Edge Davao 7 Issue 24 by Edge Davao The Business Paper

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

P 15.00 • 20 PAGES

www.edgedavao.net

EDGEDAVAO DCOTT WARNS

TRIPLE LENTEN ISSUE

Serving a seamless society

PASSENGERS

TRAVEL LIGHT

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

abf@edgedavao.net

hE management of Davao City Overland Transport Terminal (DCOTT) reminded the passengers not to bring too much baggage to avoid travel hitches.

MERCY KNOWS NO MAN. A man who is a regular habitue at San Pedro Cathedral asking alms from churchgoers take time out to pray on Holy Wednesday inside the Cathedral’s chapel. Like this man, the country’s millions of Catholic faithfuls troop to churches today until Easter Sunday in observance of the Lenten break. Lean Daval Jr.

Rody: No arson in Isla Verde D

Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte talks to fire victims. Lean Daval Jr.

AvAO City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte denied allegation that the huge fire incident last April 4 in Isla verde was intentional and made purposely to evict settlers in the area. Duterte told the victims last Tuesday afternoon at Rizal Elementary School shelter area that no one aims to remove the settlers in the area amid the rumor that the incident was intentional. “Paalisin siguro kayo pero itransfer kayo sa mas magandang stiwasyon, okay yan. Pero kung sabihin nin-

yo na paalisin kayo diyan parang aso maghanap kayo kung saan kayo [lulugar] hindi ko istilo yan,” Duterte stressed. “Walang paalisin dito… lugar natin ‘to… walang makapapaalis sa inyo,” Duterte emphasized. Duterte told the people not to believe on the allegation because there is no basis and obviously circulated around to sow trouble. “Pag may intriga na ganun kinakargahan lang kayo –sampalin niyo o kaya patayin mo ako ang bahala sa’yo,” jested Duterte.

FRODY, 10

DCOTT Manager Alejandro J. Alilin told Edge Davao in an interview yesterday that security personnel deployed in the terminal will conduct search of baggages which could take time. “Mag sayo lang sila’g ari diri aron dili sila ma perwisyo kay maglinya gyud ta diha. Kay sa kuan [entrance] gina inspection ilang mga bagahe,” said Alilin.

He also reminded the public not to bring any prohibited objects such as sharp materials or tools, and firearms so that it will not be confiscated. Alilin said that there are estimated over 10,000 passengers who will be in the terminal to ride on the buses going out to the city for their vacation. He said that the influx of passengers has started

FDCOTT, 10

RELIGIOUS VOW. A Catholic devotee prays the stations of the cross, a significant religious vow during the obsevance of the Holy Week, inside San Pedro Cathedral on Holy Wednesday. Lean Daval Jr.

2 THE BIG NEWS EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

LUCKY WINNER. Department of Tourism (DOT) Assistant Secretary Arturo Boncato Jr. announces the name of the grand prize winner of the Big Davao Fun Sale raffle promo during yesterday’s Club 888 media forum at the Marco Polo Davao. Lean Daval Jr.

WEATHER FORECAST

Malaysians offer to build condotels By ChENEEN R. CApON

crc@edgedavao.net

HE Malaysian Consulate expressed interest in building condominium hotels of ‘condotels’ for the fire victims of the April 4 huge fire which razed Baranggay 22-C and Barangay 23- C. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte said this during his visitation at Rizal Elementary School, one of the seven evacuation centers sheltering some of the 3, 475 families affected by fire. “Atong i-welcome ang of-

fer sa Malaysian Consulate,” he said, adding that the city government is considering the proposal since the city has nothing to offer as of now as the masterplan of the firerazed area is not yet completed. Duterte, however, doubted that condotels will suit the kind of life the people who lived there. “Ang problema is that it is not really for residential. It is not suited for them,” he said.

“Pero tingnan natin if that is a good proposal. [We can consider that] for the time na wala ta maihatag na maayo for the time being sa atong mga kaigsoonan.” “Some are saying that they can be relocated but their livelihood is here,” Duterte said. “We don’t have a good solution as of now because Tugbok is so far [as relocation site]”. He said that some of the affected families are depen-

dent to nearby bodies of water as their source of livelihood and if they will be transferred to Tugbok they will have a hard time to cope with the new environment. “If only building materials are available like wood, they can just reconstruct their homes again,” he said. One of the identified areas that served as evacuation center for victims is the Magsaysay park.

whole duration of drugstore operation. Philippine Pharmacist Association, Inc., Davao Chapter business manager Sheldon Jay S. Silva said that this practice posts health risks to patients who just purchase medicine in drugstores without pharmacists around. “If there’s no pharmacist, no one can counsel the dangerous effect of medicines on patients,” Silva said during

the Monday’s press conference at SM City Annex. Silva said that patients should be informed of the effects of the medicine since it can cause allergy and worst is death. Multiple intake of drug can lead to poisoning. “Before patients can buy a drug in pharmacies in Europe or other parts of Asia, they are oriented first but that is not what’s happening in the country” he said, ex-

plaining that Filipino are not fond of prescriptions. “They cannot afford prescriptions from physicians. They just ask their neighbors for prescriptions.” The ideal is to have a prescription before going to the pharmacy, according to Silva. “For instance, there’s a difference between the treatment for cold caused by virus and cold caused by bacteria,”

FMALAYSIANS, 10

Drug stores resorting to ‘ghost pharmacists’ A

nD now, “ghost pharmacists.” Low supply of licensed pharmacists in the country has forced some to become ghost pharmacist—a term used to refer to licensed pharmacists who allow their license to be ‘rented out’ by pharmacy owners just for the sake of business compliance. These are pharmacists who are just present during inspection but not for the

FDRUG, 10

NEWS 3

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

HOMEWARD BOUND. Thousands of province-bound passengers who will take advantage of the long weekend troop to the Davao City Overland Terminal in Ecoland yesterday afternoon. Lean Daval Jr.

Del Rosario pushes for Igacos Bridge T

Mall execs happy with Big Fun Sale turnout By ChENEEN R. CApON

AvAO del norte Governor Rodolfo del Rosario strongly endorsed to the Regional Development Council (RDC) –XI the inclusion of the proposed P6-billion Samal Bridge in the regional development priorities for 2015. During the 1st regular meeting of the Advisory Committee (AdCom) of the RDC-XI, the governor moved for a full blown feasibility study (FS) and detailed engineering as first phase in the implementation of the 1.2-kilometer bridge that will connect Davao City and the Island Garden City of Samal (IGCS).

The members of the council unanimously approved the project, which will be implemented under the public- private-partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects. The AdCom readily added the mega project’s FS into the P69.43 billion budgetary requirement for the priority projects in the Davao region next year. The regional priorities include urgent reconstruction of Typhoon Pablo affected rural economies, development of potential renewable energy sources, and farm mechanization, among others.

With the constant influx of investments and tourism development coming into the island, del Rosario stressed it is high time to continue the big ticket project that was first proposed 12 years ago. The governor recalled that a pre-feasibility analysis on the project was done in 2002 within the framework of the Davao Integrated Development Program (DIDP) Master Plan. He underscored the bridge will link up and bring tremendous trade returns and tourism prospects to the island, which is included in the country’s master plan for

tourism development. As he puts it, the bridge will boost tourism and investment, as well as, hasten the socio-economic development in the island, by lowering the cost and speeding up transport of people, goods and resources. He also clarified that the PPP initiative will ensure government resources earmarked for basic services will not be sacrificed in accomplishing the project. The RDC-XI’s Tourism Industry Cluster also endorsed the project during its meeting on April 15, 2014. [Noel Baguio]

HIS Holy Week, vacationists and tourists are flocking in droves to Samal Island beach resorts but they are met by frequent power outages as the Davao del norte Electric Cooperative (Daneco) continues to be wracked by infighting between two factions of the electric cooperative. “Desperado na gyod mi aning Daneco. Because of its power outages and fluctuating power supply, some resorts are taking in only a half of the

customers. They have their own generating sets (gensets) with limited capacity to serve. To appease customers, beach resort owners have to cut their entrance fee by half,” said Island Garden of City Samal (IGACOS) vice Mayor Al David Uy in an interview. There are more than 80 beach resorts operating around the shorelines of Samal Island including its small Talikud Island. “Like this Holy Week, we know thousands of people are

coming in the island like those from Tagum City and Davao City but they are met with power outages,” he said. He said that for many years now Daneco is insufficiently supplying power to the island through the “dilapidated” submarine cable. The 30-year-old submarine cable can only carry about 5 megawatts of power, a load which can no longer sufficiently meet the full power needs and expansion of Samal Island. Because of the deficient

power supply that forced Daneco to make rotational brownouts, resort owners have to buy and operate their own gensets, “but with higher power costs at the burden of resort owners, in return, they have to charge higher entrance fees like P110, P150 or P200 per head,” the vice mayor added. Uy expressed desperation that the protracted infighting between the two electric cooperatives has resulted to giving a heavy cross for the island to

HE seven major malls in Davao City which participated in the first Big Davao Fun Sale--Abreeza Mall, Gaisano Mall of Davao, Gaisano Mall of Toril, nCCC Mall of Davao, SM City Davao, SM Lanang Premier, and Robinsons—vowed to take part anew in the next edition of Davao’s latest tourism campaign. The Department of Tourism regional office 11, nevertheless, has yet to conduct a post-evaluation on mall operators but assessed as early as

now that there was an increase in the number of mall-goers as well as their revenue. Mall executives, however, said they are satisfied with the outcome of the month-long sale. “We cannot assess how much percentage was the increase because we still need to consolidate the data together with the tourism agency in the region,” Feliz Alberca, Gaisano Mall of Davao marketing officer said yesterday. “We will definitely partici-

FMALL , 10

LGUs urged to participate in environmental confab

Holy Week vacationists flocking to Samal Island T T FHOLY, 10

crc@edgedavao.net

HE Philippine League of Local Environment and natural Resources Officers, Inc. (PLLEnRO) will hold its 2014 national Convention with the theme “Building Climate-Resilient Local Government Units.” It will be held on May 7-10, 2014 in Bacolod City. Local and international resource persons are invited to talk on topic on building resiliency in local government units, their capacity to respond to and recover from any disaster. During the event, there will also be discussions on efforts to address environmental

challenges and sustainability. Sharing of experiences among LGUs on building resilient communities will also be presented. A session on GHG Inventory and Management focusing on entity level inventory to provide PLLEnRO members capacity in conducting the inventory in their respective LGUs will be discussed. According to PLLEnRO President Danilo villas, “All provincial, cities and municipal LGUs are encouraged to send their environment officers to participate in this important event. It is through continuous dialog and discussion that we

FLGUs , 10

EDGEDAVAO

LENTEN FEATURE

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014 Internet Photo

The day Jesus Christ died for us! By GERRy T. EsTRERA Contributor

ESUS Christ, the central figure of Christianity, was born in Bethlehem in Judea. The chronology of the Christian era is reckoned from a 6th-century dating of the year of his birth, which is now recognized as being from four to eight years in error. Christians traditionally regard Jesus as “the incarnate Son of God,” and as having been divinely conceived by Mary, the wife of Joseph, a carpenter of nazareth. The name Jesus is derived from a Greek rendering of the Hebrew name Joshua, or in full Yehoshuah (Jehovah is deliverance). The title Christ is derived from the Greek christos, a translation of the Hebrew mashiakh (anointed one), or Messiah. «Christ» was used by Jesus› early followers, who regarded him as the promised deliverer of Israel and later was made part of Jesus› proper name by the church, which regards him as the redeemer of all humanity. At the age of 33, his ministry in this world ended. He died for our sins – for all of us. First Peter 3:18 pointed this out: “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just of the unjust, that he might bring us to God.” By the way, here’s how Great People of the Bible and How They

