 1960s played by at least a 25-piece small town band in the countryside.

If a person were newly married in his 20s in the 1970s, he would as well remember the concerts at the Rizal Park, colloquially called Luneta, by the Manila Bay, where bands from towns in the city’s outskirts played martial music to the delight of afternoon strollers.

The concerts at the Rizal Park are continuing these days, but the serenatas in the country have been overtaken by CDs and DVDs bought from the nearest department stores if not brought in from the metropolis.

A northerner, himself a trombonist in his youth in the 1960s, still remembers the weekends in Paoay, the town which at the time had three major bands of at least 40 members each, doing afternoon serenatas beside the two-story town hall.

Their weekend repertoire included overtures and martial music which always gave great pleasure to the population, mostly farmers and fishermen and some professionals.

It was soothing to hear any of the three bands – The Majestic, the Smart, and the Rhythm Masters – play, on alternating weekends, Franz von Suppe’s “Poet and Peasant” and other operettas, a genre of light music in terms of subject matter.

And they always heard, among many familiar classic compositions that were part of the culture of that generation, “haydn Concerto in e flat Minor,” the first movement of the opus of Austrian-born Franz Joseph haydn, acknowledged as a great composer of the classical era.

The small town bands’ supply of soothing music for their captive listeners included Rafael hernandez’s “el Cumbanchero,” Lara’s “Solamente Una Vez,” and “Quien Sera” by Ruiz and Gimbel, where a listener can easily be won by the sighing reeds and the hugging trombones.

There was also Serradel’s “La Golondrina,” “Csárdás,” a traditional hungarian folk dance -- the name derived from csárda (old hungarian term for tavern), and was popularized by Roma music (Cigány) bands in hungary and neighboring lands of Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Burgenland, Croatia, Ukraine, Poland, Transylvania and Moravia, as well as among the Banat Bulgarians, including those in Bulgaria. ”Csardas,” like “Poet and Peasant,” and “La Virgen de la Macarena” were very popular in that generation, who danced to the beat of Glenn Miller’s “In The Mood” and Tommy Dorsey’s “Song of India” as well as harry James’ “Ciribiribin” during town fiestas.

In Manila, the Philippine capital, bands in colorful uniforms of red and white, blue and white, or the original khaki outfit, played “Stars and Stripes,” a patriotic American march widely considered to be the magnum opus of composer John Philip Sousa.

They also played Sousa’s “National emblem,” “Under the Double eagle,” “The Washington Post,” which has remained as one of the composer’s most popular marches throughout the United States and foreign countries, including the Philippines.

Or they would play Sousa’s “el Capitan” or the locally composed “Dalagang Naic” or the “el Palikero.”

Or the bands would play ballroom beats like “La Cumparsita” as interpreted by the country’s trumpet king Anastasio Mamaril of Pangasinan, or “Cerezo Rosa” by Perez Prado as interpreted by Amy Galinato of the Jolly Boys of Ilocos Norte, the notes on his trumpet frolicking like some ice cubes falling on the pavement, doing one better than the own version of Cuba’s mambo king.

But Prado’s nearly eight-minute “Mosaico Cubano” was always a winner, punctuated by healthy and vibrant applause from the audience, sitting on kind summer’s green grass.

Concerts at the Rizal Park had members of the audience feeling more comfortable as they – young men and women and their grand children – enjoyed the two-hour gift of sights and sounds on benches while the sun was reluctantly setting on the placid Manila Bay. The concerts, now with other brands of cultural performances, are provided for free to the general public by the National Parks Development Committee.

Many old hands are agreed the performances in the metropolis, and notably in the country, have started fading out.

The weekend serenatas in the countryside have likewise gone to a moderately slow pace – and are on the last tied note of the last bar, no thanks to the lack of funds and local government support. [PNA]

10

COMMUNITY SENSE

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

DILG lauds 36 LGUs for good governance T

he Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) awarded P48 million to 36 local government units (LGU) for good governance.

Secretary Jesse Robredo said the Performance Challenge Fund is a grant given to LGUs in recognition of their commendable performance in running and managing their respective governance affairs. The said LGUs are also recipients of the department’s Seal of Good housekeeping (SGh). The seal was designed to measure the level of performance of LGUs in good governance.

Robredo was here to hand out the cash award.

“Panahon na upang yung

sumusunod bigyan ng gantimpala at ang di sumunod paparusahan natin. (It is time that those who practice good governance are rewarded, and those who do not are punished.)”

The seal is a requirement in accessing the PCF which the local governments can use to finance development projects that will help attain the country’s commitment to Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), tourism development, disaster risk reduction and management, solid waste and other local development initiatives.

Robredo said that since governance management is not the same among LGUs, the seal will

Sarangani in photos

GOOD GOVERNANCE. Mayor Elsie Perrett (center) formally turns over to municipal treasurer Fely Narvaez (right) the P1 million check from the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) which represents the Performance Challenge Fund given to local government units as an award for good governance. Rodolfo

determine the “power and financial allocation” to be granted to a local government. “hindi lahat ng mahusay na pamamahala ay matino at ang malungkot di lahat ng matino ay mahusay dapat pareho maayos at matino na pamamahala,” he told some 800 participants composed of local government chief executives and other officials during the DILG’s “Magtapatan Tayo: handa na ba Kayo?”caravan on Saturday (June 30) at the Family Country hotel here.

(Governance may be efficient only, but not upright. Sadly, it can be upright but not efficient.

In good governance,

Jerez of DILG witnessed the turn over of the check, which was earlier given by Sec. Jesse Robredo to municipalities, including Maitum, on June 30 in General Santos City during the TAPATAN 2012 attended by local government officials in Region XII led by governors and mayors.

both elements should be present.)

Of the 36 highperforming LGUs, 32 were municipalities that received P1 million each; three cities -Kidapawan, Koronadal and Cotabato -- with P3 million each; and the only province, Sarangani with P7 million.

Sarangani Governor Migs Dominguez received the check and thanked the DILG for the incentive to LGUs. Meanwhile, Sec. Robredo also awarded the municipalities of Alabel, Glan, and Maitum, Sarangani P1 million each as their PCF for having also earned the seal.