Lived chronicled Christ›s last day on earth: «At about 9 a.m., a small procession left the Antonia and slowly made its way to Golgotha («place of the skull»), a hill outside the walls of Jerusalem where prisoners were executed. It was so named because its contour resembled a human skull. Jesus was accompanied by two other prisoners, a centurion and a few Roman soldiers. “When they reached Golgotha, the soldiers stripped off the men and divided them among themselves as the crosses were assembled. Jesus suffered in silence as the soldiers nailed his wrists to the crosspiece with large iron spikes and drove another spike through both ankles. As they lifted his cross upright, his weight was supported by a peg jutting out from the cross between his legs. The soldiers placed a sign on the cross, proclaiming, ‘This is Jesus the King of the Jews.’ It was a slow and painful death. Dr. Alexander Metherell -- a consultant to the national Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the national Institutes of Health of Bethesda, Maryland - interview by Lee Strobel for his book, “The Case for Christ,” explained how Christ died: “Once a person is hang-

ing in the vertical position, crucifixion is essentially an agonizingly slow death by asphyxiation. The reason is that the stresses on the muscles and diaphragm put the chest into the inhaled position; basically, in order to exhale, the individual must push up on his feet so the tension on the muscles would be eased for a moment. In doing so, the nail would tear through the foot, eventually locking up against the tarsal bones. “After managing to exhale, the person would then be able to relax down and take another breath in. Again, he’d have to push himself up to exhale, scraping his bloodied back against the coarse wood of the cross. This would go on and on until complete exhaustion would take over, and the person wouldn’t be able to push up and breathe anymore. “As the person slows down his breathing, he goes into what is called respiratory acidosis - the carbon dioxide in the blood is dissolved as carbonic acid, causing the acidity of the blood to increase. This eventually leads to an irregular heartbeat. In fact, with his heart beating erratically, Jesus would have known that he was at the moment of death.... Jesus died of cardiac arrest.” But before he died, Christ

delivered what is now known as His seven last words. His first cross utterance: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). This was closely followed by: “verily, I say to you, today shall you be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). At the crucial moment of His life, some family members and friends paid a visit to Him. When He saw them, he told to Mary (His mother), “Woman, behold your Son” and then turning to his disciple John, he urged to take care of her and said, “Behold your mother.” Read John 19:26,27 for further details. Here are the four remaining last words He uttered: “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46); “I thirst” (John 19:28); “It is finished” (John 19:30); and “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46). After saying all these, he perished. “Later that afternoon,” notes The Great People book, “one of Jesus’ wealthy Jerusalem followers, Joseph of Arimathea, went to Pontius Pilate and asked him for Jesus’ body, so that he might give him a proper burial. After making sure that Jesus was in fact dead, Pilate agreed to let Joseph take the body. The kind

man removed Jesus’ corpse from the cross and prepared it for burial.” John 19:39-42 relates that Joseph was assisted by nicodemus. “Joseph bound the body from head to foot in clean, white linen strips, sprinkling fragrant species between the layers. When he had finished, Joseph carried Jesus’ body into his garden, where there was a tomb that had been hewn out of a large rock. Inside near the rear of the tomb was a couch, also of stone, and Joseph gently placed the corpse upon it. Then he rolled a heavy stone across the entrance and returned to his home.” “The death of Christ has a prominent place in the new Testament of the Bible. The last three days of our Lord’s earthly life occupy about onefifth of the narratives in the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John),” writes Henry Thiessen in Lectures in Systematic Theology. “If all the three and a half years of His public ministry had been written out as fully as the last three days, we would have a ‘Life of Christ’ of some 8,400 pages!” One Bible scholar commented that the death of Christ is mentioned directly in the new Testament more than 175 times. Since there are 7,959 verses in the new Testament,

this would mean that one out of every 53 verses refers to this theme. More than that, the death of Christ is the essential thing in Christianity. Writes Thiessen: “Other religions base their claim to recognition on the teaching of their founders; Christianity is distinguished from all of them by the importance it assigns to the death of its Founder. Take away the death of Christ as interpreted by the Scriptures, and you reduce Christianity to the level of the ethnic religions. “Though we would still have a higher system of ethics, were we to take away the cross of Christ, we would have no more salvation than these other religions. napoleon said when banished to St. Helena, that Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and he found mighty kingdoms on force, but that Jesus Christ had founded His on love. This is true, if we mean love expressed in His substitutionary death.” In his book, Jesus Christ Our Lord, Dr. John Walvoord agrees: “Christ in His death fully satisfied the demands of a righteous God for judgment upon sinners and, as their infinite sacrifice, provided a ground not only for the believer’s forgiveness, but for his justification and sanctification.”

5 THE ECONOMY

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

Bizmen rate DTI ‘very good’ in corruption drive, says SWS T

HE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has been rated “very good” by businessmen in the country, per result of the 2013 Survey of Enterprises on Corruption by the Social Weath The result of the said survey was presented by SWS president Mahar K. Mangahas during the recent national Competitiveness Council (nCC) Roadshow in davao City. The survey, which was conducted between July 31 and november 29 of last year, was done in seven major areas in the country – national Capital Region (nCR), Angeles City in Pampanga, Cavite-Laguna-Batangas, Iloilo City, Cebu City, Cagayan de Oro/Iligan City, and Davao City. The respondents gave DTI a whopping +58 national rating or “very

good” in fighting corruption. This is next to the Office of the President’s score of +77 which is equivalent to “excellent”. In Davao City, DTI even got a notch higher net sincerity rating in its fight against corruption. Since 2009, when the survey was first made, DTI has been consistent in improving its image among businessmen. In 2009, DTI only snatched a rating of +38 or “good” but through the years, it has managed to solicit better impression among businessmen. DTI-Davao Region officer-in-charge Ma. Belenda Q. Ambi said this particular standing of the agency must be maintained. “When DTI-Davao got ISO-certified in 2006, it has already become our guiding principle to continuously improve especially in the way we provide services to our cli-

ents,” she said. Ambi added that the laudable performance of the agency, as indicated in the survey, is an important attribute that will boost the country’s competitiveness. “This can be highlighted for us to encourage more investors into the country,” she said. However, Ambi noted, the government’s drive to eradicate corruption must be complemented by the private sector. “There must be complementary efforts. If the government is addressing corruption further, the private sector must do the same. We’d like to assure our partners, both from the government and private sector, that DTI will unceasingly be committed towards attaining a more competitive Philippines,” she said. [DTI 11/JenMendoza]

FOR THE LENTEN SALE. A fish vendor debones a milkfish (bangus) at Bankerohan Public Market in Davao City yesterday. Prices of fish increased by as much as P20 per kilo due to the increase in demand as the Catholic communities observe the Holy Week. Lean Daval Jr.

6 THE ECONOMY Stat Watch Indicator

Latest

1. Gross National Income 1. GrossRate National Income Growth Growth Rate2000 Prices) (At Constant

7.1 1st Qtr 2013 6.8

2.2.Gross GrossDomestic DomesticProduct Growth Rate Product (AtGrowth Constant 2000 Prices) Rate

7.8 1st Qtr 2013 7.5

(At Constant 2000 Prices)

3. Exports 1/ 3. Exports

4. Imports 1/ 4. Imports

5. Trade Balance Trade Balance 6.5.Balance of Payments 2/

7.6.Broad Money Liabilities Balance of Payments

2nd Qtr 2013

USD 3,741 million 5,045 FebUSD 2013 million USD 4,708 Sep 2013 million FebUSD 2013 5,711 USD -967 million million Sep 2013 Feb 2013 USD -665 USD -640 million million Sep 2013 Dec 2012 P 4,964,560 USD 692 million million Feb Jun2013 2013 P2.45,980,938 % million Mar 2013 Aug 2013

8. Interest Rates 4/

7. Broad Money Liabilities

P113,609 2.0 % million Sep2013 2013 Mar P P5,281 127,336 billion million Mar Sep2013 2013

9. National Government 8. Revenues Interest Rate 9. National Government 10.Revenues National government

outstanding debt

P 5,609 P 41.14 Aprbillion 2013

11.Stocks Peso per US $ 12. Composite Index 6/

6,847.5 P 43.83 Mar Sep2013 2013

12. Stocks Composite

6,191.8 132.8 Sep 2013 Apr 2013

13. Consumer Price Index

135.2 Oct2.62013

10.Peso National government 11. per US $ 5/

Sep 2013

13. Consumer Index Price Index 2006=100

2006=100 14. Headline Inflation Rate 14. 2006=100 Headline Inflation

Apr 2013

2.9 Oct3.12013

Rate 15. Core Inflation Rate 2006=100

2006=100

Apr 2013

2006=100 16. Visitor Arrivals

418,108 Oct 2013 Feb 2013

15. Core Inflation Rate

2.5

382,022 Aug 2013 20.9%

16. Visitor Arrivals

17. Underemployment 7/ 17. Rate Underemploymen

Jan 2013 19.2%

18. 18.Unemployment UnemploymentRate Rate7/

7.1% Jan 2013 7.3%

Rate

Jul 2013

DOLE’s reintegration center helps 11 OFWs get TESDA Scholarship R

ETURnInG Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) have good options when they get back to the country. A former caregiver in Saudi Arabia, flower decorator in Romania, and a rigger in Qatar are among the 11 OFWs who availed themselves of the training scholarship under the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). “I am very glad that I am able to get the scholarship grant from TESDA through the assistance provided by then national Reintegration Center for OFWs (nRCO),” Jeneber L. Sa-an, a rigger for seven years in Qatar. nRCO an agency under the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) institutionalized pursuant to Republic Act 10022 provides the mechanism for the OFWs’ reintegration into Philippine society, serves as a promotion house for their local employment, and tap their skills and potentials for national development. DOLE Davao regional director Joffrey M. Suyao said that aim of nRCO is to provide options for the country’s OFW and their families when they return and reintegrated productively to the mainstream

society. “We want to impart value of saving, and entrepreneurial mindset among others, to the OFW and their families as they enjoy the gains of overseas employment,” Suyao said. “We facilitated the linkage of our OFWs to TESDA but the beneficiaries themselves chose the field of trainings they want to avail of,” Suyao added. Sa-an is granted the Automotive Servicing nC II which training can be availed of in a TESDA accredited school. Other OFWs who benefitted the training grant included: Mordelyn G. Autentico, a former Deomestic worker in Singapore granted a training course for Health Care Service nC II; Bernadette M. Simangan a former waitress in United Arab Emirates (UEA) was granted Computer Hardware Servicing. Both coming from Saudi Arabia, Amy O. Garcia, a former Care Giver and Mercy Jill C. Ampatuan, a private nurse who chose Caregiving nC II; while a former office secretary from Saudi Arabia, Yasin A. Ampatuan chose to avail the visual Graphics Design nC II. Ritchel L. Rosalinda

was a baby sitter in UAE opted to be trained under the Programming nC Iv; While Salome D. Amandog, a domestive helper in Hong Kong and Saidomera D. Saire, flower decorator from Romania both chose Bread and Pastry Production nC II as they both see the pos-

sibility of putting up their own business in baking. Jose C. Serentas a former truck driver in Damman, Saudi Arabia will take the Finishing Course for Call Celnter Agent nC II; and former nanny in UAE Bernadette P. Diones chose to get Caregiving nC II.