The other recipients were the municipalities

of Alamada, Aleosan, Antipas, Arakan, Carmen, Kabacan, Libungan, Magpet, Makilala, Matalam, Midsayap, M’lang, Pigcawayan, Pikit, President Roxas, and Tulunan in North Cotabato; Banga, Lake Sebu, Norala, Sto. Nino, Surallah, Tampakan, Tantangan, Tboli and Tupi in South Cotabato, and the towns of Bagumbayan, Isulan, Kalamansig, and Lebak in Sultan Kudarat.

To qualify for the PCF, an LGU should first pass the assessment and evaluation on good housekeeping that zeroes in the areas of good planning, sound fiscal management, transparency and accountability, and valuing of performance

monitoring.

Dominguez said the province’s laudable performance on internal housekeeping for good governance, transparency, and accountability enabled it to bag the seal of good housekeeping award.

The cash incentive, he said will be used to fund programs and projects that will help scale up indicators for MDGs and other vital development infrastructure projects under PCF guidelines.

The seal of good housekeeping was launched in March, 2011 and has since expanded to cover “all 4th to 5th class cities and 4th to 6th class municipalities” nationwide.

FIRE! FIRE! SFO1 Ramon Batuhan (left) of the Bureau of Fire Protection gives a sample of simple fire explosion from a gas tank as part of his lecture about fire safety and prevention during an earthquake and fire drill in line with the national simultaneous emergency drills June 29. The Department of Education partnered with the Department of National Defense and the National

Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council to generate the highest level of public awareness on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation through the emergency drills. With more than 300 students and faculty members, the drill showcased the students’ and school personnel’s preparedness in times of disaster.

FISHUNG SECTOR. Municipal environment officer Jerry Bascuña (extreme left), Mayor Elsie Perrett and Vice Mayor Tito Balazon Sr. award a bottom-set gill net to fisherman Gabriel Ariola (2nd from left) of barangayKi-

ambing Monday, July 2. The gill net project was given by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources to its Barangay Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management beneficiaries in the seven coastal barangays of Maitum.

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1st Sineng Pambansa

The controversy of Malan M

ALAN, a Mindanawon film entry in the 1st Sineng Pambansa National Film Festival with six scheduled screenings was pulled out from exhibition showing on Saturday, the second of the five-day festival, without prior notice to the public.

Briccio Santos, chair of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), the festival organizer, reversed an earlier decision of the FDCP’s Competition Technical Committee, which approved the showing of the Producer’s Cut of Malan.

In a press statement dated June 30 but sent to Davao City’s media outlets only on July 2, FDCP chair Santos announced the pullout of Malan “pending settlement of dispute between producers and director.”

The FDCP committee had earlier approved the showing of the Producer’s Cut after Malan’s producers, the Buhilaman Visions Davao, Inc. (BVDI), wrote FDCP, withdrawing the Director’s Cut as it allegedly contained a torrid kissing scene deemed “not acceptable to the B’laans… not culture sensitive and demeans the stature of IP (indigenous peoples) women.”

In statements posted on its Malan Facebook page, BVDI said they had asked director Benjamin Garcia to remove the “unacceptable” scene in deference to the B’laans but the latter retained it.

It also objected to the exclusion in the Director’s Cut of a “compelling massacre sequence that is integral in the dramatization of martial law” in Mindanao.

In his letter to FDCP executive director Ted Granados on June 4, Agustin “Don” Pagusara, the FDCP grantee and writer of Malan, said that immediately after viewing the rough cut on May 23, they “registered our stand that we wanted the ‘torrid kissing scene’ deleted or cut on the grounds of its being unacceptable” but Garcia, he said, “reasoned that it is his prerogative as the direc-

tor to incorporate it in the film.”

Pagusara said they invited some B’laans to view the rough cut of the film and “they concurred with our stand to cut the said scene as it insults the dignity of their tribe.”

Film enthusiasts who went to Abreeza Mall’s Cinema 3 for the supposed 9:15 p.m. screening of Malan on Saturday, June 30, were shown another Mindanawon-produced film instead – Gutierrez Mangansakan’s “Qiyamah” (The Reckoning). No explanation was made as to why Malan was pulled out.

At the awards night at the Abreeza Mall on Sunday evening, some members of BVDI staged a “silent protest,” taping on their red shirts a white bond paper raising questions like “Nasaan si Malan?” and “FDCP: why pull out Malan?”

BVDI dubbed the pullout of Malan as “outrageous” and blamed FDCP for its alleged “indecisiveness.”

It noted that days before the festival, they were “assured and reassured by the FDCP” that it would be the Producer’s Cut that would be shown. The film had two screenings on Friday, Day One of the festival.

Malan is a story about an activist from Manila who moved to Polomolok in South Cotabato in the late 1960s, falls in love with a B’laan and gets involved in the B’laan tribe’s struggles until the martial law years, including the entry of multinational firms into their ancestral domain.

BVDI alleged that the pull out was “simply because its erstwhile director threatened a court action against FDCP for not using his version…of the film.”

Decision reversed MindaNews sought FDCP’s Granados for comment early Monday morning. he opted to send their ““official press statement” by e-mail.

In that press release, FCDP chair Santos announced the pullout of Malan “pending settlement of dispute between producers and director” and said

he regrets the unfortunate turn of events.

“To forestall any further controversy, I have decided to exercise my prerogative as Chairman of the FDCP, and I am hereby reversing an earlier decision of the FDCP’s Film Competition Technical Committee approving the showing of the film Malan in its current form,” Santos\ said. he said the FDCP is “exerting all efforts to bring together the contending parties in the dispute so that they can amicably settle their differences regarding their creative rights and artistic credits arising from the making of the film.”

Santos apologized to the “viewing public, to the owners of the cinema houses where Malan is currently being shown, and to the producers, directors, and film artists” for any “inconvenience or unhappiness this decision may entail.”

“The FDCP only wants to be an instrument of progress and will do everything it can to help our Filipino filmmakers, including mediating in conflict cases and helping find solutions to problems,” he said. he added that the FDCP’s guiding policy is “to uphold always the creative integrity of every filmmaker joining the festival” and protect the interests of all stakeholders in the making of a film.

Santos assured Malan’s producers that the film “remains eligible” for Phase 2 of the FDCP’s National Film Festival which will be held in November also in this city.

But Santos did not say which version of Malan would be included in the November filmfest.

Revised versions Curiously, the FDCP’s six-paragraph press release e-mailed to MindaNews at 9:27 a.m. on July 2 and whose filename indicated it was “revised,” was dated June 30, the very same day Malan was pulled out. But no such copy reached members of Davao City’s media until Monday, July 2. (CAROLyN O. AR-

transformers is necessary for their improved reliability. This will prevent unexpected equipment breakdown and thereby avert unforeseen and longer water service interruptions in the future.

The power interruption which will take place at 9:30 PM of July 6, Friday, up to 4:30 AM of the following day, July 7, was chosen for its time wherein demand for water is the

lowest.

Davao Light will exert all efforts to complete the PMS as scheduled or earlier. however, there may be instances where maintenance work may extend beyond the schedule due to some unavoidable circumstances.

Davao Light apologizes to the affected water consumers for the inconvenience the PMS may bring.

POWER ADVISORY

D

AVAO Light & Power Company will conduct a sevenhour preventive maintenance servicing (PMS) on its distribution transformers being used exclusively for the Davao City Water District Talomo Sump Pump 2 operations.

The electric distribution utility’s Communication Officer Ross Luga said that the scheduled PMS on the distribution

GUILLAS/MINDANEwS)

CULTURE 11

12 NATION/WORLD NATION BRIEFS Vaccinate

P

ReSIDeNT Benigno Aquino said the government would vaccinate 700,000 babies this year to protect them from a virus that causes diarrhoea, a killer disease ravaging poor communities.

While diarrhoea is a preventable disease, Aquino said health authorities had struggled to stop outbreaks from happening with many poor communities having no access to basic medical care.

T

Spy planes

he Philippines may ask the United States to send spy planes to help it monitor a disputed area in the South China Sea, a presidential spokesman said Monday, in a move that could deepen tensions with China.

The move to request P3C Orion spy planes would first require the approval of President Benigno Aquino’s top defence advisers, Ramon Carandang said.

T

Seaports

he Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has allotted P93.8 million to improve several ports in the country in anticipation of increased commercial shipping activities.

DOTC Secretary Mar Roxas said the government will rehabilitate and expand the sea ports in Corcuera, Romblon; Sto. Domingo, Bacacay, and Pili—all in Albay; Palid, Zamboanga Sibugay; Melga, Dinagat Island; and Placer, Surigao Del Norte.

C

Plot

hINA’S top newspaper accused the Philippines of orchestrating a plot to deliberately stir up tensions over the disputed South China Sea, and warned that Beijing’s patience should not be mistaken for weakness.

The Philippines may ask the United States to deploy spy planes over the area to help monitor its waters, President Benigno Aquino told Reuters on Monday, a move that could worsen tensions with its giant neighbour China.

Wrong message

h

AVING President Benigno Aquino III’s cousin run for the Senate in 2013 would send the wrong message for an administration implementing political reforms, a director of a public policy center said Monday.

Professor Bobby Tuazon, director for Policy Study, Publication, and Advocacy at Center for People empowerment in Governance (CenPeG), said it would be unbecoming since “people belonging to families whose names are nationally famous already have an inherent advantage (at the polls.)”

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EDGEDAVAO

Bird flu outbreak in China A

UThORITIeS in China’s remote northwestern region of Xinjiang have culled more than 150,000 chickens following an outbreak of bird flu, officials said.

The outbreak of the h5N1 strain of avian flu initially killed 1,600 chickens and sickened about 5,500, the agriculture ministry said late Monday.

In an effort to contain the disease, agricultural authorities quarantined the area and culled 156,439 chickens, according to the ministry.

The outbreak occurred on June 20 but was only confirmed as h5N1 bird flu on Monday, it said.

The ministry and state press did not specify exactly where the outbreak occurred, but said it happened at a farm run by the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, described by state media as a semi-military government organisation of

WORLD TODAY

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This file photo shows chickens at a farm on the outskirts of Beijing, in 2010. Authorities in China’s remote northwestern region of Xinjiang have culled more than about 2.5 million people.

Xinjiang is a vast region bordering Central Asia and home to a population of about nine million ethnic Uighurs, a largely Muslim and Turkic speaking people.

China is considered one of the nations most at

150,000 chickens following an outbreak of bird flu, according to officials.

risk of bird flu epidemics because it has the world’s biggest poultry population and many chickens in rural areas are kept close to humans.

The last reported outbreak in mainland China was in April, when about 95,000 chickens were

killed in the northern region of Ningxia.

But last month a boy in the southern territory of hong Kong was diagnosed with bird flu, the first human case there in 18 months. he lived in the neighbouring mainland province of Guangdong.

A

T

miles (3.2 km) of the border, it said. Two of the helicopters were MI-8 type aircraft and one was an MI-17, all Russian-built transport helicopters.

On Sunday, Turkey said it had scrambled six F-16s near its border with Syria after similar transport helicopters were spotted flying either within 4 miles (6.4 km) of the border or “close” to the border.

Turkey’s heightened military activity along its southern border comes after Syria shot down one of its jets over the Mediterranean on June 22, prompting a sharp rebuke from Ankara which said it would respond “decisively”.

Turkey has beefed up its troop presence and air defences along the border since the incident and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip erdogan said the military’s

rules of engagement had been changed and that any Syrian element approaching Turkey’s border and deemed a threat would be treated as a military target.

Syria says it shot down the Turkish jet in self-defence and that it was brought down in Syrian air space. Turkey says the jet accidentally violated Syrian air space for a few minutes but was brought down in international air space.

While the incident has heightened tension between the once-close allies, neither Turkey, which fears a local clash escalating into a regional sectarian conflict, nor Syria, has any interest in a confrontation on their shared border.

Turkey has become increasingly vocal against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, calling for him to step down, and has given sanctuary to

rebels and groups opposing the Syrian leader. There are more than 35,000 Syrian refugees living in camps on the Turkish side of the border with Syria.

Separately, Turkey’s armed forces command said it had carried out air strikes on three separate Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq between the dates of June 26-30.

It said the strikes were carried out in the Qandil and Zab areas and targeted shelters belonging to the “separatist terror organisation”, a term used to describe the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is fighting for greater Kurdish autonomy in Turkey. It gave no further details.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the european Union and the United States.

Fined

LAXOSMIThKLINe was socked with $3 billion in fines by US authorities over charges it marketed drugs for unauthorized uses, held back safety data, and cheated the government’s Medicaid program.

In a longstanding case that officials said bared the ugly underside of the US pharmaceutical industry, GSK was also accused of paying kickbacks to doctors, paying for expensive trips and other benefits, to gain their support for the drugs the company was pushing.