“For those other OFWs, particularly those undocumented ones, we invite them to visit our office and discuss with our nRCO focal person in the region possible opportunities other than training that we can offer you,” Suyao added. [Sherwin B. Manual/DOLE 11]

Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which employ 100,000 and 12,000 workers, respectively, as JO and contractual hires. “With DILG and DSWD taking on the task of facilitating the SSS registration and regular remittance of payments of their JO and contractual personnel, these workers can look forward to the advantages of active SSS membership such as availment of benefits and loan privileges,” See explained.

Contractuals and JO workers hired by state agencies fall outside the mandated reach of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), which covers only regular employees in the public sector. Through their coverage as self-employed SSS members, these JO and contractual workers now gain access to financial assistance during times of SSS-covered contingencies such as maternity, sickness, disability, retirement or old age, and death. SSS President and

Chief Executive Officer Emilio de Quiros, Jr. signed the coverage agreements separately with DILG Secretary Mar Roxas and with DSWD Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman within the first quarter of this year. The SSS plans to forge similar partnerships for JO and contractual personnel in other state agencies in the coming months. See clarified that local government units (LGUs) under the DILG – including provinces, cities, municipalities and baran-

gays – and DWSD central and field offices have no obligation to pay the employer counterpart of the SSS contributions of their JO and contractual personnel. “However, as part of our agreement, DILG and DWSD have pledged to ensure that their JO and contractual hires are duly reported for SSS coverage, and that they will regularly remit payments for contributions and loans of these workers to the SSS no later than the 10th day after the applicable month,” she said.

Jul 2013

MONTHLY AVERAGE EXCHANGE RATE (January 2011-September 2013) Month Average December November October September August July June May April March February January

2013

2012

2011

43.83 43.86 43.35 42.91 41.30 41.14 40.71 40.67 40.73

42.23 41.01 41.12 41.45 41.75 42.04 41.91 42.78 42.85 42.70 42.86 42.66 43.62

43.31 43.64 43.27 43.45 43.02 42.42 42.81 43.37 43.13 43.24 43.52 43.70 44.17

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

by the numbers

Remittances from F ilipino workers abroad rea ched

$2 billion

in February, bringing the cumulative remittances of the sector to

18.9% higher tha

n the

$4 billion

or a 6.4-percent gr

Source: BSP

year-on-year.

owth

SSS extends social protection to job order and contractual workers in DILG, DSWD

n its continuing campaign to reach out to millions of workers without social protection, the Social Security System (SSS) has inked key partnerships with two national government agencies to provide SSS coverage to thousands of job order (JO) and contractual personnel as self-employed members. Judy Frances See, SSS Senior vice President for Account Management, said the SSS has signed agreements with the Department of Interior and

as of May 2013 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 Cebu Pacific Thu

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

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

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 Manila-Davao-Manila

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

Cebu Pacific Tue/Wed//Sat 5J965 / 5J968 13:35 Silk Air Mon/Sat MI588 / MI588 13:35 Silk Air Wed/Sun MI566 / MI566 15:20 Silk Air Thurs MI551 / MI551 12:05 Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri 5J507 / 5J598 15:00 Philippine Airlines August 15:55 Mani2Mani 16:50 Zest Air Daily Z2524 / Z2525 16:05

Manila-Davao-Manila Davao-Singapore Davao-Singapore Davao-Singapore Cebu-Davao-Cebu

14:05 18:55 18:55 15:45 15:30

Cebu-Davao-Cebu

16:45

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014 Internet Photos

BIGGER PICTURE

The truth about christ’s resurrection By GERRy T. EsTRERA Contributor

HE Gospel of Mark chronicled what happened after the burial of Jesus Christ. It said that early on the following Sunday, some of Jesus’ women followers - Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome (the mother of James and John) - went to the tomb to sprinkle more spices on the corpse. Mark 16:2-5 recorded: “And very early on the Sunday morning, just after sunrise, they came to the tomb. They were wondering among themselves who would roll away the stone for them from the entrance to the tomb, when they looked up and saw that the stone, huge as it was, had been rolled back already. They went into the tomb, where they saw a youth sitting on the right-hand side, wearing a white roe; and they were dumbfounded.” The youth was actually an angel. He told them, “Fear nothing; you are looking for Jesus of nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised again; he is not here; look, there is the place where they laid him. But go and give this message to his disciples and Peter: ‘He is going on before you into Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.’” Later on the same day, according to Luke, John, and Mark, Jesus appeared to the women and to other of the disciples at various locations in and around Jerusalem. Most of the disciples did not doubt that they had again seen and heard the master they had known and followed during the time of his ministry in Galilee and Judea. A few disciples, however, doubted it at first (Matthew 28:17). Thomas, who had not been present at these first appearances, also doubted

that Jesus had risen (John 20:24-29). As recorded in the new Testament, the Resurrection became one of the most compelling doctrines of Christianity, because, according to this doctrine, by rising from the dead, Jesus gave humanity hope of a life after death. However, some denied that Christ actually resurrected. Some five theories have been forwarded: fraud, swoon, vision, spirit, and heart. The fraud theory says that either Jesus or his disciples (or both) simply invented the entire thing. It would have us believe that Christ was simply a clever crook who read the prophecies regarding the Messiah in the Old Testament and set about arranging for them to be fulfilled by himself. However, it would have been somewhat difficult for an imposter to arrange the place where he was to be born (it had to be Bethlehem), or for some Roman soldiers to cooperate by not breaking his bones on the cross, as prophesied in the Old Testament. In the swoon theory, Christ “merely fainted on the cross and was later revived by the cool, dark air of the tomb.” But how did he get out of that tomb? What “bright light” did he use to blind and terrify the Roman soldiers who stood guard outside? The vision theory advocates that the early disciples were guilty of using some kind of primitive LSD. If this were true, then the practice was certainly widespread, for on one occasion alone over 500 claimed to have seen him. There is not one speck of biblical or secular

evidence to support such an empty theory. The spirit theory holds that only Jesus’ spirit arose. But Jesus is said to have eaten while in his resurrected body (Luke 24:4143). The new body still bore the marks of his crucifixion (John 20:27). This view, like the vision theory, cannot for one second stand the logic of reason. Finally, in the heart theory, we are to believe that “he was only resurrected in the heart of his friends.” The trouble here, however, is that none of those friends actually believed he would literally rise from the dead until they saw him with their own eyes, and heard his words with their ears. It is ironic and sad that the predicted resurrection of Jesus Christ was remembered only by his enemies, the Pharisees, and not by his friends. Matthew 27:6264 says: “now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, saying, ‘Sir, we remember that the deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.’” Jesus Christ appeared no less than seventeen times after his resurrection. Five of these occurred during the first Easter Sunday, and six more took place between that time and his ascension. The remaining six happened between Pentecost and the

completion of the Bible. “Taken as a whole, the appearances are of such various characters and to so many people under so many different circumstances that the proof of the resurrection of Christ is as solid as any historical fact that could be cited in the first century,” comments Dr. H. L. Willmington in “Guide to the Bible.” Why is there so much ado about the resurrection of Christ? The resurrection is the very linchpin of the Christian faith. The apostle Paul said in I Corinthians 15:17: “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” “The resurrection was undoubtedly the central proclamation of the early church from the very beginning,” explained Dr. Gary Habermas, author of “The Resurrection of Jesus: A

Rational Inquiry.” “The earliest Christians didn’t endorse Jesus’ teachings; they were convinced they had seen him alive after his crucifixion. That’s what changed their lives and started the church.” Theologian Gerald O’Collins put it this way: “In a profound sense, Christianity without the resurrection is not simply Christianity without its final chapter. It is not Christianity at all.” Dr. Willmington agrees. He contends, “The resurrection of Christ is the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Declaration of Independence of the Christian faith. The sign of Christianity is really not the cross, but an empty tomb.” Finally, here’s a thought from Dr. Charles S. Braden, author of “The World’s Religions”: “Men do not rise

from the dead. People do not pass through closed doors. People are not suddenly snatched away or do not suddenly disappear into thin air. Yet the disciple Thomas in particular was told to put his hand in the wounded side of his master and to feel the nailprints in his hand. So perplexing is the story that many modern people have been led to question the truth of it, though they find it hard to explain all the circumstances which the Gospel narratives recount… By far, the larger number of Christians today are quite confident in their belief that the Gospel narratives of His resurrection are wholly to be relied upon.” Faith, after all, gives substance to our hopes, and makes us certain of realities we do not see (Hebrews 11:1).

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

EDITORIAL

Lent means renewal

ODAY until Easter Sunday, the Catholic faithful all over the world relive the mystery of Jesus Christ’s death and his glorious resurrection. To most of us, the Lenten break is the time to reflect and renew one’s faith. Still for most of us, this is a time to take a break from work—time to travel, go on vacation, or renew ties with the old friends, family and folks in the provinces. Simply put, any which way one spends this Holy Week is essentially a break. The world has changed. Even the way we observe Holy Week has changed dramatically. There was a time when practically you are not supposed to do anything except to pray, read the bible, go to church, listen to the radio dramatization of the Lord’s death or watch reli-

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gious movies on television. That is no longer the case now. Today, people book vacations on resorts, go on travel and adventure trips, or spend movie marathon indoors. Some even do catching up on backlog works. However, let us not sway from the real meaning of this Lenten break. This occasion transcends religions and cultures. It transcends faith. Afterall, the real meaning of Lent is renewal. no matter what religion we belong, no matter what time of the year it is, there is always a time for us to slow things down and reflect over how we have spent our lives and how we envision ourselves spending the rest of our days in this borrowed lifetime.