F

Released

OUR envoys of the International Criminal Court who were detained in Libya last month after visiting the son of slain leader Moamer Kadhafi arrived Tuesday in the Netherlands, an ICC spokesman said.

But their ordeal may not be over just yet, as the four have been summoned to a Libyan court later this month to complete the judicial process set in motion by the Libyan prosecutor general’s investigations against them.

T

Smoke rises from Azaz vilage north of Aleppo, Syria, as seen from the Turkish-Syrian border in Oncupinar in Kilis province July 2, 2012. [REUtERS]

For release

total of 46 prisoners will be freed in Myanmar to aid “national reconciliation”, state media said on Tuesday amid growing calls for the release of the country’s remaining political detainees.

A report in the New Light of Myanmar said 37 men and nine women would be set free starting Tuesday, although it was unclear if any of the remaining political prisoners -- estimated to be in the hundreds -- were among them.

Turkey scrambles fighter jets as Syria aircraft near border G

URKeY scrambled six F-16 fighter jets in three separate incidents responding to Syrian military helicopters approaching the border on Sunday, its armed forces command said on Monday.

It was the second time in as many days Turkish jets were launched in response to Syrian helicopters flying near the border and comes after a Turkish reconnaissance plane was shot down by Syria late last month.

The jets took off from Incirlik air base in southern Turkey after Syrian helicopters were spotted flying south of the Turkish province of hatay, the chief of general staff said on the military’s website.

Two helicopters had come within 2.5 miles (4 km) and one had come within 2

Rejected

he runner-up in Mexico’s presidential election has rejected enrique Pena Nieto’s “fraudulent” victory, raising the specter of protests that rocked Mexico City when he lost six years ago.

When Leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador lost the 2006 presidential election by less than one percent he claimed fraud and organized mass protests that paralyzed Mexico City for more than a month.

Attack

WO roadside bombs targeting Shi’ite pilgrims killed four people and wounded 21 on Tuesday near the central Iraqi city of Kerbala, hospital and police sources said.

The attack, 80 km (50 miles) southwest of Baghdad, is the latest in a series of bombings in Iraq aimed at Shi’ite worshippers.

Shi’ite pilgrims in Kerbala will be celebrating the birthday of an important imam in the coming days.

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Foul...

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LTFRB...

Only...

me but I know.”

Their relatives said the couple was last seen attending Church service last Sunday and had not come out from their house since returning there.

At 11 o’clock in the evening last Monday, Mary Rose, Crisostomo’s sister-in-law, went inside the couple’s house and found Crisostomo’s body hanging with electrical wire around his neck while eden was sprawled on the floor, her face livid and frothing in the mouth.

Considering a possible angle, the police said Crisostomo may have killed eden first, and then committed suicide by hanging.

The motive behind the couple’s death remains a complete mystery to the couple’s shocked congregation.

own more 3,000 taxi units, officially objected to the application of Mabuhay Taxi operator Dr. Manuel T. Tan to field 30 black taxi units in the city.

Medatoa, headed by chairman Wenceslao Bascones of Durian Taxi Transport Service Cooperative, in its petition to LTFRB Region 11 office, claimed black taxis “will inevitably pose great risks to pedestrians and other vehicles, considering that many streets in the city are not well-illuminated, coupled with the fact that the city frequently experiences power outages due to lack of power supply.”

Medatoa’s members control 60 to 70 percent of the total taxi units running in the

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guidance and monitoring by the government,” he said.

“We are not yet imposing (the law). We are just being pro-active, encouraging them to apply, encouraging them to be legal. I don’t know when the government will run out of patience before apprehension starts,” Arreza added.

PD 1899 placed the Department of environment and Natural Resources and to local government units (LGUs) the responsibility of regulating small-scale mining operations.

It also granted provincial governors the authority to approve small-scale mining permits, and enabled the LGUs and the DeNR to share in the local mineral resources of their respective local communities.

What is important is for the people to become vigilant and demand from the national government proper regulation of laws. We are calling for an active citizenry,” he said.

The forum, organized along with the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and Coalition for Responsible Mining in Mindanao, conducted a series of discussions, from defining what is geology, the nature of mining and metallurgy to what are the potential benefits from mining.

Laws governing mining in the country and environmental management and protection were also discussed aimed at creating cooperation and bridging the gap between the minerals industry and its stakeholders.

LGU...

able plastics through a solid waste management ordinance. he noted that Davao businessmen, mostly those who have establishments near coastal areas, donated some 30 bundles of nets to be used by informal sectors to keep garbage from drifting to the sea.

“The volume of plastic garbage such as diapers and sachets have been highly minimized,” he said, citing that the food for work program of the government also contributes to the reduction of waste in the coastal areas.

This program employs citizens to pick up trash in the coastal areas in exchange for food.

Joseph Felizarta, head of the City environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro), said the

ready and convenient access or use of data” collected by the city government offices for policy inputs and direction and the need for sustained and periodic updating of barangay profiles to come up with “comparable descriptions” of all the barangays in the city.

The academe will also collaborate in the formulation of the Davao Development Index which will be used as reference for “proper calibration” of the city government’s Sustainable Development Plan and in the conduct of evaluation and impact studies to provide feedback on “the effectiveness and rate at which the city government’s programs and projects are implemented.”

DACUN members who are set to sign the draft

MOU are the presidents of the University of Mindanao (UM), University of the Philippines-Mindanao (UP-Min), University of the Immaculate Conception (UIC), Philippine Women’s College (PWC), holy Cross of Davao College (hCDC), Davao Doctors College (DDC), Brokenshire College, Rizal Memorial Colleges (RMC), Assumption College of Davao (ACD) and the University of Southeastern Philippines (USeP).

Under the MoU, the city government shall not be required to appropriate, contribute and expend funds “under the partnership.”

Instead, the DACUN “shall take charge” of the financial requirements “and be allowed to secure funding from third parties or entities.”

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JCI...

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city streets.

Due to the petition lodged before his office, LTFRB 11 director Go reportedly would not act on Tan’s application before it undergoes the usual hearing and other processes required. however, Tan went to the LTFRB en banc and got a hasty favorable action from LTFRB commissioners Manuel Iway and Samuel B. Garcia. Chairman Jacob did not sign the LTFRB order issued on Tan’s application for black taxis.

It was also Iway and Garcia who sent a team of two LTFRB central office inspectors to Davao to conduct inspection, testing and sealing of the meters of the black taxi units.