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Moment of supreme self-sacrifice

EALInG SHATTERED BELIEF AnD RELIGIOUS DEvOTIOn - The Holy Week is the time where the entire Christendom observes the commemoration of the crucifixion and death of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is the period of solemn prayers, penitence and repentance, not only for the sinners but to all the faithful. However, time flies so fast. Involvement in religious activities during the Lenten season dies easily. It dry up like fallen leaves, vanish in the dust. Modern theologians find such attitude especially among the younger generation quiet disturbing and highly subject for thoughtful interpretation. The present generation in the country, of course, is mostly Catholics but care little about what are their obligations as Christians during the observance of the Holy Week. The younger set is composed mainly of entertainment and sports personalities, professionals and students, and instead of joining religious activities they flocked in hordes to the different summer destinations to enjoy and relax. Such exegetical niceties, however, is an indication that they are intentionally evading one of the most important religious event, and instead preferred the lavish and booze-filled nightly entertainment shows. How faith and dedication quickly faded despite how long it had been nurtured by their elders. Catholic scholars often wondered about what came to be called a “time for prayers, penitence and sacrifices,” the disturbing attitude drop the teachings of Jesus Christ on tolerance and love focusing on his moment of supreme self-sacrifice. Upon meticulous examinations, religious experts say corrections can be made. That is, if the younger group is still interested in healing their shattered belief and religious devotion. The disconcerting situation caused much top Catholic leaders rethinking. They should strive earnestly to help young people sidestep life’s excesses especially during the Lenten period. Apparently, the reflection doesn’t cast blame

stagnation and progress n the 1950s and early 1960s, Linik and other beaches of Dinaig (now Datu Odin Sinsuat) and of Upi along the Moro Gulf provided swimming resorts for residents of Cotabato City and the neighboring municipalities. These closed when troubles started. now, well-off city residents motor to General Santos City or Davao City to spend a night or two in beach or inland resorts there. Samal Island of Davao or Island Garden City is tourist destination, Entering Sarangani Bay, one sees Glan to the right and Siguil Point to the left; beach resorts abound along the bay between the two points. Branches of firms from Cotabato City established in General Santos City in the 1980s or earlier are flourishing. Maranao and Maguindanao vendors have flocked to General Santos City central market. The Ampatuans, for example, invested millions of pesos in Davao City instead of using their capital to develop Shariff Aguak or Maguindanao. Until 1970, there were 15 cities in Mindanao. The next four cities were chartered in 1998. Three years after that eight more were created. none of the twelve are in the ARMM; only one, Isabela in Basilan, is in Region IX while the eleven are in Caraga (2), Region X (2), Region XI (4), and Region XII (3). If the conversion of a municipality to a city is

on anyone, but it casts blame on everyone. It is not sufficient for church leaders to respond to responsible criticism by simply appealing to the notion that the faithful, young and old alike “make their own judgment.” The church people must account for the believers’ judgment. It is an accounting that, regardless of whether they heed the advice-giving, the clerics and the laity as their moral and spiritual obligation will no doubt be asked to make. Is it possible for the faithful to do a biblically accurate observance of Christ’s passion and death without those uninteresting remarks? The very existence and concerned tone suggest the sensitivity of the concern facing anyone translating the crucifixion and death of the Lord Jesus Christ. TEMPORARY COnSEQUEnCE OF ECOnOMIC REFORMS – A number of prominent economists and a small but increasingly vocal group of observers which is sometimes spiked with ardent critics insist that the real solution to the nation’s economic ills is not bad debt disposal or any economic fixes currently capturing all the attention, but structural reforms designed to remove governmental barriers to free market competition at the domestic level. Theories and the rules of logic suggest that economic problems besetting the country are only temporary consequences of reforms. Right now, economic analysts and financial experts argue that government people are just treating the symptoms temperately and just applying it with “band-aid” solutions because the country’s productivity woes are largely the result of alleged misguided or obsolete policy decisions. But what is needed supposedly is a committed

Impact Overrated COMMENTARY By Patricio P. Diaz

Part 3 of 4 an indicator of economic progress this speaks much about the disparity between the ARMM and the rest of Mindanao because of disparity in peace and order conditions. The overall picture is that of stagnation and progress. The Realities The April 1 Inquirer editorial reveals the perception that the economic progress outside of the ARMM is not “progress”; the investments, not “investments”; and the prevailing peace, not “peace”. Only seen are the “troubled peace” in the ARMM and its effect, absence of economic progress. The ARMM is seen as Mindanao; so there is no economic progress in Mindanao. As Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Balisacan sees it, the successful implementation of the CAB will make Mindanao boom since the only restraint to economic progress is the peace condition. Is this correct? Yet, it appears to motivate much of the present campaign for the support of the CAB: “What is there for us?” and “Here’s what’s for you.” It’s true it’s easy to get support for a program, a project

reform movement that could bring back quick economic recovery. However, when it comes to reform the government suffers from what can be called a productivity problem of its own. As the population begins bloating dramatically in the years ahead the country’s productivity crisis will become even starker, as workers will have to perform even more work and more efficiently to maintain the same standard of living. The problem is that in purely economic terms, it is widely believed that increased productivity will lead to permanently high unemployment rate. Many commentators and opinion makers including leaders of different progressive labor groups claim that high unemployment is unacceptable even if it is only a temporary consequence of reform. For one thing, they emphasized that higher productivity actually leads to lower prices, which spurs increased consumption and requires increased production – and of course, more jobs. Some renowned economists and financial managers likewise noted that another factor holding back the government to implement economic structural reforms is the acknowledgement from all affected parties that it would almost certainly bring about lots of long-term pain, including numerous bankruptcies and high unemployment. There’s no doubt the country’s economic structure needs to be changed, but they further observed that people are afraid of the costs. The source of the country’s economic ills and unemployment woes will not rebound until the performance of big business firms begins to turn around and structural reforms are adopted posthaste. With such changes, the experts say the country may manage to settle into a kind of well-off status and probably reach a positive level, and finished as an economic achiever. Experts predicted that the high-growth story in the Philippines is about to come and that a long-run GDP growth rate of 1% per year is probably the best the country can hope for.

or a movement if shown that it benefits all. Should solving the Bangsamoro Problem be viewed this way? Must the support for the CAB be on this basis? In the CAB, Government and MILF agreed what is for the Philippines, for the Bangsamoro and for the Moros, the Lumads and Christians in the Bangsamoro. The Annexes on Power-Sharing and on Wealth-Sharing are between the Philippines and the Bangsamoro. They are intended to bring peace and economic prosperity to the people of the Bangsamoro. The BBL based on the CAB is for “the higher interests of the GPH and MILF to have peace and development in the Bangsamoro”, MILF Panel Chair Mohagher Iqbal emphasized at a CAB kanduli and rally. The CAB is for the Bangsamoro to catch up with the five regions that have continued prospering in peace while peace and economic development in the ARMM had been stifled by the rebellion. The leaders of the five regions should understand the Bangsamoro bias of the CAB and not ask, “What is there for us?” The campaign should truly focus on this. The Congress should deliberate on the BBL draft based on this focus. The Bangsamoro bias must be justified in the light of the prosperity of Mindanao outside the ARMM.

VANTAGE POINTS

To pay taxes: ‘It’s that easy…’ “…just remember, RFP!” Thus says the campaign advertisement of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) which came out before the deadline for the filing of income tax declaration for year 2013. FP stands for Register, File and Pay. If you listen to the jingle carefully, it gives specific instructions on how the “RFP” could be accomplished by any income tax payer. The jingle has the basic components of a good information campaign – it’s melodious, rhythmic, catchy and appealing to the auditory sense. It’s much better than any of those election jingles, I must say! And if you understood the end-toend business permitting and licensing systems and procedures in English language, you would definitely appreciate not only the melody but also the step-bystep instructions transformed into the lyrics of the song. I repeat - only if you already knew the end-toend business permitting and licensing systems and procedures. On the day of the filing of income tax declaration (April 15, 2014), it was also pleasing to see BIR officers in their bright semi-neon green collared shirts with “RFP - register, file and pay” embroidered on the left breast side. The shirts and the BIR officers amazingly matched the rhythmic singsong verses of the jingle! Just like any good tax paying citizen, I went to a BIR revenue district office in Quezon City where I’ve been filing my income tax declaration for the past 2 years. Since the office is only less than a kilometer away from where I reside, I was able to reach the place at 6:30 in the morning without the real intention to be there that early. Even that early, however, I was surprised that there was already a queue of people (aka taxpayers) waiting for the office to open. We were eventually led inside the office and I figured that I was number 13 in the line. I am not being superstitious but I recalled number 13 could bring either good or bad luck. But who cares when all I needed to do was “RFP” as the song exhorts, and being in that slot was already more of a blessing rather than a mere luck. I was called by the assessment officer at 7:30 a.m. (you see, BIR officers are service oriented; they go to work much earlier than anyone of us!). To my surprise, I was told that my Tax Identification number (TIn) does not belong to that revenue district office. I was advised to do the “RFP” in a revenue district office somewhere in Pasig City where my TIn was issued to me more than a quarter of a century ago! It was explained to me that BIR is already “correcting” its database; ergo, taxpayers are being advised to file at the right revenue district office. I found myself fortunate however that – after a while – my declaration forms were stamped “received”. At exactly 8:00 a.m., I was done with my BIR transaction. Other taxpayers did not have the same fate as mine. Almost all my officemates had to spend a lot of time, effort and money travelling from one revenue district office to another just to file their tax declaration and queued again at nearby accredited-banks to pay for their tax due. Our HR Manager, who attempted to file histax declaration as early as Friday last week, was told that his TIn belongs to a revenue district office in Zamboanga where it was issued more than a decade ago! Other stories of frustration and anger borne out of confusion and disappointment reverberated in offices and even in social media for the rest of the day. Perhaps they fell in line with the wrong queuing number! Critical reforms were recently introduced by the BIR - from the forms to the receiving revenue district offices to the accredited banks. I can only assume that the intention is good, at least in the long term. While a lot might have experienced inconveniences, difficulties and glitches this year, eventually, it will bring about more gains to both the government and to all of us when we have become familiar with the system next year and henceforth. My only misgiving is the seeming inadequacy of efforts to inform the public much ahead of time. The money spent for the campaign shirts of BIR officers could have better been appropriated for leaflets or brochures for distribution to corporate employees and their offices nationwide. On a lighter side: despite the unpleasant experiences of some of us, my very dear friend still finds the “RFP” very relevant. R can stand for “rejected” because you are not in the right revenue district office; F for the “frustration” of falling in line for several hours only to find out at the end that you are in a wrong place, but P remains – that regardless of the level of your awareness of the new rules, you still have to PAY. And that is the bottomline!

10 NEWS

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

EDGEDAVAO

DCOTT... FFROM 1 to converge in the terminal yesterday. Based on their schedule of trips today, the Metro Shuttle bus will start their first trip at 4:00 a.m. and the last will be at 8:00 p.m. the Golden valley will start at 5:20 a.m. and will end at 5:00 p.m. Bachelor Tours will start at 3:00a.m. and will end at 11:00 p.m.

The Weena Bus will start transport service at 1:30 a.m. and will end at 11:a.m. for their Cotabato City trip and 4:00 p.m. for Kidapawan City. The Tacurong Bus will start at 1:00 a.m. and will end at 10:00 a.m. the Holiday Bus will start at 2:00 a.m. and end at 7:00pm. Yellow Bus Lines Aircon will start at 3:30 a.m. end at 8:00

p.m. their non-aircon bus will star at 1:30 a.m. and end at 9:00p.m. the ACF bus will start at 3:00 a.m. and end at 5:00 p.m. Bachelor Express will have their regular 24-hour trip. For Good Friday, only Bachelor Express and Tours, Rural Transit and Tours, and Philtranco signified to travel.

Duterte also assured the residents that he will raise fund for the construction of the mosques which were also razed during the incident. In an interview, Duterte said that the residents are allowed to return to their ‘occupied lots’ in the area since this the only thing that the city can give to them. “Meron tayo sa Tugbok but its too far away for them. Ang uban diha mga Badjao

tubig man na sila (live) ibutang nimo sila didto maglisud,” he said adding that they should be near to their ‘cycle of livelihood.’ The task force is still finalizing the subdivision plan as the wants include the two mosques which was not included in first plan There will be portions that needs to be resurveyed and there would and the sizes of old lots will be ‘practically’ affected.