Davao Gulf...

plastic ban recently implemented has been yielding positive results such that only one out of 10 establishments was caught violating the ban.

Noting that improper disposal of garbage by informal settlers near coastal areas have contributed to plastic trash in the Davao Gulf, Dizon said it is best to relocate these people. however, he added that considering the reality of the Philippines as a third world country, moving them out will bankrupt the government, so the key is to improve the people’s standard of living. [LORIE A.

In their motion for reconsideration, the Medatoa operators, including Rodolfo Jao, son-in-law of Dr. Tan and operator of the Maligaya taxi company, charged that the LTFRB erred and that its order (signed by Iway and Garcia) authorizing the confirmation, inspection, and testing and sealing of meters of Tan’s black colored taxis was “premature, improper and illegal.”

The Medatoa members said the LTFRB “has no jurisdiction” to take cognizance of Tan’s motion, because under the LTFRB rules, only the regional director who issued the franchises “has exclusive jurisdiction or authority over these matters.”

Groups...

The operators also expressed surprise why the LTFRB, particularly Commissioners Iway and Garcia, took only one day to grant the request of Tan in two instances, on May 25 and June 5.

A national news report yesterday also identified Iway and Garcia as the ones responsible for “resurrection” and sale of 489 franchises which had earlier been declared dead or expired by the LTFRB itself a long time ago.

Secretary Roxas had reportedly ousted Iway and Garcia from the LTFRB for the “Lazarus” deal, referring to the resurrected franchises owned by the defunct Pantranco bus company.

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the enactment of house Bill 4315 or the People’s Mining Bill, saying that RA 7942 or Philippine Mining Act “directly contributes to some of the worst environmental tragedies in the country.”

The tragedies cited include environmental degradation in Surigao and fishkills in Rapu-rapu, Albay; continuing destruction and degradation of coastal, agricultural, and upland ecosystems; recurring violations of civil, political and human rights; and displacement of the indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands.

The groups also mentioned displacement of

farmers and Filipino smallscale miners from their livelihood.

For his part, Sanny C. Bangcayao, president of small-scale mining in Lower Gumayan, Barangay King-king, Pantukan, told reporters that they oppose large-scale mining in their area because people had been disturbed by largescale mining operations even during exploration stage when the latter built roads and other infrastructures. he also said it is not true that small-scale miners are the main culprit in environmental degradation in the

area.

Further, the groups stated in their position paper that the average contribution of mining and quarrying to the Gross Domestic Product was at 0.91% between 2000 and 2009.

The group cited Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima’s report that the mining industry contributed only P2 billion or 0.17% of the total P1.2 trillion national tax collections in 2011.

In terms of employment, the mining industry contributed 0.376% of the total employment in the country over the past decade, the group said.[LORIE A. CASCARO]

Leste and Thailand.

Thomas said at least 800 US Navy and Coast Guard personnel are taking part in the nine-day joint exercises in Manila and Mindanao, around 400 of them in Mindanao.

The US Navy (USN) deployed two vessels for the exercises, the missile-guiding frigate USS Vandergrift and the rescue and salvage ship USNS Safeguard, while the US Coast Guard sent USCG Waesche.

USS Vandergrift and USCG Waesche arrived here Sunday afternoon for onshore training exercises that include live firing.

USNS Safeguard, on the other hand, would be doing the rescue and salvage exercise in Manila bay.

The naval exercises in Mindanao would be in the seas off Maitum and Maasim in Sarangani and in Balut Island, Sarangani town in Davao del Sur and

would not be visible from the shores, Capt. Robert empedrad, CARAT 2012 exercise director.

Lt. Gen Jorge B. Segovia, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) eastern Mindanao Command, said the AFP is looking forward to a stronger military partnership and friendship with the US military, noting the holding of CARAT 2012 “will benefit both navies as well as the communities.”

“With its goals to strengthen the bond between the Philippine Navy and the US Navy in addressing maritime defense, port security and resource protection, this exercise will not just benefit the participants but also the communities in the Mindanao sea,” Segovia said in his speech.

In a brief interview with reporters, Segovia said Mindanao was cho-

sen as venue of the CARAT 2012 because of the presence of the Coast Watch Stations (CWS), a modern intelligence gathering or monitoring system project supported by the US government.

“It’s an opportunity to test the efficiency of the Coast Watch Stations that lines this part of Mindanao,” he said.

Thomas, for his part, said Segovia “is one hundred percent accurate.”

The Coast Watch Stations are spread in the towns of Kiamba, Maitum and Glan in Sarangani; Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat; Balut Island in Davao del Sur; and Cape San Agustin in Gov. Generoso, Davao Oriental.

The Coast Watch Station is part of the Coast Watch South, a defense project that is also supported by the Australian government. [PNA]

US eyes more military exercises in Mindanao CASCARO]

T

he United States is hoping to hold more maritime military training exercises in Mindanao as part of its continuing defense cooperation with the Philippines.

US Ambassador to the Philippines harry K. Thomas, Jr. expressed hopes on Monday for a repeat of the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) 2012, noting that the exercise is a “living proof that US and Philippine alliance is relevant and strong.”

“For the first time in memory, CARAT takes place in Mindanao, and I hope that this is the first of many,” he said during the opening ceremony of CARAT 2012 here.

This is the 18th CARAT, an annual bilateral naval exercise series between the United States and Philippines, Brunei, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Timor

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SPORTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

The eight teams taking part in the Phoenix Season 4 basketball tournament during the opening program at the DCRC.

San Beda jrs in 171-14 massacre

S

AN BeDA’S Red Cubs annihilated Lyceum, 171-14, on Monday in an utter mismatch that set NCAA juniors’ basketball tournament records at The Arena in San Juan.

The defending champions Red Cubs scored 67 points even before the Junior Pirates could buy a basket and won by an eye-popping 157 points, the biggest winning margin in the league’s history.

According to statsboard, the 14 points of Lyceum was also a record in futility, well below the previous low of 23 by guest team Angeles University Foundation against San Sebastian (113) in July 2009.

The Junior Pirates’ two first-half points also set a record while the Red Cubs’ points total fell just short of

eclipsing the 172 they scored against AUF in August 2009.

“Dinedevelop lang namin yung character nung team kasi kami ang defending champion,” Red Cubs coach Britt Reroma said, sounding apologetic after the win. “hindi pwede mag-rerelax.”

The finish was so lopsided the final scores eclipsed the winning margins the Red Cubs posted in similar beatings they dealt the Junior Pirates last year. San Beda beat Lyceum, 163-28, in the first round and 15435 in the second round last year.

So dominant were the Red Cubs that they only allowed the Junior Pirates to score their first and only basket of the first half halfway through the second quarter. The score was 92-2 at the intermission.

“We treat Lyceum with respect, every team nirerespeto namin kaya ganun kami maglaro — all-out every game,” Reroma said. eight players scored in double figures for the Red Cubs, led by Ranbill Tongco’s 27 points.

Aldwin Ligot scored 12 of Lycuem’s 14 points.

The scores: San Beda 171 - Tongco 27, Inigo 19, Mocon 16, Furaque 16, Diputado 14, Gumtang 13, Tolentino 12, Macapayag 11, Abatayo 9, De Villeres 8, Abuda 7, Abude 7, Caracut 6, Brojan 6, Romero 0 Lyceum 14 - Ligot 12, Lagman 2, Tropicales 0, Moreno 0, Romanes 0, Cruzada 0, Soriano 0, Licerio 0, Verdad 0, Castaneda 0 Quarter scores: 43-0, 922, 136-10, 171-14

proach.

So how do they fare against great historical teams?

The Brazil of the Fifties, Sixties and 1970 World Cup has always been the one kids and adults alike hold in greatest admiration, as they were winners of three World Cups in four editions boasting players such as Gerson, Jairzinho, Tostao, Rivelino and Pele.

West Germany managed perhaps the most impressive spell of sustained international excellence, reaching five out of seven World Cup finals from missing out to Geoff Hurst and co. in 1966 to lifting the trophy at Italia 90. They also won in 1974, while the Euro ’80 title is a further feather in their cap.

Led by the ‘Galloping Major’ Ferenc Puskas, The Magi-

cal Magyars of Hungary redefined how the game was played in the Fifties, going six years and over 50 games unbeaten – with the exception of the 1954 World Cup final – and doling out some legendary hammerings such as the 6-3 against England at Wembley.

And the only team other than Brazil to win consecutive World Cups was Italy in the Thirties: the achievements of a team containing legendary names like Giuseppe Meazza and Silvio Piola are, however, overshadowed by the interference of dictator Benito Mussolini in the ’34 tournament, where he is said to have selected the referees used in each match and used the tournament as a propaganda tool for his fascist regime.

Is Spain the greatest team ever?

N

o other side has achieved the feat which Spain managed on Sunday evening against Italy.

In years to come, the likes of Andres Iniesta – crowned the Player of Euro 2012 – and Xavi may well be remembered as among the greatest to have graced the sport.

Playing an adapted version of the tiki-taka made famous

by Barcelona, they starve the opposition of possession and wait for the opportunity to prise them open with inch-perfect passes.

However, prior to the 4-0 hammering of the Azzurri, there were claims that La Furia Roja had come to revere style over substance - and some were openly critical of what they regarded as a ‘boring’ ap-

Spain’s national soccer team players celebrate their Euro 2012 victory on a stage in downtown Madrid July 2, 2012. Spaniards seized on their Euro 2012 triumph as

a source of restored national pride after months of economic anxieties, as celebrations were set to reach fever pitch on Monday with a victory parade in the capital.

INdulge!

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EDGEDAVAO

Accessories du jour STYLE

Cristina “tina” san is actually a friend of my friend’s friend.

Connect the dots, if you please.

Her name never really rang a bell to me until i stumbled on her Facebook page where she sells her fabulous hand-made accessories. at first glance, one would be tempted to buy every piece she has posted in her page. sometimes, before one could even type in “hm (abbreviation for how much)?” in the comment space, she’d update each photo caption with sOLD, repeatedly, all the way to the last item in the album. Everything sells like pancakes. ironically, it came to my luck that she only sells one piece per design. My purse had let out a sigh of relief at this revelation, as it would not be depleted to a smaller size given the unavailability of my choices in tina’s stock room. Whew. another triumph for shopaholics anonymous.

Her considerably priced creations are modified versions of designer gems you can buy in any high end boutique. tina finds inspiration for trends like bibs, bejewelled scarves, chunky layered beads, and many more. she never fails to amaze me and my stylist/ photographer-friend, ayie, with her great eye for style.

Her accessories have become conversation pieces, as well as inspirations for fashion shoots here and there. We’ve always wondered how she puts together elaborate and intricate patterns, without the aid of a professional artist. tina shares the back story of her accessory line, tinitch accessories. “i have always loved working with my hands, doing all sorts of arts and crafts. i started making my own accessories back when i was 18 yrs old.

They were much simpler in design. Mostly wooden beads and nylon strings.” “i got hooked to designing jewelries when my friend asked me to recreate an expensive necklace she

saw in a mall. What started as a hobby of combining beads, cords, and semi-precious gemstones for friends and family, eventually became a successful and creative venture that drew interest from many jewelry lovers.” tina yearned for a formal training in this craft, but found the internet as a better source of techniques and how to’s. “i wanted to join workshops but didn’t have the time. i just learned on my own through online tutorials in Youtube. i get my inspiration online, surfing websites like Etsy and Pinterest. Fashion blogs also stimulates the creative juices in me. i love browsing though outfit posts,

checking out different ways of matching clothes with accessories. My list of style icons include names of stylists and fashion bloggers local and Us based fashion mavens such as Camille Co, aisa ipac, Kryz Uy, rachel Zoe, and Daphne Guinness.”

From personal flair to a full-blown brand, i’d say tinitch accessories exemplifies tina’s individuality and style. Friends describe her as funny, eccentric and unpredictable. Her fashion style is more on the subtle side. she follows trends, but sticks to the basics. she puts emphasis on one piece of clothing, making it stand out to establish a statement look. i guess this is where

her accessories come in handy. “i never work by set, nor do i work along the usual method of putting up a whole collection. inspirations come in from left and right, and i make and upload whatever pops in my head. a simple pendant necklace takes 5 to 10 minutes to produce. a beaded chain necklace can be finished in 30 minutes. a sewn beaded necklace with an intricate design can take long hours.” nevertheless, hard work and endurance paid off.

Her wounded fingers have created masterpieces that graced newspapers and magazines. Celebrity endorsers like solenn Heussaff wore creations by tinitch accessories in fashion shoots, and photos of which were featured in different publications. tina’s accessories even graced the aisle of a friend’s wedding. she dedicated one of her best designs for her bestfriend’s bridesmaids in a wedding back in January. “i don’t have an assistant. i do everything on my own.