Earlier, Duterte hinted on the possibility that the incident could be caused by a pot session as he has offered a P10, 000 reward to the person who can give information on any illegal drugs activities in the area. The Davao City Police Office reported that fire could possibly be due to a lighted candle thrown by four drug suspects in a trash bin after their ‘shabu’ session. [ABF]

he said. This is the reason why the government is considering to eliminate botika ng baranggay and non-traditional drug outlets because of the absence of licensed pharmacist. “May mga instances na

ang mga antibiotic brands ay ibinibigay at binebenta na parang candy. nagiging resistant na ang bacteria sa antibiotic because eof the usage without prescriptions ,“ he explained. Silva said that they cannot keep track on the said

ghost pharmacists because it is the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which is tasked with the monitoring. The Professional Regulation Commission can imposed the suspension or the cancellation of their license. [CRC]

At present, families are using cardboard as sleeping mats and tarpaulin as their roof but during rainy days they rushed to nearby government offices to keep themselves dry while looking at the park flooded with water. From fire victims, families become flood victims during

rainy days. Duterte earlier announced that victims can go back and rebuild their houses to the lots where they occupy before the fire happened but the City Planning and Development Office along with other offices in the city collaborate to come up with a subdi-

vision plan for the area. The plan includes the construction of wide roads to make the area more accessible in case that another incidence of fire will happen. There were also plan to build temporary shelters for the victims but there’s no identified area for it yet.

pate in the next Big Davao Fun Sale,” Ruby B. Ochoa, Abreeza Mall marketing manager said during an interview at the media forum at Club 888 at The Marco Polo Davao. “More exciting activities are expected for next years’ fun sale because we have enough time to prepare,” she said, adding that there’s more to be done on the logistic side of the event.

The country’s first and biggest month-long shopping frenzy ended with big and fun prizes. After 32 days of shopping and dining experience in seven participating major malls in the metro, the DOT 11 announced Eugene Louie C. Taming, a resident of SIR new Matina won the P100,000 grand prize. Winners of roundtrip tick-

et courtesy of SilkAir are Mary Grace T. Lapeña, Darlene n. Tan, Peter King, Rodeleen R. Bajao, Sherwin Orbeta, Mary Ann T. Tan, Liberty G. Pedida, Milagrina C. Ceros, Rodel n. Caños and Gloria Mae T. Pastrio. Ivy C. Sognilon won the summer getaway prize while winners of Iphone 5 are Howell Adrian Ong, Jose G. Beltran , Jr., Mary Antonette E. Endayon, Arlene n. Barona, and Romelyn D. Castro. Consolation prize worth 4,000 were given to Danjanrey M. Sevilla, Angeline A. Juni, Jennifer M. nutuc, George val Abad, Teofilo Dulay Jr.,Gloria Mae Pastorin, Adeliza Justo, Jerry nasser, Ecki Boy G. Lopez, and Kazzer Ronald S. Lo. The fifteen winners of mobile phones worth P2,000 are Pedro F. Fancukila, Leslie S. Dayuja, Serwin H. Daquioag, Jennifer Pabor Danlayon, Cristopher Lucero, Sherwin Orbeta, Kyrtino Eric O. Borja, Crestopher R. Linterno, Quineth Mae L. Fonteras, Timothy Suy Te, Carlos U. Tan Ma. Lourdes Godinez, Kristi Lois C. Sarabosquez, Michelle R. Andrada, and Ronnie Aragon.

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A woman fixes the crown of a large image of the Blessed Virgin Mary during an afternoon mass at San Pedro Cathedral on Holy Wednesday. Lean Daval Jr.

Pimentel eyes new agency to oversee overcrowded jails

EnATOR Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel lll on Wednesday said he would propose the creation of a new department in government to handle the major functions of the prison system so the country could decongest prisons and speed up the delivery of justice. Pimentel observed that the prison system’s major functions are split between two departments, Interior and Local Government and Justice, fostering inefficiencies that have caused jail congestion and delays in the delivery of justice. The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), which manages those that are accused of a

crime, falls under the DILG, while the Bureau of Corrections, which has jurisdiction over the convicted ones, is under the DOJ. “It will be more efficient if we have one department to manage both,” Pimentel said. The proposal was one of Pimentel’s several reform measures aims at addressing the worsening jail congestion problem. Pimentel said he would conduct a “spot-checking of BJMP prisons to ensure that there are no more overstaying prisoners.” This move, he explained, will help government decongest BJMP prisons and to give justice to overstaying prisoners.

Pimentel explained that 97 percent of BJMP detainees “are not yet convicted.” ”Justice dictates that if a detainee has already served the maximum prison term for his alleged crime, then he should be let go and set free,” he said. At the same time, he said he would propose incentives for companies that will hire ex-convicts and hasten their integration into society. “It’s a fact of life that employers would naturally choose a normal applicant over an ex-convict. By proposing incentives to companies that will hire ex-convicts, we equalize the playing field for ex-cons,” Pimentel said. [PNA]

can map out opportunities and eventually think of solutions to environmental challenges.”

For more information, contact the Ms. Prexy Macana via email through pllenro@

yahoo.com. You may also text her at 09997703143 and 09063806247.

carry as the long-occurring power outages and deficient power supply have been responded only with “band aid solutions.” He foresees that the problem on power outages would drag for a long period of time, saying that “it took even 20

years for the vizconde massacre to be finally decided by the Supreme Court.” The legal case on who should manage Daneco, whether it is Daneco-nEA faction or Daneco-CDA faction, is still on appeal by the latter at the Court of Appeals’ level and

it is yet going to the Supreme Court. Last year, Samal Island saw a 40-percent increase of tourist influx from 106,360 in 2012 to 177,382 registered tourists, reported the City Tourism Office. [Cha Monforte]

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EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

BIGGER PICTURE

Sweat up your summer! CHILL JILL

Athena Jillian Bravo

AKE some twist from your summer break. Instead of the usual beach parties, why not bring your party animal friends to a pool party this time? It sure a pool party in the city is gonna be fun this summer and if you are planning to have some then it’s the right

time to go to the Summer Sweat pool party at Garden By The Bay this April 26, 2014. Party Animal, the organizer of the event, is gearing up for some fun activities for party freaks beginning at 3 in the afternoon till dawn with DJ Paul Curato and Party Animal’s DJ Big. DJ Paul Curanto, if you don’t know him yet, is responsible for inviting international DJs to rave in the Philippines. His company, Trance Till Dawn, is the reason why a lot of those international disc jocks would like to have some fun in the country. He also plays his beats at the Time in Manila. Expect too a lot of side events such as the Beer Pong

challenge, Hunk and Gal of the night and a showdown of the best cars from Honda Fit Club Davao. This event is held in cooperation with Garden by the Bay, Phoenix Petroleum, Honda Fit Club Davao, Red Bean Caffe and Big G Sounds and Lights which also prepared some prizes for the lucky winners. There’s a lot to expect this summer and one of them is this fun event you surely would not want to miss. Afterall, summer won’t be summer at all if you will not able to dip your sunkissed skin at the pool or flaunt your sexy and hunky bodies. So, for a change, splash your summer at the pool!

7. On the day of the party, set everything up. Don’t worry too much about everything being perfect, because that will make it seem too organized, its so chill! 8. Relax when the party starts, play some cool surf music and wait for that sun to shine! Make sure you also get around and play other games and talk to different people! Hey, you could even make some new friends! 9. When night comes, don’t be sad! you don’t have school the next day! school’s out! When it gets really dark get some lights: Christmas lights or tea lights, candles, whatever! Put them everywhere! Even put some in the pool! (provided no one’s swimming). If you can, try and get a hold of some sky lanterns and light them up with your friends. Although, these can be expensive, so you can just set fire to paper instead and watch it float! 10. Once it’s really dark, that’s where the real fun begins! If you have a portable large screen projector, put it outside and watch a chick flick with your gals (or a uni-sex film when you’re with the guys!) and watch a film in the garden! With all the lights down and some candle light, its a beautiful scene! 11. Another thing you could do, after your film of course, is go for a midnight dip in the pool! However, make sure some more patio lights and pool lights are on! You don’t want someone to ruin your awesome start to summer by banging their head on the floor! 12. When you start to get sleepy, clean up anything you have to and leave the rest till the morning! if you want you could set up tent with your pals and sleep outside! Or if it’s a little chilly, head inside for some wicked midnight fun! 13. In the morning, help your buds to clean up! Make some pancakes with smoothies or milkshakes with different

sauces and toppings! Then you could go for a morning dip in the pool! Or you could play with the other games set out the day before! 14. Don’t let em’ go too soon! Go out at around noon (provided your up by then!) and spend the day in your local city or park. For you Londoners, Hyde Park or Oxford Street is the place to hit! Stay out all evening and catch a film or a movie, or hey, why not both? 15. Then, a perfect way to end the day is late night shopping with your best buddies! no one’s usually around during late night shopping, so it will be almost like having the entire mall or shopping center to yourselves! 16. Get home at a reasonable time. Call your friends parents(or

How to throw a Summer Party S

O, as summer draws even closer teens everywhere (including myself) are wondering what to do when the bell finally rings. A great way to start the summer off with a bang is with a summer party, and here’s how: 1. Decide when you want the party. no use having it at the end of summer when it’s time for school! And no use in the middle as many of your friends may be away on holiday. Instead have your party the day after you break up for summer, or on the very same day! Hey, you can even invite your friends round after school and have them sleep over! 2. Decide timings and that. Who you gonna invite? Is it going to be a mixed party? Or a girls only bash? You decide! Make sure you have plenty of friends to enjoy the day away with! 3. Get the stuff you’ll need. It’s great to have lots of other activities too! Especially if you have a smaller circular pool, not everyone will fit at the same time-depending on how many people you invite! So I always like to have a table-tennis/ ping-pong net game, basketball and volleyball all set up! Put out some other plastic toys such as bowling or sand pits! It may seem childish, but it’s a lot of fun! 4. Turn on the water! Its finally summer! Boiling hot days and cool summer nights! Get those sprinklers on, so even when your chilling in the shade - you still get that occasional spritz of mist! 5. Get lots of food! In fact - go to a store and just buy loads of food in bulk, that way it’ll keep your pals going throughout the day (and night if you’re having a sleepover) and will probably last you the whole of the week too! Remember to get drinks as well, the sun can dehydrate you quickly! 6. Decor! Grab some 99 cent balloons from you local party shop or store in different bright summery colors! Banners, confetti, it all starts here!

let them call - it would be weird if you called!) and let them know that your friends are on their way

home or are ready to be picked up. 17. Don’t stress! Great thing is, you may be sad your buddy’s

leaving, but you got the whole summer! You could have a party like this every week!

12 CLASSIFIED

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INdulge!

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EDGEDAVAO

FOOD

All is well at Maxwell I

love street food and there is no dish that is more symbolic of Singapore than its famous Chicken Rice, and there is no better place to look for some of the best Chicken Rice than at Singapore’s Maxwell Food Centre located in the heart of Singapore’s Chinatown.

Deceptively simple yet complex to the mouth, Chicken Rice is made by cooking a whole chicken in a pot of broth made of chicken and pork bones. The chicken is should be tender and juicy with a jelly-like skin and served with a chilli garlic dip as well as a fragrant ginger and spring onion side. The true secret of Chicken Rice is the reusing of the broth over and over creating a master stock which is rich and flavourful. There are a myriad of Chicken Rice hawkers at Maxwell and each one touts itself to be the best which can lead to a small problem of where to buy the best Chicken Rice. I would recommend looking for the lines that form in-front of a stall. The longer lines usually mean

Oily and delicious Char Kwai Teow. Longer queues usually mean delicious eats. Just be patient and line up.

Grass jelly and lychee.

The holy grail! Singaporean Chicken Rice. more delicious Chicken Rice. Since I arrived at Maxwell for dinner, the more famous Chicken Rice stalls are already closed as they only prepare enough for the day and usually sell out by the lunch or the afternoon but still the lines can be long so try to arrive early. Singapore is also known for its myriad of quirky iced drinks that are good counters against the hot equatorial climate. And my favourite drink to

Making sugar cane juice.

Cherishing the taste of fresh sugar cane juice.

counter the heat (and the rich and oily food) is undoubtedly the Sugar Cane Juice that is crushed fresh on the spot and served chilled. The sweet juice brings back childhood memories of having the same drink on the streets of Binondo on a hot Manila summer day. Follow me on Instagram or on Twitter @kennethkingong for more travel stories, foodie finds, and happenings in, around, and beyond Durianburg.

Inside Maxwell Food Centre.

Drinks a plenty.

EDGEDAVAO

A2 INdulge! UP AND ABOUT

Enrique, Kathryn, and Daniel take readers places in Starstudio’s Celebrity Travel Special This summer, travel takes on a fun and youthful vibe as three of today’s hottest young stars share their best travel stories and tips as starstudio presents its Celebrity Travel special featuring Enrique Gil, Kathryn Bernardo, and Daniel Padilla. Now on its 14th anniversar y and fresh from winning an award for Best Magazine at the 12th Gawad Ta n g l a w Awards, starstudio is bringing a jam-packed summer issue as this season’s treat to its readers. Apart from the three young stars on the cover, the magazine digs into the summer plans of the country’s favorite celebrities, including Robi Domingo, isabelle Daza, solenn heusaff, Anne Curtis, Vice Ganda, Ellen Adarna, JC de Vera, Meg imperial, Dominic Roque, and Miko Raval. Even husband and wife tandem Julius Babao and Tintin Bersola-Babao dish out their own travel memories complete with exclusive photos from all the places they’ve been together. This month, starstudio also goes into the recently conluded Binibining Pilipinas pageant, which celebrated a milestone upon entering its 51st year this 2014. starstudio teams up with the prestigious pageant organization in an 18-page special that features the pageant and its rich history, with fun facts about this year’s forty beautiful candidates and the preparations they went through prior to the coronation night. Also in a special feature, starstudio pays tribute to komiks classic Dyesebel, now making waves on primetime with Anne Curtis in the lead role. All this and more is in the latest issue of starstudio magazine, so grab a copy now—available at newsstands and bookstores nationwide. starstudio’s digital edition is also available on the App store and on zinio.com.

CATCH THE SPIDERMAN 2 MIDNIGHT SCREENING ON IMAX. Be the first to watch this most awaited and longest spider-man film to date. Coming to you on April 30, 2014, mid-night screening which is exclusive only in IMAX Lanang. Gates will be open starting 11:00PM. It’s will definitely be a date to remember. For tickets, call IMAX Lanang Office at (082) 285-2356.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

EVENT

Music and colors at the Fashion Edge ThIS yeAR’S SM Davao Fashion edge held last April 12 at the mall’s Parking C was just as surprising as summer rains. Pumped up with beats by DJ Gary, the first-ever outdoor Fashion edge showcased the season’s hottest summer shades. From color-blocking to prints, floral to aztec, SM Davao’s featured brands gave everyone more reasons to look forward to this season in the sun. Funky colors and playful silhouettes were showcased by Plains & Prints, Sabella, Surplus and Mags while laid back and easy styles were highlighted by The SM Store, espada, Sanuk and Levi’s. edgy and more daring designs were seen from Get Laud, Artwork and South Shores. For those with more active lifestyles, Nike Athletic Club brought out the spunk in fitness gears. There’s something interesting on the ramp for just about everyone! The fresh styling touches by the students of the Philippine Women’s College Fashion Design was a spectacle. After the show, the city’s premier dance crew Groove Unlimited

awed the crowd with their moves. It was a definitely an exciting way to cap a night of colors and music. Fashion edge 2014 was directed by Davao’s pride emi englis. The show was also made possible by yellow Cab and BonChon. For mall event inquiries, call 297.6998. Like SM City Davao on Facebook or follow @smcitydavao on Twitter and @smdavao on Instagram for event and promo updates.

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ENTERTAiNMENT

ABS-CBN clinches five New Hot or York Fest recognitions not? KAPUsO primetime king Dingdong Dantes was among the judges in this year’s GMA Network Excellence Award, the Company’s education program that recognizes student achievers in the fields of communication and engineering. “Dingdong’s passion for excellence has been proven by his outstanding achievements on and off the camera. his vast experience in the entertainment industry makes him a perfect pan-

elist for the GMA Network Excellence Award,” said Teresa Pacis, GMA AVP for Corporate Affairs. Dingd o n g recently reached another milestone when he graduated from West Negros

University in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental with a Bachelor of science degree in Business Administration, Major in Marketing M anage -

ment. he is returning on prime-

time TV via the drama series Ang Dalawang Mrs. Real, co-starring Diamond star Maricel soriano and awardwinning actress, Lovi Poe. Above photo shows Dingdong with (from left) GMA Manager for Corporate Relations Unis Loleng, GMA AVP for Corporate Affairs Teresa Pacis, and fellow judges GMA senior Program Manager for Public Affairs JM Cobarrubias and GMA senior Program Manager for Entertainment Ruth Mariñas.

We generally say that a style should highlight one feature above all, but in the case of this Brazilian beauty’s scarlet red Matthew Williamson dress, we’ll make an exception. There’s just as much to gawk at on the bottom as there is on the top, but both areas are treated with the utmost class, for a teeny-tiny dress. We’re not trying to say that Adriana doesn’t look as hot as humanly possible in this body-hugging dress, we’re just saying that she carefully dances the line between tasteful and tacky.

Dingdong serves as GMA Network Excellence Award judge KAPUsO primetime king Dingdong Dantes was among the judges in this year’s GMA Network Excellence Award, the Company’s education program that recognizes student achievers in the fields of communication and engineering. “Dingdong’s passion for excellence has been proven by his outstanding achievements on and off the camera. his vast experience in the entertainment industry makes him a perfect panelist for the GMA Network Excellence Award,” said Teresa Pacis, GMA AVP for Corporate Affairs. Dingdong recently reached another milestone when he graduated from West Negros University in Bacolod City, Negros Oc-

cidental with a Bachelor of science degree in Business Administration, Major in Marketing Management. he is returning on primetime TV via the drama series Ang Dalawang Mrs. Real,

co-starring Diamond star Maricel soriano and awardwinning actress, Lovi Poe. Above photo shows Dingdong with (from left) GMA Manager for Corporate Relations Unis Loleng, GMA

AVP for Corporate Affairs Teresa Pacis, and fellow judges GMA senior Program Manager for Public Affairs JM Cobarrubias and GMA senior Program Manager for Entertainment Ruth Mariñas.

Romantic Easter Sunday in Pepito Manaloto FEEL the romantic atmosphere this Easter sunday (April 20) as Pepito Manaloto (Michael V.) surprises his wife Elsa (Manilyn Reynes) with expensive gifts, which will surely make her happy. Through the many years of being a happilymarried couple, Pepito does not fail to make his wife feel loved with his sweet surprises. This time, he will buy her a classy designer wallet, which she does not want to use because she insists that it is only an imitation. so Pepito brings his wife to the shop where he bought the wallet for it to be authenticated. Elsa feels so glad to

find out it is really original. To further satisfy his wife’s happiness, he will also buy a luxurious bag and designer shoes for her. Will Elsa like t h e a d -

ditional gifts from Pepito? Or will she doubt the authentici t y o f

these gifts again? Meanwhile, in celebration of Easter sunday, Mimi (Nova Villa) invites Pepito’s daughter Clarissa (Angel satsumi) to the Easter Egg hunt in the village. she wants her brother Chito (Jake Vargas) to come with her but he will encounter a problem at work so he will not be able to attend the activity. Because of this, Elsa will be the one to join her in the event. Will Clarissa be able to find many Easter eggs? Be part of an extraordinary Easter sunday celebration in Pepito Manaloto: Ang Tunay na Kuwento this sunday right after Kap’s Amazing stories on GMA 7.

RIO 2 2D Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway GP

12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 | 6:00 | 8:00 | 10:00 LFS

HEAVEN IS FOR REAL 2D Greg Kinnear, Kelly Reilly GP

12:25 | 2:20 | 4:15 | 6:10 | 8:05 | 10:00 LFS

TRANSCENDENCE 2D Johnny Depp R13

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

R-16 DA POSSESSED 2D Vhong Navarro, Solenn Heusaff PG 13

12:00 | 2:30 | 5:00 | 7:30 | 10:00 LFS

EDGEDAVAO

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

FOOD

Summetime sweetness

Who said you could not indulge on sweets during the summer? The beach may be hot but once you crave for something to cheer you up or just get your adrenaline going then the best and easy remedy is something sweet on the palate! Agree? I bet you do! The metro may be big but for someone who loves a sweet dose of reality every now and then, distance is but a metered taxi away. Dining in, bringing it home or taking it to the beach, these sweet treats will surely enhance your relaxing experience. one bite and you are all set! here are some of my favorite sweet nothings for the summer, what’s yours? Cinnamon (Annie Pie) Cinnamon is that one spice that I can have in my main dish and dessert – even on my coffee. The smell is invigorating and thus inviting to the palate. This cinnamon treat is perfect – with or without a cream cheese frosting and caramel sauce, it is already enough. Despite being kept inside the fridge, the

moment you dug in, it still tastes delicious. Ube Turon (Antonio’s) A super favorite of mine, I love the crunchy outside and sweet filling on the inside of this. The smoothness of the ube compliments the sauce and the ice cream. Whenever I have this, I always end up using my hands – the balance of flavors makes me forget the fork

EDGEDavao Davao Partners

on the side.

snack. With nuts to

Budbud (Hukad) Suman in the summer? of course! The suman is not sweet, no trace of sugar; just the starchy grain feel of rice and the perfect blend of coconut milk. Drizzled with a smooth chocolate syrup, this makes this a perfect snack on a hot day. If you happen to have some sweet ripe mango, do so. enjoy!

Red Velvet and Cheesecake (Dulce Vida) Imagine biting into a two in one ultimate cake experience like no other. The rich velvety texture of red velvet and the silky

Maja Blanca (Klasikos) As the sun pricks our skin, a relaxing treat to our hungry stomach is an appropriate solution to enjoy basking under the heat. The silky smoothness taste of this maja blanca is unlike any other. Traditional, yes, but the marriage of different textures make this different and delicious with every bite. My pair? A glass of water! Bibingka (Aling Foping’s) This is not typically sweet but is something that could satisfy an after meal craving. Another personal favorite, I love how smooth and silky this bibingka is. More so, the salted egg in the middle is a treat like no other. eating this is like Christmas – you never know what to get inside. Sans Rival (Lachi’s) even tourists love this. The rich, smooth and crunchy texture of sans rival that melts in your mouth like a butter on a hot day is a perfect any day

cheese palate quenching bite of cheesecake – yes! This is possible! Best paired with tea or a cup of hot coffee, do not let the chance of tasting the best cake in the metro this summer! Be a part of Davao’s

Thursday habit! Send me your recipes, questions, suggestions and comments and be featured. Email me at leebay457@yahoo.com (subject:RoyalChef) or tag me on instagram (herroyalheiress) for your delicious pics!