What i do is fun and fulfilling, but it’s also bloody laborious. This is the reason why i am taking baby steps in going all out with my accessory line. i dream of putting up my own store one day, but for now, i’m happy with my online store. i don’t pay for extra fees and rent. i can take your store wherever i want and check on it 24/7.”

Visit the Facebook page of tinitch accessories to see more of tina’s works.

For orders, you may call or text her at 0917-7078462.

EDGEDAVAO

A2 INdulge!

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

ENTERTAiNMENT

‘I’m gay’ ANdERSoN Cooper has revealed ... he’s gay and he’s proud.

Cooper made the announcement in a letter to Andrew Sullivan, who was doing a story for ThedailyBeast.com about the social impact of famous people who come out as gay.

Sullivan reached out to Cooper for his thoughts, to which Anderson replied with a letter.

“There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and i believe there is value in making clear where i stand,” Cooper wrote.

“The fact is, i’m gay, always have been, always will be, and i couldn’t be any more happy, comfort-

able with myself, and proud.” “i have always been very open and honest about this part of my life with my friends, my family, and my colleagues. in a perfect world, i don’t think it’s anyone else’s business, but i do think there is value in standing up and being counted. i’m not an activist, but i am a human being and i don’t give that up by being a journalist.”

Gay and proud

ASidE from Anderson Cooper, here are more celebrities who have waved the rainbow flag high and proud.

Jonathan Groff

Zachary Quinto

Cynthia Nixon and wife Christine Marinoni Neil Patrick Harris and partner David Burtka

Suze Orman

Chris Colfer

Matt Bomer Jane Lynch and wife Lara Embry

George Michael

Ellen Degeneres and Portia de Rossi

Ricky Martin

Jim Parsons

Nate Berkus

Tom Ford

Cat Cora

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

EDGEDAVAO

ENTERTAiNMENT

TomKat Split: What we know so far

INdulge! A3

Katie Holmes spotted in NYC And she’s not wearing her wedding ring!

KATiE Holmes isn’t letting divorce get her down.

The 33-year-old actress stepped out in Manhattan on Monday looking absolutely radiant. Wearing a chic navy ensemble and sexy stilettos, Holmes played up her eye makeup and pulled her long brunette locks into a sleek ponytail. The actress, notably not wearing her wedding ring, was headed to film an upcoming appearance on Project Runway.

Earlier in the day, a white Cadillac and a black Mercedes were parked outside the star’s NYC apartment. Coincidentally, Marc Jacobs and Lance Bass live in the same apartment building where Holmes is staying.

Various reports claimed the vehicles belonged to

iN the days, hours, minutes, heck, even seconds after it was announced last Friday that Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes had called it quits, info surrounding the demise of TomKat started coming at a ridiculously rapid rate.

Not surprising, of course, seeing how we are talking about one of Hollywood’s biggest (now former) couples.

But if it’s been a little tough to keep up, rest easy, as we’re here to help you keep track of all the divorce drama that has unfolded since the sad news broke...

Holmes filed for divorce from Cruise on June 28 after a little more than five years of marriage. While there had been no indication of trouble between the two, the actress was largely absent while her husband was busy promoting Rock of Ages. “This is a personal and private matter for Katie and her family,” Holmes’ attorney said in a statement.

“Katie’s primary concern remains, as it always has been, her daughter [Suri]’s best interest.” Meanwhile, Cruise’s publicist told E! News: “Tom is deeply saddened.”

According to some tabloid reports, Holmes not only filed in New York, but

she may be seeking sole custody of 6-year-old Suri. “it’s very interesting if she filed there,” Paul Talbert, partner of Chemtob Moss Forman & Talbert LLP, told E! online’s Answer B!tch. “if she filed in New York, as opposed to Colorado or California, that would lead me to believe that there is a significant purpose to that filing, and my best guess is that this is where she wants to live with Suri.”

Holmes has hired New Jersey divorce lawyer Jonathan Wolfe and New York attorney Allan E. Mayefsky to represent her, per the Los Angeles Times.

Not surprisingly, Cruise and Holmes have a prenup. E! News has learned that the contract calls for payouts to Holmes in the event of a divorce, with specific amounts depending on how long they were married. division of property and child custody are also discussed in the prenup, we’re told, but the exact details are subject to negotiation.

Speculation has surfaced that Holmes did not feel comfortable with Cruise’s commitment to Scientology and how it might eventually affect daughter Suri. “it was something she accepted and put up with for many years because it was important to Tom and, for that reason, important

to her,” a source close to Holmes told E! News. “But over the past year, they had started to see things differently, and she was beginning to pull away.”

Cruise’s lawyer, Bert Fields, spoke over the weekend regarding the pending divorce between Cruise and Holmes. “i would hope that it’s not a contentious matter,” Fields told the Los Angeles Times. “i know Tom is not a particularly contentious person.” on Saturday, Cruise was spotted for the first time publicly since Holmes filed for divorce. The actor was seen in a helicopter taking off from an airport in Reykjavik, iceland, where he had been filming his upcoming movie, oblivion. incidentally, Holmes was photographed with Cruise less than two weeks ago in the same city.

Church of Scientology has told E! News there is “no truth whatsoever” to a TMZ report that the organization has several unidentified men and vehicles tailing Holmes outside her New York City apartment.

E! News was informed today by attorney dennis Wasser’s office that the lawyer will now be representing Cruise in his divorce from Holmes.

Wasser also represented Cruise in his divorce from Nicole Kidman.

Scientologists keeping tabs on the actress, but the church told E! News there was “no truth” to these reports.

When Holmes filed for divorce last week, she asked for sole custody of her and Tom Cruise’s 6-year-old daughter Suri.

Some reports have speculated that this is because Holmes didn’t want Suri getting heavily involved in the Scientology’s intense Sea org corps.

EDGEDAVAO

A4 INdulge!

HEALTH ENTERTAiNMENT

VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

Nutrition month goes veggie

PrEsiDEntiaL Decree 491 or the nutrition act of the Philippines appointed the national nutrition Council (nnC) as the lead agency to coordinate the nationwide celebration of this annual event held every July, the nutrition Month. Come this 38th year of nutrition Month, nnC comes up with a theme to call the nation’s attention and action on a particular issue.