13 COMMUNITY SENSE

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8 brand new Toyota cars worth P9 M for Tagum SP, police arrive By ChA MONFORTE

Correspondent At Large

IGHT brand new Toyota service vehicles bought earlier by City Mayor Allan Rellon at combined cost of more than P9 million arrived Monday morning in time of the session of the City Council.

The purchased fleet consisted of four units of Toyota Hilux 4x2/2.5, two units of Innova E 2.5, one unit of Innova J 2.5, and a Toyota Hilux J 2.5 patrol car .Toyota Tagum Tagum Branch marketing professional Marjorie

FOR sALE (Direct Buyer Only)

Asoy said in an interview that the City Hall purchased Toyota Hilux and Innova E units at “more than P1 million each”, and the Innova J unit and patrol car at “more than P900,000 each.” “Toyota gave a discount

of P10,000 for each vehicle,” or a total of P80,0000, she said. She added that her Tagum branch ordered the units from Manila. Six of the 8 units will be for the Sangguniang Pan-

NOTICE OF LOss

Notice is hereby given by LOyOLA pLANs CONsOLIDATED INC. that CERTIFICATE OF FULL pAyMENT No.(s) 21014240 under contract No. 192678-0 issued to RENEE ROsE C. LIM 59032 under contract No. 621265-8 issued to JOsEFA L. RECAÑO were lost. Any transaction entered into shall be null and void. 04/11,18,25

NOTICE OF LOss Destiny Training Center located at Silway-8, Polomolok, South Cotabato, Philippines Area: 1.5 hectares (clean title) Contact Person: Jayson Mata and Jarry Cortez Mobile numbers: 09073069070,09266173168 Telephone number:(083)301-7975 Email Ad: april23jayson@yahoo.com / jarrycortez@gmail.com website: http://www.destinytrainingcenterph.com

Notice is hereby given by LOyOLA pLANs CONsOLIDATED INC. that CERTIFICATE OF FULL pAyMENT No.(s) 84759 under LOyOLA pLAN Contract No.(s) 611999-4 issued to MINDA GUTING was lost. Any transaction entered into shall be null and void. 4/4/11/18

glungsod, while two units, the Innova J and the patrol car will be for the city police. As the number of units allocated by the mayor is short to the 10 regular and 2 ex-officio members (indigenous people and associations of barangay captains' representatives) of the City Council while the next batch of brand new vehicles would still be purchased, the SP members earlier made a consensus of assigning the 6 units “first to the last-termer and second-termer councilors as the basis, and then based on the ranking in the last elections, for the case of first-termer Councilor Eva Lorraine Estabillo," said last-termer City Councilor nicandro "nickel" Suaybaguio, Jr. “Mine would be in the next (batch). Unahon nato ang atong mga councilors,” vice Boyet “Idol” Gementiza said in separate interview. He added that the purchase of brand new vehicles is “in order and justified” considering that the City Councils members have been using old cars bought

by former City Mayor Rey “Cee O” Uy that have been running for more than eight years already. The 4 Toyota Hilux units were distributed for use of last-termer Councilors Francisco Remitar, Oscar “Doc Oca” Bermudez and Suaybaguio, and second-termer Councilor Tristan Royce “Bong” Aala, while the 2 Innova Es went to last-termer Councilor Allan Zulueta and first-termer Estabillo. The City Council last Monday made a short break of their session for the turnover the vehicle keys with Toyota Tagum marketing representatives. In the website of the Toyota Makati, the prices of the units are set at P1,142,000 to P1,196,000 for the Hilux pickups , P1,057,000 for the Innova E, and P887,000 for the Innova J. “Details of prices provided here are subject to local conditions and requirements and may, therefore, vary from models available,” the website said. - Cha Monforte, Correspondent At Large

14 SPORTS

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

Bright future for Street Child squad A

FEW days after the Philippine delegation to the 2014 Street Child World Cup arrived back home, Angelica, one of the members of the girls’ team, was seen trying out for another football club. Hailing from the Payatas area, which is infamous for its dumpsite where thousands of residents earn a living, Angelica was sweating it out against players from more affluent backgrounds for a spot in the national Under-14 girls football team. now 13, Angelica actually made it to the squad’s final training pool last year, but had to beg off because of personal reasons. “She was homesick and gave up,” said Roy Moore, Angelica’s coach at Payatas FC where she plays. “That’s the difficulty when working with kids in areas like Payatas. They’re not used to anything else; they very rarely see anything outside of it.” Moore said that Angelica then suffered from culture shock. When she made the final training pool last year, she struggled to get along with her teammates, finding it hard to immerse herself in the the unfamiliar environment. “(The national pool) tends to be English-speaking so she can’t communicate mostly with the girls,” said Moore, a

British national doing charity work in the Philippines. “The coaches are fantastic, the training is great but she cannot handle that on an emotional level.” But a year after, Angelica became more mature, according to Moore. she realized that she shouldn’t waste the opportunity again. One of the big reasons for her change of heart was her experience with Team Philippines in the Street Child World Cup in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in April. The tournament, staged on the same year as the FIFA World Cup, aims to gather street children around the world and have their voices and concerns heard through football. Mostly composed of young orphans and scavengers, Team Philippines made headlines during the competition. The girls’ team swept all of its matches before bowing to the powerhouse hosts in the final. The boys’ team was also successful, reaching the quarterfinals only to lose to Pakistan in penalties and becoming the only squad to beat eventual champion Tanzania. The Team Philippines’ run was undoubtedly impressive, a perfect Cinderella story for a team composed of children coming from difficult backgrounds. But for Moore, who also coached Team Philippines, the squad’s success does

VICTORIOUS. Members of the Street Child World Cup team of the Philippines whoop it up after making it to the finals against host Brazil. not end there. “That is the difference between Street Child World Cup and the other tournaments,” Moore said. “Obviously in the normal international competition, you separate yourselves so you can professionally play against each other. “In the Street Child World Cup, it’s much more about the experience, (it’s) more (about

how) you can (give) back to your country rather than the fight on the pitch.” Angelica, for one, has gone a long way since she started playing football. Her father earns a living as a garbage truck driver, and she used to accompany him by picking up trash from the street and putting it into the back of the truck.

When she was four, Angelica damaged her skull after falling on an iron bar. But the side effects of her accident only showed up until she was nine when she suffered headaches and had difficulty communicating. After a year of treatment, Angelica fully recovered and started playing football. She

recounted her fond memories of playing against different countries in the Street Child World Cup. “Masaya kasi marami po kami naging kaibigan. Masaya po kasi isa po ako sa mga napiling representative ng Pilipinas,” she said. “Konting kaba lang kasi ‘di po natin alam kung ano kakalabasan ng laro.”

the Pacers locked up homecourt advantage through the conference finals. ‘’We can really focus on basketball and focus on our other goal.’’ That would be winning a title, and home-court advantage should help Indiana after it had an nBA-best 35-6 home record this season. The next quest begins this weekend when Atlanta comes to town for a best-of-seven playoff series for the second straight year. But it was a rugged path getting here, something George was reminded of Wednesday. Exactly one year ago, he and three of his teammates stood at the finish line of the

Boston Marathon before leaving to get some food. About 30 minutes later, two bombs went off. ‘’We were right there,’’ George said as expressed condolences to the people of Boston on the one-year anniversary of the tragedy. ‘’That day could have turned out bad for all of us.’’ Instead, George and the Pacers went on to a successful playoff run - beating the Knicks in the second round and pushing Miami to seven games in the conference finals. They returned this season with one regular-season goal - to make sure they would host Game 7 instead of playing

points. Anthony had an MRI exam Tuesday that revealed a torn labrum in his right shoulder. He won’t play Wednesday against Toronto, the final game of the first season in his 11-year career that won’t end with a playoff berth - and potentially his last as a member of the Knicks. He has said he will become a free agent in July. Marcus Thornton scored 24 points for the nets, who weren’t sharp despite playing starters Paul Pierce, Kev-

in Garnett, Deron Williams and Joe Johnson. The other starter, Shaun Livingston, remained sidelined with a sprained right big toe. The nets still have a magic number of one for finishing fifth. But they could fall to no. 6 if they lose Wednesday in Cleveland and Washington beats Boston. The Knicks would be in the playoffs themselves if they played against everyone else the way they did against the nets while winning three romps.

Pacers rest three starters I

nDIAnAPOLIS (AP) -- The Pacers finally have a chance to relax. With nothing at stake Wednesday night in Orlando, coach Frank vogel plans to rest three of his starters and limit the minutes for the other two. Players and coaches are smiling again, and the stress of 5 1/2 grinding months of tracking standings and scores seems to have vanished, literally overnight. It’s a welcome respite for the Eastern Conference’s top playoff seed. ‘’I think now it’s time to just play basketball,’’ All-Star starter Paul George said Tuesday, less than 24 hours after

Sans Melo, Knicks roll past Nets n

DRIVING THROUGH. Indiana Pacers forward Paul George (24) cuts in front of Oklahoma City Thunder guard Thabo Sefolosha as he drives the lane in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis. The Pacers defeated the Thunder 102-97. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

EW YORK (AP) -- Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 16 points and the new York Knicks, playing without the injured Carmelo Anthony, beat the Brooklyn nets 109-98 on Tuesday night to win the season series between city rivals. The Knicks prevented the nets from clinching the no. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs and won their third straight in their too-little, too-late strong finish. Amare Stoudemire and J.R. Smith each added 14

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

SPORTS 15 SPORTS

THE CHAIRMAN. File photo shows Hermie Martin, chairman of the organizing committee of the 9th Pomelo Tee Invitational Golf tournament set on May 1-4 at the RPVGCC in Mandug. (Photo by Tommy Iñigo/SCOOP Davao)

POMELO TEE. Modesto “Ting” Castillo gives details of the 9th Pomelo Tee Invitational Golf tournament slated on May 1-4 at the RPVGCC during the SCOOP Session at The Royal Mandaya Hotel last Tuesday. At left is Dr. Josephine Guevarra. (Boy Lim)

Huge field in RPV’s 9th Pomelo Tee A

BIG cast composed of around 400 golfers will see action in the 9th Pomelo Tee Invitational Golf Tournament slated on May 1 to 4 at the scenic Rancho Palos verdes Golf and Country Club. This was bared by Modesto “Ting” Castillo, spokesman of the organizing RPvGCC, at the SCOOP Session of The Royal Mandaya Hotel last Tuesday. Also present at the weekly public service sports forum sponsored by TRMH, Genesis 88, Mulatto Outdoor Apparel, Beefit Gym Edge Outdoor was

tournament coordinator Philip Daytic. The 4-day annual biggest golfing event in Davao City is presented by RPvGCC, Phoenic Petroleum Phils. Inc., Sta. Lucia Realty and Development, Mitsubishi Motors Phils. and KarAsia Inc. “This is a 36-hole team and individual competition,” said Castillo. Each team shall be composed of two players with one player a bonafide club member and an invited guest player. A club member can have a maximum of two teams but

can only play a maximum of 36 holes. Registration fee is P3,500 per player with lots of exciting giveaways and fabulous raffle prizes. A Mulligan fee of P500 is available for two days. Prizes will be awarded to the over-all team gross and net champions, gross and net first to third runners-up, overall Class A, B, C and D gross and net champions, first to second runners-up, Ladies gross and net champions and runners-up. Fabulous prizes will be given away during the award-

ing night on May 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the clubhouse. The hole-in-one prizes are the P750,000 cash at hole nos. 2 and 11, a brand new motorcycle from Emcor Davao at all par 3s, a brand new car from KarAsia at all par 3s, a Class A golf share from RPvGCC in all par 3s, and a round-trip from the Royale Caribbean Cruise Ship in all par 3s. For more inquiry, call tel. nos. 301-2101 or 301-2102 or 09228632003 (Philip Daytic) or 0932-8442809 (Arlene Chua). – SCOOP DAvAO/ LDR

ly public service sports forum sponsored by TRMH, Genesis 88, Mulatto Outdoor Apparel, Beefit Gym Edge Outdoor were directors Hector Barnes and Alvin Matus. The categories are the 5K, 10K and 15K for the registration fees of P100, P250 and P350. The 5K runners will get a race bib, while the 10K registrants will get a race bib and a Phoeix nBA sports bottle. The 15K runners will each geet a finisher’s medal, refreshments and

race bid. Registration center is at the Toby’s Abreeza Mall, 2nd level from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. “This event is also part of the Davao City Summer Sports for Peace Festival,” said Matus. It is held in cooperation with the SM Lanang Premier, Phoenix Petroleum, nakashin Davao International, John Paul II College of Davao, Hundredfolds Industries Corp. and the City Sports Development Division-City Mayor’s Office.