The 38th nutrition Month celebration will focus on vegetables with the theme “Pagkain ng gulay ugaliin, araw-araw itong ihain!” The objectives of this year’s celebration are to: increase vegetable consumption as part of a healthy diet to address micronutrient deficiencies and non-communicable diseases; promote vegetable gardening as a source of additional food and income; and increase demand for vegetables to help local vegetable farmers. nutrition Month focuses on vegetables for several reasons: • Filipinos are eating less and less vegetables. Based on food consumption surveys, Filipinos on average are eating less and less vegetables

per day in the last three decades (Figure 1). From 145 grams per day of vegetables in 1978, consumption has decreased to 110 grams per day in 2008.

• Across regions, consumption varies. CaLaBarZOn and arMM had the lowest consumption at 92 grams per person per day while Car had the highest consumption at 169 grams. in terms of age groups, children 6 months to 5 years old consumed a little amount of vegetables only. infants 6-11 months consumed only an average of 2 grams of vegetables per day, and among 1 year old children, this amount increased to only 8 grams.

The amount of vegetables consumed increased with age. Five year olds consumed 25 grams while 12 year olds consumed 55 grams per day. adolescents aged 13-19 consumed 69 grams, adults 20-59 years old consumed

91 grams. However, for older persons 60 years and over, consumption decreased to 87 grams only. Pregnant women consumed only 91 grams while lactating women ate 101 grams per day in 2005, the nnC commissioned the Food and nutrition research institute to determine the reasons why Filipinos eat very little vegetables. The study showed the following reasons for the low consumption of vegetables: influence of family members who do not eat vegetables, dislike for vegetables because of taste and texture, preference for meat than vegetables, cultural beliefs about vegetables (e.g. eating squash can cause leprosy), vegetables are expensive, fear of chemicals and pesticides, vegetables require more time to prepare, preference for fast foods and instant foods, lack of supply, and lack of knowledge on nutritional and health benefits of vegetables.

Eating a variety of vegetables together with fruits ensures an adequate intake of most micronutrients, dietary fibers and a host of essential non-nutrient substances.

Deficiencies in intakes of calcium, iron, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and vitamins a and C can be improved through increased vegetable

intake. as noted previously, preschool children ate little vegetables which could somehow explain why the diet of preschoolers could not meet the recommended nutrient intakes for iron, vitamin a, calcium, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and ascorbic acid. The same trend is observed for the other age groups except for niacin with more than 80% of the dietary food intake meeting its rEni (recommended Energy and nutrient intake.)

Only 67.7% or 7 out of every 10 households had vegetable gardens or fruit trees based on the 2008 national nutrition survey. The survey also revealed that most of the households or 79.1% used the produce from the gardens for their own consumption while only 17.6% both consumed and sold their produce.

When it comes to participation in government’s food production program such as the Gulayan ng Masa which promoted integrated backyard gardening, only 51.8% of households participated. regions with high participation include iV-B, 6 and CaraGa while there was low participation in nCr. The World Health Organization recommends eating a minimum of 400 grams of vegetables and fruits per day which is equivalent to 5 servings per day with 3 servings of vegetables per day. The WHO recommends this amount for the prevention of non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity, as well as for the prevention and alleviation of several micronutrient deficiencies, especially in less developed countries.

One serving of vegetables is equivalent to: • 1 cup raw leafy vegetables or 25 grams • ½ cup raw non-leafy vegetables or 40 grams • ½ cup cooked leafy or nonleafy vegetable or 45 grams.

The health benefits of eating vegetables include: • may help decrease bone loss as vegetables decrease the amount of calcium excreted in the urine • may help in lowering calorie intake and thus, help in maintaining healthy weight because vegetables are low in calories • vegetables do not contain cholesterol • contain antioxidants and protectants such as carotenoids, lycopene and phytochemicals which can help strengthen the immune system, reduce the risk of diseases, and contribute to wellbeing.

There’s nothing to lose with veggies! Go ahead enjoy all the benefits veggies can give! Go Veggies!

EDGEDAVAO

SPORTS

15

When pretty girls fall VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

The fairest ladies of Wimbledon have fallen. From left: Maria Sharapova of Russia, Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan and Ana Ivanovic of Serbia. Lower photo, Sabine Lisicki hits a return on her way to beating Sharapova. he pretty girls got Schiavone, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. blown away one afWorld No. 2 Victoria ter the other.

Azarenka clobbered forMaria Sharapova, Ana mer No. 1 Ana Ivanovic, Ivanovic, and Yaroslava 6-1, 6-0, and will take Shvedova are out of the on Tamira Paszek of AusWimbledon after four tria, who beat No. 21 Rorounds of action in the All berta Vinci of Italy, 6-2, england Club.

6-2. Third seed AgnieszFormer champion ka Radwanska of Poland and 2012 top seed Maria whipped Camila Girogi Sharapova bowed out of of Italy, 6-2, 6-3, to set the Wimbledon Champi- up a quarterfinal against onships after a 4-6, 3-6 No. 17 Maria Kirilenko, loss to No. 15 Sabine Lis- a 6-1, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3 winicki. The 2004 winner, ner over Shuain Peng of who entered the tourna- China. ment as world No. 1, will In the men’s side, it slide down the rankings was all calm after the next week. shock defeat of Rafael Lisicki, who lost her Nadal in the second previous three meetings round. with Sharapova includRoger Federer is in the ing the 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinals of a Grand semifinals and the round- Slam tournament for the of-16 of this year’s Aus- 33rd-straight time after tralian Open, advanced to downing Xavier Malisse, the quarterfinals against 7-6 (1), 6-1, 4-6, 6-3.

Angelique Kerber. The The Swiss master set up eighth-seeded German a match in the last eight also sent a Wimbledon against No. 26 Mikhail favorite packing, winning Youzhny, who beat Denis over former No. 1 Kim Istomin, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, 6-7 Clijsters, 6-1, 6-1.

(5), 7-5.

Serena Williams beat World No. 1 and deYaroslava Shvedova, 6-1, fending champion Novak 2-6, 7-5, and will face Djokovic of Serbia defeatlast year’s champion and ed his Olympic doubles 2012 fourth seed Petra partner Viktor Troicki, Kvitova, who edged Ital- 6-3, 6-1, 6-3, to also make ian 24th seed Francesca the quarterfinals.

T

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VOL.5 ISSUE 87 • JULY 4, 2012

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EDGEDAVAO