The 5K runners will turn back after reaching the crossing gasoline station at Lanang near Alcantara while the 10K runners will have their turning point at the old Davao airport in Sasa. “The 15K runners, however, will have a more challenging turning point because they will have to climb the stais of the overpass at the Km. 11 in Sasa,” said Barnes. Team Titans Davao headed by its president Dr. Ric Audan is eyeing to get 1,000 runners. – SCOOP DAvAO / LDR

Trainer Roach happy with Manny’s performance Freddie Roach

Run with the Titans 2 set April 27 L T

HE Run with the Titans Season 2 is slated on April 27 in an out and back course at the SM Lanang Premiere Fountain Court. “This is for the benefit of the Matigsalog children of malikongkong and Hospice Palliative Care of Southern Philippines Medical Center,” said Shiela Barnes, secretry of the organizing Team Titans Davao at the SCOOP Session of The Royal Mandaya Hotel last Tuesday. Also present at the week-

TITANS. Hector Barnes, Alvin Matus, and Sheila Barnes announce the Run with the Titans Season 2 during the SCOOP Forum at The Royal Mandaya Hotel. Boy Lim

OS AnGELES - newly-crowned World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao’s chief trainer Freddie Roach expressed satisfaction over the way his pupil of 13 years disposed off erstwhile unbeaten Timothy Bradley in their grudge rematch last Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las vegas. “Manny fought very, very well according to fight plans,”Roach told this writer Monday at his Wild Card Boxing Gym in the entertainment capital of Hollywood, Caifornia. “There was no knockout as everybody wanted, but just the same, it was a well-fought match and the best man who should be wearing that crown won.” The 30-year-old Palm Springs former titleholder, according to Roach, had improved a lot since his ward was dethroned via a questionable split decision almost two years ago, reason why Pacquiao, the only man to crown himself world champion in eight different divisions found it hard to pin him. “Bradley has not been knocked out in his life. He came from strong victories against Ruslan (Provodnikov) and (Juan Manuel) Marquez, so he really was expected to make a brave stand against Manny,” Roach reasoned out. “Manny, as everyone saw, dominated from the fifth round on. He fought as we wanted him

to, which to me was enough to prove to the whole world that he’s the real champion who should have been defending the title that night,” the Hall of Fame boxing guru assessed. “I’m happy because Manny showed he’s far from over as, few believe he is and that he will continue pursuing to win back the respect, admiration of the entire boxing community and the reputation taken away from him with that stupid split decision loss two years ago,” he remarked. “As we planned, he came out smokin’ from the opening bell on, punching in all the 12 rounds,” the five-time trainer of the year recalled. “He had Bradley in trouble a couple of times. He tried to finish him but, remember, Bradley weighed 160 pounds at fight night as compared to Manny’s 149 or a difference of 11 pounds.” “Manny hurt him several times, starting in the fifth round, but as I said, fighters are creatures of habit. When they get hurt, they revert to who they are. It’s Bradley’s habit that when in trouble, run, and that’s exactly what he did. But Manny was prepared for that as he continued pursuing him, cutting the ring and cornering Bradley in the rope where he punished him with, at several occasions, as many as a dozen unanswered shots that all found their marks,” Roach analyzed.

16 EDGEDAVAO Sports

VOL. 7 ISSUE 24 • THURSDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 17-19, 2014

COMMENTARy

Manny’s transition “The things I used to do; some I won’t do no more.” -- Guitar Slim

HEn ESPn’s Bernardo Osuna asked Manny Pacquiao about the right-hand rocket from Timothy Bradley Jr. that staggered him in the fourth round, Pacquiao grinned mischievously and rubbed his jaw. “I saw stars,” he said without a hint of compunction. nine out of 10 boxers in similar circumstances would have denied being hurt. But Pacquiao is so comfortable in his skin that he just laughed and told the truth. Although Pacquiao stayed on his feet this time, when your life is a high-wire act, there are bound to be falls. It’s the price you pay for the view from the top. Pacquiao has experienced life to the max, reaped the whirlwind and come out the other side hungry for more. His unanimous decision victory in Saturday’s rematch with Bradley not only righted a wrong, it further reinforced his standing as arguably the most unique boxer of his generation. Dos Equis’ “Most Interesting Man in the World” is just a fantasy figure portrayed by actor Jonathan Goldsmith, part of a clever marketing campaign to link a product to a practically unobtainable lifestyle. Pacquiao, on the other hand, is as real as it gets, and he is the most interesting man I’ve covered during more than 40 years on the boxing beat. From superstar boxer and Philippines congressman to mega-pitchman and philanthropist, there are few things Pacquiao hasn’t experienced during the first 35 years of his life. Like the imaginary beer salesman, Pacquiao has kept company with a bevy of exotic beauties and survived hair-raising feats of derring-do. Although he’s never shot a cue ball out of the mouth of a man lying on a pool table, PacMan is an accomplished stickman who has been known to play billiards from sundown to sunrise. Then there’s breeding fighting cocks, making cheesy movies, a karaoke-style singing career, a sitcom called “Show Me Da Manny” and a Tv giveaway show called “Manny Many Prizes.” All of the ancillary activities are rooted in Pacquiao’s boxing success, and now he is attempting the most difficult challenge of his fighting career: a metamorphosis from whirlwind knockout artist to savvy boxer. It’s a transformation only the very best can ac-

complish, but when they are successful, it can extend their careers and keep them winning well past the point where sticking with their original style would have sent them prematurely shuffling off to Palookaville. When he could no longer float like a butterfly, Muhammad Ali came up with the rope-a-dope and other stalling tactics to preserve his energy. Bernard Hopkins understood that he was getting too old to punch it out with the best young studs in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions and figured out a way to win by taking away what his opponents did best. Marco Antonio Barrera held off Father Time for a handful of lucrative years by ditching his macho style and using his neglected boxing skills. It’s simply a matter of adaptation or extinction, and Pacquiao shows every indication he’s striving for the former. The pundits who claimed his knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez would send Pacquiao into a debilitating funk badly underestimated his strength of character. Pacquiao shrugged off the Marquez and Bradley defeats as just “part of boxing.” At the highest level, boxers are all fairly equal in ability, and the fighter with the strongest character usually wins. That’s why Mike Tyson could never beat Evander Holyfield, no matter how many times they fought. Despite his formidable physical presence and frightening persona, Tyson was never really able to overcome adversity and never came from behind to win. Pacquiao is made of sterner stuff, a quality that played a substantial role in the Bradley rematch. It’s a mindset of which the seeds were planted long before he ever pulled on a pair of boxing gloves. Bradley’s father trained his son to be a boxer, and a damned good one at that. Pacquiao’s father ate Manny’s dog and deserted the family. Bradley might have had only $12 in his bank account when he flew to England and beat Junior Witter, but Pacquiao stowed away on a freighter when he left Mindanao, arrived in Manila penniless and was temporarily reduced to living on the streets. It was Pacquiao’s emotional resiliency that helped him survive both those turbulent teenage years and Bradley’s fourth-round shot. Conversely, when it dawned on Bradley that gunning for the knockout wasn’t going to

work, he seemed almost paralyzed with indecision and never really found his groove again. Pacquiao, on the other hand, has “seen stars” before and did what he’s always done in such circumstances. “Manny seems to only get serious when he’s in trouble,” said Ted Lerner, a Philippines-based American journalist. “He buckles down, focuses like a laser and comes back to thrash his opponent. Back in the day, he came off the floor to stop nedal Hussein and Serikzhan Yeshmagambetov and rallied back to win after Oscar Larios almost took his head off with a left hook.” In a prefight column, I mentioned that it could be to Pacquiao’s benefit if he was rocked early, as it might awaken the sleeping tiger within. And that’s what happened. Bradley’s fourth-round right sent Pacquiao stumbling back a step or two, and as soon as he could clear his head, the tiger emerged from his lair. It was not, however, the same old tiger that ripped opponents to shreds in days gone by. It was, instead, a calculating predator, dangerous enough to get the job done but careful enough to avoid costly mistakes. It is fair to say that Pacquiao has lost some of the pop behind his punches, but judging by the semicomatose look in Bradley’s eyes as he floundered around the ring on unsteady legs, the Filipino’s blows were far from inconsequential. As in his previous bout with Brandon Rios, Pacquiao’s footwork and underrated boxing skills were as much responsible for his success as the 198 punches he landed. The reason Bradley was still standing at the end was a credit to his toughness and courage, not an indictment of Pacquiao’s punching power. As expected, there were dozens of postfight stories that honored Pacquiao’s unanimous decision victory but also went to considerable lengths to point out

that he didn’t score a knockout and that he’s not what the used to be. Of course he’s not what he used to be. Who is?

Those hoping see the old, maniacal Manny are doomed to disappointment and would be better served falling back on their video collections. The salient fact is

that Pacquiao has learned to modify his style in a manner befitting a fighter who is no longer in his physical prime. That he could still vanquish a younger man, widely considered to be among the top five pound-for-pound fighters in the world, is proof beyond a shadow of a doubt that the fire in his belly still smolders. He just turned down the thermostat a tad to prevent catching himself on fire. Pacquiao’s uncanny knack of eluding calamity and roadblocks extends beyond the ring. It was virtually unprecedented when he escaped the grasp of the late Rod nazario, who managed Pacquiao throughout most of his early career and brought him to America. nazario was a powerful force in Filipino boxing, and his wife was a Supreme Court justice. In the Philippines’ feudal culture, a street urchin like Pacquiao would normally have stayed under the thumb of a figure of nazario’s stature his entire career. And how about the way Pacquiao somehow skirted disaster after he took Oscar De La Hoya’s bag of money while already under contract with Bob Arum? Such chutzpah! no wonder he continues to confound critics. Some would say Pacquiao has led a charmed life, but that

would ignore t h e a d versity that molded him and his willingness to take tremendous risks without a second thought. The big difference is that from now on they will be calculated risks. But don’t think for a moment that his fights will become an elaborate game of tag. To paraphrase Dos Equis’ Most Interesting Man in the World, Pacquiao’s recent performances clearly say: “I don’t always brawl anymore, but when I do, the guy in the other corner wishes I didn’t.” Stay thirsty, Manny. Image From the Internet